Hidden Love

"……"

Sang Zhi stared at him in silence for a long moment, seemingly feeling wronged. After holding it in for ages, she finally managed to blurt out: "No wonder your shop has no business."

Duan Jiaxu: "Hmm?"

Sang Zhi pushed the money toward him, clearly unwilling to pay a single cent more. Her little face was extremely serious as she firmly uttered two more words: "Rip-off joint."

Duan Jiaxu found it amusing: "Charging you one extra yuan makes this a rip-off joint?"

Sang Zhi kept a straight face: "I didn’t peek at you."

"Alright." Duan Jiaxu picked up the money from the table. "It was my nonsense."

Sang Zhi glanced at him but didn’t say anything more, turning to go back to her seat.

Before she could take two steps, Duan Jiaxu called out from behind her: "Wait a moment."

Sang Zhi paused and looked back: "What?"

Duan Jiaxu: "Come here."

Sang Zhi looked suspicious and didn’t really want to go over. But he just stood there quietly watching her, as if certain she would come, treating her like a dog that could be summoned and dismissed at will.

After hesitating for a while, Sang Zhi reluctantly walked over and asked again: "What?"

"Would I really take your money?" The counter was about a meter high. Duan Jiaxu bent down, reached across the table to grab her wrist, and stuffed the money back into her hand. "Keep it to buy yourself some candy."

Sang Zhi was taken aback.

He had already withdrawn his hand.

Behind the cash register was a large prep table with various ingredients laid out. After speaking, Duan Jiaxu turned around, took out two clean bowls, and began preparing the desserts.

Sang Zhi quietly put the money back in her pocket.

Why does he always do this?

Slap you, then give you a candy.

And yet, she never seemed able to refuse it.

She would stubbornly argue with him over his "slap," only to very awkwardly accept the "candy" afterward.

Returning to her seat, Yin Zhenru leaned in, this time lowering her voice to a whisper as she confided: "Sang Zhi, is your brother’s friend treating both of us?"

Sang Zhi nodded: "Seems so."

"Hehe, that’s great." Yin Zhenru was delighted. "After buying gifts, I hardly have any pocket money left. I still want to buy some points for MapleStory—there’s a new hat that’s super cute."

"How much have you spent already?"

"It’s just so pretty."

Knowing Sang Zhi wasn’t interested in this, Yin Zhenru changed the subject: "By the way, Fu Zhengchu just messaged me on QQ asking where we were, so I told him."

"Oh."

"He said he’s here too and will come find us first. Liu Weiqi is with him."

Sang Zhi: "Why don’t they go book a room first?"

Yin Zhenru: "It’s only noon now. That KTV doesn’t open rooms until 1 p.m. They said they’ve already called to reserve one and will meet up with us first, then we can all go have lunch together."

"Who else is coming?"

"Probably a few others from their class." Yin Zhenru said. "But those guys are coming directly to the KTV after 1 p.m."

Just then, Duan Jiaxu brought over two bowls of dessert. Hearing this, he raised an eyebrow slightly, his peach blossom eyes sweeping over them as he casually asked: "Going to sing karaoke?"

Yin Zhenru immediately fell silent.

Sang Zhi nodded.

Duan Jiaxu didn’t say much else, only advising: "Go to a proper one. Remember to head home before it gets dark, and don’t stay out too late."

His tone sounded as if he was disciplining her on Sang Yan’s behalf, even though Sang Yan himself hardly ever bothered to control her.Sang Zhi let out an understanding "oh."

After he left, Yin Zhenru leaned in again and said, "Why does your brother's friend talk just like my dad? He said the same thing to me before I went out."

Sang Zhi fully agreed with her: "My dad said the same thing to me too."

"..."

Before they were even halfway through their meal, Fu Zhengchu and Liu Weiqi arrived.

Sang Zhi actually didn't see these two very often. Now that she got a good look at them, she realized they seemed to have grown taller again. Dressed in casual clothes, they looked like little adults.

Yin Zhenru put down her spoon and said with a grin, "The birthday boy is here."

Fu Zhengchu rubbed his nose.

Liu Weiqi, covered in sweat, was the first to sit down next to Yin Zhenru: "Hurry up and finish, I'm starving. Or maybe we should just go next door to KFC instead."

Yin Zhenru: "I can't afford KFC."

With two more people in the narrow shop, it immediately became livelier.

Yin Zhenru ate very quickly and had already finished long ago. The other three were all waiting for Sang Zhi. Hearing Yin Zhenru and Liu Weiqi bicker, she sped up her eating.

Seeing that Sang Zhi had finished, Yin Zhenru handed her a tissue: "Let's go."

Sang Zhi nodded.

The two boys stood up first and went outside. Yin Zhenru linked arms with Sang Zhi, wanting to pull her along.

When passing by the cash register, Sang Zhi seemed to remember something. She stopped walking and withdrew her hand from Yin Zhenru's arm: "You go wait for me outside first."

Hearing this, Yin Zhenru glanced at Duan Jiaxu and said understandingly: "Alright, be quick."

Then she went out.

Duan Jiaxu was sitting on a chair playing with his phone, one foot propped up on the side of the chair in a casual posture. Seeing her approach, he put his phone down and asked with interest, "What does the kid want to say to your big brother?"

Sang Zhi hesitated for a few seconds before asking directly: "Brother, are you short of money?"

Not expecting her to ask this, Duan Jiaxu smiled: "Hmm? What's up?"

"Last time we went for barbecue, Brother Qian Fei said you were doing tutoring work nearby too," Sang Zhi said quietly. "And today I saw you working here again."

Duan Jiaxu stared at her without speaking, remaining completely quiet.

His gaze was somewhat inscrutable, impossible to read his emotions.

Sang Zhi inexplicably began to feel nervous and swallowed: "Aren't you going home?"

"Yeah, a little."

This seemed to be answering her previous question.

But Sang Zhi was a bit slow to react, letting out a delayed "ah."

"Go play," Duan Jiaxu's expression was casual, as if he didn't take the matter seriously at all. "Your little friends are still waiting."

After saying this, he turned around and started washing things at the sink.

After a while, just when Duan Jiaxu thought Sang Zhi had already left, a crisp "Goodbye, brother!" suddenly sounded from behind him, followed by the sound of light running footsteps fading away.

Duan Jiaxu wiped the table clean with a cloth and glanced back.

His gaze fixed on the table.

On the table was a stack of money - aside from what he had just returned to her, it seemed she had added quite a bit more. At the very bottom was a red hundred-yuan bill pressed down, with various ten and five-yuan notes stacked above it.

On the very top were six or seven one-yuan coins holding everything down, along with two fifty-cent coins.

Everything looked neatly arranged.

As if she had placed her entire fortune here.Duan Jiaxu was stunned for a long while. After a moment, he hesitantly reached out and poked the stack of coins. The coin tower immediately collapsed, scattering across the table.

His eyebrows lifted slightly, and he suddenly burst out laughing.

What was going on?

This time, it really felt like... a sense of guilt from swindling a child's money?

Sang Zhi truly hadn't kept a single cent for herself and had to borrow money from Yin Zhenru to buy lunch. When she had no money, being around a group of not-so-familiar classmates made her feel somewhat insecure.

At five in the afternoon, the group was singing happily at the KTV. Sang Zhi held a cup of tea, her ears aching from the noise. After hesitating for a long time, she finally said to Yin Zhenru, "Yin Zhenru, I'm planning to go home."

Yin Zhenru didn't hear clearly and looked up, "What did you say?"

Sang Zhi had to raise her voice, "I said I'm going home!"

At that moment, the song's climax had just ended, transitioning into an instrumental section. Her voice suddenly stood out.

Everyone instinctively turned to look in her direction.

Soon, the music started again, breaking the tense atmosphere.

The others didn't pay much attention to her words. Only Fu Zhengchu came over and sat next to her, "Sang Zhi, are you leaving?"

"Yeah," Sang Zhi said, "My dad wants me home before it gets dark."

After a moment's thought, she added, "Happy birthday."

Fu Zhengchu fell silent for a few seconds before saying, "Should I walk you to the bus stop?"

"Why? The bus stop is right downstairs," Sang Zhi gave him a strange look and stood up, "Just stay here. I'm leaving."

She turned to say goodbye to a few people nearby and left the KTV.

Sang Zhi took out her student bus card from her bag.

The KTV was on the fifth floor of the shopping mall, while the dessert shop where Duan Jiaxu worked was on the fourth floor. When she reached the fourth floor on the escalator, her footsteps paused.

Suddenly, Fu Zhengchu's voice came from behind her, "Why did you stop?"

"..."

Sang Zhi was startled and immediately turned around, feeling as if she'd been caught doing something wrong. She snapped angrily, "Why are you following me?"

"I'm not following you," Fu Zhengchu looked embarrassed, "I just came out for some fresh air."

"Oh," Sang Zhi continued downward, "Then get your fresh air. Goodbye."

Fu Zhengchu still followed her, "I'll walk with you since I'm here."

Sang Zhi couldn't be bothered with him anymore.

"By the way," Fu Zhengchu scratched his head, trying to make conversation, "Did you know there's a placement test at the start of next semester?"

Sang Zhi nodded, "I heard you improved in the final exam."

"..."

"You ranked fifth from the bottom in our grade?"

Fu Zhengchu felt embarrassed and reluctantly said, "I fell asleep during the exam."

Seeing him like this, Sang Zhi thought for a moment. She recalled how he'd told her on the bus, "Next time I'll get first place for fun," and how he'd said he was called to the principal's office because he wasn't paying attention in class, when in fact he had requested his parents be called.

She suddenly asked, "Are you actually quite insecure?"

Fu Zhengchu: "?"

"It's not really a big deal. Mainly, I don't see you studying much. If you put in the effort, your grades should improve," Sang Zhi said, "You just need to stop being so lazy and focus on studying. No need to feel insecure."

"Sang Zhi," After being bombarded with all this, Fu Zhengchu finally couldn't take it anymore, "I don't believe you can't tell."

Sang Zhi paused, "Tell what?"Fu Zhengchu didn't speak.

"What can't be seen?" Thinking of Yin Zhenru's words, Sang Zhi hesitantly asked, "Is it about you having a crush on Yin Zhenru?"

"..."

Fu Zhengchu nearly choked on his breath.

Calming his breathing, he said through gritted teeth, "Who told you that?"

Sang Zhi replied innocently, "I guessed."

Fu Zhengchu: "Can you stop making wild guesses?"

Sang Zhi was baffled: "Then it can't be that you have a crush on me, right?"

Fu Zhengchu stared at her expressionlessly and, throwing caution to the wind, said, "Why can't it be?"

"..."

Sang Zhi's expression finally shifted: "Huh?"

The young man, full of youthful arrogance, used the most defiant tone to utter the most timid words: "What if—I mean what if! What if I did have a crush on you, what would you do about it!"

"..."