Zhаng Lurаng lооked at hеr ехрrеssionlessly.
Аftеr a long mоment, he sаid sоftlу, "Yоu shоuld gо back."
"..."
Su Zаizai immediately chаngеd the subjеct.
"Lеt mе tеll уou, Jiаng Jiа аnd Guаn Нan аre togethеr nоw."
"Hmm."
"Тhey both еnded up in Sсiencе Сlаss 12."
"..."
"I'vе nеvеr еxpеriеncеd whаt it's likе to bе in the sаmе class аs уou," Su Zаizai said gloоmily.
He lооkеd ovеr at her.
Su Zaizаi liftеd hеr lips аnd bеgаn tеlling him thе fаntasiеs shе'd beеn imagining in hеr mind.
"I want to bе yоur dеsk mаte, thеn рrеtеnd to borrow а pen from you аnd take the сhancе to tоuсh yоur hand."
"..."
"Or, pretend to drop my pen, and when I bend down to pick it up, accidentally brush against your leg."
The more Su Zaizai thought about it, the more she felt these flirting methods were good.
She asked delightedly, "Are my methods easier for winning you over?"
Zhang Lurang fell silent for a moment before saying seriously, "I might call the police."
Su Zaizai was instantly at a loss for words.
Looking at his serious expression, she almost laughed in frustration.
But then she thought about the future.
The same university, the same direction moving forward.
Su Zaizai's mind wandered as she asked softly, "Lùràng, will we always be together?"
She felt her liking was too intense.
As if it could burn for a lifetime without ever being extinguished.
Hearing this, Zhang Lurang was momentarily stunned.
Their eyes met.
Su Zaizai saw him curve his lips slightly as he whispered, "We will."
Do you know?
It's not just that you can't leave him.
He can't leave you either.
After finishing the cake, Su Zaizai still didn't want to go home.
Resting her chin in her hand, she asked, "So the next time you come back will be during winter break, right?"
"Hmm," he responded quietly.
"But winter break includes New Year's too, so that's less than half a month."
Thinking about this, her mood immediately dropped considerably.
Zhang Lurang didn't know what to say either.
After a while.
Su Zaizai grumbled discontentedly, "Long-distance right after getting together, my luck really is..."
"..."
"Are there any pretty girls at your school?" she asked.
Zhang Lurang thought seriously for a moment. "I don't know."
Su Zaizai widened her eyes, accusing him, "You actually said 'I don't know'? Shouldn't you immediately say 'no'? No matter how beautiful someone standing before you is, you should think I'm the prettiest."
Zhang Lurang looked at her, his eyes holding an unidentifiable emotion.
As if struggling with how to respond.
After a moment, he lowered his head.
Not daring to look at her.
"I like you."
Su Zaizai's heart skipped a beat.
Before she could get excited, she heard Zhang Lurang continue:
"Not because of your face."
"..."
Why did she feel that after the great beauty returned to B City,
he seemed less simple and cute than before.
Su Zaizai didn't want to speak anymore either.
Zhang Lurang sighed and took the initiative to speak. "You need to study hard."
"...Oh." The head teacher was back.
"Next semester is the academic proficiency test, don't neglect your science subjects anymore."
"Hmm." Su Zaizai began to respond perfunctorily.
He fell silent.
It was probably a few minutes later.
"I can't stop worrying," he murmured.
After finishing the last sip of milk tea, the two stood up and began walking home.
Outside, the weather suddenly turned gloomy.
Large clusters of dark clouds gathered together, thick and dense, as if a storm was brewing.Seeing this, Su Zaizai couldn't be bothered to keep holding the umbrella either.
Walking beside Zhang Lurang, she said with a grin, "Lurang, do you remember the first time we met?"
"...Mm."
"What were you thinking back then?"
Well... what was it like to be scolded by her the first time they met?
It didn't seem like he had treated her badly because of it.
Zhang Lurang didn't answer.
Su Zaizai suddenly laughed and said, "I think you were probably thinking at the time..."
He turned his head, patiently waiting for her next words.
"How to seduce me."
Zhang Lurang seemed completely unable to understand how she had come to that conclusion.
He immediately frowned and said word by word, "Don't talk nonsense."
Su Zaizai shamelessly replied, "What nonsense am I talking?"
"..."
"You practically held up a sign telling me to hurry up and like you, then chase after you." The more Su Zaizai thought about it, the more sense it made. "You're so lucky, doing nothing and still getting a beautiful wife."
Zhang Lurang didn't say anything, letting her imagine whatever she wanted.
"Why can't I look like the kind of person you'd fall in love with at first sight?" She suddenly felt a bit regretful.
He suddenly smiled.
Reaching out to ruffle her hair, he said:
"This is just fine."
The two walked into the residential area.
Seeing a pair of twins passing by, Su Zaizai suddenly remembered the photo she had seen on Weibo earlier.
While opening her phone, she asked, "Lurang, do you have an older brother?"
Zhang Lurang shook his head: "No."
Su Zaizai immediately lost the desire to show him that photo.
After a while.
Zhang Lurang continued, "I only have a younger brother, one year younger than me."
Hearing this, Su Zaizai became interested.
"You have a younger brother?"
"Mm."
"Do you two look alike?"
Zhang Lurang thought for a moment, not too sure either.
"Probably quite similar."
"Is his personality similar too?" Su Zaizai continued asking, loving the house and its crow.
This time he answered quickly: "No."
Su Zaizai wanted to ask more.
Zhang Lurang took the initiative to say, "His personality is very good."
Bright and positive, like sunshine.
Not like him, solitary and quiet.
Su Zaizai blinked and said seriously, "You're very good too."
Zhang Lurang didn't say anything.
As if the atmosphere had suddenly cooled.
Su Zaizai half-joked, "Which of you two is better looking?"
He still answered quickly.
"My brother."
Su Zaizai humphed and corrected him.
"My Lurang is the best looking."
He suddenly lowered his head, a smile curving his lips.
Seeing this, Su Zaizai continued praising him.
"So beautiful it makes people lose their minds."
Zhang Lurang laughed out loud.
Then, he seriously admitted it.
"Mm."
Chapter 37
I like her.
I don't know why she likes me.
But I'm very happy that she can like me.
I will always be good to her.
—Zhang Lurang
Zhang Lurang booked a flight back for Saturday morning.
Before leaving, he gave Su Zaizai a set of practice tests.
—2014 Science Comprehensive Academic Proficiency Test
Su Zaizai was stunned: "So where's the jelly?"
Seeing her about to explode, Zhang Lurang licked his lips and explained seriously, "Eating too much jelly isn't good either. Finish these questions and I'll be back."
At the same time, Su Zaizai saw the huge "20" on the cover.
Twenty sets.
Each set includes physics, chemistry, and biology.Each subject had sixty multiple-choice questions, making a total of one hundred and eighty across three subjects.
She fell silent for a moment, then casually tossed out a sentence.
"You don’t want to see me again, do you?"
Zhang Lurang: "..."
"And also..." Su Zaizai counted on her fingers, "there are still eight months until the academic proficiency test. Even if I write them now, I’ll have forgotten everything by then."
He pursed his lips and said coldly, "You need at least a C in all three subjects to get into a first-tier university."
Su Zaizai didn’t care at all: "There’s no way I can’t even score fifty points, right? They’re all multiple-choice questions! I’ll answer twenty correctly and guess ten more, and I’ll have fifty. How hard can it be?"
"...The point values are different."
It wasn’t that getting thirty questions right would guarantee fifty points.
He didn’t say that out loud.
Su Zaizai tore open the transparent wrapping paper and pulled out the test papers.
She lowered her eyes and flipped through them casually.
She still didn’t think it was difficult.
Su Zaizai was a bit puzzled: "What are you worried about? They’re just multiple-choice questions."
After starting the second year of high school, physics, chemistry, and biology classes were reduced to just one session per week each.
Whenever she thought about using those classes to work on test papers for other subjects, she would remember his words and silently put the papers away, focusing on the lesson instead.
So Su Zaizai felt completely stress-free.
But Zhang Lurang’s thoughts were clearly different from hers.
"I’m afraid you’ll guess them all wrong," he said, a hint of worry in his eyes. "If there were essay questions, you could at least write formulas to earn some points."
When it came to her studies, he seemed especially serious.
Although Su Zaizai was quite happy that he cared so much about her, she couldn’t help but ask, "Why are you so sure I’d just be guessing?"
He lowered his gaze, staring into her eyes.
Su Zaizai felt a little embarrassed under his stare and turned her head slightly.
Golden sunlight filtered through the gaps between the leaves.
One beam happened to fall right on Su Zaizai’s eyes, making her squint.
Zhang Lurang instinctively raised his hand to block the light.
Then, Su Zaizai heard him speak.
His voice was low and smooth as jade, like a gentle breeze brushing past her ear.
"Ah."
He seemed lost in thought, as if recalling something.
He quickly snapped back to reality, his tone tinged with laughter.
"—Magnesium, aluminum, sodium, silicon, phosphorus."
Su Zaizai immediately remembered the periodic table she had recited beside him before.
She didn’t mind much, shamelessly ignoring the last three words he said.
"You’re calling me a beauty."
Zhang Lurang was taken aback and asked seriously, "Can’t you tell the difference between 'n' and 'l'?"
Su Zaizai nodded without changing her expression.
He lowered his eyes, as if recalling something she had said before.
He quickly looked up, about to refute her words.
Su Zaizai spoke up at just the right moment, grinning playfully. "For example, that 'Lùràng.'"
Hearing his name, Zhang Lurang instinctively looked into her eyes.
Her smiling eyes curved like crescents, sparkling with tiny flecks of light.
Her red lips parted slightly, opening and closing.
"I’d say it as, 'that Làlàrǎng.'"
Zhang Lurang’s temple twitched.
Just as he was about to say something, his phone buzzed in his pocket.
He took it out and glanced at it. "I have to go."
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