Xu Qianqian, in a huff, stormed up the stairs and bent down to unlock the door.
Annoyed, even the lock seemed to be giving her trouble.
It’s all Jiang Nian’s fault!
"You’ve got it the wrong way, my dim-witted friend," Jiang Nian couldn’t bear to watch anymore. He put his hand over hers, gave it a twist, and with a click, the door was unlocked.
The air was filled with an awkward silence.
"Ha, just being naughty," Jiang Nian acted nonchalant as he turned to leave, "Sleep early, goodnight."
Xu Qianqian clenched her fist, gritting her teeth.
"Are you crazy! Jiang Nian!"
"Hey, hey, alright, no big deal," Jiang Nian immediately dismissed the logical answer, "Where’s Uncle Xu? Can’t he open the door from inside?"
"Working overtime, he’s not home."
"Then step aside, I’ll do it." He moved forward, fiddled with it for a bit, changed directions, applied some force, and finally, with a snap, it opened.
He checked the time; it was only eight-thirty. Since it was still early, he decided to lend a hand and helped Xu Qianqian carry her things inside, then sat on the sofa and expertly turned on the TV.
"Don’t you have a TV at home?" Xu Qianqian bent down, placing drinks into the fridge.
"It’s not the same," he made himself right at home, though this empty house did feel a bit cold, "Hey, do you play games?"
"Studying, preparing," Xu Qianqian ignored him.
She retrieved her test papers from her room and started working on them slowly in the living room. Although she said she wouldn’t play, she glanced at the TV every half minute.
Her pace was unusually slow, taking nearly twenty minutes for six multiple-choice questions.
Watching TV alone was dull, but having a friend was the best setup. Even the most boring show could become more interesting with company.
Jiang Nian lay on the sofa, playing on his phone while watching TV.
He had only completed a few multiple-choice questions on his physics paper, yet he wasn’t worried. Li Hua hadn’t done his either; he was still battling away in the internet cafe, playing games all day long.
Li Hua thought the same way.
In the message bar, Zhang Ningzhi’s avatar had two red notifications.
"Finished your test paper? (cute)"
Ha, asking such a private question.
"Nope, started the study mode over the weekend," Jiang Nian typed his response, "Let me copy your physics paper tomorrow, I’ll treat you to... fruit milk."
"What flavor do you like?"
Zhang Ningzhi didn’t really have a choice and after typing for a long time, simply replied with an "okay."
Seeing this, Jiang Nian felt relieved.
He’d upset Xu Qianqian several times today, and trying to get that physics paper from her was a lost cause. Chances were, she’d squash him underfoot.
Though Jiang Nian wouldn’t mind a warden’s reward, at the moment, he just wanted to enjoy being a quiet, TV-watching gentleman and didn’t want to provoke Xu Qianqian.
A QQ message from Li Hua popped up, "Nian, I think I might have a superpower; after a whole day online, I’m still not sleepy!"
"[Photo] I’m logging off now, it’s a shame you weren’t here, it’s been mostly wins today."
"[Performance photo] Awesome or what?"
Jiang Nian thought for a moment, replying, "I finished my paper."
A kind word can warm three winter months, hurtful words make June cold.
Li Hua was silent for a few minutes, then sent a heartbroken sticker back.
"Innocent child! You, innocent child!! How could you!! Didn’t you say you were playing on your phone in the morning, sleeping in the afternoon, and grocery shopping in the evening?"
All’s fair in love and war, Hua, especially in a skill-based classroom!
"You could have done it when you got back, finished by five in the morning," Jiang Nian nonchalantly typed out cold words, "Just wash your face and head out to class."
"Ah! You bastard!" Li Hua broke down.
Xu Qianqian glanced at him after hearing his laughter, curiously asking.
"Hey, what happened with you and that Zhou Yuting?"
"What do you mean?" Jiang Nian sat up from the sofa, exasperated, "There’s nothing between us, didn’t you see that day?"
"Why are you so flustered?" She smirked.
Damn, can she read minds? Did you go to kindergarten at Hogwarts?
"Flustered my ass, it’s long over," Jiang Nian was reminded of the birthday party incident, "That bunch of idiots, they never treated me as a friend."
"And Zhou Yuting?" Xu Qianqian put down her pen, intrigued, "She’s quite pretty, and tall."
Jiang Nian lay back down on the sofa, pouting.
Xu Qianqian pursed her lips with a smile but had no idea what she was smiling about.
It was only around ten when Jiang Nian finally left Xu Qianqian’s house.
Just before stepping out with the shopping bag, he suddenly said, "You look pretty nice today."
Bang, the door closed.
The girl stood inside the door, half-confused for a while before slowly coming back to her senses.
She felt a bit weightless, her heart like a ship sailing on the sea at night, drifting unsteadily.
After taking a shower and drying his hair, Jiang Nian lay down on his bed and suddenly received a message from Li Hua.
"Got any healing romance novels to recommend? Recently, Long San has been saving one up, hesitant to read it."
He was curious and typed back, "How far have you read?"
Li Hua: "Running away gloriously in the sun, I’m planning to read it bit by bit next time in the Chinese class."
"Oh, no problem, full of sweetness," Jiang Nian replied, "That quick? Finished your test paper already?"
Li Zihua took five minutes to reply, "Did a third of it, simple and easy, can’t imagine anyone taking a whole day to finish it, right?"
Jiang Nian wasn’t annoyed, calmly replying, "Bro, take a break. You can read for half an hour, I’ll recommend a few to you."
Li Hua sent a sunglasses emoji, and said smugly, "Bring it on."
Jiang Nian wasn’t into depressing novels, so he casually searched for a list of tear-jerkers and sent them to Li Hua before going to sleep.
Jiang Nian waited to go to school with Xu Qianqian, their relationship fluctuating depending on whether Jiang Nian behaved.
The main reason was that Song Xiyun lived in the north of the county, in the opposite direction of Xu Qianqian’s house, so the two best friends couldn’t go to school together.
Upon entering the classroom, Zhang Ningzhi was already there, memorizing her biology notes.
The lights were on in the classroom in the morning as Jiang Nian handed her a box of fruit milk, and the physics paper was already atop her bookshelf, pinned down with a red pen.
A reliable, trustworthy, good friend.
"Thanks, I’ll return it after copying," Jiang Nian took the paper back to his seat, starting to quickly copy.
As it approached morning reading, troublesome friend Li Hua stumbled in at the last minute from the back of the classroom, looking like he had conjunctivitis.
"Damn you, Jiang Nian! You bastard! What did you recommend to me!!! Oh my!!"
Jiang Nian had just finished copying the physics paper and skillfully concealed Zhang Ningzhi’s paper, raising his head with a confused look.
"You’re such a bastard!" Li Hua sat down, trembling all over, "It emo-ed me all night, woke up in the morning and everything looked red."