Mei Fang’s reasoning for doubting that the love letter was from Xia Yuan was simple—it was all in how the character “方” (Fang) was written. Having spent so many years with Xia Yuan, they were intimately familiar with each other’s handwriting and writing habits.
Though Xia Yuan’s mother was a Chinese language teacher, Xia Yuan’s handwriting was round and cute, resembling plump dumplings, with little use of sharp hooks typical in regular script. Xia Yuan would never add a hook at the bottom right of the character “方” as seen in this letter.
Beyond the handwriting, the way the heart-shaped sticker was placed on the envelope was quite tacky—not at all like the style of the cuteness-loving Xia Yuan.
Of course, the most suspicious part was the timing. Knowing Xia Yuan, she couldn’t possibly whip up a letter in just one afternoon. Xia Yuan would need at least a week to write a letter .
But regardless of who wrote it… Mei Fang decided to just open it and see.
Just as he was about to tear open the envelope, Xiang Bingbing burst into the classroom with a basketball. Surprised, Mei Fang hastily concealed the letter.
This piqued Xiang Bingbing’s curiosity, and she eagerly leaned over towards Mei Fang.
“Ah Fang, Ah Fang, what are you looking at? Let me see too!”
Annoyed, Mei Fang pushed Xiang Bingbing away, saying, “You smell like sweat… It’s gross.”
Xiang Bingbing puffed her cheeks in frustration: “I took a shower in the dorm after playing basketball, and I still smell nice! If you don’t believe me, take a good sniff!” Thɪs chapter is updated by ɴovel(ꜰ)ɪre.nᴇt
Saying this, Xiang Bingbing tried to press herself against Mei Fang, who had to struggle for quite a while before managing to push her away. Finally, when evening self-study began and Xiang Bingbing was occupied with her homework, Mei Fang found time to quietly open the envelope and read the letter inside.
From the first time I saw you,
I really wanted to hug you.
To touch your soft face,
To smell your unique scent,
To hear your gentle voice.
Just thinking about it,
Your warmth seems to melt right into me.
I’d want to be the one who could hug you at any time.
I want to embrace all of you.
I’ll love you without hesitation.
I want to cling to you,
Like a carefree sloth.
You must be able to guess who I am.
Tomorrow afternoon after school,
I’ll be at the usual spot,
For our long future together.”
Mei Fang finished reading the entire letter with a complex mix of emotions.
Just looking at the words alone, it almost felt like sexual harassment.
While hugging was something he and Xia Yuan often did, it didn’t seem right to jump to the conclusion that she was the one who wrote this letter just because of that.
After all, the letter didn’t contain much substance. The nickname “Ah Fang” was known to almost everyone around him—even Xiang Bingbing called him that.
But if it isn’t from Yuan Yuan… could it possibly be from Youxi?
She shouldn’t know about the love letter plan yet. I haven’t even started writing the letter yet, so could she really be trying to prank me first?
Unless Yuan Yuan switches sides, it’s definitely not the case.
Though, it’s not entirely out of the question…
After all, Youxi is Yuan Yuan’s closest confidant. It’s possible that Yuan Yuan, feeling guilty about sneaking away, might have confessed everything to Youxi.
That does sound like something Yuan Yuan might do.
So… I’ll try to probe a bit during the next break.
During the evening self-study break, Mei Fang went to find Lin Youxi and Xia Yuan. The two of them seemed as carefree as before, nothing unusual.
“Ah Fang, you’ve been quite eager today, always coming to see me and Youxi… what’s the deal?” Xia Yuan’s comment seemed a bit like she was covering something up, but fortunately, Lin Youxi didn’t notice it. She just smiled and said, “Let’s head back a bit earlier today. I still have a few practice problems to work on and want to finish them quickly.”
“Alright,” Mei Fang agreed.
Xia Yuan hesitated, “It’s been a while since we got intimate at school. We won’t… do that today, right? After all, we’re kind of famous now.”
“Why Yuan Yuan? Do you want to do it?” Lin Youxi smiled gently, “If you really want to, I could keep watch for both of you at the usual spot.”
“No need, no need. Today, or at least for a while, there’s no need…”
As she spoke, Xia Yuan glanced at Mei Fang, with an expression that suggested she was about to give away the secret and was begging Mei Fang to say something to help.
“Let’s not do that today. How about we just take a walk? By the way, Youxi, there were a few questions in that blue book you were working on earlier that I didn’t quite understand——”
Their evening walk around campus was fairly casual. When they decided to return, there was still half of the break time left. Just as Mei Fang said goodbye to Xia Yaan and Lin Youxi and reached the classroom door, he saw Zhu Nainai leaning against a pillar in the hallway, smiling at him.
“Hello, Senior Mei Fang! You’ve come back from walking with Senior Xia Yuan and Senior Lin Youxi again?”
“Why do you keep hanging around me every day? Don’t you get tired?”
“Not at all! Seeing you makes me happy, hehe…”
Zhu Nainai was even more lively than usual today, and Mei Fang, recalling the love letter he had received earlier, grew a bit more wary of her. “Alright, take your time, I’m going to study.”
Just as Mei Fang was about to return to the classroom to work on some practice problems, Zhu Nainai grabbed his arm.
“Don’t be so cold, Senpai! I have something I need your help with today!”
“Let go. What is it?”
“Um…” Zhu Nainai, with her hands behind her back, asked with a smile, “I’m really interested in game development. I want to join Ximilu Studio during this year’s club recruitment, so I was wondering if you have any interview tips or strategies you could share.”
Mei Fang raised an eyebrow, “I don’t think our studio mentioned any recruitment plans.”
“But, but! What kind of club doesn’t recruit new members? Are you just waiting for the club to be disbanded next year? Having an extra girl around to fetch tea and water, and run errands wouldn’t be a bad thing, right? Plus, I’ve played all the games you’ve made. I’m a huge fan of your games.”
Zhu Nainai was an avid user of C Site, and she had figured out the connection between Ximilu Studio and their games based on some hints left by the developers. Mei Fang didn’t deny it, and this honesty only made her admiration for him grow.
Zhu Nainai continued shyly, “But honestly, the thing I like most is seeing you play guitar, Senior! That’s when you’re at your most charming!”
“Alright, enough with the flattery. But before anything else, you need to answer a question for me.”
Zhu Nainai quickly saluted him, “At your command, Senior!”
“Have you been leaving anything strange on my desk recently?”
Zhu Nainai immediately looked embarrassed, “Oh no… Have you already figured it out?”
“So it was you who left the love letter!”
Mei Fang angrily knocked on Zhu Nainai’s head, “Didn’t I tell you I already like someone? What’s the point of doing this?”
“W-what love letter?!”
Zhu Nainai looked completely wronged after Mei Fang hit her on the head. “I was talking about the little snacks I’ve been leaving on your desk every day—like cookies and candies! Isn’t that what you were referring to?”
Mei Fang frowned, suddenly looking very puzzled. “What the heck? When did I ever have snacks on my desk? I’ve never seen them.”