The girls around Xu Fang, aware of the situation, quickly made space for him. Everyone exchanged knowing glances and suddenly understood something, so they dispersed, swarming around other players instead.
Lin Xichi was brought over by him, and her center of gravity was a bit unstable. She almost stumbled but managed to regain her balance. However, for some inexplicable reason, Lin Xichi had an impulse, an uncontrollable urge. She swallowed hard, pretending as if she couldn’t stop herself and suddenly threw herself into his arms.
It seemed that Xu Fang hadn’t anticipated this outcome. He was taken aback and took two steps back without any defense. Because he had just finished exercising, most of his clothes were damp, emitting a slight sweat smell, but it wasn’t unpleasant. His hands were empty because he was momentarily stunned, not knowing where to put them.
…Still no reaction.
Lin Xichi waited for two seconds, then slowly let go and stood still. She decided to complain before Xu Fang scolded her, “Don’t always treat my head like a basketball; I can’t stand steadily…”
Before she could finish her sentence, Xu Fang abruptly took two steps back again, not saying a word.
“You!” Lin Xichi was stunned by his reaction, which seemed like she had violated him. She widened her eyes and stopped feeling pleased with herself. “Your reaction is too much. I simply couldn’t keep my balance; I didn’t do it on purpose.”
Xu Fang avoided eye contact and didn’t respond to her words. He reached out his hand in front of her, changing the subject, “Give me the water.”
“Oh.” Lin Xichi suddenly felt like she was talking to herself and deflated a bit. She took a step forward and handed him the water.
Without looking at her, Xu Fang instinctively took a step back, accepting the water from her hand. He turned to the side, unscrewed the cap, and drank the whole bottle of water in one go.
Lin Xichi noticed his movements, tilted her head, and asked, “Why do you keep taking a step back when I approach?”
“What?” Xu Fang screwed the cap back on, his expression somewhat vacant. Then, his face changed quickly, and his eyes showed a hint of discomfort. His tone also became unfriendly, “It’s hot, don’t get so close.”
Upon hearing that, Lin Xichi obediently stepped back.
However, after retreating a few steps, Xu Fang said again, “Too far.”
She stopped in her tracks and looked up at him.
Xu Fang had just finished exercising, and his cheeks were flushed, sweat dripping from his forehead. He did indeed look very hot, with even his ears and neck slightly red.
Lin Xichi was stunned for a moment, staring at him and wondering if his face had been this red a moment ago.
But she couldn’t remember.
Noticing that Lin Xichi had been staring at him, Xu Fang inexplicably felt uneasy, afraid she might notice something. He became even more hostile, saying, “Stop staring.”
Lin Xichi let out an “Ah,” suddenly feeling a bit embarrassed. She slowly moved her gaze away.
“Alright, I won’t look.”
Several departments had their finals almost simultaneously, and as the results were announced, there was a buzz of excitement in the sports hall. However, as the crowds dispersed, it became quieter.
The captains of the Architecture and Oceanography teams decided to go out for a meal together to celebrate.
Lin Xichi was about to bid farewell to Xu Fang and head back to check on the other department’s activities when she was suddenly called by one of the male students, “Excuse me.”
Lin Xichi turned around, puzzled, and hesitated, pointing at herself, “Are you calling me?”
“Yes.” The young man, wearing a deep blue jersey from the Oceanography department, asked shyly, “You’ve been working hard for our department these past few days. To express our thanks, would you like to join us for dinner as well?”
Coincidentally, Ye Shaowen and He Ruiliang approached them. Lin Xichi said, “Wait a moment,” and jogged over to them to explain the situation briefly, “The two teams are going out for dinner now. They’ve invited us to join. What do you think?”
Upon hearing this, Ye Shaowen leaned closer to her ear and asked mysteriously, “Are they treating us?”
“…” Lin Xichi took a step back, looking somewhat incredulous. “Why don’t you go and ask yourself?”
He Ruiliang didn’t pay any attention to the two of them and continued walking forward, holding a folder to discuss prize distribution times and other matters with the captains of both teams.
After He Ruiliang left, Lin Xichi wanted to go find Xu Fang to say goodbye and leave, but she was firmly held back by Ye Shaowen.
Lin Xichi found it strange, “What’s the matter?”
Ye Shaowen, with a straight face, said, “We don’t know anyone here, so let’s stick together.”
“…” Lin Xichi shook her head and tried to pry his hand away. “I know someone.”
Ye Shaowen quickly grabbed her again. “No, I don’t know anyone here. I’m scared.”
“…” Can you stop pretending to be unsocial?
Lin Xichi was really puzzled about what he was trying to do. She pried his hand away again and, while searching for Xu Fang in the crowd, asked him, “If you have something to say, just say it.”
The basketball team members were tall and robust, making it hard for Lin Xichi to spot Xu Fang among them.
Ye Shaowen licked his lips and, with a somewhat embarrassed look, said, “Could you ask Department Head Wen where she is?”
Lin Xichi wanted to ask why he didn’t ask her himself, but she was afraid he would continue to pester her. So, she immediately took out her phone and messaged Department Head Wen to ask her whereabouts.
Department Head Wen replied promptly.
Lin Xichi directly placed her phone’s chat window in front of him for him to see.
Ye Shaowen nodded, then suddenly sighed deeply and sorrowfully, “I knew you knew.”
Lin Xichi was stunned.
Knew what?
Ye Shaowen didn’t beat around the bush and continued, “I have feelings for Department Head Wen.”
“…”
Lin Xichi was shocked.
She really had no idea; she hadn’t noticed any signs at all.
How did Ye Shaowen think she would know?
Lin Xichi was at a loss for words. She lowered her voice and said, “You dared to set your sights on the department head.”
“Love knows no age or position,” Ye Shaowen said, unfazed. “You shouldn’t be so discouraging.”
“Sorry,” Lin Xichi pursed her lips and made a cheering gesture. “Good luck.”
Once it was out in the open, Ye Shaowen started talking incessantly about the bitterness and torment he had been experiencing in his heart these past few days. Lin Xichi acted as if she were a sounding board, not offering any comments on his feelings.
She felt that even though she was also nursing a crush, it didn’t feel like this.
After a while, Ye Shaowen finally stopped.
Lin Xichi thought for a moment, then whispered to him, “What would you do if a girl accidentally hugged you, just a friendly hug, nothing intentional?”
Ye Shaowen asked gloomily, “What’s the situation, and what’s she like?”
“Just friends,” Lin Xichi paused for a few seconds, licked her lips, and continued, “Someone like me.”
Ye Shaowen hesitated for a moment and suddenly apologized, “I’m sorry.”
“…”
“I might hit someone,” Xu Fang replied.
“…” Lin Xichi raised an eyebrow and added, “But I saw him blush.”
Ye Shaowen continued to tease her, “Maybe he’s thin-skinned.”
Upon hearing this, Lin Xichi didn’t say anything.
Ye Shaowen also felt a bit uneasy, afraid that his words were too harsh. After a short while, he couldn’t help but say, “Hey, why aren’t you saying anything?”
“I think your words are unreliable,” Lin Xichi said honestly. “He’s definitely not someone with thin skin. None of your answers were correct.”
“…”
Lin Xichi began to tease him in return, “With such low emotional intelligence, you’ll never win over the department head.”
“…”
After saying that, Lin Xichi hmphed and didn’t speak to him anymore. She sped up and walked a short distance ahead, looking for Xu Fang.
Around Xu Fang were all male students, and they seemed to be having an enthusiastic and pleasant conversation.
Lin Xichi suddenly hesitated to approach.
But Xu Fang noticed her and paused. Then, he gently pushed away a guy who had his arm around him and lazily walked in her direction.
This led to another round of teasing from the others.
Lin Xichi inexplicably felt a bit embarrassed this time and lowered her head.
Xu Fang didn’t notice her peculiar reaction and, looking back, casually asked, “What were you talking about with Ye Shaowen just now?”
“Nothing much,” Lin Xichi replied honestly. “He told me he liked—”
She hesitated for a moment, thinking it was someone else’s private matter, and swallowed her words. “Anyway, he said he liked a girl and asked me for advice on how to pursue her.”
Xu Fang frowned, clearly not pleased. “Why did he ask you?”
Then he quickly realized that his tone was too unfriendly and added coldly, “You don’t have the experience or the brains for this.”
“Why…” Lin Xichi didn’t finish her sentence and weakly hmphed. She didn’t want to say too much.
After all, she hadn’t succeeded yet. If she said this, she would either have to confess her feelings to Xu Fang right now or risk him misunderstanding that she liked someone else. Neither option seemed ideal.
Lin Xichi suppressed her feelings and silently decided to refute him when she was successful.
The group of people went outside the campus to a local diner. There were over thirty people, so they divided into two tables.
Lin Xichi felt that everyone knew each other and there was no seating arrangement by department. Both tables had students from the Architecture and Oceanography departments, all wearing matching red and blue jerseys, which drew quite a few glances.
Lin Xichi sat next to Xu Fang.
He Ruiliang and Ye Shaowen sat at the other table. Lin Xichi glanced over and saw that Ye Shaowen had already made friends with the others and was addressing them like brothers.
“…”
She didn’t look over again and instead focused on cleaning her utensils with tea. Seeing that Xu Fang hadn’t moved, Lin Xichi absentmindedly washed his utensils too. Then, she engaged in casual conversation with him.
Xu Fang didn’t respond much to her.
Lin Xichi didn’t mind.
After the meal, Lin Xichi belatedly realized that Xu Fang’s mood didn’t seem good, and it appeared to be directed at her.
What was even more confusing was that his actions seemed to be deliberate.
For instance, in the past, when they went out to eat with friends in a large group like this, they usually sat at a big table with a rotating tray. Because Xu Fang knew she had short arms, he would often help her pick up dishes.
Or he would help her move the dishes she liked to her side of the table.
But today, Xu Fang not only didn’t do this, but whenever he saw her trying to pick up a dish, he would snatch it and put it in his own bowl.
It was clearly aimed at her.
After this happened about ten times, Lin Xichi couldn’t stand it anymore. She kicked him under the table and asked, “What are you doing?”
Xu Fang gave her a faint glance and completely ignored her. “I’m eating.”
“…”
It seemed more like she was the petty one here.
After the meal, some people had to leave early for various reasons. The remaining group discussed and decided to go to a nearby pool hall to play some games.
Inside the pool hall, Lin Xichi spotted members from the other two departments in one area. She noticed two familiar faces on the nearby sofa, Wen Jingjing and another member from the Department of Physical Education.
She didn’t want to bother them from a distance, so she didn’t approach.
About ten guys went to play pool, and the rest of the group sat on the sofa, playing a game of Werewolf. Lin Xichi initially thought Xu Fang would join her for this game, but she later realized that he had been pulled away by another guy to play cards, specifically Landlord.
She squinted at them.
The three players were Xu Fang, Ye Shaowen, and a guy from the Oceanography department.
Lin Xichi withdrew her gaze, feeling a bit annoyed. She didn’t understand why Xu Fang was angry with her. She had planned to let him win in this game to make amends, but now he had gone off to play cards with someone else.
After playing several rounds, a few people needed to use the restroom.
Lin Xichi took this opportunity to stand up and walk over to see how Xu Fang and the others were doing. From a distance, she could hear Ye Shaowen’s triumphant laughter, “Hahaha, I’m winning again, and again. I can win this hand even with my eyes closed…”
She walked up behind Ye Shaowen and saw his cards.
A bomb (the highest card combination in Chinese poker) and a straight from three to seven.
Sitting next to him, Xu Fang had a sour expression and seemed quite unhappy. When he noticed her approaching, he lazily raised an eyelid without saying a word.
Both Xu Fang and another guy at the table had a lot of cards left in their hands.
On the nearby sofa were Wen Jingjing and her group of friends. They had just finished a round of their own game, and at this moment, Wen Jingjing was standing in the middle, pouring cola. She accidentally spilled it all over the table.
Ye Shaowen always had one eye on that group. When he noticed the spill, he immediately stood up and handed his cards to Lin Xichi, saying, “I’m about to win, help me play for a while.”
Lin Xichi had only come to watch the game and was a bit bewildered.
The other two players shifted their attention to her. Lin Xichi sat down in a daze and asked, “Whose turn is it now?”
The other guy said, “It’s your turn. I just played a two.”
Lin Xichi looked at her cards and glanced at Xu Fang, asking sneakily, “Is Ye Shaowen the landlord? What are the stakes?”
Xu Fang’s brows furrowed, and he had a bad feeling about her expression.
“Yeah, Ye Shaowen is the landlord,” the guy replied with a smile. “This is the final round, and they decided to make it a high-stakes game. The loser has to go shirtless and run a lap around the playground.”
“Xu Fang streaking…” Lin Xichi mumbled to herself, then played two cards. “Bomb.”
With this card, she only needed to follow up with a straight to win.
“…”
Seeing her determined expression, Xu Fang almost guessed the outcome. He clenched his teeth and ran his hand through his hair.
After a pause, Lin Xichi turned her head to look in Ye Shaowen’s direction, feeling guilty. But she couldn’t stop herself from doing this. After hesitating for two seconds, she silently apologized to Ye Shaowen in her heart.
I’m sorry.
Xu Fang couldn’t bear the thought of Xu Fang streaking in front of others.
Absolutely not!!!
Then she pursed her lips and slowly drew a card.
“Three.”
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