Chapter 307 - 178: Yes, I Just Like Her
The cool morning light filtered through the curtains, illuminating Shen Yuan’s room.
Having already washed up, Shen Yuan was getting ready for school.
Before leaving, Shen Yuan turned to look at the two "left-behind children" at home.
"Be good at home, okay? Wait for Daddy to come back tonight."
With that, Shen Yuan closed his bedroom door and went to the front door.
He pushed open the door, and just as expected, a figure was already waiting for him in the hallway.
Li Zhi was standing by the elevator door, her slender fingers unconsciously fiddling with the strap of her school bag.
The young woman was leaning slightly forward, her gaze fixed on the tips of her shoes, as if there were some fascinating pattern on the floor.
The sound of Shen Yuan closing his door seemed to startle her.
Li Zhi spun around abruptly, her movements a little stiff.
The moment her gaze met Shen Yuan’s, it darted away, landing on the wall beside him before retreating to the elevator doors.
Just as Shen Yuan was about to speak, a greeting broke the silence.
"Morning."
Li Zhi had beaten Shen Yuan to the punch, greeting him first.
Shen Yuan blinked, but he still replied instinctively, "Uh... Morning."
His voice was flat, almost without inflection, lacking its usual lazy drawl or teasing, smiling tone.
It was brief, earnest, and even carried a trace of uncharacteristic restraint.
After that single greeting, the air fell silent once more.
Shen Yuan naturally walked over to Li Zhi’s side and reached out to take the school bag from her hands.
DING!
The sound of the elevator’s arrival broke the silence.
"Let’s go."
With that, Li Zhi stepped into the elevator first.
Shen Yuan froze for a second, then immediately hurried to follow.
The elevator descended slowly, the two of them standing in the car without the slightest exchange.
One didn’t dare to dwell on why she had taken the initiative to break the silence, while the other was puzzled as to why he had given up all his usual teasing impulses.
The continuous silence on the way down immediately made them both feel that something was off.
But the moment the elevator reached the first floor and the doors opened, all that awkwardness vanished in an instant.
Shen Yuan naturally extended his hand and gently took Li Zhi’s.
Feeling the warmth of Shen Yuan’s palm, Li Zhi slightly parted her fingers, allowing his to slide naturally between hers.
Their fingers interlaced, as if this was how it was always meant to be.
The restraint and silence between them quietly dissolved in this simple, warm touch.
...
Life at school continued amidst the tense, rhythmic pace of exam reviews.
Perhaps because of the upcoming joint entrance exam, the homework from every subject teacher had been getting heavier and heavier lately.
Shen Yuan felt like he was suffocating under the pressure of all the test papers.
In a single day on Monday, twelve new test papers could appear in Shen Yuan’s desk.
The weekend’s test papers, thrown together with a day’s worth of homework, were enough to make him want to die.
’Damn it, the regular classes have their perks too.’
Shen Yuan had heard from his old classmates in the regular track that while they were also under a lot of pressure, the amount of material was about a third less.
Fortunately, Shen Yuan still had a place to catch his breath.
Those brief moments on the way to and from school, when he held hands with Li Zhi, were their time for mutual encouragement.
Truth be told, Shen Yuan used to have Ah Jie, too, but unfortunately, Ah Jie was now on the other side of the classroom.
*Ban Chou*.
Without the entertainment Ah Jie provided, Shen Yuan had to furiously draw spiritual nourishment from Li Bao to keep himself motivated.
As for how to furiously draw it, that probably meant completing his daily tasks on Li Bao.
First of all, Shen Yuan didn’t consider himself a pervert.
He was just looking for motivation to study.
Besides, Brother Tongzi had been sluggish again lately. It had been sluggish for a while after handling the memory fragments last time, and since it had to trace back through so many time periods this time, it would probably be sluggish for even longer.
But Shen Yuan wasn’t in a hurry.
He had deposited the money from the system’s rewards into a high-yield savings account.
’Earning a tiny bit of interest every day—isn’t that a form of financial management too?’
’Any money not spent is money earned.’
Of course, that money was about to be spent very soon.
During lunch break on Thursday, Shen Yuan finally decided to get the kittens neutered in Jiyang.
"I’ve scheduled San Geng and Naonao’s neutering appointment for Saturday at 4 p.m. The surgery will probably be done by the evening."
Hearing Shen Yuan’s words, Li Zhi, who had been in the middle of a problem, paused, the tip of her pen hovering for a moment.
Li Zhi turned her head, her face filled with worry.
The pretty girl was still a little worried.
Shen Yuan raised his hand and patted her gently on the shoulder, reassuring her, "It’s okay, don’t worry. It’s something we have to do for them, and I’ve already prepared everything."
Li Zhi pressed her lips together but finally nodded.
"Okay... Then, should we go together?"
"Yeah. When you get home tonight, ask your dad if he’s free on Saturday afternoon. If he is, he can just bring the cats and pick us up then."
"Okay."
Just as Li Zhi finished speaking, the bell for the end of the lunch break rang.
Before Shen Yuan could even stretch, he saw Yang Ze’s figure, seven seats away, shoot up from his chair.
Immediately after, Ah Jie also shot up from his seat.
Shen Yuan had originally thought the two were just heading to the bathroom, but the moment Yang Ze stepped out of the classroom, he immediately yelled.
"Lao Yuan! Ai Muyu! Save me! Ah Jie is trying to kill me!"
A question mark appeared over Shen Yuan’s head.
’Wut?’
But his body reacted before his brain could, and Shen Yuan quickly shot up, squeezing through the gap behind his desk.
At the same time, Chen Mingyu also shot out of his seat.
Ah Jie, who had just stepped away from his own desk, saw this and immediately deflated.