Chapter 7

“Click.”

Xu Xieyi skillfully found the switch, and the living room instantly brightened.

Lin Sheng watched as the girl bent down and opened the shoe cabinet. Though the space inside was narrow, the shoes were arranged neatly and tidily. Squatting on the floor, from Lin Sheng’s angle, the girl looked even softer—a small, delicate bundle.

“Are you in the second year of high school?”

“Yeah! The second semester of sophomore year.”

Lin Sheng nodded slightly, glancing at Xu Xieyi again: Why does she seem like an elementary school kid, so fresh-faced?

Xu Xieyi took out a pair of brand-new gray cotton slippers, unwrapped the plastic, and placed them in front of Lin Sheng’s feet, then looked up. “Lin Gege, you’re too tall; the shoes might be a bit small.”

Tall height, big shoe size.

“It’s fine, as long as they fit.”

Xu Xieyi smiled up at Lin Sheng and gave a soft “hmm.”

Lin Sheng looked around—the room was simply furnished but meticulously tidy. Watching Xu Xieyi’s movements as she entered, he was actually surprised: kids this age usually aren’t so skilled at household chores.

She busied herself in the kitchen, with occasional sounds coming from there.

Lin Sheng sat in the living room for a while, finished dealing with some work matters, made a couple of calls to a Korean acquaintance, but the girl still showed no sign of coming out from the kitchen, so he went to the balcony to smoke.

The balcony was filled to the brim with greenery—potted plants crowded together.

Ordinary varieties: sunflowers, daffodils, butterfly flowers, roses, and a large pot of golden pothos, sprawling wildly and lush.

Lin Sheng exhaled a stream of smoke and shifted his gaze from the pothos to a small cardboard box nearby. On it sat a palm-sized glass fishbowl, inside which two tiny, thumb-sized orange goldfish swam.

They looked like the sort you’d scoop up at a street stall—plain orange goldfish. Beside it were two small packets of low-quality feed, probably freebies with the fish.

Lin Sheng smiled faintly. Childish things.

He leaned against the railing, smoking casually as the wind twisted the white smoke between his fingers. His gaze drifted toward the kitchen.

There, the water was boiling, steam rising in a rush, and the girl was adeptly tossing noodles into the pot.

Lin Sheng studied her, loosening the collar of his shirt a little. A faint smile curved his lips.

—She is quite diligent.

“Lin Gege, try this.”

Xu Xieyi placed a steaming bowl of noodles on the coffee table, then handed over a pair of chopsticks with both hands. “It’s very nutritious. I added a lot of beef.”

On the table, large visible chunks of beef and thin slices of radish floated in the broth, with scallions and coriander sprinkled on top.

Lin Sheng, tall as he was, had to lean forward slightly on the sofa; the cheap couch had sagged and deformed from wear, clashing somewhat with his long limbs.

He propped his elbow on his knee, unconcerned. “Such a fancy bowl of noodles, no wonder it took you so long to cook.”

Xu Xieyi pushed the bowl closer to him eagerly. “Try it quickly!”

Lin Sheng glanced slowly at the thick layer of oil floating on the surface, then finally picked up the bamboo chopsticks.

Xu Xieyi froze, watching him pick up a few strands of noodles, taste lightly, then stop.

Such refined manners—she really had never seen anyone eat noodles like that.

“How is it? Tastes good?”

She was confident in her cooking—not just because it was her hobby, but because she truly wanted to thank Lin Sheng, so she had put her heart into it.

Though he barely took any food into his mouth, Lin Sheng seemed to savor it carefully, then slowly lifted his eyelids and said, “Very good.”

Xu Xieyi relaxed, crouching beside him, tilting her head and cupping her face excitedly. “Really?”

A faint smile touched Lin Sheng’s face, but looking closely, one could see a deep calm in his eyes—he was indifferent. But Xu Xieyi didn’t notice that. “If it’s good, you have to eat more!”

Then she smiled gently. “Lin Gege, thank you so much. You’ve helped me so many times, even took my classmate home today. I’m really sorry to have kept you so long.”

“No need to mention it. It’s no trouble,” Lin Sheng said, setting down his chopsticks, no longer moving.

---

Having eaten countless exquisite dishes, Lin Sheng’s palate was evidently far removed from that of a girl used to cafeteria meals.

The flavor of the noodles was truly mediocre to him. Very mediocre.

Lin Sheng didn’t stay long; he seemed busy, his phone constantly ringing as he drove. After taking a hurried call, he said goodbye to Xu Xieyi.

Xu Xieyi went to the balcony and, peering through the tree canopy, saw Lin Sheng’s car leave the neighborhood under the streetlight and quickly disappear.

Her face fell, she sighed, returned to the living room, and lifted the nearly untouched bowl of beef noodles.

Even the most foolish would notice something was wrong when Lin Sheng stopped eating.

A seemingly gentle and humble older brother, but upon closer contact, she realized he was quite... proud.

Xu Xieyi poked at the untouched beef noodles with her chopsticks.

“Doesn’t like coriander, doesn’t like beef, and doesn’t like noodles either.”

“That picky, huh...?”

“How did he even grow so tall?”

Lin Sheng said nothing, but Xu Xieyi gradually figured it out.

He didn’t like to eat, nor did he want to.

Truly picky.

The beef was the most expensive kind; wasting it was such a pity.

Xu Xieyi hesitated over the bowl of beef noodles for a while, then simply picked up her chopsticks and ate it herself.

She recalled Lin Sheng’s elegant gesture of holding his chopsticks together before eating—quite beautiful.

Moved, she imitated it.

---

Midterms were approaching. The entire sophomore class five was bombarded with exams.

Xu Xieyi was earnest but average in her grades. During times like these, she felt the pressure of her heavy studies, temporarily setting aside the troubles of growing up.

After all, academics come first! Even if her grades weren’t very good...

Since that day, she hadn’t seen Lin Sheng again.

They truly lived in separate worlds, with no overlap in daily life.

Their only connection was that she and Lin Sheng had added each other on WeChat that day. But adding didn’t mean much—they never contacted each other afterward.

Xu Xieyi had been well-behaved since childhood. Since Lin Sheng never messaged her, she didn’t take the initiative to disturb him.

Moreover, for some reason, as days went by, she grew a bit distant and reverent toward Lin Sheng—an indescribable mixture of respect and fear.

But thinking carefully, Lin Sheng had always been gentle and kind; she had no real reason to fear him.

Perhaps it was a habit formed from childhood.

Accustomed to ordinariness, whenever someone shone a little brighter, she was used to watching from afar with the crowd, afraid to approach.

In mid-May, the weather in Xindu alternated between blazing sun and rainy days.

School life was calm and repetitive. Xu Xieyi only occasionally thought of Lin Sheng—the deep-voiced, picky eater who was kind to her but had a somewhat cold personality.

Sometimes, while scrolling through WeChat, she would come across a post of his.

That was all.

From his sparse posts and photos, Xu Xieyi imagined a sliver of this man’s life.

It seemed very distant.

Then she buried herself in memorizing her lessons.

The next time she saw Lin Sheng was at the end of May on a weekend.

The sky was overcast, dampness in the wind. The tall buildings along High Street faded in the gloomy pre-storm light.

Xu Xieyi, Yang Bingbing, and Zhang Xiaoli were strolling with little enthusiasm, discussing going home early. None of them brought an umbrella.

After Zhang Xiaoli left, Xu Xieyi and Yang Bingbing headed toward bus stop 235, chatting as they walked.

“Ah!” Yang Bingbing sighed. “If only your super handsome Lin Gege were here, he could just drive us home.”

Xu Xieyi glanced at her. “He’s very busy. And we haven’t really kept in touch; he might not even remember me.”

“Calling him ‘big brother’ like that, sounds like you’re the little one.”

Xu Xieyi didn’t feel small, but... she definitely felt distant from Lin Sheng. “Lin Gege is much older than me.”

Yang Bingbing loved making friends, speaking openly. She gave Xu Xieyi’s chest a glance, smirking mischievously, “Your Lin Gege... isn’t bigger than you, right?”

Xu Xieyi was momentarily caught off guard, then blushed and punched Yang Bingbing’s shoulder. “You’re bad! I’ll get you back.”

“Ha ha.”

The two girls giggled. Upon reaching the bus stop, Xu Xieyi realized her keychain was missing from her pocket. She told Yang Bingbing to board first while she went back to look.

She wasn’t sure if she lost it outside the coffee shop while fooling around with Yang Bingbing earlier.

Xu Xieyi retraced her steps.

Just outside the upscale coffee shop, a black Porsche was parked in a marked spot by the door.

Xu Xieyi felt it looked familiar, so she adjusted the strap of her backpack and stood nearby to see if it was Lin Sheng.

After a moment, the car door opened, but out stepped a woman in a stunning red fishtail gown.

She looked puzzled, then saw the other door open. A tall young man emerged—wearing a casual gray shirt and simple black pants.

Like gray ice, understated, quietly cool.

When he slightly turned his head, Xu Xieyi saw his sharply defined nose.

“Lin Gege!” she blurted.

The road noise was loud; the man didn’t hear her, but the beautiful woman noticed Xu Xieyi, took off her sunglasses, and gave her a strange look.

Then the two entered the coffee shop together.

Xu Xieyi stood frozen, murmuring, “That’s Lin Gege... It can’t be a mistake.”

Lin Sheng had sharp brows low over his eyes, slightly pointed, almond-shaped eyes, and dark round pupils—a distinctly Eastern appearance. So striking.

She couldn’t be wrong.

The coffee shop had floor-to-ceiling windows. Coincidentally, Lin Sheng and the beautiful woman sat by the window, visible to Xu Xieyi outside.

She studied them a moment, then resumed searching for her keys.

Outside, the rain drizzled; inside, the café was dry and fragrant.

Halfway through their coffee, Lin Sheng barely spoke, leaning back lazily—a casual gesture that conveyed a certain languor.

Olina watched him for a while, her sense of defeat growing heavier. “A Sheng, A Sheng?”

Lin Sheng lifted his eyelids. “Hmm, what is it?”

He asked her what was the matter. Olina felt a bit stifled but could no longer hold back, “I thought you still had some lingering feelings for me... No matter what, we had a good time.”