Two hours earlier...
Su Cheng had just sent a message to Cornelia and was about to go out to buy ingredients for a lavish lunch to reward her for her A-grade performance.
Wait, it was Cornelia.
He tidied up and walked out of the house, putting on his glasses as he headed to the nearby fresh food market to pick out ingredients.
Suddenly, he stopped what he was doing because he felt a vibration in his pants.
He pulled out his phone and saw that it was a message from Li Guanqi.
He was a bit surprised.
Li Guanqi: "Are you free today? I'd like to hire you as my tutor. Of course, the pay won't be too low if you're willing to accept."
Su Cheng stared at the message, stunned.
Tutor?
He was the kind of person who could only memorize things; he had no teaching skills.
If Li Guanqi's grades were bad or if she had five sisters at home, maybe he would have considered it, but Li Guanqi was an excellent student herself.
Teaching her would only lead to disaster.
So, he replied directly: "Don't torture me. I don't have that kind of talent."
Li Guanqi: "I think you're very suitable for teaching. Are you free today?"
Su Cheng: "I do have free time, but I refuse the tutoring offer. We can just exchange study tips."
A few seconds later, Su Cheng received another message from Li Guanqi.
He opened it.
Li Guanqi: "Then I'll wait for you at the bookstore now. I have some study-related questions to discuss."
Su Cheng: "Let's meet in the afternoon after lunch!"
Li Guanqi: "As a token of gratitude, allow me to treat you to lunch."
"…………"
Su Cheng was stunned when he saw this message, so he quickly replied again.
Su Cheng: "How about in the afternoon? What do you think?"
A few minutes later, Li Guanqi hadn't replied, which meant she had already left. He had no choice but to reluctantly close his phone screen and start thinking.
"This is troublesome."
Su Cheng found himself in a difficult situation.
On one hand, he had promised Cornelia lunch, and on the other, Li Guanqi was already on her way to the bookstore to wait for him.
After weighing the pros and cons, Su Cheng decided to postpone Cornelia's lunch to the afternoon.
After all, after lunch, he still needed to strategize with Cornelia, which would take a lot of time.
Most importantly, the two of them absolutely couldn't meet.
If Cornelia saw him with Li Guanqi, it might spark a sense of crisis, which would be fatal to his confession.
Having made up his mind, he quickly took out his phone and contacted Cornelia.
Su Cheng: "Sorry, a guest suddenly came to my house. How about we change it to tonight?"
This sentence was carefully considered. By suddenly changing his mind, he could make Cornelia feel dissatisfied, thereby increasing the chances of his confession failing tonight.
After sending this message, he headed towards the bus stop outside.
After boarding the bus and reaching his destination, Su Cheng got off and walked towards the bookstore.
It was the weekend, and the bookstore was crowded with people.
Su Cheng walked in, trying to find Li Guanqi's location.
Unfortunately, after looking around for a long time, he couldn't find her. In the end, he had no choice but to sit on a nearby chair and prepare to take out his phone.
But the next second, a familiar scent wafted over. Su Cheng looked up and saw that Li Guanqi was already standing in front of him.
Her outfit was the same as yesterday—a black dress paired with black stockings, and her long hair cascaded down her shoulders like a waterfall.
"Good morning, Su Cheng."
Li Guanqi greeted him with a calm expression and a gentle tone.
However, her eyes were filled with a hint of curiosity as she scrutinized Su Cheng, especially noticing that he was wearing glasses today, which made her feel a bit puzzled.
"Good morning."
Su Cheng also stood up calmly at this moment and nodded to Li Guanqi.
Their eyes met in the air.
One was cold and indifferent, the other was also cold and indifferent.
Li Guanqi frowned slightly.
She knew that Su Cheng usually showed surprise or shock, but now his expression was so calm that it made her feel astonished.
Although his temperament today was quite different, his expression and eye reactions were practically non-existent.
Hmm... it was as if he had become a statue.
Usually, Su Cheng's expressions and reactions were very rich.
Su Cheng noticed that Li Guanqi had been staring at his glasses for a long time before looking away, which made him feel uncomfortable, as if she had discovered some secret about his glasses.
"Ahem..."
Su Cheng coughed lightly, then continued to speak with a blank expression: "What's wrong?"
His tone carried a hint of curiosity and inquiry.
Li Guanqi shook her head: "It's nothing. It's just that you're wearing glasses today, which makes you seem a bit unfamiliar."
"Is that so? I just got these prescription glasses recently."
Su Cheng casually made up a lie.
Even when telling a lie, he had a serious expression.
Li Guanqi listened and examined the glasses again, finding that they looked no different from ordinary glasses.
But the problem was, yesterday Su Cheng wasn't wearing these glasses, and his expressions were very lively, even shy at times. But now, with the glasses on, he had become like a statue.
This was quite intriguing.
So, she raised her white, delicate hand and said softly: "Let's leave the bookstore first."
Su Cheng understood immediately. The bookstore was quite crowded, and if they didn't hold hands, Li Guanqi might get bumped into.
So, without hesitation, he reached out and grabbed her wrist. At the moment of contact, she also turned her hand over, and their fingers naturally intertwined.
This time, she kept observing Su Cheng's facial expressions, but she didn't find any abnormalities. He was as calm as ever, maintaining a serious and indifferent look.
Even after holding hands, Su Cheng showed no signs of awkwardness. On the contrary, his calmness was so eerie that it made her feel strange.
The only way she could express her emotions was through her eyebrows, but Su Cheng didn't even twitch an eyebrow. There were no subtle movements at all. He was so calm that it was as if his expressions had frozen, turning him into a robot.
In short, Su Cheng was even better at being expressionless than she was.
She had to admit defeat.
Thinking of this, she squeezed Su Cheng's hand a little harder, feeling the warmth of his palm. This was no different from yesterday, which made her feel a little relieved.
This confirmed her guess.
"What's wrong?"
Su Cheng felt the pressure in his hand and turned to look at Li Guanqi next to him.
"It's nothing."
Li Guanqi came back to her senses and shook her head.
The two walked out of the bookstore and let go of each other's hands.
"There were too many people in the bookstore today. How about finding a café?"
Li Guanqi asked.
Su Cheng pondered for a moment before replying: "A café..."
He had never been to a place he wasn't familiar with, and it made him feel uncomfortable.
Li Guanqi glanced at him and explained: "In a café, the noise level is usually below 50 decibels, which is very suitable for studying."