At the same time, Su Cheng fully understood the meaning of "entangling oneself in a cocoon."
So, why is that?
"Su Cheng."
Xuan Ying, nervous and uneasy, walked over, her hand clutching a small black hair tie. Then, looking up, she mustered her courage and said, "A gift from a friend."
Seeing the hair tie in her hand, his mouth twitched slightly. He nodded at her and said, "Thank you."
"You're welcome. After all, we're friends."
Xuan Ying's cheeks were flushed, and she placed the hair tie in Su Cheng's hand before running off.
Seeing this, Su Cheng looked at the hair tie in his hand, sighed, and put it on his wrist.
As the old saying goes, "More hair ties don't weigh you down."
Unbeknownst to him, two people peeked out from around a corner behind him, spying on him. When they saw Su Cheng wearing the hair tie, they looked at each other. Xuan Ying was flushed with excitement and enthusiasm, saying excitedly,
"Great, he wore it!"
Her lovely face was flushed with excitement, and her watery eyes sparkled.
Seeing this, Zhao Yan from the side genuinely felt happy for her and nodded with a smile, saying, "It was worth it for you to rush home at noon just to get it."
"Hehe... Hahaha..."
However, Xuan Ying didn't hear her. She was completely immersed in her joy, even jumping three feet high on the spot.
Then, she excitedly ran downstairs, leaving behind a delighted figure for Zhao Yan and some inexplicable, strange sounds.
Zhao Yan watched her silhouette, shook her head and smiled, then glanced in Su Cheng's direction. Her eyes revealed a complex emotion.
This morning, Su Cheng had said that the hair tie was a gift from a friend.
Naturally, as friends, they wouldn't miss such an opportunity. So, Xuan Ying rushed home at noon to retrieve the hair tie from home.
It’s said to be one she often wears.
Although she had claimed it was a gift given under the guise of friendship, Zhao Yan knew very well what that guise truly meant in Xuan Ying’s heart.
Although Zhao Yan herself wanted to give Su Cheng a hair tie in the name of friendship, since Xuan Ying was doing it, she naturally abandoned the idea.
Zhao Yan sighed, then turned and left, heading towards her own club.
She and Xuan Ying weren't in the same club.
Xuan Ying was in the painting club, while she was in the gymnastics club.
On her way, she stopped beside an automatic vending machine. It wasn't that she wanted to buy something, but there was a wall next to the machine with a wood-fragrant flower on it.
The color of the flower matched her hair, and its fragrance was elegant and refined, even identifiable from afar.
She loved it immensely, and every time she passed by, she couldn't help but stop to admire it.
But this time, she only glanced at it briefly before her gaze unconsciously moved to the vending machine, thinking of an incident from last time.
Xuan Ying, a pen, fainting, Su Cheng carrying her to the hospital.
Thinking of this, she couldn't help but chuckle softly.
Then, she approached the wall and looked up at the osmanthus flowers.
The flower was quite high, taller than her by a head.
"It smells so good..."
She murmured softly, then tiptoed, trying to get her nose close to the petals to smell it. However, due to her height, no matter how she tried, she couldn't reach.
In frustration, she stretched her hand out to feel the petals, but just then, a wrist adorned with three hair ties suddenly caught her eye. A familiar scent reached her nose, making her freeze on the spot.
"This way, you'll be able to reach it."
A voice suddenly sounded beside her ears. Without thinking, she turned sharply, seeing Su Cheng beside her, his hand gently lowering the flower. Noticing her movement, her face reddened slightly, and she quickly stood upright, then gently touched the flower with her nose. A strong floral scent immediately entered her nostrils.
After a few seconds...
"Thank you."
Zhao Yan, embarrassed, adjusted her clothing, her charming little face slightly flushed. She lowered her head and said softly.
It wasn’t that she was shy, but the scene just now was too impactful for her. She felt her heart racing, her heartbeat irregular.
"You're welcome."
Su Cheng retracted his hand, and the flower returned to its original position, undamaged.
"I'll head to the club now."
Su Cheng said and left hurriedly.
He had just come out of the bathroom and, passing by, noticed the situation, so he came over to help.
After all, Zhao Yan had cheered for him at the event.
As a friend, this was just a small effort.
Zhao Yan watched his back, her heart unconsciously relaxing, her expression returning to normal.
Eventually, she made a decision and strode after Su Cheng with her long, fair legs.
"Su Cheng."
Zhao Yan's voice suddenly sounded, drawing Su Cheng's attention.
"Huh?"
He looked at Zhao Yan, his eyes filled with confusion.
Zhao Yan pursed her lips and smiled, "It just so happens we’re going the same way. Mind if I join you?"
She looked at Su Cheng, her beautiful eyes revealing a hint of expectation.
Hearing this, Su Cheng was momentarily stunned, then smiled and nodded.
The two walked side by side along the school's tree-lined path, neither speaking. Zhao Yan looked at his handsome, fair face and, as they were about to reach the archery range, she took out a small hair tie from her skirt, handed it to Su Cheng, saying, "This is for you."
She pointed to the hair tie on his wrist and added, "Although we don't have much interaction, I believe we're friends, so I also want to give this to you."
Although she usually wore her golden hair down, during physical education classes, she tied it into a golden ponytail, and this hair tie was her essential equipment for those occasions.
"Okay."
Su Cheng nodded, reached out and took it, directly clamping it onto her left wrist. It was a simple silver hair tie, looking quite ordinary, but under the sunlight, it seemed exceptionally eye-catching.
"Thank you."
He politely smiled at her.
Zhao Yan gently bit her lower lip, her eyes betraying a hint of joy, which she quickly suppressed, and she replied with a smile, "You're welcome."
The two continued in silence until he entered the archery dojo, then parted ways.
"Knock knock~"
Li Guanqi's hair ties were on Su Cheng's hand as he raised it, along with those of Cornelia and Xuan Ying, and knocked on the door.
"Come in."
A unique, chilly voice responded.
Su Cheng pushed the door open and found that today Ji Qingyi wasn't playing on her phone; instead, she was standing beside a desk as usual, holding a brush and seemingly writing something.
Seeing him enter, Ji Qingyi slowly put down the brush, looked up at Su Cheng, and then said, "Sit."
Su Cheng didn't stand on ceremony and directly sat down at the tea table.
After a long while, Ji Qingyi folded the paper and set it aside, then came over to sit next to him. A familiar fragrance wafted over, refreshing and delightful.
She glanced at his wrist and asked softly, "Has your friend circle grown again?"
Hearing this, Su Cheng was momentarily stunned, then explained, "It's because the president gave me this, and when someone asked, I explained. Then among my friends, it started to become popular to give such things as a representation of friendship."
Hearing this, Ji Qingyi didn't inquire further, merely nodding slightly, then asked, "Today, are we practicing archery?"
After finishing this sentence, she turned to look at the shooting range, her peripheral vision observing him, wanting to see his expression.
"Yes, sure."
Su Cheng replied, his eyes fixed on her, hoping to read something from her face, but he was disappointed; Ji Qingyi remained expressionless as ever.
"I'll go change."
Ji Qingyi said simply and stood up, heading towards her dressing room.
The implied meaning in this sentence made Su Cheng furrow her brows tightly, then a smile emerged on her face, and he also got up and walked towards his changing room.
Because Ji Qingyi was going to join him.
After about ten minutes,
Ji Qingyi had already changed into her clothes, all dressed entirely in white that fully highlighted her snowy white skin. Her black hair wound into a neat ponytail that hung at her back, her slender figure. Overall, she looked dashing yet shrouded in an air of mysterious aura.
She glanced at Su Cheng and indifferently nodded.
Su Cheng heard her and also nodded, then matched her pace. The two picked up their bows and arrows, stood in ceremonial shooting positions, exchanged a glance, and then simultaneously drew their bows back.
Suddenly, both their atmospheres changed.
Then, they shot simultaneously.
"Swish~"
"Swoosh~"
Two arrows shot out simultaneously, drawing beautiful arcs in the air before landing steadily in the bullseye.
"Bang!"
"Snap!"
Both arrows hit the bullseye at the same time. The two then exchanged a knowing glance and politely concluded, each retrieving their bows.
"You never cease to surprise me."
Ji Qingyi looked at Su Cheng, her voice calm and unwavering.
Just from that one shot, she could already tell Su Cheng's current level.
His skill had reached the state of returning to simplicity—a realm etched into his bones, infused in his blood, a natural ease that came from deep within his soul. His proficiency had even surpassed hers.
She couldn't help but feel inferior.
"You flatter me, President. I just cheated my way through practicing this a million times over, so it's become second nature."
Su Cheng shook his head, mocking himself lightly.
While he could now shoot with almost flawless accuracy, it was all due to the system's tools. Thus, he didn't take pride in it. What was the point of being accurate? Just now, Ji Qingyi's shot had made a 'bang' sound—if it had hit a person, it likely would have pierced through them.
Moreover, there was no arrow in her target.
"Hmph… you're modest."
Ji Qingyi looked at Su Cheng, her tone still calm.
Su Cheng shook his head again: "Not at all, it's just the truth."
"Regardless, you've proven that effort has meaning."
Ji Qingyi said softly.
For a brief moment, her gaze softened, but it quickly disappeared, and she continued, "Sit down. There's nothing more I can teach you."
The two sat at a tea table, sipping tea, but their conversation didn't cease.
"This phone keeps vibrating."
Ji Qingyi handed her phone to Su Cheng, who took it and examined it. He found that her messaging app only had two contacts: Ji Yuewu and himself.
He glanced at the chat history and noticed that she had chatted with Ji Yuewu the day before.
His chat with her was still stuck at the last message.
Her username and avatar were still the default ones.
After a quick inspection, he found the issue and looked up at her: "It's just some app notifications. I'll help you turn them off."
Ji Qingyi glanced at him and nodded.
He then adjusted the settings and handed the phone back to her.
"President."
He called out softly.
"Hmm?"
Ji Qingyi looked up at him, her eyes calm as still water.
Su Cheng got straight to the point: "Thank you for yesterday."
Yesterday, after walking with Ji Qingyi, he had indeed avoided trouble today, and even those who might have tried to hit on him stayed away.
"It was nothing, not worth mentioning," Ji Qingyi replied calmly, her gaze undisturbed. She then lowered her head to fiddle with her phone.
If Su Cheng had looked closely, he would have seen that Ji Qingyi was searching for information about how friends should interact on a Wikipedia site.
However, he didn't. After a quick nod, he didn't say more and took a large sip from his teacup.
After a while, Ji Qingyi's gaze swept across his face and she suddenly said, "If you need to contact me outside the club, you can use your phone."
At her words, Su Cheng's hand paused slightly. He looked up at her: "I will."
Ji Qingyi nodded lightly.
The two fell silent again, and Su Cheng continued sipping his tea.
At five o'clock.
Su Cheng left the club and began heading home.
But as he approached his apartment building, he noticed that the lights were on. This puzzled him; hadn't Li Guanqi left?
After parking, he quickly took out his key and opened the door.
But as soon as he opened it, he froze.
Two girls and a raven were standing at the door.
The two girls were even wearing aprons, and the aroma of a home-cooked meal wafted through the air. For a moment, Su Cheng was too stunned to react.
"What… is this?"
He asked hesitantly.
"Dinner is ready."
Li Guanqi enthusiastically stepped forward and took his school bag, while the raven, quivering its small body, picked up a slipper from the side and placed it at his feet before fetching another.
In no time, a pair of slippers was laid at his feet.
Su Cheng glanced at Li Guanqi, then at Cornelia, who was standing beside her, looking silent yet seemingly wanting to speak. He finally kept his silence.
He put on the slippers and walked to the table, staring at the exquisite dishes before him. His mouth watered involuntarily.
"Go wash up!"
Cornelia gave Su Cheng a little push from behind, urging him on.
"Oh… okay."
Su Cheng nodded and turned to head towards the bathroom.
After washing up, Su Cheng sat at the dinner table. In front of him was a bowl of steaming white rice, and four dishes and a soup.
Suddenly, he felt a strange yet familiar warmth, as if he were a father returning home from work.
"Try our cooking!"
Cornelia spoke up as she saw Su Cheng in a daze.
"Yeah, William and I cooked this together."
Li Guanqi nodded beside her.
Regaining his composure, Su Cheng glanced at the two girls and directly picked up a piece of meat with his chopsticks.
Heh… not bad!
He nodded approvingly.
Su Cheng's nod made Cornelia very pleased, so she happily picked up a piece of meat and put it in the raven's bowl below: "Caw-caw, eat up too!"
Just now, when she and Li Guanqi were visiting the raven, they learned from her that this raven was called Caw-caw.
Although the name initially made her feel a bit awkward and shy…
Considering that this raven was brought by Su Cheng from his hometown, they’d known each other longer than she had, so she let the thought go.
The raven seemed to understand her as it obediently nodded its head and ate.
"We've become good friends already," Cornelia said proudly, raising her chin. She then lowered her head and continued, "Right, Caw-caw?"
"Caw~"
The raven nodded and swayed, letting out a sound.
Su Cheng couldn't help but chuckle, then looked at the two girls and said gratefully, "Thank you both for going through the trouble to cook—and it's all my favorite dishes."
As he spoke, his gaze fell upon the table. There were several dishes among them that he loved.
Li Guanqi looked at him and shook her head, not saying anything. Her gaze paused on his wrist, but she still didn’t say anything and continued eating.
"I-I only washed the vegetables, cut them, and served the dishes…"
Cornelia felt a bit uncomfortable under Su Cheng's serious gaze and said shyly.
"No, I'm already very grateful. Thank you."
With that, Su Cheng joined in the meal.
Soon, the food was all eaten.
After dinner, the three cleaned up a bit.
They then sat on the couch for a short rest.
The raven perched on Su Cheng's shoulder, while the two girls sat beside her. On the left was Cornelia, and to the left of her was Li Guanqi.
"Why is it that animals from your hometown are all so smart?"
At that moment, Cornelia asked, looking at Caw-caw. She stretched out a little paw and poked the raven.
At her words, Li Guanqi also turned to look at Su Cheng.
Su Cheng shook his head and explained, "Ravens are inherently very smart animals."
"What about Big Yellow then? It can even write the "Teng Wang Ge Xu"!"
Cornelia asked, looking like an inquisitive child with her big eyes blinking.
Upon hearing Cornelia’s words, Li Guanqi beside her was taken aback for a moment. Then, recalling something, she fell into deep thought.
"Do you know Changbai Mountain?"
"Of course I do."
"At the top of Changbai Mountain, there's a famous Tianchi Lake. According to legend, any animal that drinks from it will become very intelligent!"
Su Cheng said seriously, fabricating a tale.
"Oh~ I see."
Cornelia nodded in sudden realization and then looked at Su Cheng again, "What other smart animals are there besides Big Yellow?"
Su Cheng was momentarily at a loss for words. He then began to search through his memory for stories about magical animals.
After a while, he opened his eyes and said in a deep voice, "There are some. For instance, I’ve seen a rooster that can play basketball."
"Wait, a basketball-playing… rooster?"