Locking the Door At Least She Can't See

The egg porridge was nice and hot. Xia Yanchun held it in her hands, no longer needing Shen Nian to help keep her warm.

The edge of the disposable spoon was sharp, so she only pursed her lips lightly against it to sip the porridge.

Shen Nian pushed his bike out of the parking shed, waiting for her to finish the last bit of porridge before setting off.

Xia Yanchun's scarf smelled really good, giving off a faint fragrance from time to time.

The temperature was quite low today, but Shen Nian wasn't afraid of the cold. Although the scarf Xia Yanchun wrapped around him was very warm, it was dispensable for him. Compared to him, Xia Yanchun needed the scarf more.

At the school gate, Shen Nian took off the scarf and re-tied it around Xia Yanchun's neck. He looped it twice, wrapping the young girl's neck warmly.

With the scarf on, Xia Yanchun looked very docile. Shen Nian lifted a strand of her hair and praised, You look really pretty.

Xia Yanchun hummed, At least you're honest. Let's go.

It's almost the holidays. When are you planning to go home?

It's still a while away. Why are you in such a hurry to go home? It's not like we have to scramble for train tickets.

I just miss the town.

Tch, during the summer vacation of our sophomore year, you didn't go back for two whole months. Now the holidays haven't even started and you want to go back. That's too fake.

Xia Yanchun exposed him mercilessly.

How is that the same? Times have changed, Xia Yanchun. Now my grades have improved, and I even bought a necklace for my mom. The Spring Festival is coming soon, so going back means I can comfortably enjoy the entire winter break. The reason I didn't go back in our sophomore year was that I didn't want to do chores. You know, as soon as I go back, I have to take over all the household chores—hanging out the laundry, cooking, and stuff. I'm lazy...

Shen Nian babbled a bunch of reasons. Xia Yanchun thought about it and felt that he actually made a good point.

The current Shen Nian was truly impressive. He really deserved to be pampered like a treasure—after all, he was someone who had scored seven hundred points.

The town had produced students who got into Tsinghua and Peking University before, but they were very rare. In her memory, the last one was several years ago. At that time, they even hired a car with a banner and used a loudspeaker to announce it all over town.

If his parents wanted to be a bit flashy, they could totally do the same thing, and Shen Nian would completely deserve it.

You're way too lazy. You don't care about your parents at all. To think you didn't go home for an entire summer vacation just to avoid doing chores.

Even though Xia Yanchun was a head shorter than Shen Nian, she still poked Shen Nian's chest like an adult lecturing a child.

Actually, there was another main reason. Originally, I just wanted to go back a bit later, but then I didn't dare to go back at all. Do you know why? Shen Nian covered his mouth and whispered into Xia Yanchun's ear.

Hmm...

Xia Yanchun raised her eyebrows and thought for a moment, finally locking onto the time when the holiday had just begun.

A faint, delicate flush crept up her skin, which looked especially pale and cool in the winter. Feeling shy, Xia Yanchun kicked Shen Nian's black trousers, dirtying his clean pant leg.

Normally, he wouldn't let her bring it up, and would get sulky whenever she did. Now, he was the one bringing it up. Has he gotten over it, or does he think he can be shameless now that their relationship has improved?

You were afraid it'd be awkward seeing me, right?

Ahem, it was indeed pretty awkward.

Are you blaming me for being too embarrassed to see me? It was your own fault for watching adult videos in your room without locking the door, and wearing headphones so you couldn't even hear me knocking.

I didn't know you would come over...

Shen Nian scratched his head. His older sister was working overtime and hadn't come home, so he couldn't think of any reason for Xia Yanchun to visit. He let his guard down for a moment, and ended up getting caught red-handed by Xia Yanchun.

It was a high-stakes gamble, but he lost, and the punishment was being completely at Xia Yanchun's mercy.

Anyway, it's not my fault. If you had just been a little careful, this wouldn't have happened.

If I locked the door while I was alone in my room and you found it wouldn't open, wouldn't you get suspicious?

... Xia Yanchun grumbled.

To say she wouldn't be suspicious would definitely be a lie. Xia Yanchun wasn't a blank slate with zero knowledge about sex. She and Li Shiyan had discussed these intimate, naughty things between boys and girls quite a lot.

When someone is perfectly fine at home alone, but locks their bedroom door instead of the front door, it naturally leads to certain assumptions.

Whether he locked the door or not, she would know, but at least if he locked it, she wouldn't have seen it!

Idiot. Hmph, I can't be bothered with you.

Xia Yanchun stuffed her hands into her pockets and turned to walk away, ignoring him.

Shen Nian followed her. Just as he was about to catch up, she would jog a couple of steps forward, leaving Shen Nian trailing behind.

Shen Nian was utterly speechless. Fine, he would just follow behind Chunbao and watch her little ponytail, as always.

In the classroom.

The weather was cold, and as soon as everyone sat in their seats, they slumped over like they were dead.

Ma Mingfan was sprawled on his desk. Before he could fall asleep, he saw Shen Nian coming in and immediately blurted out some cheeky remarks.

Who understands this feeling of a true dragon turning into a caterpillar...

Uh... Shen Nian internally sweat-dropped. Coming in hot with the dirty jokes, huh.

If he weren't a guy, he almost wouldn't have understood that.

Am I wrong?

You might be, but I'm not.

Shen Nian bared his teeth. He wouldn't admit to such a thing even if he died. Of course, he really wasn't; he wasn't afraid of the cold, so his body was relatively warm. It wasn't that he didn't want to admit it, he was just telling the truth.

Ma Mingfan picked his nose with a look of disdain. What's there to be embarrassed about admitting? We're all guys. What, do you not even have the courage to face yourself?

You've trained your willpower to the point of being shameless, haven't you? Spouting whatever crap comes to mind.

Damn, my bad, I put my skill points into the wrong tree.

...You're not even human anymore. Shen Nian covered his face.

Chen Dong walked into the classroom holding two steamed buns from the cafeteria, looking radiant. Holy crap, guys, word on the street is that the holidays start the week after next.

Damn, that fast? Nice, nice, nice. Gotta get ready to buy train tickets.

Shen Nian propped up his chin. He had sneaked into the parents' group chat, so he knew early on. It really wasn't far from the holidays.

Hey, last time you said you were heading back the same way as Liang Jing. Shouldn't you ask her to buy seats next to each other this time? Shen Nian teased.

Ma Mingfan actually had this in mind, so he didn't get defensive when Shen Nian brought it up.

His willpower allowed him to handle many things calmly. He didn't even have emotional fluctuations when he got mocked with the pat head emoji in the Naruto game and the opponent refused a rematch, let alone Shen Nian's teasing.

He still planned to ask Liang Jing when she was buying her ticket so they could sit together. They could play games together on the way. With someone to play games with, even playing Mini World would be a lot of fun. This would be much more comfortable than sitting alone on a multi-hour ride.

No rush right now. I'll bring it up when there's time.

Whoa, is there some gossip? Spill it! Chen Dong hurried over to join the fun.

Gossip my ass. Ma Mingfan cleared his throat. He and Liang Jing were currently just gaming buddies. It wasn't really gossip, and there was nothing juicy about it. Can you eat your buns a little faster? The smell is killing me.

Then I definitely have to eat slower, nom nom nom...

Smack your lips one more time and I'll send you flying!

Smack smack smack—