Chapter 145: Chapter 121: What Problem Requires Staring at Feet to Solve?
When Li Zhi returned to the classroom, Shen Yuan was already doing his homework.
Today’s homework was another six half-test-sheets, which was really just finishing the half left over from yesterday.
"Here. I got this for you."
As Li Zhi handed him the ice cream, which was already beaded with condensation, the chill from the convenience store freezer still clung to her fingertips.
Li Zhi had picked chocolate flavor, which both she and Shen Yuan loved.
The moment Shen Yuan saw the chocolate ice cream, his eyes lit up. His back, which had been ramrod straight with concentration, instantly relaxed, as if all his stress had just melted away.
"Whoa!"
Shen Yuan exclaimed in amazement, a delighted smile spreading across his face. "Well, this is a rare sight. Young Master Li actually brought me ice cream on her own initiative."
He took the ice cream as he spoke, his fingers immediately enveloped by the cool, icy sensation, which felt wonderfully refreshing.
Seeing his reaction, Li Zhi’s lips quirked upwards. She let out a soft "Tch," feigning indifference to his delight.
"Well, I’ve been eating too much of your ice cream lately. I figured I’d bring you one and call us even."
However, Shen Yuan immediately saw through her excuse and called her out without mercy. "You were just buying one for yourself and happened to think of me, weren’t you?"
His tone was teasing, with no hint of actual anger.
Faced with his accusation, Li Zhi didn’t even try to deny it, admitting it frankly. "How clever of you. You guessed it."
After saying that, she even gave Shen Yuan a mischievous wink.
Shen Yuan shook his head and rolled his eyes at her, then eagerly unwrapped the ice cream and started to dig in.
The rich chocolate flavor and the sweetness of the ice cream spread through his mouth, making him feel instantly happier.
The weather wasn’t as scorching as it had been at the beginning of the month, but it was still warm.
The ice cream in Shen Yuan’s hand hadn’t melted too much.
Shen Yuan subconsciously glanced at Li Zhi. The pretty girl’s temples were slightly damp with sweat, which he figured was from walking quickly under the sun.
"Thanks."
Hearing that, Li Zhi gave Shen Yuan a surprised look.
"How rare."
"Hey! What kind of image do you have of me? Do you think I’m some kind of heartless, ungrateful wretch?" Shen Yuan protested.
After he finished speaking, Shen Yuan saw Li Zhi shake her head.
Seeing that, Shen Yuan immediately went on high alert.
After all, from what he knew of Li Zhi, whatever words came out of Young Master Li’s mouth next were unlikely to be kind.
"An ungrateful stray."
’Just as I expected,’ he thought. ’Damn, that’s even worse than an ungrateful wretch.’
"What for?" Shen Yuan asked.
"I bring you ice cream, but you don’t save me any pizza."
Shen Yuan, who had just taken a bite of the crispy cone, immediately looked up to protest. "Didn’t you say you ate some on Sunday? So I figured there was no need to save you any."
But as soon as he finished speaking,
Li Zhi had already turned her head away, her ponytail sweeping across the test papers on her desk.
A cold huff from her nostrils made Shen Yuan’s hand, which was holding the ice cream, freeze in mid-air.
"A food-hogging, ungrateful stray."
The corner of Shen Yuan’s mouth twitched. ’Great,’ he thought. ’Now she’s added another adjective.’
"But, I..."
Whatever Shen Yuan was about to say died in his throat as Li Zhi suddenly turned back, her intense gaze fixed on him.
He froze, the ice cream halfway to his mouth. His Adam’s apple bobbed unconsciously as a bead of condensation from the wrapper slid down his wrist.
In the nearly frozen silence, Shen Yuan could see the shadows cast by her eyelashes trembling slightly. The tip of her nose was still dotted with tiny beads of sweat from her hurried walk.
The corner of Shen Yuan’s mouth twitched before he finally broke into an awkward smile.
His sheepish grin was reflected in the pretty girl’s clear, bright eyes.
"I..."
Just as Shen Yuan was about to speak, the girl pulled a test paper from her drawer and slapped it on the desk, startling him so much that his hand shook, dropping a few chocolate crisps onto the table.
"This is your punishment for hogging the food. I want to see this test paper finished by tomorrow."
Shen Yuan looked at the untouched Huanggang Comprehensive Science paper on the desk and groaned internally.
Setting Li Zhi’s task aside for the moment, Shen Yuan decided to finish his own homework first.
Just as Shen Yuan was doing his homework, Ah Jie and Yang Ze walked in from outside, carrying milk tea and deep in a discussion about some wild historical tales.
"So, at Changban Slope, the Cao Army had hundreds of thousands of soldiers. They could have killed Zhao Yun just by firing a volley of arrows. So why was he able to charge in and out seven times?" Yang Ze asked.
"Oh? Why?" Ah Jie’s curiosity was immediately piqued.
Yang Ze cleared his throat and began. "It’s because Zhao Yun, with his fair face and white robes, his bound hair coming undone, looked full of maternal love and gentle beauty as he held Ah Dou in his arms. Cao Cao mistook him for a woman and deliberately showed mercy. He ordered his men to take him alive, unable to bear the thought of killing him."
HISS—
Ah Jie sucked in a sharp breath.
He then nodded deeply. "That actually makes sense! No matter how fierce Zhao Yun was, escaping once would be one thing. But charging in and out seven times really does sound impossible."
The moment Ah Jie finished speaking, he spotted Shen Yuan eating an ice cream and strode over to his side.
"Yuan, we haven’t heard any of your wild historical tales in a while. Discovered anything new recently?"
Shen Yuan glanced at Ah Jie. "I have, my friend, I have. But this discovery is from a bit further back in time. And the region is a bit remote."
"Oh? Let’s hear it!"
Hearing this, Yang Ze immediately pulled up a stool and sat down at Shen Yuan’s desk. Ah Jie hooked his own stool over with his foot.
The three musketeers gathered around Shen Yuan’s seat, craning their necks in eager anticipation.
