Chapter 285: , Mai Sui's Love (Please subscribe!)

There were 6 dishes on the table, three Hunan dishes with chili, two Huaiyang dishes, and one seaweed egg soup.

Not long after, Professor Yu came.

Zhou Shihe, Ye Ning, and Sun Maning were also called over by Mai Sui one after another.

Li Heng set the bowls and chopsticks and said to Professor Yu, "Teacher, why don't we forget about the beef hotpot tonight, and eat it tomorrow noon?"

Scanning the 6 dishes on the table, 3 of which were her favorites, Yu Shuheng agreed immediately.

After everyone was seated, Li Heng asked Mai Sui, Zhou Shihe, and the girls, "Didn't you have dinner?"

The tall Ye Ning replied, "Sui Sui said you were coming back tonight, so we were all waiting for you to eat together, we just ate some snacks in the afternoon, *ooh*, let's start eating, I'm so hungry."

"Then what are we waiting for, hurry up and use your chopsticks, just in time for Professor Yu and me to be hungry too."

Li Heng picked up his chopsticks with a laugh and took the lead, eating a few mouthfuls to cushion his stomach, then gave Zhou Shihe a thumbs up, praising, "Comrade Shihe, your craftsmanship is really good, every time it makes me eat very comfortably."

Zhou Shihe gave him a gentle smile across the table, not making a sound.

Li Heng borrowed flowers to offer to Buddha, enthusiastically greeting, "You always give people the feeling of being weak, making people's hearts ache, you should eat more yourself."

"Mm, okay," Zhou Shihe responded.

These words were sincere, and everyone at the table had the same feeling.

He then thanked Ye Ning and Sun Maning sweetly.

As for Mai Sui, *ha*, he didn't say anything, just quietly picked a chopstick of food into her bowl.

Mai Sui smiled softly, looked at him with her eyebrows, and then lowered her head to pick the stir-fried pork with chili he was eating.

Ye Ning and Sun Maning, who were bickering, didn't see this scene, but Zhou Shihe across the table and Yu Shuheng next to her saw it all.

Looking at Li Heng, then at Mai Sui, then at Professor Yu, Yu Shuheng's mind surfaced the conversation with Runwen last night, about Mai Sui, and she was absent-minded for a while, eating 3 mouthfuls of white rice in a row, forgetting to pick food to eat.

Her gaze wandered imperceptibly between Li Heng, Mai Sui, and Professor Yu, and Zhou Shihe finally looked at Professor Yu, who was eating white rice, then felt at ease eating her own.

Not drinking alcohol, but eating two bowls of rice and a bowl of soup in a row, exactly at the age of being able to endure, Li Heng wasn't worried about getting fat at all.

Well, he was still thin now, not to mention he was a non-fat constitution, plus the long-term consumption of digging wells, *ahem*, fat people had always had nothing to do with him.

After eating, Li Heng didn't accompany the girls to chat, but found clothes to change into and went to the shower room.

Yu Shuheng and Zhou Shihe exchanged some musical instrument performance insights for a while, and after chatting about family matters with Mai Sui, she also left, returning to her own home. After rushing for a day, she, who had a clean-freak nature, also wanted to take a shower as soon as possible.

Once Professor Yu left, the four girls completely relaxed.

No, Zhou Shihe had a natural aura, and hadn't been affected by Professor Yu since the first time they met.

And Mai Sui was too familiar with the other party, and had even slept in the same bed for half a month, so the influence wasn't big.

Only Ye Ning and Sun Maning couldn't let go in

After listening to the bickering for a while, Zhou Shihe raised her right wrist to check the time; it was almost 12 o'clock, so she asked Mai Sui, "Where are you sleeping tonight?"

Mai Sui looked toward the second bedroom subconsciously, but said, "I'll go over with you all."

Zhou Shihe thought for a moment and made a suggestion for the first time: "You should spend the night here."

Mai Sui was somewhat surprised; these words didn't sound like something her best friend would usually say, as it didn't fit her personality, so she gazed at her.

Zhou Shihe smiled cleverly without offering any explanation.

Ten-plus minutes later, Li Heng came out of the shower room, holding his freshly washed underwear to hang on the balcony.

Seeing this, Ye Ning stood up and said, "He's out, let's go."

The other three girls stood up as well, intending to leave, and Sun Manning even shouted at him, "Li Heng, come down and lock the door."

Hearing the noise, Li Heng hung up his pants and walked into the living room, "Tomorrow is Sunday, and there's no class, why go over so early? Why not stay a while longer?"

"So early? Heavens! It's a minute and a half until 12 o'clock—no, just 80 seconds left."

Sun Manning rolled her eyes at him.

Li Heng pondered for a moment and said to Mai Sui, "Comrade Mai Sui, wait a moment, I have something to discuss with you."

Hearing this, Zhou Shihe, Sun Manning, and Ye Ning looked at Mai Sui, but didn't linger and left directly.

Li Heng drew the living room curtains, pointed at the sofa, and said to Mai Sui, who was looking at him, "My temples are a bit swollen, help me rub them."

"Okay!"

After he sat down, Mai Sui went behind the sofa, pressed her hands onto his temples, and began to rub gently.

"Is the pressure right? Does it hurt?" she asked softly.

"You can be a little heavier," he said.

Mai Sui increased the force appropriately, "How about now?"

"Very good, extremely comfortable." Li Heng rested his head on the sofa back and slowly closed his eyes.

After a long time in the silence, he suddenly spoke: "Aren't you going to ask why I asked you to stay?"

Looking down at this face with its three-dimensional features, Mai Sui didn't speak for a moment.

After another while, Li Heng opened his eyes, looked up from below, made vertical eye contact with her for about 10 seconds, and said later: "Stop pressing, sit with me for a while."

Mai Sui didn't listen and continued pressing at the same pace, though her gaze didn't move away.

After a long, long time, she asked in a low voice: "Did you see Song Yu when you went to Jingcheng this time?"

Li Heng originally wanted to say he had, but upon receiving her gaze, which hid fear and anxiety, he changed his words when they reached his lips:

"No. You know, Renmin University and Peking University are quite close; it's not easy for me to see two people at the same time, and this trip was mainly to see Chen Zijin and my father."

Afterward, he added: "Chen Zijin is a very sensitive person."

Mai Sui had spent two years with Chen Zijin and naturally understood this, so she gave a soft "mm."

Li Heng asked with concern: "You've been pressing for so long, are your hands tired?"

"It's alright," Mai Sui replied.

"Sit with me for a while," Li Heng requested again.

Mai Sui asked: "Is your head still swollen?"

Li Heng patted the sofa beside him: "Much better, come over here."

After repeated requests, Mai Sui finally walked around and sat down at the other end of the sofa.

Looking at those bewitching eyes that could stimulate a man's desire to the maximum at close range, Li Heng said slowly: "I went back to Shaodong County this time and saw the English teacher."

"I know," Mai Sui said.

Li Heng said: "The English teacher praised you, saying that you've changed so much, and that these eyes can hook people even through a photograph."

Mai Sui was stunned and moved her gaze away calmly, not meeting his eyes: "Is the change that obvious?"

Li Heng blurted out: "Yes."

Mai Sui lowered her head and pondered for a moment, finally asking: "What else did the teacher say?"

Li Heng said: "The teacher is the type who loves gossip and even asked about the 'one king and three little kings' of our Fudan University."

Mai Sui asked: "What did you say?"

Li Heng didn't lie and repeated his original words.

Mai Sui didn't say anything after listening and silently got up to walk toward the stairwell.

But after going down the stairs to the first floor in one breath, she suddenly stopped in her tracks and leaned against the wooden railing for two minutes.

Waiting for him to follow.

As a result, she didn't wait for any movement, so she had to return to the second floor and ask: "Aren't you coming down to lock the door?"

"If I follow you downstairs, you'll really leave."

Li Heng, looking like he had everything under control, said happily: "If I don't move, you won't find it easy to leave."

With her little thoughts exposed, Mai Sui pursed her lips and turned her head away, not looking at him.

Li Heng then suppressed all his expressions and said seriously: "I don't want you to leave either."

Hearing this, Mai Sui turned her head back again and stared at him.

Eye to eye, the two looked at each other.

After a long while, Li Heng stood up, and under her gaze, placed his hands on her shoulders, pushed her toward the sofa, and pressed her down to sit properly.

Li Heng sat on the single sofa nearby, "I really want to drink."

Mai Sui said: "You were just drunk last night."

Li Heng said: "I used to restrain myself from drinking too much while writing, but now that I have nothing to do, I can indulge a little, right?"

Mai Sui said: "There's no alcohol left in the house; the remaining few bottles of beer were drunk by us yesterday."

Well, after talking for so long, it was like playing the lute to a cow; talking about it when there's no alcohol is pointless.

Seeing his depressed look, Mai Sui smiled charmingly and then asked: "Aren't you going to ask why I went downstairs just now?"

Then, without waiting for his reply, she quickly stopped him from speaking: "Don't make a sound."

Li Heng turned his head and, sure enough, looked at her without saying a word.

After looking at each other in silence for a while, Mai Sui stood up, went behind him, and helped him press his temples again.

Li Heng didn't interrupt her this time.

Silence is better than sound at this moment; a silent tacit understanding.

I don't know how long passed like this—10 minutes? Or 20 minutes?

Anyway, Li Heng slowly fell asleep in the extremely soft environment and slowly entered dreamland.

Afraid of waking him, Mai Sui slowly stopped, then remained motionless, just examining his eyes, nose, and handsome lips.

She understood that Li Heng had asked her to stay alone because he had something to say to her.

She also understood that this man had seen Song Yu.

Given his fondness for Song Yu, he probably went to Peking University as soon as he arrived in Jingcheng.

She guessed that Song Yu must have said something.

She also guessed that what Song Yu said wouldn't be very harsh, because the other party had always treated her as a sister.

She stood behind the sofa, examining him, speculating why he didn't say his initial words.

Was he worried about her?

Was he worried about becoming strangers from then on?

Was he also not wanting her to leave when he didn't follow her downstairs just now?

Various thoughts lingered in her mind; Mai Sui, filled with guilt and reluctance, stood for over an hour, silently, her gaze never leaving him.

Like a wooden statue, she didn't even feel tired!

It wasn't until the wind picked up outside that she feared his freshly washed underwear would be blown away by the wind that she made a move, quietly rushing to the balcony to transfer the pants and the hanger to the attic. There were clips she had bought yesterday, specifically for clipping clothes.

But just as she opened the clip, she froze, discovering that the lights were still on in the small building at No. 25 opposite; Yu Laoshi hadn't slept yet and happened to be tidying up clothes as well.

Across the narrow alley, both women noticed each other.

Mai Sui was a bit embarrassed; she was holding a man's underwear.

Yu Shuheng smiled elegantly, as if she understood the embarrassment of the girl across the way, quickly put away her clothes, and entered the living room; after a while, the living room light went out.

Clipping the underwear in slow motion, Mai Sui's face felt burning hot; afterward, she wasn't in a hurry to enter the room, so she sat on the swing in the cold wind with her hands folded over her abdomen.

The purple wind chime on the swing was still there, tinkling softly with the wind; she was momentarily mesmerized.

…

"Are you a fool? Why are you blowing in the wind outside in the middle of the night?"

After a long time, a voice broke her quiet world.

Li Heng walked from the living room into the attic.

Mai Sui, who had come back to her senses, asked belatedly: "Why are you awake?"

Li Heng came to her, squatted halfway, and gazed at her: "If I didn't wake up, you'd have a cold and fever tomorrow."

Looking at each other at close range, Mai Sui was gradually attracted by his dark eyes, and an indescribable emotion suddenly surged in her heart.

This emotion spread slowly, slowly, and began to infect; within a few breaths, it was like an invisible, intangible rope that bound the two together.

As an indescribable aura filled the space between them, at a certain moment, Li Heng slowly reached out his hand toward her.

She watched everything quietly, her heart pounding, looking nervously at his hand—two palms wide, one palm wide, getting closer and closer to her…

Just as his hand was about to touch her cheek, Mai Sui jerked her head, turning it to the left in a panic, not daring to meet his eyes, her voice trembling:

"Li Heng, let's sleep, it's late."

"Mm, oh! Okay!"

Interrupted, Li Heng, who had awakened from his strange state, steadied himself, took two deep breaths, and then his right hand sank, taking the opportunity to grab her hand and pull her up: "Are your legs numb from sitting so long?"

"Numb!"

Mai Sui said cooperatively, but still didn't dare to look into his eyes.

One asked and one answered; the two people speaking seemed to be on different channels, yet they were surprisingly in sync.

"Stamp your feet."

"Mm."

"Is it better now?"

"A little better."

Li Heng let go of her and turned to walk toward the living room: "It's late, I'm going to sleep first."

"Okay." Mai Sui raised her head, finally daring to look at him.

As he was about to enter the bedroom, Li Heng said with his back to her: "Tomorrow I want to eat the breakfast you buy: tofu pudding, deep-fried dough sticks, and thousand-layer cake, uh… and two steamed dumplings."

"Okay." Although Mai Sui's face was covered in a blush, a trace of a smile bloomed.

"Bang!"

The sound was neither loud nor soft; the master bedroom door closed, separating them into two worlds, instantly quiet.

Mai Sui also entered the second bedroom, closed the door, took off her shoes, lay on the bed, and then looked up at the ceiling in a daze.

She was in a daze for a long time!

She was thinking about everything that happened in the attic just now, thinking about everything that happened tonight.

She realized that Song Yu had indeed noticed her situation.

She realized that Li Heng reaching out to touch her face just now was a response, and even more so, a plea to stay.

He didn't want to hurt Song Yu, nor did he want to hurt her, so he used this way to tell her: he knew everything and hoped this friendship would continue.

He specifically instructed her just now that he wanted to eat the breakfast she bought tomorrow morning; was the deeper meaning: he hoped to see her appear by his side tomorrow? That this friendship still remained?

Afterward, she pondered: if she hadn't dodged just now, what would the result have been?

Would he really have touched her face?

Would he have been very embarrassed?

Perhaps, if she hadn't dodged, he really would have… to her.

After a long time, a very, very small murmur sounded in the second bedroom: I won't make things difficult for you.

This night, she was very conflicted.

This night, she was very ashamed and very painful.

This night, she had a dream; the dream was full of scenes from the attic, and in the dream, Song Yu suddenly descended from the sky, looking at her and him hugging together…

The next day.

When Li Heng got up early, he saw Mai Sui in the living room at a glance, and the breakfast he mentioned last night was on the coffee table.

He was stunned, stretched, walked over, and asked: "Why is it just you? Where are they?"

Mai Sui said: "They haven't gotten up yet, they're sleeping in."

Li Heng raised his left wrist to check; well, it was only 7:36, he had gotten up too early.

He sat down and said: "It's the weekend today, you should have slept a while longer."

Mai Sui didn't speak, but picked up a cup of tofu pudding and handed it to him; the meaning was self-evident.

Li Heng took it, "Afraid I'd get up and have no breakfast?"

Mai Sui smiled charmingly, "Mm, you could say that, but I couldn't sleep either. Also, can't you be a mute?"

Li Heng tilted his head to look at her, "I'm not afraid you…"

Mai Sui interrupted him, "I'm fine."

Li Heng looked at her again, then moved his body and sat down right next to her; due to the excessive force, he pushed her aside a bit.

Mai Sui chuckled, "Don't comfort me in this way, I'm really fine."

Li Heng tilted his head, "Really?"

Mai Sui said "Mm."

Li Heng put down the tofu pudding and stretched his hands toward her, "Then can I give you a hug?"

Mai Sui's body stiffened instantly, her brain stiffened, and her thoughts stiffened, but under his persistence, she couldn't refuse and finally nodded slightly.

The next second, she only felt those hands reach out suddenly, and before she could react, she was hugged tightly; she was held in his arms, pressed closely.

Li Heng hugged her and whispered in her ear: "Mai Sui, thank you for taking care of me; reaching this point, I have a responsibility, I am willing to…"

Before he could finish, Mai Sui in his arms sealed his mouth with her hands; she looked at him with pleading eyes and shook her head slightly.

After a long standoff, seeing that her determination was set, Li Heng sighed secretly and didn't speak again.

After waiting a while, Mai Sui slowly loosened her hands, leaned in his arms, and said: "Thank you for giving me a step down, thank you for hugging me, thank you for allowing me to stay by your side."

"Thank you!" she repeated faintly.

Half a minute later, she resolutely left his embrace, changing from her previous sorrowful appearance, brushed the fine hair by her ear with her right hand, and asked with a delicate smile: "What happened just now?"

Li Heng picked up the tofu pudding and took two sips, cooperating perfectly: "What are you asking me?"

Mai Sui's smile grew even wider, and she placed the steamed dumplings from the coffee table in front of him, "I bought four, rewarding you for your efforts for our friendship."

Li Heng: "…"

Didn't expect this girl to have a playful side too.

As this breakfast was finished in a harmonious atmosphere, it seemed as if nothing had happened between the two, and yet it seemed as if everything had happened.

"Are you full?" she asked.

Li Heng touched his belly: "Full, will I be able to eat this in the future?"

Mai Sui replied: "Yes!"

Seeing that she was fine, Li Heng finally breathed a sigh of relief.

It was a true sigh of relief; the impact Song Yu brought to Mai Sui could be considered over for this wave.

After tidying up the leftovers, Mai Sui asked: "Do you have any plans today?"

Li Heng scanned the calendar, stood up, and said: "I'm going to Yu Laoshi's house to make a phone call."

"Okay."

Watching him stand up quietly, watching him go down the stairs quietly, watching his back disappear quietly; when the sound of opening the door came from downstairs, the weakness she had disguised with a breath of air exploded instantly.

She saw herself lying limply on the sofa, suppressing her emotions, trying hard, trying hard to suppress it, but tears still spilled from the corners of her eyes against her will.

As intelligent as Mai Sui was, she knew he was facing immense pressure with Song Yu in front and Xiao Han behind; she knew his words and actions from last night until now contained elements of comfort, and she also knew she had become an accident in his plan, causing him great trouble.

Even invisibly, she was forcing him, forcing him to show some indication.

Therefore, the understanding her used three "thank yous" to politely decline his kindness.

Of course, the most critical thing was: she was a person with conservative thoughts, unable to convince herself to face Song Yu, unable to convince herself to fight for a man with her best friend.

Not to mention that this best friend was the woman Li Heng loved most.

Song Yu hadn't condemned her with a single word until now, which made her even more hesitant and at a loss. He was good to her, Song Yu was sincere to her, yet she had failed them.

"Knock, knock, knock!"

"Knock, knock, knock!"

"Yu Laoshi, are you up?"

Li Heng knocked on the door downstairs, accompanied by shouting.

There was no response inside; just as he intended to leave for outside the school, the door of the small building at No. 25 opened, and Yu Shuheng walked out of the door with a sleepy face.

Opening the courtyard gate, Yu Laoshi scanned him, then turned and walked inside, not even asking what he came for.

This attitude was worlds apart from yesterday and the day before, returning once again to the iceberg appearance of their first meeting.

The two went up to the second floor one after the other; Yu Shuheng walked into the master bedroom on her own, closed the door, and didn't say a word from beginning to end.

Just when he thought Yu Laoshi was going to continue sleeping, the master bedroom door opened again; the other party had changed into a set of clothes and walked over with elegant steps.

Lazy just now, elegant now; wow! Good fellow, changing clothes here, looking like a different person again.

She sat on the sofa, looking at him.

Li Heng sat opposite her and pointed at the landline phone on the coffee table.

Yu Shuheng glanced at the phone and asked concisely: "Where?"

Li Heng replied: "Harvest magazine."

Yu Shuheng lowered her eyelids, didn't make a sound, and had no intention of leaving.

Li Heng understood; if he had said he was calling Jingcheng or Shaodong County just now, she would have definitely left, definitely vacated the space for him.

Thinking for a moment, Li Heng added a remedial remark: "Teacher, I also need to call Jingcheng."

Yu Shuheng's gaze lingered on him, and she said: "I encountered sleep paralysis again last night."

"Encountered it again?" Li Heng raised his head, looked around, and found that the talisman and rooster blood were still there.

Then he went to the attic and looked up to check, returning to ask: "Teacher, the talisman on the window is gone, did you see it?"

Yu Shuheng said: "I noticed it before going to sleep last night; it was probably blown away by the wind during the two days I wasn't home. I thought it would be fine after so long."

Li Heng said enthusiastically, "I'll accompany you to the temple to ask for a few more another day."

Actually, he felt it was psychological; if she hadn't discovered the missing talisman last night, maybe the so-called sleep paralysis wouldn't have occurred.

Yu Shuheng nodded, then closed her eyes, not knowing what she was thinking.

After lingering his gaze on her for a few seconds, Li Heng moved the landline closer, picked up the red receiver, and dialed the number.

"Ding-a-ling"

"Ding-a-ling"

After waiting a while, the call went through.

"Hello, who is this?"

"Old Zou, it's me." Recognizing it was Zou Ping's voice, Li Heng identified himself.

"Old Li, it's you. Are you looking for Chief Editor Liao today?" Zou Ping was well aware of the agreement between him and Old Mr. Bao, so he asked very directly.

"Yes."

"Wait a moment."

"Okay, sorry to trouble you."

Not long after, Liao Hua picked up the receiver and greeted: "You're back from Jingcheng?"

There were many people in the editorial department, so Liao Hua didn't call his name but chatted in a more familiar tone.

"I'm back. Uncle Liao, when are you free?" Li Heng asked.

Chief Editor Liao said: "How about next weekend? I'll come to pick you up then. Old Mr. Ba isn't in Shanghai these few days; he went out of town."

Li Heng didn't ask where he went and said crisply: "Fine, then see you next weekend."

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Something came up temporarily this morning, so it was delayed and posted late.

Posting first and editing later.

(More to come)

(End of chapter)