Chapter 129: Xu Yanfeng, this bastard

Xia Xi waited a while, but no message came from Xu Yanfeng; she was so tired she yawned three or four times in a row and fell asleep without realizing it.

With the bed curtains drawn, a closed space formed around her, dark and gloomy. The dorm had the air conditioner on, warm and comfortable; plus she was exhausted from a morning's work, her body utterly fatigued, so Xia Xi slept especially long.

When she woke up, everything before her eyes was a hazy gray; for a moment she couldn't tell whether it was day or night.

Her head felt a little heavy, and even the blanket was pulled over her; no wonder she kept feeling unsafe in her sleep. She pulled the blanket over herself, closed her eyes and dozed a bit longer, then her shoulder hit something hard; she reached out and felt it—it was her phone.

Xia Xi pressed it, the screen lit up, she cracked her eyes open a slit and saw that it was ten minutes to four.

She had actually slept for three hours.

The dorm was dead silent, not a sound; Xia Xi propped her elbows on the mattress, used the leverage to lift her upper body, pulled aside the bed curtain and looked out—the other three beds' curtains were also tightly drawn; she didn't know whether they were asleep or had gone out.

In that posture she sat up, placed the back of her hand behind her, grabbed the pillow and stood it upright, propped it behind her back, and leaned comfortably against it.

After sleeping so long, her mind struggled to fully wake; she stared blankly for a moment, then picked up her phone again and saw an unread message from Xu Yanfeng. She froze, opened it, and realized that her own message had been sent nearly twenty minutes earlier and Xu Yanfeng had replied.

Unfortunately, at that moment she couldn't resist the overwhelming drowsiness and fell asleep.

Xia Xi stared at the text he had sent, wishing she were still asleep.

Because Xu Yanfeng's reply was a question: "Aren't you already clear about it?"

Xia Xi instantly felt both angry and amused—clear about what? If she were clear, she wouldn't have kept asking him over and over.

She asked him whether he felt even the slightest flutter for him; if he did, he'd say yes, if not, he'd say no—what kind of answer is that? Xu Yanfeng, this bastard, is definitely doing it on purpose.

Is it fun to keep her hanging?

Xia Xi tossed her phone onto the blanket, after a while, once she'd processed her emotions, she picked it up and typed two characters.

WeiaiXYF: "Bastard."

Xu Yanfeng didn't reply again, as expected.

Fu Li also sent her a message; just half an hour earlier, he was still asking the same question: "Have you decided?"

After sleeping, Xia Xi thought it through and decisively rejected Fu Li.

She didn't want to test Xu Yanfeng's heart this way; regardless of whether the outcome would be good or bad, she wasn't willing.

Fu Li respected her decision and said nothing else.

Xia Xi stayed quiet for six or seven days, mainly because she was busy.

Unable to show her presence in front of Xu Yanfeng, she couldn't skip her daily WeChat greetings: saying good morning and good night, sending him photos of three meals a day, sharing the music she listened to, complaining about the endless homework, pulling all-nighters, and so on.

Xu Yanfeng hardly ever replies; even just sending a short "mm" now and then is a kindness.

Each time, Xia Xi would stare at that little "mm" for a long moment, then twitch the corner of her mouth, as if that "mm" were Xu Yanfeng himself, and she would angrily say to it, "You're only getting away with this because I like you."

A roommate happened to see this scene, said not to do that, it's pretty scary, looks like she's gone crazy.

Xia Xi really was crazy; if she didn't see Xu Yanfeng again, she'd make herself crazy thinking about him.

Tomorrow is Saturday; Xia Xi, after showering, lay on the bed, unable to restrain her bubbling thoughts, she messaged Xu Yanfeng, holding down the voice key: "Senior, are you going to the library tomorrow? I can't get up in the morning—can you save me a seat?"

She listened to it herself once, couldn't help shivering, feeling the voice wasn't natural enough, a bit strained.

She withdrew that message, cleared her throat, said it again, then listened—this time it sounded rough and gruff, like she was ordering Xu Yanfeng to do something, not at all gentle.

Xia Xi withdrew it again and began a third attempt.

Anyway, Xu Yanfeng never instantly replies to her messages, so she didn't have to worry about him hearing the first two attempts.

The other three people in the dorm were forced to hear three identical repetitions, and they couldn't help suspecting they'd fallen into some loop. Zhao Lei suggested: "Just send a text instead."

"No," Xia Xi said, turning onto her side, propping her head with her hand, speaking with reason and evidence: "Text is cold and lifeless; where's the rich feeling in a voice? I haven't seen him in so many days—I need him to hear my voice, lest he forget."

Zhao Lei rolled her eyes to the heavens: "Just one week."

"Haven't you heard the saying, 'A day apart feels like three autumns'?"

When the phone rang, Xi Xi didn't have time to keep chatting with Zhao Lei; a jolt made her sit up, and the good-quality bed frame of Xin Xiaoqu shook several times, emitting a long-unheard creak.

Xu Yanfeng: "Why say the same thing three times?"

Xia Xi froze, her cheeks burning red, embarrassed enough to bang her head against the wall.

Zhao Lei, holding her pajamas, had been about to go to the bathroom to wash up when she heard a "thud"; she looked up toward Xia Xi's bed and saw Xia Xi facing away from her, her forehead pressed against the inner wall.

So that sound just now was her head hitting the wall?

Zhao Lei was startled: "What's wrong with you now?"

Xia Xi turned around, her pretty face wearing a look of wanting to cry but unable to: "Xu Yanfeng replied to my message."

Zhao Lei was somewhat speechless: "It's not the first time he's replied to you; you're not that bad, are you?"

"He asked me why I said the same thing three times." Xia Xi pouted, on the verge of collapse, wanting to bang her head against the wall again: "This shows he heard both of the voice messages I just withdrew; he must think I'm seriously ill! Why is heaven so cruel to me? He never used to check his messages promptly—this time he actually did!"

Zhao Lei laughed mercilessly.

Xia Xi ignored her, turned her body back, continued facing the wall in self-reflection, racking her brain to salvage her dignity: "I sent the first two messages wrong."

Xu Yanfeng: "Oh, I also asked two other seniors to help you save a seat."

Xia Xi shouted into the air, feeling wronged: "If this isn't explained clearly, I'll look like a girl who casts her net wide—'No, no, no, I only asked you, one senior! I swear, if I lie I'll go bald.'"

Xu Yanfeng didn't reply; she didn't know whether he believed her.

Xia Xi seized the moment: "Well… then, this one and only senior, will you help me save a seat?"

Xu Yanfeng: "The library doesn't advocate seat-saving; the notice downstairs says it clearly."

Xia Xi was speechless; he did know how to find a proper excuse to refuse her. Unwilling to yield, she countered: "If the mountain won't come to me, I'll go to the mountain—what time are you going to the library tomorrow morning? Can I go with you?"

She had already stepped back—he better not be ungrateful!

Xu Yanfeng: "Six-thirty."

For love she could get up early: "All right, we're set—six-thirty, meet at the library entrance."

Afraid she'd forget, Xia Xi immediately set an alarm for six a. m. after replying, then got out of bed and pulled from her closet the clothes she'd wear tomorrow. She hadn't seen Xu Yanfeng in a week; she wanted to appear before him looking gorgeous.

The next day, before dawn, Xia Xi got up, put on the clothes she'd prepared the night before, to free her hands she didn't use a canvas bag, she slung her backpack and went out.

First she went to the cafeteria to buy breakfast, not knowing whether Xu Yanfeng had eaten, she bought an extra portion, tucked it into her pocket, and all the way against the biting north wind she jogged to the library.

Timing was just right; she had just finished climbing the long steps in front of the library when she saw a tall black figure straight ahead, his fair, slender fingers pinching a card, swiping it through the lobby turnstile.

"Xu Yanfeng!"

Xia Xi called him from behind, her voice so clear and lively.

Xu Yanfeng halted, turned around; the girl was holding something in her arms, taking hurried little steps as she ran over, her dark long hair flowing, she only had eyes for him, forgetting the turnstile ahead, almost colliding with it, she jerked to a stop and steadied herself.

She smiled at him, panting with a huff-huff as she fished a card from her pocket and placed it on the turnstile sensor.

The two turnstile gates retracted, she passed through and walked to his side.

"Our couple outfits today are pretty in sync," Xia Xi said.