Chapter 163

Xia Xi was eager to try, hadn't even started acting, when Xu Yanfeng noticed her absentmindedness and spoke up: "Don't think swinging the club is that simple; if you're not focused, you'll hurt yourself."

Xia Xi let out a sigh, her voice flat: "I can't focus."

Xu Yanfeng: "……"

Taking time to teach her, and this is her learning attitude?

"Xia Xi." Xu Yanfeng's expression grew even more serious than before, his low tone carrying a warning.

Xia Xi instantly softened, sighed, stopped looking at him, only fixed her gaze on the white ball on the lawn, pleading: "All right, all right, Coach Xu, don't be angry, I'll focus, I'll study hard."

Xu Yanfeng eased his expression, then continued teaching her.

Tang Yizhou stood nearby, elbow resting on his golf club, other hand on his hip, glanced at Xu Yanfeng for a few seconds then looked away, turned and walked toward the shade umbrella, speaking to the person beside him: "Luotuo, I suspect Xu Er is possessed by something—do you know any exorcism?"

Luojinnan snorted with a "pfft", shrugged: "I know jack shit. If you've got the guts, go tell Xu Er yourself—see if he beats you up or not."

On the other side, under Xu Yanfeng's guidance, Xia Xi independently sank the ball, overjoyed, she threw up her arms, tossed the golf club, turned and jumped, throwing her arms around Xu Yanfeng's neck: "You teach better than my coach!"

Xu Yanfeng loosely encircled her waist with one hand: "Don't let your coach hear that."

The satisfaction of victory let Xia Xi find a bit of enjoyment in golf; she swung repeatedly, making various tricky shots. Xu Yanfeng gradually let go, only verbally correcting her technique.

Tang Yizhou couldn't bear to watch: "That girl Xia Xi has something."

Fu Li heard the subtext, tossed him a bottle of mineral water, pressed her hand on his shoulder: "Don't be so prejudiced against people."

Tang Yizhou took two sips of water: "Unbelievable, even you're speaking up for her."

"I'm not speaking for her; I'm looking out for you, afraid you'll overstep and damage your bond with Xu Er. Xia Xi is Xu Er's girlfriend—criticizing her is slapping him in the face. Do you think you can see things more clearly than Xu Er himself, the party involved?"

Fu Li sat with legs spread, watching Xia Xi in the distance, both hands gripping the club, torso twisting, she swung hard—another beautiful shot, no trace of her previous clumsiness.

Tang Yizhou wasn't convinced: "Don't you get the saying 'those in the maze are confused'?"

Fu Li didn't get why he had such strong objections to Xia Xi, the hostility utterly baseless: "You think Xu Er's brain is just for show? Actually, you've been fooled by women more times than you can count on one hand—you ought to reflect."

An arrow pierced Tang Yizhou's chest.

Finally, Fu Li gave him one more piece of advice: "Just keep those thoughts to yourself; never blurt them out in a heat of the moment, or you'll anger Xu Er—don't blame me for not warning you."

Tang Yizhou scoffed dismissively.

After everyone had rested enough, they returned to the course, and Tang Yizhou shouted at Xu Yanfeng: "Xu Er, are you still playing or not?"

Xia Xi beat Xu Yanfeng to the answer, saying: "Play." Then she nudged his arm: "Go play with them; I'll mess around a bit, no need to keep an eye on me."

Xu Yanfeng: "You can do it alone?"

"Sure." Xia Xi lightly tapped the ball beside her foot with the golf club, watching it roll into the hole twenty centimeters away, she raised her eyebrows and smiled satisfied: "Once my skills improve, I'll play you."

Not yet—out on the course she'd just get crushed. She's at the stage where she needs encouragement, not a blow to her confidence.

Xu Yanfeng patted her head: "Fine, practice on your own, rest when you're tired."

Tang Yizhou had never seen Xu Yanfeng like this; as he approached, he looped an arm around his neck and said incredulously: "She's a twenty-year-old adult, not a three-year-old—don't treat her like she can't take care of herself, just focus on playing, okay?"

Xu Yanfeng jerked his arm away: "Cut the chatter, play."

They restarted a match on the course, and Ling Yan joined in, venting her emotions and also wanting Xia Xi to see her skill; she played more seriously than ever, her power and technique flawless.

Tang Yizhou, Luojinnan, and others praised her repeatedly.

During her practice, Xia Xi occasionally glanced at their game; it was clear Ling Yan's golf skill was top-notch, honed from childhood. Yet she didn't develop the envy or imbalance Ling Yan expected, staying completely calm—this actually frustrated Ling Yan, who quit midway and retreated to the shade umbrella to rest.

Xu Yanfeng struck an exceptionally high-level shot, earning cheers from the crowd; feeling good himself, he on the spot gave each of the two caddies a 5,000 tip.

Xia Xi's eyes widened, her face full of astonishment; as a golf novice, she couldn't gauge the value of Xu Yanfeng's shot, and what amazed her was that caddies even get tips?

Xu Yanfeng happened to catch her expression, walked over to her before even asking what was wrong, and she immediately protested: "It's unfair—how come I didn't get a tip last time when I worked as a caddie for you?"

Xu Yanfeng: "……"

He often found himself at a loss for how to react to the ideas that kept popping into Xia Xi's head.

Xu Yanfeng teased her: "Ask yourself honestly—you play terribly, how dare you expect a tip?" Actually, tipping caddies has nothing to do with their skill; it's usually when a player wins a match or hits an exceptionally nice shot that they give the caddie a tip.

Not understanding the custom, Xia Xi grew annoyed: "You're the one who plays terribly!"

Xu Yanfeng chuckled lightly, deciding to stop before she got angry and it would backfire. He said: "How about I make it up to you?"

Xia Xi dropped the golf club, grabbed his arms with both hands, her smile ambiguous, afraid of being overheard she tiptoed and whispered: "I don't want a tip; I want something else as compensation."

Xu Yanfeng's heartbeat faltered, he had a premonition of what she'd say next, yet he couldn't help asking: "What do you want?"

"Will you give me whatever I ask for?"

"You say it first, then I'll decide whether to give it."

Xia Xi pressed her lips together; trying to sweet-talk a smart person never works, she was about to coax him, but his willpower was ironclad—he refused to fall for it.

Feeling a bit defeated yet unwilling to miss this perfect chance, she said: "I want you to kiss me."

Xu Yanfeng startled, his heart gave a loud "thud" like a hammer blow. He turned his face away; the sun had somehow come out, shining on the green grass, gilding it with light. He himself didn't notice, his voice hoarser than before: "Now?"

Xia Xi glanced around; there were several people on the course. Though she was thick-skinned, she still felt too shy to kiss in front of everyone, especially her first kiss. She cleared her throat: "Let me… owe it for now, I'll give it back later."

Xu Yanfeng rarely saw her look bashful, and it struck him as odd.

"May I?" Xia Xi asked in a very low voice.

Xu Yanfeng: "No."

The bashfulness on Xia Xi's face vanished in a second, turning to anger as she pinched him hard: "Jerk." She fumed, then demanded: "So when can I get it?"

Xu Yanfeng thought it over and set a period that wasn't especially long but not short either: "Three months."

Xia Xi felt as if darkness flooded her vision, like she might faint.

Silence stretched between them for a while; Xia Xi drew a deep breath, regarded Xu Yanfeng with an inquisitive gaze, pondering how to phrase it without hurting his pride, but realizing the question was hard to ask tactfully, she steeled herself and bluntly asked: "Xu Yanfeng, be honest—do you have some hidden ailment?"

Xu Yanfeng: "???"