Chapter 90

"She doesn't like chocolate cookies—take them away; she also doesn't like yogurt—take everything away!"

"She doesn't like guys."

"... She doesn't like girls either!"

"It's been almost half a week since the basketball game, but that fervent atmosphere on the court still hasn't dissipated within the San Zhong campus."

"Shu Shu's final handsome shot was practically imprinted in everyone's hearts—one ball and 'red'."

"In the school BBS, n confession posts were opened with her name as the topic, so that whether during morning exercises or on the way to the cafeteria for lunch, someone would come up to show friendliness."

"Shu Lingchen directly set up a level-ten alert line around Shu Shu, fiercely rejecting all suitors for her."

"I never imagined I could still help my mom block love letters in this lifetime!"

"Of course, Shu Lingchen also has times when he can't block them in time."

"During break, Shu Shu was holding her water cup to get water; on her way back, a boy from another class stopped her, his ears red as he handed over a sky-blue envelope with both hands."

"By the time Shu Lingchen heard the news and rushed over holding a mop, all he saw was that boy listlessly turning and walking away."

"That look didn't seem like disappointment; rather, it was bewilderment and confusion."

"The boy still heard Shu Shu's words ringing in his ears; generally, facing a confession there are only two outcomes—rejection or agreement—but the Shu Shu from Class 12 let out a long sigh and said:"

""Little kid, you should study hard at your age.""

""The book says, 'An inch of time is an inch of gold, but an inch of gold cannot buy an inch of time; without learning, talent cannot be broadened; without ambition, learning cannot be accomplished.'"

"The boy walked, scratching his head, clearly aware he'd been rejected, yet at the same time feeling as if he'd been earnestly lectured by a parent???"

"Afterward, Shu Lingchen realized his worries were completely unnecessary; his mom didn't need him to help drive away those classmates showing affection, because no matter how many came, Shu Shu could swiftly handle them herself within two minutes."

"Handling things with ease had become second nature."

"Shu Lingchen couldn't help but wonder if his mom used to often receive love letters too."

"Shu Shu shrugged and said, 'I guess so.'"

"She narrowed her eyes in distant recollection; back then, it seemed there were many, many arrows aimed at her, but the arrows she herself shot forward were only ever that one unique instance."

"In the room, just before six a. m."

"The curtains were tightly shut; only a bedside lamp emitted a dim light, illuminating the whole spacious, dark-toned room."

"On the gray large bed."

"Pei Du furrowed his brow, having a dream where everything was blurry, as if covered with a thick layer of mosaic; everything in sight was indistinct, a figure swayed before his eyes—sometimes waving at him in a gesture like sign language, sometimes swaying a ponytail."

"He dreamed of her again."

"He knew it was 'her' because Pei Du could always hear her calling his name."

""Pei Du?""

"Sometimes it carried a tentative tone."

""Little Du Little Du, are you there?""

"Sometimes it was teasingly playful."

""Pei Du.""

"Sometimes it was an attempt to push away his aloofness."

"It was a female voice, very familiar, yet Pei Du couldn't hear it clearly; his whole being felt as if submerged in water, his hearing enveloped by waves, muddled and confused, unable to discern exactly what her tone sounded like."

"He only felt it must be wonderful to hear, making him unconsciously hold his breath and focus each time he dreamed of her, wanting to listen a few more times, even if it was indifferent."

""Ding—""

"Pei Du opened his eyes, waking from the dream, the depths of his dark pupils calm."

"The room was silent."

"The phone placed face-up on the pillow emitted a light like daytime, illuminating a corner of the dark space."

"Pei Du sat up, simultaneously pressing the lamp button, picking up his phone, unlocking the screen to show an unread message notification."

"It was an email sent by Zhou Zhi, the subject line—"

""Shu Shu's personal information.""

Pei Du held the phone with one hand, the man's cold white hand back made the black phone frame edges look sharp; he moved his finger, opened the email, and the first thing that caught his eye was a few lines of introduction.

Shu Shu: female, eighteen years old.

Family situation: she is the only child; her parents are merchants engaged in foreign trade in Xun City; the couple are busy with work and rarely accompany her. A few months ago, Shu Shu transferred from Xun City to An Shi San Zhong to study.

The content is ordinary and commonplace, a mundane document.

Zhou Zhi explained in the email that this is all the information about Shu Shu; a few brief sentences sum it up, at a glance it's fake.

Pei Du could easily imagine how careless that person was when compiling this document, casually fabricating a false identity for themselves, as if they were certain no one would pay attention to her and come investigate her.

For an identity to be falsified to this extent, there are only two possibilities: the true identity behind it is either higher or lower than the one on the document; she is obviously the former.

Before finishing reading the email, Pei Du continued scrolling down, and a high-definition photo popped up.

The background is a basketball court; the girl in the photo wears a white sports short-sleeve with black trim, clean and fresh; under the sunlight, her skin is dazzlingly white; probably during halftime break, she stands at the edge of the stands, her slender arms raised as she tidies her ponytail.

At that moment, someone aimed a camcorder at her; noticing it, the frame froze on her biting the hair tie, lazily lifting her eyes to look.

The photo has been edited; all surrounding background is blurred, leaving only her enlarged and clear in the whole world.

Thus, through the screen, the girl's beautiful peach-blossom eyes seemed able to break the barrier, making direct eye contact with the person outside the screen; that moment seemed able to strike straight at the heart.

The lower right corner of the photo bears a transparent watermark; this is a photo of Shu Shu that went viral on the tieba after that basketball game.

Pei Du's knuckles paused.

It was her.

That night, outside the Xu Family manor, the girl who opened the wrong car door.

Suddenly, Pei Du's mind unconsciously conjured a thought: actually, her peach-blossom eyes, seen in reality, have a stronger impact than the eye contact seen through the screen.

Below there were still the second, third, and fourth photos, still featuring her, but the focus of the content involved two people.

She took the hand of her daughter, who was carrying a backpack.

She twisted open the yogurt bottle cap and handed it to her daughter.

She narrowed her eyes and gently pinched her daughter's cheek.

... etc.

In short, the atmosphere in the photos was nothing but beautiful and warm.

This was Pei Du's first time using covert means to investigate his daughter's life; in his impression, her life from childhood to adulthood could only be described as 'obeying the rules' and 'well-behaved and quiet.'

Going to school, leaving school, playing the violin, returning home.

Unchanging.

But not long before, she first made such a request to herself, wanting to transfer from Jing Shi to a school in An Shi that was so far away, thereby catching his attention.

This was certainly possible; no matter what the daughter wanted, it could be done, so that day he ordered people to handle her transfer procedures and living arrangements.

Zhou Zhi explained at the end of the email: this is the person the daughter often spends time with after transferring, Shu Shu. Even to be in the same class as Shu Shu, she didn't hesitate to hand in a blank exam.

When the people from An Shi San Zhong conveyed this matter to him with trepidation, Pei Du felt no anger, but rather novelty, actually seeing another side of his daughter resembling 'rebellion'; it seems she truly likes that girl named Shu Shu.

He directly had the people from An Shi San Zhong agree to his daughter's request to transfer classes.

Reading the email took only a few minutes.

Zhou Zhi then sent another message: 'The day after tomorrow, your trip to An Shi has been arranged——'