Chapter 393: Another Couple

On the second floor of Yintai Department Store, in a women's clothing shop.

Hua Xiuxiu and Ren Zheng were shopping for clothes, while Lin Yuan and Fang Chen had been sent off by them to the fourth-floor arcade.

But as they chatted idly about the latest gossip while selecting clothes, the sharper-eyed Ren Zheng noticed two figures passing outside the store.

She instantly fell silent, tugging at Hua Xiuxiu's arm and pointing out the window with her other hand.

Hua Xiuxiu followed the direction of her finger and caught a glimpse of Li Luo and Ying Chanxi just passing by.

But the two walked at a decent pace, and before Hua Xiuxiu could fully register them, they had already passed the shop entrance.

So Hua Xiuxiu and Ren Zheng rushed out of the store and turned toward the direction Li Luo and Ying Chanxi had just gone.

Ren Zheng then sighed dramatically: "You said they were just here to shoot a music video—look at them holding hands already?"

"Are they really like this now?" Hua Xiuxiu stared at their clasped hands, lost in thought, "So do Xi Xi and Zhu Sheng even know about each other's relationship with Li Luo?"

"How could they not know?" Hua Xiuxiu sneered. "I've noticed how they've been at odds with each other in class."

"Really?" Ren Zheng looked confused. "I thought they got along great, and don't they live under the same roof?"

"Still, they must get jealous," Hua Xiuxiu said. "I definitely couldn't accept it."

"The class monitor didn't even say he liked you," Ren Zheng teased.

"Hmph." Hua Xiuxiu snorted. "Don't forget about Senior Xu. The class monitor's stepping on three boats at once—can he even keep up?"

"Why bother caring so much?" Ren Zheng chuckled, pulling out her phone to share the latest developments in their QQ group. "This is what makes it fun—let's just enjoy the class monitor's moves."

Ren Zheng was clearly the type who loved drama—any spectacle was good enough.

Seeing the two ahead turn into a men's clothing store, Ren Zheng eagerly tugged Hua Xiuxiu forward, pretending to walk past, and sneaked a peek inside.

At that moment, Ying Chanxi was examining winter men's clothing on the racks, taking down pieces she thought suited him and holding them up against Li Luo's frame.

If the clothes were hung too high for her to reach, she would simply grab Li Luo's hand and pull him over to help fetch them.

Seeing this, Ren Zheng and Hua Xiuxiu inside the store exchanged awestruck glances.

"So sweet—it's even sweeter than what the class monitor writes in his novels."

"After all, it's real life," Hua Xiuxiu commented.

"Then why are Fang Chen and Lin Yuan just playing video games?" Ren Zheng grumbled. "It's like the class monitor and the other guys in class have totally different emotional intelligence."

"So you want Fang Chen to help you pick out clothes?" Hua Xiuxiu shot back.

"Nah, forget it… his sense of fashion is just too horrifying to contemplate."

As they chatted idly, they didn't linger too long.

Seeing nothing more to watch, they returned to the women's clothing shop.

Meanwhile, in the men's store, Ying Chanxi happily picked out clothes for Li Luo, visiting several shops before finally buying him two new outfits.

Li Luo had already changed into one of the new outfits; the other was neatly packed and held in his hand.

Seeing there was still plenty of time, Li Luo asked, "Where to next?"

"We're a couple now," Ying Chanxi whispered, holding his hand. "Shouldn't we go watch a movie?"

"Sure," Li Luo nodded. "Let's check the fifth floor? I don't know what's playing—what genre do you want?"

"I'm fine with anything," Ying Chanxi said. She only wanted to go to the cinema with Li Luo—what movie it was didn't matter to her at all.

So the two headed toward the fifth-floor cinema.

Meanwhile, Lin Yuan and Fang Chen, playing video games on the fourth floor, checked the time—it was nearly nine o'clock—and stopped what they were doing.

"I think the movie starts at nine-twenty, right?" Lin Yuan pulled out his ticket and checked. "Let's go find Xiuxiu and the others before we run out of time."

"Alright," Fang Chen rose from the arcade chair, patted his backside, stepped out of the arcade, and walked with Lin Yuan toward the elevator.

But as they stepped into the elevator, they saw two familiar figures arriving on the adjacent ascending elevator.

And…

"Holy shit, isn't that the class monitor and vice-monitor?" Lin Yuan whispered.

"I'm not blind… no need to tell me."

"Did you see their hands?"

"I saw," Fang Chen nodded. "But they've noticed us too."

"They even let go of each other's hands—tch tch," Lin Yuan snorted. "The class monitor said it wasn't a date—what a blatant lie."

At that moment, the two elevators drew closer.

Lin Yuan and Fang Chen smiled and greeted them warmly.

Li Luo nodded in return, but Ying Chanxi's cheeks flushed red as she waved at them, then, as they passed, she couldn't help whispering, "Did… did they see everything?"

"So what if they did?"

"Aren't you worried they'll spread it around school?"

"I'm not worried," Li Luo smiled at Ying Chanxi. "I just wonder if you mind—if you do, I'll go explain."

"I—I…" Ying Chanxi was so flustered by his words she didn't know how to respond, her face turning bright red.

But the next second, Li Luo had already taken her hand again and pulled her forward a step: "We're here—watch your step."

With a flushed face, Ying Chanxi followed Li Luo up to the fifth floor.

Both of them silently avoided bringing up the earlier incident.

As for whether news of them holding hands in the mall would reach school—Ying Chanxi didn't care at all.

Arriving at the cinema, Li Luo and Ying Chanxi stood in the lobby, gazing at the movie listings on the overhead screen.

Li Luo glanced and his eyes landed on "My Youthful Days." He raised a finger toward it and said, "How about 'My Youthful Days'?"

"Sounds like a youth drama?" Ying Chanxi asked curiously.

"Probably," Li Luo said, pulling her hand over to the promotional screen beside them, where the trailer for "My Youthful Days" was playing. "Isn't that perfect for today's theme?"

"Mm," Ying Chanxi nodded, cheeks still flushed. "Let's watch that one."

"I'll buy the tickets," Li Luo said. "How about the 9:20 show?"

"Sure," Ying Chanxi followed Li Luo to the ticket counter and watched him communicate with the ticket seller.

The ticket seller glanced at their linked hands, then tapped the last-row couple's seats on the screen, smiling and recommending, "We have special couple seats with no armrest divider—would you like to consider them?"

"How much more?" Ying Chanxi asked.

"Ten yuan more than regular seats."

"Huh?" Li Luo raised an eyebrow at this answer, unconsciously asking, "Weren't they cheaper during summer vacation?"

"Oh, that was a summer promotion," the ticket seller explained with a smile. "Now it's a regular weekend, no holiday discounts—couple seats are always ten yuan more than regular ones."

"Then let's get the couple seats," Li Luo volunteered.

"Alright," the ticket seller nodded, operated the interface, handed them the tickets, then asked, "Would you like a popcorn combo?"

"Do you want one?" Li Luo turned to ask.

"Whatever," Ying Chanxi muttered, head bowed.

Li Luo blinked, sensing something off about Ying Chanxi's mood, but didn't dwell on it—just nodded to the seller: "Then one, please."

After receiving the popcorn and drinks, since entry hadn't started yet, Li Luo pulled Ying Chanxi to a nearby seat and sat down.

Only then did Li Luo notice Ying Chanxi's expression seemed off—he asked, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Ying Chanxi replied, sounding sulky.

"That won't do," Li Luo poked her cheek. "We're a couple now—this sudden sulkiness makes you look like one of those unreasonable girlfriends."

"Where am I being unreasonable?" Ying Chanxi pouted, rebutting unhappily.

"Then tell me what's wrong? You suddenly seem upset—are you not in the mood for the movie?"

"No, not that…" Ying Chanxi bit her lip, then couldn't help whispering, "But just now, when the ticket seller asked if we wanted couple seats..."

"Didn't I buy them?"

"But you said couple seats were cheaper in summer."

"So what? A little more doesn't matter."

"Is it about the price?" Ying Chanxi narrowed her eyes. "I never went to the movies with someone during summer—only when Zhu Sheng had his birthday, right?"

Li Luo: "..."

At these words, Li Luo finally realized what was going on—and immediately broke into a cold sweat.

"So you've been in couple seats before, haven't you?"

"Cough..."

"Hmph."

"I think you need to hear my explanation."

"Go ahead."

"Zhu Sheng and I didn't sit in couple seats."

"Then what did you sit in?"

"Friendship seats."

Ying Chanxi: "????"

Li Luo boldly explained the concept of "friendship seats," leaving Ying Chanxi both angry and amused—she finally slapped him and told him to stop talking.

After their mood eased, Ying Chanxi quietly slipped her small hand back into Li Luo's palm—but turned her face away, refusing to look at him.

Li Luo smiled, holding her hand in his, playing with it gently.

As they sat resting, Ying Chanxi pulled out her phone with her other hand and checked her messages.

What she saw shocked her.

In the QQ group 【Dongdong the Cutest in the World】, over ninety-nine messages had flooded in—making Ying Chanxi's heart skip.

She clicked in, scrolled straight to the top, and began reading from the start—then her heart sank.

【Dongdong the Cutest in the World】

【Ren Zheng】: Holy shit! You won't believe what I saw with Xiu Xiu on the street!

【Jiang Liuxian】: What happened again?

【Zhang Guohuang】: What's going on? Did the monitor and vice-monitor get together?

【Zhu Yufei】: Elaborate.

【Lin Yuan】: They kissed.

【Jiang Liuxian】:???

【Lin Suifeng】:???

【Jin Yuting】:???

【Qiao Xinyan】:???

【Xie Shuchen】:?????

【Shao Heqi】:???????

【Liu Shaowen】:?????????

【Fang Chen】: Damn, you guys are really good at lurking—were you all just watching?

【Ren Zheng】: Lin Yuan! What are you talking about?! I was about to say it! Why'd you cut in?!

【Lin Yuan】: Cough… We saw it together—I just helped you say it.

【Qiao Xinyan】: Why were you together?

【Hua Xiuxiu】: The four of us were out shopping and happened to see them.

【Qiao Xinyan】: Where? I only know Li Luo's birthday was these past few days.

【Lin Yuan】: No wonder, so it's the monitor's birthday.

【Ren Zheng】: So this counts as a birthday kiss, huh? Really romantic.

【Qiao Xinyan】: So… you all saw it? You didn't misread it, right?

【Ren Zheng】: Definitely didn't misread—it's a shame we forgot to take a photo, but I'm one hundred percent sure they kissed mouth-to-mouth!

【Fang Chen】: We all saw it.

【Hua Xiuxiu】: But they claimed they were filming a music video.

【Qiao Xinyan】: Do they know you saw?

【Ren Zheng】: They probably don't—we pretended we just got there, so they definitely didn't notice.

【Qiao Xinyan】: I see…

…

【Ren Zheng】: Oh my god! Guess what else me and Xiuxiu saw?

【Zhang Guohuang】: Can you just spit it out all at once?

【Hua Xiuxiu】: The monitor and Chanxi are holding hands and walking around the mall.

【Ren Zheng】: Aaaah! Xiuxiu! Let me finish!

【Zhu Yufei】: You're so slow.

【Jiang Liuxian】: So… is Senior Li Luo choosing Senior Ying?

【Zhang Guohuang】: I don't believe it.

【Lin Suifeng】: They're holding hands and kissing—doesn't that count as being together?

【Zhu Yufei】: Heh, clearly you haven't read the Class Eight Bible.

【Ren Zheng】: Now it should be called the Fuyi High School Bible, hahaha~

【Zhang Guohuang】: We'll just check the school tonight—guarantee the monitor and Yan Zhusheng will still interact. Trust me.

…

【Lin Yuan】: We saw it too—the monitor and deputy monitor held hands on the elevator, and when they saw us, they immediately let go. The deputy monitor's face turned completely red.

【Fang Chen】: Ugh, I can't take it.

【Zhang Guohuang】: Are you guys filming a drama series here?

【Zhu Yufei】: So they went out to film a music video and kissed, then held hands and went on a date at the mall?

【Hua Xiuxiu】: Perfect summary.

【Fang Chen】: We're heading down to find you—the movie's about to start @Ren Zheng.

【Ren Zheng】: We're still on the second floor—come down.

【Zhang Guohuang】: You guys have something going on too?

【Zhang Guohuang was muted by admin for 10 minutes】

When Ying Chanxi finished reading the chat log, her entire face flushed crimson, as if even her neck turned pink.

She had originally thought the four of them really hadn't seen anything—turns out they'd all been pretending!

And after pretending, they'd even come straight to the group chat to share the gossip!

This is really bad now!

Ying Chanxi's face burned bright red, like a steaming kettle—just thinking about how everyone now knew about her kiss with Li Luo made her feel utterly flustered.

Yet amid this extreme embarrassment, a quiet thrill stirred inside her… after all, she was Li Luo's first kiss.

A girl's happiness always hopes to be witnessed—so when she saw everyone discussing it, Ying Chanxi felt a faint joy, though temporarily buried under layers of shyness.

"What's wrong?" Li Luo noticed Ying Chanxi seemed off and asked curiously.

Ying Chanxi shook her head rapidly, insisting she was fine, then quickly closed QQ, afraid Li Luo might discover their secret fan group.

…

At 9:10 a. m., ticket checking began for My Sassy Girl.

Li Luo and Ying Chanxi stood up with popcorn and drinks, heading toward the ticket counter, when they ran into Ren Zheng and the others, also coming to watch the movie.

The six of them stared at each other at the ticket gate; Hua Xiuxiu couldn't help asking, "You're here to watch the movie too?"

"Yeah," Li Luo nodded. "What are you watching?"

"My Sassy Girl," Ren Zheng waved her ticket. "What about you two?"

"Same."

"That's a coincidence," Lin Yuan grinned. "Let's sit together. Where are you seated? If the seats beside you are empty, we can join you."

"Cough… well…" Li Luo cleared his throat.

Beside him, Ying Chanxi's cheeks flushed too.

Neither answered, leaving Ren Zheng and the others with strange expressions.

Soon, the six of them walked together toward Theater Six.

Li Luo and Ying Chanxi deliberately lagged behind the other four. After entering the theater, they watched the four take seats in the sixth row—the best viewing spots—then moved to the very back.

Ren Zheng and the others clearly grew curious, turning to look—and watched in person as the two took seats in the couple's section, then burst into silent smirks.

【Ren Zheng】: Breaking news! The monitor and deputy monitor came to watch the movie together!

【Zhang Guohuang】: Don't bother telling us about stuff like this—it's not even exciting.

【Fang Chen】: But they're sitting in the couple's seats.

【Ren Zheng】: Fang Chen!!! I'll kill you!!! Let me speak!!!

【Lin Yuan】: I seriously suspect they're going to kiss during the movie.

【Fang Chen】: You saying that makes me not even want to watch the movie anymore.

【Hua Xiuxiu】: It probably wouldn't go that far, right?

【Lin Yuan】: You can never tell—they kissed each other right on the street before.

【Zhu Yufei】: Then keep observing, and report any developments immediately.

【Shao Heqi has left Dongdong Tianxia Diyi Ke'ai】

【Liu Shaowen has left Dongdong Tianxia Diyi Ke'ai】

……

On the couple's seat, Ying Chanxi pulled out her phone and sneakily glanced at the group chat.

Seeing that the members were still discussing whether the two of them would kiss on the couple's seat, Ying Chanxi's face instantly flushed red.

"Who said I'd kiss him… really…"

"What did you say?"

"N-Nothing!"