Chapter 852

"You actually read shojo manga too?"

Natsume Chikage smiled, his tone relaxed:

"Yesterday, I was idle and found my sister and her friends chatting about shojo manga."

"There was a pile of manga on the table, and since I was idle, I just picked one up and read it."

"It was unexpectedly not bad, so I read it."

Xuecun Lingyin actually rarely reads shojo manga, though she reads quite a lot of literature that girls like.

At this moment, a hint of curiosity rose in her heart.

"This manga of yours... can you bring the first volume tomorrow? I want to read it too."

"I'll let you read this suspense novel of mine then."

Natsume Chikage was stunned, and then his smile became even brighter.

"Of course you can."

And Xuecun Lingyin noticed again that Natsume Chikage's smile had become even brighter, and she couldn't help but be dazed for a moment, burying half her face into the book she held up.

Subsequently, the ears under her smooth, long, straight black hair quietly turned bright red.

It was just that, hindered by her thick hair, it wasn't discovered.

But also because Natsume Chikage was completely opposite to his usual slightly distant, ascetic, and cold appearance today, and the fact that he was full of smiles when chatting with her couldn't help but cause ripples in Xuecun Lingyin's calm heart, and she began to uncontrollably let her imagination run wild.

The train slowly stopped at Hibiya Station.

The train doors opened, and the crowd poured out.

Most of them were students wearing school uniforms.

However, just as Natsume Chikage and Xuecun Lingyin walked out of the carriage and stepped into the exit passage, preparing to head to school.

Suddenly.

Drizzling raindrops.

Fell suddenly without warning.

The sky at this moment also seemed to be shrouded in a gray veil, becoming much gloomier.

A slight cold wind, carrying damp moisture and the scent of earth, rushed toward them, drifting over the crowd at the exit.

Many students were frozen in place by this sudden rain, letting out annoyed sighs.

But there were also some students who had watched the weather forecast today and had long ago taken out the prepared umbrellas from their school bags.

With a "swish," they opened them and stepped into the rain with composure to leave.

Some who didn't have umbrellas walked together with friends, huddled under the same umbrella.

And those who didn't have friends nearby and didn't bring an umbrella could only stare at each other, helplessly lingering under the exit passage, waiting for the rain to let up.

Natsume Chikage and Xuecun Lingyin looked at the dense curtain of rain in front of them, both stunned, and stopped in their tracks.

Clearly, neither of them had expected that the rain would happen to fall just as they were about to exit the station.

Natsume Chikage looked up at the gray sky and smiled helplessly:

"It's actually raining now. If the train had been a bit faster just now, we wouldn't have needed an umbrella and could have gone straight back to school."

Xuecun Lingyin carefully put the novel in her hand into her school bag, also looking up at the fine rain, and whispered in agreement:

"It really is... it looks like it's going to rain for a long time."

However, it wasn't a big problem.

She was the kind of careful girl who would seriously check the weather forecast every morning.

So she had known long ago that it would rain today and had long ago prepared a neatly folded umbrella in her school bag.

Just as her fair fingers touched the handle of the umbrella, intending to take it out.

Right at this moment.

A few female students from the private Moonlight Academy nearby noticed that Natsume Chikage didn't seem to open his umbrella immediately, and they couldn't help but feel restless, exchanging glances.

After all, Natsume Chikage was the most popular male student in the school right now.

Not to mention his handsome appearance, his shogi strength had also reached a quasi-professional level.

He was simply both handsome and talented, with a clean temperament.

How could the girls not be moved?

So they all secretly thought that, taking advantage of this rare opportunity, they could take the initiative to hold an umbrella for Natsume Chikage, and the two of them could walk to school in the rain together; just imagining it made their hearts beat faster.

But before they could muster the courage.

A short-haired girl who looked quite cheerful and bold had already taken a step forward, with a shy blush on her face, and said:

"Brother Natsume, it suddenly started raining... you didn't bring an umbrella, right? I have one, and you are much taller than me, so why don't you hold the umbrella... and we walk together?"

Xuecun Lingyin's movement of taking out the umbrella paused imperceptibly, and she calmly took the umbrella completely out of the side pocket of her school bag and held it in her hand.

The girl who took the initiative to step forward was stunned, but there was no retreat in her eyes.

Everyone in the school knew more or less that Xuecun Lingyin just happened to be on the same path as Natsume Chikage and went to school from the same station.

The two were actually at most friends with a decent relationship, not lovers at all.

Even Natsume Chikage himself had once casually admitted this.

So there was nothing to retreat from.

However, the next second.

They only saw Natsume Chikage also take out a dark blue folding umbrella from his school bag unhurriedly, and he smiled softly at the girl:

"Thank you very much for your kindness, but there's no need. My sister specifically told me this morning that it would rain today, so I brought an umbrella too."

The girl was stunned for a moment, her shoulders slumped slightly, and she barely managed to pull a smile to cover up her embarrassment:

"Haha... that, that's great."

After saying that, she turned and left in low spirits, blending into the crowd of people holding umbrellas.

She only felt that her luck was bad; Brother Natsume actually brought an umbrella too, and she hadn't been able to seize this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to "walk together in the rain."

As for Xuecun Lingyin, after discovering that Natsume Chikage had also calmly brought an umbrella, she couldn't help but be silent for a moment, her fingers holding the umbrella handle tightening slightly.

And at this moment.

In her mind, a hypothetical thought also instantly appeared uncontrollably: if she hadn't been in such a hurry to take out her umbrella just now...

But as soon as this thought popped up, her cold, fair face couldn't help but flush with a faint, cherry blossom-like blush.

She hurriedly shook her head gently, shaking off the strange thoughts in her mind, feeling that she had been thinking about weird things lately.

Private Moonlight Academy.

Cherry Blossom Path.

Since many days had passed since the cherry blossoms were in full bloom.

The cherry blossoms on the trees on both sides were becoming sparser day by day, no longer having the magnificent sight of clouds and mist covering the trees as they did at the beginning.

Even the dreamlike scene where they originally fell to the ground and formed a long, gorgeous cherry blossom carpet was gradually withering, no longer the same as before.

Xuecun Lingyin and Natsume Chikage, each holding their own umbrellas, walked together on the road back to school that had been dampened by the rain.

Also because it was a rainy day.

The students on the road were in a hurry, and no one came over to greet or chat with Natsume Chikage like they did in the sunny weather before.

Natsume Chikage was happy to have peace and quiet, enjoying this undisturbed moment of tranquility, with only the sound of the rain and the slight patter on the umbrella surface in his ears.

And Xuecun Lingyin, who was beside him, was the same.

She herself liked quiet, and was particularly fond of the unique tranquil atmosphere of a rainy day.

And now, with Natsume Chikage by her side, despite the distance of the umbrella and a few steps, for some reason, she felt that her mood was more tranquil and gentle than when she was walking alone in the rain before, and even faintly revealed a hint of indescribable joy.

Also because it was raining.

There were small puddles on the empty baseball field on the left, and naturally, there were no figures of baseball team members running and shouting during morning practice.

It was silent.

But on the side of the orchestra department on the first floor of the teaching building on the right, as always, through the glass windows and the rain curtain, came the melodious and layered orchestral sound, adding a touch of artistic brightness to the wet morning.

The intellectual and beautiful Yue Dao Lin had just finished a piece and slowly put down her cherished violin.

As the concertmaster of the violin, she elegantly raised her hand, signaling the members who were immersed in practice to stop temporarily and take a break.

However, she also intended to take a short break, and when she picked up her water cup, her gaze inadvertently swept across the window blurred by the rain, but she clearly saw the figures of Natsume Chikage and Xuecun Lingyin walking together under umbrellas on the cherry blossom path outside the window.

Looking at the two who were so harmonious and well-matched in the rain, Yue Dao Lin's cheeks puffed out imperceptibly, and a familiar sourness and jealousy couldn't help but rise in her heart again.

So. ===== CHAPTER 853 =====