At three o'clock in the afternoon, Feng Qingyi sat in a chair in the study, slowly leafing through a book.
Sunlight filtered through the window onto the bookshelf, brightening the room.
Just as she was engrossed in her reading, it seemed another person had entered the study.
Feng Qingyi looked up to see Qin Yuchuan standing in front of the desk.
Today he wore a long, pale moon-white robe, which made him appear softer than usual.
In Feng Qingyi's memory, he seemed to favor dark colors; she rarely saw him in light-colored clothing.
"Why are you here?"
"I heard you've been preparing for exams lately, so I came to keep you company."
Feng Qingyi put down her book, "There's a sofa over there, make yourself comfortable. I'll go downstairs and make you some tea."
Before Qin Yuchuan could say it wasn't necessary, Feng Qingyi had already rushed out the door.
Considering that Qin Yuchuan might visit occasionally, Feng Qingyi had specifically bought a package of tea from the supermarket.
It only cost a few dozen yuan, the kind you could find anywhere in the supermarket.
She didn't know much about tea, so she figured he'd have to make do with what she had.
After finding a cup and brewing the tea, Feng Qingyi carried it upstairs.
"Here's your tea, hope it's alright."
Feng Qingyi placed the tea on the small table next to the sofa where Qin Yuchuan was sitting.
She then returned to her chair and continued reading.
The air conditioning in the study was set to a comfortable temperature, and as Feng Qingyi read, she began to feel drowsy. She decided to do some exercises to stay alert.
Qin Yuchuan sat nearby, casually picking up a book from the shelf to read, occasionally glancing up at Feng Qingyi as she wrote furiously.
She was particularly focused when studying, her brow furrowing at times, then relaxing moments later, her expressions quite varied.
Feng Qingyi was flipping through her book to check an example problem when she suddenly discovered a folded piece of paper with writing on it tucked between the pages.
She pulled out the paper and opened it to take a look.
After seeing the contents, Feng Qingyi quickly folded it back up and stuffed it into the book.
Then she looked up at Qin Yuchuan, and seeing that he wasn't looking at her, she let out a sigh of relief.
But wait, why should she feel guilty? She hadn't done anything wrong.
She just hadn't expected Song Jingyuan to write her a love letter. She remembered only meeting him a few times.
Although they had added each other on WeChat, they had only chatted once about the rumors, and hadn't had much interaction otherwise.
He didn't seem like the type to fall for someone based on looks alone, so how had he come to like her?
Feng Qingyi felt she should find an opportunity to turn him down.
"What are you thinking about?"
Feng Qingyi looked up to see Qin Yuchuan standing in front of her; she hadn't even noticed him approach.
"Nothing, nothing at all."
Qin Yuchuan picked up the book in front of Feng Qingyi. She quickly stood up, trying to snatch it back.
But due to their height difference, Feng Qingyi couldn't reach it.
"Give it back to me!"
Qin Yuchuan shook the book, and a piece of paper fluttered out, landing on the desk.
Feng Qingyi tried to grab the paper, but Qin Yuchuan's hand pressed down on it.
"What's written in here?"
Seeing that she couldn't get it back, Feng Qingyi gave up struggling.
"Why don't you read it and find out?"
Hearing this, Qin Yuchuan picked up the paper, unfolded it, and read its contents.
Feng Qingyi secretly glanced at Qin Yuchuan's face. His expression remained calm, no different from usual.
But she couldn't shake the feeling that he seemed somewhat displeased.
"I have no relationship with him, we've only met a few times!"
Qin Yuchuan: "A chance encounter in the golden wind and jade dew surpasses countless worldly affairs. He certainly put some thought into it."
"I really don't know him well, please don't misunderstand." Feng Qingyi hurried to explain.
Qin Yuchuan placed the paper face-down on the desk, "What am I misunderstanding?"
"I'll reject him the next time I see him."
Feng Qingyi didn't actually think it was a big deal, but facing Qin Yuchuan, she felt compelled to explain everything clearly, not wanting him to misunderstand.
Seeing the girl in front of him anxiously trying to explain, Qin Yuchuan's earlier displeasure dissipated somewhat.
"Then tell me about your relationship with him."
Feng Qingyi was exasperated, "There's really nothing to tell about us, don't you believe me?"
"I do believe you."
Perhaps it was jealousy and insecurity at play.
She was naturally a vivacious girl, so it was inevitable that she would have some admirers.
Just thinking about it made him want to keep her by his side, preventing others from coveting her.
"I'll make things clear with him. Since I agreed to be with you, I'll keep my distance from other men."
She wasn't the type to play games with people's feelings. When it came to those she didn't like, she always politely refused.
Qin Yuchuan looked into Feng Qingyi's dark eyes.
"I didn't mean to imply that I don't trust you. I was just thinking that since Qingyi is so beautiful and outstanding, he probably isn't the only one who admires you!"
"I remember you telling me before about being stopped for a confession at the teaching building."
How could he bring up old stories like this!
"I don't believe you've never had girls confess to you!"
Qin Yuchuan thought for a moment, "Actually, I haven't. I grew up in military camps, and there were no women there."
Not having received a confession in twenty-five years seemed a bit pitiful.
She decided not to continue this conversation; she clearly wasn't at an advantage.
"Well, I still have exercises to do. Don't disturb me here."
Qin Yuchuan: "I see you've already finished all of these. Could it be that Qingyi is feeling guilty?"
"What do I have to feel guilty about? I'm not."
It was all in the past, why couldn't they just let it go?
Qin Yuchuan walked to the window, looking at the bare tree branches outside, remaining silent for a long while.
"...Are you jealous!" Feng Qingyi felt like she had discovered a new continent.
He could actually get jealous!
Qin Yuchuan turned to look at Feng Qingyi, "Someone's coveting you. How can I act like nothing happened?"
Feng Qingyi walked to his side, tugging at his arm, "I don't like them, please don't be upset, okay?"
Faced with Feng Qingyi's coaxing, Qin Yuchuan was completely defenseless, "I'm not upset."
"That's good. Today's revision is successfully completed. Let's go out for dinner later."
She had never taken Qin Yuchuan out for a meal before.
Qin Yuchuan responded, "Alright."
Feng Qingyi looked at Qin Yuchuan's clothes, which seemed a bit thin.
"You'll probably be cold wearing that outside. Why don't we buy you some clothes first? I didn't know you were coming, so I didn't prepare any winter clothes."
Qin Yuchuan replied slowly, "No need, I'm not cold."
"I just remembered, I have a down jacket in my bedroom that I forgot to give you. You should put it on in a bit," Feng Qingyi said.
That store had been so slow with shipping. She had bought it quite a while ago, but it had only arrived a few days prior. She had forgotten to give it to Qin Yuchuan.
Qin Yuchuan followed Feng Qingyi into her bedroom, which was decorated in a very cozy manner.
Feng Qingyi rummaged through her wardrobe and pulled out a long white down jacket. "This is the one. Try it on," she said.
