Chapter 16 Fell into My Arms 5

  De Xin High School's cafeteria is self-service, Xia Xian Ning picked some dishes that looked better and took a tray to find a seat. It wasn't until then that she realized there were almost no seats left. She was blocked by Ji Si Si and several others, of course, the time they came to the cafeteria was relatively late, so it's normal not to have a seat. She stood still and looked around, fortunately, there was an empty table in front of the window.

  Xia Xian Ning picked up a piece of yellowish food and put it in her mouth, hmm, sour and sweet, quite delicious. Looks like she won't be leaving any leftovers on her plate.

  "Ugly beauty! You seem to like taking other people's territory!"

  Xia Qian Ning raised her head. This boy was quite special, with a fox-like face and golden hair that was even longer than hers, and he actually used a pink hair tie to tie it back behind his head. Behind him...behind him was Ling Shui Yao. It turned out they were friends: "Indeed, birds of a feather flock together."

  "What did you say?" Ming De heard Xia Xian's whisper and leaned his ear over.

  "I was just eating..."

  "You know you're eating, but take a look at where you are sitting!"

  "Of course, it's beside the restaurant table..." No way, won't there be some unwritten rules here too? She whispered tentatively: "Is there some kind of unwritten rule here?"

  "You're quite clever! Didn't expect that someone who looks beautiful would also have a useful brain." Ming De smiled and nodded, meaning he knew but wasn't going to let it go.

  Xia Xianying felt it was unnecessary to argue with them, but the restaurant was already packed. Where could she sit if she left? "I... I'll just sit here for today, and tomorrow..."

  Ming De looked at Ling Shuiyao, but Ling Shuiyao didn't say anything and sat down beside Xia Qianying.

  Ming De was stunned for a minute, what's wrong with Ling Shuiyue today? First, she took his spot, and now she's still occupying it. Isn't he supposed to dislike girls sitting next to him? This is interesting. So, he sat down across from Xia Qianqian.

  "It seems I'm allowed: 'Thanks! I'll hurry up.'"

  "Ugly but lovely girl! Do you like the school food?"

  "I don't know, let's just try it. Sorry." Xia Xianying picked up some food and put it in her mouth, she wanted to finish eating quickly and leave this place as soon as possible.

  "No rush, eat slowly, we can chat while eating. Yao has allowed you to sit here, and in the future, even if you come late, you can still sit here."

  Xia Xian nodded slightly, but in her heart she thought, from now on I'll come to the restaurant early and never sit here again.

  Ming De felt a bit frustrated. In this school, which girl wouldn't smile like a flower and stare at him to death when she saw herself? But why didn't this beauty react at all? She just kept eating her own food, was she scared silly by Ling Shuiyue?

  Today he's not just a handsome guy, there's also Yao. I'm afraid all the girls in school dream of having dinner with these two, except for Ming Xin, of course.

  "Don't you think the person in front of you is a feast for the eyes?" Five minutes had passed, and Mingde finally couldn't bear it anymore. He couldn't stand being ignored by the girl!

  What? The person in front of me? A feast for the eyes? Xia Qianqian hastily swallowed what was in her mouth and took a sip of water: "With so many people, how can it be a feast for the eyes?"

  When Xia Wen heard this sentence, Ming De almost didn't die from anger. He pointed to Ling Shuiyue and himself: "The people in front of you!"

  Good heavens! Xia Xian Ning's eyeballs almost popped out. How could there be someone with such a thick skin in this world? She almost burst out laughing.

  "What's so funny?" Mingde was already getting angry.

  Xia Qian Ning pushed up her glasses: "Sorry! I was just thinking about eating and forgot to praise both of you."

  Ling Shui's mouth corners also slightly rose. Ming De was even more furious, he knew that Shui was laughing at him, but he had to clarify the situation now, to unify the front line: "Shui!"

  "She's only thinking about food, what's the point of competing with a foodie like you?" Ling Shuiyue said as she put a crystal dumpling in her mouth.

  The speech is really unpleasant to hear. Xia Xianjing thought in her heart, but her eyes glanced at the crystal dumplings in Ling Shuiyue's plate, crystal dumplings, she hadn't had them for three months already, that was her favorite! Where did he get the crystal dumplings from, why didn't she see them just now, next time she must find some.

  She's a foodie, and indeed she is. Looking at her greedy appearance, it's like... Ling Shuiyue's gaze fell on Xia Qinger's moist lips, and he hastily turned away. This ugly creature actually has the ability to make him feel strange.

  Mingde also saw it, and he was delighted in his heart. He had finally found something to strike back at the ugly but beautiful girl: "You can't have this! This is special treatment for just the two of us in this school."

  When Mingde spoke, Xia Xianying only then realized how embarrassing she was. Special treatment, huh... The restaurant also had special treatment... She felt so disappointed, withdrew her gaze and continued eating, but right in front of her were two crystal dumplings that she couldn't eat, making Xianying feel more and more uncomfortable swallowing her food.

  Mingde's sense of frustration grew stronger, this was the second time he had encountered such a situation in his life, the first time was when he was six years old, at Ling Aunt's wedding...

  It seems she really likes dumplings, with that eager gaze, like a gluttonous child... can't bear to watch. Ling Shuiyue pushed her own dinner plate: "I only had one, the other one is clean!"

  Ming De just wanted to indulge in his painful memories, but was startled awake by Ling Shuiyue's words. What? It was already strange that Yue and Chou Baigui were having lunch together, now they're even using the same plate?

  Xia Qian Ning was hesitant, eat it, he's a stranger; don't eat it, her own saliva would flow out. Good heavens! How could she be so shameless? Xia Qian Ning looked at the chopsticks in her hand that were about to reach into Ling Shui Ye's plate.

  "Don't move!" Ming De was so startled that he let out a loud cry and the chopsticks in his hand fell to the ground.

  "My dish hasn't been touched yet, you take a few."

  Xia Qian Ning patted her chest, this dumpling is really 'difficult' to eat, but the chopsticks are gone, how can I eat: "Thank you! Today's enough for me, and I couldn't finish it, so... another day." This 'another day' is really hard to say, Xia Qian Ning reluctantly picked up her spoon and ate the increasingly tasteless food in her bowl.

  "No way! You have to eat!" Mingde was so sad, why could Yao's be eaten, but his couldn't. He moved Xia Qianqian's plate in front of him and put his crystal dumplings in front of Xia Qianqian.

  Wow——, such a good thing! Xia Qian Ning was so excited that she almost died, but she only got excited for a moment and quickly returned to reality. If she ate all his dumplings today, he would resent her for the rest of his life. Besides, she couldn't finish them by herself: "Thank you so much... I'll take two, then finish my leftover rice." She looked at Ming De with an inquiring gaze.

  Ming De nodded repeatedly.

  Xia Qian Ning took two dumplings from Ming De's plate and put them on her own, then respectfully moved the plate in front of Ming De with both hands: "Thank you!"

  Ling Shuiyue looked at Ming De and Xia Qianjing, they really could make a big fuss.

  "Hey! You have to give me one more, so we can have an equal amount." Mingde said and quickly picked up a dumpling from Ling Shuiyue's plate with his chopsticks and put it into his own mouth. Today's dumplings are exceptionally delicious!

  Xia Xian Ning looked at the two dumplings in her plate, oh, too precious, savor them slowly. She gently took a small bite, and a fragrance wafted between her lips. Heaven! It's been ages since she last had lotus root filling!

  "How is it?" Ming De asked while eating and couldn't help but ask about Xia Xian's dumplings.

  "Super delicious! This is the lotus root filling crystal dumplings I've been craving for nearly three months, it's simply heavenly!"

  "Hey! Why aren't you eating?" Ming De stretched his chopsticks into Ling Shuiyue's dinner plate again, it seemed that he was determined to eat back the two dumplings Xia Qianqian had snatched away today.

  Upon hearing Ming De's words, Ling Shuiyue picked up his chopsticks again.

  Mingde had always been indifferent to girls, and at one point he even thought he was sick or gay, as so many beauties were presented to him but he never paid attention. Now it seems that he is quite normal, his eyes are brighter than anyone else's, what a great beauty! He has never met such a great beauty in his life, but this beauty is a bit strange, trying her best to cover up her beauty. Thinking of this, Mingde put the dumpling he had just picked up back on the plate: Why? Why did she want to cover it up? Was she afraid of being bothered or wanted to change something?

  Alas, what's the point anyway? Ming De has always only admired beautiful women, and that's all. Can anyone be more beautiful than oneself? He looked up at Xia Yining again and asked himself: More beautiful than myself? No! No! No! Why so many 'no's? Is it really 'no' or just being timid?

  ——————&&&——————&&&——————

  In the dimly lit 'Red Red' wine bar, Pei Yichen sang one song after another that the guests had requested. Tonight he had already sung ten songs and showed no signs of stopping, even though his fingers were bleeding from playing the guitar. He didn't want to stop; he wanted to keep singing, to escape his thoughts, to escape his soul.

  Xian'er is gone, and she will never come back. He thought he could forget, but he can't. He doesn't ask for much, just to be able to see her from afar every day, as long as he can see her every day, he feels happy. But now, he doesn't even have the hope of seeing her, she's gone completely, without a single trace, as if she never existed. He fears memories, but all he has left is memories.

  The music ended, and the dim lights on stage also went out. Yi Yi walked to Pei Yichen's side, snatched the guitar from his hand: "Let's go home! I know you're heartbroken, but life is precious."

  Go home? Pei Yichen shook his head. Go home! In that house, everywhere can see the shadow of Xian'er. He himself didn't know when the room was filled with Xian'er's photos, a whole wall full of them. Those photos now only make him feel more desolate. He would sit in the room all night, recalling her breath, what would that do to him? He would go mad, he didn't know how long he could hold on, he only knew he had done the most painful thing in his life, he lost the most beautiful and precious thing in his life.

  ——————&&&——————&&&——————

  "Hurry up, this time we mustn't let him get away again."

  Night, endless black silence.

  Ling Shui's cold lips curled up in disdain. He didn't know if his life was destined to run in this darkness.

  The sound of the piano flowed like a stream from an old house. Ling Shuiyue couldn't help but mock himself, how did he end up here again? The owner of this house wasn't supposed to be back yet. This was no longer his territory.

  Although I thought so in my heart, my feet still ran towards that dead alley.

  This dead end alley is a small path outside the back wall of the Xian Ning family home and also Ling Shui Yue's secret passageway.

  "Damn it! Nobody's here again. He's a rabbit!" The man with a scar on his face shouted loudly. It was hard to gather so many people, today they must make this kid look good, but unexpectedly let him run away.

  "Qiang Ge! Does this kid have a house here or something? I remember one time he also disappeared around here."

  "It can't be. His family lives in a mansion in the southern part of the city, but the houses here are mostly old ones built by local landlords in the past. Nowadays, most rich people don't live here anymore."

  "Then, does his family have an old house here?"

  This might be it. The man known as Strong Brother looked at the doorplate in front of him - Kyoto Road 56. Next to it was a red seal with golden letters: Guan's Residence. No, that kid didn't have this surname.

  "Let's just say that kid is lucky and tell the brothers to scatter."

  Ling Shui leaned against the wall, listening to the footsteps outside slowly fading away, and his heart also relaxed. I really don't know what that kid was doing, suddenly appearing with fifty or sixty people, luckily he ran fast, otherwise today would have been a disaster.

  The beautiful piano sound floated into Ling Shuiyue's ears again. He had never thought that the piano sounded so good, but tonight, this piano sound was really damn good. It couldn't be played by that girl from that night, could it?

  Ling Shuiyue sat there, motionless. But her heart was fluctuating with the rhythm of the music in the room.

  At some point, that faint scent returned to Ling Shuiyue's side, gradually spreading throughout his body...

  Xia Qian Ning's fingers suddenly turned. Under her fingertips, "Chopin Nocturne in C minor" changed to the elegant "Adriana by the Water". She needed a change of mood. She liked this piece, pure and heart-wrenching, as if it were the beginning of the world, everything was just starting...