The boy stared with wide eyes, opening his mouth but not knowing what to say. His face turned bright red. After a long while, he shook off his hand and blurted out, "Su Qinian, have you no shame at all?"
Su Qinian still pretended to be innocent. "Shame? Isn't my face just fine?"
Lin Jinran watched the boy and Su Qinian confront each other. Su Qinian just wouldn't take the bait, and the boy was so angry that he almost fainted.
She couldn't help laughing, her eyes curving into crescent moons.
"Classmate, you might have misunderstood. The person in the photo you mentioned is not my boyfriend. He's my childhood friend. Our relationship is purely platonic."
"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!" The boy started to panic. Flushed like a monkey, he jumped up and down, shouting abuse.
"Enough!" The grade director roared, putting an end to the farce. Looking at the other boy, he said, "You've been rude, spread rumors, and damaged others' reputations. Go back and write me a self - criticism."
The grade director glanced and noticed the faint smile on Su Qinian's lips. "Su Qinian, you too. A gentleman uses words, not fists. Why did you hit him for no reason? Stand at the door and be punished for a class. Like him, write me a self - criticism before tomorrow."
"Lin Jinran, go back to your class right away. The bell has rung. What are you doing here? I know you've finished the exam, but classes are still going on. Hurry back."
The grade director waved his hand impatiently, shooing Lin Jinran away.
Lin Jinran hesitated for a moment. Su Qinian gave her a reassuring look. She slowly opened the door and looked inside worriedly one more time.
The grade director had a dark face and said irritably, "Lin Jinran, aren't you leaving yet? Who are you making these lingering looks for?"
Su Qinian held back his laughter, his beautiful phoenix eyes curving.
Lin Jinran was startled and forced a polite yet embarrassed smile before scurrying away.
Back in the classroom, Tao Wan was standing on the podium, announcing the answers for the teachers. There were howls and yells from the students below, one after another.
If you didn't know any better, you'd think something terrible had happened in the next class. They were wailing so miserably.
Near the end of school, Lin Tingnian sent a message.
[Lin Tingnian]: "Sister, have you heard the rumors lately? They all say that you cursed Mom and Dad to death. And I also heard... that you threw away the bread I gave you..."
Lin Jinran frowned and didn't want to bother.
[Lin Tingnian]: "I went to buy that bread again the next morning. It really tastes great. Do you not like that flavor? Sister, tell me what flavor you like. I'll bring it for you tomorrow."
The phone kept vibrating in the desk. Lin Jinran was so annoyed that she simply turned on the silent mode.
Su Qinian turned his head, put down his pen, and said, "Ranran, do you want me to handle this? It's quite a big deal on the school forum, spreading like wildfire."
"No. If the posts suddenly disappear overnight, they'll think there's something fishy going on. They'll assume I'm pulling the strings behind the scenes, and I'll never be able to clear my name."
What Lin Tingnian did was really disgusting.
It was impossible for her to destroy herself with rumors.
"Okay. If you have any difficulties, just tell me. Don't be afraid of bothering me." Su Qinian smiled slightly, with smiles in his eyes and brows. "Do you still remember the Hanfu photos we took during the winter vacation?"
"Oh, right. Why haven't we received the photos yet?" At his mention, Lin Jinran remembered and seemed quite excited. Her eyes sparkled like stars in the night sky.
Su Qinian let out a helpless laugh. "We were supposed to get them half a month ago, but they said there were too many photos taken during that period, and the photo editors took consecutive vacations, so it's been delayed until now. I checked my phone, and there's a message from them in my email."
"Quick, let's take a look." After the big exam, Lin Jinran was extremely relaxed. She leaned lazily against the desk behind, like a tightly wound string finally coming loose.
She was particularly fond of this moment of comfort.
Su Qinian downloaded the photos. He propped his head up with his right hand, and his left hand rested in the gap between the two desks.
Suddenly, a shadow loomed over his head. He looked up and saw Lin Jinran. Afraid that a passing teacher might see them playing with the phone through the window, she stood up and pulled the curtain on the window.
The disciplinary committee member sitting next to the podium pretended not to see.
When Lin Jinran sat down, the photos in Su Qinian's email had just finished downloading. The two of them leaned their heads together, looking down at the faint light reflected from the phone.
The first photo that caught their eyes was of the boy lying with his head on the girl's lap. A cluster of pear blossoms was about to be handed over, and their eyes met, full of tenderness.
Seeing this photo, Lin Jinran's face flushed instantly. Her ears were burning red, and she stammered, "This... this effect is so good?"
It was so good that she almost thought she and Su Qinian were really a couple.
Su Qinian's lips curled into a faint smile. He whispered, "Keep looking."
He scrolled down to the next photo.
The second photo showed the girl holding the boy's arm and looking into the distance, while the boy looked down at the girl in the photo with indescribable tenderness in his eyes.
Lin Jinran's ears were a bit less hot. She commanded him to show the next one, and the next one, and the next one.
After looking at all the retouched photos, there were still some unretouched ones. Lin Jinran picked out a few and asked Su Qinian to find someone online to retouch them and then forward them to her.
In a blink of an eye, the bell rang for the end of class.
Lin Jinran casually glanced at Su Qinian's red ears and found it funny. This guy seemed so calm on the surface, but in fact, he was just as innocent and pure.
It was a bit of fun.
Those red ears looked soft and seemed really nice to touch.
Lin Jinran summoned up her courage and looked around. Great, no one was paying attention. The classmates around had all left, so no one would see.
So she held back her laughter and leaned back to avoid being seen by Su Qinian, who was packing up his things.
Lin Jinran held her breath and carefully reached out her hand to touch.
She touched it. It was softer and warmer than she had imagined.
The boy seemed to freeze all over. He turned sideways and grabbed Lin Jinran's restless hand, his voice hoarse. "Ranran, what do you think you're doing?"
His sexy and magnetic voice rang in her ears.
Lin Jinran struggled but couldn't break free after a great effort, so she simply gave up. Looking at Su Qinian with her beautiful eyes, she said confidently, "I'm just touching. Just touching."
"Ranran, so how does it feel, huh?" The boy asked again. His deep voice contained a hint of unknown amusement, very faint and subtle.
"Soft and warm."