At the corner of the restaurant, two girls were sitting opposite the group.
The one on the left wore a pair of glasses, appearing all quiet and timid. On the other hand, the girl on the right had a ponytail and looked as fair as snow. Her eyes were exquisite, and her nose was sharp. Her eyelashes curled upward, and with every blink, it seemed like a butterfly flew down from the snowy mountains.
The beef noodle shop was an old one. The interior decorations were aged, but with her sitting there, it felt like her glow illuminated the entire place. Even though it was just her side profile, she was unbelievably breathtaking.
It felt like there was an invisible aura around her. It was pure and clean, and she felt distant, so distant that one could hardly get close to her.
The group went silent for a moment.
A moment later, one of the girls said in disdain, “She’s…okay I guess.”
“She’s okay?” The other girl looked at her and saw an angry glare.
The first girl whispered, “That’s a bare face without makeup!”
Xu Yini might be beautiful, but as a celebrity, she was perfectly packaged from head to toe. The reason she gained immense popularity after her debut was that she looked innocent. To the masses, she looked and felt like their first love.
However, this unnamed girl at the corner of the restaurant looked even more bewitching. Other than the pureness she exuded, she looked cold and exquisite. Her character was unrivaled.
One of the boys took out his phone and had multiple glances at Ning Li.
“That’s the new girl in Second High. She’s dubbed the most beautiful girl in the school.”
Ning Li also had made a name for herself. On the first day in Second High, someone had already snapped her picture and posted it on the campus forum.
Seven High was just beside Second High, so it was only normal that they knew about her existence.
“Really? Let me have a look.”
The first guy moved closer to his friend and had a glance at the phone. After he made sure it was really Ning Li, he sneered, “She’s not that photogenic.”
He thought that she was already pretty in the picture, but seeing her in person now, the picture did not do her uniqueness any justice.
“I don’t care. I like Xu Yini the most. She’s rich and polite, and you can’t just like a person based on their looks,” the girl grumbled.
There were quite a lot of rumors about Ning Li, especially the one whereby she had almost pushed someone off the rails. It even trended for a while, so others outside the school knew about it. She might be beautiful, but her heart was black and she paled in comparison with Xu Yini.
He Xiaochen got frustrated when she overheard the group. She wanted to go and argue with them.
Ning Li suddenly said, “Is it enough? Your noodles?”
He Xiaochen was stunned. “Huh?”
“Do you want ice cream?”
He Xiaochen’s eyes sparkled like stars. “Of course!”
Ning Li smiled. “Come on, I’ll buy you some ice cream.”
“Yay! Ning Li, you’re the best!”
With Ning Li’s ice cream, He Xiaochen felt better as the coolness eased her anger. The two of them finally paid for their noodles and walked past the group of boys and girls.
The first girl lowered her head and buried herself in her food. Nevertheless, Ning Li turned a blind eye to them and walked out with He Xiaochen.
The two girls bought ice cream from the store next door.
He Xiaochen took a big bite that soothed her temper instantly. She turned around to Ning Li and asked, “Are you not mad? Those girls actually have the guts to talk about you like that.”
Ning Li smiled. “It’s nothing.”
The girls were Xu Yini’s fans, so of course, they would defend their idol. As long as the comments were not offensive, Ning Li would rather stay away.
“Okay, but I think you are better looking than Xu Yini.” He Xiaochen squinted her eyes at Ning Li. “If I were a man, I would go for you without a doubt.”
Ning Li did not say a word.
“So, are you going back home later? Or do you want to go shopping?”
Ning Li shook her head. “I have something to do in the afternoon.”
“Okay.” He Xiaochen was a little disappointed before she thought of something. She took her phone out and took a dozen pictures of her ice cream before editing it.
“Here’s ice cream from Ning Li. I’m going to flaunt this in front of those guys. Hahahaha…”
“Okay…You have fun. I have to go now.”
He Xiaochen nodded repeatedly. “Alrighty!” She felt like she held the world in her hands as long as she held the ice cream from Ning Li.
…
Ning Li returned to her rented unit and took the dry pajamas from the balcony. She bagged them and took a taxi to Yunding Fenghua. In the car, she sent a message to Lu Huaiyu. [Second Brother, are you home now? I’m returning the book and the pajamas.”
A moment later, Lu Huaiyu replied: [I am at HG. I’ll go back later. You can go in on your own. The study is on the second floor.]
Ning Li stared at the reply for a few minutes.
[Okay.]
…
Half an hour later, Ning Li arrived at the mansion.
Lu Huaiyu had already told her the password last time, so she had access to the house.
The mansion was empty. Ning Li went straight to the second floor. Beside the master bedroom were a small study and a big study.
The doors were unlocked, so she went in just fine.
The big study was huge. Racks of books were lined up neatly, and in the center was a table carved out of wood. The pattern of the original log remained clear on it. The fragrance of paper and aged books filled the room.
Ning Li walked to the table and put the book she got from Zhou Fei down. In a side glance, she saw another book on the table: ‘The Simple History Of Time’.
It seemed used, and other than Lu Huaiyu, she could not think of anyone who would even open the book.
Ning Li picked it up for a glance.
Suddenly, a piece of paper fell out. It was a bookmark.
Just when she wanted to bend over and pick it up, a familiar voice came from the entrance.
“Lili?”
Ning Li turned around.
“Second Brother? You’re already back?”
Lu Huaiyu saw the book in her hand and then saw the bookmark on the floor. He squinted his eyes and walked over.
“Give me the book. I just finished it yesterday. Let me put it back.”
Then, he bent over and picked up the bookmark before Ning Li could. Swiftly, his long fingers curled around the bookmark and tightened it into his palm.
