"I..."
"Ding—"
Just as Shen Jianxi opened her mouth, the two were drawn to the sound of a phone call.
She sat up straight and picked up her phone to check, only to find that she had just had a video call with Ji Zhaoyun for over ten seconds.
Luo Yuqi also saw her phone screen but couldn't make out the name clearly, only recognizing it as a call-ended dialogue box.
They looked at each other in silence for a long time.
Shen Jianxi didn't know how to express her current feelings. Was this a screw-up?
No, right? It shouldn't be, right?
"That..."
They both spoke at the same time and stopped at the same time.
"Uh, you go first."
Shen Jianxi: ...
Luo Yuqi: ...
All the unspoken understanding of eight lifetimes was used at this moment.
In the end, neither of them dared to speak, afraid that their voice would interrupt the other.
Shen Jianxi patted her face, trying to clear her head. She should be nervous in this situation, not turn it into a comedy scene.
"If there's nothing else... I'll, I'll head back then?" she asked tentatively.
Luo Yuqi nodded. A few seconds later, he felt he seemed too distant, so he said, "Sister, get some rest early. Goodnight."
"Goodnight."
She got up, smiled, clutched her phone, and turned to leave.
Back in her bedroom, Shen Jianxi opened her phone. As expected, there was a message from Ji Zhaoyun.
j: [I hope you'll give me a reasonable explanation.]
Just from this message, she could feel the coldness radiating from him.
Ji Zhaoyun was indeed very angry at the moment. Although they hadn't confirmed their relationship yet, the atmosphere between them was already close to that point. Now, to make a late-night call and hear a male voice, saying such ambiguous words, even a saint couldn't tolerate it.
Let alone that he wasn't a saint, so he could accept it even less.
This situation clearly suggested that before they even confirmed their relationship, a cuckold's hat was already trying to be placed on his head.
Ji Zhaoyun irritably tugged at his tie. For a video call he wasn't sure would be answered, he had specifically changed his clothes. He had thought that if the call connected, he could make a good first impression.
Now, it seemed completely unnecessary.
The phone lay on the table, and he stared intently at the screen. Time ticked by, but the phone remained motionless.
Just as he was about to be disappointed and rethink his feelings, the phone suddenly began to vibrate.
Almost the moment the vibration started, Ji Zhaoyun grabbed his phone. Just as he was about to press the answer button, his finger paused in mid-air. He thought for a moment, then withdrew it. It took him more than ten seconds before he finally pressed the answer button.
"Hello." He composed himself. "Is something wrong?"
At first, she didn't feel anything, but hearing his words, Shen Jianxi almost couldn't help but laugh.
She cleared her throat, suppressed the smile that was about to escape, and said in a soft voice, "That was my brother earlier, he's a bit mischievous."
Ji Zhaoyun snorted coldly, tapping his fingers on the tabletop. "As far as I know, Chairman Shen only has one daughter, no sons, right? So where did this brother of yours come from? Don't tell me he's a cousin."
Shen Jianxi choked. She had indeed planned to say that. Now, she had to come up with a different excuse.
"No, he's the child of my mother's friend, staying at my place. The young boy is a bit mischievous, but I'm usually not home and don't have much contact with him."
"Oh." Ji Zhaoyun switched the phone to his other hand, resting his arm on the armrest of his chair. "Why aren't you usually at home? Are you in school?"
"..."
He was quite good at picking up on key points now.
"No, I'm out experiencing life."
This time, it was Ji Zhaoyun's turn to be speechless.
People from their families had received elite education since childhood, and most entered their family businesses after graduation. Few were so idle as to go out and "experience life."
Moreover, going out to experience life before graduating from college either meant their families had made arrangements beforehand, and they would still live a life of luxury; or they were incognito, working as low-level employees in someone else's company, unable to access core information, nor learning what an heir should learn.
Therefore, Ji Zhaoyun couldn't quite understand and could only rationalize it as "a young girl wanting to play around outside."
"...Alright, is there anything else at the moment? Can we video call?" He didn't comment on Shen Jianxi's explanation, still harboring doubts.
With his rather good memory, Ji Zhaoyun recalled an instance when they were playing a game together and she had invited a boy into the party. At the time, that boy had spoken to her in a very ambiguous manner. Judging by his voice, it should have been the same person.
In any case, the Shen family was about to hold a birthday banquet, and he had received an invitation. He would go and see for himself this Saturday.
"Okay..." As the word left her lips, Shen Jianxi suddenly changed her mind, "...It seems not really possible."
"Hmm?" Ji Zhaoyun questioned.
Looking at Shen Xingzhi's message that came in because the call wouldn't connect, she took a deep breath. "I... I'm sleepy! I'm a bit tired today and want to rest."
Since that was the case, Ji Zhaoyun couldn't say anything more and could only say helplessly, "Okay, you get some rest. See you on Saturday."
"See you on Saturday."
After speaking, Shen Jianxi hung up without a hint of hesitation.
On the other end, Ji Zhaoyun looked at the words "call ended" and sighed helplessly, his mood then becoming heavy.
Children with a playful nature were not a good thing.
...
Just as she finished her call with Ji Zhaoyun on one side, Shen Jianxi immediately called Shen Xingzhi back on the other.
When the call connected, Shen Xingzhi stared blankly at the girl with her hair down on the screen.
Although he had known she was a girl from the start, he hadn't expected her disguise to be revealed so quickly and so... abruptly.
"...Do you want to hang up and call back?"
He meant for her to hang up, get dressed, and call back, but the girl clearly didn't understand his intention and just responded with a dazed "Huh?"
It was... quite cute.
"It's okay... This is fine," Shen Xingzhi said with a helpless smile.
Looking at the black hair hanging by her side, she finally realized what had happened. She gasped in fright and was about to hastily cover her phone with the bed.
"I've already seen it."
Even though the screen had gone completely black, the smile on Shen Xingzhi's face deepened. "Alright, I knew it all along. You don't need to hide anymore."
Hearing him say that, the blackness on her phone slowly receded, revealing Shen Jianxi's face and her slightly reddened eyes.
"I, I'm sorry, Xingzhi ge, I didn't mean to hide it from you." As soon as she spoke, her voice was hoarse, making one's heart ache. Coupled with her current appearance, no one would have the heart to make things difficult for her.
Shen Xingzhi was no exception.
His heart softened, and he lowered his voice. "Whether you're a boy or a girl, I like you, so you don't need to be flustered."
Despite his words, tears still streamed down the girl's face. Shen Xingzhi sighed helplessly. "Where are you? I'll come find you."
Hearing this, Shen Jianxi immediately stopped crying. "Are you kidding? There's still one person at home, and another is coming on Saturday. I need to keep this identity of mine under wraps for now."
Seeing that her words were so effective, Shen Xingzhi said jokingly, "Are you that afraid of me coming to find you? Did you do something bad behind my back? Confess honestly!"
His expression turned serious, but Shen Jianxi still saw a smile in Shen Xingzhi's eyes. She bit her lip slightly, her face flushed, whether from shyness or crying. "Of course not! It's just... my parents said I can't date before I'm 25, or they'll break that guy's legs."
"I don't want to break up, and I don't want Xingzhi ge to get hurt."
If 77 were here, she would definitely say this was full of "tea."
But Shen Xingzhi was in a good mood. He chuckled and didn't want to ask who she was on the phone with just now. After all, both the person and her heart belonged to him.
"Alright, I won't go. You get some rest early. I'll take you out on Sunday afternoon."
"Mhm, mhm." Shen Jianxi nodded heavily on the screen. "Xingzhi gege, goodnight!"
"Goodnight."
After hanging up, the smile on her face vanished. Shen Jianxi plugged her phone into the charger and said faintly, "111, turn off the halo."