133. You Thought It Was Only a First Kiss?

"Think before you answer."

Chen Xuan's voice was not soft, and there were quite a few travelers coming and going.

From a passerby's perspective, her delicate yet slightly mature facial features carried a hint of pure innocence as she looked at the man in front of her and spoke words bolder than her figure.

What on earth was that guy hesitating for?

Damn it, just pull her into your arms and kiss her, the travelers couldn't help slowing down their pace.

Li An's throat bobbed. "What do you mean by thinking about it?"

The travelers collectively reacted with expressions of utter disbelief.

They couldn't bear to listen anymore.

"Thinking about it means you can't go back on your word."

The travelers once again collectively went speechless.

"What happens if I go back on it?"

Chen Xuan tilted her chin up. "Xiao Yu said if you bully me, she'll hack you to pieces."

A chill ran down Li An's spine. In his mind, the short-haired heroine in camouflage suddenly had the washbasin in her hand transform into a raised rifle, with the barrel pointing right at him.

"Don't be afraid."

Then Chen Xuan flashed a harmless, innocent smile, leaned close to his ear, and whispered softly:

"I said I'll handle it myself."

"So think carefully before you answer."

-

Li An had thought that after he said, "I want to be your boyfriend," it would trigger some minor romantic scene, like a passionate embrace and kiss at the arrival gate.

Novels were always written that way—the male lead would domineeringly pull the female lead into his arms, and exaggerated ones would even lift her up and spin her around a few times.

He had thought too much.

The moment he reached out, Chen Xuan pushed him away forcefully.

Li An: ??

He saw her take two steps back, baring her teeth with a grin. Where was any of the fierce and breathtaking charm from just a moment ago?

"Let's go home!"

Just like that, they were together?

Such a sloppily casual scene?

The evening breeze at the airport blew past, and under Chen Xuan's tugging, they finally returned to the ranks of ordinary passersby.

Li An: "Are we really together just like that?"

Chen Xuan: "Otherwise what?"

-

"Wait for me to buy the tickets."

Li An stood stupidly on the bus station platform, holding two large foam boxes.

His face beamed with a bizarre sense of happiness.

On the bus, the two of them discussed the music competition all the way, just like before, and when their viewpoints clashed, they still refused to yield an inch to each other.

As the bus was about to reach their stop, he asked Chen Xuan again, "Are we really together just like that?"

Chen Xuan frowned. "Do you want to take it back?"

Li An hurriedly waved his hands. "No, no, don't you feel like something's missing?"

Chen Xuan didn't understand. "What's missing?"

Li An tried to guide her. "When regular couples establish their relationship, they usually hug, and then, you know..."

Chen Xuan: "Then what?"

Li An hardened his resolve and shifted his gaze elsewhere. "At least a simple kiss, right?"

Hearing the words beside her ear, Chen Xuan suddenly felt a strange sensation in her lower abdomen once more.

Followed by a faint stirring in her heart...

She had already looked up information on this kind of reaction last time, and the answers she got were all over the place.

Some explanations were simply unreadable, far too embarrassing, but she had to admit those descriptions were identical to her current physical reactions.

Those words seemed to linger persistently in her mind, and she felt her breathing begin to quicken.

She glanced around. They were sitting in the second-to-last row, with no one behind them. The elderly man in the aisle to her left was snoring, and the middle-aged woman with wavy hair in front was wearing headphones and listening to music.

The dim bus cabin, a public setting, a secluded corner—everything seemed to be offering her some sort of hint.

"Then I'll make it up to you now."

Looking a bit dazed, she turned her profile and lifted her chin.

A woman moved by love has stars in her eyes.

Li An hadn't believed that saying before, but looking at the delicate, vibrant lips right in front of him now, he believed it.

Time and tide wait for no man.

The next second.

Chen Xuan felt a burning sensation on her lips, and her whole body tingled as if struck by electricity, numb and unable to move, yet she stubbornly forced herself to keep her eyes open.

The final flash of thought in her mind was—

Li An is so handsome.

September 12, 2021, 21:47:35.

Chen Xuan's first kiss, preserved for 25 years, completely vanished on the bus heading from Huyang International Airport to Yudong District.

-

The cheesy sweetness of romance lies in the fact that even two adults deeply in love are willing to spend time solemnly arguing over whose breath can last longer.

Wasn't the answer to this question obvious?

How could the lung capacity of a piano player possibly compare to someone who had been playing the flute for eighteen years?

So, in the first round, Teacher Chen won.

Afterwards, Chen Xuan seemed to have opened the door to a brand new world, and she gave Li An a high score with a trace of lingering regret.

Since she had lifted her chin, she had already prepared herself.

She had done some previewing online, and articles said that guys tend to have wandering hands when kissing.

Therefore, Li An earned a high score.

Yet she had to admit that she felt a bit of regret during that brief span of time.

It was a kind of restlessness that defied description by any words.

Chen Xuan accepted her truest inner feelings, which was why she had been anxious enough to bite Li An's lip at the time.

As for those sensitive... well, that was her little secret, and she wasn't going to reveal the bottom line just yet.

-

When the two of them returned to Wanhe Mansion, Li An finally found out what was inside the white foam boxes he had lugged all the way back.

"All seafood?" he asked.

Chen Xuan nodded and took out her room card. "Come eat at my place?"

Li An thought about it. "Alright, I'll go back and change my clothes first. Aren't you going to take a shower and rest first?"

|"I'll shower before bed. Do you have ginger and wasabi?"

"I have ginger, no wasabi." Li An immediately understood. "I'll go downstairs and buy some wasabi."

"Hard work for you."

Li An returned to 2501 first. Before Baawan could rush over, he used the restroom and then headed out, taking the elevator down to go shopping.

When Chen Xuan returned to 2502, she first opened the windows for ventilation, then went to the bathroom to change her sanitary napkin.

After tidying up a bit, she returned to her bedroom to change into home clothes, turned on the air conditioner, washed her hands, and began processing the seafood she had brought back from home.

Just as she was finishing up, Li An came back.

Carrying the newly purchased wasabi and ginger, Li An followed Chen Xuan into the kitchen.

Looking at the various seafood items laid out on the stove—crabs, shrimp, sea snails, and more—Li An felt slightly dizzy.

Growing up in an inland region, people only knew these as shrimp, crabs, and shell-things.

Asking them to identify the specific varieties was simply making things difficult for them.

"These are bamboo prawns, these are swimming crabs, these are sea snails, and these are called sea sunflowers."

"Sea sunflowers?" Li An picked one up and inspected it. "Isn't this just a small seashell?"

"What seashell? They're called sea sunflowers."

Li An nodded, then picked up a gray-green sea creature with two differently shaped shells and a rough exterior, saying, "I know this one, oyster."

"Right, today's oysters are particularly good, you should eat more of them."

With her introductory tour finished, Chen Xuan resumed washing. She couldn't cook, but washing seafood was something she had done since childhood.

Li An couldn't just stand there watching, right? Since it was his first day on the job, he had to put on a good performance.

"How do these things get cooked? Do we need to prepare anything in advance?"

Chen Xuan turned her head for a glance. "You can take the steamer out and wash it first. It's in the cabinet on the left. We can just steam them all in one pot later."

"Understood."

Li An squatted down, opened the cabinet, and took a look. "Isn't this brand new?"

Chen Xuan: "Yeah, bought it and never used it once."

Li An: "This is a nice pot." As he spoke, he noticed that practically all the cookware in the cabinet was brand new.

"These are all new."

"What did you use to cook frozen dumplings before?"

Chen Xuan pointed to the side of the stove. "This one."

Li An looked over and shook his head. "How many dumplings can you boil in a milk-warming pot like that? You always just make do blindly."

Chen Xuan shook the water off her hands and rubbed her nose. "Got it, got it, you sound like an old grandpa." Then her tone shifted. "So, will you cook for me from now on?"

Li An pulled all the cookware out in one go, preparing to wash them all. Hearing Chen Xuan's words, he said, "Didn't you think my cooking wasn't considered delicious?"

"Not delicious doesn't mean inedible."

Chen Xuan chuckled. "I'm not a picky eater, I'm very easy to take care of."

This left Li An with no way to retort.

"Fine, fine, fine, you're right."

Amidst their laughter and banter, the newly minted couple officially began collaborating on their first dinner together.

Just as Chen Xuan had said, it was very simple.

Li An set the washed steamer on the stove, filled it with water, and placed Chen Xuan's cleaned seafood into the pot one by one.

While waiting, Chen Xuan instructed him on how to mix the horseradish and vinegar dipping sauce.

"Mix the horseradish with light soy sauce and wasabi."

Li An whipped it up in a flash, picked up a bit on the tip of his chopsticks, and fed it to Chen Xuan's mouth. "Is this the right taste?"

Chen Xuan savored it and nodded earnestly. "Yes, yes, yes. Make another vinegar sauce, just minced ginger and vinegar."

Li An quickly chopped a thumb-sized pile of minced ginger, placed it in a bowl, and poured two tablespoons of vinegar over it.

A pungent, sour aroma hit the air instantly.

Fifteen minutes were up.

The pot was opened and dishes were served.

A small table laden with a comprehensive seafood feast was now fully ready.

"Take a picture to commemorate?"

"Of course we have to. I'll allow you to post it on Moments."

"...Teacher Chen, you weren't like this before."

"Want to take it back again?"

"I mean, I'm finding more and more virtues in you."

"Really? Name three for me to hear."

"Post on Moments first, post on Moments first."

Hearing the mention of Moments, Li An felt a slight shiver in his heart.

-

Due to various reasons, the details of the meal itself will not be elaborated upon.

In short, the meal was extremely blissful.

During dinner, Chen Xuan peeled shrimp and crabs for Li An, sending waves of deep warmth through his heart.

Isn't this what romance is all about? Which guy wouldn't love such a gentle girlfriend at the dinner table?

The crab meat peeled by Chen Xuan's delicate hands tasted exceptionally fresh and tender.

With one bite, Li An felt that the imitation crab sticks he had eaten in the past were complete garbage.

As a side note, he also ate plenty of oysters—he had never eaten ones that large before.

By the time they finished eating, it was already nearly 11:30 PM. Li An refused Chen Xuan's help and shouldered the responsibility of cleaning up the battlefield all by himself.

When all the chores were done, it was past midnight.

"Sit down and rest for a bit."

Li An pulled out a piece of paper, wiped his hands, and sat down.

"Why aren't you sitting next to me?"

Li An stood up, walked around the coffee table, and sat down right beside Chen Xuan, their arms brushing against each other.

Having bustled around all day, Chen Xuan tilted her head and leaned against Li An's shoulder.

Under the bright lights of the living room, the reflection of the two figures could be seen in the television screen on the wall.

Their expressions looked quite natural.

A moment later.

"Was today too sudden?"

Li An thought for a moment. "A little bit. Actually, I wanted to wait until the National Day holiday to take you out and give you a surprise."

"Li An."

"Hmm?"

Chen Xuan had originally wanted to say that she had already told her mother about her relationship, but when the words reached her lips, they changed into, "Let's work hard together, okay?"

Li An couldn't immediately grasp the emotion behind those words, but he still reached out his arm to wrap around Chen Xuan's shoulder, pulling her tighter into his embrace. "We'll work hard together."

Hearing this response, Chen Xuan smiled. "Let me lean on you for another ten minutes."

During the silent ten minutes, Li An made many assumptions.

Ten minutes later.

"I'm going to brush my teeth."

Li An waited until Chen Xuan returned to the living room after brushing her teeth, knowing it was time for him to leave.

Chen Xuan walked him to the door and teased, "It's already past 12 o'clock, you know."

The two of them instantly went back to the night they pretended to be a couple—an identical scene.

The only difference was that this time, the two of them were truly, genuinely a couple.

Li An stepped forward and hugged Chen Xuan proactively. Chen Xuan opened her arms as well, and the two embraced once more, neither willing to let go.

As Chen Xuan was immersed in this sense of security, she suddenly heard a soft voice beside her ear:

"No matter what obstacles we encounter in the future, as long as you're willing, I will keep holding your hand and walk all the way down."

Chen Xuan was startled.

"This is the only promise I can give you right now."

Another moment passed.

"Chen Xuan, I want to be with you."

The next second, Chen Xuan felt as though her heart was thoroughly drenched through.

She hooked her hand to lock the door, then shoved Li An against it, pressing her entire body forward.

Thunder and fire met.

This time, the female netizens' experiences were proven right.

After a sticky downpour, the clouds shed their restraints under the laws of nature, transforming into various peculiar shapes.

However wild the imagination, so wild were the shapes.

Some things are simply animal instincts.

......

Regrettably, ten minutes later, the two of them awkwardly separated from the sofa.

Chen Xuan's face was flushed red—even redder than the dye on Li An's fingers.

Even deep in the throes of new love, she felt a bit shy right now and hurried to cover the clouds.

Lowering her head and fussing with her fingers for a moment, she asked Li An if it had been very uncomfortable, and Li An said it was.

Chen Xuan thought to herself that the experiences summarized by netizens really did have traces to follow.

As a girlfriend, she might be a bit inexperienced, but she was willing.

Grasping firmly.

Disregarding Li An's surprise, Chen Xuan tried to test out the question raised by the netizens.

Stamina.

...

An hour later, when Chen Xuan saw Li An off at the door once more—

One face bore the giant words: *You've worked hard.*

The other face bore the giant words: *Resentment.*

"Goodnight, baby."

"Man, nicknames change way too fast."

No one expected that a day which began merely with poking through a layer of window paper would end up tearing down the curtains too, courtesy of who knows whose efforts.

After another embrace, Chen Xuan closed the door, returned to the living room to look at the tissues on the floor, and massaged her sore wrists.

It felt like a dream, as if within a single day, she had used up almost all her "firsts."

When she thought of the words Li An had whispered in her ear, warmth and sweetness flooded her heart again.

No woman does not yearn to have her inner self understood.

Chen Xuan felt like she had grown up a lot today.

Only then did she feel a dull ache in her chest.

Unbelievable!!

-

The new work week officially began. At the morning meeting the next day, Qin Yong summarized the work of the entire summer phase.

"Everyone has worked hard. This summer, Yudong's performance ranked first in the whole school."

Principal Dong took the lead and started applauding.

"Clap————————————"

Following that, Qin Yong laid out the work plan for the back-to-school season.

With the official arrival of the autumn semester, teaching classes for campus wind and brass music clubs in primary and secondary schools across Yudong District were about to begin.