Chapter 121
At that moment, he felt as if his romantic priority had shattered into a million pieces.
Not just Li Longlong, but every male classmate holding a watermelon felt as if an opportunity had slipped right through their fingers...
He took a big bite of the half-eaten watermelon, the cold, juicy sweetness bursting in his mouth, making Long Aotian tilt his head back and let out a satisfied sigh.
Han Xiaojing nibbled on her watermelon, watching Long Aotian across from her, who was enjoying himself with his head tilted back. Sweat trickled down her cheeks and pooled at her neck.
A sheen of sweat glistened under the sun, a scene that should have seemed greasy, yet in Han Xiaojing's eyes, it held an inexplicable allure.
"The game is over. You guys, step forward and run a lap around the playground. The rest of you can disperse and take a break."
"Hahaha..." Long Aotian laughed until his stomach hurt, despite the resentful glares from the three boys who felt wronged.
Opportunities like free watermelon don’t just fall from the sky; the instructor wouldn’t be so kind on the first day of military training.
Hiding in the shade, Long Aotian sat on the ground, fanning himself with his cap.
"Long Aotian, here, have this."
Han Xiaojing handed a bottle of chilled drink to Long Aotian, who was sitting on the ground.
"Thanks."
Watching him tilt his head back to drink, Han Xiaojing couldn’t help but smile and steal a few more glances.
After downing the drink, Long Aotian felt completely revitalized.
He stood up and looked at Han Xiaojing. "You should take a break too." With that, he walked off toward the distance.
"Aren't you going to rest for a bit?" Han Xiaojing asked softly.
Long Aotian pointed at the people running around the playground. "I’m going to buy drinks for my three 'adopted sons.'"
Han Xiaojing let out a laugh. Three 'adopted sons'?
After Long Aotian left, Han Xiaojing walked back to her little group.
"What were you guys talking about? Why did he leave?"
"He said he was going to buy drinks for his three 'adopted sons,'" Han Xiaojing explained.
"'Adopted sons?'" Shen Mengjie chuckled, glancing at Long Aotian's retreating figure with interest.
"Xiaojing, you didn’t fall for him just because of half a watermelon, did you?" Others chimed in with playful teasing.
Sometimes, girls can joke around with more flair than boys.
"N-no, you guys are just talking nonsense."
"Long Aotian is actually pretty handsome. If you’re not interested, we won’t hold back," Shen Mengjie joked.
"Go ahead, I won’t mind."
Han Xiaojing said this, but her shy demeanor made her friends laugh even harder.
"What are you all laughing at?"
As they spoke, their attention was drawn to the commotion on the other side of the playground.
"Old Ao, you bastard!"
Li Longlong suddenly lunged at Long Aotian's back, while the other two boys quickly flanked him, pinning him down.
The carefree roughhousing on the playground was a display of freedom and joy.
"At least you still have a bit of conscience."
The three of them downed their chilled drinks in one go, then let out a satisfied sigh.
Retrieving his phone, Long Aotian glanced at the notifications and opened the messaging app.
Seeing the photo of Hu Yuying in her military training uniform, a relaxed smile spread across his face.
"Old Huang, take a picture of me."
"I’ve told you so many times, don’t call me Old Huang, call me A Fei!" Huang Fei replied, slightly annoyed. The name Old Huang just felt off.
Taking Long Aotian's phone, he began snapping pictures.
"Are you being a bit too serious?"
Looking at the camera, Long Aotian was standing straight, adjusting his collar and wearing his cap. Huang Fei commented.
"What should I do then?"
"Just relax. Don’t think of it as a photo shoot. Just be yourself; it’ll look more natural."
After a moment's thought, Long Aotian took off his cap, tousled his damp hair with his hand, and loosened a couple of buttons on his collar.
Under the sunlight, his casual, carefree demeanor was strikingly eye-catching.
With his collar slightly open and his prominent Adam's apple, he exuded a captivating allure.
"Damn, you’re so handsome, you’ll have no friends!" It had to be said, Long Aotian's laid-back charm was genuinely magnetic.
Even another guy felt that this rebellious yet handsome side of Long Aotian was attractive.
Taking back his phone, Long Aotian sent his photo to Hu Yuying.
Then he zoomed in on her military training photo, which seemed to have been taken by someone else. The girl appeared a bit shy, her small hands tugging at the oversized uniform.
Her slightly flushed cheeks and sweet smile were both innocent and charming.
After a couple of glances, he saved the photo to his phone.
---
Chapter 146: Should We Bet?
At A University, Hu Yuying saw the message on her phone, her small face lighting up with a smile that was so beautiful and pure.
Though the smile at the corners of her mouth was faint, it carried an inexplicable charm that could easily leave a lasting impression on others.
Holding her phone, she gently zoomed in on the photo, feeling her cheeks flush uncontrollably.
Lost in thought, she forgot to reply to Long Ge.
"Yuying, have some water." A figure approached her, handing her a bottle.
It was her classmate, Xue Shaohua.
He was sunny and cheerful, with a well-proportioned build—not as muscular as Long Aotian, but still quite appealing. With his somewhat handsome looks, he garnered attention from the girls in class.
Like most boys, Xue Shaohua naturally paid attention to the pretty girls in class; after all, who wouldn’t want to date in college?
Especially for a guy like him, who had his own advantages.
Hu Yuying, who had been smiling foolishly at Long Ge's photo, now composed herself and shook her head gently. "I’m not thirsty, thank you."
Though she added a "thank you," anyone could hear the coldness and rejection in her tone.
Facing such a response, Xue Shaohua merely smiled faintly.
Maybe it’s just how boys are; they often don’t cherish what comes too easily. Instead, they find a strange thrill in conquering what seems out of reach.
At least for Xue Shaohua, that was the case. Hu Yuying’s looks and figure were top-notch, and her indifference only made the challenge more enticing.
He certainly didn’t want to give up on a beauty like Hu Yuying, as none of the girls he had dated so far could compare to her.
"You really don’t need to be so resistant. I just want to be friends."
His smile widened, and with his sunny demeanor, he radiated youthful energy.
Such words from him didn’t seem out of place.
But Hu Yuying was no longer the shy girl who would blush at the mere thought of talking to a boy.
"Why do you only want to be friends with me when there are so many classmates in our class?"
"Are you really just looking for a simple friendship with a girl like me?"
"If you have feelings for me, I can tell you that my heart already belongs to someone else."
Her words caught Xue Shaohua off guard; he hadn’t expected the seemingly soft-spoken Hu Yuying to be so direct.
Based on his past experiences, girls like her, who seemed gentle and sweet, would usually blush at the slightest interaction with boys. Such girls were often the easiest to win over with a little effort.
He never expected this seemingly soft and sweet girl to lay her feelings out so plainly.
Chuckling awkwardly, he said, "Yuying, do you have some kind of..."
"Please call me Hu Yuying, or just Hu classmate." She interrupted him before he could finish.
Xue Shaohua’s smile faltered slightly as he glanced at the classmates around them who were now looking at him. He forced a smile and said, "Hu classmate, do you have some misunderstanding about me?"
Hu Yuying shook her head gently. "No, I didn’t know you before, so there’s no misunderstanding between us."
"That’s good, that’s good." Xue Shaohua smiled brightly, pretending to relax as he scratched his head.
To anyone watching, he seemed like a simple, sunny boy.
But Hu Yuying felt no stir of emotion at this scene.
Seeing this, Xue Shaohua’s smile stiffened slightly, and he turned to leave.
As he walked away, Hu Yuying pulled out her phone again, happily gazing at the handsome photo Long Ge had sent her, as if this little interruption couldn’t affect her admiration for him at all.
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