Chapter 148: A Once-in-a-Lifetime Event

After a light peck, Luo Yixia pulled away.

Song Chengyi looked at her, subconsciously licking his lips. The atmosphere turned somewhat awkward. Luo Yixia rolled over, grabbed the quilt nearby, and didn't dare to look at him.

Song Chengyi let out a soft sound. Hearing it, Luo Yixia turned back to glance at him.

"Why... why are you looking at me?" Luo Yixia coughed.

"What do you think?" Song Chengyi deliberately kept a cold face. Seeing his expression, Luo Yixia felt even more guilty.

"I don't know." She stubbornly stiffened her neck, refusing to back down.

"Have you grown bolder lately?" Song Chengyi raised an eyebrow.

Luo Yixia clutched the quilt, feeling nervous—no, very nervous. She slowly pulled the quilt up, trying to hide her face.

"Don't hide." Song Chengyi yanked the quilt away.

Luo Yixia began to scoot away from him.

"Tsk, not obedient at all." Song Chengyi looked very dissatisfied, his brows furrowing instantly.

Luo Yixia felt the chill in the air grow heavier. Good heavens, she just kissed him; was all this really necessary?

Luo Yixia let out a heavy sigh, lay flat like a corpse, and bit the bullet. "Fine, tell me, what do you want? Whether you want to hit me or scold me, I'm at your mercy."

She then closed her eyes, appearing ready to be slaughtered.

"Pfft." Song Chengyi laughed. "Am I that scary?"

Hearing his laughter, Luo Yixia opened one eye, carefully sizing him up.

"Do you really like me that much?" Song Chengyi suddenly asked out of the blue.

"What?" She was a bit stunned, not having fully processed his meaning.

"I want to hear you say it again," Song Chengyi said, looking at her very seriously.

Luo Yixia bit her lower lip, staring at the man leaning over her. Did she really like him that much? She didn't know, but she knew she couldn't live without him. When it started, or exactly what she liked about him—perhaps it had been too long, and Luo Yixia didn't want to overthink it.

Song Chengyi was excellent; she couldn't deny that she liked him because of his brilliance, and she was a sucker for good looks. But after liking him for so many years, it had become a habit. She liked Song Chengyi. It was like needing to eat every day—it was a routine, a way of life. She was accustomed to thinking of him daily; whenever she did anything, she would think about how nice it would be if he were by her side, or what they would be doing if they were together right now.

Time seemed to freeze. The air was so still that one could hear a pin drop. The two looked at each other. The night in the city had just begun, and lights in every street and alley were lit up. The moonlight outside was beautiful; even in late autumn, the chill of the night could not dampen the city's vitality.

"Yes, I like you," Luo Yixia whispered.

After hearing the answer he was satisfied with, Song Chengyi felt that even though he already knew the answer, he wanted to hear it again, or perhaps many times over. Just knowing that those words, "I like you," came from her lips made him want to hear them.

After she finished speaking, Luo Yixia watched him, waiting for a reaction, but she saw none. If you've just been confessed to, you should either be happy or unhappy; you can't just remain expressionless. Was his face paralyzed?

After a long while, Song Chengyi replied with a single word: "Oh."

Then he lay down.

Luo Yixia: "???" What kind of reaction was that?

Both remained silent, but Luo Yixia couldn't take it anymore! She propped herself up and sat up. "I know you definitely don't like being asked these things, but since you asked me just now, I feel it's necessary for me to know your answer. If you don't like me, I'll work harder. If that still doesn't work, you can tell me. Besides, I've waited for so many years, and now that my dream has basically come true, I have no regrets. Anyway, you don't like anyone else, and we've already registered our marriage, so you'll just have to make do with me for now. Even though you're the one who lost out by marrying me, and the responsibility that should have been mine ended up falling on you—I'm very sorry, but..."

Luo Yixia was rambling, her back turned to Song Chengyi.

"Yeah, I like you too."

"But you also know that when we registered, I tried to resist—" Luo Yixia stopped. Had she just heard something?

She looked back suddenly, her expression one of shock.

"What did you just say?" Luo Yixia felt her voice trembling, her heart skipping a beat. She held her breath, waiting for Song Chengyi to speak.

"I said, I like you too," Song Chengyi repeated with a smile.

Luo Yixia was dazed. Song Chengyi pulled her into his arms. He sighed softly above her head: "You're a girl; why would you need to take responsibility for me? Isn't that something a man should do?"

...

Seeing she was still silent, Song Chengyi added, "Tell me, are you stupid? If I didn't like you, why would I kiss you? If I didn't like you, why would I have relations with you? If I didn't like you, why would I let you take advantage of me so casually?" Although there hadn't been anything substantial yet, it would happen eventually.

Luo Yixia tilted her head to stare at his chin. "I always thought you just wanted to take responsibility for me..."

"Are you truly dim? You're a girl, did you really think you could sleep with me?"

Luo Yixia felt that her idol's settings were definitely malfunctioning today; how could he say something like that so casually?

"So that means you agreed to let me sleep with you?"

Song Chengyi had originally intended to tell her the truth, but why did this girl always focus on the wrong things? She was truly muddled, unable to distinguish whether she had actually slept with someone or not. If he let her go, she would probably be cheated by someone else and end up counting the money for them. Forget it, he would just keep her; it would prevent her from lowering the overall IQ of humanity.

"Cough... I... I suppose so..." Song Chengyi was very awkward. Actually, nothing had happened at all.

"Oh, I see." Luo Yixia grinned and hugged his waist.

The two fell into silence again, or rather... awkwardness. Of course, Luo Yixia was immersed in joy, unable to extricate herself.

"I thought you were just following your parents' wishes and didn't want to make me feel embarrassed, and that you might divorce me in a while... I had already made up my mind not to pester you then," Luo Yixia murmured softly.

"So you were planning to leave me?" Song Chengyi asked quietly.

"As long as you still want me, I won't leave you. But I'm quite possessive. If you like me, you can't be nice to other girls, otherwise, I might stop liking you," Luo Yixia said with a slight nasal tone.

"Alright, let's sleep." Song Chengyi held her in his arms and closed his eyes.

That night was peaceful. Neither of them fidgeted, and soon they fell asleep, snuggled together.

In the morning, they had early classes and had to wake up early to clock in for the school's morning run. Today could be considered their first day living together. Although they had stayed together before, it was a bit difficult now. Going to school together every day while ensuring they weren't discovered by others at school—just thinking about it felt quite thrilling...

They separated when they reached the vicinity of the school.

There weren't many people living off-campus at A University, so they weren't afraid of being seen outside; they wouldn't be that unlucky.

On the way, Luo Yixia was still pondering over what Song Chengyi had told her last night. She felt like she could go half a year without eating; she was so happy, she had reached the pinnacle of her life.

They bumped into each other during the morning run. Song Chengyi ran in front, and she followed far behind, watching his back. She went to the cafeteria to buy soy milk and two eggs, sent a message to the lazybones in her dorm, and then slowly went upstairs.

Since the others hadn't finished their morning run yet, Luo Yixia entered the classroom first. The classroom was lifeless, with everyone slumped over their desks catching up on sleep, and many hadn't arrived yet.

"Morning." Luo Yixia walked toward her seat. He Zhen smiled and greeted her.

"Morning." Luo Yixia set down the soy milk.

After greeting her, He Zhen sat on his chair, looking listless.

"You're up so early?" He Zhen asked.

"Aren't you here too?" Luo Yixia began peeling an egg. Usually, Song Chengyi peeled them for her at home, and now she actually missed him.

Then, she felt a burning gaze behind her. Luo Yixia turned to look at He Zhen.

"Have you eaten?" she asked, just to make conversation.

To her surprise, He Zhen shook his head quite bluntly.

"Here, you can have this," Luo Yixia said, handing the remaining egg to He Zhen.

He Zhen accepted it gladly, peeled it in a few seconds, and finished it.

"That girl from last night was amazing," He Zhen remarked.

"He's not a girl, he's a guy," Luo Yixia explained. It was weird hearing people call Song Chengyi a girl.

"Is he in our class?"

"No, he's my friend." Luo Yixia shook her head.

"His hand speed is very fast. I'd like to spar with him sometime." He Zhen's words were meant as an explanation.

"He doesn't really play games; he's usually very busy." Luo Yixia knew that Song Chengyi certainly didn't have the free time to solo with He Zhen; if he had time, he would rather spend it carrying her in the game.

"I see." He Zhen's game dragged on slowly, as if he were thinking while speaking.

Not long after, the rest of the class arrived. Luo Yixia huddled with Gan Yanyan, who immediately started prying about last night.

"Your idol is too good. When can he carry me in a game?" Gan Yanyan covered her face.

"He's too busy; he doesn't even have time to play with me," Luo Yixia wanted to cry.

The two sighed.

In the afternoon, Luo Yixia was dragged to the training room to rehearse a dance for the upcoming New Year's gala. Of course, there was also a piano inside.

Luo Yixia pressed a key casually, producing a melodious note.

"Can you play the piano?" Gan Yanyan asked.

"No, but Song Chengyi used to practice at home, and I watched him a few times on the sly."

Back in middle school, Song Chengyi practiced the piano for an hour every night, and Luo Yixia's window faced his, so she could hear the music clearly. Sometimes she would lie on the windowsill and listen foolishly, and other times she would lift her skirt and dance along to the melody.