Chapter 57

Wang Jinglu returned on August 26th.

Originally, she was supposed to come back before school started to stay with her parents for a while, but the next morning, she sneaked out of the house early.

The two had already made plans. Li Qian arrived early at the entrance of Shengshi Garden, waiting for her to come out while playing chess with the security guard, Old Qin. However, before the game was even finished, Wang Jinglu arrived.

Li Qian got up to leave, but the old man angrily pulled him back, "No way, I'm about to win, how can you leave!"

Li Qian also became furious, "Who said you're about to win? Didn't you see I still have a horse more than you? Old Qin, I'm giving you face here! If I didn't have something today, I would definitely make you bleed for a thousand miles!"

Old Qin gave Li Qian a disdainful look and pointed at Wang Jinglu, saying, "Isn't this Old Wang's daughter? I know! Is this the second daughter? Her sister is a singing star, and her father runs a printing factory, right? Hey, boy, let me tell you, I know both your father and her father. If you don't finish this game with me today, I'll tell your parents!"

"Ha!... Fine, you win!"

As the saying goes, a wise man knows when to yield. Li Qian didn't dare to say a word and turned back to sit down.

Wang Jinglu stood on the side, her face flushed red, watching the two play chess.

To be honest, Old Qin's chess skills were notoriously bad. Many people in the neighborhood could easily beat him. Unfortunately, even in this life, Li Qian was still a poor chess player.

Both of them played quickly, enjoying the thrill of taking each other's pieces without caring about strategy. It was a perfect match. By the end of the game, the board was almost empty, and they had to push their own pawns. In the end... it was a draw.

Because neither could defeat the other.

Old Qin looked unsatisfied and pulled Li Qian, saying, "Hey, hey, why are you in such a hurry? Let's play another game, another game. There's still plenty of time today. You two can do whatever you want later, can't you play one more game?"

Li Qian firmly ignored him and turned to push his bike.

At that moment, a brand new Jetta stopped at the entrance. The window rolled down, revealing a surprised face.

"Xiao Qian, why are you back so early in the morning? Oh... Xiao Lu, you're back?"

Well, that was it, they were exposed.

Wang Jinglu greeted Li's mother shyly, explaining that she had come back to stay for a few days before school started.

Li's mother seemed very affectionate, opening the car door as if she wanted to get out and chat for a bit. But then, Li's father said something to her in the car, and she whispered back to him before closing the car door with a snap.

"You have time to come over and play at our house!"

Li's mother said, and the Jetta quickly drove away from the scene.

Wang Jinglu seemed to be thinking of something, looking shy and embarrassed. Li Qian, on the other hand, turned to Old Qin with a smug look, "Old Qin, this time you can't threaten me anymore, right?"

Old Qin chuckled and pointed behind Li Qian. Li Qian turned around and saw a familiar face.

"Uh... Aunt Tao, hello!"

Tao Huijun stopped her bike a few steps away, smiled and nodded, then pushed her bike forward a couple of steps before saying, "Xiao Qian, hello." Then, she turned to look at Wang Jinglu, who was half hiding behind Li Qian. Her tone was as gentle as always, but her smile gradually faded.

She said, "Xiao Lu, remember to come back for lunch. I'll go buy some vegetables and make meatballs for you!"

After saying that, she nodded at Li Qian again and rode away.

Li Qian and Wang Jinglu looked at each other, both with a hint of helplessness on their faces.

When they turned around to look, Old Qin had already hidden in the guardhouse.

...

"Ah, so this is where you are! Why are you renting a place here?"

"Is this place not good?"

"This place... is so old and shabby!"

"Hey, this place isn't much older than Shengshi Garden, right? Besides, I'm poor, so I have to choose a smaller and older place to rent!"

"But you're not poor! My sister said your songs are worth a lot! Uncle and Aunt have already lifted the ban on you, haven't they?"

"But I need to save money to buy you pretty clothes, pretty shoes, and pretty necklaces!"

Wang Jinglu, sitting in the back seat, lightly hit him. Although she didn't say anything, she smiled sweetly.

When they got downstairs, Li Qian locked his bike, and the two went up the stairs one after the other.

The door opened, and Li Qian pulled open the creaky old shoe cabinet, taking out a pair of brand new pink slippers.

The house was small, but it had everything it needed.

Wang Jinglu changed into the slippers and started to walk around curiously, seemingly interested in every corner. As she walked, she would comment—

"I remember you weren't very tidy before, but now the house is so clean... Hey, did you have the aunt come over to clean for you?"

"Ah, the bedroom is indeed small, but it's okay, since you're sleeping alone!"

"Hey? What's this? Another guitar?... Ah, it's so small and cute!... Ukulele? What a strange name!... I've never heard of it! Play a piece for me, will you?"

"Hey? The kitchen is also very clean. Do you cook for yourself?... Ha, I'm definitely better at this. I'm learning to cook these days. Whenever I don't know something, I call my mom. My mom's cooking is so delicious!... Dream on, I'll definitely get scolded when I go home at noon. If you come, my mom will be even more upset!"

The small one-bedroom apartment, she looked around for a good ten minutes before stopping, saying, "I really envy you, you can already rent a place to live on your own!"

"Then I'll rent a place in Beijing, and you can move there to live, okay?"

Wang Jinglu lifted her hand and hit him again.

Then, she turned to the living room, sat down, and picked up a stack of A4 paper on the coffee table, looking at it for a long time before asking, "Are you writing new songs?"

Li Qian had just come back from boiling water, glanced at the paper, and said, "Oh, this? Just some random notes of inspiration, fragmented!"

The room was small, and the living room was also small, only fitting a double sofa. Li Qian didn't choose to sit next to Wang Jinglu but instead moved a small wooden stool and sat opposite her, looking at her seriously.

At first, Wang Jinglu just looked up shyly and smiled, then lowered her head when he glared at her. But soon, she subconsciously sensed something was wrong, looked up at Li Qian, and asked timidly, "What's wrong with you?"

Li Qian smiled and said, "If I kiss you, will you scream for help?"

Wang Jinglu couldn't help but laugh, "Pervert!"

Li Qian immediately got up from the stool, walked around the coffee table in two steps, and sat down next to her.

Wang Jinglu instinctively shrank back but didn't try to escape.

Li Qian kept staring at her, and Wang Jinglu lowered her head, not daring to move.

After a long time, Li Qian was still staring, and even rubbing his hands.

Wang Jinglu finally couldn't stand it and said softly, "Why are you sitting so close? It's so hot..."

But Li Qian ignored her and said, "Hey, look up."

Wang Jinglu looked up, and through her glasses, her eyes were moist, with a hint of unusual light.

Li Qian raised his hand, and she instinctively shrank back.

Li Qian's hand stopped, and she looked up at him a bit embarrassed, then quickly looked away.

Li Qian reached out again, and she didn't move, so he easily took off her glasses.

"You look better without glasses," he said.

"Um... I can't see clearly," she said.

"I want... to kiss you," he said.

Wang Jinglu's face turned red, but she didn't say anything or move.

"Look up, at me," he said again.

Wang Jinglu timidly looked up, her eyes fixed on him, shy and hesitant.

Li Qian's breathing gradually became heavy, and he slowly leaned in. Wang Jinglu clenched her fists tightly, her whole body stiff like a board, but Li Qian still kissed her firmly.

Her lips were soft, smooth, and thin, with a slight warmth.

In an instant, both of them felt as if they had been electrocuted.

But throughout, Wang Jinglu kept her eyes wide open, looking like an angry cat.

He kissed her lightly and quickly pulled back.

The agony of a virgin, only those who have experienced it know. And if it were a true virgin, it would be one thing, but the body was, and the mind was not! In the days since he came back, he had to get up in the middle of the night to wash his underwear every few days. The feeling was really...

But Li Qian didn't want to scare her.

After a moment, the two looked at each other.

Wang Jinglu's face was red, but she suddenly asked, "Is this... kissing?"

"Um, this is kissing."

"Oh!"

"Do you want to do it again?"

This time, Wang Jinglu was smarter and closed her eyes early.

Li Qian leaned in, breathing in the scent of her, a mix of a girl's fragrance and soap, and gently took her lips in his mouth.

After a moment, they parted.

"You bit me just now," she said.

"It wasn't a bite, you just didn't cooperate, okay?" he said.

"But you did bite me!"

Li Qian rubbed his forehead and said, "Let's try again, this time you cooperate, okay?"

So he leaned in again, but before he could kiss her, Wang Jinglu's phone suddenly rang.

The two retreated to their original positions, and Wang Jinglu took out her phone to see a text message. But after reading the message, her face turned even redder than before.

Seeing Li Qian's curious look, she handed him the phone.

Li Qian took it and read—

"Xiao Lu, remember, a girl must guard herself, or men won't respect you! Remember to come back for lunch!"

How disappointing!

Wang Jinglu looked apologetic, put away her phone, and hesitantly said, "My mom... you know, she... doesn't like you very much."

Li Qian put his head in his hands and leaned back on the sofa, a bit frustrated. But he quickly adjusted—after all, he hadn't planned to do anything bad.

So he asked, "There are still more than two hours until lunch. What do we do?"

Wang Jinglu thought for a moment and said, "How about we go to the movies?"

"You don't like watching movies, do you?"

"But you do! And my sister said that since I'm going to apply to the film academy, besides taking extra classes, I should also watch more movies."

So, they tidied up and went downstairs to watch a movie.

This time, it was another love story.

The story was quite ordinary, but Wang Jinglu was very happy because she liked the happy ending.

Moreover, after spending the morning together, the familiar feeling between them seemed to return. By the time the movie ended, she was much more relaxed than when they first met, and she started to chatter nonstop.

"Beijing is much bigger than here, but it's also hotter, and there are so many people. Every morning when I go to my extra classes, I see everyone walking in a hurry, as if they're all in a rush. It makes me feel anxious, and I start walking faster without even realizing it..."

"The old professor who gives us extra classes doesn't really teach us much, but he has many students, and he arranges for them to teach us every day. They are all from the film academy, like the directing, screenwriting, and cinematography departments! Oh, right, I didn't know, but when I entered the extra class, I found out that, just like you said, the girls in the class are all very pretty! And many of them wear makeup, so I asked my sister to teach me, but she said she doesn't know how!"

"My sister's rented place is a bit bigger than your small room, but it's not that big. Our bedrooms are only a little bigger than yours. Every morning when I wake up and look out the window, I start thinking about my mom, and then... don't be so smug, it's only occasionally!"

"..."

As they walked from the cinema back home, they soon reached the entrance of Shengshi Garden, where they could already see Old Qin playing chess with someone, loudly demanding to take back a move.

Wang Jinglu suddenly stopped, turned to Li Qian, and said, "I want to eat rice noodles."

"Uh, but your mom is waiting for you at home!"

Wang Jinglu nodded and lowered her head.

But after a moment, she looked up again and said, "But I want to eat rice noodles."

Li Qian took a deep breath, patted the back of his bike, and said, "Get on!"

...