Xiao Feng and Li Wei arrived at their usual bubble tea shop with Situ Changxi and two bodyguards. After casually ordering a few cups, they found a seat inside.
Xiao Feng glanced at the scorching sun outside, then at Changxi—she’d sat right beside him after ordering and was now quietly wiping sweat from her brow with a handkerchief. Something felt… off.
“Um… Situ Changxi, don’t you think sitting this close is kinda… you know?” Xiao Feng mumbled vaguely.
Changxi froze mid-wipe. Lifting her adorably flushed face with a cute pout, she declared, “Call me Changxi! No surname. Adding it doesn’t feel like friends!”
Xiao Feng nearly reached out to pinch her flawless, delicate cheeks—but catching the bodyguards’ sharp stares nearby, he quickly dropped the thought.
“Um… Situ—”
Changxi’s glare cut him off instantly.
“I mean… Changxi,” he corrected hastily. “Aren’t we sitting a bit too close? It’s hot, sure, but… y’know, men and women should keep their distance?”
Across the table, Li Wei burst into laughter. “Hahahaha! If hands can’t touch, other spots are fair game? Xiao Feng, I never knew you were such a smooth flirt!” He wiggled his eyebrows with a knowing smirk. Xiao Feng’s eye twitched—he wanted to slap him. One innocent line, totally twisted.
“Damn it, Li Wei, stop making stuff up!”
Li Wei just grinned wider, utterly unfazed. Xiao Feng gritted his teeth but stayed silent. How could he say *he didn’t want to get involved with her*—right in front of Changxi?
Even if *he* knew it was a joke… would *she*?
Exactly as Xiao Feng feared, Changxi’s face flushed crimson. Her heart hammered wildly. She couldn’t even look at him.
Innocent? Yes. Clueless? No. She knew boys and girls were different. She just hadn’t thought about it—too happy about their new friendship.
Now Li Wei’s teasing words clicked: *Xiao Feng is a guy. We’re sitting super close. Like TV couples.*
No wonder her mind raced.
Truly, the speaker meant nothing—but the listener’s heart stirred.
Just as her pulse raced and the air turned shy, a bodyguard spoke up:
“Young mistress, time’s up. The banquet your father arranged is starting. We should go.”
Changxi steadied her breathing, gave a slight nod, then turned to Xiao Feng with a charming smile. “Xiao Feng, I’m heading back. I’ll contact you later. Let’s hang out again! Bye!”
Xiao Feng had been bracing to explain Li Wei’s joke—but relief washed over him. *Finally over. Sitting next to a rich loli who’s both cute and elegant? Way too awkward.*
“Sure, bye! Keep in touch!” he said with a smile.
Inside, a tiny pang of disappointment lingered. *We probably won’t meet again. A noble young lady like her… never meant for an ordinary guy like me. This isn’t some xianxia novel where you chase impossible dreams. This is reality.*
Seeing Xiao Feng’s gentle smile tinged with quiet reluctance, Changxi felt a strange, indescribable flutter in her chest—a feeling she’d never known in all her years.
She left the shop with the bodyguards, that odd warmth still humming in her heart.
Xiao Feng watched her graceful silhouette fade. A faint melancholy remained, but mostly… ease. Beautiful as she was, their paths likely ended here. That twinge? Just how any guy feels parting with someone lovely. It’d pass.
Li Wei smirked. “What’s wrong? Already fallen for that rich loli? Dreaming of overnight riches?”
Snapped back, Xiao Feng lunged, grabbing Li Wei’s neck and shaking him. “Damn it! You set me up on purpose?!”
Mid-shake, Li Wei’s eyes locked onto the wooden ceiling—wide, stunned.
“Hey hey hey, stop! Look up! I see something!” He pointed urgently.
Puzzled, Xiao Feng followed his gaze.
A tiny hole in the ceiling.
Beyond it: hazy but unmistakable—snow-white legs beneath a flowing blue dress. With every sway, the “holy land” beneath teased into view.
Somehow, Xiao Feng had released Li Wei. Now shoulder-to-shoulder, their heads swiveled in sync, eyes glued upward, silently chanting:
*“Evil spirits, begone! Wind, lift the skirt! Reveal the holy land! Open!”*
The skirt fluttered.
Hope surged.
Then—
Both froze.
Despair erupted.
Xiao Feng: “Holy crap… so cruel!”
Li Wei: “Holy crap… so ruthless!”
After all that… only a pair of merciless safety shorts.
