“What?!”

Feng Yijiu was walking slightly ahead of Li Hao, so she didn’t see the teasing look in his eyes. Her body trembled faintly, and her footsteps even stopped for that instant.

Her mind showed signs of short-circuiting. All she could think was, I’m done for. I’ve been exposed.

If anyone had looked closely, they would’ve seen her calves trembling slightly.

Li Hao, however, didn’t notice Feng Yijiu’s nervousness. He thought she was mostly angry.

After all, what real man would want to be mistaken for a girl?

Anyone who could make someone cry for a long time with one punch didn’t count.

So Li Hao patted Feng Yijiu on the shoulder.

“It was probably just a typo. When I helped my dad with his checkup yesterday, I had it changed back for you.”

Like he was telling a joke, Li Hao recounted everything that had happened the previous night.

Feng Yijiu’s heart, which had nearly leaped into her throat, was patted back down into her stomach.

As she let out a long sigh of relief inwardly, the way she looked at Li Hao unconsciously gained a hint of intellectual superiority.

Still, she had to admit that Li Hao had done her a huge favor this time.

With that thought, Feng Yijiu finally relaxed. The corners of her lips even lifted slightly without her realizing it.

“So? Aren’t you going to thank your buddy?” Li Hao couldn’t help laughing when he saw her look of relief.

In his eyes, jokes caused by little accidents were especially amusing.

“Or you could just go along with the mistake, Feng Yijiu. If you were a girl, you’d definitely be pretty.”

Feng Yijiu took a deep breath. Then she turned her head and spotted the McDonald’s near the entrance to Li Hao’s residential compound.

“Fine. Thanks this time. I’ll treat you to afternoon tea. But this ends here. Don’t tell anyone, okay?”

“Absolutely.”

Li Hao made a hand gesture agreeing to the deal.

Over such a trivial matter, he had finally tasted what it was like to gain the upper hand in his prolonged battle with this monster.

There was only one word for it.

Amazing.

Feng Yijiu looked at his smug, wretched grin and forcibly restrained the urge to kick him.

Still, if settling this matter today could patch up the biggest flaw in her identity for a long time to come, then it was worth it.

She straightened herself up and walked into the fast-food restaurant.

“What do you want to eat?” Feng Yijiu turned to Li Hao.

“Anything’s fine.”

Li Hao looked completely casual. What he cared about wasn’t the food.

He cared about the feeling of defeating Feng Yijiu.

“Then two ice-cream cones and one snack platter.”

After picking up their order, Feng Yijiu began looking for a seat.

Perhaps because it was a holiday, the better tables had already been taken. Quite a few people had even bought only a drink or a small snack, then sat there working or studying.

Li Hao had already claimed a two-person table near the window.

The lighting was good, and the area was relatively spacious. It was a pretty decent spot.

“By the way, Feng Yijiu, you know the sports meet starts after National Day, right?”

Li Hao had narrowly won their recent verbal clash, so he was feeling unusually talkative.

“I know.” Feng Yijiu nodded. “But I had surgery before the semester started, remember? I already said I can’t participate in any physical education classes or events this term.”

“Anyway, good luck to all of you.”

“Oh, right.”

Li Hao remembered that. He nodded, picked up a chicken wing, and began eating with great satisfaction.

Compared to him, Feng Yijiu was much more restrained.

Perhaps because she often ate the desserts Cen Man prepared at home, she wasn’t particularly interested in this kind of food anymore.

She merely ate her ice-cream cone slowly, occasionally responding to something Li Hao said.

Still, she understood one thing.

This guy truly didn’t see her as a girl.

That was at least a blessing in disguise, Feng Yijiu thought.

Meanwhile, Dong Shu went downstairs to buy some vegetables at the market.

When she passed the McDonald’s near the entrance, her eyes swept across the restaurant. Her footsteps gradually slowed to a stop.

Afraid that Li Hao might notice her, she even walked a little farther before peering inside from a distance.

Through the transparent glass, she saw her foolish son, still wearing his loose school uniform.

He was holding half of a chicken drumstick, talking with exaggerated expressions and waving his hands animatedly.

Across from him sat Feng Yijiu in neat, proper clothes. She wore a reserved smile, and every now and then, she rubbed her soft cheek with one hand.

She seemed completely absorbed in what he was saying.

At some point, an auntie-like smile had appeared at the corners of Dong Shu’s lips.

It seemed she had misunderstood her son.

Or perhaps, because she had been at home that day, the two of them hadn’t been able to relax?

After all, they were high school students. This could still count as young love.

After making a series of assumptions based on first impressions, Dong Shu felt much more cheerful.

She completely forgot about buying vegetables. Instead, she slowly watched that somewhat unfamiliar son of hers and thought, My little boy has grown up.

Feeling comforted, Dong Shu lowered her head slightly and walked toward the market.

The actual situation inside, however, differed somewhat from what Dong Shu had imagined.

Feng Yijiu wore a faint, perfunctory smile as she watched Li Hao ramble on about the importance of rehabilitation exercises.

She only wanted to ask one thing.

Would his hair even grow back?

But seeing how sincerely Li Hao seemed to be worrying about her, Feng Yijiu could only rub her stiff cheeks slightly.

Then she forced herself to keep going and began finishing the remaining snacks.

Once the food was gone, they could leave, right?

Seeing that Li Hao still looked unwilling to stop, Feng Yijiu silently handed him another chicken drumstick.

Here. Eat this.

She refused to believe that food couldn’t shut him up.

“By the way, you and Yaoyao…” Li Hao paused to eat, giving Feng Yijiu an opening. “I mean Wen Yao. Any new developments?”

She was also using the question to steer the conversation away from the topic that made her feel as if her chair were covered in nails.

“Nothing much.”

At that, Li Hao’s face fell slightly.

“I still don’t know how to get close to her. And it seems like she has a whole lot of admirers around her.”

He thought for a moment.

“I feel like I should arm myself first.”

Feng Yijiu shook her head and laughed.

Li Hao’s road ahead was a long and difficult one.

She had asked around about Zhou Wenyao before. Although Zhou Wenyao had a relatively gentle personality, she was also the kind of girl who was proud at heart.

If Li Hao wanted to pluck that dazzling rose, it wouldn’t be easy.