Age of Legends

Chapter 234 White Clothes
Although Ning Wenjing thought Shen Nuoyi could handle it, she and Shen Mingbo still took turns picking her up after evening self-study every day afterward.

After that, although Pei Yan was in Yude Competition Training Camp, he did not appear in public for the entire week.

News has already broken from the foreign language department; news of Pei Yan's disastrous failure at Yude has already reached them.

During the second break, Qin Tangxi saw several close female classmates gathered together, excitedly talking about something.

"Qin Tangxi!" Someone in the crowd spotted her and waved.

That was Wang Lu, Qin Tangxi's best friend at school.

She exchanged a few words with the others and then left, heading towards Qin Tangxi until they stood together. They walked side-by-side, and she gestured excitedly, "Tangxi, do you know what happened at Yude...?"

Qin Tangxi already had a bad feeling: "What's wrong...?"

"The competition team takes the school's chartered bus to Yude Training Center every afternoon. It's said that Pei Yan was waiting for Shen Nuoyi at the gate during evening self-study that day, but Shen Nuoyi ended up walking with another boy. It caused quite a stir at Yude that day, and they're still talking about it today!"

Qin Tangxi was still somewhat dazed. The group of girls over there usually liked to hang out together in the foreign language class. They came from wealthy families; their parents were either government officials or rich businessmen. They were like idol fans to Pei Yan. Every single one of them claimed they had never written a love letter to Pei Yan, but behind his back, each of them probably had secretly passed one to him.

Pei Yan's experience at Yude was a bolt from the blue for them, instantly filling them with resentment and anger towards Shen Nuoyi. Of course, this was just talk; in front of Shen Nuoyi, they were all completely silent, a clear display of hierarchical suppression.

After all, that woman was capable of rejecting Pei Yan.

Qin Tangxi was fully aware of this.

“Shen Nuoyi is your sister, don’t you know about this?” Wang Lu said, then a regretful expression appeared on her face, “I was hoping you could know more details and tell me about it!”

As expected, despite the opposing camps of Foreign Languages ​​and Yude, Wang Lu felt no animosity towards Shen Nuoyi. She only wanted to know more details about Pei Yan's humiliation—explosive news that could grab countless eyes. Sharing it would be a way to show off her informational advantage, but she didn't express any dissatisfaction with Shen Nuoyi, after all, they weren't on the same level.

"I only found out from you. I haven't been in contact with her for a long time." Qin Tangxi said somewhat weakly. She noticed that several groups of girls in the distance were staring at her. She wanted to explain that she and her cousin hadn't been close lately and distance herself from the anger of the numerous foreign language girls.

Qin Tangxi then asked, "You said... what was the name of the person who was with Shen Nuoyi?"

"Zhang Chen. That's the name! Wow, you don't know, so many girls from the Foreign Languages ​​School want to get into Yude High School to see what kind of magic he has. What's so special about Pei Yan? At least Pei Yan has been featured in magazines and newspapers, and he's the provincial champion in the physics competition! This Zhang Chen just sounds familiar, I don't know where I've heard of him before, but he's definitely not that famous! You bastard!" Shen Nuoyi and Wang Lu might not dare to curse him, but they certainly wouldn't dare to curse this Zhang Chen!
In fact, Qin Tangxi was still in a daze. Ever since Shen Nuoyi unexpectedly invited her to the Xinhua Bookstore that day, and then she ran into her cousin and Zhang Chen together again, Qin Tangxi was in a superimposed state of accepting reality, but not yet fully accepting it.

Several times, when she woke up in a dazed state due to lack of sleep, she wondered whether she had actually been to Xinhua Bookstore that day, and whether the events of that day had actually occurred.

She would occasionally shake her head and chuckle to herself, thinking she was overthinking things. How could Zhang Chen compare? He might not be the Ugly Duckling, but he was definitely just another nobody, likely to be lost in the crowd. After a while, her cousin's troublesome trajectory would be corrected, and she probably wouldn't even mention Zhang Chen's name again.

Now, I'm speaking a foreign language, and thunder comes from the sky.

The name Zhang Chen not only resurfaced in her ears, but it also popped up because Pei Yan had suffered a major setback and his name was trending on social media after being criticized by foreigners.

Qin Tangxi wondered if it was a bit unnecessary for her to tell Zhang Chen, "You have to keep going!"

……

Yude returned to a peaceful state. Although there were sensational events like that day, which served as a diversion from the senior year of high school, it was like finding joy in the midst of suffering in hell. The next day, everyone would still face mountains of test papers and a massive amount of questions. Rolling them up, each one of them was no different from a working person. The vitality and passion of the young people were all poured out in the sea of ​​books and questions.

Many more are caught between hard work and confusion. December is just around the corner, the winter break is over, and then the second semester of senior year begins, bringing more exams. Each exam means the final battle of the college entrance exam is drawing ever closer.

It was as if she had used up all her courage on that day. Shen Nuoyi didn't treat Zhang Chen any differently in class, and sometimes she wouldn't even look at Zhang Chen when others were deliberately paying attention to her.

As for the students at Yude High School, the idea that Shen Nuoyi was already taken was probably still somewhat of a fantasy. For some reason, it wasn't as sensational as expected, and no one seemed to be deliberately inquiring or seeking confirmation. It was more like everyone was intentionally avoiding mentioning this unrealistic situation.

Of course, this may also be because Zhang Chen and Shen Nuoyi were very normal at school. Since that day when they held hands and left, they have never held hands in public again.

And it was still the same old combination of Shen Nuoyi and Zheng Xue, and Zhang Chen and Wang Shuowei after school, without breaking this routine.

On one hand, Shen Nuoyi, this chivalrous woman, was in a period of belated shyness, afraid to face Zhang Chen and the public opinion. Zhang Chen saw this clearly; she was the kind of brave person who might act impulsively and recklessly, regardless of the consequences. But afterward, when she closed the door and hid at home, she would mostly reflect on her performance, wondering where she hadn't performed well or if she had embarrassed herself somewhere, becoming more and more like an ostrich burying her head in the sand.

Or perhaps it's her long-standing pride and aloofness that makes her reluctant to lower herself, so she maintains a cool demeanor at school. Moreover, now every evening after self-study, a car picks up Shen Nuoyi, and Zheng Xue is also given a ride.

Zhang Chen realized that the reality behind the scenes was not as calm as it seemed on the surface.

Some things were also disturbed.

Of course, they had an unspoken understanding that everything would go smoothly at school. On Sundays, when they had a day off, the two of them would meet at the bookstore to read and do exercises, as usual.

Shen Nuoyi only wears light makeup on important occasions, but that's limited to applying some foundation to make her skin appear fairer; otherwise, she goes completely bare-faced. Today, on Sunday at the bookstore, she wore a white sweatshirt and light makeup. Since she didn't have class, she didn't wear a convenient ponytail but instead styled her hair in a low side bun with a hairpin, adding a touch of gentle classical beauty to her already sharp eyes.

Zhang Chen couldn't take his eyes off her as soon as he entered.

Zhang Chen had ordered milk tea for her in advance. As soon as Shen Nuo sat down, she felt a little uncomfortable being stared at by Zhang Chen and asked, "What's wrong..."

"Has anyone told you that you looked amazing today?" Zhang Chen asked with a smile.

Shen Nuoyi really wanted to change the subject quickly, "No way, it's just your opinion!"

Zhang Chen glanced at the frequent glances from passersby outside the glass window as they looked at their table. "The moment you walked over from the bar, the receptionist's eyes never left you."

Shen Nuo put the books down and said, "Alright! Study hard and do your exercises! Let's keep each other accountable today."

“I’ve been a little angry lately,” Zhang Chen said to Shen Nuoyi as she handed him a completed test paper for her to check. Zhang Chen rested his chin on his hand.

"Ok?"

“You hardly ever talk to me at school,” Zhang Chen said with a smile.

"How else can I deal with you?" Shen Nuo asked.

Zhang Chen thought about it and realized that although the two of them hadn't been very close at school, they were still the same as usual, and he always responded to her every word.

“You hardly ever look at me, it’s like you’re avoiding me,” Zhang Chen said.

"You weren't looking at me the whole time, so how do you know I was looking at you when you weren't looking at me?"

This is a bit convoluted.

Her words were calm and clear in the air, but the blush on her face, which her foundation couldn't cover, was still visible.

Okay, you pass.

Actually, this is good enough. Zhang Chen didn't want to disrupt Shen Nuoyi's senior year of high school, or his own. A peaceful and tranquil senior year with established relationships and a future to look forward to is the best outcome.

After finishing today's practice questions at the bookstore, Shen Nuoyi gave Zhang Chen some extra help with the knowledge points. Their fulfilling only Sunday holiday was about to end.

It was dusk, and the sun was beginning to set.

The two took the bus home together. Today's route was that Zhang Chen arrived at the stop first, and Shen Nuoyi got off two stops later.

They got on the bus together, but unfortunately there were no seats. So they stood in the aisle of the bus, holding onto the handrail with one hand. Just as Zhang Chen was considering whether or not to hold hands with Shen Nuo, he suddenly felt a tightness at his elbow. Shen Nuo leaned over slightly and took his arm.

He could feel the delicate fragrance of the girl beside him and the warmth of her shapely figure.

Zhang Chen saw the setting sun shining through the car window, and her white dress, as white as snow, was gilded by the sunlight.

(End of this chapter)