Who says meal replacements can’t be eaten as meals?

Ichinose Sakuya skillfully lay on the door frame, peeking out with an inexplicable guilty feeling. She actually came back a little earlier than planned today, but someone's shameless remarks and covering her hands still made the country girl achieve the glorious achievement of running away twice in one day.

How come even Hai Ling is like this...

"Welcome back." Su Shi'an sat at the dining table and browsed the group chat messages, which were mainly complaints and emoticon bombardment from a pink-haired guitarist. His tone was neither hurried nor slow, and there was no longer the terrifying oppressive feeling that he had revealed when he was obsessed before.

Miss Sakuya changed into her blue whale slippers and first glanced around the brightly lit living room. She sniffed the meaty aroma in the air suspiciously, then glanced at her sister who had a faint smile on her face. Her fear of the unknown and gaining weight finally succumbed to the genetic instinct running through human DNA.

He quickly washed his hands and sat down obediently. His chopsticks automatically picked up the soft and tender oxtail and put it into his mouth, savoring it carefully.

Although Miss Sakuya is a little unsure whether her sister has changed her personality or is planning to do something, carrot stewed with oxtail is innocent!

"You only know how to eat." Nagasaki Suyo glanced at her sister who was busy eating with disdain. She moved her fingers slightly to comfort the pink-haired guitarist who was ignored, then turned off the screen of her phone, thinking about how to start the conversation.

"If you're hungry, you have to eat... If you're not full, you'll be unhappy." Ms. Sakuya swallowed the carrot cubes soaked in sauce. She was obviously happy again, swaying happily from side to side like a metronome. She tried to reach the round eggs on the plate beside her, but failed and shivered from the burn.

"Be careful. No one is going to snatch it from you. What you can't finish can be used as your lunch tomorrow." Su Shi sighed and pushed the heated milk towards someone who obviously thought it was too salty.

Gulu gulu~

"Sister, did something good happen to you today?" Sakuya wiped the milk foam from the corner of her mouth and continued to challenge the slightly hot egg with great interest.

"I think I have figured out some things." Nagasaki Suyo fiddled with her thumb, lowered her eyelids and raised them again, and asked with determination.

"Sakuya, are you willing to go to the Moon Forest tomorrow?"

"Eh?"

Miss Sakuya blinked in confusion.

"You've been in a low mood these past two days, and you looked listless during the meeting with Xiao Deng and the others this afternoon. I wonder if it's because the etiquette in Tsuki Forest is too complicated, or..." Nagasaki Suyo carefully considered her words and asked.

“Not really.” Sakuya interrupted her sister with a chuckle, her eyes drifting to the neon night view outside the window, and then meeting her own reflection in the window. “It’s just that something happened, but I don’t have the courage to make up my mind.”

She plans to escape for a while.

There's nothing wrong with going to the Moon Forest. No exams, no thinking, no blushing and heart-pounding gazes at Xiangzi. All you have to do is simply accompany Xiaomu.

Besides, Xiao Mu is quite cute, quiet and delicate, just like a cucumber. She is definitely my favorite type.

"Actually, it's nice to experience life in the Moon Forest... right?"

Chapter 128 Cucumbers are delicious

It was an ordinary afternoon, the weather was sunny and windy, and the early summer sun was a little scorching. Ruo Ye Mu was half-heartedly taken to the pavilion by the much more lively Nagasaki Suyo to have lunch together.

Ichinose Sakuya narrowed her eyes slightly, raised the corners of her mouth, and with standard movements, she quickly and elegantly spread out the insulated lunch box. The two dishes and one soup, which were still steaming hot, were lined up in a row and placed at a distance that both of them could easily reach. She felt as comfortable as if she was sharing freshly baked bread and butter with her friends at home.

Perhaps, Ms. Sakuya's initiative in learning dining etiquette is much higher than that in learning etiquette posture and the like.

Ruo Ye Mu was holding the nutritious meal prepared in advance by the chef at home, his mouth slightly open, his golden eyes unblinking. It was obvious that his poor memory had not yet finished processing the previous process when he encountered another happy event that would cause his brain to crash.

Is Su Shi inviting me to have dinner together? I was not very willing yesterday and did not accept the shrimps that were peeled in advance...

"Xiao Mu, what are you standing there for? Come here." Miss Sakuya patted the seat next to her and greeted her softly. Her right hand had already picked up the bamboo chopsticks, ready to enjoy the food while it was hot.

Ruoye Mu's feet, wrapped in round-toed leather shoes, rubbed the ground lightly. He turned around and carefully and flatteredly sat down next to the flaxen-haired girl. The breeze blew by, and he could smell the fragrance of flowers and clearly feel the flaxen silk passing across his shoulders.

There was still no expression on Ruoye Mu's face. He tried two or three times before opening his usual black and gold lunch box. He placed it between the two of them, just like Su Shi had done before, and then quietly pushed it a little bit in the direction where the fragrance of the flowers came from.

The eel salad is the appetizer, the cucumber and apple are positioned as fruits, the chicken sandwich is the main course, and there is steamed cod for protein.

"Xiao Mu, your daily diet is very vegetarian. You need to eat more to grow tall, right?" Miss Sakuya shifted her scrutinizing eyes away from Wakaba Mu's exquisite but small lunch. After thinking for a moment, she reached out and took out a boiled egg that was kept warm under the soup layer.

This was what my sister prepared for me last night. Maybe she cooked too much. I ate two in the morning and there was still a lot left, so I simply put it all in the lunch box.

"It was prepared by the nutritionist at home." Wakaba Mu explained in a low voice. Her appetite was indeed not that big, and she had to strictly control her body shape in order to coordinate with her parents' TV shows and ballet classes. This amount seemed a little too little to Miss Sakuya, who had to carry a bass everywhere all the time.

"Then there shouldn't be any problem with eating one more egg, right?" Ms. Sakuya tilted her head and tapped the eggshell lightly on the corner of the table to break it. She then pressed it with her palm and rolled it back and forth twice, easily peeling out the white egg white with a pleasing color as if she were peeling an apple.

She turned her head, intending to ask Xiao Mu's opinion again, but saw that his golden eyes were staring wide at the egg on her fingertips.

"Xiao Mu, do you want to eat?" Sakuya tilted her head.

"Yes." Ruo Yemu nodded, leaned forward slightly, and tried to open his mouth wide, as if he wanted to swallow it in one gulp.

"Eh... isn't it not very elegant to eat it directly? Mutsu, why don't you use chopsticks..." Ms. Sakuya stopped talking halfway because the eyes that Ms. Doll had finally opened drooped again like wilted cucumber flowers.

Ruoye Mu also felt that he was too fanciful. He looked down at the white stripes on his school uniform skirt to hide his disappointment. Su Shi and he were just ordinary friends. He had misunderstood...

"Ah——" A familiar voice sounded from the side, interrupting my thoughts. What appeared in my sight next was a white, round egg and healthy fingers with a rosy pink color.

Ruo Ye Mu stared blankly at the boiled egg that was brought to her mouth. She turned her head away in disbelief. In front of her eyes were the gray-blue pupils that she saw many times every day. In those pupils was the pure concern and unfamiliar shyness that she had not seen for a long time.

She lowered her head again and smiled softly.

Ruoye Mu finally ate the warm boiled egg bit by bit with his mouth slightly open.

She had tried her best to chew slowly. If Ye Mu had not thought about anything, did not care about the taste of the eggs, did not maintain the elegant etiquette taught since childhood, and just mechanically repeated the chewing movements, why did time always pass so quickly at such times?

"Here, vegetable juice. You'll choke if you eat it dry."

Ruoye Mu looked at the remaining eggshell held up by three fingers with regret, and then slowly moved away. She also saw the boxed vegetable drink for the second time. She had drunk it once before, and she still remembered that the aftertaste of this vegetable juice was a bit bitter...

"...Um."

Wakaba Mutsu sipped the strange-tasting mixed juice and carefully glanced at Nagasaki Suyo who was quickly finishing the dishes beside him with proper etiquette. For the first time, he had an excessive thought of taking advantage of the situation.

I wish Su Shi could be so gentle to me every day.

But this is impossible...Su Shi is still thinking about Xiang and Crychic.

In fact, if I can occasionally feel like today, I should feel satisfied.

"Xiao Mu, Xiao Mu, is this a cucumber?" Miss Sakuya looked at Wakaba Mutsuki who had not touched his chopsticks since a while ago, pointed at a corner of the lunch box, and asked in a low voice.

"...Yes, and apples." Ruoye Mu responded in a low voice while recalling today's recipe.

"Hey... can I eat it then?"

Ruoye Mu looked up at the bright smiling face of the person in front of him and nodded slightly.

"Thank you, Xiaomu, please try my lunch. Even though it may not be that exquisite, it is all made by me..." Ms. Sakuya said casually as she picked up a cucumber that she liked.

The other dishes are not suitable for sharing. Xiaomu is thin to begin with, and he feels embarrassed to take up other people’s limited nutritional share.

But the ladies of Tsuki no Mori are too strict about their figure management. Shoko is also... Shoko may be different. Sakuya probably just didn't eat enough...

The cucumber tastes sweet and crisp, with a cool and light fruity flavor. It is indeed a good summer snack. Even Miss Sakuya, who is not very fond of cold dishes and vegetarian dishes, exclaimed in surprise.

"It's really delicious. Xiaomu's chef is really amazing."

"Su Shi...as long as you like it." Miss Mu, who was gently watered, finally came back to her senses, picked up the chopsticks, and picked up a piece of cut cucumber, revealing a faint smile that was visible to the naked eye.

"Su Shi." Ruo Yemu picked up a cucumber and turned to look at someone's soft lips that were still shining with water.

Perhaps it was his greed that was at work, but Ye Mu felt that Su Shi would most likely not refuse today.

"Would you like some more?" She held up the cucumber, with her chopsticks extended to a position where someone could open their mouth to receive the food.

Ichinose Sakuya felt a little strange about Wakaba Mutsu's sudden closeness, but...my sister and Mutsu have always had a good relationship, right?

She obediently lifted her hair beside her ear, lowered her head slightly, opened her mouth and bit the cucumber that Ruoye Mu handed to her.

After all, it tastes really good.

Chapter 129: Nagasaki Suyo is good at sports

In fact, there are physical education classes in the Moon Forest.

The sun at two o'clock in the afternoon was shining mercilessly, forcing people to squint their eyes to see the vast blue sky. It also caused the young ladies who had not had time to ask for leave to utter small complaints on the green playground.

The collar of the sportswear was a little loose, and Ichinose Sakuya reached out and grabbed the corner of the white T-shirt, pulling it down until the golden shield emblem of the Tsuki no Mori was right against his chest, and then he stopped with satisfaction.

She wore red sports shorts with only two simple stripes, revealing her plump, white legs. Compared with the school uniform of Tsuki no Mori, it was less concealing, but it was more convenient for movement and highly breathable.

Sakuya and Xiaomu had applied sunscreen on their bodies in the locker room in advance. Sakuya didn't really like running in the hot sun, but since the teacher said that they would have to take a physical test today, she might as well complete it honestly.

She jumped twice, spun around, and stretched her arms and legs briefly before realizing that she was now attending school in Tsuki No Mori in place of her sister. She coughed lightly to make amends and walked slowly back to Xiao Mu, who was standing quietly in the assembly area.

"Xiao Mu, thank you so much for what you did before. I haven't attended physical education class for a long time, and I really forgot where the locker is..." Sakuya wanted to reach out and scratch his clever head, but thinking of his sister's remaining elegance, he stopped the action and stood aside with his arms folded.

"......" Ruoye Mu was also wearing the same sports uniform but several sizes smaller. His eyes moved slightly, looking at the flaxen hair tips outlined by gold edges in the sunlight, and nodded gently.

"I think I'm in the first group in the 800m test later. Where's Xiaomu?"

"It's different..." Ruo Yemu looked at it for a while but still couldn't get used to the glaring sunlight, so he turned his head away and said in a low voice.

"That's perfect~" Sakuya chuckled, took out a light pink five-petal cherry blossom hairband from her pocket, put it on her finger, and twirled it.

"..." Ruo Ye Mu felt lost and a little strange. Finally, he lowered his golden eyes and looked at the familiar hair tie in Su Shi's hand. He also had the same one, which was given to him by Su Shi's sister... Sakuya. It was light yellow, and he liked it very much because it looked like the color of cucumber flowers.

"Xiao Mu didn't bring a hair tie, did she?" Miss Sakuya blew at the hair tie, lowered her head slightly, held it in her mouth, and used both hands to skillfully gather her flaxen hair, then put it behind her head and held it temporarily with one hand.

"It's better to tie your hair up when running. No matter if it gets stuck by sweat or messed up by the wind, you need to fix it for a while before it can recover, right?"

She turned her head towards Wakaba Mutsu who was staring at her in a daze, held up the hair tie with her five fingers, and simply circled it behind her head, tying her hair into a low ponytail that was easy to move in.

The summer breeze was still blowing, passing through the ends of her hair, and the fragrance of flowers rolled down and stopped on Ruoye Mu's slender shoulders.

Miss Doll put her hand up to cover her forehead.

The sunlight seemed even brighter, dazzling and eye-catching. The flaxen ponytail was coated with gold dust. The girl was like a striking warm color, standing prettily in the center of the monotonous picture.

The Su world no longer seems like the Su world.

"I can lend it to Xiaomu after I finish my run." Sakuya turned his head, pointed at the cherry blossom hair accessory hanging behind his head, and smiled brightly.

"......" Ruo Yemu didn't say anything, lowered her head, and didn't dare to meet the eyes of the person in front of her. She could feel the same warmth... but it was more dazzling than what she felt from Su Shi...

"I'll go get ready first. It's better for Xiao Mu to warm up in advance as well~" Miss Sakuya was probably used to Wakaba Mu's often drooping eyebrows. She smiled and waved, then turned and ran towards the teacher who was greeting her at the starting line.

Xiao Mu doesn't talk much, but he is actually very perseverant, very hardworking, and tries very hard to care for others in his own way. He is not good at expressing his feelings, and is caught between his sister and Xiangzi. Even if he is a good friend, he would be tired, right?

So...even if I use my older sister's identity as my older sister, there's nothing wrong with being nicer to Xiaomu and spending more time with her, right?

She still hoped to see Ruoye Mu's not-so-obvious faint smile more often.

Ruo Ye Mu didn't move, only her eyes followed the flaxen low ponytail. She heard the starting gun and watched Su Shi running at the front of the team, circling the playground and passing by her.

Their eyes met and then quickly moved away, and she thought that Su Shi might have just smiled at her.

So she also chuckled, quietly and not obviously. For a child who lacks love, even smiling is done with caution.

"Wakaba-san."

A familiar voice sounded, and Wakaba Mu turned around and saw that it was his classmate Katsurame, who seemed to be one of Su Shi's friends in the performance club.

"The weather is hot, and I happen to have an extra bottle of unopened mineral water here. If you don't mind, please accept it and drink plenty of water." Ge Mu Ai took the task props given to her by the unscrupulous reporter with some suspicion, and seemed a little worried. This should really be just ordinary mineral water, right?

"......" Ruo Yemu shook her head and declined the kindness. She felt that she probably didn't need any water right now.

"Uh...it will be very hot after the physical test. Does Ruoye really not need it?" Xiao Ai smiled reluctantly. She understood why Ruoye Mu was popular in school but had few friends. It was a little too difficult to communicate with him.

"I..." Ruo Yemu continued to shake his head gently, then suddenly stopped as if he thought of something, changed his head abruptly, and nodded embarrassedly.

"Thank you..." Ruo Yemu said softly, took the still cold bottle of water, and trotted towards the finish line.

======

"Two minutes and fifty-two seconds. Nagasaki's performance has improved a lot." The physical education teacher, who was frail and sickly and whose physical education classes were often occupied by inexplicable courses, sighed while holding the stopwatch and wrote down a new record on the report card.

Ms. Sakuya's breathing was relatively stable at this moment. After taking a deep breath, she suddenly remembered that her sister's physical fitness did not seem to match her current results. She scratched her head a little embarrassedly and explained. "Um... maybe it's because she has been exercising recently?"

"Come on, a lady should stay healthy. By the way, how about trying to participate in the running event of the school sports meet? It seems that no one has signed up for the longest 1600-meter race. I think Nagasaki-san should be able to do it..."

The physical education teacher seemed to be still mumbling something, but Ms. Sakuya's attention was already focused on the little cucumber that was jogging towards her.

Xiao Mu looks so cute when he smiles.

"Sure~" She agreed casually as her sister had trained her to do.

Chapter 130 Why is this boiled water tasteless?

In the Moon Forest, in a corner of the lacquered red plastic track, two girls with a slight height difference were walking side by side, at an unhurried pace, like the most ordinary classmates, calm and overflowing with the youthfulness unique to this age.

"Su Shi...water." Ruoye Mu smiled faintly and handed the unexpected ice water to Su Shi, whose forehead was slightly sweaty.

She suddenly had a strange feeling. What she was holding in her hand was not a water bottle but the plastic shower head that she often used, replenishing water for Su Shi like watering a cucumber.

"Thank you, Xiaomu, but could you hold it for me for a little longer?" Ichinose Sakuya put her hands behind her head, fiddling with the cherry blossom hair tie that had already completed its historical mission. Although she still felt more comfortable with the hair accessory, Xiaomu probably needed it more than she did now.

“...?” Ruoye Mu tilted his head, holding the bottle of water that he was going to give to Su Shi in his hands. A small, light yellow question mark seemed to appear on his light green head.