You are my wife, don't doubt it!

"Why! Don't! Knock! On! The! Door!" Shen Tianyun put his hands on his hips and bared his teeth at Xiao Yao.

"It's getting late. I should go back. Excuse me." Shen Jie nodded gently at Xiao Yao, who subconsciously walked out of the closet and made way.

"Send my mom off, ask her out, ask her out." Shen Tianyun lowered her voice and tickled Xiao Yao's forearm.

"Got it." Xiao Yao said.

……

The bright moonlight shines through the willow branches and leaves along the Suzhou River, radiating softly and warmly, as if coating the path with a layer of silver.

Two clear figures, bathed in moonlight, walked forward side by side at a distance of half a person, happy and peaceful.

This scene seems familiar, Xiao Yao thought.

But it's not quite the same.

"The moonlight is so beautiful tonight." Xiao Yao said it again as if possessed by a ghost.

"Yeah, very beautiful." Shen Jie affirmed calmly.

"I mean...how did you find my house? Someone was following me on the way home from school, was it you?" Xiao Yao decided to confirm.

"It's me." Shen Jie admitted it frankly.

This righteous attitude left Xiao Yao speechless for a moment.

"Why did you suddenly come to see me?" Xiao Yao scratched his head.

"I'm not here to look for you. I'm here to look for...that child." Shen Jie raised her head slightly.

"So, what did you two talk about?"

"This is... a secret between women." There was a hint of playfulness in Shen Jie's tone.

"...There's no way we can chat today." Xiao Yao protested half-jokingly.

"Sorry... I still have some ideas that need to be sorted out." Shen Jie changed back to that tone that was neither enthusiastic nor cold.

"Okay," Xiao Yao clenched his fists: "Are you free this weekend?"

It's just asking a girl out, I can still do this little thing.

"...No." Shen Jie's straightforward answer made him feel disappointed.

Fortunately, she immediately added: "But I'll try to arrange it."

"Thank you." Xiao Yao put his hands in his trouser pockets and deliberately turned his face away to avoid letting Shen Jie see his relieved look.

Turning into the main road, a Santana taxi with an "Available" sign came towards us.

Shen Jie waved gracefully, and the Santana slowly pulled over with its hazard lights on.

"Then, see you next time." The girl put her hands behind her back and turned slightly: "Thank you for sending me off."

"Oh...you're welcome."

Xiao Yao watched Shen Jie get into the back seat of the taxi.

When the car window slowly rose up, he saw the girl smiling at him and waving her hands.

"Phone, you haven't given me the phone yet?" Before the car window was fully raised, Xiao Yao suddenly put his hand against it.

Shen Jie was stunned for a moment, then smiled tolerantly.

She put her thumb and pinky to her ears and said, "Phone, ask the kid for it."

"Again?"

Chapter 12 Mermaid

At least this time, the mobile phone number Shen Tianyun gave Xiao Yao was in line with the characteristics of this era.

In the morning, Xiao Yao was texting with Shen Jie under the table.

Shen Jie didn’t reply immediately, but she wasn’t particularly slow either.

"Zizi!" The vibration of the mobile phone made a surprising sound in the wooden desk.

Teacher Yao cast a sharp look at them. The students in the front row turned their heads one after another, but Yu Luying remained motionless.

Xiao Yao hurriedly turned off the vibration.

Damn it, why did the vibration function turn on by itself?

At noon, when Xiao Xiong came to the classroom to call Xiao Yao to eat, he saw him putting his cell phone under the table and pressing it.

"Are you in love?" Xiao Xiong sat on Xiao Yao's desk: "You smile like... like my second aunt."

"Who laughed? Are you trying to scare me to death?" Xiao Yao put on a serious face, cleared his throat, and closed the flip cover of his phone: "Let's go."

When Xiao Xiong and I arrived at the cafeteria, Hua Ang and Shen Bin had already bought the meal.

They are Xiao Xiong's friends and are also from Class 4, so they both became Xiao Yao's friends.

"I heard that you guys have dated a little girl?" Hua Ang asked with interest.

"Oh my god, is it true? The iron tree has blossomed?" The pimples on Shen Bin's face jumped.

"Who told you that?" Xiao Yao glared at Xiao Xiong and said, "Xiong Ji, was it you? I sent a message to my grandma at noon."

"Stop pretending. Why aren't you being honest with us?" Little Bear said dissatisfiedly, "I saw you walking with a very pretty girl last night, and you even sent her into a taxi."

"Are you following me?"

"I didn't eat enough, so I followed you." (Note: "Yigang" is a Shanghai dialect) Little Bear rolled his eyes and said, "I ran into you when I was out for a walk."

"Oh, and don't call me either."

"You think I'm you, so ignorant," Xiao Xiong rants, "I say, you can't handle a beauty like that, right? Yu Luying didn't even fancy you, right?"

"Why can't I do it?" Xiao Yao stiffened his neck and said, "I'm telling you, it's easy!"

"Okay, stop bragging," Shen Bin commented, "I don't know who it was last week, complaining to the three of us about how we could never get a girl..."

"Cry you M..."

"Don't talk nonsense, don't talk nonsense," Hua Ang interrupted Shen Bin: "So, he is from our school?"

"No, the city's No. 7 Girls' High School."

The three friends exclaimed in surprise, and a lively discussion ensued.

"The No. 7 Girls' High School in the city, isn't that an aristocratic school?"

"What kind of aristocratic school is this? Bullshit."

"I heard that the No. 7 Girls' High School in the city has a boys' class. Is that true? It feels so good!"

"Yes, yes, they said they would recruit a class of boys every three years."

"That's not true," Xiao Yao chewed the food in his mouth carefully. "I asked her this morning, and she said that from 69 to... 81 or 82? There were boys, and the school name was changed to Magic City No. 8 Middle School at that time. Later, 1... years later, it became a girls' school again..."

"I heard there will be some special classes for girls, is that true?"

"Yes," Xiao Yao said like an old expert, "like Western dining etiquette classes, tea art classes...what else? Let me take a look."

As Xiao Yao spoke, he took out his cell phone.

"How dare you say it's not an aristocratic school!"

"I heard that the No. 7 Girls' High School in the city is full of beauties. There is a legend about the five great beauties, namely, Lin in the south, Shen in the north, Yan in the east, Zhao in the west, and Ouyang in the center..."

"Why aren't there seven beauties in the city's seven girls' high schools?"

"Hey, Xiao Yao," Xiao Xiong did not join in the discussion between Hua Ang and Shen Bin, "Did you spend the whole morning talking to her about this?"

"So what else do you want to talk about?"

"Then what about her?" Shen Bin poked Xiao Yao's arm mysteriously.

"Who is it? What should I do?" He looked in the direction Shen Bin was looking, only to see Yu Luying walking past with an iron plate in her hand, expressionless.

"A real man should know when to advance and when to retreat." Xiao Yao said lightly.

The three friends cheered in unison.

After school, Xiao Yao followed Yu Luying to the hamburger shop next to the convenience store.

Spicy chicken burger, five dollars? ... A bit expensive.

While Xiao Yao was still searching his trouser pockets, Yu Luying had already paid ten yuan and handed him a hamburger wrapped in a paper bag: "Is one enough?"

"Oh, how can this be so embarrassing?" Xiao Yao reached out and took the hot burger: "It's not appropriate, it's not appropriate."

"Let's go." Yu Luying looked around, as if she was afraid of being seen by others.

"Then, I'll treat you next time!"

Yu Luying knocked three times on the side door of the church, and an old man opened the door. As soon as she entered the door, the familiar smell hit her face.

The smell is hard to describe, and is somewhat similar to the air in the school library - perhaps, it is a mixture of old wood, ink and candles.

"Didn't we say we were going to the library?" Xiao Yao asked in a low voice.

"Then I thought about it. It's not convenient to talk too loudly in the library, right? Others will see us at school. I definitely can't go to my house, and if I go to your house, my grandma will stop me..."

"You...your uncle is not here, right?" Xiao Yao was a little nervous.

"I'm visiting a patient. I won't be here this week." When passing by the door of the "sanctuary" (note: the area in the church where ceremonies are held), Yu Luying made the sign of the cross on her chest and bowed.

Xiao Yao's gaze was cast into the profound temple.

The lights in the church were not on and the sanctuary was dark. There was only a red light on at the end of the aisle, above the altar to the right. The faint light shone in through the stained glass and fell on the cross.

The haggard face wearing a crown of thorns hanging on the cross was hidden in the obscure world.

Walking forward, when passing by the confession room, Xiao Yao heard a male voice speaking inside.

"My morality does not allow me to have such thoughts, and my identity does not allow me to come here to seek help. What should I do..."

"Isn't your uncle away?" Xiao Yao looked nervous.

"He shouldn't be here," Yu Luying was also a little confused: "Is he here at the tree hole? Or is there another priest here? Let's go, no eavesdropping!"

"What if it's your uncle? Let's change the map." Xiao Yao shook his head vigorously, trying to dispel the horrible memory: "You haven't seen him holding my collar..."

"You deserve it. Who told you to keep pestering me?" Yu Luying said, "And you dared to chase me into the hall?"

"Ah, isn't the reason you rejected me because I am a pagan? Does that mean I can't pursue the Lord's way?"

"It's no use being smooth-talking. You know best what you want to do."

After bantering with each other all the way and walking up the creaking stairs, Yu Luying took Xiao Yao to the second floor and went into a small room that looked like a reception room.

"I'm going to the bathroom." Yu Luying took the strap of her schoolbag off from around her neck and placed it on the small sofa.

"it is good."

Xiao Yao sat down at the table and casually flipped through several theological books at hand.

Suddenly, a piece of paper sandwiched in a book caught his attention—it was a piece of paper torn from a homework book. The beautiful handwriting on it looked very familiar, most likely Yu Luying's.

Xiao Yao took out the note that Yu Luying had thrown to him yesterday from the side pocket of his schoolbag: "You should go back first, don't wait for me, I have a band rehearsal."

He squinted his eyes and compared the handwriting on the two pieces of paper: Yes, this is what Yu Luying wrote.

"Foam"

Listen to my voice

The voice that called out

Lord, Lord, here I am

Blood is replaced by sound

Scream at the end of the world

I am the Little Mermaid

The mermaid princess who can't turn back

Ariel turned into foam