A Sister’s Worries and a Date’s Aftermath

At the Qingya Snack Shop, Xu Shiyao sat before a bowl of chilled rice cakes. She idly stirred them with her small spoon, letting out a silent sigh.

Just as the chilled rice cakes in her bowl were cold, so too was the young woman’s frigid mood.

A teacher from Huiguang Middle School had called, explaining that her younger sister, currently in her first year of junior high, seemed to have become engrossed in online chatting lately. She was even skipping her afternoon naps. This, the teacher had warned, was a very dangerous sign.

Xu Shiyao had nervously asked, “What dangerous sign?”

Her sister’s homeroom teacher had then elaborated, “These young girls nowadays, don’t let their age fool you; they understand quite a lot. In Xu Shining’s case, your sister is even skipping her naps just to chat with someone. There’s a high chance she’s involved in an online relationship.”

Xu Shiyao hadn’t anticipated the situation was so serious. For a moment, she couldn’t help but feel a pang of worry.

It wasn’t that she disapproved of her sister dating, but Shining was still too young and vulnerable to be taken advantage of. Moreover, online relationships were like rootless duckweed; one never truly knew the person on the other side.

What if, like Teacher Liu Wanqing, her lover turned out to be another girl? That would be truly unfortunate.

But upon closer thought, would it truly be so bad? If it were a girl, at least there wouldn’t be concerns about physical harm or exploitation, or being tricked into ‘that something-something.’

Then again, she reconsidered, ‘Was there truly no need to worry?’ She’d heard girls could be quite aggressive too, for instance…

Xu Shiyao’s thoughts spiraled into a chaotic mess, and she failed to notice someone had taken a seat across from her.

“Hello, Senior Xu,” Bai Jingjing said, blinking innocently. “We didn’t get a chance to properly greet each other last time. Please take care of me.”

Xu Shiyao was abruptly pulled back to reality, still processing what was happening. “What did you say?”

“I said,” Bai Jingjing replied softly, “please take care of me in the future.”

Xu Shiyao was utterly bewildered. ‘You’re dating Teacher Liu, not me,’ she thought. ‘Why would you ask me to take care of you?’

Just then, Liu Wanqing returned, carrying several small plates. “Jingjing will be enrolling next semester, and by then, Classmate Xu Shiyao will be her senior, as well as her student council president.”

‘Ah, oh, so *that’s* what ‘please take care of me’ meant,’ Xu Shiyao thought, finally understanding.

Xu Shiyao straightened her beautiful face and said in a lukewarm tone, “Rest assured, we value every junior student. We welcome all new students joining the Provincial City Academy of Arts.”

Liu Wanqing placed the snacks she had just ordered from the counter onto the table one by one: chilled rice cakes, chilled shrimp, brown sugar glutinous rice cakes. She then casually added, “I told Jingjing about your student council, and she truly admires you all.”

“Yes, yes, yes,” Bai Jingjing quickly chimed in, “it’s truly impressive.”

“…It’s alright, just doing what needs to be done,” Xu Shiyao replied, feeling a little awkward.

She had originally come out alone to clear her head and ponder her worries, only to run into an acquaintance… Not exactly a close one, of course; they had merely met last week.

Fortunately, they didn’t impose on each other too much. After finishing her meal, Xu Shiyao bid them farewell and departed.

****

“Even the student council president takes a break from her busy schedule, huh,” Liu Wanqing mused casually. “At this time, the student council should be organizing promotional activities.”

At the end of each semester, during final exams or various certification tests, the student council always had to organize a promotional campaign, urging everyone to maintain civility during exams, not to violate examination rules, and certainly not to cheat.

In truth, everyone knew these campaigns were largely ineffective. The school knew, the student council knew, and the students themselves knew. After all, if one could pass by studying, who would bother with cheating?

Still, it was a task that had to be done. Only after completing it could the exams proceed. It was part of the process.

Just as Bai Jingjing already knew that being Teacher Qing’s girlfriend would lead to ‘that something-something’ with her. But before that, there had to be a set procedure.

This way, she would feel a little more at ease internally. It would make it seem as though she treated everyone equally: Luo Xuan, Xia Chu, and Liu Wanqing.

“I don’t think she was just taking a break from her busy schedule,” Bai Jingjing interjected at this point. “I believe Senior Xu has something on her mind.”

Liu Wanqing raised an eyebrow. “Oh?”

‘Well, well. On a date with me, yet still so concerned about other girls, observing them with such meticulous detail, are we?’

“I’ve seen her type before: sitting alone in a corner, with just a mouthful of food in their bowl, unable to eat for ages. They’re actually wrestling with something on their mind,” Bai Jingjing analyzed calmly.

She often saw it in hospitals before, old men carrying small stools to sit in corners, clutching their lunchboxes and not taking a single bite for ages. They were usually thinking about their families.

“Alright, alright, no matter what’s bothering her, we can’t help,” Liu Wanqing interrupted her analysis, steering the conversation back. “More importantly, how do you feel today?”

“Hm?” Bai Jingjing blinked blankly.

“The date, how was it?” Liu Wanqing began to analyze herself. “Compared to your previous dates with the other two. Luo Xuan, well, there’s no need to elaborate; I was there that day. She just took you to a few so-called ‘campus scenic spots’ and took some photos. That’s all.”

That day, Bai Jingjing was looking at the scenery, while Luo Xuan was looking at Bai Jingjing… and her fair legs. The date’s satisfaction level must have been pretty average, right?

“Then there’s Luo Xuan’s friend, whom I don’t know and don’t recognize,” Liu Wanqing mused, then asked her, “Where did you two go on your date?”

‘We went to Teyvat Continent.’

Bai Jingjing hesitated, then stopped herself, finally managing to mumble, “We didn’t go anywhere. We just stayed inside and played games together.”

“Played games?” Liu Wanqing was slightly taken aback. “Didn’t you say ‘that something-something’ would happen after the date…?”

“I meant playing games, video games,” Bai Jingjing quickly clarified. “The innocent kind.”

Liu Wanqing was silent for a few seconds. “So, your date consisted solely of playing video games together for a while?”

Bai Jingjing nodded, then shook her head. “Not just ‘a while.’ We played for an entire afternoon and half the night.”

‘One could say they had a blast.’

Liu Wanqing remained silent, pushing the snack plates towards Bai Jingjing.

‘She didn’t know how to comment; perhaps it was better to just eat.’

After they had finished eating, standing at the crossroads of the snack street, Liu Wanqing said to her, “What do you think? Should we head back now, or would you like to stroll around a bit more? We’ve pretty much seen everything, and it’s better to save some of your energy rather than expend it all on the date itself.”

Bai Jingjing thought carefully, then asked, “Have we really seen most of it?”

“For a new student just enrolling, it’s more than enough, and besides, we have plenty of time later,” Liu Wanqing said gently, brushing aside a strand of hair. “And if I show you too much too quickly, you won’t remember it all anyway.”

‘Hmm, that makes sense.’

“So, what do you say?” Liu Wanqing gently curved her lips into a smile. “Can we go back now and do some happy things?”

Bai Jingjing considered it. “Going back now to do it, yes, that’s right. After we’re done, we can take an afternoon nap, and if we get hungry, we can get up and eat something.”

“Afternoon nap?”

Liu Wanqing glanced at the time, asking with a puzzled expression, “Isn’t it almost noon?”

“Yes, it’s noon,” Bai Jingjing tilted her head, stating matter-of-factly, “We can take an afternoon nap right after we’re done!”

‘Based on my experience sleeping with Sister Luo at home, that’s roughly the completion time.’

“I can’t help but feel a little underestimated by you, Jingjing… or perhaps, greatly underestimated.” Liu Wanqing narrowed her eyes, her smile a little dangerous.

‘I’ll just have to prove myself, then.’