The Blackboard and the Flower Escort

Time flew by, and two more weeks passed in the blink of an eye. Qin An had been living quite comfortably—teasing the little beauty when he had nothing to do, occasionally being blackmailed by his sister for a few lollipops, or else dragged off by the Little Tyrant to learn taekwondo together.

With May Day approaching, the class blackboard newspaper needed updating. This so-called “big event” naturally had nothing to do with Qin An.

But the little beauty, An Qi, was wearing a bitter face. As the class’s entertainment secretary, she was worried to death.

After school, Qin An slung his bag over his shoulder and planned to head home, but unexpectedly, An Qi was standing before the blackboard, tears streaming down her face.

Qin An first gestured to the Little Tyrant and his sister to go home without him, then crept up behind An Qi.

He covered her eyes with his hands.

“Ah!” An Qi cried out, reaching up to pry his hands away.

“Guess who?” Qin An said in a strange voice. How could An Qi not recognize that voice? In fact, the moment his hands covered her eyes, she knew exactly who this rascal was. Otherwise, her resistance wouldn’t have been so gentle.

“Let go of me right now, or I’ll get angry, and then I might never talk to you again.”

“I’m so scared! Please don’t ignore me, beautiful An! Otherwise, I’ll have no friends left.”

“Hmph, you’d better remember that.”

Once her sight returned, An Qi’s mood lifted considerably.

“Where are your friends?” Qin An asked, looking around.

Just mentioning them made her furious. “They all went home,” she huffed.

“Looks like you’re not very popular! And such a beauty, too.”

“You’re no different, lone wolf.”

“Want me to tell the teacher and have them…” Qin An made a throat-slitting gesture and stuck out his tongue.

An Qi laughed through her tears. “I’m not becoming a snitch! That would just make everyone hate me even more.”

“So you’re saying the class monitor is really annoying?”

“She is annoying, but no, that’s what you said.”

“You said it yourself.”

They chased each other around for a while, then An Qi said fretfully, “I can’t play with you anymore. If I don’t finish this blackboard, the homeroom teacher will yell at me tomorrow.”

“Want some help?”

“Isn’t that obvious? If you don’t help me, hmph, you know the consequences.” An Qi turned back and continued her blackboard project.

She was wearing a white short skirt and a blue-green long-sleeved shirt, standing on a stool as she sketched on the blackboard. Her beautiful black hair cascaded down to the middle of her back.

Moving desks, wiping the blackboard, drawing lines—these rough tasks Qin An did tirelessly. Sometimes he would draw a big turtle or write a few worm-like characters, earning either An Qi’s silver bell laugh or a scolding.

About an hour and a half later, the blackboard, which had been only half done, was now complete. The basic content was all on the rectangular blackboard—neat handwriting, beautiful pictures. Qin An couldn’t help nodding in praise.

An Qi patted the chalk dust off her hands and sat in a chair to rest. When she saw Qin An using green chalk to doodle on the empty edges of the blackboard, she asked, “Qin An, what are you doing? If you mess up the board, I’ll make you pay!”

“Pay for what? How about I pay you with my company?”

“Pervert! Who wants your company!”

“There, now it’s even prettier.”

“Did you draw that?”

“Who else?”

An Qi stared dumbfounded at the bamboo Qin An had drawn on the blackboard. The lines were distinct—while not exactly lifelike, it was close.

“Big liar, didn’t you say you couldn’t draw?”

“I can’t draw, but I can draw bamboo!”

Laughing, Qin An wiped his hands on An Qi’s face, turning her into a little green tabby cat.

An Qi didn’t back down and smeared chalk on his face in return.

“It’s dark. Let’s go home.”

“Mm.”

“No one coming to pick you up?” Qin An looked around. He had guessed An Qi was at least a young lady of Huang Jiajun’s caliber.

“Not today. I told them to go back early.”

“Oh. How about I play the role of a flower escort today?”

“Heh, we’ll see if you’ve got the skills!” An Qi said, taking small, playful steps.

“Want to make a bet?”

“What bet? You’re definitely trying to take advantage of me. I’m not betting.”

“Don’t refuse so quickly. Isn’t the midterm coming up? If I score higher than you, you have to agree to one humble request.”

“And if I score higher than you?” The little beauty showed no sign of thinking she’d lose. She had been ranked first in the grade for n consecutive terms.

“Same—I’ll agree to one request of yours.”

“Anything?” An Qi seemed to think of something strange. A faint blush rose on her flawless white skin, and her lips were as delicate as rose petals. For a moment, even Qin An was stunned.

“As long as it’s not too extreme. Like, asking me to take out the class monitor or something.”

“Deal.”

“Deal.”

Clunk—

Qin An spotted a petite figure at the school gate and his heart tightened. So much for the flower escort plan. There was an unbloomed bud that needed his care.

“Yage…”

“You know her?” An Qi asked, her expression souring.

“She’s my sister.”

“Oh!” An Qi’s face immediately lit up. “Your sister is adorable. But you two don’t look alike at all.”

“Brother…” The ending note was dragged out long. She was chewing on a lollipop.

“Hello, little sister. I’m An Qi, your brother’s deskmate!”

Qin Yage looked displeased. She crunched the lollipop fiercely, as if executing someone, then forced a smile. “Hello, big sister. I’m Qin Yage. Thanks for taking care of my idiot brother. But you’re really pretty, big sister. Do you have a boyfriend?”

An Qi, caught off guard by such a precocious question, blushed and glanced back at Qin An. Stammering, she said, “Of… course… not… but your brother and I are good friends.”

“Then, Sister An Qi, you’d better step it up! My idiot brother already has a girlfriend!” Qin Yage shot Qin An a sly look.

An Qi’s mind went blank, as if hit by an atomic bomb. She looked at Qin An with hurt, tears glistening in her eyes. Her big, watery eyes seemed to hold a spring that could overflow at any moment.

“An Qi, don’t listen to Yage’s nonsense. In school, you’re my only friend. How could I have a girlfriend?”

Qin An glared hard at Qin Yage. This girl was stirring up trouble for no reason! But Qin Yage, undeterred, stuck out her pink tongue.

“That seems right,” An Qi thought.

She considered it. Apart from talking to the class busybody, Qin An hadn’t spoken to any other girls at school. But his sister was really annoying, trying to drive a wedge between her and Qin An. After all, Qin An was her only friend! Good thing she was smart.

“I’ll head off now, Qin An. See you tomorrow, Sister Yage.”

An Qi hailed a taxi. Before getting in, she exchanged a friendly glance with Qin Yage. But Qin An smelled gunpowder and saw sparks and lightning in their gazes.

“Who wants to see you!” Qin Yage yelled once the taxi was gone.

Damn fox spirit! Not only was her brother super close to that Brother Wang, they were always arm in arm. Didn’t they know about the rule that males and females shouldn’t touch? Brother was a playboy and needed to be straightened out.

“She’s gone. Let’s go home.”

“I’m hungry and can’t walk.”

Qin Yage stood on tiptoe and stretched out her arms, clearly wanting Qin An to carry her on his back.

“I can’t do anything with you.”

“So heavy.”

“It’s always that line. Can’t you say something new?”

“Why did you lie to her and say I have a girlfriend?”

“I don’t like you being with her. Hmph!”

“Why?”

“Why so many whys? I just don’t like it.”

Qin An was used to her unreasonable behavior.

Qin Yage drew circles on his back, then turned her fingers into little hammers, pounding his back repeatedly. How dare you find me a sister-in-law! I’m just a kid, and you’re already looking for a sister-in-law? You want to get rid of me already?

A sister-in-law was completely unnecessary!

Annoying! Qin Yage’s little fangs glinted in the moonlight, and then she bit Qin An’s shoulder, drawing blood.