6

"Ah..." Xu Zhiyu froze, glancing at Qin Ruan, who appeared dazed and out of sorts beside Wen Yixin. A mix of emotions welled up inside her.

Before she had been encouraged to ask for Wen Yixin's WeChat, Xu Zhiyu hadn't paid any attention to Qin Ruan. Watching from a distance, she had seen little interaction between the two and assumed they were merely acquaintances. But now, hearing Wen Yixin refer to Qin Ruan so affectionately, she was taken aback.

Moreover...

Xu Zhiyu realized that regardless of whether Wen Yixin's affection for Qin Ruan was genuine, there was no way she would be getting Wen Yixin's WeChat now.

What a pity.

After a brief moment of disappointment, Xu Zhiyu forced a smile. "Sorry to bother you."

"It's fine," Wen Yixin replied casually, shaking her head.

With that, Xu Zhiyu awkwardly said her goodbyes and quickly returned to her friend.

Qin Ruan watched Xu Zhiyu leave, then glanced at Wen Yixin out of the corner of her eye, her words hesitant and stuttering, "Big Sister Wen, why... did you say that? And why did you... call me...?" She trailed off, unable to finish the thought.

Hearing Wen Yixin refer to her so affectionately, with a hint of indulgence, had stirred a rare feeling of shyness in Qin Ruan.

But alongside the shyness was a sense of happiness.

She couldn't quite describe it—her heart felt tingly and warm, like something was softly gnawing at it, making her both uncomfortable and filled with a bittersweet longing. Yet before she could fully understand what she was yearning for, Wen Yixin's voice interrupted her thoughts.

"No particular reason."

Hmm?

Qin Ruan looked up in confusion, about to ask further when she met Wen Yixin's smiling gaze.

"I just thought it was a fitting thing to say. Besides, to me, you really are like a little one. What's wrong with calling you that?" Wen Yixin's tone was light, her eyes sparkling with amusement.

Perhaps it was the brightness of that smile that left Qin Ruan momentarily stunned, unsure of how to respond.

Seeing her dazed expression, Wen Yixin couldn't resist waving a hand in front of her eyes, "Qin Ruan."

"Hmm?" Qin Ruan responded instinctively, turning her gaze to Wen Yixin. Her eyes were wide and blank, filled with confusion.

She looked just like a lost fawn.

Watching Qin Ruan's wide, innocent eyes, Wen Yixin couldn't help but laugh softly, "Qin Ruan, you're just too cute."

So cute that it made Wen Yixin want to tease her, like playing with a kitten. Imagining the scene, Wen Yixin's fingers curled slightly.

"Big Sister Wen..." Qin Ruan murmured.

"Yes?" Wen Yixin lowered her hand, still smiling.

Meeting Wen Yixin's smiling gaze, Qin Ruan's eyes flickered with unease.

She bit down gently on her lower lip for a few seconds before asking, "Is there anything else we need to buy?"

"Hmm..." Wen Yixin glanced at the items in the cart, then scanned the surroundings before focusing on one area. "We should get some vegetables. After that, we can head home."

"What do you want to eat?"

"I'm not picky, anything is fine," Qin Ruan replied, shaking her head.

"Not picky at all?" Wen Yixin raised an eyebrow.

"Not at all," Qin Ruan nodded firmly.

Hearing this, Wen Yixin chuckled but said nothing more. She pointed to a section nearby, "What if I make some cold stir-fried fish mint? Would you eat it?"

"Uh..." Qin Ruan followed Wen Yixin's gaze, spotting a heap of fish mint. Her eyes narrowed, and her lips pressed into a thin line as she whispered, "I can eat it."

Wen Yixin's eyebrows arched slightly, "Are you sure? If you are, I'll go ahead and buy some."

"Yes," Qin Ruan nodded, though there was a trace of hesitation in her eyes.

Seeing her expression, Wen Yixin couldn't help but laugh. After a moment, she took Qin Ruan's hand and led her toward the fish mint section.

As they got closer, Qin Ruan's hesitation grew more apparent, but she remained silent, simply following Wen Yixin.

Finally, Wen Yixin couldn't bear it any longer and shook her head with a laugh, "Never mind, I'm just teasing you."

"We won't have this tonight. We'll get something else."

Qin Ruan was taken aback, "But... didn't you want to eat this, Big Sister Wen?"

She could tell Wen Yixin didn't mind the taste of fish mint, and given that Wen Yixin had mentioned it, she probably really wanted it and wasn't just teasing.

Wen Yixin made a small sound of agreement, nodding slightly, "I did."

"Then..." Qin Ruan began, but Wen Yixin's next words cut her off.

"But I don't want you to have to tolerate it," Wen Yixin said.

Qin Ruan's lashes fluttered at this, her fingers curling slightly as she slowly murmured, "Oh."

After a pause, feeling that her reaction was too subdued, she added softly, "Thank you, Big Sister Wen."

"You're very kind."

Wen Yixin smiled, "No need to thank me."

"Let's go check out the other section. Pick out anything you want to eat." With that, Wen Yixin took Qin Ruan's hand and led her toward the vegetable and meat section. As they walked, more people with shopping carts began to gather around, including a few children playing with the carts.

Wen Yixin picked out a few greens, and as they turned the corner to the meat section, a group of people suddenly squeezed past them, including the children with carts.

The narrow space made Wen Yixin worry that Qin Ruan might get bumped, so she quickly reached out to pull her closer.

Perhaps she pulled too hard, because Qin Ruan suddenly found herself pressed tightly against Wen Yixin, who had turned her head to check on her.

In that split second, Wen Yixin's cheek brushed lightly against Qin Ruan's lips.

The soft curve of Wen Yixin's jawline glided from beneath her ear to her cheek, stopping just shy of her lips.

The sensation was so fleeting that Wen Yixin didn't even notice it. Although she felt their faces were slightly too close, she didn't think much of it, focusing instead on Qin Ruan. "Are you alright?"

Qin Ruan didn't respond, staring blankly at Wen Yixin.

In the instant her lips brushed against Wen Yixin's cheek, it felt as if time had come to a standstill.

Her gaze swept across Wen Yixin's face, and her lashes fluttered slightly.

Despite the brevity of the touch, it left Qin Ruan with a strange feeling in her heart.

Though she couldn't quite understand it, she knew that she liked it.

And she wanted... to feel it again.