Fang Xinyi arrived quite early and plopped down next to Cheng Buxi. Before she even sat down, the strong scent of orange blossom perfume invaded her nose.
Cheng Buxi remembered that not long ago, Fang Xinyi had insisted that orange blossom perfume was unpleasant, saying it smelled like toilet water. But now she was spraying it so heavily. Truly, a woman's heart was fickle.
As soon as Fang Xinyi sat down, she asked Cheng Buxi if she had been a thief last night. "According to your roommate, you came back quite late."
She must have run into her roommate halfway and casually mentioned something, revealing that she returned late last night.
They were all college students, not high schoolers, so Fang Xinyi was still appreciative of her occasional rebellious act. As she spoke, she pulled a beautifully packaged drawstring bag from her bag and handed it to Cheng Buxi. "Here, the new collaboration socks from Fish-J, with the NBA. I asked my boyfriend to grab an extra pair. Pink, try them on."
Unlike Fang Xinyi, who was nourished by love, Cheng Buxi's expression was faint, carrying a weariness from a long drought.
"What's wrong? Unhappy?" Fang Xinyi asked.
She took the socks and was about to shake her head, but then nodded.
"Fight with family?"
She gave a low "Mm," answering "sort of."
"'Sort of'? How can it be 'sort of'?" Fang Xinyi laughed, her eyes squeezed into different sizes.
"Well..." She was vague. Touching the finely crafted socks, which were rare because of the IP, she asked offhandedly, "Are there any basketball games recently?"
"Yes, just last weekend. The rookie first-year team played against S University. I went to watch. Baby, guess the result?"
Cheng Buxi thought for a moment. "Hmm... S University won?" After all, in her impression, S University was always strong.
Fang Xinyi praised her for guessing correctly, but changed the subject. "Well, in the first half, the Star Team had the advantage, leading by over twenty points. But then there was a guy named Ning Ci. Oh man, do you know? He wasn't playing at first, just squatting by the water cooler. But in the second half, they put him in. What do you think? He totally crushed the opponent!"
Ning Ci.
Ning Ci again.
She had shared clothes and a boat with him yesterday, and now he brazenly invaded her mind again. Cheng Buxi's expression, which had been only slightly interested, clearly changed. She listened more carefully.
"Is he really that good?" She murmured.
"What do you mean 'is he that good'?" Fang Xinyi snorted lightly, implying she shouldn't underestimate him. "He's one of the top CBA rookie players in the country. Each one is one in a million. And this god was a last-minute addition."
"It's said that he didn't play much basketball in his first three years of college. He was busy participating in competitions like ACM, the Blue Bridge Cup, the National Mathematical Modeling Contest... He won awards left and right. A real top-tier nerd. Usually, he only occasionally gets dragged into a few college basketball games. It wasn't until his senior year, when he had more free time, that he participated in professional games. And he became a legend!"
At this point, she added, "You can talk about how awesome he is when he appears on TV."
Cheng Buxi listened carefully but didn't show too much emotion at his skill, which she had already witnessed. She asked instinctively, "Does he have a girlfriend?"
Girlfriend.
At this, Fang Xinyi's chattering mouth suddenly stopped. She looked at Cheng Buxi's face in disbelief.
Wow, had she heard correctly? Wasn't Cheng Buxi famously immune to love? Yet she was curious about whether someone had a girlfriend? The sun must be rising in the west.
Sensing something wrong, Cheng Buxi asked suspiciously, "Hmm? What's the matter?"
"Say that again."
She didn't understand why Fang Xinyi was so excited.
"Are you curious if Ning Ci has a girlfriend?"
"..."
Was it that strange? Actually, ever since she first saw him, she had been curious. How could someone so unmatched not be liked or never have been in a relationship? It seemed illogical.
But Fang Xinyi showed a surprised yet delighted expression, feeling that the little iron tree had finally bloomed. She happily said, "No. I can tell you clearly—no."
"My boyfriend went to the same middle and high school as him. That guy doesn't have a single rumor. But many people have chased him—enough to form a Xinhua Dictionary." She paused. "—With his conditions, you know."
"But he's extremely aloof and didn't entertain any of them. He stayed single for four years in college—beautiful, strong, single, the king of kings."
For some reason, a sense of relief grew in her heart.
But the next second, "As for the reason... I heard he has a 'white moonlight' he's been harboring for many years."
Like a bucket of cold water poured over her head, the relief that had just emerged in Cheng Buxi's heart was extinguished, not even a spark left.