Chapter 163

Chapter 163: You Xi’s Dark History

The day after signing up for the Autumn Festival Art Competition, Mei Fang, Xia Yuan, and Lin You Xi went to participate in the preliminary selection for the festival programs.

The preliminaries were held at the small auditorium in the western district. By the time they arrived, there was already a long queue. Everyone took this event very seriously and had made many preparations.

While queuing, Xia Yuan kept playing with Mei Fang’s hair.

“Are you feeling nervous, Afang?”

“Nervous? Why should I be nervous? Just perform well.”

“Hmm… But there are so many people here, and it’s your first time performing on stage. You must still be nervous, right?”

Xia Yuan hugged Mei Fang’s neck from behind and smiled at him, “If you need energy, I can help you out.”

“I don’t need to be scared stiff like someone else before going on stage. Clearly, it’s you who’s nervous.”

“Haha… How could that be! Ask You Xi if you don’t believe me. Tell us, You Xi, who’s more nervous?”

“I’ll know once I check.”

Lin You Xi placed her hands on both of their chests simultaneously.

“Between the two of you, Afang’s heart is beating faster.”

“See, I told you!”

“A faster heartbeat doesn’t mean much. It’s just because some people naturally have a quicker heartbeat…”

At this moment, Xia Yuan noticed a slight change in Lin You Xi’s expression. She ignored Mei Fang and instead pressed her ear to Lin You Xi’s chest to listen.

“You Xi… Honestly, are you more nervous than us?”

“You Xi came to cheer us on, why would she also be nervous…”

As soon as Lin You Xi heard this, she nodded slightly.

“To be honest… Yes, a bit.”

“What? You Xi, you’re also going to perform? I thought you came just to cheer for me and Yuan Yuan.”

Xia Yuan hugged Lin You Xi and grumbled, “Who said You Xi couldn’t go on stage? Afang, you look down on her.”

“It makes sense now why you didn’t want to tell me the songs for the performance. There was another reason, wasn’t there?”

Although Lin You Xi said she was nervous, to outsiders, she appeared calm and composed. Only Mei Fang and Xia Yuan could sense the gravity in her expression.

She grabbed the corner of Mei Fang’s clothes, her forehead resting on his back.

Xia Yuan and Mei Fang exchanged glances.

“How about you take care of You Xi, Afang? Take her outside to clear her mind. I’ll continue waiting in line for you guys. It’s fine, we’re just called by numbers, it’ll take a while anyway.”

“Okay…”

Mei Fang was pulled out of the auditorium by Lin You Xi.

Even though they were pulling each other in such a public place, it was already attracting attention. However, there seemed to be no familiar classmates around, so they didn’t pay much heed to others’ gazes.

Mei Fang led Lin You Xi outside. There was a small shop window nearby. He ran over and bought gum and water for Lin You Xi. Lin You Xi sat on a bench, breathing heavily.

Could she really be this nervous…

This side of You Xi was rare to see.

Mei Fang sat down beside her and helped her open the bottle cap, handing her the water.

“Are you forcing yourself to perform with Yuan Yuan? You still always give in to Yuan Yuan, just like before.”

“It’s not exactly forcing myself. I promised Yuan Yuan, and now I’m just making up for a childhood regret.”

Lin You Xi took a small sip and then explained, “Yuan Yuan has wanted to perform with me since elementary school. We never had the chance to fulfill this promise, but now is a good opportunity. Besides…”

“Besides?”

Lin You Xi smiled slightly, “Seeing how hard you’ve been working to get on stage, I thought… I also want to experience this feeling together with you guys.”

Lin You Xi loved listening to music during junior high. After Mei Fang gave her an MP3 player, she cherished it greatly and always carried it with her.

Mei Fang understood this feeling of not wanting to fall behind. Just like how Xia Yuan, despite being bad at science, still insisted on taking the science experimental class exam.

“I understand your thoughts. This doesn’t seem like forcing yourself. However, You Xi, you put so much effort into everything. Shouldn’t you be fully prepared? I don’t think you have much to worry about.”

“There’s a difference between being prepared and being nervous. Like how Yuan Yuan was listening to me and felt nervous… Why don’t you try it too, see if my heartbeat is fast enough, and if I’m nervous?”

Lin You Xi then placed Mei Fang’s hand on her chest, scaring timid Mei Fang into quickly retracting his hand.

“No, no, no! That’s not okay!”

Seeing Mei Fang’s flustered reaction, Lin You Xi couldn’t help but laugh.

“Just kidding.”

“Is that a joke you can make? You idiot… You almost scared me to death. I’m really nervous now. I should buy a bottle of water.”

Mei Fang stood up to head to the shop, but Lin You Xi pulled him back down.

“Why waste money? I’ve only taken a few sips, you can drink mine.”

Lin You Xi handed Mei Fang the water bottle, “Or are you too embarrassed? We used to share cups freely when we were kids, so why are you suddenly being picky?”

“That’s not the case… Of course, I don’t mind. Here, give it to me.”

Mei Fang took the water from Lin You Xi and drank it.

Even though he said he didn’t mind, drinking water while being stared at by Lin You Xi brought up mixed feelings.

“I suddenly remembered our old drinking game. Do you remember? When Yuan Yuan went to her grandma’s house for summer vacation…”

“I remember, of course I do… You were really naughty back then… Oh, who won that game? Was it me?”

Lin You Xi shook her head with a smile, “It was clearly me.”

“What? How could that be… I wouldn’t lose to a little girl like you.”

“I cheated. I didn’t let you drink.”

“Oh… No wonder.”

“By the way… To help us relax a bit more, I’ll share a fun secret with you, from back then during the drinking game.”

“What? What is it, tell me…”

“Sit down, I’ll whisper it to you.”

Mei Fang sat next to Lin You Xi, who leaned in close and whispered in his ear:

“At the end of that drinking game… Do you remember when I rushed to the restroom? At that time, I actually…”

Lin You Xi’s words made Mei Fang gasp in surprise.

“Like this! No wonder…”

Lin You Xi interrupted Mei Fang, reminding him seriously:

“This secret I’ve kept for a long time. I haven’t told anyone else, and now only you know.”

“Well… Kids will be kids, understandable. I used to wet the bed all the time, they called me the ‘bedwetting king.'”

“Mm-hm…”

Lin You Xi held Mei Fang’s arm and smiled, then turned serious again:

“In any case, this dark history is only known to you now. If a third person, say Yuan Yuan, knew about this, what do you think would be a good punishment for you?”

“You… It’s up to you, right? My mouth is sealed, I won’t leak anything!”

“Let’s hope so.”

Lin You Xi pointed at Mei Fang’s mouth and reminded him again not to spill the beans.

“But, now that I’ve shared this dark history with you, do you feel less pressure about the performance?”

“What? You were really trying to comfort me!”

Lin You Xi immediately looked annoyed, “What else could it be? Do you really think I’d be nervous? Don’t you understand me at all? Why don’t you try it?”

“No, no! Let’s hurry… Hurry and prepare for the performance!”

Mei Fang pushed Lin You Xi back into the auditorium.

I’ll eat a cookie first. The next update will be soon.

Also, I recommend a book by a friend, a fellow author (yes, I’ve made real friends with authors). It’s about cultivation and daily life. It’s something I really want to write but can’t. The book is titled *Rebirth Daily Cultivation*. The writing is delicate and warm, and it’s quite lengthy. Highly recommended!

(End of Chapter)