Secretly, But Unable to Hide It

Chapter 24

Duan Jiaxu bent down, meeting Sang Zhi’s gaze. “For me?”

Hearing him say that, Sang Zhi suddenly felt that her words weren’t quite appropriate. She thought for a moment, then quickly corrected herself in a soft voice, “I’m returning it to you.”

When Duan Jiaxu was about to say something more, he glanced up and noticed Sang Yan’s expression. His eyebrows slightly raised, and he immediately changed his mind, smiling faintly. “Alright.”

Then, Duan Jiaxu took the money and said leisurely, “Thank you, Little Sister, for giving Brother money to spend.”

On the side.

“Hey, Sang Yan, why do I feel like she’s more like Old Xu’s sister……” Before Chen Junwen could finish his sentence, he noticed Sang Yan’s mood and immediately swallowed his words, moving closer to pat his shoulder. “Forget it, forget it.”

“……”

Walking back to the gate of Nanwu University, the four of them split into pairs.

Sang Zhi bit into the last strawberry, her gaze subconsciously following Duan Jiaxu’s departing figure. Not long after, her eyes shifted and suddenly met Sang Yan’s unfriendly look.

Feeling guilty for no reason, she quickly pretended to be looking at the scenery. “……What?”

Sang Yan ignored her and expressionlessly flagged down a taxi by the roadside.

Sang Zhi, fearing he might have noticed something, felt her heart pounding like a drum. She forced herself to remain calm, straightened her lips into a neutral expression, and got into the car first.

The siblings sat on either side, silent.

The driver, a middle-aged man, glanced at them through the rearview mirror and chuckled, “Are you two having a sibling fight?”

Sang Zhi was taken aback. “No.”

She glanced at Sang Yan’s face, blinked, and couldn’t help but add, “But it seems like we are.”

“……”

“Uncle, it’s just that……” Sang Zhi mumbled, “My brother asked me to buy him a stick of candied strawberries, so I gave him money to buy one. But he wouldn’t buy it, so I asked him to return the money, and he got angry.”

The driver listened and disapproved, “Ah? Young man, that’s your fault then.”

Sang Yan acted as if he hadn’t heard, taking out his earphones and putting them on.

“……”

Watching his actions, Sang Zhi felt puzzled.

It was just five yuan, did he need to make such a fuss?

Had their parents not given him money recently?

Hesitating for a moment, Sang Zhi didn’t want to stay in a cold war with him, as the trip would be extremely boring. She reluctantly took out the five yuan and stuffed it into his hand. “Fine, take it.”

Sang Yan took off his earphones and clicked his tongue. “Do you think I care about your few yuan?”

“Oh.” Sang Zhi stared at him for two seconds, then silently put the money back into her pocket.

“Little Brat, think about it.” Sang Yan gave a cold smile. “Have you ever given your big brother money to spend?”

Sang Zhi shook her head earnestly. “But you always take it yourself, don’t you?”

Sang Yan: “……”

“That game controller you bought last winter.” Sang Zhi spoke slowly, “You were two hundred yuan short and stole it from my red envelope.”

“Your red envelope was so thick.” Sang Yan didn’t feel guilty. “How could you know I took some?”

“I would know if you took even one yuan.”

“……”

“I just didn’t hold it against you.”

“……” Sang Yan asked, “Why did you give Duan Jiaxu twenty yuan just now?”

“That was the money Brother Jiaxu gave me yesterday. He knew someone snatched twenty yuan from me and secretly gave me money.” Sang Zhi said calmly, “Unlike you, who only secretly takes my money.”

Sang Yan: “……”

———pr

The matter of Sang Zhi being extorted by students from the neighboring vocational school was specifically discussed by the school with Li Ping. Additionally, the parent of Yin Zhenru from Class 3 also contacted the school on the same day to report a similar situation.

The school took this issue seriously.

The homeroom teachers asked their students about it, only to find that there were quite a few of them in the same situation. Most had gone to a nearby illegal internet café after school and were too scared to tell their parents due to threats.

The internet café was reported and quickly shut down.

Sang Zhi didn’t know how the issue was specifically resolved, nor did she pay much attention to it.

During the following period, Yin Zhenru visited Sang Zhi several times to apologize. However, she was soon discouraged by Sang Zhi’s coldness. As Sang Zhi’s foot injury gradually healed, Sang Yan continued to pick her up from school every afternoon.

When he couldn’t make it, he would send someone on his behalf.

Sometimes it was Qian Fei, sometimes Chen Junwen, but more often than not, It was Duan Jiaxu.

Sang Zhi didn’t need to find for opportunities to meet him.

She noticed that Duan Jiaxu treated her somewhat like Sang Yan did. He enjoyed teasing her but was gentler and more considerate of her feelings.

When he noticed her unusual behavior, he didn’t think much of it, just found it amusing.

His attitude remained consistent, but it seemed he was becoming more familiar with her.

Before this, Sang Zhi always felt that her age was a disadvantage. All the things she didn’t dare to do were because she was too young to take that step.

But as time went on, Sang Zhi’s thoughts began to change.

It seemed her age was actually an advantage.

Adults believed that at her age, she wouldn’t understand certain things.

But she had already started to understand.

And she could pretend to know nothing.

Sang Zhi’s final exam results were not good, dropping her out of the top ten in her grade.

It was partly because there was a new subject in the second year of middle school, which was physics, and partly because she had no interest in it and hardly paid attention in class.

And so her grades plummeted.

Li Ping and Sang Rong discussed it and consulted Sang Zhi, finally deciding to have Sang Yan tutor her. After all, if she didn’t understand the basics, the upcoming lessons would be even harder.

But the tutoring lasted less than half an hour.

Both had problems.

Sang Zhi felt Sang Yan’s explanations were all wrong and she argued back at every point. Sang Yan had little patience, finding the content very basic, and didn’t want to repeat himself if she didn’t get it the first time.

Li Ping had no choice and decided to hire a tutor.

With the short winter break and the need to visit relatives for the Spring Festival, Sang Zhi had no interest in studying. However, her grades had indeed dropped, so she couldn’t refuse outright.

Sang Zhi spent a whole night figuring out how to scare off the tutor.

She couldn’t think of anything, so she just decided on a strategy of avoidance.

She planned to run out and play all day before the tutor arrived, hoping the tutor would take the hint and disappear from her life.

Li Ping had told her the tutor would arrive at nine. But having stayed up late thinking of solutions, Sang Zhi didn’t wake up until ten.

Seeing the time, Sang Zhi felt she couldn’t breathe.

By then, Li Ping and Sang Rong had gone to work, leaving just her and Sang Yan at home.

Resigned, Sang Zhi walked out of her room and glanced at the living room, surprised to see no one. She blinked, then looked at Sang Yan’s closed door, indicating he was still asleep.

Apparently, the tutor hadn’t come.

Relieved, Sang Zhi relaxed completely and went to the bathroom to wash up. Halfway through brushing her teeth, she heard the door of Sang Yan’s room open and instinctively called out, “Brother, can you cook me some instant noodles with ham?”

Because of the foam in her mouth, Sang Zhi’s speech was a bit muffled.

She then turned on the faucet, cupped some water in her hands, and rinsed the foam from her mouth.

She couldn’t hear if Sang Yan had responded.

After washing her face, Sang Zhi quickly left the bathroom.

She sat on the dining chair and, hearing the rustling noises from the kitchen, casually asked, “Brother, do you know why the tutor hasn’t come?”

“……”

Sang Zhi heard the sound of packaging being torn, which paused for a second before it resumed.

She didn’t pay it much attention. “Is mom not planning to hire one anymore? Or did the tutor oversleep and not show up? Brother, if that’s the case, then that person’s professionalism is lacking, being late on the first day of work.”

The sound of boiling water could be heard.

Sang Zhi picked up a nearby candy, tore it open, and popped it into her mouth. “Otherwise, we should change tutors. But I think since it’s almost the Spring Festival, it might be hard to find one, so it’s best not to get another.”

“……”

“Brother, if you speak up for me.” Sang Zhi thought for a moment. “I’ll give you a hundred yuan from my red envelope.”

“……”

“Why aren’t you saying anything?”

“……”

“How about two hundred?”

Even with that, she still couldn’t get a response from him, as if he was extremely disdainful of her small amount of money.

Sang Zhi gritted her teeth and raised the price again. “Five hundred! Five hundred should be enough, right?!”

The next second, there was movement from Sang Yan’s room, accompanied by his slightly impatient voice, “What are you yelling about so early in the morning?”

Sang Zhi paused and turned her head.

She saw Sang Yan yawning as he sat down next to her.

The sound coming from the kitchen hadn’t stopped.

Sang Zhi realized something was wrong and lowered her voice, “Brother, who’s in the kitchen?”

“Hmm?” Sang Yan lazily replied, “Duan Jiaxu. Didn’t mom tell you? He’s here to be your tutor.”

“……”

Sang Zhi’s expression turned petrified. “H-huh?”

“What ‘huh’? It’s bold of you to sleep in so late, making others wait.” Hearing the noise from the kitchen, Sang Yan asked, “Hey, Duan Jiaxu, are you cooking noodles?”

Before long, a nonchalant voice came from the kitchen, “Yeah.”

Sang Zhi: “……”

Soon, Duan Jiaxu came out with a pot of noodles. He was handsome, with an air of nobility. He wore a white sweater with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows and it didn’t seem like he had been cooking at all.

Feeling guilty, Sang Zhi immediately lowered her head, pretending she hadn’t said anything earlier.

Sang Yan glanced at the pot, then got up to get bowls from the kitchen.

Duan Jiaxu sat down across from Sang Zhi and casually greeted, “Good morning.”

“……Good morning.”

“You seemed to be sleeping well.” Duan Jiaxu leaned back in his chair, his lips curling slightly. “Your brother knocked on your door several times but you didn’t wake up, so he stopped knocking.”

Sang Zhi stiffly replied, “I went to bed a bit late yesterday.”

“Really?” His eyelids moved slightly and he said as if he was pondering, “Not pretending not to hear?”

Sang Zhi immediately retorted, “I really didn’t hear.”

Sang Yan brought out three sets of bowls and chopsticks and glanced at them. “Didn’t hear what?”

Sang Zhi said in a low voice, “Didn’t hear you knocking.”

“Didn’t hear?” Hearing her bring the matter up, Sang Yan remembered. He served a bowl of noodles to Sang Zhi and coldly chuckled. “Next time I’ll set off firecrackers and see if you can hear that.”

“……”

This breakfast was extremely uncomfortable for Sang Zhi.

She felt that Duan Jiaxu’s gaze was always drifting toward her as if he held a grudge. After swallowing the last bite of noodles, she quickly used the excuse of readying her things to escape to her room.

While flipping through her books, Sang Zhi kept thinking about what she had said earlier.

Actually, it wasn’t too bad.

None of what she said was directly aimed at him.

There shouldn’t…… be a need for him to be angry, right?

Sang Zhi let out a sigh and nervously carried her study materials as she left the room.

Her desk was small and just enough for one person, so it felt cramped for two. Li Ping had told her in advance about the tutor’s schedule, suggesting that she and the tutor study in Sang Yan’s room.

Just as she was about to enter Sang Yan’s room, Sang Zhi sneaked a glance towards the dining room.

However, she didn’t see anyone.

She put her things down and suspiciously walked to the living room, finding the two young men sitting on the sofa and playing games using the controllers’ Sang Yan had bought with the two hundred yuan he had taken from her.

Sang Zhi felt speechless. “Aren’t we supposed to be studying?”

Sang Yan didn’t even glance her way. “Who studies right after eating? Go read a book by yourself first.”

“……” Sang Zhi felt that Duan Jiaxu was definitely introduced by Sang Yan. That way, besides teaching her, Duan Jiaxu could also play games with him. “Brother, did you find a tutor for me or a playmate for yourself?”

Duan Jiaxu chuckled, his laugh breathy, and he softly said, “Kid, wait a bit. Brother will teach you after this game.”

Sang Zhi looked at him, controlled herself, and sat down to the side.

His sitting posture was lazy, leaning back in the chair looking tired. Next to him was a window sill, where a few beams of sunlight fell, landing on his hair and making it look even lighter in color.

Sang Zhi had never seen him play games before and she couldn’t help but watch for a while.

Duan Jiaxu’s hands were also attractive, with long, slender, and strong fingers. The bones were clearly defined, with faint blue veins visible. Compared to his usual carefree demeanor, he looked more focused and gentle at this moment.

His face was still as striking as ever, extraordinarily eye-catching.

Sang Zhi bit her lip, then touched the phone in her pocket. Her gaze paused, and she glanced at Duan Jiaxu again. He seemed completely unaware of her observation, his eyes fixed on the TV screen.

A thought suddenly occurred to her.

A very strong thought.

Sang Zhi wiped the sweat from her palms on her pants, turned on her phone’s camera, carefully lifted it, and discreetly used a pillow to cover the other parts of the phone as she pointed the lens at Duan Jiaxu.

Holding her breath, she pressed the shutter button.

Right then, the game just ended and the living room fell silent.

Sang Zhi’s phone emitted an exceptionally loud “click” sound, unusually clear in the silence.

Maybe it was her imagination, but Sang Zhi felt that the sound was almost deafening.

Attracted by the noise, both Duan Jiaxu and Sang Yan looked at her.

“……”

Blood instantly shot up to Sang Zhi’s head.

It’s over.

It’s over, it’s over.

She was doomed.

She! Was! Doomed!

She! Forgot! To! Mute! The! Sound!!!