From the side, his eyelashes were very long, densely fanning down; his nose bridge was straight; the jawline was angular; his Adam’s apple was sharp, poking out a small point.

Tao Zhi subconsciously touched her own neck — something she did not have.

She wanted to touch it—just to see what it felt like.

She stared at his Adam’s apple, dazed, until it moved lightly once. Jiang Qihuai suddenly spoke, “What are you looking at me for? Look at the question.”

Tao Zhi snapped back to her senses. She felt like a female hooligan, quickly withdrawing her gaze and returning to the question sheet.

Her mind wasn’t in it. She stared at the problem for a long while without writing anything, her head filled only with the image of his Adam’s apple. Just as she was spacing out, a hand appeared in her field of vision.

Jiang Qihuai took her test paper, glanced at the question, and started writing out the solution.

Watching him write slowly and calmly, Tao Zhi suddenly remembered, “Your Highness, that tutoring job you used to do in our neighborhood—are you still teaching it?”

Jiang Qihuai’s pen didn’t stop. “Mm.”

“This Saturday?”

“Mm.”

Tao Zhi thought for a moment and asked, “Then what time do you finish class?”

“Eleven thirty.”

Tao Zhi did some quick math—Jiang Hesheng’s lesson ended around twelve; the timing seemed about right.

She glanced at Li Shuangjiang and his deskmate in front. Both were scribbling furiously and probably wouldn’t notice any sound behind them.

She leaned over the desk and whispered, “Then after class, do you want to come to my place?”

Jiang Qihuai’s pen paused. He turned his head to look at her.

Afraid he’d misunderstand, Tao Zhi hurried to explain, “To help me review! I feel like my grades aren’t improving fast enough.”

Jiang Qihuai exposed her mercilessly: “If your improvement speed isn’t good enough, then no one’s is.”

Tao Zhi straightened her face and said righteously, “I just have high standards for myself.”

Jiang Qihuai looked at her but didn’t say anything.

Under his gaze, Tao Zhi began to feel a little guilty again. She looked away and urged, “So, yes or no?”

Jiang Qihuai curved his lips. “Yes.”

After settling it with him, on Saturday morning, Tao Zhi didn’t sleep in—she woke up naturally a little after seven.

Jiang Hesheng came over at ten for class. She got up, took a shower, and began tidying her room.

Compared to Jiang Qihuai, her room was truly a mess.

There were so many things that even the storage couldn’t hold them all. The bookshelf beside her desk was stuffed with manga, and scattered around it were little figurines. In the corner stood a TV, next to it a shelf for her game consoles, and another wooden rack filled entirely with CDs and movie discs.

The sofa was piled with clothes, the quilt unmade, and the bed was strewn with a heap of plush toys that covered almost half of it. Snacks were piled up on the carpet.

Tao Zhi had no idea where to start. After thinking for a bit, she decided to just scoop up all the stuffed toys, snacks, and clothes from the bed and the floor and shove them into the wardrobe beside her desk.

When she closed the wardrobe doors, the world was instantly peaceful again.

Satisfied, she clapped her hands, neatly spread the quilt on the bed, threw out the trash, and waited for Jiang Qihuai to arrive—so he could witness the clean and tidy room of Her Highness the Princess.

Jiang Hesheng arrived right on time at ten and finished class before twelve.

Tao Zhi saw Jiang Hesheng off at the courtyard gate but didn’t go back inside. She stayed by the gate, waiting for Jiang Qihuai.

The weather was gloomy; only around noon did the sun peek out for a short while. Tao Zhi stood at the gate, turning in circles as she waited. Before long, she saw him walking over.

She waved at him.

When Jiang Qihuai walked up, she pushed open the gate and led the way in. “Why did you finish class later than me?”

Jiang Qihuai said, “I sent you a WeChat message.”

Tao Zhi turned her head in surprise. “Eh?”

“Wasn’t it you who said,” Jiang Qihuai lowered his head, “that from now on I have to report everything to you?”

It really was something she had said—she just hadn’t expected him to take it seriously.

Tao Zhi said nothing, happily pushing open the door.

In the kitchen, Aunt Zhang was preparing lunch and hadn’t noticed what was happening over here. Tao Zhi handed Jiang Qihuai a pair of slippers, then stood by the stairs and waved for him to follow her.

She tiptoed upstairs with him and led him into her bedroom.

Jiang Qihuai looked at her, a little amused. “Why are you acting like a thief?”

“If Aunt Zhang finds out, she’ll tell my dad,” Tao Zhi whispered. “My dad talks a lot. He’ll definitely pull you aside to ask all sorts of things.”

As she spoke, she quietly closed the door. But the moment it clicked shut, she suddenly realized why she was being so sneaky.

What they were doing right now—was puppy love!

Jiang Qihuai, her boyfriend, had entered her bedroom.

And not just entered—he’d snuck in.

She leaned against the door, her expression shifting again and again. Jiang Qihuai took off his jacket and draped it over the sofa arm, then turned to her. “What are you thinking about?”

“I’m thinking,” Tao Zhi said slowly, “Your Highness, we’re engaging in puppy love right now.”

“It’s puppy love,” Jiang Qihuai said. “So what?”

Tao Zhi repeated solemnly, “This is puppy love.”

“You’ve had puppy love before,” Jiang Qihuai glanced at her, “didn’t you have quite a few ex-boyfriends?”

Tao Zhi choked for a second. “Not many—only one.”

Jiang Qihuai nodded. “And he still can’t get over you.”

Tao Zhi’s voice weakened, losing confidence. “…What’s that got to do with me.”

Jiang Qihuai said, “Heartless little thing.”

“……”

Tao Zhi had no way to argue back and looked at him with a sulky expression.

Afraid she’d blow up if he kept teasing, Jiang Qihuai stopped talking and glanced around her room. Surprisingly, it was quite tidy.

She didn’t look like someone who enjoyed cleaning, and Jiang Qihuai had already prepared himself to help her pick up trash.

On her desk lay a pile of test papers and exercises. He walked over and glanced down. Some were finished, others marked in red pen—it looked like she’d just been studying.

As for the handwriting in red, he didn’t even need to think to know whose it was—her senior, the tutor.

Jiang Qihuai braced both hands on the desk, silently shifting his gaze away without saying a word.

When he turned his head, Tao Zhi was already beside him.

The soft carpet muffled all footsteps. She had come so quietly that he hadn’t even noticed. She leaned forward to peek at what he was looking at, standing close behind him—so close that they nearly bumped into each other.

He was slightly bent forward; the corner of the girl’s lips brushed faintly across his cheek, soft and cool to the touch.

Jiang Qihuai froze.

Tao Zhi froze too. It took her several seconds to realize what had just happened—and then her entire body stiffened on the spot.

Jiang Qihuai looked at her, expressionless, a faint dark light glimmering in his eyes.

Tao Zhi held her breath and pressed her lips together.

The second hand on the wall clock ticked forward slowly, making a barely audible click, click sound. The room was silent. Her body was pressed lightly against his arm; their breaths mingled softly. An awkward yet ambiguous atmosphere began to spread, bit by bit.

Just as Tao Zhi was racking her brain, wondering if she should say something to break the silence, there was a sudden knock at the door.

“Zhizhi,” Tao Xiuping’s voice came from outside, “class is over?”

Tao Zhi’s eyelids twitched violently, her mind going blank in an instant. Panic seized her—she instinctively jumped a whole step away from him.

Jiang Qihuai didn’t move, only raised his eyebrows slightly as he looked at her.

Tao Zhi cleared her throat and quickly raised her voice. “Y—yeah, it’s over!”

Tao Xiuping: “Then can Dad come in?”

“No!” Tao Zhi shouted immediately.

Tao Xiuping paused for a moment, clearly sensing something off. “What’s wrong? Did something happen?”

Tao Zhi suddenly felt like a criminal caught having an affair in her own room. She glanced at the culprit standing leisurely by the desk, her palms sweating in fear.

Outside the door, Tao Xiuping’s patient voice continued: “Talk to Dad, okay? Who upset you? What’s wrong? Did you not do well on an exam again?”

Tao Zhi didn’t know what to say. She mouthed silently to Jiang Qihuai: What do I do?

Jiang Qihuai looked at her calmly: What do you mean, what do you do?

“……”

Tao Zhi was so anxious she could’ve caught fire. Couldn’t this man have even the slightest awareness that this was puppy love?

There was no sound in the room for a long while. Tao Xiuping, frowning now, spoke worriedly: “Zhizhi, Dad’s coming in.”

Before he even finished speaking, the unlocked doorknob turned with a faint click.

Tao Zhi’s mind went blank. In a panic, she lunged forward, grabbed Jiang Qihuai with one hand, yanked open the wardrobe door with the other, and shoved him inside with one firm push.

Jiang Qihuai, caught off guard, still wore a bewildered expression when her palm landed hard against his stomach.

He grunted, stumbled back a step, his foot catching on the base of the wardrobe, and lost his balance completely—falling straight backward, headfirst into the rows of hanging clothes.

With a loud bang, Tao Zhi slammed the wardrobe door shut.

At almost the same moment, the bedroom door was pushed open. Tao Xiuping walked in and glanced around the room.

Tao Zhi stood in front of the wardrobe, both hands braced against the door, sweat beading all over her forehead.

Tao Xiuping paused, looking a little puzzled. “What are you doing in here? Why are you sweating so much?”

Tao Zhi exhaled a long, shaky breath and nervously licked her lips. “I was… exercising.”

Tao Xiuping looked at her in confusion. “Exercising? Then why are you holding onto the wardrobe?”

Tao Zhi’s palms pressed even harder against the doors. Her arms, which had been straight, suddenly bent, and her whole body leaned forward against the wardrobe.

Her cheek pressed against the door; her expression was solemn, her voice stiff and tight.

“I… I was doing a push-up.”