Chapter 126: 126 Kind And Honest Han Yixuan
That evening, while Pei Ningle was singing in the bar, she encountered the awkward situation of failing to hit a high note for the first time.
In the bar, the regular customers who came often were quite surprised. After all, in everyone’s impression, although Pei Ningle’s appearance and voice were relatively youthful, her singing technique had always been impeccable, with almost no slight off-key moments, so how could such an obvious mistake occur?
Fortunately, for the next few songs, she sang them steadily without any more issues.
After finishing singing, Pei Ningle bowed and stepped off the stage, heading toward the lounge next to the back kitchen.
Bar owner Yan Zitao was standing at the doorway, and when she came in front of him, he asked, “Are you in a bad mood today?”
“Sorry, I…” Pei Ningle didn’t know what to say for a moment and could only vaguely brush it off with a sentence, “I felt a bit unwell today.”
Yan Zitao: “I won’t ask too much. Anyway, if there’s anything upsetting, you must chat more with friends to comfort yourself.”
Pei Ningle: “Yeah, I understand.”
Yan Zitao pointed to the door behind him: “Perfect timing, your best friend is already here. If you want to chat, you can now.”
Pei Ningle: “?”
Yan Zitao left, and Pei Ningle pushed open the lounge door with doubt in her heart. Sure enough, it might not count as a best friend, but definitely an acquaintance.
It was a young girl who looked a bit more mature than herself, sitting on the sofa reading a book. Hearing the door open, she looked up with a smile and greeted, “Finished singing?”
That was Han Yixuan.
Pei Ningle closed the door, came in front of her, and pointed to the sofa: “Can I sit for a bit?”
There was only one single sofa in the lounge, and the chair had been moved away by someone unknown, so the only place to sit was occupied by Han Yixuan. And Pei Ningle had just sung for so long, plus she wasn’t in a great mood to begin with, so she naturally needed to sit down and rest properly even more. What’s more, during this time slot, the lounge in this bar was by default for the resident singer.
Han Yixuan patted her own thigh: “Sit here.”
Pei Ningle glared at her, saying nothing.
“Okay, okay, I’ll make room for you…” Han Yixuan closed the book and stood up.
While sitting down on the sofa, Pei Ningle glanced at the book in Han Yixuan’s hand. Hmm, probability statistics or something, just like Wang Heng’s books, all incomprehensible to her.
Han Yixuan thought for a moment and said, “Let’s talk about the main matter. In the text you sent me this afternoon, you said Wang Heng went to learn martial arts today and ran into that girl?”
Pei Ningle nodded, her little face looking quite heavy: “Today I brought the binoculars you gave me last time. From a very far distance, I saw Wang Heng walk into that martial arts hall alone, and after more than two hours, he came out with that girl…”
“Wait a second,” Han Yixuan interrupted, “you were waiting there the whole time? For more than two hours?”
Pei Ningle: “I was listening to music, looking for inspiration. So my eyes could keep watching that side.”
Han Yixuan imagined that scene and couldn’t help sighing: “You really are suited to be a detective. Others get bored listening to music for too long, but you managed to wait two hours—your patience is really impressive…”
Pei Ningle said anxiously: “Don’t talk about me, ask you about the main thing! What if one day Wang Heng suddenly brings that girl and introduces her to us as his girlfriend, what do we do?”
Han Yixuan wasn’t panicked at all and countered: “Do you think that girl could really become his girlfriend?”
“Impossible?”
“It’s possible he uses her as a shield, but actually starting to date? Hah, absolutely impossible!”
While making this judgment, details of getting along with Wang Heng before and after the Gaokao flashed through Han Yixuan’s mind. She had forgotten many scenes, but his youthful shy gaze and the helpless tone when he later revealed his family background were still so clear and vivid.
If he didn’t agree to my confession, then it’s absolutely impossible for him to easily confirm a relationship with another girl—Han Yixuan was very certain of this. But there was no need to tell this surface ally Pei Ningle, lest it stimulate her.
So, Han Yixuan further reasoned: “Both of us can see that the girl likely likes Wang Heng, but we still don’t know her name or her situation. Of course we can’t let her act freely, so now the most important thing—you should know what it is, right?”
Pei Ningle tilted her head: “Stalk that girl?”
“No need to stalk. You clearly have a better and more efficient choice,” Han Yixuan raised her index finger and gave an example, “You can directly ask Wang Heng who that girl is.”
Pei Ningle frowned: “If I ask so directly, won’t he know I was stalking him?”
Han Yixuan immediately came up with a plan: “You can pretend it’s casual. Just say you went out to buy something and happened to pass by that martial arts hall, where you saw him and that girl! That makes it simple. If he says it’s tutoring, then you can naturally follow up by asking about his new work.”
Pei Ningle shook her little head, imagining the scene, but still looked troubled: “Ask about his new work? How do I ask?”
“Very simple, you can say…” Han Yixuan’s bag was on the coffee table. She stuffed the textbook inside, took out a pen and scratch paper, lay on the coffee table, and started writing.
Different responses Wang Heng might make, she divided into three situations, and matched three coping strategies for these three possibilities. For each option, she wrote relatively natural lines.
“Now you know what to say, right?” Han Yixuan tore off that page and handed it to Pei Ningle.
Pei Ningle looked at it for a while, then suddenly put down the paper, stared at the love rival standing in front of her, and asked, “Aren’t you afraid I’ll get Wang Heng before you do?”
Han Yixuan smiled: “I’ve told you before, if it’s Xiao Le, I think it’s okay. Although I’d be sad, it’s still better than some random girl…”
Before she finished speaking, the deeply moved Pei Ningle had already pounced over and hugged Han Yixuan.
“You’re so kind, Xiao Xuan!”
Although the other couldn’t see her facial expression from this angle, Han Yixuan still smiled: “You’re great too.”
“No, actually I lied to you… My real name isn’t Wang Le, it’s Pei Ningle…” Saying this guiltily in a small voice, Pei Ningle hugged her tighter, burying her face deeper into her shoulder.
Han Yixuan also hugged Pei Ningle. Being slightly taller, it looked like an older sister holding a younger sister, brimming with sisterly affection.
“It’s okay, it’s okay.”
While saying this, gently patting the back of the girl in her arms, Han Yixuan suddenly felt a twinge of guilt. Was she being too scheming toward this honest person?
Moreover, it had been a long time since she had hugged someone like this. Although it wasn’t the boy she liked, but rather a surface ally and actual love rival, that petite and delicate body in her arms still inevitably gave her an indescribable wonderful feeling…
————
Continuing to ask for recommendation tickets, plus a preview for the next chapter—Deeply contemplating Pei Ningle
