I Like You So Much - Chapter 41
Chapter 41
“Thud—thud thud thud thud—”
A series of rapid, chaotic heartbeats came from her left chest.
It was as if a drumstick were pounding forcefully on a drum, without any pattern or rhythm, utterly disordered!
After Zhang Jiuling finished speaking, Li Jiao had been staring up at him in a daze, her large almond-shaped eyes glistening like water, not daring to blink.
Her long, curled eyelashes fluttered slightly every now and then.
The instructor… Did the instructor just say he liked me?
Did he? Did he? Did he?
Someone, please slap me and tell me this isn’t a daydream?!
Does he… really like me?
…
For a long time, Li Jiao’s eyes grew dry, and she finally muttered dazedly, “Instructor, why don’t you slap me? Wake up this foolish woman who’s dreaming in broad daylight.”
Upon hearing that, Zhang Jiuling raised an eyebrow, the corner of his lips lifting slightly, barely able to hold back a laugh.
It was the first time he’d confessed to someone, and the girl thought she was dreaming?
He glanced at her.
The girl had wide, round eyes and puffed cheeks, like a little pufferfish, seriously suggesting this to him.
She looked inexplicably cute, a bit silly, adorably silly.
Zhang Jiuling chuckled softly.
His hair, sharp as if cut by a blade, and his brows, like ink brush strokes, carried a graceful elegance, like a gentle breeze or the brilliance of the bright moon.
His handsomeness was striking.
Li Jiao, already flustered, was stunned again.
In her mind, the little Li Jiao was on the verge of tears, covering her mouth tightly, but still tears of joy trickled out.
I’m sorry, it’s not that I’m weak—it’s that the instructor is just too good-looking.
Hiss~ (drooling sound)…
Zhang Jiuling glanced at her and chuckled again without realizing it.
He reached into his pocket and took out a small square box.
“Hold out your hand.”
Li Jiao obediently complied, extending her right hand.
Zhang Jiuling opened the box.
Inside lay a silver bracelet.
Li Jiao instantly remembered.
Isn’t this the bracelet she had lost at the club last time, the one that got caught in the net?
But… it seemed a little different.
Her bracelet was plain silver, with no decorations, simple and straightforward.
This one was similar but had a small silver bell in the middle, making it look delicate and cute.
Zhang Jiuling took out the bracelet and fastened it around the girl’s snow-white wrist.
The silver bracelet contrasted beautifully with her fair skin.
Li Jiao lifted her hand and shook the little bell, which gave a crisp, clear ring.
“Instructor…”
She looked up at Zhang Jiuling, her eyes filled with confusion.
“This is the bracelet you left behind last time. I forgot to return it to you.”
“I thought it was too plain, so I added a bell.”
Zhang Jiuling’s voice was clear and melodic, like a stringed instrument, his tone so casual it was as if he were discussing the weather, completely matter-of-fact.
As he spoke, he glanced at Li Jiao, his eyes twinkling with a trace of amusement.
“Now, do you still think you’re dreaming?”
Li Jiao touched the bracelet and smiled, shaking her head.
“No.”
“Instructor, thank you.”
Little Bell, Zhang Jiuling, Jiuling, Little Bell.
Does this mean… I’m wearing the instructor on my wrist?
(T/N: the Ling from the little bell (líng dāng) is the same with the Ling in the Jiuling, of course both have different meanings.)
Oh my god, I’m too excited!!!!
No, I need to calm down.
Right now, I just want to crawl into a freezer for a bit to cool off!
“Li Jiao.”
“Yes? What is it, Instructor?”
“I’m not your instructor anymore,” Zhang Jiuling’s cold, dark eyes were deep and quiet.
“So, you don’t have to call me that.”
“Then I…?” Li Jiao cautiously glanced at him, testing.
“Can I call you… Jiuling?”
“Mm.”
“….”
Because they had come to watch the military parade earlier and driving was inconvenient, Zhang Jiuling had asked a friend to come and drive his Jeep away.
Since Li Jiao’s home was nearby, the two of them walked back, strolling leisurely down the street.
Maybe because she had just experienced something “heart-stopping,” Li Jiao couldn’t calm down for a long time.
When they reached the entrance of her community, she still couldn’t quite believe what had just happened.
She stopped and looked at him, seriously asking, “Instru… Jiuling, does this mean we’re… boyfriend and girlfriend now?”
As soon as she said it, she watched his expression carefully, her eyes filled with trepidation.
Zhang Jiuling looked at her leisurely, nodded slightly, and deliberately paused.
“It seems… that’s the case.”
At that moment, hearing his answer, Li Jiao wanted to scream like a crazy groundhog, and even clear her master Van Gogh out of the studio!
Ideally, she’d launch a few hundred celebratory fireworks!
The kind that would go on for ages, just for the sound!
Oh my god, her long prayers had finally been answered!
The instructor had finally gone blind—no, finally noticed her!!
…
Before entering the community, Li Jiao touched the little bell on her bracelet.
After thinking for a moment, she took off the red cherry hair ties from her two braids and handed them to Zhang Jiuling.
“Instructor, I don’t have anything else with me, so I’ll give you these two hair ties.”
“I’ll swap them for something better later.”
“….”
Watching the girl bounce into the community, Zhang Jiuling glanced at the two cherry-hair ties in his hand.
They were bright red, almost lifelike.
He smiled slightly, his mood improving.
This girl’s thoughts are always so strange.
…
Later, Liu Zi and Wang Haonan drove the jeep over to find Zhang Jiuling.
In the car, Wang Haonan caught a glimpse of the two cherry hair ties on Zhang Jiuling’s wrist—such girly things, complete with little red cherries.
Wang Haonan immediately teased, “Boss, I didn’t know you had such a girly side.”
“You’re even using little girl stuff now.”
Zhang Jiuling glanced at the two red cherry hair ties on his wrist, his eyes softening, and said calmly, “Token of love.”
“!!!!!!!!!!”
In the backseat, Liuzi and Wang Haonan exchanged a glance, then turned back in unison to stare at Zhang Jiuling.
“Bull—Shit—”
“Fu*k, boss, what’s going on?!”
“Yeah, who are you secretly involved with?”
“No way, boss, are you cheating on someone this summer?!”
“Hey, hey, who’s the girl?”
“Tell us, who is she?”
Zhang Jiuling looked at the two overly excited people in the backseat through the rearview mirror, then turned his gaze back to the road ahead.
After a while, he lazily said, in a voice tinged with a bit of Beijing’s roguish tone, “You guys better call her’sister-in-law.'”
…
On her way home, Li Jiao was gently swinging her wrist, making the small bell on the bracelet jingle crisply with every movement.
Li Hang had just finished a round of intense battle in PUBG, having landed in the wrong spot in the quiet town and getting killed eight times in an hour.
He was on the verge of losing it.
Walking out of his room with messy hair and bloodshot eyes, he shuffled in his slippers, only to see someone sitting on the couch, wearing a green dress with hair that looked like a twisted braid, shaking her wrist and giggling to herself.
For a moment, Li Hang thought a crazy woman had broken into his house.
He quietly picked up a mop and tiptoed towards her.
Then, with both hands, he brought it down over her head!
“Where did this crazy lady come from? Get out of Master Hang’s palace now!”
“………”
The suspected crazy woman, Li Jiao, slowly turned around, strands of black mop hanging over her head.
Her big eyes stared at him silently, looking so pitiful and eerie that it sent chills down his spine.
Li Hang immediately threw the mop aside and raised his hands in surrender.
“Jiao Jiao, a huge rat just ran by! Did you see it? Ha…ha…”
“Li Hang!!!!!!”
“Today, I’ll make sure your blood spills on the flag!!!”
…
Thus, Zhang Jiuling and Li Jiao officially established their relationship.
During the seven-day National Day holiday, they stayed in touch frequently.
However, both had their own matters to attend to, so they mostly communicated through text messages.
Li Jiao: Jiuling, Jiuling, I’m going back to school tomorrow afternoon?(‘ω’)?
Zhang Jiuling: What time in the afternoon? I’ll take you.
Li Jiao: Around 3 PM??(???????)?? I have two suitcases to bring.
Zhang Jiuling: Okay, I’ll drive over.
Li Jiao: Are you going to drive that green Beetle tomorrow? (??ˇ?ˇ??)
Zhang Jiuling frowned at the message, then realized the little girl was referring to the military-green Jeep.
So, he typed back.
Zhang Jiuling: Not that one; that’s a military vehicle.
Li Jiao: So what color is your beetle?
Although he didn’t quite understand why she was so fixated on a beetle, Zhang Jiuling still replied.
Zhang Jiuling: It’s black. If you like beetles, I can get one for you.
Her reply came quickly.
Li Jiao: No need, I like you better (*///*)
After sending that, Li Jiao put her phone aside, her face flushing bright red.
She used her hands to fan her cheeks, which were heating up like a small lobster.
Oh my, her skin was getting thicker and thicker.
Did she… just flirt with her instructor?
The phone on the side lit up.
Li Jiao exhaled, unlocked the screen, and opened the message.
Zhang Jiuling’s reply was almost identical to hers, except it was missing one word.
“No, I like you better.”
The blush on Li Jiao’s cheeks deepened, and her smile grew wider, her eyes curving into happy crescents.
No, I like you better.
I like you better… I like you…
…
She put her phone aside, lay back on her soft bed, and hugged the pillow next to her.
Silently, she smiled as brightly as the sun.
No, I think I like you better.
On the afternoon of October 7th, it was time to return to university.
Li Jiao had packed her two suitcases the night before, ready to take them back to school.
Father Li had been on a business trip for the entire National Day holiday and hadn’t returned home. Due to sudden work changes, the family’s original travel plans were canceled, leaving him feeling particularly guilty.
So, on the 7th, he rushed back by high-speed train, determined to personally take his kids to school to make up for the lost time.
“Dad, I already made plans to meet a friend at the subway station. You don’t need to take me.”
“That’s not happening. How could a little girl manage two big suitcases on her own?”
“Dad, just take Li Hang. Really, there’s no need to take me.”
Li Jiao felt a bit troubled.
She had already arranged with Zhang Jiuling the night before that he would come to pick her up and take her to school.
She hadn’t expected her dad to come back today.
She wasn’t ready to tell her family about her relationship just yet.
Her dad and mom still treated her like a child and had always told her to wait until after college to date.
Little did they know she already had a boyfriend—a former military training instructor, no less!
If she broke the news now, she feared her parents would kick her out of the house.
So, she thought it best to wait for the right time.
She bribed Li Hang to distract their dad, and finally, she was able to sneak out of the house.
Dragging her two suitcases out of the complex and turning a corner, she spotted Zhang Jiuling waiting for her.
A black car was parked nearby.
Li Jiao couldn’t recognize the brand, but it was clear it wasn’t cheap.
“Jiuling—”
Li Jiao happily dragged her suitcases over.
Zhang Jiuling came up, took the suitcases, and placed them in the trunk with a “bang.”
Turning around, Li Jiao was still watching him, her mouth curved into a bright smile.
Zhang Jiuling said, “Aren’t you getting in?”
Li Jiao smiled cheekily at him.
“You look so handsome today.”
With that, she quickly slipped into the car, sitting primly.
On the way, as Zhang Jiuling drove, Li Jiao kept turning her head to look at him, admiring his handsome face.
She stared at him with such focus, as if trying to memorize every detail with her eyes.
“Jiao Jiao.”
“Yes?”
“Is there money on my face? Why are you staring at me?”
“No, just something I like.”
“…”
The car drove into the university’s residential area, where male students weren’t allowed inside the girls’ dorms.
So, Zhang Jiuling couldn’t help her carry the luggage in.
He glanced at the dormitory, bustling with people, and noticed a dorm manager auntie watching the entrance closely, preventing any boys from sneaking in.
One girl’s boyfriend tried to help her carry her luggage inside, but the dorm manager politely stopped him.
“You can’t go in, young man. She’ll be fine from here.”
“Do you need your roommate to come down and help?” Zhang Jiuling asked.
“No,” Li Jiao shook her head.
“It’s just two suitcases. I can manage.”
There was an elevator in the dorm, so it wouldn’t be too difficult for her to carry them up.
As she stood at the entrance with her suitcases, Li Jiao hesitated for a moment before turning around to face Zhang Jiuling.
She looked up at him.
“Jiuling.”
“Yes, what is it?”
Li Jiao suddenly stepped forward, tiptoed, and gave him a quick hug.
His familiar woodsy sandalwood scent, cool and faint, lingered in her nose.
“I want to see you tomorrow too,” she said.
Then she let go, swiftly turned around, and dragged her two suitcases inside as fast as she could.
Behind her, Zhang Jiuling watched her flee, his dark eyes gradually filling with a warm smile.
