It's all his fault for being an artist!

Chapter 39: New look, giving you a gift, eyes sparkling.

"That row outside the refrigerator, next to the shower gel."

The convenience store owner didn't even look up, lazily raising his eyebrows and glancing sideways.

Cheng Wang walked quickly and found the area selling daily necessities.

Three rows of hair ties were put into a small plastic bag and neatly hung on the bottom shelf of the cabinet.

He squatted down and began to select and examine the goods.

Depending on the level of refinement, the price ranges from NT$5 to NT$25.

The hair ties sold in the small shop, no matter how expensive, are just so-so; you can buy them in bulk.

My eyes immediately fell on the 25 yuan row.

At first glance, they all appear to be solid-color headbands, with a few small accessories added to match the color scheme.

However, among so many hair ties, it's really hard to find a duplicate. Moreover, they were deliberately sprinkled with a layer of glitter, making them dazzling and quite convincing.

[At this point, I hope readers will remember our domain name: ①⓪①ⓚⓚⓢ.ⓒⓞⓜ]

Faced with the cheap little items in front of him, Cheng Wang picked out a few that suited his taste and carefully considered them for half a minute in his palm.

Finally, I decided to keep only one of them.

The light blue silk cloth elastic band, tied with a cartoon cucumber stamp, looks quite adorable.

"Boss, can I pay with Alipay?"

"You can't use it. Go to the tobacco and liquor store next door and exchange some cash."

"..."

Alas, the times are so inconvenient.

After making all the necessary preparations, he went to Li Xixi's residence again and rang the doorbell.

Ding-dong-

The security door is opened.

Li Xixi's slender figure came into Cheng Wang's view.

As it turns out, good-looking people are good-looking, and ugly school uniforms are no excuse.

She had dressed up specially.

She wore a beige hooded sweater over her full figure, paired with a brown plaid A-line skirt.

Her short hair was neatly tied into a small braid, her bright red lips were dewy and glossy, and her gold-rimmed round glasses rested on her high nose bridge.

Looking around, the dark-colored clothing doesn't appear dull or gloomy.

Her smile couldn't hide her cute little tiger teeth. While retaining her youthful energy, Li Xixi's image today also had a touch of scholarly elegance that was rarely seen. She had toned down her arrogance and was full of a well-behaved charm.

Seeing this, Cheng asked curiously, "You've changed your look? Why aren't you wearing white?"

"How is it? Does it look good?"

No girl can resist a guy noticing that she's changed her look.

This means that you really put your heart into it, rather than just giving perfunctory compliments like "it's pretty." That nose is a real nose, and those eyes are real eyes.

of course.

The prerequisite is that she and this boy have a good relationship.

Li Xixi's eyebrows instantly curved into crescent moons, filled with joy.

Then she exclaimed "Eh!"

"I usually wear my school uniform, how do you know I don't wear dark colors?"

"Well……"

The memory must come from a past life, from our daily interactions during university.

Cheng Wang knew he had let something slip and couldn't explain the truth, so he gave vague answers and made up some excuses.

"You always wear a white or light gray sweater under your winter school uniform coat, so I thought you just liked that color."

Li Xixi was in a good mood and didn't think much of it, accepting the explanation: "I see... It's only eleven o'clock now, much earlier than I expected. Are you done with your work in the studio?"

Cheng Wang put on a stern face: "It's extremely serious."

"what?"

The sudden shift to a serious topic caught Li Xixi off guard, and she couldn't help but feel a little uneasy.

"Did your exam preparation not go well?"

"no."

"So, the results of the previous exams came out, and the results weren't very good?"

"It's not out yet."

"What's going on? Is it a big deal?"

Cheng Wang replied in a serious tone, "The art teacher secretly hid a can of good tea and didn't dare tell his wife. Now I've caught him in the secret and I'm going to expose him on the day of the teacher appreciation banquet."

"puff!"

Li Xixi couldn't help but laugh, clenched her fist, and gently punched Cheng Wang.

"You're just being mischievous, not even sparing your own teacher."

She was in a good mood and turned to lead the way.

The little braid swayed precariously in front of Cheng Wang—

"I don't have men's slippers at home, so please wear your shoes when you come in."

"I wore shoe covers."

He followed Li Xixi into the house.

The layout of the large apartment is basically unchanged from what I remember; it will still have the same furniture and decorations a few years from now.

Stepping into the entryway, the dark walnut wood flooring extends into the spacious living room.

On the oak bookshelf against the wall, finely bound books and celadon ornaments are neatly arranged, exuding a faint fragrance.

A gentle sniff reveals whether the scent originates from the ink or permeates the entire room, carrying the pleasant fragrance of a young girl emanating from Li Xixi herself.

I really like the open-plan design of the living room and dining room in this apartment in Shanghai.

Including Mu Ziling, there were four girls in total, all sitting around a solid wood table in the restaurant, with their exam papers spread out in front of them.

"Oh dear, the busy man is here."

"Chengwang, we've already finished two sets of test papers, why are you only arriving now?"

"Those who arrive late need to help organize the wrong questions; this is extra homework assigned by the class monitor."

Mu Ziling stared quietly at Cheng Wang, her gaze passing over his broad chest and landing on the painting tube behind him.

Five women and one man.

What kind of party is this?

Cheng Wang spread his hands, looking regretful: "There's nothing I can do. I'm afraid you'll be too slow at doing the problems and won't be able to keep up with my speed, so I can only let you come back for extra lessons later."

"Hmph, bragging."

The birdsong and laughter help to relax our tense nerves.

The second instance upheld the original verdict: too many girls gathered together, and it was very noisy!

"Everyone, take a break first. Auntie will come over later to cook. Chengwang, did you bring all your test papers?"

Li Xixi took over the conversation, and the class monitor, with her imposing presence, stopped the girls from making a ruckus.

"I brought it, but don't rush, I want to give you a gift."

Gift?

The air was thick with gossip; people sat in rows, gossiping and chatting, their thoughts all converging on one person.

Mu Ziling tilted her head: "Hmm?"

Cheng Wang offered no explanation.

He opened the painting tube, poured the artwork onto the dining table, and carefully smoothed it out.

While Li Xixi was greatly surprised, anticipation and curiosity also emerged.

My heart was pounding, suddenly accelerating.

Upon hearing those words, the inexplicable joy seemed to surpass even the joy felt upon opening the door and seeing Chengwang arrive as promised.

This is……

A gift for me?

What's so important about today? Is it New Year's Day?

How should I accept this and say thank you first?

Happiness was accompanied by confusion and hesitation.

The hotter her cheeks became, the more Li Xixi wanted to respond, the more helpless she felt, her thoughts racing, unable to fathom Cheng Wang's intentions.

In her own opinion, hesitation might take a long time.

However, in reality, in less than a few seconds, Cheng Wang had already laid out the entire screen.

Despite being the recipient of the gift, Li Xixi's reaction speed was slower than that of the onlookers.

Several female students quickly stood up and leaned closer.

Even Mu Ziling couldn't suppress her curiosity and quietly leaned forward, her soft curves pressing against the edge of the table.

This is a sketch.

The brushstrokes are light and delicate, with fine hatching lines that are neat and clean, perfectly matching the atmosphere conveyed by the painting.

The girl's bright eyes and white teeth, radiating youthful energy, instantly leap off the page.

Even though, apart from Mu Ziling, these girls were all laymen who didn't understand art.

The beauty contained in the entire portrait can still be easily recognized simply by looking at it with your own eyes.

"What a beautiful girl! Is this a gift from an art student? You couldn't buy this with money!"

"Hey, look at Cheng Wanghua's appearance, isn't that just like...?"

"Squad leader, come quick!"

Urgent calls and screams rang out together.

Li Xixi's delicate body trembled slightly as she finally broke free from her jumbled thoughts and returned to the real world.

"What's wrong? Why are you all so agitated?"

The girls wisely gave up their desktop space.

She pursed her lips, took a half-step forward, and her gaze fell on the sketch.

In that very instant.

Li Xixi's eyes, like soft silk held by the wind, suddenly froze, then rippled and flowed endlessly.