If The Moon Won’t Hold You - Chapter 5

When Cen Ning came out of the room, she stood on the stairs with a panicked expression. What did she just…see?

Holding onto her face, Cen Ning tried to reduce the heat on her face, but at this time, the picture appeared in her mind again: in the dim room, a refined and exquisite figure appeared…

Why does he sleep without clothes on?

Cen Ning exhaled, feeling very embarrassed.

“Ningning, is Xingzhi up yet?” At this moment, Aunt Chen called out suddenly.

Cen Ning came back to her senses: “Up, he’s up!”

“Then you tell him to hurry up, you’ll set off after eating.”

“Okay.”

Gqvla Zyd Dkdtgbk oldv esodpvykap, bl pyo Uld Lkdt pkvvkdt sd vbl psqy kd y rasrla yde olzz-clbyhle xyddla, ryppkdt cu, bl ypjle nypwyzzu, “Tyhld’v usw zlqv ulv?”

Jlqsal Uld Lkdt nswze ydpola, Dw Eydukdt, obs nyxl swv sq vbl pvweu, ydpolale: “Lkdtdkdt kp dsv qyxkzkya okvb vbl pnbssz, ps R vbkdj kv oswze cl clvvla qsa bla vs ts okvb usw.”

Zyd Dkdtgbk pzktbvzu rywple, bl eke dsv ydpola Dw Eydukdt’p osaep, kdpvlye tskdt pvayktbv vs vbl vyczl qsa calyjqypv.

Dw Eydukdt pvyale yv vbl cynj sq Zyd Dkdtgbk yde pvsse vblal y zkvvzl yojoyaezu.

Uld Lkdt nswzed’v wdelapvyde Dw Eydukdt’p yojoyaedlpp, cwv vbswtbv vbyv Zyd Dkdtgbk xwpv byhl dsv oydvle vs vyjl bla vs pnbssz, vbyv’p obu bl oyp pkzldv.

Uld Lkdt bye yzoyup clld y vkxke, nzsple, wdvyzjyvkhl yde pldpkvkhl tkaz. Ohld kq pbl eked’v pyu yduvbkdt, kv eked’v xlyd vbyv pbl oswzed’v vbkdj ycswv kv. Zyd Dkdtgbk’p pkzldnl oyp wdeswcvlezu y czso vs bla, yde vbl tsse kxralppksd sq bkx vbyv bye fwpv akpld ulpvlaeyu ekpyrrlyale y ckv ytykd.

“Gwdvkl, R, R oydv vs ts vs nzypp.” Uld Lkdt eked’v oydv vs qsanl Zyd Dkdtgbk, ps pbl pyke vs Dw Eydukdt vkxkezu, “Eblal kp Bdnzl Qys?”

Dw Eydukdt oyp yzps y zkvvzl wdnsxqsavyczl: “Bb…vbld, vbld R okzz nyzz Xze Qys.”

“Okay.”

As soon as Xu Wanying raised her foot to walk outside, she heard Yan Xingzhi say: “You won’t even let me finish my meal?”

Xu Wanying stopped, and Cen Ning also looked at Yan Xingzhi, confused.

Yan Xingzhi looked sideways at Cen Ning nonchalantly: “Didn’t you say you would wait downstairs for me to go to school together? Do you want to go first?”

Cen Ning was taken by surprise: “No, you, you—”

“Then why are you calling Old Gao.” He turned back to eat breakfast, and then half-commanded, half-informed her when he opened his mouth again: “Carry your school bag well, we will leave in three minutes.”

The frustration just now disappeared without a trace because of his words. Cen Ning felt joy within, and the corners of her mouth rose unconsciously: “Okay!”

In the end, Cen Ning got into the car with Yan Xingzhi to go to school. This car was usually arranged to pick up and drop off Yan Xingzhi at school. The driver who drove them was in his forties and he was a middle-aged man who didn’t smile at all.

At this time, the two sat in the back seat, both silent.

School was about 20 minutes away from home. When Cen Ning got in the car, she was nervous due to Yan Xingzhi. Later, when she arrived at school, she was nervous about entering a new environment. She wasn’t good at integrating into a new group. In her previous school, she didn’t know why she had been excluded by others.

“We’re here.” The car stopped, Yan Xingzhi pushed the door open and got out of the car.

Cen Ning carried her schoolbag and also got out.

“You know which class you’re in, right?”

“Class three.”

“Oh, then it’s the building in front.” As Yan Xingzhi said this, he walked forward, Cen Ning trotted next to him, so nervous that her breathing pattern started to change.

“To the east is the stone mountain, come view the ocean. The water is large and vast, the stone mountain stands upright next to the ocean. The trees are overgrown, and the grass is lush…” After passing through the corridors of two classes, Yan Xingzhi and Cen Ning came to the door of Class three. At this time, the students in the classroom were currently doing their daily morning recitation.

The female teacher standing at the edge of the podium saw someone standing at the door and walked over: “You two…”

“Teacher, she is Cen Ning.” Yan Xingzhi said.

The female teacher was the head teacher of Class three. She had long been notified of a new student that would be coming to class today, so she carried an expression full of understanding, “Oh, you are Cen Ning, hello, I am Teacher Luo, the head teacher of our class.”

It wasn’t clear whether it was due to the new student or the senior wearing a high school uniform, the students who were originally doing their morning recitations began to stop one by one, all looking at the door of the classroom with curiosity and shock.

Cen Ning was embarrassed to look at her classmates, but obediently bowed to the head teacher: “Hello, hello teacher.”

In comparsion to Cen Ning’s nervousness, Yan Xingzhi was so calm that it was almost scary: “I hope we haven’t troubled teacher, I’ll hand Cen Ning over to you, I will leave first.”

This school was quite big, but even teachers knew of this character Yan Xingzhi. Although the head teacher wondered why this student had been sent over by Yan Xingzhi, she didn’t probe further, “Okay, leave her to me.”

Yan Xingzhi nodded, then looked at Cen Ning: “Relax, don’t be nervous.”

His tone was still cold and indifferent, but the words that were spoken seemed to embrace Cen Ning’s heart with a warm current. Cen Ning raised her eyes to look at him, and slowly nodded.

Yan Xingzhi left and the head teacher led Cen Ning into the classroom, and after a brief introduction, she was placed in the fourth row.

“Hey, it’s you, I didn’t expect us to be in the same class.” The morning recitation continued again, but the people next to her kept putting their gaze upon her from time to time. A girl in the front row even directly turned her head around to greet her.

Cen Ning was taken aback, looking at the completely strange face in front of her, she said in confusion, “You, you know me?”

Zhang Ziyi propped up her chin: “I saw you on the court yesterday, Xue Xiaoxiao returned your camera back, don’t you remember.”

“You were also there?”

“Yes, but there were so many people, it’s normal that you didn’t see me.” Zhang Ziyi raised an eyebrow and smiled, “Hey, you made me feel so refreshed that day. Don’t even mention how happy I felt watching Xue Xiaoxiao get humiliated. Well… the enemy’s enemy is a friend, Cen Ning, let’s be friends from now onwards.”

Cen Ning felt puzzled, but her heart jumped: “Friends?”

“Hm, yes, we will be friends on an united front from now onwards.”

Her reason was strange, but Cen Ning still felt a little happy. She had made a friend on the first day at school, this was something she didn’t even dare to dream of.

“You, don’t like, Xue Xiaoxiao.”

“Of course I don’t like her.” Zhang Ziyi snorted, “Being arrogant and overbearing every day, she is annoying to look at.”

Cen Ning was amused by her exaggerated expression. Zhang Ziyi looked at her laugh and also laughed, “Hey, did you skip a grade, you look so small.”

Cen Ning shook her head: “…I didn’t.”

Zhang Ziyi glanced at her suspiciously, and then whispered: “Then, do you really have that kind of relationship with Yan Xingzhi.”

Others in the class may still be curious about the relationship between Yan Xingzhi and Cen Ning, but Zhang Ziyi had heard of this matter as she was also a child in the same compound. Teenage girls were still naive to love and romance, but this was also a period where they would experience their first awakening of love. As such, girls were always very passionate about these sorts of new and secretive topics.

Cen Ning felt that Yan Xingzhi did not like their strange relationship, so she shook her head subconsciously: “No.”

“Really? But everyone says so, and Yan Xingzhi helped stand up for you yesterday.”

Cen Ning was afraid of Yan Xingzhi, but she was indeed filled with joy when she remembered what happened yesterday. When someone treated her kindly, she would always engrave it deep within her heart.

Seeing that Cen Ning didn’t say a word, Zhang Zi didn’t ask too much. She lowered her voice and said, “Okay, let’s not talk about it in school. Many people here like Yan Xingzhi. If this matter is known to others, they’ll hate you so much.”

Cen Ning: “…………”

The news of the new student who was personally delivered to the door by Yan Xingzhi on her first day spread through the whole middle school department. 

Yan Xingzhi, this person, not only was he already so handsome, but he was also the genius-type in his studies, he was a popular person who all the teachers loved.

This kind of good-looking and smart person was naturally regarded as a god-level male figure by all the girls at school.

But this male god was extremely cold, his temperament was so indifferent that ordinary girls dared not to approach him. So, suddenly seeing a person being sent to the door of the classroom by him, everyone was full of curiosity.

But after seeing Cen Ning herself, those with harbored an unkind curiosity at the beginning became relieved – oh, it turns out she looks like this, she must be Yan Xingzhi’s relative, right?

Everyone thought like this instead of linking Cen Ning with the words “girlfriend” and “lover”.

In fact, Cen Ning did not look ugly, but she reached puberty late, not to mention how small she was paired with her dull complexion, so she was really not worth mentioning when there were so many beautiful girls in school. Some female classmates even took the initiative to come talk to her as they no longer felt guarded against her, inquiring about Yan Xingzhi both overtly and covertly.

Cen Ning looked young, but her mind was much more mature than that of ordinary children. She could feel that everyone approached her because of Yan Xingzhi. Logically speaking, she should get angry, but for someone like her who had always been excluded, the feeling of having people around her made her feel extremely glad.

She couldn’t bear to refuse, and the result of this reluctance was that every few days or so, someone would place a love letter to Yan Xingzhi on her desk…

On this day, class was over in the afternoon.

“Ningning, let’s go out to eat today, how about we go home after having dinner?” Zhang Ziyi packed her schoolbags and stood by her desk.

Cen Ning glanced at her apologetically: “Today, Grandpa Yan told us, to go home, go home for dinner on time.”

Zhang Ziyi looked disappointed: “Well, let’s eat together next time. I heard that there is a delicious steak restaurant nearby.”

Cen Ning nodded: “I’m sorry.”

“Hey, it’s okay, let’s go home.”

“Yep.”

Cen Ning didn’t expect to see Yan Xingzhi as soon as she walked out of the classroom. He stood under the steps, dressed in his school uniform, the first button of his shirt was unbuttoned, and he stood upright, looking very eye-catching.

“Tang Zheng, what are you doing? Wait for us.” Zhang Ziyi didn’t dare to act presumptuous before Yan Xingzhi, but she acted much more natural in front of Tang Zheng. However, Tang Zheng knocked her forehead as soon as she leapt over, “Tsk, showing no respect for your elders. How many times have I told you to call me brother, Tang Zheng this, Tang Zheng that, so rude.”

Zhang Ziyi rolled her eyes at him: “Oh, what’s so great about being older than me by a couple of years.

“Hey you brat–” Tang Zheng put one hand on the shoulders of Yan Xingzhi, making a gesture that translated to “being an elder is hard’, while saying “You tell me, why are children these days so disobedient?”

Yan Xingzhi twitched his lips, and his gaze fell on Cen Ning.

How were they disobedient, this child was very obedient, he told her to call him Gege and she did it so obediently, didn’t she?

“What are you doing standing there, come here.” Yan Xingzhi said to Ceng Ning.

Cen Ning went ‘oh’, and went up towards him: “Why, are you here?”

“Waited in the car for a while, saw that you didn’t come out yet.”

Cen Ning: “Our, our class got delayed.”

“Oh.”

They turned and walked towards the school gate. The students passing by looked at them either boldly or surreptitiously, but Cen Ning didn’t have time to think about this. She touched the love letters in her pocket and looked at Yan Xingzhi’s back, feeling a bit troubled.

These, how should she give them to him?

–

The author has something to say:

Cen Ning: I’m sitting in the classroom, and ‘greenness’ comes from the sky.1

Years later.

Yan Xingzhi: My wife sent me a lot of love letters when she was a kid… each signature was different

…

(She’ll grow up, don’t worry, but let me finish writing the plot that should be written at this current age~)

–

[Translator’s Note: Yay our FL made her first friend!]