Although They're Mentally ill, They're Extremely Easy to Comfort - Chapter 12

Qiao Bo’er was angry, but she couldn’t seem to find a proper reason to justify it. Yet, she was angry, and her anger was directed at Ling Xi.

The sharp, steady sound of her high heels indicated her firm steps, but her pace was not hurried. It was as if she was consciously or unconsciously waiting for Ling Xi to catch up.

But that doggone thing didn’t move for ages.

Qiao Bo’er began to regret it. The rare opportunity for a private moment was completely ruined by her own temper.

She was a quintessential tsundere. She was now stuck, unable to decide whether to stay or leave.

Ling Xi stood rooted to the spot, watching Qiao Bo’er’s figure gradually move further away. The hand holding the wooden box unconsciously tightened its grip.

As a “salted fish” (someone who is lazy and unambitious), adhering to the principle of avoiding trouble, she naturally wouldn’t chase after Qiao Bo’er to fawn over her.

She refused to stoop to the level of those school administrators who compromised their reputation for money and become Qiao Bo’er’s big lick-spittle!

Facing Qiao Bo’er’s back, Ling Xi childishly stuck out her tongue and audaciously declared, “I emerge from the mud unblemished, and I’m not corrupted by the clear water. I won’t bend my back for money, bleh, bleh, bleh!”

Ling Xi’s fingers were still resting on her cheek, making a face, when Qiao Bo’er, unable to hold back, suddenly turned around. The naughty sight of the doggone thing was completely caught in her eyes.

Qiao Bo’er arrogantly lifted her chin, scrutinizing Ling Xi without a word. But the unconcealed suppressed delight almost spilling from her slightly curved eyes couldn’t be faked.

The “salted fish” hadn’t left, which was a good outcome.

Ling Xi was startled by Qiao Bo’er’s sudden turn. She hastily put down her hand, looking blank and at a loss. In the end, she conceded and took a step toward Qiao Bo’er.

Just moments ago, she had boasted about being a lotus untainted by the world, but now she had become a vulgar “white lotus.”

Oh, Ling Xi, Ling Xi, why do you always say the cruelest things but do the most cowardly ones? You’re hopeless!

Walking up to Qiao Bo’er, Ling Xi held the wooden box with one hand, and the other scratched the bridge of her nose in embarrassment. She reluctantly asked in a low voice, “Are we still going to tour the campus or not?”

“Ahem…” Qiao Bo’er cleared her throat to mask her emotions, putting on a look of taking the high road and resuming her haughty demeanor: “Fine, I won’t bother with you for now. Since I’m already here, I should still take a look around.”

Ling Xi stared at Qiao Bo’er with a look of distress, launching a silent torrent of complaints in her mind: Hey, did you eat ten tsunderes and upgrade to a Tsundere Ghost? Why are you acting like I’m begging you to tour the school?

Strolling along the romantic sycamore-lined avenue, the atmosphere between the two was strange.

Ling Xi carefully put the wooden box back into her shoulder bag and meticulously crumpled the white cotton gloves into a ball.

Qiao Bo’er walked beside her, which made it easier for her to steal glances at Ling Xi’s profile. She very naturally put on her sunglasses.

They couldn’t just keep walking stiffly side by side. Ling Xi’s CPU was running at full speed, and she finally found a topic—

“Well… you…”

“Hmm?” Qiao Bo’er kept her hands behind her back, waiting for Ling Xi to continue.

“Do you really like paleography, or are you just interested in Zhongshan Seal Script?”

“Is there a difference? I like whatever you can teach.” Although her eyes were hidden behind sunglasses, Qiao Bo’er’s tone was earnest.

Ling Xi was speechless. She really knows how to talk—two sentences are enough to kill a conversation. Ling Xi didn’t know how to respond to that.

“If you can’t find the right topic, don’t force it. Otherwise, you’ll only make yourself uncomfortable,” Qiao Bo’er saw through Ling Xi’s thoughts and kindly resolved the awkwardness.

Ling Xi retorted, feeling unjustly treated: “It’s clearly your ambiguous answer! How can I not feel awkward when you’re so improper!”

“Then how about we talk about you?”

“Hiss… why are you so curious about me?” Ling Xi put her hands on her hips, feeling that Qiao Bo’er had ulterior motives.

Qiao Bo’er smoothed the strands of hair the wind had messed up and answered matter-of-factly, “Curiosity leads to knowledge. Besides, you’re my lecturer. It’s perfectly normal for me to want to understand my teacher.”

Aha! The moment Qiao Bo’er mentioned this, Ling Xi suddenly seized the perfect opportunity to verbally get the upper hand. She slyly blinked at Qiao Bo’er.

If Qiao Bo’er was a thousand-year-old fox, Ling Xi’s skill level was probably a comparable turtle.

She suddenly put her hands behind her back and put on a profound demeanor like an old scholar: “As the saying goes, ‘One day as a teacher is a lifetime as a father.’ Since you acknowledge me as your master…”

A mischievous smile appeared on Qiao Bo’er’s lips, having seen right through her: “So, what do you want?”

Ling Xi puffed out her chest, looking rightfully demanding, though a little bit annoying: “A lifetime as a father, naturally… means calling me ‘Daddy,’ of course…”

“Hmph, ugly face, beautiful dream.” Qiao Bo’er wasn’t angry. With their back-and-forth, the atmosphere became more harmonious.

“In ancient times, your attitude would be seen as heresy, betraying your teacher, violating discipline, and lacking proper etiquette!” Ling Xi rattled off a string of accusations, making them sound increasingly exaggerated.

“Does Associate Professor Ling dare to make my crime even bigger?”

“It’s not hard to call me Daddy. Look how difficult you’re making it. Of course… you’re the Daddy I’ll never get…” Ling Xi shook her head, feeling smug, but suddenly bit her tongue and realized, “Ptooey, ptooey, ptooey… I misspoke, it doesn’t count!”

Qiao Bo’er covered her mouth with her beautiful fingers, her smile growing more playful: “You’re quite self-aware. I am indeed the Daddy you’ll never get. I’m even the Sugar Daddy of your entire Xuan Yi University.”

Seeing Qiao Bo’er’s smug expression after her comeback, Ling Xi yelled reluctantly, “That’s not what I meant, I said it backward! You should call me Daddy. I’m the Daddy you’ll never get!”

“I don’t care. Words spoken are water spilled; it’s too late to take them back…” Qiao Bo’er smiled wickedly and shrugged, finding the clarity of Ling Xi’s foolishness in her eyes incredibly amusing.

Ling Xi wished she could slap herself twice. Damn it! I finally wanted to take advantage of Qiao Bo’er, but I ended up trapping myself again. Why is everything a loss for me?!

Chatting aimlessly like this, the two arrived at Xuan Da’s central plaza.

It was almost lunchtime, and the music fountain was playing in the central pool.

Students occasionally passed by in small groups, and without exception, they were drawn to the outstandingly elegant Qiao Bo’er.

Some boys even tried to approach her to ask for her contact information, only to be deterred by her icy demeanor.

The campus broadcast system turned on at the right time, and the host was taking song requests.

A spark of inspiration hit Ling Xi, and she came up with another mischievous idea. She was determined to win this round!

“Tired from walking? How about we sit for a while at the creeper pergola ahead? It’s shady there and good for cooling off in this heat.”

Ling Xi suddenly became overly enthusiastic, and Qiao Bo’er sensed a trick. But seeing her mischievous smile, she decided to humor her, thinking she’d counter-attack later and make Ling Xi lose face.

“Sure, I am a bit tired.”

It seemed every campus had a creeper pergola hidden deep in its memory. Even as the years faded, it remained timeless.

Ling Xi led Qiao Bo’er to a relatively clean wooden bench to sit down, and again asked with excessive concern, “Are you thirsty? I’ll go buy you some water.”

Qiao Bo’er took off her sunglasses, looked up at her, and briefly refused: “I’m not thirsty.”

Ling Xi had planned to sneak away and tease Qiao Bo’er from a corner, but the woman wouldn’t take the bait!

In that case, she would openly and brazenly turn the tables right in front of her. She pulled out her phone and dialed the campus broadcast hotline.

Soon, Ling Xi’s voice echoed throughout the entire school via the broadcast—

[Hello? Classmate, who would you like to dedicate a song to?]

[Hello, host. I’d like to dedicate a welcome song to the new student in the Paleography Department—Qiao Bo’er.]

[A new student? Well, first, welcome Qiao Bo’er to Xuan Da. I wish you the most wonderful time of your youth. What song would you like to dedicate to her?]

[Heh, ‘You Won’t End Up Well.’]

[Uh… And what blessing would you like to say to her?]

[I hope she has a not-so-good tomorrow!]

While on the phone, Ling Xi’s eyes were fixed on Qiao Bo’er, as if challenging her: Little girl, you can’t touch me this time, can you?

After hanging up, the host paused for a few visibly awkward seconds but still played the song Ling Xi requested—’You Won’t End Up Well.’

Qiao Bo’er couldn’t be bothered to fuss with Ling Xi. She crossed her long legs, casually rested her hands behind her, and quietly watched Ling Xi’s self-satisfied look.

Her fiery red lips parted gently, delivering a pointed remark: “How about a bet on when you’ll receive the next phone call that will make you deeply regret this?”

Ling Xi stared at her blankly, not quite understanding what she meant, but wondering why Qiao Bo’er wasn’t angry.

That’s not right! This wasn’t the effect she wanted!

“I won’t answer the phone, because I’m sick. What kind of sickness do I have? I have neurosis, neurosis, neurosis, NEU-RO-SIS! I won’t answer the phone…”

Ling Xi’s quirky phone ringtone suddenly blared through the entire pergola. Seeing that it was Director Chen calling, her heart sank.

Qiao Bo’er nudged her lips provocatively: “Hurry up and answer the phone, Neurosis.”

Ling Xi’s face turned pale. She slowly answered the call: “Uh… Hello?”

There was no need to turn on the speakerphone; Director Chen’s roar came straight through the receiver: “Ling Xi! That song on the campus broadcast was your request, wasn’t it? Principal Wang is right here with me, and he heard everything clearly! What the devil did you dedicate to General Manager Qiao?!”

“I…”

Qiao Bo’er heard every word of Director Chen reprimanding Ling Xi.

She walked behind Ling Xi and leaned down slightly, positioning her cheek perfectly close to Ling Xi’s ear, making it convenient to talk to Director Chen. However, the posture of holding her from behind was somewhat laced with an ambiguous closeness.

Ling Xi’s back stiffened, not daring to move, and her earlobes instantly turned crimson.

The scorching, swelling sensation of her ear touching Qiao Bo’er’s cool cheek was surprisingly comforting yet also ticklish.

Qiao Bo’er also felt Ling Xi’s hot ears. With a touch of mischief, she rubbed her cheek against it again, and her breath carried that unforgettable perfume scent: “Director Chen, Associate Professor Ling was just joking with me. I don’t mind at all. There’s no need to blame her.”

Soon, the busy signal of a hung-up call came through the receiver.

Qiao Bo’er, however, showed no intention of pulling away. She gently and deliberately blew near Ling Xi’s ear, causing the little lazy cat to instinctively shiver.

Ling Xi had a tearful look and screamed internally, This is not fun, not fun at all! I won this battle but lost the entire war. Everything I do ends up with me losing. Why?!

Qiao Bo’er KO’d Ling Xi. Perfect victory, undefeated!

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