Today, Ann Wan didn’t eat any rice, and now she’s reduced her daily training. As a beautiful volleyball player, maintaining her weight is a must, but it’s not easy for her to not eat rice at all.
Ann Wan was drinking congee, and after giving the beef to Liu Chang’an, she added some mushrooms, bean sprouts, and eggs. The flavor was excellent. This restaurant used to specialize in congee, but since it’s located near the school and the people of Junsha are not too fond of congee, they started serving affordable dishes as well.
“When I see you drinking congee, I think of Yunu,” Liu Chang’an said slowly, still eating his rice. This guy is indeed someone who takes his time doing things. “When Shen Fu was playing at Yunu’s house, he got hungry and couldn’t find anything to eat. Yunu quietly pulled Shen Fu’s sleeve and took him to her room, feeding him the congee and side dishes she had secretly prepared. Later, Yunu’s older cousin, Yu Heng, discovered this and teased her: ‘You didn’t have congee, but it turned out you had hidden some away for your husband…’ At that time, Yunu and Shen Fu weren’t married yet.”
“I won’t give you congee.” Ann Wan held the congee bowl in front of her, a bit closer to her body.
“When Shen Fu got smallpox, Yunu didn’t even marry him, and there was nothing she could do. She could only pray for him and fast in his place. It wasn’t until their wedding night that…” Liu Chang’an shook his head with a sigh. “For men, ancient women were more considerate and lovable.”
“I’m very sorry, but this isn’t the feudal society anymore. Don’t expect women to only stay at home, cook, and raise children, revolving around you men,” Ann Wan said with a mocking tone, knowing that Liu Chang’an’s way of thinking was outdated and needed to be changed. “The ‘Floating Life’ was written by Shen Fu, and of course, he would beautify himself. Yunu wasn’t that great. Ancient men were hypocrites, showing affection on the surface while keeping concubines and indulging in wine and women, especially those so-called talented scholars like Su Shi, Ouyang Xiu, and Yuan Zhen.”
“You’re scolding them because they had to memorize too many poems and essays, right?” Liu Chang’an laughed.
“You think ancient men were more romantic? Nowadays, which famous or wealthy person dares to openly take a courtesan as their wife? Ancient men dared to do so.”
“Your interpretation is a bit biased. These days, why wouldn’t someone dare to do it? Fan Zhongyan was indeed enviable, recognizing Jiao Jinlian when she was only eleven or twelve years old. When Jiao Jinlian grew up, he took her as his wife, and she remained chaste, calling herself his ‘wife…’ Later generations of courtesans learned from her, but most didn’t have her fate, nor did they meet someone like Fan Zhongyan.”
“Do you mean ancient men were more emotional and idealistic? Now, would anyone dare to take a courtesan as their wife?”
“You’re misinterpreting again. How could no one dare to do it these days?” Liu Chang’an shook his head. Jiao Jinlian was just a talented woman making a living through her skills, and now many women like her have high social status.
“Besides, why do you admire Fan Zhongyan so much? When did you become a lolicon? Aren’t you someone who likes mature women?” Ann Wan glanced at Liu Chang’an’s phone on the table, which had a fingerprint lock. Ann Wan had borrowed her mom’s phone and secretly browsed her WeChat, but didn’t find Liu Chang’an’s account.
“Sneaking a peek at chat logs is a woman’s nature.”
“I like anyone who looks good, regardless of age.” Liu Chang’an put his phone back in his pocket.
“Pshaw, you’re disgusting. You don’t like anyone who looks good at all.”
“I like whoever I want, and I don’t care if others like me or not.”
“Hurry up and eat, or we’ll be late.”
After finishing their meal, the two of them leaned against the school wall, drinking orange juice under the scorching sun, chatting idly.
Ann Wan finished drinking first and looked at Liu Chang’an, who was still sipping his juice slowly, as if savoring life.
Liu Chang’an handed over the bottle, and Ann Wan put her straw into it, quickly finishing the remaining juice.
“You have a huge lung capacity! I didn’t expect that!” Liu Chang’an laughed in surprise.
“Don’t think you’re the only one with a well-developed chest,” Ann Wan said with disdain, patting her chest and making a humming sound. “I was trying to finish quickly so we wouldn’t be late, waiting for you to finish your juice.”
After saying that, Ann Wan playfully hit Liu Chang’an’s shoulder, teasing him about his chest again.
When they returned to the classroom, Huang Shan brought over a reporter-like person, accompanied by two assistants, and said to Ann Wan, “This is a reporter from ‘Middle School Student’ magazine, and they want to interview you.”
Huang Shan didn’t even bother to warn Ann Wan and Liu Chang’an about their instruction, which had fallen on deaf ears.
Ann Wan nodded, already familiar with handling such situations. “Okay, but we’re about to start class.”
“We won’t take up too much of your time.” The reporter smiled.
Ann Wan winked at Liu Chang’an, pointing to the classroom, where Bai Liu was staring at them, and followed Huang Shan to the head teacher’s office.
Bai Liu was the type of girl who could put her chest on the desk, and her biggest worry was that she couldn’t place her book on the desk because it would make the desk too narrow, and she had to stretch her book or notes as far forward as possible. Otherwise, she would have to lower her head, which would block her view, making it hard to see part of the book or homework.
Ordinary girls or boys couldn’t understand this kind of hardship. Liu Chang’an looked at Bai Liu’s delicate collarbone, and from a genetic and reproductive perspective, his male instincts made him more attracted to girls like her.
Because genes make males more inclined towards females who are more suitable for reproduction and nurturing offspring, giving them a more stable and safe chance of passing on their genes.
Liu Chang’an had always been puzzled by a question: Modern research suggests that to increase variation and create more evolutionary opportunities, genes limit human lifespan, driving more reproduction. So, why do men still have a preference for more curvaceous women from a genetic and reproductive perspective, even when their genes don’t limit their lifespan?
In short, Liu Chang’an genuinely liked more curvaceous women due to physiological needs.
Perhaps modern scientific explanations also have some flaws, Liu Chang’an thought, holding a skeptical attitude towards mainstream ideas in any era. Time would help him filter out the more truthful theories.
Genetic theories couldn’t explain everything, and Liu Chang’an was living proof of that.
“What are you looking at!” Bai Liu covered her chest, her face flushing with anger, glaring at Liu Chang’an.
Qian Ning and Lu Yuan rushed over, asking what was going on.
Bai Liu was too embarrassed to say, still covering her collar.
Liu Chang’an avoided their blows, stretching out his hand to deflect their punches, which ended up hitting each other, causing both of them to cry out in pain.
“You’re overthinking things. I was just looking at Bai Liu’s collarbone, and then my mind wandered off to other things,” Liu Chang’an said with a smile. “What’s going on in your minds?”
“Why did you look at Bai Liu’s collarbone?” Lu Yuan asked, still sulking.
“Should I not breathe? You don’t know that Bai Liu sometimes reads books, and I can even smell the scent of her mouth?” Liu Chang’an said regretfully. “Unfortunately, it’s impossible for me to voluntarily stop breathing. You guys imagine this: the girl you like is sitting with me every day, and her breath and my breath mix together. Isn’t that even more unbearable?”
“What’s the scent in my mouth?” Bai Liu asked, her breathing rapid but trying not to gasp.
“A sweet fragrance.”
Bai Liu opened her mouth, her face still red, but didn’t dare to speak loudly, as girls would naturally find it embarrassing and humiliating to be told they had a scent in their mouth or on their body.
Bai Liu turned her head, flipping open a book at random.
Lu Yuan and Qian Ning felt that Liu Chang’an’s words were unnecessary and that he was being a pervert, but they also felt uncomfortable. When the bell rang, they had to return to their seats.
Liu Chang’an chuckled, thinking that boys were indeed easy to provoke.
“Why is Liu Chang’an so disgusting? How can Ann Wan tolerate him?” Bai Liu wrote a line on her notebook, pushing it over.
“Because we’re both people you dislike, so birds of a feather flock together,” Liu Chang’an wrote in response.
It’s good that the college entrance exam is coming up soon, Bai Liu thought, taking a deep breath.
Bai Liu tore the paper into shreds. Girls like it when others say they have a nice scent, and Bai Liu didn’t want to have a cold war with Liu Chang’an anymore, especially since he seemed to be genuinely devoted to Ann Wan.
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