10. The Goddess and the Fairy

Ye Feng considered himself to possess a fairly resilient temperament; ordinary events rarely left him dumbfounded on the spot. But when he opened the door and saw the most unexpected pair standing outside—Ouyang Lanlan and Nan Jing, hand in hand, with Nan Jing poised to push the door open—his mind simply froze. Such a combination of enchantress and goddess was enough to render Ye Feng momentarily speechless.

He felt awkward, uncertain whether to greet them or not. After all, it had been so long since Ouyang Lanlan had called him; perhaps she had already forgotten him. If he greeted her rashly and she responded with, "Who are you?" he'd surely be mocked by Nan Jing standing beside her, and he'd never be able to hold his head high in front of her again.

In the end, it was Ouyang Lanlan who broke the awkward silence. "Ye Feng, where are you off to?"

Ye Feng’s quick wit kicked in. "I happened to see you walking over, so I came to open the door for you."

Nan Jing immediately fired back. "You? Stop flattering yourself. What’s your connection to Lanlan? Why should you open the door for her? A lazy toad dreaming of swan meat..."

These days, Nan Jing seemed to start a quarrel with Ye Feng whenever she saw him. Who knew if she was genuinely still angry or simply found amusement in it.

Ye Feng retorted disdainfully, "I'm talking to Lanlan. Why are you butting in? Isn't there a saying about dogs meddling in others' business..."

The banter between Ye Feng and Nan Jing was almost a routine, and they both seemed to relish this verbal sparring.

Ouyang Lanlan couldn't help but laugh, a sound like a gentle chime. She had never seen Nan Jing treat any boy this way. Clearly, there was something special between her and her savior. The thought brought a slight pang to her heart, and her smile slowly faded.

"Alright, you two, stop bickering. Come inside, it's quite chilly out." With that, Ouyang Lanlan pulled Nan Jing inside, and Ye Feng quickly stepped aside.

The arrival of Ouyang Lanlan and Nan Jing silenced the entire activity center. Both women were breathtakingly beautiful; even one could command the room, let alone both together.

Within seconds, several men abandoned their dance partners and rushed toward Ouyang Lanlan and Nan Jing, hoping for a chance to invite them to dance. The crowd grew, and before long Ye Feng was pushed aside, completely squeezed out of the circle.

Ye Feng was self-aware enough to know neither woman was likely to accept his invitation, so he watched the lively scene from the sidelines, though he couldn’t help feeling somewhat sour inside.

The commotion didn’t last long. The crowd instinctively parted, forming a path that ended right at Ye Feng. Feeling melancholy, Ye Feng glanced around as the room suddenly quieted. To his surprise, Ouyang Lanlan was walking toward him with a bright smile. She stopped beside him and asked, "Won’t you invite me to dance?"

"Uh? Oh..." Ye Feng replied foolishly, extending his hand. "May I?"

He soon felt something warm and soft in his palm as Ouyang Lanlan gracefully placed her hand in his. "I'm not very good at dancing, so please guide me," she said with a smile.

Ye Feng’s heart fluttered as he held her delicate hand, and he couldn’t resist giving it a gentle squeeze. Truth be told, this was the first time in his life he had held hands with a girl—of course, kindergarten didn’t count.

Ouyang Lanlan’s hand was soft and boneless, almost cloudlike to the touch. After Ye Feng mentally shouted a few excited exclamations, he blushed and said, "Actually, I’m not much better. Let’s figure it out together."

"How shameless!" The men nearby were both jealous and frustrated. So this is what they mean by 'all the best cabbages are eaten by pigs,' or 'flowers stuck in... well, you know.' If looks could kill, Ye Feng would have been riddled with holes by now.

Seeing Ouyang Lanlan was out of reach, the men turned their attention to Nan Jing. But ever since Ye Feng led Ouyang Lanlan into the dance floor, her expression had darkened, and after a few brave souls tried their luck and failed, no one dared approach her again.

The music started up once more, and the crowd resumed their dancing with renewed fervor.

Meanwhile, Ye Feng stood there dumbly, holding Ouyang Lanlan’s hand, unsure what to do next. He very much wanted to put his arm around her waist—her upper body was curvaceous, but her waist was as slender as a water snake. He wondered what it would feel like.

Seeing his hesitation, Ouyang Lanlan took the initiative, stepping closer and placing her hand on his waist. She whispered, "Put your hand around my waist!"

When a beauty requests this, Ye Feng could hardly refuse. Embarrassingly, the goddess seemed unconcerned, while he acted like a bashful schoolboy. Oh, how embarrassing! Still, Ye Feng didn’t dare go too far and only placed his hand lightly on her waist. It was soft and springy to the touch—a delightful sensation!

Dancing was no easy feat. At first, the dancers seemed quite smooth, but as more people crowded in, confusion reigned: some couldn’t even tell which foot to move first. The dance floor became a chaotic jumble, and countless toes were trodden upon.

Ye Feng began to sweat. He had never properly learned to dance, only dabbled a bit. He stepped carefully, now with no ulterior motives, because he glanced at Ouyang Lanlan’s nimble feet and her slender high-heeled shoes. Though not a foot fetishist, he felt that stepping on such delicate shoes would be a crime.

Ouyang Lanlan, on the other hand, was clearly trained in dance; her movements were graceful and practiced. Yet, as the saying goes, it’s not the godlike opponent you fear, but the pig-like teammate. With Ye Feng as her partner, her skill was somewhat wasted. Still, at least she didn’t step on his toes.

Nan Jing watched them gloomily from the sidelines. Truth be told, she couldn’t figure out her own feelings. She thought she disliked Ye Feng, but seeing him with another girl—especially one as beautiful as herself—made her heart ache with envy. So she glared at Ye Feng, but eventually burst into a bright smile.

She found their dancing hilarious: both were desperately trying not to step on each other’s feet, resulting in rather disjointed steps. Ouyang Lanlan’s expression was calm, but Ye Feng looked so serious, as if negotiating with an adversary, his brows furrowed into a deep V.

Being at the edge of the dance floor, they heard Nan Jing’s laughter and turned to look at her, instantly understanding the reason for her amusement. Ouyang Lanlan sighed helplessly. "Ye Feng, you don’t have to be so careful. I’m not a tiger—I won’t eat you."

"Alright." Ye Feng relaxed a little at her words, though he was still somewhat nervous. The pair resumed their slow dance.

Then Ouyang Lanlan asked, "Um... Ye Feng, have you been well lately?"

Ye Feng was surprised. What did she mean? If she cared, why hadn’t she called in two months? Still, despite his thoughts, he replied, "Pretty well. Life’s been peaceful."

"Oh, um... I’m embarrassed to say," Ouyang Lanlan blushed slightly. "Could you tell me your phone number again?"

"Ah? Oh, sure." Ye Feng assumed she had deleted his number and was simply asking out of courtesy, so he answered nonchalantly.

"I meant to call you the next day after we met, but when I went to the bathroom in the morning—my foot is still not very convenient—my phone slipped into the toilet. Later I looked for you in the computer science department but couldn’t find you, so I haven’t been able to contact you all this time. Sorry," Ouyang Lanlan explained, sensing Ye Feng’s misunderstanding.

Ye Feng felt as if he’d risen from hell to heaven. So she hadn’t forgotten him—it was just an accident. In today’s world, people are so reliant on electronics; losing a phone makes it impossible to reach anyone. "Don’t worry about it, you don’t owe me anything..."

"Who says I don’t owe you? I owe you my life!" Ouyang Lanlan replied playfully.

Neither noticed that as they chatted, their steps had grown more natural.

After two songs, Ye Feng saw sweat on Ouyang Lanlan’s forehead. "You must be tired. Let’s rest for a bit," he suggested.

"A little, yes. Let’s sit down." Ouyang Lanlan took Ye Feng’s hand and led him toward where Nan Jing was seated.

Once seated, Ouyang Lanlan took out her phone. Ye Feng promptly recited his number again, only to realize Nan Jing beside him was also jotting down his number on her own phone.

For some reason, Ouyang Lanlan had Ye Feng sit between her and Nan Jing, which felt odd to him.

After chatting for a while, Ouyang Lanlan suddenly leaned in close to Ye Feng’s ear and whispered something. Her action made the men watching burn with jealousy; their eyes nearly shot daggers, wishing they could rush over and obliterate Ye Feng.

Ye Feng looked at Ouyang Lanlan in surprise, his eyes full of confusion, because she had just asked him to invite Nan Jing to dance.

Under Ouyang Lanlan's encouraging gaze, Ye Feng stood up and walked over to Nan Jing, extending his hand and saying sincerely, "Miss, may I have this dance?" He was fully prepared for rejection, given Nan Jing's usual antagonism toward him.

Nan Jing was caught off guard. "Why should I dance with you?" she retorted reflexively, but her hand nonetheless slid into Ye Feng’s palm.

Ye Feng was braced for refusal, but unexpectedly she yielded. With a gentle tug, he helped Nan Jing to her feet, and together they stepped onto the dance floor amid a sea of envious, jealous, and resentful gazes.

The music guided them into a slow dance, and surprisingly, these two who never got along moved in perfect harmony.

"You lecher, why did you ask me to dance? Aren’t you worried about your goddess? Someone might snatch her away," Nan Jing teased, her favorite pastime being to poke fun at Ye Feng.

Now was the time to defend his masculine dignity. "My girlfriend isn’t so easily stolen. But how about you—why did you step onto the dance floor with me? Could it be you’ve succumbed to my manly charms?"

"Ugh, as if! You’re so narcissistic. I’d sooner fall for a pig than for you," Nan Jing shot back, never one to admit defeat.

Their banter went back and forth for so long they were nearly parched, but then Ye Feng happened to glance down. The sight only made him thirstier: after the exertion and with Nan Jing’s dress made of slick, heavy fabric, her neckline had slipped lower, revealing a generous amount of cleavage, and even the contours of her upper chest were visible. Ye Feng felt his mouth dry out.

He tried not to look, but couldn’t help himself. After mentally berating himself for his lewdness, he realized he might embarrass himself if he kept staring, so he let go of Nan Jing’s hand. Under her wide-eyed gaze, he reached up and lifted the straps of her dress, pulling the neckline back up, then led her out of the dance floor toward Ouyang Lanlan.

Ouyang Lanlan had just fended off the twenty-first wave of hopeful suitors and, seeing Ye Feng return, laughed. "Back so soon? Why not dance a few more?"

"I'm a bit tired," Ye Feng replied, as expected.

For once, Nan Jing didn’t retort. She simply nodded, "Mm."

Both sat down, and Ye Feng grabbed the nearest bottle of mineral water, gulping down a couple mouthfuls without noticing if it was his own. Meanwhile, Nan Jing’s cheeks flushed.

Ye Feng felt that dancing was exhausting—more tiring than running laps on the sports field.

He’d barely rested two minutes before a voice sounded in his ear: "May I have this dance?"

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