At the award ceremony’s final segment, naturally, it was time for everyone to gather for a group ‘photo op.’
So, the crucial task of photography fell into the hands of our best cameraman, Brother Ouyang, who sketched as if he were a human printing machine.
Everyone stood in front of the podium, each holding a little gold trophy. After all, even Xu Xiaoer managed to snag the ‘Best Atmosphere Group’ award.
Oh…
Little Jiang’s hands were empty.
She nervously fiddled with her skirt, standing at a distance holding her little backpack, gazing on with envy and longing.
She didn’t go with Brother Li to the Listening Wind Pavilion.
So… no award for her.
Actually, she half-hoped to get little Brother Li’s attention; like, who wouldn’t want to toss something away just to pick it back up again…
But looking at that shiny little trophy, it seemed like waiting was in vain…
Thud—
Suddenly, a little gold trophy dropped to the ground.
Jiang Chulong looked up in bewilderment.
There was Li Mo, looking up at the sky, scratching his head, “Where’s my little trophy?”
Jiang Chulong picked it up, about to say something when she noticed Li Mo winking at her.
“Chulong gets an award too!”
“What… what is it?”
“Have you been picking up trash often?”
“Um… yeah.”
“Congratulations! You’ve taken the lead in environmental hygiene awareness! You definitely deserve a big reward!”
Actually, picking up trash was just Chulong’s personal hobby.
When she got pulled over, she felt both happy and a bit embarrassed.
Everyone stood together.
“Smile, everyone!”
Casually snagging her little trophy from Ying Bing’s hands, Li Mo instinctively made a call.
In a flash of memories from his previous life, his family used to take family portraits every year.
Standing with everyone now really felt like that moment of capturing the family portrait.
Emmmm
Just thinking about it made him smile.
Li Mo glanced at the person next to him struggling to smile—Ying Bing.
How had everyone fallen into this odd predicament?
“What’s wrong?”
Jiang Chulong turned her head, her delicate body suddenly jolted.
Ying Bing’s fake smile…
So terrifying!
How to make that Ice Chunk smile quickly? This had to be the biggest challenge of the ceremony.
“I tried my best.”
Ying Bing’s expression returned to neutral, strangely it seemed softer that way.
“Yeah, you really did…”
Li Mo thought about how laughter wasn’t something easy to resolve with effort.
Telling a joke like last time wouldn’t work either.
But.
He was a genius and quickly came up with an idea.
Li Mo looked at the delicate, fine waist of the girl.
Girls have a special sensitive spot, can you guess what it is?
3…
2…
1…
Yes, it’s the ticklish flesh!
Taking her by surprise, Li Mo launched a sneak attack!
Smack…
By the way.
Don’t let that Ice Chunk’s coldness fool you; her touch was surprisingly soft and comforting…
“If you don’t like it, don’t touch me….”
Ying Bing’s half-finished sentence abruptly stopped as she pressed her lips together to swallow it down.
A tingling sensation jolted through her waist, flowing through her body like electricity, causing her fingers to curl involuntarily, even making her slightly retract her neck.
Looking down, she found the young man raising his head with hopeful eyes.
“Did you laugh?”
“……”
Ying Bing was silent.
“!”
Seeing the frosty glare in her phoenix eyes, Little Li suddenly realized something.
Oh, it seemed not every bright idea of mine turned out to be genius…
And just then, the soft flesh at her waist was pinched, pivoting 180 degrees.
For his sneak attack.
Ying Bing decided to disregard the unspoken rules.
“Let go, let go… hiss….”
Li Mo gasped and covered her icy little hand, yet the tighter he held her, the more she squeezed.
Qian Bufan couldn’t bear to watch: “…… Ahh.”
Xue Jing was laughing heartily, “Tsk tsk, ha…”
Shang Wu suddenly relieved a chuckle: “Haha… you little rascal.”
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Among them, Ouyang and Shen Yunfei fell into deep thought.
They suddenly felt that, if they appeared in that drawing, they might seem quite unnecessary.
Jiang Chulong was a little anxious.
Xu Xiaoer, on the other hand, revealed a wise expression.
No need to mind him, he’s a weirdo.
Ouyang was still sharp, swiftly picking up the brush.
And so, this moment was forever frozen in time.
He even kindly included himself in the drawing.
…
That night.
On the tavern’s rooftop.
“Was I like this at that time?”
Ying Bing stared blankly.
Looking at her portrait, her once-cold eyes warmed slightly, a hint of playful annoyance on her face as she tightly pinched Li Mo’s soft flesh.
Actually, this question didn’t require much analysis.
Elder Qian’s helplessness in the painting, Elder Xue’s satisfaction, Shang Wu’s sour face, Jiang Chulong’s caution, the tactical retreat of everyone…
All were recent events that had just unfolded.
Especially him.
That moment of gasping and grimacing while covering his waist was vividly replaying in her mind.
“Go with the flow…”
Ying Bing sipped her tea, a smile creeping onto her lips.
Why be puzzled?
Wasn’t she harmoniously included in this scene?
“But next time, I have to tell him not to randomly touch girls…”
Recalling that sensation, there was an involuntary shiver creeping down her neck.
By the way, this time there was no strange phenomenon.
Why did it feel just like when they were sword sparring before…
【Ding-dong—】
Hey, how coincidental.
A reminder popped up again.
【Time until next ranking comparison: 1 day.】
【Punishment for requesting gentle touch: Excess of 80% area….】
Meanwhile.
Ying Bing initially thought nothing of it.
But the earlier sensation lingered, refusing to fade away…
Some things are just like this.
The more you try to forget, the more they embed themselves deeply in your mind.
………
On the other side.
In the tavern’s private area, by the Dragon and Tiger stove.
“Ah….”
Li Mo laid the painting on his knees, waiting for his precious little senior and Elder Xue.
Today, he intended to gather the last of the seven mysterious elements.
Then he could try the Heavens-toppling stance.
“What’s wrong, Junior Brother Li?”
Ouyang wandered by and found him sighing.
He couldn’t understand.
Someone like Junior Brother Li actually had worries?
“I was thinking, even geniuses have times of confusion.”
“What’s the problem?”
Ouyang considered himself a genius, especially since he was so many years older.
He should be able to enlighten Junior Brother Li and rescue this lost lamb.
“Ouyang, do you understand what’s going on in a girl’s mind?”
“You’ve painted so many beauties; you should understand this aspect pretty well, right?”
Li Mo sighed.
Yet he noticed Ouyang had fallen silent.
Turning around.
He found Ouyang staring at him with lifeless eyes, full of resentment, like a ghost.
“What the heck.”
“Hmm??”
“A hopeless romantic? What’s good about real-life girls? The little ladies in paintings are way better.”
“……”
Li Mo fell silent.
He didn’t know why Ouyang’s reaction was so intense.
It seemed he had unknowingly birthed the first ‘two-dimensional teenager’ in the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths…
Little Li then changed the subject:
“By the way, Ouyang, why are you also in the painting?”
“Naturally, it’s about controlling the pen with one’s aura.”
“Huh?”
“Is it strange to control a sword with aura?”
“Normal.”
“Then, controlling a pen with aura to let it paint by itself, what’s unreasonable about that?”
“……. Makes sense.”
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