Transform into a magical girl after getting off work-Chapter 562 - 123 Friendship Proof Meeting

The chocolates Xia Liang made were clearly more refined in terms of appearance than Bai Jingxuan's. Although Lin Xiaolu could only see the half-finished products, the deliberate shaping into leaf-like patterns and the slightly warped surface designs all showcased the effort and care of the creator.

"Wow, impressive! You really made something that looks the part."

Standing at Xia Liang's workstation, Lin Xiaolu tried to make sense of the design. "This shape... is it a leaf? Or a flower?"

"It's Heart's Gem."

As Xia Liang wiped her hands with a towel, she chuckled lightly and explained, "What you're looking at now is modeled after your Heart's Gem, so the shape resembles a budding sprout."

"Ah, I see! No wonder it looks a bit off—it's my Heart Bud..."

Lin Xiaolu rubbed her chin and nodded thoughtfully. Then, she belatedly realized something and looked at Xia Liang. "Wait, mine?"

"What else? Xiao Xuan can make chocolates for you, so why can't I?"

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Xia Liang shrugged. "Valentine's Day is all about giving chocolates to people you like, isn't it? So I made one for each of you."

"It's just... unexpected."

Lin Xiaolu shook her head. "That rascal Bai Jingxuan is still just a kid, so she can casually say things like 'I like everyone.' But I thought someone as mature as you would take it more seriously—maybe believe that 'chocolates should only go to the one you like most' or something."

"It's not like we're truly confessing to someone of the opposite sex. Why overthink it?"

Hearing Lin Xiaolu's judgment, Xia Liang rolled her eyes. "Or better yet, who says me giving you chocolate is just about some broad custom? What if I actually like you?"

"Ah, um..." Lin Xiaolu blinked before her calm tone abruptly rose. "…What? What did you just say?"

"I said, I genuinely like you."

Xia Liang repeated with a hint of exasperation, "Is that such a terrifying thing? Why are you acting like you've seen a ghost?"

"Y-You like me?"

The open declaration startled Lin Xiaolu so much that she pointed at herself in disbelief, chaotic thoughts swirling in her eyes like whirlpools. "This... this is... but I—I only think of you as an ordinary friend..."

"And I like you as a teammate and friend too. What's the issue there?"

Xia Liang initially found Lin Xiaolu's reaction puzzling but quickly realized what she had misunderstood. Her lips curled into a mischievous smile. "Or did you think it was a different kind of 'like'? Are you getting all romantic now?"

"Huh? What romance? That's impossible!"

Lin Xiaolu snapped out of her daze and immediately retorted, "Of course I knew it was just between friends! It's your odd way of saying things that's the problem!"

"Oh, so you did know it was about friendship?"

Xia Liang blinked innocently, her eyes suddenly flickering with mock despair as her eyebrows lowered. She adopted a sorrowful expression. "So, are you saying you don't see Xiao Xuan and me as your friends? That we shouldn't like you or don't deserve your friendship?"

"How did you even come to such a conclusion?" Lin Xiaolu's eyes widened.

"Sigh, I thought after everything we've been through over the past year—fighting side by side, pulling all-nighters together—we'd already become closer than blood sisters. But I guess in your heart, I'm not even worthy of being called a friend."

Xia Liang lowered her gaze slightly, pretending to wipe away tears. "How heartless of you, Xiaolu."

She didn't attempt any masterful acting, making it easy even for Lin Xiaolu to see through the performance. Xia Liang even deliberately flipped her hair to reveal the earrings Lin Xiaolu had gifted her on her birthday. Yet, when Lin Xiaolu tried to refute, she found that she was inexplicably on the losing side of the argument, her face twisting in helpless frustration as though she'd bitten into a bitter insect.

Smack!

To make matters worse, Bai Jingxuan had somehow noticed the ruckus. Walking up behind Lin Xiaolu, she smacked her on the shoulder:

—"Don't bully Sister Xia Liang!"

Then, she delivered her own "verdict of justice."

Lin Xiaolu's expression darkened even further.

She glared at Xia Liang, who was still pretending to cry. Xia Liang, in turn, shamelessly stuck out her tongue at her mid-"sobbing," which only made Lin Xiaolu even more furious. Yet, Xia Liang's blatant "I dare you to comfort me" demeanor was so obvious that even Lin Xiaolu knew the only way forward was to go along with it.

"...It's all just a misunderstanding."

Taking a deep breath, Lin Xiaolu grudgingly muttered, almost under her breath, "I've always considered you two my friends."

"So half-hearted." Xia Liang commented dryly.

"Fake." Bai Jingxuan puffed her cheeks in exaggerated disapproval.

"Ugh..."

Receiving such poor reviews, Lin Xiaolu pursed her lips. "I'm not lying! Of course I think of you as my friends!"

"What do you think?" Xia Liang, now too lazy to pretend to cry, stood beside Bai Jingxuan, acting as if they were judges in consultation.

"I don't buy it. She's always picking on me." Bai Jingxuan's critique was clearly tinged with personal grievance.

"You two know perfectly well I'm telling the truth!"

Lin Xiaolu's face turned bright red. "You're just using this as an excuse to mess with me!"

"No off-topic arguments, Contestant Lin Xiaolu," Xia Liang said, raising a finger to adjust an imaginary pair of glasses on her nose. "What we need now is proof, not excuses."

"Exactly!" Bai Jingxuan jumped in to back her up.

"What kind of proof could you possibly need for this?"

Lin Xiaolu was genuinely upset now, pointing at Xia Liang. "You know very well that I hardly have any friends at school! If I really do have friends outside of school, who else could it be besides you two? Am I supposed to conjure friends out of thin air?"

"Oh, Contestant Lin Xiaolu has presented a rather convincing argument," Xia Liang clapped for her and turned to Bai Jingxuan. "What do you think, Doctor Bai?"

"It does seem true... Sister Xiaolu doesn't seem to have many other friends," Bai Jingxuan said with growing sympathy. "She's either heading straight home after school or out on patrol."

"I *do* have friends! Occasionally, I still hang out with people, okay? I'm not that lonely!"

Lin Xiaolu instinctively countered, but catching herself, she lowered her voice, "Anyway, it's close enough! Whether you believe it or not, it's the truth."

"Believe it or not? Doctor Bai, your thoughts?" Xia Liang again asked Bai Jingxuan.

"It seems real enough." Bai Jingxuan nodded affirmatively.

"Yes, I think so too," Xia Liang announced as if bestowing an award. "Although Contestant Lin Xiaolu couldn't convince us with emotional nostalgia—being the spoiled, headstrong girl she is—even if there were tender moments of friendship between us, she doesn't seem to recall them. That said, she tackled the reasoning flawlessly."

Xia Liang opened her arms as if presenting a trophy. "That is, her argument boils down to the undeniable truth: aside from Jiang Yuan, she practically has no other friends at school. If she didn't befriend us, who else would play with her?!"

"You! You're really asking for it!" Lin Xiaolu yelled.

—"Anyway, that's about it for chocolates." After concluding her exaggerated antics, Xia Liang broke into her signature smile and wrapped things up nonchalantly.

"...Huh?" Lin Xiaolu, still rattled by the sudden shift in context, glared at Xia Liang with lingering irritation.

"What I mean is, if you decide to make chocolates but have no inspiration, just recall those emotions from earlier."

Xia Liang patted Bai Jingxuan's head as if it were the most natural thing in the world. "That feeling where you want to convey something to someone, prove it to them, or let them understand your true thoughts—infuse all of that into your chocolate."

"I don't get it. Are you just changing the subject?" Lin Xiaolu arched a brow.

"In other words, use chocolate to express 'how I feel about you.' Like how Xiao Xuan writes messages on hers, and why I specifically imitated your Heart's Gem."

Xia Liang touched her earring again. "Remember how clear it was when you gave me this gift for my birthday? It's that feeling of 'only the two of us would get it.'"

"'Only the two of us would get it'... huh?" This time, Lin Xiaolu genuinely lowered her head in thought.

"Yeah, that's the idea. Now, back to making chocolates, Contestant Lin Xiaolu."

Releasing her hand from Bai Jingxuan's head, Xia Liang smiled. "You know, the judges tonight won't be as easygoing as we are. If you fail to get your feelings across, you'll only have yourself to regret."

"Got it."

After this round of ridiculous but oddly helpful "guidance," Lin Xiaolu seemed to have a clearer direction:

"But, seriously, you were definitely messing with me earlier and just changing the subject again, weren't you?"

There was no response.

The only reply to her question was the sound of two people working at their stations.

"Hey, you two—"