Student Union Office, Friday after school.
Su Qing looked at the message she had just sent on her phone screen: “Study Representative Shen, regarding the Specialized Guidance Materials for Elite Students for the Gaokao, I need your assistance in organizing and verifying some documents. If it is convenient, please come to the Student Union Office after school.”
The recipient: Shen Qingyue.
This reason was perfectly logical. As the student ranked first in her grade, it was only natural for Shen Qingyue to help organize materials for elite students.
5 minutes later, a reply arrived: “Alright, President. I should be there in about 15 minutes.”
Su Qing put down her phone and began to prepare methodically.
She took a pink-and-white aromatherapy machine out of her drawer.
It was already filled with a specially prepared essential oil. The scent was light, carrying a blend of lavender and sandalwood.
It was said to help people relax.
(Of course, in her hands, it could assist with much more than just “relaxing.”)
She checked the miniature voice recorder hidden in the corner of the bookshelf once more to ensure it had a full charge.
Then, she took a small aromatherapy spray bottle from her bag and gave the air two light sprays.
It smelled of fresh grass, but it was designed to further lower a person’s psychological defenses.
After finishing these tasks, she sat back in the President’s chair and picked up a file.
(￣︶￣) ‘Preparation complete.’
15 minutes later, there was a knock at the door.
“Come in.”
The door pushed open, and Shen Qingyue walked in. She was wearing her school uniform neatly, her ponytail was tied meticulously, and she held several notebooks and a stationery bag in her arms.
“President,” she said with a nod of greeting. Her voice was cool and gentle, as always.
“Thank you for your hard work, Qingyue,” Su Qing stood up and offered a standard, presidential smile. “The materials are on that table over there. There are quite a few, so we should get started right away.”
She pointed to the conference table near the window, which was indeed piled with many folders.
Shen Qingyue walked over, set her things down, and naturally began to flip through the documents.
Su Qing walked to her side and casually turned on the aromatherapy machine. “The weather has been dry lately; this will add some humidity.”
A fine white mist curled upward, carrying a faint fragrance that diffused through the air.
The two of them began to work. Initially, the atmosphere was normal, filled only with the sound of turning pages and the occasional scratch of a pen.
While Su Qing organized the files, she observed Shen Qingyue out of the corner of her eye.
Her profile was focused, her eyelashes were long, and her nose was dainty.
She truly did have an academic aura that put people at ease.
（*￣︶￣） ‘Hmph, she’s putting on quite an act.’
“By the way,” Su Qing suddenly spoke, her voice very soft and gentle, “the Physics Tutoring Group has been going well lately, hasn’t it? Lin Mo has made great progress.”
Shen Qingyue’s movements paused for a moment. “It is the result of everyone’s collective effort.”
“That guy, Lin Mo, has been a handful since we were kids,” Su Qing sighed, her tone as intimate as if she were complaining about her own younger brother. “He isn’t stupid; he’s just lazy and lacks focus. It’s rare that he’s been able to settle down and study with you.”
As she spoke, her fingers unconsciously tapped on the table. The rhythm was light but followed a certain suggestive pattern.
Shen Qingyue looked up at Su Qing with a hint of confusion in her eyes, but she quickly looked back down. “Lin Mo is working very hard.”
“He is. And the way he looks when he’s being serious…” Su Qing’s voice became lighter and slower, “He’s actually quite cute, isn’t he?”
The white mist from the aromatherapy machine drifted slowly between them.
Shen Qingyue blinked. She felt as if her vision was becoming… a bit blurry? Was it because she had been staring at the documents for too long?
“Qingyue,” Su Qing’s voice sounded as if it were drifting in from far away, “are you tired? Do you want to take a break?”
“I… I’m okay.” Shen Qingyue tried to shake her head, but she felt her mind becoming heavy.
“Look into my eyes,” Su Qing’s voice suddenly took on a peculiar rhythm. “You are very tired… you have been studying since this morning, helping teachers, and now helping me… just relax…”
Shen Qingyue’s gaze was drawn toward her involuntarily.
She saw Su Qing’s eyes.
“Yes, just like that…”
“Breathe slowly… in… and out… You are safe, and it is very quiet here…”
Shen Qingyue’s breathing gradually synced with the rhythm. Her eyelids grew heavier.
（*＾3＾）/～☆ ‘Step one, complete.’
“Now, listen to me,” Su Qing whispered in a very low voice.
“Your feelings for Lin Mo… they are merely sympathy for an academic slacker. It is just mutual assistance between classmates. Beyond that, there is nothing. You have no special thoughts about him, no racing heart, no blushing… no feelings that exceed the boundaries of being classmates.”
She spoke one word at a time, her mental power slowly penetrating with her speech.
“Those moments you think are ‘special’… him taking your pen, him asking you questions, the two of you walking together… they were all just ordinary interactions between classmates. They were very common, very normal, and have no special meaning worth remembering.”
Shen Qingyue’s eyelashes trembled slightly, and her brow furrowed as if she were resisting something.
Su Qing increased her mental output.
“The doodles in your notebook… they were just random scribbles. They have no meaning. They are unrelated to anyone or any memory. They were just… random strokes from when you were bored.”
At this point, Su Qing began to ramp up her mental influence even further.
（｀へ´） ‘This is the key point.’
Shen Qingyue’s breathing grew rapid, and fine beads of sweat broke out on her forehead.
“Relax…” Su Qing reached out and lightly pressed her hand onto Shen Qingyue’s shoulder. “Forget those thoughts that shouldn’t be there. This is for your own good, and for his.”
She paused, and almost instinctively, she uttered the line she had practiced many times in her head:
“This is for Lin Mo’s own good, and for yours as well.”
At that exact moment—
Shen Qingyue suddenly snapped her eyes open!
Her eyes lacked focus, but they were filled with instinctive resistance. Her body also began to tremble violently.
“No…” she blurred out the syllables, “It’s not… like that…”
Su Qing was startled. Shen Qingyue’s mental resistance was much stronger than she had anticipated!
“Look at me!” Su Qing tried to re-establish control, her voice taking on a commanding tone.
But as if driven by some self-preservation mechanism, Shen Qingyue suddenly stood up. Her chair slid backward, letting out a sharp, grating sound against the floor.
Shen Qingyue staggered back, her eyes chaotic and terrified.
“You… what are you doing to…” She looked at Su Qing, her hands waving wildly in the air.
“Calm down!” Su Qing took a step forward, wanting to hold her steady.
However, Shen Qingyue’s legs gave way—
*Bang!*
Her forehead slammed hard against the corner of the nearby bookshelf!
Time seemed to freeze for a moment.
Then, Shen Qingyue’s body went limp and she slid to the ground. A cut had opened on her brow, and bright red blood seeped out quickly, trailing down her pale cheek.
Her eyes began to glaze over as she lost consciousness entirely.
(°Д°)!!!
Su Qing froze where she stood, her mind going blank.
Blood… there was so much blood…
She didn’t mean for this to happen! She only wanted to hypnotize her, only wanted her to “forget” the feelings she shouldn’t have! She didn’t mean—
*Clang—*
A sound came from the doorway.
Su Qing whipped her head around.
The office door had been pushed open. Lin Mo stood at the entrance holding a document, his expression shifting from confusion to shock, and then to… an unbelievable horror.
His gaze swept over Shen Qingyue lying on the ground, across the blood on her forehead, and finally fixed on Su Qing’s face.
She was standing right next to Shen Qingyue, the expression on her face not yet having time to switch from “astonishment” to “explanation.”
Their eyes met.
The air was deathly silent.
“I…” Su Qing opened her mouth, her voice dry. “I didn’t push her… she, she fell on her own…”
Even as she said the words, she felt they were hollow and weak.
Lin Mo didn’t say a word. His gaze shifted from her face to Shen Qingyue on the floor. Then, he rushed over and knelt down.
“Shen Qingyue? Shen Qingyue!” He tried calling her name, lightly patting her cheek with his hand.
There was no response.
Lin Mo looked up at Su Qing, his eyes filled with suspicion and interrogation.
“What did you do to her?”
“I just… wanted to talk to her…” Su Qing instinctively took a step back, and the aromatherapy machine fell to the floor with a *thud*, rolling aside.
Lin Mo’s eyes followed the machine, his brow furrowed deeply. Then, he noticed a small, black cylindrical object on the floor next to Shen Qingyue.
It was the voice recorder. It had been shaken loose from its hiding place when Shen Qingyue hit the bookshelf.
Lin Mo reached out and picked it up. Su Qing tried to stop him, but it was too late.
He pressed the play button.
After a brief burst of static, Su Qing’s voice came through clearly:
“This is for Lin Mo’s own good, and for yours as well.”
The recording cut off right there.
But those words were enough.
Lin Mo gripped the recorder tightly.
He raised his head and looked at Su Qing, the warmth completely gone from his eyes.
“Su Qing,”
“Explain this.”
“What is this?”
Su Qing stood frozen, looking at the coldness in Lin Mo’s eyes, looking at the unconscious Shen Qingyue on the floor, and hearing her own voice saying “for your own good” on the recorder…
She suddenly realized—
(；一_一) ‘It’s over.’
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