“Honestly, I think it’s normal that you can’t win in this situation,” Zhu Niao said, holding up her chopsticks and gesturing.
“There’s a saying: the current white moonlight can’t beat the previous white moonlight, and the previous white moonlight can’t beat the white moonlight who’s already dead.”
The four of them—well, actually three now—were eating at a small restaurant near the school gate. Hearing Liu Xie’s complaints, Zhu Niao, feeling generous, pulled out a hefty sum to treat the two of them to a luxurious version of Shaxian snacks.
Of course, it was still the alimony she’d just taken from Liu Anran, so Ye Qingchang and Liu Xie didn’t see it as charity. Instead, they thought Zhu Niao was finally showing some conscience.
Yang Shuli had disappeared again during the meal, probably went to eat with Xu Nian. After all, she had just gotten her startup funds from Liu Anran, so she was likely treating Xu Nian to a fancy meal.
Hearing Zhu Niao’s remarks about white moonlights, Ye Qingchang paused mid-bite of her rice bowl.
“I’m not so sure,” Ye Qingchang began her argument. “I still stand by what I said before. I was able to win him over then, and I can do it again. It’s just a matter of time.”
Liu Xie, who was gnawing on a duck leg, suddenly looked up sharply. “Are you talking about the one who claimed she had her own rhythm, then rushed in and got a first kiss, only to end up being kicked to the curb like some random street dog?”
Ye Qingchang was momentarily choked by the comment and couldn’t finish her sentence.
“That’s not it…” she mumbled. “I was drunk and messed up, and besides, Xiao Yi’an should’ve rejected me from the start. If he had accepted, that’d be me misjudging him.”
“You know I’m not talking about that,” Liu Xie said, still chewing on the half piece of duck meat she’d just torn off. “The point is, why did you end up as that random street dog Xiao Yi’an remembers white moonlight as?”
“That’s a matter of timing. I didn’t grasp the right moment to make my move… and the closeness between us wasn’t quite right either… A love master’s work is all about planning—how could I just be some street dog…” Ye Qingchang muttered, as if more formal explanations were about to come out.
Liu Xie and Zhu Niao burst out laughing, filling the little Shaxian snack restaurant with joyful energy.
“Stop laughing,” Ye Qingchang said, feeling her face redden.
Liu Xie and Zhu Niao immediately forced their smiles into stiff lines, as if every muscle on their faces was straining.
“You guys… whatever. Laugh if you want,” Ye Qingchang said, looking at the two laughing so hard they were bent over.
Then Zhu Niao and Liu Xie suddenly stopped. Zhu Niao puffed out her chest and said in a deep voice: “I’m a love master. I have my own rhythm.”
They both burst out laughing again, clutching their stomachs.
“You two never quit, huh,” Ye Qingchang slammed her chopsticks on the table. “Holding onto this one point forever?”
Zhu Niao and Liu Xie exchanged a glance.
Then Liu Xie puffed out her chest this time and said in a deep voice: “I’m an athlete, I’m running the 800 meters.”
Then she flopped face-down on the table like a dead dog.
Zhu Niao and Liu Xie laughed so hard the table shook.
Ye Qingchang found it impossible to keep them from laughing since she herself was starting to crack up.
The three beautiful girls clutching the table, laughing wildly, attracted quite a bit of attention inside the little restaurant.
After a while, when Zhu Niao and the others were about to laugh themselves sick, Ye Qingchang was the first to sit up straight.
Seeing Zhu Niao frantically looking for napkins after spilling her drink, Ye Qingchang almost lost it again.
“This time I’m serious. I really do have my own rhythm,” Ye Qingchang said with authority. “Hmph. Xiao Yi’an—I’ll make sure it’s a one-way trip.”
Zhu Niao and Ye Qingchang tried hard not to laugh.
“I’m not joking this time. I’ve thought carefully about why I failed before. What doesn’t kill me only makes me stronger, got it?” Ye Qingchang tapped the edge of her bowl with her chopsticks, making a crisp sound.
Zhu Niao and Liu Xie sat up straight, their expressions serious, staring intently at Ye Qingchang across the table.
Then Ye Qingchang couldn’t hold back her laughter.
“Stop laughing!” she snapped, suddenly annoyed.
“Weren’t you the one laughing just now?” Zhu Niao said quietly.
“Still talking back?” Ye Qingchang adjusted her glasses, looking even sterner. “Little mouth.”
“Not a word,” Zhu Niao fired back.
Liu Xie twitched at the corner of her mouth. “I just want to finish eating and get back to school before people think we’re crazy.”
“All right, I’ll reluctantly share my battle plan with you,” Ye Qingchang said, finally steering the conversation back on track.
“Listening closely,” Zhu Niao pulled her chair closer, just waiting for an opportunity to laugh at Ye Qingchang.
“I found that the reasons for my previous failure are clear. One, I underestimated my own strength as the white moonlight. But that doesn’t mean the opponent is invincible—it’s just a ghost from the past.”
“Two, I didn’t make good use of my dual identities, which is the most important. From start to finish, I fought alone as Ye Qingchang, the Literature Club president, using just a tiny information gap. I never cooperated with my white moonlight identity.”
“So I’ve decided. I’m going to use my dual identity advantage, letting them complement each other, and make the white moonlight gradually give way to the Literature Club president.”
Ye Qingchang tapped the bowl’s edge again: “Where there’s white moonlight, there can be cinnabar birthmarks. For a love master, this is child’s play.”
Hearing all this, Zhu Niao and Liu Xie, both clueless about romance, barely understood a word.
“So, when will there be results?” Zhu Niao eagerly asked, barely able to hide her anticipation of teasing Ye Qingchang.
“This time it won’t be quick. Last time, rushing caused me to lose everything in one wrong move. So this time, I won’t be so impatient,” Ye Qingchang said, stirring her rice bowl. “Cast a long line to catch a big fish, boil a frog in warm water.”
“Ah, that’s too slow. Can’t we fast-forward to when Number Three totally loses it, accidentally exposes his white moonlight identity, and gets wrecked by Xiao Yi’an?” Zhu Niao lay on the table, bored, her rice now soaked from the spilled drink.
“Are you hoping your brother dies like that?!” Ye Qingchang suddenly reached across the table and gave Zhu Niao a chopping hand strike.
“But it shouldn’t be like that, right?” Liu Xie added softly.
Ye Qingchang’s smile slowly faded.
She knew her good roommates were just trying to cheer her up, and her clumsy attempts to hide her feelings could only fool Xiao Yi’an.
Their way of cheering her up, however, was a bit unusual.
“Number Three, Old Dog once taught me something: sometimes you don’t have to think so much, just survive,” Zhu Niao said, her eyes full of concern. “You’re a normal person, not like him. You’ve done all you can. No need to keep cleaning up his mess now.”
Liu Xie chimed in, “If you’re tired, you don’t have to care so much. If he doesn’t love you, your brothers do. Take a break.”
“Giving up can sometimes be a method too. Bro, you look so worn out. No point forcing yourself. If it’s time to run, just run.”
The cheap fan in the restaurant creaked and squeaked.
“All right,” Ye Qingchang smiled softly. “If I can’t hold on, I’ll give up and stop caring about everything.”
“Right, right! Xiao Yi’an means nothing. He’s disturbed the Heavenly Emperor Ye’s Dao heart and has already chosen the path of death!” Zhu Niao stood up and handed Ye Qingchang a soda can, the half-full drink she’d spilled earlier.
But when she handed it over, she pushed a little too hard, splashing the sticky liquid onto Ye Qingchang’s clothes.
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