The girl was now truly shocked beyond belief.
Upon learning of the things Lin Shiyu had done in the past, she found the woman more disgusting than ever, but at the same time, she couldn’t help but feel a bit resentful toward a certain someone.
‘That bastard Feng Ge!’
‘He was actually boyfriend and girlfriend with a person like this before?’
‘If they really did have a past, I’ll definitely… break… break off his iron rod!’
‘Yes, yes!’
‘Hmph…’
As these random thoughts swirled in her head, Lin Xinyuan finally felt a bit better.
Beside her, Liu Qingyan hadn’t been paying attention to Tieba lately.
Curious about what post Li Tang wanted Lin Xinyuan to see, she leaned in as well.
After reading it, she was equally shocked, but to be honest… she wasn’t surprised.
Instead, she felt a sense that this was within her expectations.
However, when she saw that Lin Shiyu had actually picked a fight with the girl, Liu Qingyan’s beautiful brows couldn’t help but knit together.
Speaking of which, she had almost been bullied by this Lin Shiyu herself before.
She clearly had no intention of participating in that nonsensical College Beauty Poll… but it seemed that because her initial rating was higher than the other woman’s, the woman liked to come find trouble with her.
But fortunately… there was him…
She had been spared from that bullying…
It was a relief that Xinyuan was saved by him this time as well…
But at the thought of that man and the words he had said, the light in Liu Qingyan’s eyes shifted constantly.
Her mood inevitably sank, but she quickly masked it.
Little did she know, the changes in her expression had already been captured by Li Tang.
“Finished reading?”
Li Tang shifted her gaze nonchalantly, then glared at the girl with great dissatisfaction, her tone becoming much heavier.
“You were bullied and you didn’t even tell me! Do you still consider me a friend?”
Hearing this, Lin Xinyuan felt a bit cramped and embarrassed. She couldn’t help but shrink her neck. “A Tang, I…”
She hesitated to speak, but at that moment, Liu Qingyan also regained her senses.
She patted the girl’s small head, her expression carrying worry.
“Are you injured?”
“No… don’t worry…” Lin Xinyuan hurriedly shook her head, afraid of making her friend worry.
“Hmph, Xinyuan was just lucky this time! She happened to run into someone else!”
Li Tang looked furious, exasperated by her friend’s lack of spirit.
“You must tell me if something like this happens in the future! You dummy!”
As she spoke, she reached out her claws in dissatisfaction, grabbing the baby fat on both sides of Lin Xinyuan’s cheeks and beginning to knead them as punishment.
“Mmph… I won’t… do it again…”
Seeing this scene, Liu Qingyan’s beautiful eyes suddenly brightened, and she felt her own hands becoming a bit itchy.
The girl stared at these two in horror, but she could only let out weak whimpers and endure it all with grief and indignation.
……
Soon, evening arrived.
The wind tonight was cool.
As it brushed against one’s body, the dryness and heat of the day seemed to have mostly dissipated.
“Where are you taking me?”
Being pushed and pulled from both the front and back by the two of them, Liu Qingyan used sign language to ask, her heart full of doubt and dissatisfaction.
“Oh, you’ll find out soon enough!”
Li Tang laughed and played it off, not daring to say too much.
As she spoke, she peeked at the girl. Both of them were a bit hesitant.
Because no matter what, they didn’t know if letting Liu Qingyan and Sun Ce meet was a good or bad thing…
They were also afraid that a rift might form between them because of this.
But it seemed like something that had to be done.
They would see Liu Qingyan looking lost every now and then.
Besides, the girl didn’t seem to have any friends other than them.
Although Lin Xinyuan and the other were much the same…
At least they had boyfriends.
Simply because they didn’t want their friend to continue being so miserable, they had made up their minds!
They wanted to help the girl; it was as simple as that.
Even if the result was unknown, or perhaps already destined to be bad…
But no matter what, they had to try to find out, rather than letting the girl wander in negative emotions all day long.
Facing their perfunctory responses, Liu Qingyan’s heart involuntarily tightened. She felt that something was very wrong.
But she couldn’t bear to refuse them. In the end, she could only accept it helplessly, being ushered forward.
Unknowingly, the three of them soon arrived at the bottom of the Teaching Building of the College of Physical Education.
At this moment, Liu Qingyan finally seemed to realize something.
Her beautiful eyes instantly constricted, and her eyelashes trembled slightly.
She had already guessed it. It was so strange… they all knew…
But she… suddenly didn’t want to refuse.
Thus, the girl fell silent.
She just quietly let herself be led into the open ground floor of the building.
This place was always open.
It was often used as a temporary venue for physical education classes on rainy days, and it was filled with about a dozen ping-pong tables.
Usually, not many people came here, and tonight there didn’t seem to be a soul in sight.
No… there was someone…
Unsurprisingly, as soon as Liu Qingyan arrived, a very familiar back caught her eye.
But she didn’t choose to run away this time.
With her eyes flickering, she turned her head to look at the two people beside her, as if asking for an explanation.
Under the girl’s gaze, Lin Xinyuan felt slightly embarrassed.
Li Tang was much the same; no matter how thick-skinned she was, she felt this whole thing was far too awkward.
Their gazes began to dodge, but they didn’t let go of her hands, as if afraid she would run away.
But to their surprise, Liu Qingyan only shook her head slightly.
Her gaze was helpless and conflicted, but there was no sign of anger in her eyes.
Seeing her attitude, Lin Xinyuan and Li Tang were instantly relieved and only then dared to slowly let go.
“Listen… uh… A-Yan, you two talk first. We’ll go for a walk outside!”
After Li Tang finished speaking, she didn’t wait for Liu Qingyan’s response.
She grabbed the other girl’s hand, and the two of them scurried outside in a panic.
“Xiao Yan…”
As if noticing the movement on their side, the rugged man finally snapped out of his memories.
He turned around, his eyes filled with the long-standing longing he had for the girl.
Even in the somewhat dark open ground floor, Sun Ce’s face appeared sharp and spirited.
When that clumsy gaze, saturated with longing and stubbornness, entered Liu Qingyan’s eyes, her heart jolted.
She seemed to recall the gentle boy beneath that fierce and crude exterior…
That was her first day of school, and it was also the first day they met.
Though she smiled gently, the girl whose heart was full of wounds had met a dull-headed guy…
They gradually became familiar, even reaching a point of mutual understanding, becoming very close friends of the opposite sex.
But the pain in her heart prevented the girl from showing it on the surface; in reality, she was very sensitive toward emotions.
She didn’t dare to respond casually, so the two of them just lingered like that…
After more than a year, although they weren’t boyfriend and girlfriend on the surface, they already had the general appearance of one.
And just when they were about to come completely clean with each other…
That incident happened…
The boy’s words had been sharp and precise, stabbing ruthlessly into her wounded chest, making her recall those experiences.
She ran away…
Of course… he didn’t know. It seemed it was only her own wishful thinking.
The boy had asked her.
But she… was in pain… she didn’t want to speak…
Because Liu Qingyan didn’t know if everything that had happened during that time was real.
Or… if it was all just a lie…
She didn’t dare to think about it, so she willfully chose to escape.
Escape… and escape again…
When would such escaping come to an end?
Liu Qingyan didn’t want to know at all, nor did she want to take the initiative.
But until today, she had been brought before him by her roommates… no… her friends…
Strangely enough, she didn’t refuse this time.
In the gloom, the girl lowered her head, her emotions hidden.
After a long time, she nodded.
“Mhm…”
At this moment, Sun Ce felt the world spinning.
A sudden rush of joy and bitterness flooded his brain, causing him to break into a bright smile, just like the first time they had met.
Although he didn’t know the exact reason, and he didn’t know if they could return to the way things were…
He… was still happy that the girl could respond to him directly!
At the very least, he wanted to understand everything completely.
“I missed you…” Sun Ce’s throat was dry, and he couldn’t help but swallow. “Can we talk…”
“Just like before, let’s sit down, at least for this one time… okay?”
“Okay… Brother Ce…”
“…”
On the other side, behind the ornamental shrubs outside the open ground floor, two girls wearing masks were peeking through the fence at the scene inside.
Seeing the man and woman who were now sitting on the steps together, looking slightly awkward, they were both full of worry and curiosity.
“A-Yan… do you think… they’ll get better…”
The beautiful girl stared with bright eyes, watching the scene with both anticipation and sorrow.
She naturally didn’t know what had happened between those two, but she certainly hoped their relationship would have a perfect ending.
She longed for beauty…
Just like the protagonists in her novels, there were regrets, setbacks, and difficulties… but in the end, they would all head toward a good ending…
So she also wanted her own relationship, and the relationships of those around her, to be just as beautiful…
“Heh… they will.”
“Mhm, that’s good then…”
Lin Xinyuan was happy to be validated, but then she quickly realized that something was wrong with the voice.
It wasn’t Li Tang. This voice… was so familiar…
“Eh?”
She turned her head to look at Li Tang, who had a hesitant expression.
Both of their eyes were filled with confusion, and they quickly turned back toward the source of the voice…