“Sister Xin? What’s up with you today? Still upset about what happened yesterday?”
As soon as class ended, Wang Haozhe followed Lin Jiaxin, buzzing around her with questions.
He’d actually felt a bit down when he went home last night, but it wasn’t that bad.
After all, he had a pretty clear understanding of his own abilities.
Managing to steal two times was already exceeding expectations.
“No… I’m just thinking about something else.”
Lin Jiaxin stood in the hallway, watching the dispersing crowd, and shook her head softly.
“Are you sure you’re okay?”
“I’m fine.”
“Then… can we still hang out together in the future?” Wang Haozhe’s eyes lit up.
He’d been worried the entire class, afraid that Lin Jiaxin would think he was too weak to keep up and wouldn’t want to play with him anymore.
But Lin Jiaxin just shook her head at him: “No, I’m still too trash.”
“…Huh?”
Wang Haozhe was stunned for a moment.
That kind of talk shouldn’t have come out of Lin Jiaxin’s mouth—she never admitted defeat.
“It’s fine, none of that matters. What matters is, if I don’t message you by ten o’clock tonight, please help me tell the Security Department that I went out with Shen Yan, a second-year student from the Magic Cultivation Department. I’ll send you my location later.”
Lin Jiaxin suddenly turned around and spoke to Wang Haozhe with grave seriousness.
After all, the Security Department at Southwest United University held authority and responsibility equal to the Police Department, and they were legally allowed to use force when responding to incidents.
Even though Lin Jiaxin really wanted that high-level pass to the Qi Gathering Tower, she couldn’t skimp on precautionary measures.
Who knew what that Riddler Shen Yan was really thinking when he invited her?
“Shen Yan? Is he a friend of Sister Xin? I…”
Wang Haozhe wanted to ask more, but Lin Jiaxin just stared straight into his eyes.
He hesitated for a moment, then nodded seriously and agreed: “Alright, Sister Xin, don’t worry. I’ll do it.”
“Then I’m counting on you… good brother, I’ll treat you to a meal next time. I’m heading off now!”
A trace of a smile finally appeared on Lin Jiaxin’s face as she patted his shoulder, then walked away with the resolve of someone marching off to certain death.
Leaving Young Phoenix Brother Wang Haozhe standing there dumbfounded, watching her figure disappear at the end of the hallway.
What a tragic and solemn back view!
—
At 4:30 PM, Lin Jiaxin arrived at the school gate right on time.
Shen Yan had already been waiting there for a long while.
The moment he saw Lin Jiaxin, a smile immediately spread across his face:
“You’re here.”
“I’m here.”
“You did come after all.”
“I did come after all—”
Lin Jiaxin stopped mid-sentence, suddenly realizing something was off, and raised her hand to halt the conversation:
“I did come, didn’t I? Didn’t you say you’d trade the Qi Gathering Tower high-level pass for an afternoon of my time to go with you to that so-called salon?”
“Are you tricking me?”
“How could I?”
Shen Yan smiled as he stepped back, then reached out to open the door of the black car parked behind him, bending slightly toward Lin Jiaxin:
“Come, after you?”
“…”
Lin Jiaxin frowned, giving him a thorough once-over.
A suit jacket, hair slicked back, paired with seven-quarter shorts and brown leather shoes—all he needed was a brick-sized cell phone.
The whole look was unbearably flashy.
“What do you mean? We’re taking a car? Where exactly are we going?”
Lin Jiaxin fired off her three soul questions.
Shen Yan shrugged in response: “The villa district in West City, of course. It’s a private salon… You’re not planning to walk there on foot, are you?”
Lin Jiaxin was silent for a moment, but eventually got in and sat in the back seat.
The seat was soft and comfortable to sit on.
But she had no intention of enjoying it.
By the time Shen Yan settled into the driver’s seat, Lin Jiaxin finally couldn’t hold back:
“Shen Yan, let me reiterate our agreement.”
“First, I’m not here for this so-called salon. The moment I see the person you want me to see, I’m leaving.”
“Second… you can give me the pass right now.”
Shen Yan didn’t turn around, simply reaching into his coat pocket to pull out the small card and handing it back to Lin Jiaxin without looking.
“I always keep my promises.”
“But I guarantee you’ll be interested in her.”
“…”
Lin Jiaxin just put the card into her bag, then turned her head to watch the receding scenery outside the window, ignoring him.
Shen Yan wasn’t bothered and continued driving calmly.
An odd, eerie silence filled the car.
She didn’t know how long they drove.
In Lin Jiaxin’s eyes, the houses around them grew shorter, the roads narrower, and the traffic sparser.
Finally, they pulled into an open parking lot next to a large villa that stood out clearly from the surrounding houses.
Lin Jiaxin noticed the gilded characters on the house’s plaque.
[Qin Mansion]?
“We’ve arrived… Miss Lin, please step out?”
Shen Yan grabbed an umbrella, quickly got out of the car, and under the curious gazes of a crowd of drivers.
He first trotted over to open the door for Lin Jiaxin, then held an umbrella with his left hand while extending his right hand as a handrail, standing there quietly waiting.
Shen Yan clearly knew that Lin Jiaxin was the type to care greatly about appearances, so he made sure to give her plenty of fanfare.
“…”
But seeing this, Lin Jiaxin’s toes involuntarily curled against the soles of her shoes.
Sudden onset of an illness, is it?
Well… not gonna lie, even though it was a bit awkward.
Shen Yan actually played the role of a loyal lackey pretty convincingly?
“Can you drop the act?”
Lin Jiaxin clicked her tongue and rolled her eyes at him.
Then she nimbly got out of the car herself, reached up, and patted Shen Yan’s shoulder:
“Shen Yan, you know what? I actually preferred your arrogant, rebellious attitude from this morning. Can you go back to that a bit?”
“Sure can.”
Hearing this, Shen Yan instantly switched back to that sly fox-like smile, just like Sichuan Opera face-changing.
He also closed the umbrella and tossed it back into the car.
After getting out, Lin Jiaxin finally got a proper look at everything around her.
She couldn’t tell the exact footprint of the main building.
But the outer grounds were pretty well maintained.
Outside the main gate was an open private parking lot, filled with luxury cars like Zeekr, NIO, and Li Auto.
There was also a small fountain nearby, partially blocked by several haphazardly parked cars.
All she could say was that the scale here truly lived up to the title of “Mansion.”
“Alright, let’s go.”
Shen Yan finally locked the car, straightened his tie, and led Lin Jiaxin through the narrow gaps left between the messily parked cars, making their way toward the main gate.
Along the way, people kept greeting him.
And Shen Yan smiled, responding to each one in turn.
“…”
Watching Shen Yan briefly become the center of attention in the parking lot.
She didn’t know why, but she felt a sudden flicker of irritation in her heart—one she couldn’t explain even to herself.
Lin Jiaxin vaguely felt that this “spotlight” should have been on her instead.
But the feeling faded quickly.
Because upon reaching the main entrance, there were even more people—many dressed in gorgeous attire with striking styles.
Shen Yan instantly became a nobody.
No one paid attention to him anymore.
And he stopped greeting anyone, simply flashing his face for entry before leading Lin Jiaxin inside.
So this tiny sliver of unease in her heart went completely unnoticed by Lin Jiaxin.