Chi Yuan soon learned that Xiang Wanyu and Gao Yiren had argued, and he quickly discovered the reason why.
So, after dinner, Chi Yuan called Song Zhiqing out. Song Zhiqing hadn’t hit him in the face, so once he was dressed, he still looked like the campus heartthrob of every girl’s dreams.
The two of them walked along the main road to a lake on the island. Song Chen had originally bought the entire island for the sight of this blue-green lake. Migratory birds often rested there, and at dusk, with the sky full of sunset clouds, sitting on a lounge chair to listen to the wind and watch the birds was one of life’s great pleasures.
But right now, Song Zhiqing and Chi Yuan were clearly in no mood for such leisure. Beneath an exquisite lamppost with a black iron pole entwined with vines, their faces were cold and indifferent.
Chi Yuan stared at his childhood friend. He couldn’t understand why Song Zhiqing had been so extreme lately. No, not just lately—she had been extreme ever since he first started pursuing Ye Yuhuan.
Song Zhiqing was like a gardener, firmly protecting Ye Yuhuan within a safe boundary and allowing no disturbances. Her diligence was enough to nurture the most precious plant in the world.
Was Ye Yuhuan so fragile that she would define any pursuit as harassment?
Chi Yuan didn’t think so, especially not his pursuit.
He was a very popular boy. When his peers first began to dream of love, he was the one they dreamed of.
Song Zhiqing’s reaction was over the top, Chi Yuan thought. If it’s me, she should at least cut me some slack.
To his great disappointment, she didn’t.
Song Zhiqing hadn’t put in a good word for him or helped him deliver gifts. She had even bluntly warned him, showing him no courtesy, that Ye Yuhuan didn’t like him and that he should stop bothering her.
Bothering? What did she mean? In Chi Yuan’s experience, his attention was considered an honor.
From that moment on, he began to suspect that Song Zhiqing liked Ye Yuhuan too. Her claim of pursuing Shangguan Xianxian had to be a front; after all, she didn’t spend her days monitoring Shangguan Xianxian’s suitors.
After Ye Yuhuan told him off, Chi Yuan felt deeply insulted and resolved to teach this rude scholarship student a lesson. He deliberately became even more excessive, sending more flowers, more gifts, and even more saccharine words of love.
You say you hate me? Fine, I’ll give you plenty of reasons to.
He admitted he was being a little childish, but so what? He couldn’t just let someone yell at him for no reason.
Then, Song Zhiqing had sought him out again, her expression cold as she told him to stop.
Chi Yuan recalled what he had said then.
Oh, right—”Don’t act so high and mighty. You just want to fence Ye Yuhuan in so she only has eyes for you.”
Then Song Zhiqing had dragged him to the boxing gym and given him a beating. It had hurt quite a bit.
Chi Yuan had conveniently forgotten the barrage of comments he’d made about Ye Yuhuan not knowing what was good for her right before saying that. He assumed Song Zhiqing had hit him out of shame and anger at being found out.
To be honest, Chi Yuan was quite hurt. They had been friends for so many years, after all. When they were children, their elders had even joked that the two of them should get married when they grew up.
The jokes stopped after Song Zhiqing came out.
Song Zhiqing must like Ye Yuhuan. That’s why, after beating him up, she had said, “Don’t you dare compare me to you.”
In fact, Song Zhiqing had said something else, too: “You’re not worthy of even talking about Ye Yuhuan.”
And Chi Yuan had clearly forgotten that as well. Or perhaps, he simply didn’t think it was important, just as he had always believed Ye Yuhuan’s own wishes were unimportant.
Now, on this night in a foreign land, Chi Yuan looked at the young woman before him, nearly all grown up. Their relationship had actually deteriorated to the point of involving their parents. Chi Yuan’s lips moved. “Can we still make up?”
Song Zhiqing watched him in silence for a few seconds before replying, “No, we can’t.”
Chi Yuan touched the injury on his arm, which still ached. “Don’t you think you went a little too far?” he asked.
“And you don’t think you went too far?”
“What’s the big deal? I’m not the only one. Gao Qingyuan and Xie Jing are just as ostentatious.”
“But you’re my friend. I thought you’d be better than that.”
“You can’t just use our friendship to make an example of me and stop me from pursuing the girl I like.”
Song Zhiqing gave a faint smile, almost imperceptible in the lamplight. She snapped off a dark green twig and studied it for a moment before saying to Chi Yuan, “To Ye Yuhuan, you all are like this twig—just part of the scenery. Not only are you tasteless, but you might even be poisonous. Besides, of all this ‘liking’ you profess, how much of it is real, and how much is just for your ego? I bet you can’t even tell the difference yourself.”
Chi Yuan felt dizzy, as if struck by her long speech. Did Song Zhiqing really have to be so serious?
Fine, he conceded. It was just one Ye Yuhuan. A guy like him would meet plenty of others in the future.
The boy’s usual playful grin returned to his face, just like when they were kids and he’d give her a toy to make up after a fight. “So if I stop liking her, can we be friends again?”
Song Zhiqing shook her head.
“To be honest, I really dislike you right now. So no, we can’t be friends.”
It’s a shame we’ve already grown up, Song Zhiqing thought.
Hearing this, a vein bulged on Chi Yuan’s temple. He turned and walked away, his pride no longer allowing him to sue for peace.
“Song Zhiqing, you’re so unfair.”
Song Zhiqing didn’t reply.
Chi Yuan took a few steps, then turned back, unable to let it go. “You’ve liked Ye Yuhuan for a long time, haven’t you?”
“No, I only started liking her in the last two months.”
“Then why did you do all that before?”
A gentle smile touched Song Zhiqing’s lips, as if she were lost in a cool, night-colored dream. “I promised Ye Yuhuan I would protect her.”
Chi Yuan fell silent for a moment, then left for good.
He thought he was beginning to understand what she had said—he and Song Zhiqing truly couldn’t be compared.
Only when Chi Yuan’s figure had vanished from sight did Song Zhiqing turn and head back toward the villa.
The sea breeze whistled, rustling the leaves of the low tropical shrubs. The fresh scent of vegetation and the salty tang of the ocean mingled in the air, creating an aroma that wasn’t particularly pleasant but was certainly invigorating.
Song Zhiqing recalled the first time she saw Ye Yuhuan’s calm profile. She had been sitting in a corner of the school study hall, surrounded by boys with ulterior motives. Song Zhiqing had been about to take a nap with her head on her desk when the sound of a slap woke her.
The youngest daughter of the Zhao family stood arrogantly before Ye Yuhuan. The boy sitting in front of Ye Yuhuan got up with an embarrassed expression to intervene. As he pushed the Zhao girl toward the door, she spat threats over her shoulder. “A mere commoner dares to seduce my fiancé? If I see you again, I’ll make sure you get kicked out of Qinglin.”
Huh. She seemed to recall the Zhao family was in the pig farming business. Why was this girl talking like she was from a five-hundred-year-old noble line?
Song Zhiqing flicked her hair and walked over to Zhao Meimei. Just as the girl was about to launch into another tirade, Song Zhiqing asked with feigned curiosity, “Is it true what they say? That your family’s secret heirloom is a copy of Postnatal Care for Sows?”
The already noisy study hall erupted into even louder peals of laughter.
Zhao Meimei’s face went pale. She shot Song Zhiqing a glare and ran off, her threats left unfinished. According to the usual script, she was still supposed to call Ye Yuhuan a malicious vixen.
It couldn’t be helped. By then, Song Zhiqing’s reputation as Qinglin’s unbeatable fighter had already spread. That, combined with the prestige of Gao Yiren and Shen Lan, meant she had gathered a crowd of followers and was beginning to look like a proper school tyrant.
Song Zhiqing then shooed away a few more of the flies buzzing around Ye Yuhuan. After the commotion, only a handful of students remained in the study hall.
The air conditioner hummed. She pulled up a stool and sat down beside Ye Yuhuan, asking abruptly but earnestly, “Do you want to be my underling?”
Ye Yuhuan kept her head down in her book, ignoring Song Zhiqing. Even after taking that slap from Zhao Meimei, she had immediately returned to her work as if it were nothing more than a mosquito bite. But a startling red mark bloomed on her fair cheek.
Song Zhiqing said, “Hey.” She wasn’t a patient person, but for some reason, she found herself softening in Ye Yuhuan’s presence.
Song Zhiqing glanced at the notebook on Ye Yuhuan’s desk.
Ah, so her name was Ye Yuhuan.
“Ye Yuhuan, right? Let me tell you, there are plenty of perks to being my underling. For starters, people like that Zhao Meimei will never dare to mess with you again.”
At this, Ye Yuhuan finally looked up, her tea-colored eyes holding an inorganic glint. “What’s the price?”
Huh?
What price? Taking on an underling was just a matter of a few words, wasn’t it?
A mocking smile touched Ye Yuhuan’s lips, so faint it was nearly invisible against her placid expression.
“Is this some new way of trying to woo me?”
Song Zhiqing’s face flushed crimson. She wasn’t just hitting on her because she was pretty. “Of course not! Besides, I already have someone I like, okay?”
Hearing this, Ye Yuhuan relaxed slightly, but she remained wary, like a tense glass sculpture.
Fragile and beautiful.
A flash of inspiration struck Song Zhiqing’s mind, which was good at everything except academics. “Ahem, of course there’s a price for my protection. You have to help me pursue Shangguan Xianxian. You know her, right? The really cold but gorgeous girl from Class One.”
Hmm, but it’s not like Ye Yuhuan is any less attractive than Shangguan Xianxian, she thought.
Huh? What am I thinking! I told you, it’s not about her looks!
“Why me?”
Why indeed? Song Zhiqing couldn’t very well say it was because she felt sorry for her.
But the name Ye Yuhuan did sound a little familiar.
Where had she heard it before?
Wait a minute, wasn’t this the academic prodigy who was just two points shy of a perfect score on the high school entrance exam? She’d even been in the news.
Song Zhiqing instantly found her reason. “Because you’re smart enough.”
Ye Yuhuan nodded, though it was impossible to tell if she believed her or not.
But a week later, when Song Zhiqing went to the study hall to find her as usual, Ye Yuhuan presented her with a thick volume titled The Ultimate Guide to Wooing.
“I compiled this over the past week by studying various romance movies, novels, and poems. I hope it will be of some help to you.”
Song Zhiqing flipped through a few pages and was immediately stunned by the sheer volume of case studies and evidence within.
She was completely floored by the academic prodigy.
From then on, Song Zhiqing and Ye Yuhuan grew closer and closer. They went from being a boss and her not-so-familiar underling to a boss and her capable right-hand woman, and then to a boss and her dearest friend.
And what were they now?
Just as Ye Yuhuan had predicted, she had fallen for her. Song Zhiqing knew Ye Yuhuan was averse to romance, but she had fallen for her anyway.
Chi Yuan had called her unfair, saying that their years of friendship meant less to her than Ye Yuhuan, whom she had known for just over a year.
Song Zhiqing knew it was unfair. But in her heart, Ye Yuhuan existed on a scale all her own.
It was as if Ye Yuhuan was on equal footing with the entire world.
Strange, wasn’t it? Very strange.
What’s even stranger is, why hasn’t Ye Yuhuan called me yet?
The Chi family left by private jet the next day. Whether it was Xiang Wanyu’s idea or Chi Yuan’s, she didn’t know.
But none of that mattered.
Song Zhiqing continued her vacation in a state of half-excitement, half-boredom. Just as her skin had tanned a shade darker, she finally got the call from Ye Yuhuan.
Of course, Song Zhiqing could have called first, but she was still angry.
Ye Yuhuan had gone too far, becoming distant so suddenly without a word of explanation. It was incredibly hurtful. She couldn’t just let her get away with it. Her mother had always said that no matter how much you liked someone, a girl had to stick to her principles. Song Zhiqing wholeheartedly agreed.
In any case, Ye Yuhuan wasn’t going to get away with giving her the silent treatment. No excuse would be good enough.
Ye Yuhuan’s voice, coming from the Northern Hemisphere, lacked its usual winter chill. It had that signature quality of hers—not exactly gentle, but close. “How’s the vacation?”
Song Zhiqing pouted. Had she been having fun? Yes, she’d had a blast. She’d even learned to surf.
But she still felt wronged, and the moment she heard Ye Yuhuan’s voice, that feeling intensified.
“Ye Yuhuan, I miss you so much,” she said.
On the other end of the line, Ye Yuhuan’s fingers tightened. After a moment of internal conflict, she finally said, “I miss you, too.”
For friends, saying ‘I miss you’ isn’t crossing a line.
Besides, she really did miss Song Zhiqing, didn’t she?
Song Zhiqing pressed her lips into a smile, her dimples appearing faintly. She looked sweet enough to drip honey. “Ye Yuhuan, we’ll see each other in just three more days.”
Ah, still three more days, Ye Yuhuan thought.
But this kind of longing isn’t crossing a line if it’s for a friend… right?
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