Chapter 268

The atmosphere was tense and gloomy. The anxiety stemmed from Lin Qingyu's worry about the missing Xia Yan. The gloom arose from the unexpected events of the past two days. Generally, Lin Qingyu would stalk Xia Yan's WeChat Moments about once every two weeks—a not-too-short, not-too-long interval. This was partly because Xia Yan n't update his Moments very often and rarely shared his daily life. Especially after they started "dating," his Moments updates were almost exclusively photos of him and his girlfriend, or pictures of dates and trips. The last time Lin Qingyu saw Xia Yan's Moments was when he shared a photo of himself and a girl at the beach before the Bruvis shipwreck. After that... she discovered Xia Yan had deleted her. That's right. Xia Yan had deleted Lin Qingyu from his friends list. And not just a simple deletion, but a complete blocking and deletion. As the head of the Student Council, getting Xia Yan's phone number would have been easy for Lin Qingyu, but what could she do with it? Was she supposed to call and confront Xia Yan directly about why he deleted her? That would make her look like a clown, desperately clinging to him. People have pride. While Lin Qingyu wanted Xia Yan, she couldn't beg and question him like a simp. So, Xia Yan had been missing at school for a while, and the only information she got from the counselor was that he had some family business and was on leave; nothing more. The counselor naturally liked Xia Yan, a student with excellent grades and helpfulness, and would grant him any leave he wanted. However, Lin Qingyu had no way of knowing Xia Yan's whereabouts. Due to some entanglements, Xiang Guan and Mu Feng, under Xia Yan's influence, had also broken free from Lin Qingyu's control, along with her contact information. By the time she realized what had happened, how could she possibly bring herself to add that weightlifter and the 2D to her list? The only person she could contact and gather intelligence from was Hua Xin, an ally "on the same boat." "Ah, he's had some family issues; I haven't seen him in ages," Hua Xin said with a shrug, her tone light and questioning, as if she knew nothing. Heh. She wouldn't be afraid of any more threats or inducements. To Lin Qingyu, she was clearly the last pawn she could use. As long as she didn't provoke Lin Qingyu into saying something that would drive her crazy, Lin Qingyu wouldn't easily escalate the conflict. This answer was clearly unsatisfactory to Lin Qingyu, but she couldn't say anything at this moment. She had to suppress her anger and try to keep her tone calm. "More specifics?" She couldn't reveal her weakness of only having Hua Xin as an informant. Just as Hua Xin had guessed, Lin Qingyu could only ask her. After a slight hesitation, the girl ultimately decided to conceal the matter, resolutely adhering to her principle of not causing trouble for Xia Yan. "I don't know, he didn't tell me." After receiving the same answer from her counselor, Lin Qingyu naturally had nothing more to say. She bit her lip, said goodbye to Hua Xin, and walked out with a resolute expression. Judging from her expression, she still didn't intend to give up. Hua Xin snorted coldly. Sooner or later, she would make Lin Qingyu completely give up, and Xia Yan could only have her by his side... "Hello, guest, please pay." The waiter's words made the girl who was about to walk out the door freeze as if struck by lightning. After a long time, she gritted her teeth and said in her heart, "What a vicious woman..." 206. The nightmare that followed "I said... you also need to take care of yourself during this time." "You're busy every day, you still need to take care of yourself first, otherwise, before Grandpa's health improves, you'll be exhausted first." Hua Xin said earnestly in her barely maintained boyish voice. Fortunately, with the interference of the voice, her normal voice sounded flawless at this moment. "I know, I know..." Xia Yan replied softly, a hint of helplessness in his voice, his tone tinged with exhaustion. He hadn't intended to hide anything from Hua Xin, but subconsciously, he didn't want to show his vulnerability in front of the girl. Crying in front of his best friend would be incredibly pathetic. For Xia Yan, Hua Xin was currently the only person he could confide in and discuss these things with. His grandfather was still in the hospital. Xia Fen was still young, and moreover, she was approaching the crucial time of her university entrance exams; obviously, he couldn't afford to delay her at this critical juncture. Although it was unfair to Xia Fen, it was the only option. His grandfather had also told them the same thing. Besides them, Hua Xin was probably the only other person left. Sensing the reluctance and helplessness in Xia Yan's words, Hua Xin didn't continue the discussion. Before connecting with Xia Yan on the phone, she seemed to have so much to say, but once she heard the voice she had longed for, she suddenly didn't know what to say besides his words of advice. How could Hua Xin not hear the barely concealed weariness beneath his feigned strength? But perhaps brothers shouldn't exchange sentimental words. They both understood each other's difficulties. Therefore, Hua Xin clearly knew why Xia Yan didn't want to tell Gu Xin Hua those things—he didn't want his girlfriend, who had just opened up to herself, to worry about him again. At this moment, a white lie was obviously better than adding to her worries. If Hua Xin had only ever interacted with Xia Yan as his "girlfriend," she would definitely have felt incredibly worried and insecure about his concealment and disappearance, fearing it was some kind of "I left you a child, this is a gift for you" kind of scumbag behavior. But what could she do? She was Xia Yan 'Xia Yan good friend. He could talk to his best friend about things he couldn't talk to his girlfriend, right? If it weren't for her almost cheating-like ability, she would probably be incredibly annoyed by now. But precisely because Hua Xin understood the underlying reasons and Xia Yan's predicament, she felt an even greater sadness and depression, unlike the ease she felt when chatting with Xia Yan. It was still that hurdle she couldn't overcome. All along, Xia Yan had selflessly and tirelessly helped and guided her, pulling her out of her Little Black and withdrawn state, and allowing her to experience a new life and new things she had never felt before. But what to do now? Hua Xin couldn't do anything for Xia Yan, nor could she offer him any advice. Having been a boy herself, she knew what Xia Yan needed at this time. When people are vulnerable, how could they not yearn for someone they like or trust to pat them on the shoulder and tell them they've done enough, to stop blaming themselves? If possible, a gentle comfort and a hug would be more effective than any other means. But Hua Xin had no idea...