Chu Yanqing stopped and looked at Chi Ye, continuing with a soft laugh.
"It's rare to see this side of you. Want to talk?"
Chi Ye looked at him without objecting. They had grown up together and knew each other inside out. If the circumstances had been different today, he definitely would have had a good talk with Chu Yanqing.
But right now, they were here to find someone.
"I'll talk to you when we have time. Let's find them first," Chi Ye said with a quiet sigh. He had never expected that one day he would seek someone out to talk about these things. It was a strange, novel feeling.
"All right," Chu Yanqing replied.
They did not walk for long before finding them at the turn leading to the art classroom. The scene, however, was rather hard to describe, something like a battlefield of tangled relationships.
Especially once the two of them arrived, the resemblance grew even stronger.
Chu Yannan pointed at Shen Zhiyi and said loudly to Liu Muyan,
"Are you really going to fall out with me over someone like her?"
Before Liu Muyan could answer, Chi Ye stepped forward and bent the hand pointing at Shen Zhiyi downward. He used so much force that Chu Yannan's face twisted.
"Ah! That hurts! Who is it?"
Chu Yannan turned and met Chi Ye's cold, disdainful eyes. His heart lurched. Looking again, he saw his older brother standing beside him.
"Chi-Chi Ye, Y-Yanqing, what are you doing here?"
The tremor in his voice was so obvious that even An Qian noticed his guilty conscience, though she did not know what he felt guilty about.
Seeing Chi Ye again, An Qian spoke in surprise.
"Mr. Chi, what brings you here?"
Chi Ye ignored them both, flung Chu Yannan's hand aside disdainfully, and said,
"Keep your hand to yourself. Point it around again, and I won't mind breaking it for you."
His tone was not joking, and the disgust in his eyes remained as he met Chu Yannan's gaze. He said nothing more, leaving Chu Yanqing to deal with it himself.
Then he looked back at Shen Zhiyi, examining her carefully to see whether anything had happened to her. After looking her over, he found only some redness on her palm, but only her right hand was red. Her left was normal.
"What happened? Why is your hand red?" He tried to take Shen Zhiyi's hand to check it, but she pulled it back, avoiding his reach.
Chi Ye froze, his lips parting as if to speak, only to close again a moment later.
The protagonist group, the villain, the malicious supporting female character, the cannon fodder-they're all here.
Chi Ye's retreating hand hovered hesitantly in midair. He lowered his head, trying to find something in her eyes. At that moment, they held a peculiar light as she looked past him at Chu Yanqing and the others.
An Qian glanced over at the two of them from time to time. Chu Yannan was being reprimanded and questioned by Chu Yanqing, while Liu Muyan stood obediently beside Chu Yanqing, seemingly showing signs of fanning the flames.
The protagonists, the villain, the malicious supporting female character, the cannon fodder. Chi Ye could not understand why she would say that. The next second, he seized Shen Zhiyi's wrist, his gaze dark and unfathomable.
She had once muttered to herself that he was the villain!
It was somewhat absurd, somewhat unreal. Chi Ye could only hold on to her tightly, afraid she would disappear before his eyes the very next second.
Shen Zhiyi had been watching with keen interest. Looking down, she saw that someone was gripping her tightly.
Is he starting again?
Chi Ye could no longer concern himself with what she was saying. He turned and addressed the others a short distance away.
"Handle your own business. Chu Yannan, wait for me in your brother's office tomorrow. I'll settle things properly with you then. I'm taking her with me."
Only now did Chu Yannan notice that Chi Ye was holding that girl surnamed Shen by the hand. No wonder. No wonder Liu Muyan had been smiling so happily earlier. She had known there was something different about their relationship.
He had fallen into a trap.
Chu Yannan wanted to call Chi Ye back and explain his behavior, but the pain in his face reminded him that he was the victim. Even his brother was not on his side.
"Yanqing, she hit me first. Besides, I didn't do anything wrong. You can't just show up and start lecturing me."
Helplessness flickered in Chu Yanqing's eyes. He knew Chu Yannan's character better than anyone.
"Hello, could you please give us a moment? We have some family matters to handle." His clear, gentle voice rang out as Chu Yanqing addressed An Qian.
Family disgrace was not something to air in public. His secretary had already sent him information about Chu Yannan's contact with this girl. He had ignored it, thinking Chu Yannan would show some consideration for the cooperation between their two families.
Who would have thought he would run straight into it tonight? He had only come because Chi Ye had said that Liu Muyan would have no one to take her home later, so he had stopped by to pick her up on the way.
An Qian looked bewildered, then nodded in a fluster.
"I'm sorry. I'll leave right now. Um, Yannan and I really are just friends. The people on the forum don't know the truth. Mr. Chu, I hope you can look into it properly and not blame Yannan."
Chu Yanqing's expression remained as gentle as ever. Rather than explaining further, he replied,
"Thank you for your concern, Miss An. I'll get the details from Yannan. Since we're on school grounds, you should be all right on your own, shouldn't you, Miss An?"
Although he exuded gentleness, An Qian could distinctly sense his distance, a gulf between their statuses as vast as heaven and earth. Her heart felt empty and unanchored, and she could not help turning to Chu Yannan.
Her tone was meek as she reached out and tugged at the hem of Chu Yannan's clothes.
"Yannan, I..."
Chu Yannan's mind was in turmoil. He gave an apologetic smile. "An Qian, head back first. Just message me when you get there. I'll go back and talk with my brother. Sorry I can't take you."
They were only parting for a little while, yet they acted as though they were being separated by life and death. Liu Muyan secretly rolled her eyes, wishing she could hammer them both into the ground.
Unexpectedly, Chu Yanqing looked down at her, worry in his eyes. He was concerned that hearing Chu Yannan's words would upset her. But because he had turned toward her so suddenly, Liu Muyan barely dared to blink. Before long, the wind had blown her eyes red.
To Chu Yanqing, this meant she was heartbroken, and the person responsible for all of it was Chu Yannan. A heaviness settled in his chest.
He turned, his voice colder and tinged with impatience as he addressed Chu Yannan.
"This is a school. Also, watch how you speak. If you don't want people gossiping about you again, please stop making those expressions."
With that, he motioned for Liu Muyan to follow, and the two walked ahead.
Chu Yannan did not dare say more. His brother was already angry. If he still failed to follow, he would definitely face the family's discipline when he got home. He hurried to catch up with the two ahead.
"Yanqing, you have to listen to my explanation."
An Qian watched the three figures move farther and farther away, just like the distance between her and Chu Yannan. She and he had never belonged to the same world. It was only because she had fallen for him that she wanted to draw closer.
"Shen Zhiyi, you haven't sent me a single message all day," Chi Ye complained.
"And when it ended, you weren't planning to call me either. Why?"
"Didn't I tell you to let me know when you got back so I could come pick you up? Why wouldn't you send me a message?"
"Shen Zhiyi, can't you send me a message on your own initiative, just once?"
He had barely finished when the phone in his pocket buzzed. He looked back. Shen Zhiyi was holding her phone, its screen displaying her chat with him. She had typed a "1."
Her movements were swift, but could typing a "1" now really soothe his anger over all the questions he had just asked?
Chi Ye was still looking at her. Shen Zhiyi lowered her head and sent another message.
"2"
Then came 3, 4, 5, and 6. Seeing that Chi Ye still had not spoken, she pursed her lips slightly.
Still not enough? What does he want?
Chi Ye took her phone. The contact name displayed there was simply "Chi Ye." Her choice of contact name was plain and unadorned.
He promptly changed it, then handed the phone back to her.
"You're not allowed to change that name! Everything that happened today was your fault. I'm a little angry right now, so reflect on what you've done."
He had the temper of a spoiled young lady. In any case, he was never at fault. If anyone was wrong, it was the other person.
Shen Zhiyi looked down and saw that the contact name had become "Remember to message Chi Ye."
She did not understand the point of that contact name. She only checked her messages when she occasionally remembered. Most of the time, she did not open them.
Completely unaware of what she was thinking, Chi Ye stood beside the car, waiting for her. He had not been standing there long when two girls approached him together.
Their expressions were shy, their eyes filled with admiration.
The two said something, and Chi Ye looked up toward Shen Zhiyi, then pointed at her as he answered them.
The girls left in disappointment. As they went, they glanced at Shen Zhiyi and gave a small smile before leaving.
"Shen Zhiyi, you can't walk this slowly just because I'm angry."
Before you continue