"It's getting late, class is about to start. I... I'll head back now..."

After hugging for an unknown amount of time, Tang Ning slowly released her embrace. Her eyes were moist as she looked at Jiang Yao, and her cheeks were covered with a thin layer of pink, perhaps because she had just hugged him. This sight made Jiang Yao's heart skip a beat.

Tang Ning then took two steps back, a sweet smile always on her lips. She turned and ran towards the edge of the bamboo grove, until she reached it. Then she turned back, her eyes glancing instinctively at Yin Yuqing, who was hiding in the grass to her left, only a small patch of her clothing visible. She smiled brightly at Jiang Yao again, "You should go back to class soon too! And remember to keep your word, otherwise…"

She clenched her little fists, slightly raised her chin, as if she wanted to threaten someone, but couldn't think of a good way to threaten them. In the end, she could only hum softly and then ran away, unable to suppress her laughter.

Watching Tang Ning's retreating figure and her fluttering skirt, Jiang Yao couldn't help but raise the corners of his mouth despite his efforts to hold back.

The early spring breeze already carried some of the warm fragrance unique to spring. Because of its remote location, the small bamboo grove was extremely quiet except for the rustling of bamboo leaves, and Jiang Yao's heart also calmed down.

After a while, when Tang Ning's figure could no longer be seen, he slowly raised his head and walked towards the teaching building.

But as they passed a patch of grass, they suddenly heard a low, familiar sobbing sound.

Jiang Yao's body suddenly stiffened. He mechanically turned his head and, without thinking, immediately walked to the bushes on the side. He suddenly pushed aside the withered branches that had just sprouted tender leaves, and Yin Yuqing's tear-streaked face immediately appeared in front of him.

When she saw him, a range of emotions flashed quickly across the other person's eyes, including embarrassment, awkwardness, and avoidance.

She hurriedly lowered her head, but the tears just wouldn't listen and kept falling down in a steady stream.

"Rain... Maple..."

He opened his mouth, and after a long while, Jiang Yao finally uttered these two words.

She heard it; she heard his conversation with Tang Ning just now…

His previous pity and heartache for Tang Ning had made him completely forget about his promise to Yu Feng not to participate in "White Snow," and this thought resurfaced in his mind.

He forgot that he had just agreed to Tang Ning's request, and he completely forgot that he had already promised Yu Feng that he would not go back to participate in the school anniversary performance. How could he forget that?

Jiang Yao closed his eyes slightly, his gaze filled with conflict and helplessness. "Yu Feng, I...I actually..."

Before the boy could finish explaining, Yin Yuqing, who was half-squatting on the ground, immediately stood up. However, because she had been in that squatting position for too long, her brain was temporarily deprived of blood, and her body swayed uncontrollably.

Seeing this, Jiang Yao quickly stepped forward and helped her up.

"Yu Feng, are you alright?"

Yin Yuqing, who was leaning lightly on his shoulder, took a long time to recover before she felt the darkness in her eyes gradually fade and her vision slowly clear.

Even though she had recovered, for some reason, she didn't want to leave Jiang Yao's shoulder at all. She suddenly wanted to be willful and unrestrained, so she continued to lean on Jiang Yao's shoulder.

"Is there anything else that's bothering you? The school clinic is very close by, I'll take you there right away and have the school doctor take a look..."

Unaware of Yin Yuqing's little scheme, Jiang Yao assumed she was feeling unwell and immediately tried to take her to the nearby school hospital.

Upon hearing this, Yin Yuqing reached out and grabbed his arm, whispering in a hoarse voice, "No, I'm not feeling unwell. I was just a little dizzy. I don't need to go to the school clinic..."

After stopping Jiang Yao's actions, before he could turn around, Yin Yuqing's voice rang out tentatively again, "Ah Yao, you...did you just promise Tang Ning that you'd like to act in 'White Snow' with her...?"

Upon hearing Yin Yuqing's question, Jiang Yao abruptly stopped in his tracks, unable to turn his head. "I..."

After he said nothing for a long time, Yin Yuqing understood what he meant. Perhaps because she had been crying for a long time, her eyes didn't even turn red. Instead, her hands, which were hanging by her sides, slowly clenched into fists.

The wind kept blowing through the bamboo forest, and the warmth of spring that had been carried in the wind seemed to have completely disappeared. The sharp, cold wind of early spring stung people's faces.

The two remained silent for what seemed like an eternity. Just as Jiang Yao took a deep breath and was about to turn around and say something, Yin Yuqing spoke first, smiling, "Ah Yao, I'm sorry, I overheard what you were saying. Actually, I've thought about it carefully, and I think my previous request might have been a bit unreasonable. Just because I care about you as a friend, I asked you not to associate with other friends. What kind of logic is that? You've known Tang Ning for so many years, but I've only known you for less than half a year. How could I have the nerve to make you give up time with your other good friend for me? I took myself too seriously..."

"no!"

Jiang Yao turned his head abruptly, about to retort.

Yin Yuqing had already reached out and covered his mouth.

"Don't say anything, just listen to me first, okay? I've thought about it, and I really think it was all my fault before. I shouldn't have worried from the beginning that you'd forget about me, your new friend, after spending so much time with Tang Ning, and that you wouldn't even go to the school anniversary performance. But now I've made up my mind. I think if you really want to go, then go. Not only will you go, but I'll go too. I want to see if there are any roles in 'White Snow' that I can play, and then I can rehearse with you guys. What do you think, Ayao?"

Yin Yuqing said this with a serious expression.

Upon hearing this, Jiang Yao looked at Yin Yuqing in disbelief. He felt a surge of heat in his heart and couldn't help but pull her into his arms.

"Great, great, great, of course it's great, absolutely wonderful, nothing could be better. Thank you, thank you, Yufeng!"

Jiang Yao said this with gratitude on his face.

"No need to thank me, we're friends, aren't we?"

Yin Yuqing said this with a smile, but her eyes, which were fixed on a withered yellow leaf, showed no trace of a smile. Instead, they were filled with resentment and embarrassment.

Ah Yao promised her first, didn't he? She did it first, so why...why...?

In his heart, was she really inferior to Tang Ning?

Unaware that such a small setback would cause the magnanimous, tolerant, and pure-hearted Yin Yuqing in the story to undergo a strange change, Tang Ning looked at Xu Xingbai's profile as he sat beside her, pursing his lips and reading attentively. She pretended not to care and immediately poked his elbow lightly with her finger, then poked it again.

When Xu Xingbo finally couldn't keep up the act any longer and turned to look at her, she looked left and right, and seeing that no one was watching them, she quickly and secretly took a pink lunchbox out of her schoolbag and stuffed it directly into his desk drawer.

Upon seeing Tang Ning's action, Xu Xingbai was surprised and quickly reached into the desk drawer, only to find his hand covered in something warm.

Just then, Tang Ning leaned close to him and whispered, "Last time we ate together, I noticed you really liked the sweet and sour pork, so this morning I got up half an hour early and made some more for you. Remember to try it, my deskmate."

As for your question about why she had time to do this?

Ha, for a qualified player, time management is a must-learn course, otherwise it's only a matter of time before things go wrong.

Upon hearing Tang Ning's words, Xu Xingbo felt his hand suddenly burn, even though the pink lunchbox was only slightly warm. He looked at Tang Ning, who was staring ahead with a slightly upturned smile, with a complicated expression in his eyes.

"Why……"

Xu Xingbai lowered his eyes slightly and asked softly.

"Um?"

Tang Ning didn't quite hear his question and turned to look at him with a puzzled expression.

"Why are you giving me this?"

Xu Xingbai raised his voice slightly.

Tang Ning, having heard clearly this time, burst out laughing. "What do you mean, 'why'? We're deskmates, so we should be considered friends, right? Last time I was unhappy, you even followed behind me to try and comfort me. I know all that. Not to mention, I'll need to ask you for help with any of my studies in the future! You wouldn't be so petty as to refuse to answer my questions, would you?"

"Won't."

"That's fine then. I just brought you some food, nothing expensive. You have no idea how expensive it is to hire a tutor these days, and they're always by my side. Unlike you, I can ask you anytime I want, no matter what. I'm the one who benefits," Tang Ning said with a smile.

Upon hearing this, Xu Xingbo's hand, hidden in the desk drawer, immediately gripped the edge of the pink lunchbox.

Since Tang Ning had already said so much, he couldn't refuse anymore. He just looked at her intently for a long time before softly saying thank you.

Tang Ning smiled and didn't say anything more, because Jiang Yao and Yin Yuqing had already returned to the classroom.

She noticed that the two seemed to have no conflict, and Jiang Yao's gaze towards the person next to him even seemed softer.

This discovery made Tang Ning raise an eyebrow with amusement.

She felt that she might have underestimated this seemingly crybaby, Yin Meimei.

But isn't it the challenging things that are the most fun?

As soon as Yin Yuqing sat down, she subconsciously turned her head to look at her.

Seeing this, Tang Ning gave her a bright smile, her phoenix eyes crinkling into crescent moons, which made Yin Yuqing freeze for a moment. She then forced a smile and nodded back.

Meanwhile, on the other side, Ye Jinyan, who was still reminiscing about the scene in the bamboo forest, returned to his class in a daze. He saw the class's entertainment committee member forcing the other students to sign up for "White Snow" or other performance programs.

Ye Jinyan looked at the stack of registration forms in the other person's hand. As the other person completely ignored him and walked past him, Ye Jinyan actually reached out and pulled a registration form from his hand.

This action caused the entire class to freeze as if someone had pressed the pause button, remaining in their original positions and then looking at Ye Jinyan, who was holding a registration form in his hand, in unison and stiffly.

Oh my god!

Ye Jinyan, this walking iceberg, is actually interested in an event like the school anniversary celebration? Good heavens!

Then almost everyone in the class immediately gathered together, whispering among themselves as they watched Ye Jinyan's cool profile as he carefully reviewed the registration form. They realized that this person not only looked at it, but he also filled it out.

He filled it in, filled it in, and it was done.

After filling it out, he handed it to the entertainment committee member who was completely petrified next to him.

After he handed in the registration form, Ye Jinyan's thoughts returned to him. What had he just done?

he……

I've signed up to participate in the school anniversary repertoire play, "White Snow"!

The rest of the class secretly glanced at Ye Jinyan's application form, then looked at each other in astonishment, silently exclaiming the same thing in their hearts.

Then everyone looked out the window. There was no problem. The sun was still rising from the east, there was no sign of a meteorite falling from the sky, and no UFOs suddenly appeared. So why was their icy Ye Jinyan acting so strangely today?

Signing up for "White Snow"? Is this something Ye Jinyan would do?

After much deliberation, this group of people could only come up with one reason why Ye Jinyan would do this:

For his sister, Tang Ning.

My goodness, what an amazing guy!

Soon, the news that Ye Jinyan would also be starring in "White Snow" spread throughout the school forum, and almost all the students began to look forward to the upcoming school anniversary celebration. Tang Ning, Jiang Yao, Ye Jinyan—what divine looks! They had a feeling that this school anniversary celebration might be the most visually appealing in the history of Jin Shen High School, a veritable feast for those who appreciate good looks!

After about a day of voting, rehearsals could begin that evening.

When Tang Ning, Jiang Yao, and Yin Yuqing arrived at the lecture hall that could be used for rehearsals, they saw Ye Jinyan standing tall and straight, arms crossed, silently leaning against a corner of the stage. He exuded a cold aura that kept strangers at bay, causing the students around him who wanted to go up and greet him to hesitate and not dare to approach.

Upon seeing Ye Jinyan, Tang Ning was overjoyed and immediately ran towards him.

Hearing the sound of running, Ye Jinyan subconsciously looked up and saw Tang Ning rushing towards him like a small cannonball.

Even he himself didn't realize how tender and affectionate his gaze became the moment he saw Tang Ning. The icy aura that had just surrounded him instantly melted away like snow.

Then he straightened up, letting Tang Ning, who had rushed up to him, excitedly grab his arm. "Brother, what are you doing here? Are you also participating in the performance of 'Snow White'? Is that right? Is that right? That's great! What are you playing? A dwarf, a hunter, or something else? It can't be a stepmother, right? Hahaha..."

"Magic Mirror".

Ye Jinyan answered her with a smile.

"ah!"

Tang Ning instantly had a look of sudden realization. "Right, right, the Magic Mirror is also a character, and it seems to be genderless. Oh my god, I'm already looking forward to my brother's performance."

As the two were talking, Jiang Yao and Yin Yuqing arrived beside them.

Seeing that Yin Yuqing had also come, Ye Jinyan's eyes immediately lit up. "I already know who Ayao is going to play. Has Yufeng also signed up?"

"Yes, Yin also signed up. You know, because of the pranks in previous years, hardly anyone participated in 'Snow White.' Yin was selected immediately after signing up. Originally, she wanted to sign up for the role of the stepmother, but the teacher said she was too short. She said there was no stepmother shorter than Snow White and she didn't have the presence, so she played one of the dwarfs instead. The teacher also said that other boys who played dwarfs had to squat down a bit, but he didn't have to squat at all!"

After saying this with a grin, Tang Ning turned to look at Yin Yuqing beside her and reached out to pat her head. "Indeed, Yin, you really need to drink more milk. You're a bit too short, not even as tall as me."

Upon hearing Tang Ning's words, Yin Yuqing almost couldn't maintain her smile.

At 158cm, she's not short for many girls, but Tang Ning in front of her, for some reason, was a full ten centimeters taller. And isn't it said that tall girls don't have big breasts? Why is that…?

Yin Yuqing's eyes glanced subconsciously at Tang Ning's chest, and... it was quite magnificent.

Why did she...?

Yin Yuqing couldn't help but feel inferior.

Unaware that Yin Yuqing was still thinking about these random things, Tang Ning watched as the performers quickly gathered.

Rehearsals are about to begin.

"ah!"

However, with just a spinning motion, a sudden pain in her ankle caused Tang Ning to fall directly to the ground.

"Ningning!"

Ye Jinyan and Jiang Yao, who were rehearsing their play, shouted in unison when they saw Tang Ning fall, and then ran towards Tang Ning together.

The two of them came to Tang Ning's side. Seeing that Jiang Yao had already reached out his hand, Ye Jinyan's hand could not be extended. In the end, he could only watch helplessly as Jiang Yao helped her up from the stage.

Are you alright?

He quickly asked, "Did you hurt yourself anywhere?"

Upon hearing this, Tang Ning quickly shook her head, "No, I didn't fall anywhere."

As she spoke, her gaze fell on her right ankle, which was throbbing slightly. It was the spot where the school doctor, Mu Sheng, had told her about a minor fracture.

Ordinary dance moves are fine, but any slightly more difficult spins or rotations immediately cause me quite a bit of pain.

Clenching her fist, Tang Ning looked up at her classmates who were watching her with concern. "It's nothing, it's just that my leg injury hasn't fully healed yet, and I haven't been dancing for a few years, so I couldn't find my rhythm and that's why I fell. It's really nothing, you don't need to crowd around me. I should be fine after I adjust myself."

Tang Ning comforted everyone with a smile.

Ye Jinyan frowned and looked at Tang Ning, "Don't push yourself. If your leg really hurts a lot, then don't practice for now..."

"No! No, I mean, my leg really doesn't hurt that much, I can do it!"

Tang Ning said this seriously.

After saying that, he stubbornly stood up, walked directly to the stage, and jumped up again.

"Hmm!"

The pain struck again, and Tang Ning let out another muffled groan. If Ye Jinyan hadn't been waiting by her side out of concern and hadn't reached out to support her when he saw that she was not moving properly, she probably would have fallen to the ground again.

Tang Ning, who was being supported by Ye Jinyan, looked at her right foot with a slightly pale face. Before anyone else could speak, she pushed Ye Jinyan away, "I...I'll go find my rhythm in dancing first...No, brother, don't come with me. I can do it myself. You go and practice with the others. I'll be fine!"

After saying that, Tang Ning ran out of the rehearsal hall without hesitation.

Ye Jinyan, who had been stopped by Tang Ning, watched her run away with his brows furrowed. Jiang Yao's eyes were filled with worry. The other students who were performing started chattering and discussing, some even worried that their school beauty would be unable to perform "White Snow" because of her leg injury. No way!

Only Yin Yuqing, who had been standing to the side the whole time, knew she was in the wrong, but she still couldn't help feeling a secret joy.

Perhaps, perhaps she did have a chance!

if only……

No, Yin Yuqing, what's wrong with you? Why are you thinking about these things all day long?

But if... if Tang Ning really couldn't play the female lead Bai Xue because of her leg injury, that would be great.

Almost as soon as she left the rehearsal hall, Tang Ning, looking lost and confused, walked until she reached the dimly lit playground, which was only lit by two lights. Looking at the soft artificial turf in front of her, she subconsciously walked over there.

Looking around and seeing no one, she took a deep breath and slowly began to perform the dance moves of Snow White that she had memorized before.

"ah!"

My feet really hurt so much.

When she jumped to the spinning move, Tang Ning immediately lost control and fell onto the soft grass beneath her.

She slowly sat up, looked at her right foot, and her eyes almost instantly reddened. Just as tears were about to fall, she quickly reached up and forcefully wiped her eyes, took a deep breath, and then got up again.

With a slight smile, he jumped up again.

Falling, falling, falling, falling...

Tang Ning didn't even know how many times she had fallen, but her eyes grew brighter and her gaze became more and more ruthless.

Finally, through sheer hard work and repeated falls, he perfectly executed the spinning motion.

When she saw that she had finally finished, the corners of her mouth immediately turned up in a wide smile.

At the same time, the man who had arrived at the playground before Tang Ning, but who had always kept himself hidden in the darkness, looked at the girl's blurry yet exquisite figure reflected on the wall in front of him, and a slight smile appeared on his lips.

Then he slowly reached into his shirt pocket, quickly took out a box of matches, pulled one out, lit it, lit the cigarette that had been sitting on his lips for who knows how long, took a gentle drag, and exhaled. The man's handsome face instantly blurred in the smoke.

He was just looking for a place to smoke, but who would have thought he would witness such a spectacular scene?

He held the cigarette between his index and middle fingers, removed it from his lips, and flicked it lightly.

He leaned against the wall behind him and continued to watch Tang Ning's movements with great interest.

No one knew her foot injury better than her. Logically speaking, she shouldn't be able to do those difficult dance moves, but...

interesting.

It can be said that this girl is the most stubborn and meticulous person he has ever met in his life.

Mu Sheng narrowed his eyes.

Soon, he watched as Tang Ning began another dance routine. Judging from her gestures, it seemed to be a waltz, and there appeared to be a backbend movement led by the male dancer. She had made it through the previous spin, but she was struggling with this one.

After hesitating for a moment, just as she was about to go back, her gaze fell on her right foot again.

"No, if others find out, especially my brother, they definitely won't let me play Snow White anymore..."

Tang Ning bit her lip, standing there somewhat awkwardly as she began to think of a solution.

Just then, Mu Sheng took the cigarette butt off his lips, crushed it against the wall, and casually threw it into the trash can next to him.

"Tang Ning, perhaps you need my help?"

He slowly emerged from the shadows with a smile on his face.

Perhaps there wasn't much work at the school hospital at night, because the man's hair, which he had combed meticulously during the day, had several strands falling directly to his forehead. He was still wearing the same gold-rimmed glasses, white shirt, and black suit pants, but he wasn't wearing the white coat that symbolized his status. Not only that, but he had also unbuttoned several buttons on his white shirt, directly revealing his delicate collarbone.

Unlike his refined, meticulous, and cultured image during the day, Mu Sheng exuded a unique languidness and sexiness at this moment, yet his expression remained as gentle and elegant as ever.

If one word could accurately describe Mu Sheng right now, it would be—

A scoundrel.

He appears refined on the outside, but is a scoundrel inside.

"Actually, I was already here before you arrived, but I saw that you seemed to have your own things to do, so I didn't want to bother you. I hope you don't mind my rudeness."

"Also, I saw you were practicing the waltz just now, right? Perhaps you need a dance partner who knows about your foot injury. How about me? As a doctor, I need to be responsible to my patients. After all, I helped you hide your foot injury, didn't I?"

Mu Sheng said with a light laugh.

Upon hearing this, Tang Ning couldn't contain the joy on her face.

"The school doctor..."

She's been waiting for you! Otherwise, why would she have laid so much groundwork beforehand?

Three months passed in the blink of an eye. Having promised to transfer his affections, he naturally needed someone to talk to. His brother was too taboo, Xu Xingbai too reserved; after much thought, no one could be more convincing than Mu Sheng.

A refined, gentle, handsome, and elegant mature man is incredibly attractive to a high school girl!

It was an incredibly simple thing for her to fall in love with him, unable to resist his allure and bewitchment!

It was because of his appearance that she realized that she had always really only regarded Jiang Yao as her brother, because he was just too convincing.

Moreover, the forces behind him are far more powerful than those behind the Jiang and Ye families.

This is the person she's been waiting for!

Mu Sheng's current favorability rating: 18.

Author's Note: Right? Pretty convincing, isn't it? Mu Sheng is such a perfect candidate for a new love interest! Compared to him, Jiang Yao is practically a childish brat who hasn't been weaned yet. He can be the older brother if he wants, and Tang Ning has already found her next boyfriend! As the saying goes, goodbye is goodbye, the next one will be even more handsome!

Jiang Yao: Ningning, what happened to our promise of happiness?

Tang Ning: Hehe, I just see you as an older brother. Holding your hand is like holding my own left hand with my right! You understand me, right?