Chapter 001 Yun Zhi's Independent Side Story - Dual Love (Part 1)

#Main characters: Yu Qingzhou, Yun Zhi, Yun Yao

Yu Qingzhou still remembers the little princess in her dress, who leaped down the steps like a cat and glanced at him briefly as she looked up.

At that moment, he felt like a sailor bewitched by a succubus.

Yu Qingzhou climbed out of the house through the back window. His bones ached slightly when he landed. By the time he stood up, supporting himself on his knees, the girl was already standing in front of him.

Are you alright?

The voice I heard was slightly lower than I had expected.

Yu Qingzhou shook her head, but froze on the spot the moment she looked up...

--two? !

He was surprised to see two girls standing in front of him, wearing the same dresses and with the same faces.

"Scared stiff, huh!" A crisp laugh rang in my ears; it came from the one standing a little further away.

The girl laughed for a while, then raised her chin: "I'm Yun Yao, and that over there is Yun Zhi."

Yu Qingzhou sensitively caught the contempt in the girl's tone, and he stood there somewhat at a loss.

"You should introduce yourself at a time like this. Are you really a little fool?" The girl who called herself Yun Yao walked up to Yu Qingzhou and leaned close to his ear. Although she was a girl, she was a little taller than the petite Yu Qingzhou.

Yu Qingzhou's ears turned red, and her eyes darted away, hidden among her stray hairs.

"Yun Yao".

This time it was Yun Zhi who spoke, and Yun Zhi's rebuke clearly provoked the former's dissatisfaction.

Yun Yao turned her head and gave a wicked smile: "Our Yun Zhi has grown up. He actually dares to teach his older sister a lesson for a little fool."

Yun Zhi frowned slightly upon hearing this: "That's not what I meant."

"That's not what you meant?"

Yun Yao crossed her arms defiantly: "So what do you mean?"

Yun Zhi then pursed his lips and stopped speaking.

Yu Qingzhou broke the silence between the two at the right moment: "My name is Yu Qingzhou."

Yun Yao glared at Yun Zhi, then turned her head and smiled as she reached out to pinch Yu Qingzhou's cheek: "So, the little fool's name is Yu Qingzhou?"

Yu Qingzhou gently stepped aside and whispered, "I'm not stupid."

"Oh, you're not stupid, you're just a little slow."

Yun Yao interrupted him with a smile: "Then I'll call you Little Silly from now on. Remember my name. I'll bring you something delicious next time."

Just as Yu Qingzhou was about to speak, she heard her mother calling her name from inside the house.

"I...I have to go back."

"What? We're just going back like that? How boring."

Yun Yao stared at Yu Qingzhou, who hesitated for a moment. Her mother's calls were getting closer; what if they were discovered...?

"Go back quickly, don't make your aunt worry," Yun Zhi said, trying to smooth things over.

Yu Qingzhou then glanced gratefully at Yun Zhi and hurriedly said goodbye to the two of them.

When I turned around, I could still hear faint sounds of arguing, like the girl's one-sided complaints.

Yu Qingzhou didn't have time to think much and quickly returned to her room.

I had just closed the window when the door behind me opened.

"What are you doing?" the mother at the door asked suspiciously.

Yu Qingzhou silently lowered her head and replied, "It's a bit stuffy in the room."

"Have you finished memorizing all the books?"

"Um."

"Then let's practice the piano."

"good."

His ten fingers danced across the black and white piano keys, but the boy's mind was filled with two red figures: a princess-like pride and a cat-like indifference.

Yu Qingzhou was lost in thought when he played a wrong note. His heart immediately sank along with his mother's expression.

"sorry."

"continue."

Then, cheerful music filled the empty room once again.

*

The second time, Yu Qingzhou recognized Yun Zhi almost immediately.

The latter was wearing long sleeves and jeans, with her hair softly plastered to her cheeks.

His mother's company was having some problems, so Yu Qingzhou rarely went home alone. He didn't take the bus, but walked and enjoyed the scenery along the way, stopping to admire the view as he passed the park in the city center.

Since starting elementary school, he has lost his playtime.

His mother kept him confined at home under the pretext of taking care of his health. If conditions allowed, she might have attached him to a keychain and carried him with her.

Yu Qingzhou sometimes felt like an ornament rather than a living, breathing person.

Thinking of this, he chuckled self-deprecatingly.

It was already dinnertime. There were very few people in the small park. He saw a person sitting on the swing, toes touching the ground, just sitting quietly.

Yu Qingzhou walked over.

"Thank you for what happened last time," he said.

Yun Zhi glanced at him: "It's alright."

"Yun Yao isn't with you?" Yu Qingzhou asked.

He wasn't really that curious, he just didn't know what to say for a moment.

Yun Zhi pursed her lips: "You like her?"

"No, not exactly—"

"Then why are you so concerned about her?" Yun Zhi continued to ask.

Yu Qingzhou discovered that the two were similar in some ways; they both liked to hold onto people and had a somewhat aggressive attitude.

"There's nothing to deny, everyone likes her," Yun Zhi said nonchalantly.

Yu Qingzhou sensed a different meaning: "Are you jealous?"

Yun Zhi stood up, and seemed to have grown taller since the last time they met.

Yu Qingzhou stared nervously at Yun Zhi's expression, but the latter smiled, his eyes slightly narrowed, as if he had heard something ridiculous.

Yu Qingzhou had no idea what Yun Zhi was laughing about.

The two moved closer, and Yun Zhi touched Yu Qingzhou's cheek, the spot where Yun Yao had pinched her last time. Yu Qingzhou flinched as if she'd been electrocuted.

"Yu Qingzhou".

Yun Zhi called his name softly, her voice growing gentler: "Would you like to swing on the swing?"

Yu Qingzhou was somewhat surprised.

Don't you want to?

Yun Zhi reached out and held onto the rope on one side of the swing, casting a faint glance at Yu Qingzhou.

Yu Qingzhou sat on the swing, swaying slightly because she wasn't used to it.

Immediately someone helped him up from behind.

Yun Zhi's voice reached her ears, his breath warm and ticklish against the back of Yu Qingzhou's neck.

"Hold on tight," he said softly.

The swing swayed slowly upwards, again and again, higher and higher, faster and faster.

Yu Qingzhou's heart pounded, gradually veering off course. His palms sweated, and he couldn't help but turn to look at the person behind him.

Yun Zhi was also looking at him, his handsome features gradually blurring in her vision.

As the swing fell again, Yun Zhi grabbed Yu Qingzhou, who was about to fall.

Then the two of them tumbled together on the sand. When Yu Qingzhou came to his senses, he found himself sprawled awkwardly on top of Yun Zhi. He hurriedly straightened up, his face burning.

"I'm sorry," he stammered.

Yun Zhi stared at him, seemingly puzzled: "Why are you blushing?"

"I didn't mean to."

"What do you mean by that?"

Yun Zhi watched with interest as Yu Qingzhou's expression shifted, then suddenly leaned forward and tackled her to the ground. Yu Qingzhou stared blankly at Yun Zhi, with the sky behind her bathed in the glow of the setting sun.

"That evens things out."

As Yun Zhi spoke, he pulled Yu Qingzhou up from the ground. He noticed that the latter seemed somewhat dazed.

"What's wrong?" Yun Zhi asked.

Yu Qingzhou slightly pulled her hand away from the former's and said somewhat unhappily, "Girls shouldn't do that."

Yun Zhi stared at Yu Qingzhou for a while, then suddenly laughed.

"Yun Yao was absolutely right about one thing."

"What?"

"You really are an idiot."