Xu Xingbo is gone.
As dusk approached and darkness fell, looking out the classroom window, one could see that the distant sky resembled a canvas, with fiery red, gray-blue, and pale pink interwoven together. In the very center of the colors, the sun shone bright red, and before it had completely set, a crescent moon, like a beautiful woman's eyebrow, had already climbed up.
Ye Jinyan, who had been dismissed from school early, somehow found himself at the door of Class 7, the first-year high school class where Tang Ning and Jiang Yao were. As soon as the students in Class 7 noticed him, a faint sense of regret immediately crept into Ye Jinyan's heart.
He didn't understand how he ended up here.
Because of his good brother Jiang Yao, it must be because...
Standing outside the classroom window, Ye Jinyan, who had just found an excuse for himself, was immediately drawn to Tang Ning's porcelain-white face, who was sitting upright at her desk, taking notes with a serious expression.
For some reason, the moment he saw Tang Ning, he immediately felt the air suddenly become still. Compared to her, everyone and everything around him seemed to have faded. Apart from Tang Ning, the crowd was full of life, as if they were shrouded in a layer of black smoke, making it difficult to even see their faces or expressions clearly.
Ye Jinyan stood there blankly outside the classroom, staring at Tang Ning's excessively beautiful and delicate profile.
until--
The bell rang suddenly, startling the boy awake. He then turned his gaze, trying to conceal his intentions, towards the direction of Jiang Yao, whom he knew well.
It was at this moment that Ye Jinyan finally realized that the person sitting with Jiang Yao was actually Yin Yuqing. That was fine, but Tang Ning was sitting alone in such a far back seat. No, that's not right. Judging from the books next to her, she should have a deskmate, but for some reason, her deskmate was not there. Only Tang Ning was sitting quietly writing something in her book.
Meanwhile, Jiang Yao and Yin Yuqing were whispering to each other, their heads close together, which made Yin Yuqing laugh.
Seeing this, Ye Jinyan immediately looked over at Tang Ning. Seeing that she was writing so intently that she didn't even look up, Ye Jinyan felt inexplicably relieved.
Then, looking at Jiang Yao and Yin Yuqing, he didn't understand why. It wasn't the first time he had seen them being so intimate, and he hadn't thought anything of it before, but today he just felt a little strange and uncomfortable.
Perhaps his gaze was too profound, for Yin Yuqing finally noticed it. Upon seeing Ye Jinyan standing outside the window, her face immediately lit up with a look of unexpected joy.
Almost simultaneously, Tang Ning also noticed Ye Jinyan standing outside the window.
"elder brother!"
"Brother Jin Yan!"
Two voices rang out simultaneously.
Then Tang Ning met Yin Yuqing's gaze, who looked astonished. After giving her a slight smile, she ran out excitedly without even packing her things, and reached out to take Ye Jinyan's arm.
"Why did you come here? Were you worried that I wouldn't be able to adjust on my first day? It's okay, isn't Yao here?"
Tang Ning's smile was so sweet and her demeanor so intimate that Ye Jinyan, who thought he was very cold and distant towards her, forgot for a moment to pull his arm out of her embrace, and even stared blankly at her action of holding his wrist.
Just then, Yin Yuqing and Jiang Yao also came out of the classroom. Not to mention Ye Jinyan, even Jiang Yao was somewhat surprised by the intimacy between Tang Ning and his good brother. Clearly... clearly, the two of them had always been very distant over the years, so how could they suddenly be like this...?
There were quite a few people watching the spectacle inside the classroom, and many had even started frantically revealing information on the forum.
—Ahhh, guess what I just found out? The school beauty, our school beauty, you'd never guess which family she belongs to! The Ye family! She's actually Ye Jinyan's sister.
—But one's surname is Tang, and the other's is Ye, how could they be siblings? Could it be a secret lover? No way! What's so great about Ye Jinyan, that moving iceberg? Ningning, look at me! I'm tall, strong, funny, and handsome! Look at me!
...
This news caused the school forum, which had been flooded with Tang Ning's photos all day, to boil over again.
Soon, in the classroom corridor, Yin Yuqing asked the question that all the boys on the forum wanted to ask, with a face full of doubt.
"Tang Ning is Jin Yan's sister? But you two are clearly surnamed Ye and Tang respectively, how could this be..."
Before Yin Yuqing could finish her question, Tang Ning's answer rang out.
“He’s my brother, but one of us takes our mother’s surname and the other takes our father’s surname.”
Tang Ning answered vaguely, then turned to look at Ye Jinyan, who had remained silent beside her, and said, "Brother, did you come here especially to pick me up from school? I'm so touched, thank you, brother!"
Tang Ning said this affectionately to Ye Jinyan.
In the past, Ye Jinyan, who was always cold and indifferent to her, would have torn Tang Ning's hand off immediately and told her to stay away from him.
But for some reason today, just thinking about the sad expression Tang Ning might show after he embarrassed her made him unable to raise his hand. Not only that, he also mumbled a vague "hmm" as a form of acquiescence.
Upon hearing Ye Jinyan's tacit agreement, Tang Ning's smile became even sweeter.
Jiang Yao, on the other hand, looked at the two people he knew best with disbelief. This intimacy, which he had never shown before, made him feel a sudden pang of sadness.
All he knew before was that Jin Yan and Tang Ning's relationship wasn't good. Why were they so familiar with each other when he had no idea?
Jiang Yao even began to doubt whether Xu Xingbai, who had been in the past, and Ye Jinyan, who was now, truly understood Tang Ning as he had thought.
Clearly... clearly, before, he was the only person in her world, wasn't he?
Jiang Yao clenched his fist.
Yin Yuqing stared blankly at the smile on Tang Ning's lips and the fleeting tenderness in Ye Jinyan's serious and cold eyes.
Even... even Brother Jin Yan isn't exclusively hers anymore? So... so Tang Ning is actually Brother Jin Yan's sister... and the two of them are so close.
Yin Yuqing bit her lip, forcibly suppressing the bitterness welling up in her heart.
They're siblings, so this close relationship is only natural.
But... she probably won't see the gentle side of Brother Jin Yan that occasionally shows beneath his icy exterior anymore, since he has a younger sister now!
After observing the behavior of the three people present, Tang Ning immediately raised an eyebrow in her mind. Tsk tsk, she liked this chaotic situation.
She knew Yin Yuqing's thoughts all too well. Since Jinsheng High School had always only had her as a girl, everything she wanted to do and gain favor with anyone had gone so smoothly since the beginning of her schooling. This made her believe from the bottom of her heart that she had become the star of the show. Now that everyone's attention and favor had shifted away from her, she was a little uncomfortable!
However, this is just the beginning.
Let her guess: once she has captured everyone's attention and affection, will this transparent, clear, pure, and flawless little piece of glass still remain innocent, naive, and adorable due to the huge contrast?
She's really looking forward to it.
Not wanting to keep Ye Jinyan waiting too long, Tang Ning immediately returned to the classroom after greeting him and admiring Yin Yuqing's conflicted expression. Once she had packed her things, she went back to Ye Jinyan's side.
Ye Jinyan had just finished saying goodbye to Jiang Yao and was preparing to leave.
At Jinsheng Boys' High School, you can choose to live on campus or be a day student. However, the Jiang family always felt that the rebellious Jiang Yao needed to be tempered, so they ordered him to live on campus, while Ye Jinyan did not need to.
But no one expected that fate would be so wonderful. Jiang Yao, who had just chosen to live at school, would meet Yin Yuqing, who was dressed as a boy to attend school.
Just as Ye Jinyan was about to walk downstairs, Tang Ning walked straight up to Jiang Yao, stared into his eyes for a long time, and then said meaningfully, "I hope you remember what you promised me on the rooftop. See you tomorrow, Yao!"
Upon hearing this, Yin Yuqing turned to look at Jiang Yao beside her in disbelief, her fingers clenching tightly.
Previously, on the rooftop...
Yes, she had previously discovered that Tang Ning and Jiang Yao had disappeared together for a period of time. When she called them, Yao even hung up on her. Could it be that he was on the rooftop with Tang Ning at that time?
The classmate, the homeroom teacher, Xu Xingbo, Ye Jinyan, A Yao...
Everyone who meets this girl named Tang Ning will be completely attracted to her.
And what about her? What is she?
After Tang Ning finished speaking, Jiang Yao already knew something was wrong, and he felt even worse when he saw Yin Yuqing's suddenly pale face.
At this moment, Tang Ning, who had planted a seed for the two of them, happily caught up with Ye Jinyan's footsteps, keeping her merits hidden.
"No, no, Yufeng, let me explain. It's not what you think. She and I...we..."
He stammered as he tried to explain.
Yin Yuqing gave him a forced, strong, and forgiving smile before he could react, "It's okay, I... I understand. Tang Ning is indeed very beautiful and a very nice person. If you feel sorry for her... I understand. We're still best friends, right? You don't need to explain anything to me, I'm not anyone to you..."
She said the last sentence with a smile.
If Tang Ning were still here, she would probably applaud and cheer for her performance, because girls understand what she's saying.
I'm nobody to you, so you don't need to explain to me. If you want to explain, just confess your feelings to me first, make me your person, and then you can explain.
Tsk tsk.
Sure enough, Jiang Yao immediately became anxious upon hearing Yin Yuqing's words, "I really don't have any other feelings for her right now. Besides, how can you not be anyone to me? My feelings for you are clear..."
Jiang Yao fell silent as he thought of his promise to Tang Ning.
He had already promised Tang Ning that he had to continue dating Yu Qing for another three months to prevent her from revealing her true identity as a girl. Otherwise, if he were to confess his feelings to Yu Qing while still dating Tang Ning, what kind of person would he be?
As Jiang Yao remained silent, the expectant light in Yin Yuqing's eyes slowly, slowly faded away.
Tears streamed down her face uncontrollably. She wiped them away forcefully. "I...I understand. I promise I won't bother you anymore. I...I'm going back to my dorm now."
"Yu Feng... Yu..."
Jiang Yao chased after her and made two noises, but Yin Yuqing had already run downstairs at lightning speed, leaving Jiang Yao looking at her departing figure with a look of annoyance and letting out a deep sigh.
Everything was fine, how did it get like this?
Meanwhile, in the classroom, the boys who had just finished watching an entire set of Qiong Yao dramas exchanged glances, then created a group chat and began to furiously complain about it.
"Am I seeing things? Why do Yin Yufeng and Jiang Yao both seem so gay? Is it just my imagination?"
"Me too... I always thought they were a little bit gay, but I didn't expect it to get so serious now!"
"I was sitting in front of them, so I have something to say. Those two were always whispering to each other in the back. When Yin Yufeng started acting cute towards Jiang Yao, oh my god, just thinking about it now gives me the creeps!"
"Hehe, that's great! Now there are two fewer competitors, and Tang Ning, my little angel, is mine!"
"Cheng Fei, you're talking nonsense! Aaaaah, I challenge you to a duel!"
"Let's fight! Let's fight!"
...
Mentioning Tang Ning and her group immediately veered off-topic, but rumors about Jiang Yao and Yin Yufeng being a couple began to circulate privately.
It's a pity Tang Ning didn't know. If she did, she would definitely say that the reputation of the already deceased Yin Yufeng has been ruined. He's dead, but he still has to bear the label of being gay. Who else is more miserable than him? But who told him to have such a troublesome sister?
As soon as Tang Ning got home, she immediately went into the kitchen.
Seeing her actions, Ye Jinyan held back for a while, but finally couldn't resist. Half an hour later, he strolled to the kitchen door, looked up, and saw Tang Ning dip her little finger into the sauce she had just simmered for a short while and put it in her mouth to taste it.
Finding it might be a little bland, she quickly added some salt with a small spoon. However, in her haste, the back of her hand accidentally touched the hot edge of the pot.
"hiss!"
She gasped.
Ye Jinyan, who was standing at the kitchen door, suddenly stopped when he saw Tang Ning cleverly turn on the tap and rinse the scalded area with cold water.
Tang Ning, who was looking at the back of her hand, caught a glimpse of Ye Jinyan out of the corner of her eye and immediately turned around in surprise, "Brother? What brings you here?"
"What are you doing?"
"Well, I think the food in the cafeteria is really bad, so I thought I'd bring my own lunch and bring some for... Yao. He's different from us; he lives in the dorms and eats the cafeteria food for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. He must be tired of it by now, so I thought I'd cook him some of his favorite dishes to change things up."
Tang Ning said this with a gentle expression.
Upon hearing this, Ye Jinyan involuntarily recalled the scene of Yin Yuqing and Jiang Yao leaning their heads together, talking and laughing. He immediately clenched his fists, his lips moved as if he wanted to say something, but in the end, he didn't say anything.
In the end, he simply left with the words "Then be careful" and disappeared without a trace.
Tang Ning raised an eyebrow inwardly when she saw that Ye Jinyan was gone.
Let's see how long he can endure it.
She figured that Ye Jinyan wouldn't come looking for her until at least tomorrow, after that exciting drama had finished.
To everyone's surprise, that very evening, Tang Ning heard a knock on the door and saw Ye Jinyan arrive with a tube of burn ointment.
He looked at the faint red mark left on Tang Ning's hand, hesitated for several minutes, and only when Tang Ning was about to fall asleep and he was escorted to the door did Ye Jinyan finally manage to speak.
“Ah Yao has already decided to break off his engagement with you, so why are you still being so good to him? A boy, out of the blue, wants to break off his engagement with you. Haven’t you considered that he might have fallen in love with someone…? So, if possible, I still hope you leave Jinsheng High School as soon as possible, to avoid…”
Hearing Ye Jinyan's words, Tang Ning kept her head down, her bangs concealing all her expressions.
But a smile crept onto his face.
She didn't make this bento for Jiang Yao; she made it for you, my dear brother.
And there it is, the effects are already visible.
After Ye Jinyan finished saying what he wanted to say, Tang Ning raised her head and gave Ye Jinyan a faint smile.
“I won’t leave. I believe in Yao. The reason he wants to break off the engagement must be because I didn’t do something right enough, which made him… made him have that thought. As long as I treat him better, even better, so good that he can’t live without me, he will definitely take back his words about breaking off the engagement. I believe…”
Before Tang Ning could finish her stubborn words, Ye Jinyan on the other end was already enraged by them.
"Do you even know anything about his relationship with Yin Yufeng...?"
"I know!"
Before Ye Jinyan could finish speaking, Tang Ning's eyes were already red. "I know, I know Yin Yufeng is actually a girl. Ayao did it because of her... But I've been with him for ten years. I love him, I love Jiang Yao. In these ten years, besides my mother, he is the closest and most familiar person to me. You have no idea how much you used to hate me. Only Jiang Yao has been good to me all this time. For ten years, I've become like someone who can't live without air or water... So, I absolutely cannot lose him!"
A resolute look rose in Ye Jinyan's eyes as he looked at her, and then he heard—
"So, I... I blackmailed him. I threatened him by saying that Yin Yufeng is a girl, and he wanted to give me one last three months to continue dating me for another three months. After these three months, if he is still really sure that the only person he loves is Yin Yuqing and it can't be me, I will leave. But I have even more confidence in myself, and I will definitely win him back!"
At this point, tears were already welling up in Tang Ning's eyes. She smiled and forced the tears back. "But, brother, I'm really happy that you're willing to say these things to me today. Thank you, thank you so much!"
"Also, please believe me, I will definitely create a miracle in three months! It's getting late, don't worry about these things anymore, go back to sleep! Thank you for the burn ointment, goodnight brother, sweet dreams tonight!"
After saying that, Tang Ning slowly closed her door under Ye Jinyan's complicated gaze.
Once the door was closed, there wasn't a trace of sadness or heartbreak left on her face; only an overwhelming sense of determination remained.
She saw it!
In just a short while, Ye Jinyan's favorability rating had already jumped to 15.
It jumped 35 points in one go!
What a great older brother!
Anyway, Jiang Yao's favorability rating dropped by another 4 points compared to the dog's, and it's now at 40, which is much better. Thinking of someone, she rolled her eyes at the sky without hesitation.
Forget it, the favorability of the "tool" is not within her consideration for now!
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