Ever since that day in the infirmary, when Ye Yunche had inexplicably tossed out a half-finished remark before fleeing as though he had done something wrong, he had vanished from the face of the earth.
For two or three days straight, he did not show his face anywhere on campus.
Zhu Liuyue, however, did not care in the slightest. She ate when she was hungry, drank when she was thirsty, and treated the children whenever they came to see her.
One day, while waiting in line for food in the cafeteria, she happened to run into Bai Shurou, who was carrying a tray.
The other girl hesitated for a long while before finally working up the courage to approach her.
Lowering her voice, she said, “Teacher Ye seems to have been going to the back hills these past few days. I have no idea what he’s been busy with.”
Zhu Liuyue ladled herself a spoonful of tomato-and-egg soup without even looking up.
“Probably busy doing nothing. What else could he be doing?”
Bai Shurou fell silent for a moment. Her fingers tightened slightly around the tray, as though she were weighing whether she should say what was on her mind.
In the end, she could not hold back. Lowering her voice even further, she asked tentatively, “When you visited me in the hospital last time, you said the person you liked was… So why are you with Ye Yunjin now?”
Zhu Liuyue glanced at her openly, an unapologetic smile tugging at the corners of her lips—so bold it was almost arrogant.
“Who says I can’t like them both?”
Shock and astonishment flashed across Bai Shurou’s face. Her mouth fell slightly open, and for a long moment, she could not recover.
Zhu Liuyue, meanwhile, continued quite naturally, “If you came across two identical collectibles, one wearing a black suit and the other wearing a white suit, wouldn’t you want to try out both?”
As she spoke, she even illustrated the idea with her fingers.
Every word Bai Shurou had been about to say instantly lodged in her throat.
She hurriedly carried her tray to another empty table and sat down.
But after taking a couple of bites, an odd feeling rose uncontrollably in her heart.
Actually, what Zhu Liuyue had just said was something Bai Shurou herself had thought about before. She had simply never dared say it aloud. At most, she would toss and turn over it in the dead of night.
If she could not have the one she loved most, would having a substitute who looked exactly like him count as some kind of consolation?
She had never expected Zhu Liuyue to say: Why not have both?
Tsk. I’m so jealous.
She really knows how to have fun.
Bai Shurou silently swallowed a piece of meat.
She could not help recalling a dream she had had a few days earlier. In it, Ye Yunjin had showered her with all kinds of domineering, overbearing affection, while she remained obsessed with the proud and unruly racing boy, Ye Yunche.
The more Ye Yunjin pursued her, the more she thought about Ye Yunche. It had been an endless cycle of tortured romance and push-and-pull games, with a plot so melodramatic it could have come straight from a short-form drama.
Then she had woken up.
She had found herself lying in the teachers’ dormitory at the rural-support school.
The Ye brothers had nothing to do with her at all. Instead, it was Zhu Liuyue who remained entangled with them, and a trace of disappointment had flashed through her heart.
She wondered whether she should be brave for once.
That afternoon, she deliberately took a detour to the equipment room beside the sports field. From a distance, she saw Ye Yunche squatting on the ground, sorting jump ropes without even looking up.
He was bathed in the afternoon sunlight, the tips of his hair dyed a pale gold by the light.
The moment Bai Shurou approached, Ye Yunche waved both hands repeatedly.
“No. Don’t come any closer.”
Bai Shurou felt a little deflated. “Teacher Ye, I only came to remind you that your next class is physical education.”
Ye Yunche nodded.
“I know. Just don’t come too close. People might misunderstand.”
“Misunderstand?”
Ye Yunche’s gaze drifted away as he searched for an explanation that sounded reasonable without being too embarrassing.
“They might misunderstand and think I like women.”
“Ah, but Doctor Zhu—” Bai Shurou had not even finished speaking when Ye Yunche interrupted her with great agitation.
“What about Zhu Liuyue? Did she mention me to you?”
His brows lifted, then lowered again. A moment later, he waved his hand as though he had convinced himself of something.
“Forget it. Don’t tell me. It definitely wasn’t anything good.”
“By the way, you’ve seen how close she’s been with my brother lately, right? Tsk. So what if they’re engaged? What’s so great about that?”
“I’m certain they won’t make it to the wedding.”
“And my brother—you might think he looks refined and proper, like some sort of gentleman, but he’s actually full of devious schemes.”
He paused, then added with a grin, “Though that’s not important. I’m pretty awful myself.”
Bai Shurou was completely stunned. She had no idea why, despite her not having finished even one sentence, he had already rattled off such a long speech.
Was… was he mentally all right?
“Awful?” she asked doubtfully.
“Don’t ask! Don’t get involved! I’m not telling you!”
He took a step back. Just as he was about to turn around, he stopped, as though he had suddenly remembered something. Turning back, he added with a flicker in his eyes, “By the way, do you think Zhu Liuyue really likes my brother? Or is she just playing around?”
Bai Shurou: “…”
She still had not said a single word.
Ye Yunche waved his hand and answered his own question. “All right, don’t say anything. I know. She’s definitely just playing around. My brother is so old-fashioned, and he’s a workaholic. Who would like some old, fatherly geezer like him?”
After saying this, he nodded with satisfaction.
Bai Shurou: “That’s not—” I didn’t say anything at all!
Ye Yunche acted as though he had not heard her. He waved his hand again, turned, and walked away, talking as he went.
“Exactly! That’s how it is! I’m leaving. Don’t talk to me anymore. She seems to have quite a temper, and her eyesight isn’t very good either. I’m not going to step into the same trap my brother did.”
Bai Shurou: “…”
She stood there in silence, watching Ye Yunche disappear.
Was this really the proud, handsome racing boy she remembered liking? Why did he seem a little… not quite right in the head?
And he was so talkative.
Clearly, she had been dreaming herself silly.
Forget it. She would focus on her rural-support work. There was no need to have those strange dreams anymore.
…
The next time Zhu Liuyue saw Ye Yunche was that evening in the cafeteria.
She said to the woman at the serving window, “Ma’am, could I have a braised chicken leg, please?”
The moment she finished speaking, a cheerful male voice sounded from behind her.
“Ma’am, I’ll have one too.”
Ye Yunche was standing behind her, a tray in his hands.
There was a mischievous curve to his lips, and he looked full of energy.
The two of them sat facing each other with their trays.
Zhu Liuyue had just picked up her chopsticks and lifted the glistening chicken leg toward her mouth when another pair of chopsticks reached across the table without a sound.
With perfect accuracy, they snatched the chicken leg right off the tips of her chopsticks.
Zhu Liuyue stared blankly.
She raised her head and glared at him. “What are you doing?”
Ye Yunche looked with satisfaction at the two chicken legs on his plate.
“Didn’t you say last time that you’d give me an extra chicken leg?”
Zhu Liuyue said, “I did, but why did you have to steal it from my bowl?”
Ye Yunche lifted her chicken leg and took a big bite, chewing with relish.
His cheeks bulged as he ate.
After swallowing, he curled his lips into a smug, infuriatingly pleased smile. His voice was light and triumphant.
“Have you never heard the saying? Stolen food tastes better.”
Under the cafeteria lights, his beautiful amber eyes gleamed with wicked mischief.
