Chen Liuyue was doing it on purpose!
She insisted on trampling his sincere heart into pieces, then asked with a grin, 'Does it hurt? I didn't know that was your heart.'
Having already hurt him once, could she really hurt him again without any scruples?
Qin Xuanye's emotions were unconsciously stirred by her once more.
Dinner ended.
Qin Xuanye announced his departure.
Chen Liuyue stood to the side, smiling brightly as she proactively stepped closer and said:
"Brother-in-law, leaving already?"
"You drove here, right? Could you give me a ride back to my dorm on your way?"
The request was somewhat presumptuous.
Chen Ruanruan's lips moved slightly.
She was unhappy about it, but ultimately didn't voice her objection.
She just cast a pleading glance at Wu Peihua.
Wu Peihua was also displeased, thinking Liuyue had no sense of social etiquette.
She quickly spoke up:
"Liuyue, you child, really!"
"How can you trouble young Qin like this!"
Chen Liuyue declared righteously:
"He's not some outsider, he's sister's fiancé, my brother-in-law, that makes him family."
"Unless, Mom, you actually don't like this future son-in-law in your heart?"
"You've never really considered Qin Xuanye as one of us?"
After speaking, Chen Liuyue casually glanced past Chen Ruanruan and Qin Xuanye, covering her mouth.
She blinked, wearing an expression of pure innocence.
"Oh no, did I say something true that I shouldn't have?"
She then shot a glance at Wu Peihua.
"Mom, sorry, I have a clumsy tongue, don't scold me."
Chen Liuyue had managed to say all the right—and wrong—things herself.
What else could Wu Peihua say?
The words she wanted to say stuck in her throat, finally transforming into just one sentence.
"Well, we still have to see if it's convenient for young Qin."
Hearing this, Chen Liuyue nodded obediently, then looked at Qin Xuanye with a charming, smiling face.
She seemed to inadvertently shake her phone, reminding him not to forget the kissing photo was still in her possession.
Her tone was slow and deliberate:
"Brother-in-law, is it convenient for you?"
Qin Xuanye gritted his teeth, adjusted his emotions.
He said coldly:
"It's convenient!"
Chen Ruanruan again felt the atmosphere between the two of them had become somewhat strange.
Although it looked confrontational, like fire and water,
it felt like a bubble containing only the two of them, with no room for a third person to join.
She was the official fiancée.
This made Chen Ruanruan's heart flutter with unease once more.
"I'll go with Xuanye to take my sister back to school," Chen Ruanruan steadied her mind.
With her present, surely nothing would happen.
She thought Chen Liuyue would refuse, but instead she smiled and said, "Okay, sister is always so good to me."
The atmosphere in the car was a bit odd.
Qin Xuanye sat in the driver's seat, Chen Ruanruan in the passenger seat.
Chen Liuyue sat in the back, enjoying the spacious area alone.
Qin Xuanye, driving, remained silent, only the soft music playing in the car.
Chen Ruanruan seemed to sense her fiancé's bad mood and wisely didn't disturb him.
Chen Liuyue in the back seat was in high spirits.
And when she was happy, she wanted to stir up trouble.
"Brother-in-law, you're at Qinghe University, right next to our Jinghai University? Your grades must have been great."
"Which high school did you go to?"
Faced with the sudden question,
Qin Xuanye's hand on the steering wheel paused slightly.
"What's it to you?" His tone was less than polite.
Chen Ruanruan found it strange, as the Xuanye she knew was gentle and amiable, never showing such sharp edges.
After speaking, Qin Xuanye himself realized his reaction was a bit too intense.
He added,
"I went to high school in the neighboring city."
"Which city was that?" Chen Liuyue asked, knowing full well.
Qin Xuanye: "N City."
Chen Liuyue said excitedly, "Huh, what a coincidence, I went to school in N City from elementary through high school!"
Hearing this, Chen Ruanruan joined the conversation.
She asked gently, "Which high school did Xuanye attend?"
Qin Xuanye: "The Second High School."
Chen Liuyue exclaimed, "Ah! I went to Second High too! I didn't expect that I was actually schoolmates with my brother-in-law before. The world is so small."
Qin Xuanye gave a cold 'hmph' in response.
After that, the car fell into an awkward silence again.
The earlier topic kept circling in Chen Ruanruan's mind.
Xuanye was their age, and went to the same high school as Chen Liuyue... so, did they really not know each other before?
Mainly, Xuanye's attitude towards Chen Liuyue was just too suspicious.
Chen Ruanruan's hand holding her phone tightened slightly.
No!
She decided she must have someone investigate Chen Liuyue's past.
The rest of the journey passed without conversation.
Qin Xuanye parked the car at the back gate of Jinghai University's dorms. Chen Liuyue smiled and waved at them.
"Thanks, sis and brother-in-law, for the ride."
Chen Ruanruan maintained her gentle, kind big-sister demeanor, smiling as she said, "It's dark, walk carefully."
Chen Liuyue nodded: "Okay!"
The two got back in the car.
Qin Xuanye said, "I'll take you back to the Chen residence."
But Chen Ruanruan suddenly grabbed his sleeve, warmth flowing in her eyes, her voice turning soft and sweet.
"Xuanye, I don't want to go home tonight."
Qin Xuanye frowned.
"What do you mean?"
Chen Ruanruan knew Qin Xuanye had moved out of the Qin family old residence in his freshman year and lived alone in a house in the city.
"I want to go to your place."
They were both adults; the implication of her words was crystal clear.
And they were already engaged, a settled matter.
Expectation flickered in Chen Ruanruan's eyes.
Too many things had happened too closely these past two days, making her feel insecure. So, she had to firmly grasp Qin Xuanye's heart first.
Qin Xuanye was silent for a moment, then seriously, one by one, pried her fingers loose.
"Ruanruan, I respect you."
"Before we are married, that won't happen."
"I'm taking you back to the Chen residence." His tone left no room for doubt.
Disappointment spread in Chen Ruanruan's eyes.
But she knew Qin Xuanye was a man of strong principles; once he said something, he rarely changed his mind.
And him saying this was also a sign of respect for her.
A smile returned to the corners of her lips.
"Okay, I'll listen to you."
After dropping Chen Ruanruan off at the Chen residence,
Qin Xuanye turned the car around. Just as he reached a traffic light intersection, his phone suddenly rang.
He picked it up, glanced at it, and put it down again.
He let the ringtone keep ringing.
The call came through, then automatically disconnected after going unanswered for too long.
This happened several times back and forth.
Then, his WeChat notification sounded.
A photo popped up.
The photo of Chen Liuyue wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing him in the hallway outside the private room earlier that day.
Qin Xuanye's pupils darkened.
Stopping at a red light, he saw another voice message appear in the WeChat chat box.
"Brother-in-law, you should have dropped my sister off home by now, right? Come to the university now. Find me."
Qin Xuanye's finger hovered over the keyboard area, about to refuse.
The next second, a new voice message arrived.
"You don't have to come if you don't want to. But then I might accidentally slip and send the photo to sister."
"Brother-in-law, you wouldn't want sister to find out about our relationship, would you?"
