He took the call, “Yes, it’s Yayuan. Uncle, this time it’s a joint celebration of two classes. Nian Nian and I are together right now… Yeah, I’ll make sure to send Nian Nian home then.”

No one knew what Lu Zhihong said.

Zhao Yayuan said, “No trouble, it’s the least I can do. Yeah, I really like Nian Nian.”

Being from the Zhao family, Zhao Yayuan actually had quite a knack for dealing with adults, he just didn’t usually use it much.

“Okay.” He tossed the phone to Lu Nian, “I’ll take you home later.”

Tian Yue was stunned, quietly asking Lu Nian, “Is that rumor true? About your family and the Zhao family, did you choose Zhao Yayuan?”

Lu Nian, “…That’s not true.”

They didn’t understand Zhao Yayuan; he was just that kind of person who said anything.

Basically, whatever he said needed to be taken with a grain of salt.

She was used to it.

“I knew it,” Tian Yue said.

She was Lu Nian’ss closest friend in high school, thinking she understood her quite well.

It was obvious she didn’t have any feelings for Zhao Yayuan beyond friendship.

“Okay, bro,” Chen Mo grinned, winking, “Now that the college entrance exam is over, let’s make it official and confirm the relationship?”

“Get lost,” Zhao Yayuan laughed, pushing him away.

The celebration after the college entrance exam was indeed very enjoyable.

Lu Nian didn’t usually sing much, but she was pushed to sing a few lines.

Her voice belonged to the gentle and tender type, soft and clear, very pleasant to listen to.

To her surprise, after she finished singing, a boy came over, red-faced, stuttering, seeming to want to say something to her.

She remembered that boy, his name was Song Gezhi.

“Thank you for the math materials you gave me.” Lu Nian clinked glasses with him, her tone sincere, “You’ve been a big help.”

Starting from the college entrance exam, lasting a whole year, Lu Nian had offered several times to give him a gift, but he always refused, just asking to borrow her test papers.

Lu Nian found those materials particularly handy, thinking they were bought somewhere, wanting to buy materials for other subjects, but never finding them.

Song Gezhi said they were internal materials provided by his relatives, not to be shared outside, so Lu Nian always kept her promise.

Lu Nian didn’t know how he knew she liked deer, she originally didn’t intend to accept it, but seeing it was a thoughtful gift, she felt even more embarrassed to decline.

She really liked it.

She could only lend him her Chinese and English notes, exchanging help back and forth.

So she did have quite a good impression of Song Gezhi.

She just didn’t know what he wanted to say now, looking hesitant, seeming to want to say something but not daring to.

“Want to confess to her?” Zhao Yayuan, who was sitting next to Lu Nian, laughed at the boy, showing a small, sharp tooth.

His usual arrogant and domineering young master temper, along with the rumors about him and Lu Nian, had spread quite a bit in school.

Song Gezhi, disturbed by someone, was halfway sobered up by now, and the courage he had built up instantly dissipated, “It’s nothing.”

He lowered his head and left.

Zhao Yayuan turned back, casually saying to Lu Nian, “I’ve helped you fend off so many troubles, you should thank me.”

Lu Nie’s face reddened slightly, “…You’re being too impolite.”

And she didn’t even know what Song Gezhi was trying to say, what he wanted to say. He was just being presumptuous.

She sent him a message, apologizing.

“Anyway, you don’t like him,” Zhao Yayuan lounged lazily on the couch, “It’s not a big deal to reject him in advance.”

Lu Nian happened to be sitting with classmates around a table, playing Truth or Dare.

After Zhao Yayuan said that, Lu Nian happened to draw the Truth card.

Lu Nian, “…”

Zhao Yayuan smirked, “Well, isn’t this perfect.”

Hearing Zhao Yayuan’s words, “Anyway, you don’t like him,” some perceptive ones caught the implication and got excited.

“Come on, ask this question,” everyone chimed in.

The girl who had the opportunity to ask naturally satisfied everyone’s curiosity with a smile, “Nian Nian, do you have a crush on someone?”

Lu Nian hesitated.

The first face that flashed in her mind was unexpectedly Qin Si’s.

But she quickly dismissed it.

Qin Si definitely wouldn’t have any feelings for her beyond friendship, maybe she wouldn’t even consider her a friend.

She drank a bit of alcohol, feeling dizzy.

She suddenly remembered their childhood together, then the rumors and gossip in their sophomore year, and then the last time they saw each other when he left, the silhouette of the young man.

Would her feelings for Qin Si only bring endless trouble to him? Or would he cleanly reject her and then mock her?

She had no idea what type of girl Qin Si liked because from childhood to adulthood, he didn’t seem to show any particular interest in anyone.

She thought of Bai Xi.

They were completely opposite types. What Bai Xi said about her had always bothered her, stuck in her mind.

Saying that she and Qin Si were completely incompatible.

Lu Nie’s head was spinning, unable to say anything.

“Come on, do you or don’t you?” people around her teased, “Give us a straight answer.”

Lu Nie’s head was spinning, her heart beating violently.

The girl’s moist and soft lips were tightly pursed, her breath carrying a crisp scent of alcohol.

She felt like she was fainting from head to toe. She murmured softly, “…Um.”

People around her exploded, “You do?”

“Who is it? Zhao Tingyuan or Brother Zhao Yuyuan?”

“No way, really?” Tian Yue was also stunned.

Lu Nian had a crush?

Suddenly, she remembered the cool handsome guy who used to visit the art room in high school.

“Is it that senior?” Tian Yue leaned in close to her ear, trying to keep her voice low, and asked eagerly, “Did you confess to him? How did he respond?”

It seemed promising to her.

Lu Nian, feeling dizzy from the alcohol, felt like she was walking on cotton.

Zhao Yayuan sat down next to Lu Nian with a cup of wine, emitting a pungent smell of alcohol.

“Are you drunk?” he asked.

Tian Yue’s words were interrupted, and seeing Zhao Yayuan coming over, she didn’t say anything more.

Lu Nian rubbed her eyes drowsily. “No…”

“Don’t ask anymore.” Zhao Yayuan said to the crowd of people around them, his beautiful cat-like eyes narrowing slightly, seemingly filled with a smile.

“This is already the second question.”

Still feeling dizzy, Lu Nian watched as the excitement around her subsided and the next question began.

Zhao Yayuan casually said, “If you’re feeling unhappy, just forget about it.”

“Otherwise, just date a few more times,” Zhao Yayuan said, “You won’t know what type of person you really like until you try it.”

Lu Nian asked, her voice slurred, “Oh, you can figure that out by trying? Have you tried it?”

Zhao Yayuan said crisply, “I’ve never tried it.”

He said, “But if you’re willing to give it a shot with me, I wouldn’t mind.”

The young man had a very handsome face, with deep amber eyes that seemed to match the clear liquid in his glass.

Lu Nian was confused by Zhao Yayuan’s words.

She felt that at least 80% of what he said was joking.

Zhao Yayuan didn’t continue.

He asked, “Do you remember saying you wanted to go to Nanzhou with me?”

Lu Nie’s head cleared up a bit, and she said clearly, “My dad would absolutely not let me go to Nanzhou.”

“I know,” Zhao Yayuan said casually, “I’ll figure it out. You just need to come.”

“My family will be returning to Ancheng soon,” Zhao Yayuan said lazily, “There’s a high probability I’ll be going to university here.”

“My parents said they want to visit your family,” he said.

“Going to Nanzhou will probably take three or four days, a short trip,” Zhao Yayuan said, “Just tell your dad it’s a graduation trip, a tour group. We’ll slip away midway.”

His topic jumped too quickly, and Lu Nie’s head started to spin again.

The results hadn’t come out yet, but afterwards, her major and school would probably be arranged by Lu Zhihong, and Lu Nie couldn’t be bothered with these things now.

What she was concerned about now was whether the trip to Nanzhou could really go so smoothly.

If it were a direct trip to Nanzhou, Lu Zhihong would definitely not agree.

Zhao Yayuan told her the plan.

First, they would go to Fenghe with everyone, then they would take a plane directly to the neighboring city of Nanzhou, transfer to a car, stay there for two days, and then meet up with classmates in Fenghe according to the agreed plan and return to Ancheng together.

Zhao Yayuan told her, “The people who are going together can be trusted. They definitely won’t leak the news.”

“Do you want to?” The bright amber eyes of the young man were very clear.

Lu Nian bit her lip and nodded.

She didn’t know what Zhao Yayuan and Lu Zhihong had discussed.

The next day, Lu Zhihong called her to the study for a talk.

Lu Zhihong had been very busy lately, seemingly due to fluctuations in company affairs.

He flew back and forth between cities, and often needed to go abroad.

Combined with Lu Nian’s recent high school graduation, his control over her had relaxed a bit.

Lu Nian had been obedient for many years.

Zhao Yayuan was a son of the Zhao family.

Going on a graduation trip with classmates after high school was a common thing.

Lu Zhihong asked Lu Yang to check, and indeed, they were all familiar classmates, both boys and girls.

Lu Zhihong asked Lu Nian a few simple questions, exactly the same as what Zhao Yayuan had said.

After the conversation, it seemed that the trip to Nanzhou was settled.

However, Lu Nian dared not relax in the slightest.

After all, plans were plans, and practice was practice.

“Do you still remember Xiao Qin?” After discussing the trip, Lu Zhihong casually brought up a topic, “He tutored you in math during the summer vacation, and now he’s studying at A University.”

Lu Nie lowered her eyelids. “Yeah, I remember.”

Lu Zhihong said, “He’s very talented, intelligent, capable, and handles things very well, everything is perfect.”

Mature beyond his years, with just the right amount of sharpness and restrained character, Lu Zhihong had high hopes for his future.

The key was that he was a smart person with clear goals, and Lu Zhihong believed he could provide what he wanted, namely money and power.

Lu Nian had always believed in Qin Si’s abilities.

Suddenly, she remembered the cruel methods of revenge described in the original book and the things he did after climbing to the top of power.

A demon who was cold-blooded and cruel, brought into the world, aloof and terrifying.

Originally, she never associated these things with the Qin Si she knew.

But now, after not seeing him for a year… she had no idea what Qin Si was like now, or why he didn’t even want to return to Ancheng.

Her secret girlish feelings were hidden away, with no one to confide in, too embarrassed to tell anyone.

Was it really something she couldn’t bear?

Or was it just because of the separation this past year?

They grew up together, childhood sweethearts.

She once thought she understood Qin Si very well.

She was confused.

“You and Yayuan have a good time,” Lu Zhihong said, “When you come back, the Zhao family should have moved back to Haicheng. We’ll have a formal dinner together.”