Chapter 34

By the time Ying Nian realized that Yu Linran’s cold expression all night was due to her screensaver photo, she was already at school.

The tip of her pen stabbed into the notebook, as if it were his face, and Ying Nian wished she could poke a bunch of pockmarks onto him!

Hey, this guy! He misunderstood that she wanted to stop being his fan and switch her support to someone else, but didn’t say a word about it, giving her the cold shoulder all night. Just look at how proud he was!

Ying Nian made up her mind to be colder toward him, but she couldn’t even last a day before her resolve crumbled.

Before evening self-study, Ying Nian received a call saying there was a package for her at the school gate. A delivery guy was holding a large bag of takeout, asking her to sign for it.

When she opened it back in the classroom, it turned out to be a neatly arranged, lavish dinner, with a variety of dishes—meat, vegetables, fresh items, all included, even dessert after the meal. Inside the bag was a card that read: “Making up for your dinner, sorry.”

Ying Nian immediately guessed it was from Yu Linran. While they were shopping, he casually asked her about her school and class, and at the time, she thought he was just making small talk. Now she realized this was his follow-up move.

Ying Nian didn’t message Yu Linran and simply unpacked the chopsticks to enjoy the meal. It saved her the trouble of going out to find food.

Most of the students in the class had already left in small groups for dinner, but those passing by couldn’t help but take a few extra glances at her. The food smelled so good, and Ying Nian was eating such a rich meal that soon the fragrance filled the entire classroom.

Guo Li, who sat in front of Ying Nian, turned around with a twisted expression. “You’re eating pretty well, huh?”

Ying Nian, still fuming, said, “Of course! Someone offended me, so they sent food to apologize… Don’t think I’ll forget about it just because of this!”

Guo Li: “…” But you’re eating pretty happily. From the looks of it, you don’t seem like someone who holds grudges.

As Ying Nian was eating, she unexpectedly attracted someone else’s attention.

It wasn’t Guo Li, but another guy.

To be honest, Ying Nian was quite satisfied with her appearance, but perhaps because she was too fierce, combined with her well-known reputation, she had never had much luck with boys. The male classmates she interacted with all ended up becoming friends, or even brothers. Despite being in her youth, she had yet to experience a single “youthful” romance.

Ying Nian, who had long been used to having better luck with girls than with boys, never expected that one day a boy would openly express interest in her.

When she received the lunchbox he brought, Ying Nian was completely dumbfounded.

The boy, named Cui Teng, was in the same grade as her. Ying Nian knew him; they had co-hosted several school events together. They had each other’s contact information, but they had barely ever talked.

“I made this. It doesn’t look that great, but it tastes pretty good. You should try it…”

It was obvious that Cui Teng was quite embarrassed, trying to act calm as he finished his sentence, while holding the lunchbox out toward Ying Nian.

“For me?” Ying Nian confirmed repeatedly, her face full of surprise. “Why are you giving it to me??”

Cui Teng’s face flushed slightly, “I just… wanted to give it to you.”

She had been planning to go eat braised chicken. Ying Nian looked around, seeing that there weren’t many people around. Thankfully, he had the sense to call her to a corner to talk; otherwise, if others saw, who knows what rumors might start.

“No need, you eat it yourself. I already have dinner!” Ying Nian politely declined his offer.

Cui Teng insisted, stammering, “Th-this, I made this for you.”

The meaning was clear enough, and if Ying Nian didn’t understand it, that would be a question of her intelligence. She hadn’t expected it—this was the first time in her life that someone, not a relative, had cooked for her.

Ying Nian felt a bit embarrassed, but she still had to refuse: “No, really, there’s no need! I don’t like eating this kind of food!”

“You haven’t even seen what’s in the lunchbox…” Cui Teng glanced at her.

Ying Nian was momentarily speechless, so she had no choice but to say, “Actually, I already made plans to have dinner with a friend, so I can’t accept your kind offer. I’m really sorry!” After repeatedly thanking him, she tried to make her escape.

But Cui Teng came straight to the point: “Can I ask, who was the person who sent you dinner yesterday?”

Ying Nian felt a headache coming on. “You don’t know him.”

“Why did you accept his, but not mine? Are you afraid my cooking isn’t good? I can also order takeout for you…”

“Don’t, don’t, don’t!” Ying Nian quickly turned around, waving her hand to stop him from acting impulsively. “It’s not about that.”

She composed herself a bit and said, “I have my reasons for accepting, but it’s a personal matter that’s not convenient to share with you. As for the rest, you really don’t need to go through all this trouble for me. I can’t accept it, and it’s not just because it’s you. If it were someone else here today, I would still refuse.”

Without giving Cui Teng more time to speak, Ying Nian quickly added, “You should eat it yourself. Thank you for your kindness. Goodbye!”

She deliberately chose vague wording, saying “kindness” instead of “thoughtfulness,” making her stance clear enough.

Ying Nian wasn’t unaware of Cui Teng’s intentions, but she knew she couldn’t respond in the way he wanted. So, she chose this polite and non-confrontational way to let it slide.

This unexpected encounter completely caught Ying Nian off guard—it really gave her a fright. She hadn’t noticed any of these intentions from Cui Teng when they co-hosted events together.

How could this be! They had barely interacted, and the only time they had was when it had rained heavily. Cui Teng hadn’t brought an umbrella, while she was fully geared up, wearing a transparent raincoat, so she kindly lent him her umbrella.

She had dashed to the school gate, and along the way, some of her female classmates had called her to join them under their umbrellas. She’d alternately walked with one girl, then another, and before she knew it, she was home.

She thought of herself as pretty manly, while Cui Teng was gentle, pale, and refined—how could they possibly match? A good young man like him—what on earth had gotten into him?

Of course, she wasn’t saying that she was the one with her mind clouded or that she was all that bad. It’s just that turning a perfectly good friendship into something awkward like this wasn’t right! It shouldn’t be this way!

Ying Nian started avoiding Cui Teng. They didn’t run into each other often anyway, and she figured he’d be too embarrassed to block her at her classroom door. However, she didn’t expect that Cui Teng would start messaging her on social media.

In the past month, they hadn’t exchanged more than a couple of words. But ever since she accepted that takeout, Cui Teng had been messaging her daily, like clockwork. Ying Nian was stuck, unsure whether to respond or ignore him.

It was easy enough to answer the academic questions he asked. Even though she knew he was just using it as an excuse to talk to her, all she had to do was write out the solution and send it back. It was polite and appropriate without crossing any lines.

When Cui Teng started chatting with her about things other than academics, Ying Nian truly found it exhausting. She had tried ignoring him for long periods, but his perseverance and patience were unrelenting. Rain or shine, he would still message her.

Their chat history was full of his one-sided conversations, and the more Ying Nian looked at those messages, the more awkward she felt.

Having no other options, Ying Nian resorted to her ultimate excuse. Every time he messaged her, she would say, [I’m playing a game, I’m busy, let’s talk later.]

Surely, he wouldn’t be into gaming, right?

Who could have expected that this plan would backfire? As soon as Cui Teng heard that, he responded, [I play games too, let’s play a few rounds together!]

Who would’ve thought that someone who seemed so studious and proper would actually play games!

Ying Nian slumped in her chair in front of the computer, then straightened her back a few seconds later, determined to try again: [You should know I’m very competitive, always striving to be the best in everything I do. When I play games, I only play with people who are really good. If someone’s just average, I tend to lose my temper while playing. It’s probably better not to, sorry.]

She wasn’t lying—she really did only play with highly skilled players. SF had already made it to the top eight in the S tournament, and Yu Linran’s level definitely wasn’t considered average, right?

But Cui Teng wasn’t discouraged. [You won’t know if I’m bad unless you play with me.]

Even if he’s good, he couldn’t be better than Yu Linran, right? Ying Nian wanted to say, “I play solo with a professional player every day,” but thinking of Yu Linran, she held back.

Instead of replying to him right away, Ying Nian pulled out her phone and sent a WeChat message to Yu Linran.

[Captain! Help, it’s urgent!!]

[Are you there?]

[I have something urgent to ask you!!]

Just reading those frantic messages felt like noise in one’s ear, but Yu Linran quickly replied: [What’s up?]

[Here’s the thing!] She said, [Can you solo with one of my friends?]

Afraid he’d refuse, she pleaded, [Please!]

Yu Linran, being generous, simply said: [Sure.]

Ying Nian beamed with joy. [Then log in, we’ll meet in the game!]

She turned to message Cui Teng, [I usually play games with a friend, the two of us together. How about this—why don’t you solo with him for a match, and I’ll team up with the stronger one?]

Even though she was politely rejecting a pursuer, that statement was quite shameless.

Seeing the mention of a “he,” Cui Teng had no reason to refuse. Ying Nian invited him into the game, created a room, and soon Cui Teng, using his main account, was face-to-face with Yu Linran, who was playing on a secondary account.

Ying Nian watched as the two guys prepared to solo. Before the match started, she quickly sent a message to Yu Linran on WeChat: [You better win!] She was worried he might go easy on his opponent since Cui Teng was her friend.

Yu Linran simply replied, [Got it.] Without saying more, he jumped straight into the match.

No matter how good Cui Teng’s gaming skills were, he couldn’t compete with a professional player. After all, this was how Yu Linran made his living. With an overwhelming advantage, Yu Linran easily won the match.

Unwilling to accept defeat, Cui Teng typed, [Can we go again?]

Yu Linran readily agreed.

The second match played out much like the first, with a similar outcome. Yu Linran’s skill level was impressive, even among professional players. It was no wonder SF had burst onto the scene with such dominance this year.

While watching the match, Ying Nian didn’t forget to send a compliment in their WeChat conversation: [Captain, you’re so amazing! Even when you’re not playing support, you’re still this strong!]

Yu Linran replied with: […]

That comment was pretty much redundant. A professional player’s hero pool had to be deep, otherwise, how would they even make it onto the stage? Every pro had more than just their main heroes—they had several signature ones and a whole bunch of others that, while not flashy, were more than solid.

If they could play at a pro level, their skill was beyond question.

After losing the second match, Cui Teng messaged Ying Nian on social media: [Your friend is really good.] He had no choice but to admit the truth.

Ying Nian simply replied, [Yeah, he is.]

The next second, she picked up her phone and sent a few laughing emojis to Yu Linran: [Thank goodness for you, Captain! Otherwise, I’d be so stressed out!]

Yu Linran asked, [Why?]

Without thinking too much, she blurted out everything like spilling beans from a bamboo tube: [Ah, this classmate and I used to get along fine, we’d greet each other when we met and all that. But out of nowhere, he started sending me food, and when I refused, he began messaging me every day. I told him I was busy playing games, and then he said he plays too and wanted to play with me.]

She sighed, [So I exaggerated, saying I only play with really skilled players. Honestly, I’m probably not good enough to beat him, so I had to turn to you. Otherwise, I really wouldn’t know how to turn him down…]

There was a long silence from Yu Linran’s side before two words appeared: [Is that so?]

Ying Nian replied, [Yeah!] but didn’t see any response for a while.

Looking up at her computer screen, she noticed that Yu Linran and Cui Teng had already started another match.

Surprised, she asked Cui Teng, [Why are you playing again?]

Cui Teng answered, [I don’t know. Your friend initiated the match, so I accepted.]

Yu Linran initiating the game? That was unexpected.

Ying Nian was completely confused. As she spectated, she took a sharp breath—ouch, she could practically feel Cui Teng’s pain! Yu Linran wasn’t holding back at all; he was as ruthless as could be.

The match ended even faster than the previous two, and Cui Teng remarked, [Is your friend always this good?]

Ying Nian reassured him, [Yes. Don’t take it personally, I lose badly when I play against him too.]

In truth, it wasn’t quite the same. Compared to this, Yu Linran had definitely gone easy on her! Ying Nian clicked her tongue in amazement but didn’t say much more. After exchanging a few casual words, she wrapped up the conversation with Cui Teng, using the excuse that she had to play a game, and quickly disappeared.

She then opened a chat with Yu Linran.

[Captain, you’re so fierce! But seeing this, I guess you usually go easy on me!] Ying Nian teased.

He replied, [I go hard on you to help you improve. Otherwise, how will your skills ever progress?]

[So, are you being tough on my friend to help him improve too? Wow, this kind of experience is something people would die to learn from. Captain, you’re so generous…]

[That’s not it.]

[Huh?]

Yu Linran calmly replied, [I just don’t like him.]