It suddenly came to mind: “Was it you who had Shen Ran send it? Are you talking about that game screenshot?”
Luo Yueli quickly hummed in agreement a couple of times, then said, “I played several games with Jiang Jingjie.”
“Actually, it was you?”
“Well… Jiang Jingjie thought it was Shen Ran playing games with him.”
“Pretty much.”
“Pfft… No wonder. I was wondering, Shen Ran usually doesn’t play games at all, why would she suddenly post a game screenshot.”
Luo Yueli lightly covered her mouth, laughing softly. But as she laughed, her gaze suddenly sharpened: “Yichen, when did you start playing mobile games?”
“After I found out you were playing, I started too.”
Su Yichen was prepared, his expression natural, his reason sufficient.
“Hehe, is that so?”
The girl said with a beaming smile, “Then let’s play together from now on.”
“I haven’t been playing long, my rank is pretty low, and I’m pretty bad,” Su Yichen said. “I’ll hold you back.”
“That’s okay, we’re childhood friends.”
Luo Yueli took out her phone. “I’ll carry you.”
She and Su Yichen added each other as in-game friends.
Shen Ran didn’t quite understand why Su Yichen would say that.
Did Su Yichen not want Luo Yueli to misunderstand, or to know?
True, being someone’s boyfriend for a day…
Even the best of girlfriends probably couldn’t accept that, right…
Maybe it wasn’t fear, but being in front of Luo Yueli, he always felt a bit restrained.
It was strange. Visibly strange.
But…
Shen Ran felt like Su Yichen seemed… afraid of Luo Yueli.
Why was that?
Su Yichen and Luo Yueli finished adding each other as game friends.
At that moment, Shen Ran sensed that the aura Luo Yueli had been emitting earlier…
The one that made people feel very uneasy…
Had suddenly vanished.
Was it an illusion?
Shen Ran looked doubtfully at Luo Yueli’s stunningly beautiful face. She was still smiling.
Smiling so beautifully.
“Yichen, Shen Ran, speaking of this, last night Jiang Jingjie successfully ranked up and even sent me a screenshot.”
As she spoke, Luo Yueli’s gaze shifted, landing on Shen Ran. “I didn’t agree to play with him.”
“Th-thank you, Lizi.”
Shen Ran wasn’t stupid. She immediately cooperated with Su Yichen and thanked Luo Yueli.
“Shen Ran, how far have things developed between you and Jiang Jingjie now?”
“I… I haven’t even spoken much with Jiang Jingjie, we just played a few games.”
Shen Ran laughed with a touch of naive charm. “I’m not very good at interacting with boys.”
“Is that so? That’s why you asked classmate Su Yichen to help you.”
“Shen Ran, you made me miss a chance to talk with Yichen… If you’d told me earlier, I could’ve gone to find Yichen for you.”
“I’m going to get it back, you know~”
“I want…”
“Well, I’ll help you think of a way too. We’re roommates, after all.”
Luo Yueli blinked, walked over to Shen Ran, and affectionately linked arms with her.
Shen Ran’s eyelids twitched violently at having her arm linked.
The weather wasn’t cold at all; it was clear autumn weather, the temperature just right. Yet cold sweat was pouring down her forehead.
She didn’t really want to accept Luo Yueli’s help.
Shen Ran shot a pleading look at Su Yichen, only to find him rapidly making eye signals at her.
And nodding his head several times for good measure.
“Lizi, what good ideas do you have?”
Clearly, Su Yichen’s meaning was for her to agree. In her helplessness, Shen Ran could only follow Luo Yueli’s lead: “If you can help me, I’d definitely be happy.”
“I’m just worried about troubling you…”
“You managed to get Su Yichen to agree, how could you trouble me?”
Luo Yueli’s beautiful eyes flickered, a hint of an ambiguous smile curling at the corner of her lips. “I do have a good idea, but it requires Yichen to cooperate a bit.”
Yichen… him cooperate?
Being from the College of Liberal Arts, Shen Ran instantly caught the nuance in Luo Yueli’s wording.
Luo Yueli didn’t say ‘it requires you, Yichen, to cooperate,’ but rather…
‘It requires Yichen him to cooperate a bit.’
Shen Ran understood.
Clearly, this sentence from Luo Yueli was directed at her.
Luo Yueli wasn’t going to ask Su Yichen if he would agree. She wanted Shen Ran to ask Su Yichen.
Whether he would agree.
A difference of one word, but the meaning was worlds apart.
“Lizi, why don’t you tell me what the idea is first?”
Shen Ran could only give a compromise answer.
Just reject Jiang Jingjie, that’s all.
“It’s actually pretty simple. I’ll find an opportunity to reject Jiang Jingjie in a very firm, strong way.”
“Only…”
Luo Yueli turned her gaze toward Su Yichen.
Su Yichen didn’t let Shen Ran speak, but proactively took over the conversation from his childhood friend. “Is there something problematic about it?”
“Jiang Jingjie’s temper is actually quite stubborn.”
Luo Yueli sighed and said, “I’ve already rejected him several times, made my stance very clear.”
“Told him I don’t like him at all.”
“But he won’t listen.”
Hearing this, Su Yichen had already guessed what Luo Yueli’s plan was.
He really didn’t want to do it.
But the situation was pressing. The conversation had already reached this point; he could only brace himself and continue. “Yueli, then what’s the plan you thought of?”
“It’s actually very simple. Jiang Jingjie has always wanted to ask me out for a meal.”
“I’ll agree to go with him once, and then at that time…”
Luo Yueli released Shen Ran’s arm and stood gracefully in front of Su Yichen, the faint smile on her cheeks as brilliant as sunset clouds.
“You come with me.”
“I’ll say you’re my boyfriend.”
“That way, he’ll give up on me.”
“And Shen Ran will have a chance. How about it?”
Shen Ran was stunned.
If she hadn’t just confirmed with Su Yichen on the rooftop that no one was around, she would have suspected Luo Yueli had been eavesdropping nearby.
She had just asked Su Yichen to pretend to be a boyfriend, and now Luo Yueli immediately came up with a cosplay version.
It was indeed a good plan.
Shen Ran had to admit, Luo Yueli’s method was very effective.
“But… wouldn’t that create conflict between Su Yichen and Jiang Jingjie? Yueli.”
“Maybe… we shouldn’t?”
Luo Yueli didn’t speak, just quietly looked at Su Yichen.
She was also waiting for his answer.
Su Yichen didn’t respond immediately.
Luo Yueli’s proposal was somewhat beyond his expectations.
Su Yichen had considered it might be something similar, but milder.
Who knew…
It would be so…
Unexpected, yet logical.
But without a doubt, it was the most crude and straightforward method.
Su Yichen was silent for a moment, then said, “No problem.”
“Good, then it’s settled.”
Luo Yueli showed no great surprise, as if she had long anticipated Su Yichen would agree.
“I’ll head off first then, I still have some things to do.”
“Mhm.”
Su Yichen responded softly, smiling as he looked at her.
Luo Yueli walked a few steps, then seemed to remember something else.
She clasped her hands behind her back, tilted her head up slightly, and glanced sideways at Shen Ran and Su Yichen.
“Oh, right, Yichen, you’ve never had a girlfriend before…”
“How about we do some special training as boyfriend and girlfriend over the next nine days?”
“So it doesn’t fall apart at the crucial moment.”
“Shen Ran, you can come watch too when the time comes. For when you’re with Jiang Jingjie in the future…”