The youth finally followed his mother to another room. Listening to the gradually fading footsteps, Song Fu recalled the youth’s expression when his eyelashes drooped, and her attention couldn’t focus on the workbook on the table for a moment.
“I think I did something wrong again.” Cheng Yuan pouted, looking from the side like he could compete with a little duckling. His voice was muffled. “Sister, my big brother is really amazing, right? He knows so many things, can do so many things. When he came to my school, many of my friends envied me for having such an awesome big brother. But, but…” The child didn’t finish his words.
But Song Fu could fill in the rest herself.
However, his mother didn’t seem to like this amazing big brother as much. Even in those simple two sentences just now, she could detect subtle differences in tone. The words directed at the youth were more distant and cold, and the furrowed brow was even more pronounced.
As the saying went, every family has its own problems. Song Fu, as a part-time tutor, really wasn’t suited to get involved, so she could only pat the child’s head. “Little Yuan is a good kid.” At least he knew to feel heartache and confusion, unlike the female supporting character’s devious little brother who was full of schemes.
The conversation in the study didn’t last long. While Song Fu was explaining the second page of questions to the child, the youth reappeared.
He didn’t say anything, just sat quietly to the side with his brows and eyes lowered. His thick, dark eyelashes blocked most of the color in his eyes, making him look very quiet, like a little dark cloud perched on his head. Perhaps sensing Song Fu’s gaze lingering unconsciously, the youth looked up. “Am I disturbing you?”
Without waiting for an answer, he continued, “I’ll wait on the balcony for a bit. Call me when class is over.”
“Okay.” Song Fu responded softly and watched him head to the balcony.
She thought that a youth in the prime of puberty probably didn’t like having his sadness seen, so letting him process it alone wasn’t a bad idea.
Lu Yan Zhi found a rattan chair facing away from the room and sat down, starting to fiddle with his phone.
It wasn’t that he was particularly heartbroken—otherwise, his heart would have shattered into pieces long ago.
Compared to the imbalance from favoritism, most of Lu Yan Zhi’s current dissatisfaction actually stemmed from the inequality in their statuses. Since she didn’t treat him like a beloved child, yet stood in a mother’s position with a superior attitude to educate him when needed, wasn’t that ridiculous?
She called it a talk, but it was mostly her lecturing—telling him where he fell short, that he should be kinder to his little brother, and that he could occasionally come home to stay for a while.
He had to admit, that word “occasionally” was used brilliantly. Lu Yan Zhi hated beating around the bush and directly asked outright, “You mean you want me to come when beckoned and leave when dismissed, right?” Her face had looked uglier than ever before.
Of course, he didn’t get an answer to that question, but he knew the score. Wasn’t it just that his little brother wanted him around, so he’d stay for two days, and once he got tired of it, he’d be shooed away so he wouldn’t be an eyesore? Sorry, but he wasn’t the considerate type. His favorite thing was to make sure others didn’t get their way.
A child from a business marriage was truly different from the fruit of love.
Lu Yan Zhi curled his lips, but there was no mirth in his eyes.
“Is it… a bit cold outside?” Song Fu appeared hesitantly at the balcony door, looking like she didn’t know what to say without hurting the fragile youth’s heart. Her beautiful eyes reflected the light, and her red lips pressed downward in an arc.
Lu Yan Zhi naturally flipped over his phone, which was displaying a mini-game, and responded, “Cold? It does seem a little chilly.”
He stood up, but had no intention of returning to the room. Instead, he briefly gazed toward a distant tree branch before looking back. “Are you here to comfort me?”
She was, but Song Fu wasn’t good at it. Now that she was standing there, she didn’t know what to say.
Mention the female supporting character’s rotten little brother? Forget it; this wasn’t a misery contest.
She could only state the facts. “Blowing cold wind might make you catch a cold.”
“Catch a cold…” The youth seemed reminded of something. He looked up and touched his forehead, pressing a few times. “I think I’m already sick. What should I do?” His phoenix eyes widened blankly in bewilderment, reminiscent of some innocent animal.
Song Fu was stunned for a moment. Just as she was about to persuade him to go inside, that pretty face drew closer—
“Sister, feel it. Is it hot?” the youth said.
Song Fu touched it, and it felt cool to the touch—probably from being out in the cold wind too long. “Not hot.”
As soon as the words left her mouth, the hand she had placed on the youth’s face rubbed against it twice. The youth’s brows and eyes curved happily, his eyes sparkling brightly. He nodded contentedly, like a close little dog. “Mm, Sister’s hand is warmer.”
Song Fu opened her mouth soundlessly in an “oh wow,” withdrew her hand, and clenched her fingertips into her palm. She hesitated before saying, “If you really think you’re sick, you should use a thermometer. That’s more reliable.”
The youth just smiled.
Song Fu: “…” He’s kind of cute. What’s going on?
After finishing the tutoring session and heading back to school, Song Fu ended up walking with the youth eight out of ten times, but most of those times, she was the only one getting off at the school gate. This time was different because of the cake he couldn’t deliver, so the youth walked her all the way to the dormitory building.
Song Fu’s roommate had just returned with a delivery package and bumped into them right away. Her gossipy gaze darted between the two, and she quietly pointed with one finger. “Who’s this?”
“My tutoring kid’s big brother. They call him Shiyue,” Song Fu gave a brief introduction. “This is my roommate.”
The roommate nodded enthusiastically. “Hi, hi!”
“Hello.” The youth replied simply and handed over the cake in his hand. “This is for you all to eat.”
“Thank you, thank you.”
The roommate’s mouth grinned so wide it wouldn’t close. Once they entered the dormitory building and the youth was out of sight, she nudged the person beside her with her elbow. “Fu Fu, what’s the situation?”
“What situation?” Song Fu tilted her head and asked back.
The roommate stomped her foot in frustration. “That big brother of your tutoring kid—you two, what’s going on? He’s pretty good-looking too. Are you in the flirting stage, or already dating?”
Song Fu shook her head. “Neither. He’s a high school senior. Dating would be puppy love.”
“High school, huh.” The roommate sighed. “No wonder he looks so young and tender.”
While Song Fu was back in the dorm sharing the cake, the roommate grinned and shared her discovery. “That little brother definitely has a thing for Song Fu, you guys believe it or not? It’s not normal to be this nice—delivering cake right to the dorm building. My ex-boyfriend never treated me this well, okay?” She spoke with absolute certainty. “And his eyes were completely glued to Song Fu.”
The roommates ate the cake and started teasing in unison. “This is way more reliable than your online romance nonsense!”
“Fu Fu hasn’t been playing the game much lately, right?”
“Yeah.” The youth’s feelings were still just speculation and couldn’t be confirmed, but Song Fu had indeed been putting less and less energy into the game lately. The male lead hadn’t been logging in much either, so even if she stayed online twenty-four hours, it was pointless.
Reminded indirectly, Song Fu sent a message to the male lead like completing a daily quest.
Song Fu: Big Brother, why haven’t you been playing the game lately?
Song Fu: TT Is real life keeping you busy?
According to the normal plot progression, the male lead should have noticed the female lead vanishing from his side by now. But Song Fu checked the Game Forum and saw no signs of it, so she gritted her teeth and reminded him herself: Or do you find the game boring now, because that girl you used to play with switched servers, right?
The first half was fine, but those last three words would seem aggressive to anyone.
And that was the effect Song Fu wanted.
Yan: ?
Yan: What girl?
The reply came pretty fast, but the words conveyed an unmistakable bewilderment.
By now, Song Fu had a bad premonition, but she still clung to a sliver of hope and reminded him: The one you played with for so long, nickname Coriander Tasty. Didn’t she switch servers? You even argued with me over her!
On the other side, Lu Yan Zhi was still sitting in the car, not even at his place yet, when he felt a massive black pot slammed onto his back.
After the reminder, he vaguely recalled, but he had to clarify the last sentence. That time, it was clearly Song Fu who threw a tantrum unilaterally; he was the one responsible for coaxing her.
Yan: I never argued with you over her.
fufu: You did!
Yan: …Fine, if you say so.
Yan: I told you before, my online time would decrease. It wasn’t because anyone switched servers.
fufu: Did you?
Lu Yan Zhi specially scrolled back to the previous chat records and sent a screenshot.
The other side went silent.
Lu Yan Zhi helplessly rubbed his forehead and simply sent a red packet over.
Unexpectedly, the other side didn’t snatch it immediately.
Really mad?
Because he hadn’t been online much lately?
About a minute passed before the red packet finally showed as claimed, and the chat updated.
fufu: Really not?
Yan: No.
…
Song Fu propped up her head and took a deep breath, trying to find a reasonable excuse for the male lead’s behavior. She failed.
Whether from the character’s plot persona or their daily interactions, the male lead wasn’t the type to say one thing and mean another. If he said no, then it really wasn’t. But basing things on that conclusion meant the subsequent plot had no way to continue.
It was like a bolt from the blue.
The male lead sending a red packet to coax her was like adding insult to injury. At this point in the plot, his relationship with the female supporting character should have already started deteriorating.
‘It’s over.’ Song Fu knocked her head on the table with a “thud,” drawing concern from her roommate.
[No.] The System was very calm, believing there was still a sliver of hope. [Even if the male lead has this attitude now, once the upcoming backstabbing event happens, there will definitely be a change.]
‘I haven’t forgotten.’ Song Fu clutched her chest. ‘When I said it’s over, I meant my conscience.’
It hurt so much.
It was just a matter of time.
Soon, the male lead’s chubby junior high photos from back then leaked online, sparking group mockery on the forums. The female supporting character, as his Romance partner, got dragged into the ridicule too.
The two-faced female supporting character told the male lead that inner beauty mattered most, but behind his back, she called him a pighead and said she was only in it for the money. Those later words got relayed to the male lead by a kind soul, completely shattering their relationship.
If the male lead didn’t care about the female supporting character like in the plot, that would be fine. But now, with his attitude of caring, her badmouthing would only cause more hurt.
Even stepping back, if the male lead were just a nasty, petty person, that would be okay too. But he was genuinely a good guy.
Song Fu whined, ‘What should I do?’