“Oh my~ You’ve got her contact info now, rekindled an old flame… what a marvelous twist of fate~”

Ever since Jiang Yao had thrown that kick, the atmosphere at the dinner table had turned strange. A peaceful meal was no longer possible.

Before long, Chen Yuan made an excuse, saying he was exhausted after a full day of fun.

He thanked Chi Yu for her hospitality, said his goodbyes to Ke Bing, and planned to leave as quickly as possible.

Otherwise, who knew what other trouble might break out!

He knew exactly what had happened under the table. He was well aware of Yaoyao’s personality, but he also remembered Rourou as someone who never backed down! If they spent any more time together, they would inevitably end up fighting!

Chi Yu naturally had no objection to him leaving, politely telling him to be careful on his way home.

But just as he was about to leave, Ke Bing suddenly grabbed him.

They hadn’t seen each other in so many years and had only just run into each other. They didn’t even have a way to contact one another. As friends who grew up together, they at least had to exchange contact info.

She immediately decided to add Chen Yuan on Green Bubble. In her heart, she was dying to figure out what was really going on between Jiang Yao and Yuan.

The moment she made the request, Chen Yuan found himself in a difficult position.

Logically, he should have added her. No matter what, Rourou had always been good to him, and their families were old acquaintances.

But being just friends was one thing. The key issue was her “footsie” stunt under the table, which could easily give someone the wrong idea.

It made something as simple as adding a friend seem hazy and ambiguous.

Caught in a dilemma, Chen Yuan still took the initiative and asked to scan her QR code.

A cool night breeze blew. Lush green trees stood tall on both sides of the road, the street’s shops were lit up one by one, and various stalls had been set up on the corners, painting a lively, bustling scene.

In the car, Jiang Yao uttered those words in a passive-aggressive tone. Her voice was sugary sweet and her smile was cherubic, but her eyes held a frosty glint.

“You don’t have to use that tone. My conscience is clear. There’s no old flame. I’ve already told you everything there is to tell,” he replied flatly, keeping his eyes on the road.

At the same time, he pulled his phone out of his pocket and handed it to Jiang Yao, saying, “I wanted to ask your opinion at the time, but a guy can’t always be seen checking with his girlfriend, can he? If other people saw that, they’d get the wrong impression and think you have a bad temper.”

“What for?”

Jiang Yao stared at the already lit-up screen, slightly taken aback.

She took it and looked closely.

She discovered that Chen Yuan had only scanned the code but hadn’t actually added her.

This made her snap her head up, her surprised gaze fixed on the young master’s profile. She furrowed her brow, pleasantly surprised. “You didn’t add her?”

“Nope. I just had to go through the motions. I couldn’t make things too awkward… Now the decision is in your hands. You can’t blame me for this, right?”

Chen Yuan’s explanation was perfectly reasonable.

A brilliant light flashed in Jiang Yao’s beautiful eyes. After a long moment, she turned to the side and cupped her cheek. “I never would’ve thought… you have such high EQ, little young master…”

“It’s average, I guess.”

“You’re being so considerate, it makes me look so petty~ Hmph!” The corners of Jiang Yao’s mouth curved up, unable to hold back her smile any longer. She felt genuinely happy because Chen Yuan had put her feelings first. In a relationship, that was a huge way to earn points. Even if he had added the friend, as his girlfriend, Jiang Yao couldn’t have said anything; at most, she would have just sulked. But Chen Yuan’s solution was perfect. Not only was she no longer jealous, but she actually felt blissful. “Fine, I’ll be petty then!”

“Let’s not talk about her. Let’s just go back and get some rest. As far as I’m concerned, today was perfect. The food was good, we had fun, I couldn’t ask for more.”

“Why not? I want to talk about her. That Rourou isn’t some innocent little thing. How dare she try to seduce my boyfriend right under my nose!? Kicking her was letting her off easy!”

“…” Chen Yuan said nothing, scratching his head nonstop.

“I don’t care if you have some old history with her or not. As long as I’m here, she’ll never get a chance to rekindle anything. You’re my man now!” Jiang Yao pouted, looking at Chen Yuan. “I’m going to learn MMA when we get back to Lanjing!”

“Huh? It’s not that serious. Don’t be so violent. To be honest, that kick was vicious enough. I wasn’t expecting it.”

Chen Yuan really had been scared.

He’d never seen this ruthless side of Yaoyao; before, he only ever thought she was cute.

Now it seemed she had a bit of a *yandere* streak… extremely possessive.

“What’s wrong… scared?” Jiang Yao’s voice suddenly turned gentle. She deliberately reached out and caressed his cheek. “Don’t be afraid, little young master. I would never do something like that to you. You can put your little heart at ease.”

“Don’t touch me like that. I’m getting goosebumps.” Chen Yuan dodged her hand, the hairs on his arms standing on end.

“What’s wrong with your big sister touching you a little? Don’t overreact…” Yaoyao’s voice became even more saccharine. She bit her lip, her eyes shimmering like spring pools, her cheeks flushed with tenderness. “You were so good today. Big sister will reward you properly when we get back to the hotel.”

As she spoke, her hand reached for Chen Yuan’s leg, stroking it as she raised an eyebrow with a smile.

She enunciated the word “reward” with heavy emphasis.

Chen Yuan couldn’t help but let his imagination run wild as embarrassing, risqué images flooded his mind.

He shifted his leg and quickly focused on driving.

“Let’s talk when we get back. I’m driving…”

“Okay~ You’re such a good driver. When we get back, how about you ‘drive’ Yaoyao’s ‘car’ too, hmm~?”

“Hey!”

Chen Yuan’s face instantly turned bright red!

Ever since they started this trip, his girlfriend had been getting bolder and bolder!

…

“That bitch!”

By the roadside, Ke Bing got out of the car with a limp and sat on a nearby bench.

Her best friend had just come out of a pharmacy with some medicinal wine for bruises and swelling. Hearing her friend’s curse, she was a little confused.

“Huh? Who are you talking about?”

“Yuan’s girlfriend! Hiss— She’s so vicious! It hurts like hell!”

Ke Bing lifted her pant leg, revealing a bruise half the size of a fist. It was particularly glaring against her fair skin.

“Wait… didn’t you get that from bumping into the table? What does it have to do with Miss Jiang?” Her friend was completely bewildered, still not understanding the situation.

Ke Bing took the medicinal wine from her and twisted off the cap.

“Bumping into it? She kicked me. She obviously saw me sending signals to Yuan, so she made such a malicious move. What a venomous woman…”

“She kicked you?! You were sending signals? What the hell is all this? I was there the whole time, wasn’t I?”

“You were too busy stuffing your face, you pig!” Ke Bing rolled her eyes. Her own best friend was about to defect and become their bootlicker. “Didn’t you hear? That woman, Jiang, has a master’s degree!”

“Yeah, a master’s… so what?”

“Have you thought about how old that makes her? My Yuan is only eighteen! Isn’t this a classic case of robbing the cradle? How many years older is she? No wonder Yuan doesn’t dare tell his family. They’d probably never approve.”

Now that Ke Bing put it that way, her friend finally understood.

She smacked her forehead.

She hadn’t paid any attention to that detail at all.

Ke Bing continued, “I was just trying to talk to Yuan about it. Who knew he’d be dense as a block of wood and not get any of my hints? Instead, his girlfriend saw everything… Ouch, it hurts like hell.”

After learning the whole story, her friend’s jaw dropped in astonishment.

She took a moment to process it all before saying with a stunned expression, “I thought Miss Jiang seemed pretty great, though. What’s wrong with being a little older? She’s educated, she’s beautiful, and it looks like her family is well-off. Isn’t your little brother’s family background just average? In what world would his family have the right to be picky?”

“Yeah, yeah, great! That’s all you know how to say. You think it’s that easy to latch onto a rich woman? For all we know, she’s just after my Yuan because he’s young and fit! What if she plays with him for a couple of years and then dumps him? Where’s Yuan supposed to go crying then!” Ke Bing rubbed her bruise hard, wincing in pain. “Besides, he’s not my little brother.”

“He’s not your little brother?”

“We just grew up together. There was never any ‘big sister, little brother’ thing. Strictly speaking, our families even talked about setting us up together when we were little. We’re actually childhood sweethearts, it’s just that my family moved away.”

“Then… then this must be some incredible fate! To meet again in Sanya, of all places! And, I have to say…” Her friend’s lips curled into a slightly lovestruck smile. “The little guy is pretty handsome.”

“He really is!” Ke Bing raised an eyebrow. With her best friend, she naturally held nothing back. “I never expected him to change so much when he grew up. That’s all the more reason I can’t just stand by and watch him get played for no reason. At the very least, I have to find out what kind of person she is, right?”

“Makes sense.”

Ke Bing wasn’t just making things up, nor would she stoop to it.

When they were children, their two families saw how the little ones were always stuck together, whispering and giggling. Since the families were also on good terms, they had indeed considered letting them spend more time together.

If they were to be joined by marriage, it would be a fine match.

It was brought up more than a few times.

It was always raised as a joke, making the two children blush bright red every time.

Since moving away, Ke Bing had spent her years studying and living in Sanya.

She had met plenty of outstanding guys. She almost had a relationship in high school, but unfortunately, the boy gave up halfway through pursuing her, deciding she was too hard to get before turning his attention to someone else!

She had been single ever since.

To be honest, pretty girls inevitably become proud and picky after being put on a pedestal for so long.

She truly felt she should find someone good enough for her; it wasn’t too late to fall in love then.

But with that delay, she was suddenly about to graduate from her senior year of college!

Most of the people around her were in long-term relationships. Her own best friends were rarely single, always going out to eat, traveling, or making out with their boyfriends.

It would be a lie to say she wasn’t envious.

Ke Bing wanted to taste what love was like too. She had never thought about setting her sights on Yuan, but this sudden reunion…

Her childhood sweetheart, who had become so strikingly handsome, had truly made her feel the stirrings of first love.

At first, when she heard he had a girlfriend, she couldn’t hide her disappointment.

‘Of course, all the good guys are taken…’

But the conversation at dinner gradually made her realize something was off, reigniting a new sense of hope.

“Sigh, but it looks like Yuan has fallen pretty deep…” Ke Bing gazed at a nearby streetlight, her voice tinged with melancholy. “If only my family hadn’t moved back then. Growing up with him… that would have been wonderful…”

There wasn’t a trace of falsehood in her words.

In love, there’s always a matter of timing. Sometimes you don’t hold on tight enough, or you’re separated by a twist of fate.

Looking back, you always end up regretting your decisions.

The reason she had moved away so abruptly back then, without leaving a single word, was because she was afraid she would cry uncontrollably at the farewell.

People always envy those beautiful stories of childhood sweethearts who grow up together, walk hand-in-hand through the long years, and finally enter the halls of marriage.

As the one who was supposed to be the vibrant female lead of that story, it was only natural for Ke Bing to feel regret.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep