Chapter 11: She’s my sister, don’t overthink it.

The hand Shi Yanzhou had extended hung awkwardly in midair.

Not wanting Shi Yanzhou to be too embarrassed, Jiang Zhexi walked over and slung an arm over his shoulder, smoothing things out with a casual tone.
“When Gao Cheng is playing a game, he doesn’t like people disturbing him.”

Shi Yanzhou immediately took the offered out, pulling his hand back and letting out two dry laughs.
“Haha, totally understandable. I’m the same way; I hate it the most when people disturb me while I’m playing.”

Jiang Zhexi smiled and glanced at the group of people behind him.
“Your friends are waiting for you over there.”

Shi Yanzhou understood his meaning—he was making them feel intruded upon.
Taking the hint, he nodded.
“Ah right, then you guys have fun. I’ll take them over there and open another table.”

Jiang Zhexi nodded.
“Alright, we can play together another time when we’re free.”

***

Standing nearby, the moment Li Yunshu saw Gao Cheng upon entering the billiards room, she couldn’t tear her eyes off him.

She had gone to the same high school as Gao Cheng and had secretly loved him for three years.

Over those three years, she had written love letters, asked people to pass him notes, and even blocked his path at the school gates…

None of it worked. He didn’t give her a single chance, not even looking her in the eye once.

Gao Cheng was like an unheatable stone, displaying the same indifferent attitude toward everyone. No girl could ever catch his eye.

It wasn’t until she got into university and met Shi Yanzhou that she felt it was hopeless with Gao Cheng.
She settled for the next best thing and pursued Shi Yanzhou, ultimately winning him over.

After getting together with Shi Yanzhou, she had originally stopped thinking about Gao Cheng.
But now, unexpectedly seeing him again, her long-dead heart showed signs of rekindling.

That person didn’t have to do anything but sit there to instantly capture everyone’s attention.

When Shi Yanzhou went over to greet them just now, her heart had beaten so fast; she thought she could use this opportunity to approach him.
But to her surprise, Gao Cheng didn’t give Shi Yanzhou any face at all, leaving her secretly disappointed.

Waiting until Shi Yanzhou walked away, Jiang Chengshuo looked up and glanced in that direction.
“Tsk, tsk, tsk… This eldest young master of the Shi family really is quite handsome. No wonder that adopted daughter of the Shi family is so delusionally infatuated with him.”

Jiang Zhexi jerked his chin in Li Yunshu’s direction.
“Did you see the girl he brought with him? The beauty of the Media Studies department. Aside from being pretty, she has an outgoing, cheerful personality. With a girlfriend like that, how could Shi Yanzhou ever fancy that rigid, boring sister of his?”

Jiang Chengshuo nodded in profound agreement, his tone carrying a hint of regret.
“She’s a girl with great poise. If she weren’t so conservative and boring, she’d genuinely be my type.”

Jiang Chengshuo liked beauties with an aloof, refined aura.
Shi Kezhen’s face and disposition truly did catch his eye.
But just thinking about the way she sat upright, eating in tiny, graceful bites, instantly killed his appetite.

Just then, Gao Cheng finished his game and shot them a disdainful glance.
“You two grown men, constantly gossiping about a girl behind her back. Don’t you have anything better to do?”

Jiang Chengshuo and Jiang Zhexi exchanged glances, figuring he was right; they usually weren’t such gossipy people.
It was only because today they had hypothetically linked Shi Kezhen as Gao Cheng’s online girlfriend that they paid extra attention to her matters.

The two stopped discussing Shi Kezhen and the Shi family. Suddenly, Jiang Zhexi kicked Gao Cheng’s chair in extreme dissatisfaction.
“I say, Young Master Gao, can you try not to prioritize women over your brothers so much? We’ve been playing for several rounds, and you’re just focused on gaming with your girlfriend.”

Jiang Chengshuo chimed in from the side, shaking his head and sighing jokingly.
“Exactly. Ever since you started this online relationship, we two brothers have become utterly dispensable. Sigh, and you haven’t even met in real life yet…”

At that moment, a WeChat message popped up in Gao Cheng’s chat box.

Yao: [I’m not playing anymore. I didn’t sleep enough last night, so I plan to sleep early tonight.]

Gao Cheng: [Wifey, get some good rest tonight then. See you tomorrow.]

Gao Cheng turned off his phone screen, stood up, and picked up a cue stick nearby, provoking the two of them.
“Do you enjoy getting completely destroyed by me that much?”

Could they tolerate such words?

Jiang Chengshuo: “Damn it! We’ll see who destroys who!”
Jiang Zhexi: “I can’t beat you in snooker, but I’ve never been afraid of you in nine-ball! Bring it on!”

When the three of them played eight-ball or nine-ball, they all had the skill to clear the table in a single turn. With Gao Cheng joining in, the atmosphere at the table instantly ignited, transforming from casual entertainment into a battlefield where no one backed down.

***

Meanwhile, Shi Yanzhou and his group were having quite a lively time as well, with the three guys teaching their respective girlfriends how to play.

Li Yunshu was terrible at billiards, but she excelled at acting spoiled. Whenever she missed a shot, she would dive into Shi Yanzhou’s arms, provoking laughter and teasing from the other two couples.

After playing for nearly an hour, Shi Yanzhou took a moment to glance at his phone and felt a sudden urge to return to school.
This was because the dormitory curfew was from 11 PM to 6 AM.

Just as he was thinking about the curfew, his phone rang. He pulled it out to check.

Li Yunshu sensitively leaned over to look.
“It’s so late. Who’s calling you?”

Seeing the characters “Kezhen” on the caller ID, her face instantly darkened.
“What is going on with this sister of yours? Why does she pester you every single day?”