Chapter 25: The Lunchtime Confession

“Good grief… Yaqi, you’re too honest! That behavior is straight-up bullying! And you actually apologized to them…”

Yang Xue shook her head in disbelief, while Gongyu stared at her coldly.

“Hey… whose side are you on?”

“I’m just stating the facts!”

Yaqi laughed at that.

“Oh well… since I just transferred and really didn’t know anything, I didn’t want any misunderstandings. It’s best if we can clear things up.”

Yang Xue propped her head on her hand, looking at her with a doting expression, and let out a lazy sigh.

“Ha! You’re too kind… If I were a guy, I’d tie you up and have my way with you… play with you until you broke, heheh!”

“Huh? What?”

“Hey!”

Before she could finish, Gongyu quickly stopped that train of thought. Yang Xue blinked innocently, but seeing Gongyu unmoved, she just giggled and covered her mouth.

“Sigh, Yang Xue is great in every way except she’s a bit perverted, always cracking dirty jokes. Don’t mind her.”

“Uh… thanks for the thorough introduction!” Yang Xue shot her a dissatisfied look.

“You’re welcome~!”

“Hmph~”

“Oh, haha. You scared me, I thought Yang Xue was into girls too.”

“Me? Well… I don’t know. But really… I wouldn’t rule it out? What about you, Yaqi?”

“Me? I don’t know… I guess I just don’t get it? Because I don’t really understand how girls can like each other.”

“I see. Hey, what about Liu Ya?”

“Huh?”

Upon hearing that, Gongyu also pricked up her ears, listening attentively.

“Didn’t you two grow up together? Have you never liked her? Liu Ya is really popular among girls!”

Yaqi thought for a moment, then shook her head.

“Well… I do like her, but I think it’s not that kind of like. It’s more like a sister thing, like family.”

“Ohh… speaking of which, you both have ‘Ya’ in your names. Is there a story behind that?”

“Yeah. I heard our dads chose our names together…”

As Yaqi spoke, her expression dimmed. Gongyu noticed the change, put down her chopsticks, and silently watched her. Yang Xue, however, didn’t pick up on it and, seeing Yaqi wasn’t holding back, grew even more curious.

“Really? Does Liu Ya like you? I mean, like that?”

“No, not at all~ And Liu Ya told me she doesn’t like girls.”

“What? You mean that Liu Ya who gets confessed to every other day and even had a girlfriend?”

Yang Xue looked incredulous. She turned to Ye Feng, who had the same expression. They stared at each other, then turned to Gongyu, who also shook her head.

Yang Xue paused for a moment, then continued.

“Then…”

“What are you all talking about?”

Just then, Mengmeng came over with her tray. Yaqi smoothly moved aside and sat next to Gongyu, taking the bibimbap Mengmeng handed her and passing her own food over.

“Oh, we were talking about Liu Ya and Yaqi.”

“Huh? Is that… okay to talk about?”

Mengmeng muttered, glancing at Gongyu.

“Why are you looking at me… I don’t mind.”

“Oh, okay then! Hey, what about? I want to hear too!”

“Yeah, keep going!”

“Sigh… you guys…”

Gongyu sighed helplessly. Mengmeng shook Yaqi’s arm excitedly, while Yang Xue urged her on, and Ye Feng eavesdropped with interest.

Mengmeng and Yang Xue were relentless, as if they wanted to dig up everything! Yaqi clearly couldn’t handle it, so Gongyu smiled and came to her rescue.

“Alright, alright, the food’s getting cold. Let’s eat first.”

“Yeah, you’re right. We can talk while we eat, heheh!” Mengmeng replied with a laugh.

“Hey… can you let her breathe?”

“Ahaha…”

They ate and chatted, from Liu Ya’s childhood to their daily lives to school events, like a private girls’ party.

Yaqi’s spoon never stopped. At first she said a few words, but soon she was just eating nonstop, her cheeks puffed out, which looked incredibly cute. And inside, Yaqi was utterly impressed by the taste.

***

On the other side, after finishing work, Xi Ren returned to the student council room. Liu Ya opened her steamy lunchbox, picked up her chopsticks, and poked at the food.

‘Ugh, what a lousy day… I wonder if Qiqijie found the place…’

‘Hah, worrying too much. It’s not like the school is some remote mountain. How could she not find it?’

‘What a mess…’

“Liu Ya? What’s wrong? You seem down.”

Xueqin picked up a piece of meat and put it in her mouth, watching Liu Ya with interest.

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“You look listless. I’ve never seen you like this.”

“Oh, really?”

Liu Ya casually scooped up a ball of rice and put it in her mouth. Before she could taste anything, Ye Nuo grinned mischievously and suddenly spoke.

“Hey~ is it because we ruined Liu Ya’s date?”

“Cough! Cough!”

“Huh? Date? What date? Does Liu Ya like someone? Who? Someone from our school?”

Han Meng swallowed her food in one gulp and asked, surprised.

“Yeah, from our school. You know them too.”

“Really?”

“Cough… Ye Nuo!”

Liu Ya wiped her mouth with a napkin and immediately stood up, staring at her, her face burning red. Ye Nuo leaned back in her chair, tilted her head, and flashed a wicked grin.

“We know them…”

“Yeah, we just saw her earlier!”

“Hmm…”

Xueqin and Han Meng thought for a moment and quickly came to the same conclusion. They looked at each other, then Xueqin spoke.

“Is it… Tang Yaqi, who came today?”

They both looked at Liu Ya, who nodded weakly.

“Really?”

“Really… really!” Liu Ya said, blushing.

“Then why don’t you go to the cafeteria now? They probably haven’t finished yet.”

“Forget it… it’s almost the end of lunch break. By the time I get there, they’ll probably be gone…”

Liu Ya’s frank admission caught Ye Nuo off guard. She had intended to treat it as a joke if Liu Ya denied it, but since she admitted it so openly, Ye Nuo took Yaqi more seriously.

“I thought you wouldn’t admit it…”

Liu Ya shot her a resentful look, sighed, and muttered.

“Even if I didn’t admit it, you wouldn’t believe me and would keep asking anyway. Since there’s no point in pretending…”

“Well… if you didn’t want to talk about it, I wouldn’t have pressed you…”

“Really? But there’s another reason. I think I can tell you all. After all… you’re good people. I trust you.”

“Oh my… I’m flattered!”

“Eww, how cheesy, Liu Ya, hahaha.”

“Right! Hehe!”

“Hmph…!”

The three teased her. Liu Ya shyly turned away. Ye Nuo got up, wrapped her arms around her from behind, and pressed her cheek against Liu Ya’s.

“Hey~ when I asked you back then, you pretended you didn’t care. If you had told me straight, all this trouble would have been avoided.”

Liu Ya hesitated for a moment, then slowly spoke.

“I… I was worried about Xinyu. Wouldn’t it look bad, me being like this?”

“Oh, that? Come on… you’re overthinking it! We know the whole story. We’re not going to judge you!”

“Exactly!”

“You’re being too distant, Liu Ya!”

The two chimed in with laughs. Liu Ya smiled too, but Ye Nuo complained a little.

“Sigh… I didn’t expect Liu Ya to trust us so little… it really breaks my heart…”

Liu Ya clicked her tongue in disgust.

“As if I don’t know you? I was afraid you’d be too eager and end up doing something unnecessary, you know?”

“Hey…”

“Haha! That’s true. I can see Ye Nuo doing that.”

“Haha, right.”

“You two…!”

“Besides… I can’t let her know I like her.”

“Huh?”

“Why not?” Xueqin asked.

“Because… she’s my sister.”

“What? Biological sister?”

Ye Nuo quickly leaned in and whispered. The other two were also shocked and perked up their ears.

“No, not biological. But even closer than that.”

“If there’s no blood relation, it’s fine. What’s the problem?”

“The problem is… Yaqijie doesn’t feel that way at all. I tried to test the waters before, but she just sees me as a little sister…”

“Back then, Yaqijie was already like family to me. That’s why, if I just come out and say it, worst case scenario, we might not even be able to stay friends, let alone be family…”

Liu Ya let out a long sigh and hung her head helplessly. The three fell into thought.

After a moment of silence, Han Meng spoke first.

“I remember Ye Nuo said she studied abroad, right? Aren’t same-s*x relationships pretty common overseas?”

“Huh?”

Liu Ya turned to Ye Nuo with a puzzled expression, almost kissing her. She quickly backed away a few steps.

“What are you doing? I’m not your Yaqijie, watch out~!”

Ye Nuo seductively pressed her fingertip to her lips and winked at her. Liu Ya got the chills.

“As if! You can’t compare to Yaqijie!”

“Hey, that’s a bit harsh!”

“Tch… anyway, Ye Nuo, I only told you she was coming, not that she studied abroad. How did you know?”

“Oh, that…”

Ye Nuo looked smug.

“The moment you mentioned it, I asked someone to check your class during first period.”

“They said she’s gorgeous, like a celebrity! I was a bit skeptical, but after seeing her, they weren’t wrong.”

“Hmph, of course!”

Liu Ya couldn’t hide her smile, as if the praise was for herself. The three watched, amused.

“Aiyo…”

Ye Nuo laughed, then continued.

“So back to the topic. Has Yaqi never been exposed to this kind of thing?”

“…No.”

“Well… that does make it difficult… I can understand your predicament, Liu Ya!”

“Indeed.”

Xueqin agreed, but Han Meng rolled her eyes.

“Hey, maybe it’s not that she’s clueless, but that you guys are too progressive! Yaqi is clearly the straight-laced type. This is way too challenging for her!”

“That’s true…”

They fell into thought again. Liu Ya suddenly realized something.

“Hey, why doesn’t anyone ask if I really like her?”

The three looked at each other and couldn’t help laughing. Ye Nuo spoke first.

“Haha! Liu Ya, don’t forget, we are your older sisters, after all!”

“Uh… what does that have to do with anything?”

“It means that although you’re great at studying, when it comes to this stuff, you’re still green!”

“Right!”

Xueqin continued.

“We’re older than you, so we naturally know some things!”

“…You’re only a year or two older than me!”

“That doesn’t matter! Just say we’re older, okay?”

“Heh…”

Han Meng sat up straight and said seriously.

“Alright, enough joking. Liu Ya, you asked why? It’s simple! Because like you said, we’re good people, right?”

“You never talked about this kind of thing before, so if you brought it up, it must be serious.”

“Oh…”

Liu Ya shyly turned her head away. Ye Nuo thought for a moment, patted Liu Ya’s shoulder, and her expression grew more serious.

“By the way, Liu Ya, from what I heard from Yaqi, does she know about Xinyu? Who told her?”

“…Gongyu.”

“What? Did you explain it to her?”

“Gongyu again…” Xueqin sighed.

“I explained… but I don’t know what Gongyu told her. Yaqijie’s expression was clearly confused. I’m not sure if I explained enough…”

Han Meng was silent for a moment, then said.

“Liu Ya, we know the whole story about Xinyu. I don’t think you need to cover up for her. You’re just asking for misunderstandings.”

Ye Nuo agreed.

“Right. Remember when Gongyu came here and kept arguing with you? My head hurt…”

“I thought she’d calm down this semester, but no, she’s back. And this time… it seems she’s found your weak spot, Liu Ya!”

Xueqin looked at her with concern.

“Liu Ya… are you really not going to say anything?”

Liu Ya didn’t hesitate, nodding.

“No. Because… I kind of understand Xinyu, and she’s not a bad person.”

“I know the truth, but if I speak up, what will people think of her? She’s not a bad person at all…”

Ye Nuo shook her head helplessly and sighed.

“Liu Ya… why are you like this? Sigh. Let me ruffle you…”

With that, she reached out and squished Liu Ya’s cheeks, giving the little adult a dose of sisterly affection.

Xueqin glanced at Han Meng, who nodded, then turned back. She leaned forward slightly, elbows on her knees.

“Alright. We roughly understand the situation. So, Liu Ya, how can we help you?”

Liu Ya pushed Ye Nuo’s hands away and said shyly.

“Nothing… it’s just… if Yaqijie comes around in the future, and there’s a chance… could you guys help me out?”

“Oh~ haha! Sure!”

“Yeah, no problem!”

Han Meng and Xueqin agreed readily. Ye Nuo didn’t immediately answer. She thought for a moment, then leaned close to Liu Ya’s ear and whispered like a devil.

“Well, I can agree. But is it really appropriate for the student council president to use her position for personal gain?”

Ye Nuo turned and winked at the others. They smiled knowingly and joined in.

“Yeah, that’s a point!”

“Not very becoming, Liu Ya~”

“Uh… so what do you want?”

“Smart! We don’t want much. We can help, but…”

“But…?”

“You’ll be in charge of cleaning the student council room for the whole semester!”

“What! A whole semester? That’s too much!”

Liu Ya jumped up. Ye Nuo looked smug, and the other two grinned wickedly. Liu Ya’s angry face quickly turned pitiful. She slowly moved closer to Ye Nuo and whispered.

“Half a semester…”

“One semester.”

“Then… half a semester plus a month?”

“One semester!”

The two behind her shouted in unison, laughing.

“…Fine! One semester…”

“Great! Haha!”

Having gotten what they wanted, Ye Nuo ran to the other two and high-fived them, clapping and laughing uncontrollably. Liu Ya glared at them, feeling betrayed, and could only mutter a weak “Hmph.”

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