Chapter 2: An Unexpected Embrace and a Mysterious Bracelet

Students at the school gate were originally rushing, each seeming to wish they had wheels on their feet to slide quickly into class and study endlessly.

However, the moment Duan Yulan embraced Qiao Xia, time seemed to freeze.

Everyone’s steps faltered. Their eyes widened, as if they couldn’t believe the scene before them. Even the teacher checking appearances at the school entrance was utterly stunned, not noticing the pen that had slipped from their hand.

Zhou Li, standing beside Qiao Xia, gaped openly. His two chubby hands immediately flew to cover his mouth, stifling the surprised cry that threatened to escape.

‘What was happening?’

‘Was his brother really this amazing?’

‘He had quietly managed to win over even Duan Yulan?’

A torrent of questions flooded Zhou Li’s mind, leaving him feeling dazed. Yet, as he recalled Qiao Xia’s impatient expression whenever he himself had praised or coveted Duan Yulan, a sudden realization struck him. ‘Ah, he understood now. This was the legendary ‘protecting his wife’ behavior!’

That scoundrel Qiao Xia had actually pursued and won the affections of School Belle Duan so early, and hadn’t even told him. How utterly disloyal!

Although Zhou Li had long admired School Belle Duan, he also knew the adage: ‘A friend’s wife is not to be coveted.’

‘Alas, from now on, he could only admire her from a distance!’

****

The bewildered Qiao Xia, the center of all this attention, was even more flustered than everyone else. With the person in his arms clinging tightly to him, he could only awkwardly hold his hands stiffly in mid-air, utterly clueless as to what was happening.

‘Had Duan Yulan mistaken him for someone else?’

Despite both being students in the same class, Qiao Xia swore to the heavens that ever since their second year of high school when classes were reshuffled, he and Duan Yulan hadn’t exchanged a single word.

They hadn’t even made eye contact, let alone engaged in such an intimate act as embracing. This was truly a first!

“Cough, cough, student, have you perhaps mistaken me for someone else? I’m Qiao…”

“I know, you’re Qiao Xia, and I haven’t mistaken you! I never imagined I’d see you again. Heaven truly is too kind to me.”

Duan Yulan immediately interjected, not even waiting for Qiao Xia to finish his sentence.

Not only did she directly call out Qiao Xia’s name, but her voice, tinged with what sounded like tears, plunged Qiao Xia into a fresh wave of bewilderment.

‘Now, could someone please tell him what was going on?’

‘He was certain he had no connection to Duan Yulan, so why was she acting as if they were intimately familiar?’

‘Oh heavens, they really weren’t close at all!’

Fortunately, Duan Yulan quickly realized the impact her actions had caused. As she voluntarily released her embrace from Qiao Xia, she immediately gripped the hem of his school uniform tightly, as if afraid he might vanish into thin air.

The force of her grip was so strong that his finger joints were visibly turning white.

However, Duan Yulan remained silent, not uttering a single word.

Even though she sensed Qiao Xia’s confusion, she offered no explanation. Instead, she reached into her uniform pocket, pulled out a small package, quickly unwrapped it, and after retrieving the black bracelet inside, immediately placed it on Qiao Xia’s wrist.

Looking down at the black bracelet, Duan Yulan suddenly curved her lips upward. A faint, satisfied smile adorned her face, making her delicate features appear even more beautiful.

“Qiao Xia, I know you’re very confused right now, but please trust me… No matter who acts against you, I will always be by your side. You absolutely must not let this bracelet leave your sight.”

After speaking, Duan Yulan looked up at Qiao Xia, whose eyes were still filled with confusion, and her smile grew even brighter.

Ultimately, she couldn’t resist. She pulled Qiao Xia’s collar, and after his body was forced to bend low, she quickly kissed his cheek.

‘It was still too early!’

She had other matters to attend to. The events she had suffered before her rebirth would absolutely not be repeated in this lifetime.

In this life, Qiao Xia was not dead, and she had not been crippled!

Recalling those deeply unpleasant memories, the smile vanished from Duan Yulan’s lips. She knew that now was not the time to waste, so even if she was reluctant to let go of Qiao Xia, she couldn’t continue.

Only when the day of the apocalypse arrived would the prologue to the survival game truly begin.

****

“Qiao Xia, you brat, tell me honestly, what is your relationship with School Belle Duan?!”

As Qiao Xia stumbled into the classroom in a daze, Zhou Li, who had followed him, even abandoned his homework. Noticing that Duan Yulan hadn’t returned to class, he immediately dragged his stool next to Qiao Xia’s desk, his face brimming with curiosity as he began to interrogate him.

Although he deeply regretted that his goddess was already taken, the thought that the one who had plucked that untouchable flower was his own brother filled Zhou Li with a sense of shared pride.

While he couldn’t win the goddess’s heart himself, his brother Qiao Xia certainly could!

Moreover, capturing a distant, unapproachable goddess like Duan Yulan was an incredibly difficult feat, akin to a ‘hell mode’ challenge.

This only further highlighted Qiao Xia’s incredible prowess, making him seem like a master player!

However, Qiao Xia ignored Zhou Li, instead staring blankly at his own wrist.

The black bracelet wasn’t a novel design; it looked rather old-fashioned.

Yet, this bracelet was proof that everything that had just happened was real – that woman, Duan Yulan, had actually kissed him!

Qiao Xia dazedly lifted a hand to touch the spot where he’d been kissed, feeling his brain turn to mush. He couldn’t process any information, like a frozen computer stuck on a blue screen, no matter how many times he pressed a key.

He had been single for sixteen years, without even a hint of romance, so how had something like this happened today?

“Qiao Xia, snap out of it! Answer my question before you go back to staring blankly! I’m practically dying of curiosity here, it’s making my heart itch!”

Just as Qiao Xia fell into a new spiral of confusion, Zhou Li, seeing his dazed and foolish expression, could no longer hold back. He raised a chubby hand, placed it on Qiao Xia’s shoulder, and vigorously shook him.

He was determined to shake Qiao Xia awake, hoping to hear all the details of his love story with School Belle Duan, and perhaps even experience some envious ‘sour lemons’ himself.

The shaking proved effective. As Qiao Xia snapped out of his thoughts, he immediately poked Zhou Li’s forehead with a finger, pushing his chubby face away.

‘He was still utterly bewildered himself; who could possibly provide him with answers?’

‘It was an unsolvable problem.’

Thinking this, Qiao Xia raised his hand to remove the bracelet from his wrist, intending to find a time to return it to Duan Yulan. However, after a moment of hesitation, he decided to take it off later.

Duan Yulan’s words, telling him not to take it off casually, still echoed in his ears, and Qiao Xia, for some unknown reason, foolishly complied.

He felt no particular affection for Duan Yulan, yet her pleading voice continued to resonate in his mind.

‘Could he have become a ‘dog lover’ too?’

“Who’s Qiao Xia? Get out here, you bastard! How dare you touch my woman? You must have a death wish!”

Just as Qiao Xia was sinking into deep self-doubt, a furious roar suddenly erupted from the classroom doorway, instantly drawing the attention of everyone inside.