Chapter 5: The Drinker’s Heart is Not in the Cup

On the way back to the dormitory, Qi Youwei curiously asked Xu Yin, “You know people from S-class? I had no idea. Are you very close with that Gao Minglang?”

“Not close.” Xu Yin’s fingertip traced the edge of her campus card.
“Today was the second time we’ve met.”

“He actually treated you to milk tea.” Qi Youwei said with exaggeration, “His last girlfriend was the school belle of the private high school next door, Pusley.”

“How did they break up then?”

Seeing that she was actually interested, Qi Youwei was a bit incredulous, but still explained, “It seems that the school belle’s true intentions were not for the wine, but for… the person next to him, you know.”

“She was going for Duan Sili?”

“Mmmhmm, who else could it be.” Qi Youwei clicked her tongue.
“Although Gao Minglang is very handsome on his own, compared to that one… he’s still a far cry. So, it’s very difficult for his buddies to find girlfriends.”

“Then why do they still follow him around all day?”

“Duan Sili is cold to girls, but I heard he’s very good to his friends. Last year, Gao Minglang offended the younger brother of the casino boss in Ao Ting and almost had an arm taken off. It was Duan Sili who stepped in to settle it. He went there in person and brought the person out of the underground casino in one piece. After that incident, Gao Minglang became his loyal follower. For rich young masters like them, girls are never in short supply, but a friend like Duan Sili, who has connections everywhere, is truly a rare find.”

Xu Yin nodded.
“I see.”

“So, are you going after Gao Minglang, or…” Qi Youwei’s eyes held a hint of inquiry as she stared at her, “or the one behind him?”

Xu Yin’s fingers, through her pocket, traced the raised outline of the small dinosaur, but she didn’t answer.

That evening, Xu Yin packed her reference materials and went to the library for self-study.

The moment her front foot stepped out of Jing Shu Lou, her back foot was followed by Liu Hui and Chi Huanyi calling Qi Youwei out.

“Come on, let’s have a chat.”

She was pushed by them into dormitory 308.

Su Wan’an was applying lipstick in front of a makeup mirror.

Hearing the commotion, she didn’t even lift her eyelids.
The mirror reflected her slightly curled black hair, like satin.

Beneath her pleated school uniform skirt, her legs were crossed, the toe of her black leather shoe tapping the ground intermittently.

Seeing her, Qi Youwei couldn’t help but tremble.

Over so many years, she had… become her most terrifying nightmare.

“You’re dead! How dare you drop the ball!” Chi Huanyi shoved Qi Youwei forward.

Qi Youwei stumbled a few steps, her knee hitting the edge of the bed.
It hurt.

Liu Hui grabbed Qi Youwei’s hair and pulled it back.
“Come on, you tell Wan’an, did she eat it or not!”

“I really did put the medicine in…” Qi Youwei’s voice was as faint as a mosquito’s buzz.
“But she… she’s very cautious. She won’t drink any water that has left her sight.”

“It’s because you’re stupid. If she wouldn’t drink it, couldn’t you trick her into drinking it?”

“She’s very smart. How could I possibly trick her?”

“You dare to talk back!” Chi Huanyi pushed her angrily.
“You’re as stupid as a pig!”

Su Wan’an twisted the lipstick shut and said slowly, “Stop.”

Her command was like an imperial edict.
The two girls immediately stopped, and Liu Hui gave Qi Youwei a threatening glare.

Su Wan’an walked up to Qi Youwei.
Qi Youwei quickly averted her gaze, not daring to look at her, as if her gaze were poisonous.

She smoothed out her messy long hair for her, a smile in her eyes, her voice gentle.
“Honestly, what is her relationship with Gao Minglang?”

“I’m not particularly clear either, but I feel like she has a… good impression of Gao Minglang.”

“Is that so?”

Qi Youwei detected a certain pleasure in her voice and quickly said, “She said it herself, she has a very good impression of Gao Minglang. They should develop something…”

Liu Hui cursed, “Shameless.”

Su Wan’an, however, seemed to let out a sigh of relief, very light and imperceptible, but Qi Youwei noticed it.

“They added each other on WeChat. Gao Minglang is the only boy she’s ever added.”

“Very good.” Su Wan’an walked over, straightened the nameplate on Qi Youwei’s chest, and said softly, “During this time, help me keep a good eye on her. If there’s any sign of trouble, you must come and report to me, understand?”

Qi Youwei caught the scent of white tea on her and shivered, glancing at Liu Hui and Chi Huanyi.

“Don’t worry, they won’t bother you, as long as you’re obedient.”

She pressed her lips together and nodded.

Gao Minglang asked Xu Yin out for cold drinks every day after school.
The young boy and girl walked side by side on campus, not avoiding the people around them, so rumors always spread that they were together.

In the evening, the entire campus was dyed a pinkish-orange by the setting sun.

Xu Yin walked out of the cold drink shop and with a “snap,” opened a floral parasol.

Gao Minglang squinted at the setting sun in the distance.
“It’s almost down, are you still afraid of getting tanned?”

From under the brim of the umbrella, a muffled voice came out, “I don’t like the sun. My face hurts if I’m in it for too long.”

If it were in the past, he would have definitely thought the girl was being pretentious.

But at this moment, looking at Xu Yin’s fair face, Gao Minglang only felt pity.

Ah~
He was really head over heels.

“I’ll hold it for you.” He reached for the handle of the umbrella, but she dodged him.

“Didn’t you say your friend was coming to pick you up?”

Gao Minglang looked at his watch.
“Soon, we have to wait a bit. My friend is just like you, very grand. Most of the time, others wait for him. He doesn’t wait for people. If he arrives and the person isn’t there, he leaves directly.”

“Don’t talk about that incident of mine anymore.” Xu Yin was a little embarrassed.
“That was my dad’s style, not mine.”

Gao Minglang laughed heartily.
“I won’t mention it again in the future.”

“I’ll wait with you.”

“Okay.”

The two stood on the side of the street and waited for five minutes before a black Maybach stopped at the intersection.

The tinted rear window slowly rolled down halfway, revealing the boy’s cold and stern profile.

His features were like distant mountains covered in snow, exuding a sense of detached pressure.

Gao Minglang said to Xu Yin, “I’ll be leaving then.”

“Mmm, bye.”

Gao Minglang didn’t dare to make Duan Sili wait long.
He reluctantly said goodbye to Xu Yin and got into the car.

It wasn’t until the car door closed that Duan Sili lazily lifted his eyelids and glanced out the window.

The floral parasol had a black lace border.
It swayed gently in the breeze, covering the upper half of the girl’s face, only revealing a faint, hazy outline, indistinct and unreal.

But just as he was about to look away, the brim of the umbrella lifted slightly.

Through the swaying lace, their gazes met briefly.

Her features were gentle and pure, her lip color pale.

In just an instant, the brim of the umbrella quickly dropped.

At the same time, cherry lips bit down on a milk tea straw, taking a sip of the green grape lemon blast.

The driver drove the Maybach away.
Throughout the journey, Gao Minglang was very restless—

“She agreed to come to my birthday party next week!”
“I’m going to make it big this time, hahaha, Master Si, can I borrow that villa in Nan Jun?”

“I need to plan it well these two days, get a fireworks show… and hire a few Michelin chefs…”

After he had rambled on for a long time, Duan Sili said nonchalantly, “That girl isn’t simple. You can’t handle her.”

“She’s different! She’s more innocent than any girl I’ve ever met before. I really like her so much! I wish I could confess to her tomorrow! You see, I should have a chance, right? These past few days, she hasn’t refused me once when I’ve asked her out!”

He was completely immersed in the joy of his dopamine-fueled craze.

Duan Sili’s indifferent gaze, however, turned to the window—

“Someone who came from a place like the Golden Triangle, and is still so pure, is that very likely?”

“That’s regional discrimination, okay! You don’t know her. She’s really the most wonderful girl I’ve ever met. Really, I feel like meeting her, I could die without regrets. If she’s willing to be with me, I could marry her tomorrow!”

“You’re sick.”

A light scoff escaped Duan Sili’s nose.
He didn’t want to continue this topic.
“The basketball game against Pusley, what time is it?”

“The day after tomorrow, in the evening. I’m going to invite my potential girlfriend to watch. Hehe, Master Si, you have to give me more room to shine then!”

“Mention her again, and you can get out now.”

During the afternoon activity period the next day, Xu Yin stood by the office door and knocked lightly.
“Teacher, you called for me.”

MISS Riley was about to leave in a hurry.
She slung her Hermes bag over her shoulder and handed a wooden-colored file folder to Xu Yin.
“I have something urgent to attend to right now. Can you run an errand for me? Take this file to the English representative of S-class, have him sign it, and then bring it back to me before this evening.”

“Okay.” Xu Yin took the file.
“I’ll go right now.”

“Thank you for your trouble.”

“It’s what I should do, teacher.”

Xu Yin turned and walked up to the third floor of Mingde Building, where S-class was located.

The third floor of Mingde Building was also the area with the best view in all of Pu Jing Private High.
You could see the mountains in the distance and the lake up close, with gulls and egrets occasionally skimming over the water’s surface…

It was a stark contrast to E-class, whose classroom window directly faced the noisy basketball court…

For most students at Pu Jing Private High, S-class was an unattainable dream.

Only the top thirty in the entire grade could enter S-class.
In Pu Jing Private High, which had the top students from all over Ao Gang Wan, this was like being a golden fish in a pond.

Therefore, even students from ordinary backgrounds would not be bullied as long as they entered S-class.

No one dared to bully the students of S-class.

Xu Yin stood on the third-floor balcony, took a picture of the stunning lake view, and sent it to Qi Youwei—

butterfly: “Next semester, let’s get into S together? [Image]”

Qi Youwei sent her a picture of her desk during self-study in the library, her books messy—

Wei: “Lu Qi just asked me to go play tennis, and now you’ve pushed me back down. [Dead Smile]”

Butterfly: “I’ll come find you later, together. [Smirk]”
Wei: “Waiting for you!”

Xu Yin walked to the entrance of S-class and bumped into a tall boy.

He wasn’t surprised to see her.
He asked with a mischievous smile, “Looking for Gao Minglang, right? He’s on leave today.”

“No, I’m looking for your class’s English representative.”

The boy was startled.
“You’re looking for him?”

“Yeah.”

His expression became somewhat meaningful, and the smile on his lips deepened.
“At this time, Duan Sili should be in the heated swimming pool. You can go find him there.”