A tall figure stepped through the parted crowd, dressed casually in a black oversized shirt and jeans.
He walked with a slow, composed gait that felt more like a king surveying his territory than a high school student checking on a situation.
The glow of the monitor screens reflected off his cold, emotionless face.
Wang Jingyuan.
Lu Qingyan froze where she stood.
The man's eyebrows were clean and deep, his skin pale under the fluorescent lights.
His gaze was unreadable, sharp and distant, as if everyone around him was made of glass—fragile, irrelevant, transparent.
When he finally looked at Lu Qingyan, he didn't smile, didn't blink, didn't even twitch.
He simply raised a brow and tilted his head slightly in her direction.
When Lu Qingyan saw Wang Jingyuan in good health, she wanted to say something, such as explain why there was a person in the group or why she was here.
While she pondered on how to provide a reasonable explanation for the current circumstance, she saw Wang Jingyuan's eyes slowly swept over the several staff members in the internet cafe before finally setting on her.
He moved his eyebrows slightly and raised his chin in Lu Qingyan's direction before he calmly asked, "Who let the child in?"
As soon as the voice fell, the atmosphere suddenly became very strange.
Han Ming, who was behind Wang Jingyuan, couldn't hold back and suddenly laughed.
The eyes of the onlookers watching the excitement in the internet cafe were also a little subtle as they turned their heads to look at Lu Qingyan. Then they each smiled.
The girl wore a pink sweater, and with her small arms and legs, she looked especially tender.
When Lu Qingyan finally processed this sentenced, she stared incredulously at Wang Jingyuan, who pretended to not recognize her at all, "You—"
You, you, you—
Do you dare to pretend to be an adult?
She wanted to scream.
You actor! You big dog! You method-acting award-winning snake!
When Lu Qingyan was thrown out of the internet cafe, she was still a little confused.
Before she could react, the cashier who had been asleep earlier jolted awake and rushed forward to explain. "Brother Jing, I'm sorry! I—I didn't realize, she looked mature with the hood on and I thought…"
Wang Jingyuan interrupted coldly, "Really? With which eye did you think she looked like an adult?"
The cashier: "…"
Lu Qingyan: "…"
Not long after, Han Ming also came out. He smiled when he saw her and walked over, "Ay, little sister—"
Han Ming approached and saw the depressed look in Lu Qingyan's eyes.
He explained with a smile, "Please don't misunderstand. Brother Jing is a supervisor, so he must follow the rules. It's not personal."
Lu Qingyan immediately asked, "So you're all adults?"
It seemed she was particularly concerned about this word.
Han Ming raised his hands quickly in surrender. "No, no. Not technically. Brother Jing enrolled late, so he's nearly eighteen. I'm not either. Brother Jing and I both know the owner of this internet cafe so we'd come on the weekends to help out as supervisors. We're here today because the brother that typically covered the weekdays couldn't make it, so we're here to cover for him."
Han Ming was always someone with a sweet mouth and knew how to talk. In the past, he often coaxed those older sisters into becoming obedient and docile.
After he talked to this point, he took a step forward, "Little sister, are you Brother Jing's tablemate? I think I saw you last time. Let's add each other on WeChat and get to know one another, what's your name?"
Lu Qingyan paused, "My name's Lu Qingyan."
"Ah, you're Lu Qingyan…"
"Wait, you're Lu Qingyan? The transfer student?"
Exactly when Lu Qingyan transferred, she instantly became famous cause of her face and was instantly placed to the Special Class.
The expression on Han Ming's face became extremely subtle.
So …. it was her??
Han Ming was still doubting his life when Wang Jingyuan came out of the internet cafe.
With a cold expression between Wang Jingyuan's eyebrows, he walked over and looked at Lu Qingyan, "Tablemate, why don't you give me an explanation?"
"..."
Lu Qingyan took a deep breath and revealed a very worried expression, "I heard you were sick in bed… with a high fever. I thought you might be—might be dying." Her voice trembled slightly. "And I felt guilty. I spilled ink on your jacket yesterday. It was chilly. Maybe it soaked through and—"
She lowered her eyes.
"I just… wanted to provide some moral support."
Han Ming turned away, clutching his stomach. Oh god, she's good. She's too good.
Lu Qingyan continued, soft and sincere. "If you got worse because of me… I wouldn't be able to sleep at night."
For once, he said nothing.
Lu Qingyan peeked up at him, wondering if she'd managed to plant just enough guilt in his icy heart to spare herself future retaliation.
If he dared to scold her now, he'd look like a cold-hearted villain stepping on a bouquet of sympathy.
Yes. Perfect strategy. Emotional guilt trap—deployed.
And she hadn't even cried yet.
Still looking down at her, Wang Jingyuan finally exhaled and replied, flatly:
"…So you beat up three grown men because you were worried I had a cold?"
Lu Qingyan: "…"