Chapter 40: Chapter 40: What Are You Guys Doing in There?

At the sharp question, all eyes fell on the slender figure.

The girl had kept her head lowered, and her body trembled at the shout, as if she’d been frightened.

After a few stunned seconds, she timidly raised her eyes. The sight of her red-rimmed eyes would make anyone’s heart ache with pity.

"I..." Jiang Qingli glanced at Yu Chenglan for just a second before quickly looking away. Her soft voice was exceptionally fragile. "I don’t know... I just felt a hand reach out from the water. It kept grabbing my leg, pulling me down..."

A flash of guilt crossed Yu Chenglan’s face, but he kept his expression calm. His voice, however, rose unconsciously. "What makes you so sure it was me? Do you have any proof?"

Jiang Qingli trembled. "I don’t have any proof... At the time, I just wanted to get to shore quickly. I didn’t see clearly..."

She closed her eyes, leaning against Lin Xiyue’s shoulder as her voice choked with sobs. "Fine, whatever. Everyone already thinks I’m the bad guy, and you’re the noble ’Sea Pearl.’"

"You—!"

He never thought she would frame him with such a preposterous act. Yu Chenglan could no longer maintain his composure and, seething with anger, started to lunge at her.

The moment he moved, Baili Jing stepped in front of him.

"Yu, it’s fine to make a mistake, as long as you correct it." A cold glint flashed in Baili Jing’s eyes. "What you shouldn’t do is immediately start pressuring the victim to twist the truth."

Lin Xiyue couldn’t watch any longer. She wrapped an arm around Jiang Qingli’s shoulders and roared, "Have you no shame? I don’t care who she is, using a Superpower on a female is a serious crime! You should thank your lucky stars she wasn’t hurt, otherwise you’d be in prison by now!"

She then turned to the crowd and demanded, "He caused such a huge disturbance just now. Are all of you blind?"

After a moment’s hesitation, someone in the crowd spoke up to the student council. "I saw it. He really did try to attack us."

"That’s right. If it hadn’t been for Mr. Baili, we would’ve been dragged into it as well."

"Actually, Jiang Qingli is pretty pitiful. The worst she did was get a little handsy, and she nearly lost her life for it..."

"I don’t know about that. As soon as Yu Chenglan got in the water, he swam straight for Jiang Qingli. Maybe he enjoys being pursued by her..."

Hearing that last comment, Yu Chenglan glared sharply at the crowd. "Who said that?"

The crowd instantly fell silent.

"Yu, it seems your emotions are quite unstable." Ke An shot a look at the other two student council members. "Please come with us to get your levels checked."

"I’m fine!" Yu Chenglan had never been so wronged in his life. "Are you all insane?! I was just playing a little prank on her, that’s all!"

"The patient always says they’re not sick." Yuan Shiyao, who had been silent all this time, suddenly spoke up. "Yu, if you refuse the test, we’ll have no choice but to contact your family."

Yu Chenglan glared daggers at Yuan Shiyao. The latter met his gaze calmly with his emerald-green eyes, offering no room for compromise.

In the end, Yu Chenglan relented.

The four student council members escorted him out, surrounding him.

Once they were a short distance away, Ke An slowed his pace to walk beside Yuan Shiyao and shot him a meaningful look.

Yuan Shiyao glanced back coolly. "What is it?"

"Of course there is." Ke An lowered his voice. "From what I saw, Jiang Qingli looked really hurt, scared, and pitiful just now."

Yuan Shiyao’s eyes flickered. He pressed his thin lips together, his voice even colder than before. "What does that have to do with me?"

"Don’t play dumb." Ke An frowned, displeased. "Don’t forget, the President told you to seduce—"

The moment the word left his lips, Yuan Shiyao’s eyes narrowed. Ke An quickly backtracked with an awkward laugh, "—I mean, she wants you to *recruit* Jiang Qingli. This is the perfect time."

He coaxed persuasively: "Look, Jiang Qingli was just publicly humiliated by the man she’s been fawning over for more than a year. She must be heartbroken, right? If you go and say a few words of comfort, she’ll definitely start liking you again. Plus, we get to make Qin Shu miserable. It’s perfect."

"Not going," Yuan Shiyao refused flatly.

Ke An was not happy about his refusal to see reason, but this was the President’s assignment.

After a moment’s thought, Ke An said, "The student council handles most of the academy’s affairs. Jiang Qingli is a student, and she was frightened. You’re set to become the Vice President next semester. Shouldn’t you go comfort your classmate?"

"What’s more, she’s your sister-in-law. With your brother gone, shouldn’t you be looking out for her?"

Yuan Shiyao stopped in his tracks.

A few seconds later, Yuan Shiyao said, "I’m going back."

He turned and walked back down the corridor toward the gymnasium.

Standing at the entrance to the swimming complex, Yuan Shiyao told himself, ’Visiting Jiang Qingli is just part of my duty. It doesn’t mean I accept the President’s so-called "seduction strategy," and it certainly doesn’t mean I feel anything for her.’

’Besides,’ he thought, ’my brother isn’t at the academy right now. If I don’t go, people will definitely gossip that I’m not fulfilling my family duties. Visiting her on my brother’s behalf will be a way to show I’ve done my part. Then, when my brother gets back, Jiang Qingli won’t have any reason to give me trouble.’

Having justified his actions with this long-winded internal monologue, Yuan Shiyao felt his composure return.

When he walked inside, however, he found that Jiang Qingli was nowhere in sight.

It was now a break period. The girl who had been comforting Jiang Qingli earlier was soaking in the pool, playing on her terminal.

Yuan Shiyao walked over and asked, "Hello. Excuse me, where is... Classmate Jiang?"

He had chosen a more formal address to avoid any misunderstanding.

"Oh, looking for Qingli?" Lin Xiyue flashed a suggestive smile. "Senior Baili took her to the infirmary a little while ago."

Someone nearby was on their terminal, talking animatedly about the incident, their tone exaggerated. "...Dude, you should have seen it! He princess-carried her! Oh my god! My boy has never even done a princess-carry scene in a drama! ...Yeah, you’re right, he’s probably already married to his ’one that got away.’ There’s no way he’d be interested in Jiang Qingli. It just goes to show you, my boy is too kind-hearted!"

Yuan Shiyao’s brow furrowed, a feeling of resistance welling up inside him.

’Does she enjoy being so close to men that much?’

’It was just a princess carry. Did she have to pick a married man for it?’

’Baili Jing doesn’t look like much, either. He even needed both hands. If it were me, I’d only need one arm to carry Jiang Qingli—’

’Wait, what am I thinking?’

’Jiang Qingli must have scared me so badly I’m losing my mind.’

Yuan Shiyao pinched the bridge of his nose and started walking toward the medical building.

Just as he reached the building, he saw a young man with a flashy sense of style walking toward him, one hand shoved in a pocket. The man’s roguish face was written all over with irritation.

Qin Muye paid Yuan Shiyao no mind, speaking impatiently to the person on his terminal. "None of your damn business! I’ll go if I want to, I don’t need you bossing me around! Sister? I’ve never acknowledged you as my sister!"

Walking up to the elevator, Qin Muye abruptly ended the call.

Yuan Shiyao guessed he had probably been on a call with Qin Shu.

’It seems Qin Shu also heard that Jiang Qingli was hurt,’ Yuan Shiyao thought. ’But he must be busy with the Melt Star Association today and couldn’t get away, so he sent Qin Muye to check on her.’

’News certainly travels fast.’

Yuan Shiyao stepped into the elevator as well.

Qin Muye glanced at him but paid him no mind.

’That’s to be expected,’ he thought. ’He’s always been arrogant.’

However, as they both started walking toward Jiang Qingli’s room, Qin Muye’s expression turned strange.

His eyes kept sweeping over Yuan Shiyao, sizing him up and down like a piece of merchandise, much to Yuan Shiyao’s annoyance.

When they arrived at Jiang Qingli’s room in the infirmary, Yuan Shiyao raised his hand to knock, but Qin Muye had already grabbed the doorknob.

Just as he was about to shove the door open, Qin Muye stopped abruptly. He let go of the knob and decided to knock instead. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

It was clear he wasn’t used to knocking; the action was clumsy and unfamiliar.

After a few knocks, the intercom screen on the door flickered to life, and Jiang Qingli’s voice came through. "What is it?"

Her voice was lovely, but the tone was strangely strained.

Before either of them could speak, Baili Jing’s voice came through the speaker. "Who... is it?"

The Fox Clan youth’s words were soft and slow, as if he were holding something back, easily leading one’s mind to unsavory conclusions.

Qin Muye’s face instantly darkened. He demanded through clenched teeth:

"What are you two doing in there?!"

Without even waiting for Jiang Qingli to answer, he grabbed the doorknob and slammed the door open—