"Um, about this ridiculous end-of-term high table dinner your school is having where both teachers and students can participate, I think I get it now...

"Speaking of which, I actually have an idea."

Saturday, noon, at a coffee shop on the shopping street.

Yan Huan was eating a light meal from the coffee shop while looking at the message Tong Jie sent in the "Ai Miao TV" group chat on his phone.

"..."

Looking at that message, the corners of Yan Huan's mouth stiffened slightly, and an ominous feeling arose in his heart.

He reached out his hand, just about to send a "cat shaking its head" emoji when Tong Jie sent another message,

"Why not just choose me as your dance partner? Then all your problems are solved!"

"Clang～"

The spoon in Yan Huan's hand fell onto the plate, making a crisp sound.

You're asking for trouble, Tong Jie.

He helplessly picked up his phone, seeing that the page had refreshed with new messages.

An Le: "But mostly students attend the dance. If Xiao Huan dances with a much older teacher, the other students will find it even stranger..."

Tong Yingying: "Who are you calling old? (smiley face)"

"Am I old? @Yan Huan"

"Hmm? @Yan Huan"

Faced with several @him messages full of subtle hostility, Yan Huan's expression darkened.

Wasn't everyone supposed to be united to form an unbreakable alliance against the modifier?

Although under Yan Huan's careful nurturing, An Le had become much more cheerful, she also seemed to have gained some aggressiveness...

An Le understood the implications of the dance invitation perfectly well, and with those rumors circulating about him leading the dance, she couldn't remain oblivious.

Yet, she hadn't asked about the matter when they went home the past few nights...

She never considered herself as Yan Huan's dance partner.

However, if someone else were to be the partner, she would be somewhat displeased.

For instance, right now, she would subtly prod at Tong Yingying with her words.

Yan Huan: "'Cat likes'

"Tong Jie is forever young, forever eighteen!"

An Le: "'Cat likes'

"Tong Jie is forever young, forever eighteen!"

Tong Yingying: "Hehe."

Yan Huan picked up the spoon again and started eating his lunch.

At the same time, he quickly tapped out a message with one hand,

Yan Huan: "The rumor about me leading the dance is entirely false, I have no idea who spread it...

"Don't worry, I'll take care of it.

"More importantly, I actually have a favor to ask of you, Tong Jie."

Tong Yingying: "You only think of me when you need help, huh? (smiley face)"

Yan Huan: "'Innocent cat'

"Absolutely not, Tong Jie! Let heaven and earth discern loyalty from betrayal!"

Tong Yingying: "Spit it out, after that come to the store tonight to work."

An Le: "'Shy cat'

These two, although their words differ, somehow their intentions feel quite the same.

In the end, it's Yan Huan who is the most exhausted.

"..."

Yan Huan glanced at the big-eyed Miao Jiang blinking on his shoulder, sighed, and then said,

"Miao Jiang, I misunderstood you before... turns out, you've been secretly boosting me all along, you are truly a loyal minister!"

"Meow?!"

With that, not paying attention to Miao Jiang's wide eyes, Yan Huan quickly got to the point,

"Understood, Tong Jie～

"So, Tong Jie, isn't your friend Nara the bodyguard for Sakuragi?

"Can you ask her to discreetly check if there's anything unusual with Sakuragi lately? Keep it confidential, Sakuragi must not know."

An Le has checked accounts with Yan Huan, and Tong Yingying isn't a fool.

She knows Sakuragi Hitomi is the host, and since he's asking like this, there must be something up, so she just said she'd contact Nara to inquire later.

After finishing all this, Yan Huan put down his phone again, intending to quickly finish his lunch.

He hadn't even eaten for five minutes in total.

Recently, he's been extremely busy, dealing with various venues and matters personally.

Sakuragi is now suspected of being impersonated, Ye Shiyu needs help with embroidery, Spencer needs tutoring, and he has to prepare for Spencer and An Le's reconciliation...

The rest, academics, random tasks in the student council, are hardly worth mentioning.

Even after all this, he has high-intensity mandatory obligations at night...

All that can be said is, even Tiga would have to have flashing colors.

While Yan Huan was eating, the conversation on the side caught his attention all of a sudden.

"What's going on, how could someone just take a shovel like that?"

"Sorry, manager... A fellow student borrowed it earlier, said they'd return it that afternoon, but there's been no word, maybe they forgot..."

"Tch, annoying, these kids have no manners..."

A shovel?

Yan Huan turned his head, looking at the two people troubled in front of the unfinished greenbelt.

Immediately, he remembered something, and asked,

"Excuse me, was the one who borrowed the shovel a girl with black and pink gradient hair?"

"Yes, yes, she was a really cute and elegant girl! Have you seen the shovel? Where is it now?"

"... Okay, hang on, I'll bring it back for you. That girl is a good friend of mine, I apologize on her behalf, she probably forgot due to busyness..."

"Oh, it's fine, just return the shovel to us."

With that said, Yan Huan quickly finished his meal with two bites, wiped his mouth, and got up to leave, heading towards the equipment room.

Previously, he had seen the shovel there.

"Click～"

Soon, he arrived at the entrance of the equipment room and pushed open the door.

Inside the room, aside from a few items that got displaced after being returned from classes, the rest of the setup had not changed much.