A flicker of surprise flashed in the boy’s eyes before he quickly looked away.
Ning Mei teased with satisfaction, “See, he doesn’t even dare to look at you.”
This immediately made Chen Yihan frown. “Is it that serious? She just looks a little better than usual. Usually, she always dresses so…”
Yu Zhi simply stared at him. As the boy spoke, his gaze met hers, and he suddenly fell silent, pressing his lips together.
Instead, Ning Mei glared at him.
“Aren’t you playing games? Why are you out here?”
“Getting water.”
“Now that you’ve got your water, hurry back inside.”
Chen Yihan didn’t say anything else. He glanced at Yu Zhi once more before turning and heading back to his room.
After that, Yu Zhi sat on the sofa chatting with Aunt Ning. The only odd thing was Chen Yihan, who kept coming out every now and then.
Sometimes to get water, other times to grab fruit.
But Yu Zhi could sense that his gaze would linger on her briefly each time, almost imperceptibly.
Even after acting as the spoiled childhood sweetheart for half a year, Yu Zhi couldn’t figure out what this genuinely spoiled person was trying to do.
The last time, she had just come out of the bathroom and was washing her hands at the sink. When she looked up abruptly, she saw another figure in the mirror, leaning casually against the wall.
Yu Zhi was startled.
Seriously, how could someone strike a pose at any given moment?
“Let’s go back to school together after dinner,” the boy said.
It sounded a bit redundant—was she supposed to say she wanted a separate car?
But the boy’s softened tone clearly indicated he was offering an olive branch to make amends.
Yu Zhi finally noticed the difference in him compared to before.
So, when he sulked, he could actually cheer himself up? What did all those times she eagerly tried to comfort him in the past even mean?
Snapping out of her thoughts, Yu Zhi dried her hands and hummed in acknowledgment.
She took two steps before Chen Yihan called her again.
“Yu Zhi.”
Yu Zhi paused and turned around. The boy’s gaze fell on her clothes, as if he wanted to say something, but before he could speak, the sound of a car parking came from outside—Uncle Chen was back. Without waiting for him to finish, Yu Zhi walked out.
Chen Yuntian returned, and another round of greetings ensued. Soon, dinner was served.
He was also a very amiable person, so everyone got along pleasantly at the table, except for Chen Yihan, who occasionally dropped cold remarks.
“By the way,” Ning Mei suddenly seemed to remember something and asked Yu Zhi with a smile, “Momo, are you dating anyone at school?”
“Huh?” Yu Zhi was caught off guard. “No, I’m not.”
Beside her, Chen Yihan’s movements remained unchanged, though his gaze briefly swept in her direction.
Chen Yuntian cleared his throat to smooth things over. “Alright, alright, she’s a shy girl. Don’t ask her such things.”
“Fine, fine, I won’t ask. But Momo, if you meet a boy you like in college, it’s okay to date. Relationships outside of school are different from those during your student years.”
“Hmm, that’s true,” Chen Yuntian affirmed his wife’s words. “Anyway, whether you date in college or not, when you’re ready to get married someday, just let your Uncle Chen know. I know plenty of outstanding young men.”
Chen Yihan gave them a cool glance. “Is this all you talk about when you get old?”
“Then what else? Can’t I say it?” Ning Mei wasn’t about to indulge her perpetually rebellious son. “Momo, while you should date, if it’s with someone like that, just forget it.”
Yu Zhi genuinely laughed this time.
But Ning Mei quickly snapped back to attention and looked at Chen Yuntian. “Wait, what did you mean by what you just said? What? Had some unforgettable campus romance?”
“Look at you, that’s not what I meant at all.”
“If that’s not what you meant, then what did you mean?”
“Ah, in front of the kids…”
As their attention shifted away, Yu Zhi felt much more at ease. She was just about to pick up the juice on the table when she suddenly remembered she had already exceeded her sugar intake for the day.
The moment her hand touched the table, someone brushed against it. Yu Zhi froze, and the System’s prompt sounded in her mind.
“Entering Chapter 16 of ‘The Spoiled Childhood Sweetheart’ plotline.”
Could it be any more sudden?
The next moment, her hand was tightly grasped.
Yu Zhi glanced to the side. The boy who had just been cold and distant now wore a completely different expression.
He was also sneaking glances at her, with a hint of resentment and a touch of grievance, looking utterly pitiful.
Clearly, the plotline was following the earlier scene. In the story, the two were dating without their parents’ knowledge, but Chen Yihan couldn’t stand hearing such talk about Yu Zhi finding a boyfriend.
Compared to this feigned pitiful expression, the hand gripping hers was far more honest, filled with an undeniable possessiveness and frustration.
Yu Zhi tried several times to pull her hand away but failed. She glared fiercely at him, signaling him to let go.
“Baby,” Chen Yihan was bold. With the older couple right across from them, he lowered his voice and leaned closer to whisper to Yu Zhi, “Your boyfriend is right here.”
This is insane!
Perhaps due to the power of the plotline, the two across from them were still engrossed in their bickering, but if they looked over, they would definitely notice something was off.
Even in the plotline, they were elders. Moreover, following the reality of the situation made Yu Zhi feel as though she was facing the real Chen Yihan, creating a sense of confusion.
So she felt as uncomfortable as if ants were crawling all over her. Seeing that she couldn’t pull her hand away with subtle force, she panicked and used more strength.
With a clatter, the sudden force was too strong, knocking over the glass of juice on the table.
Oh no!
Almost instinctively, Yu Zhi reached out to catch the glass. Her hand collided with Chen Yihan’s, who had also reached out, and neither managed to catch it. The juice spilled all over both of them.
Before Yu Zhi could even react, the System’s Out of Character alarm was already flashing red.
“Warning! Warning! Host has deviated from the book’s Character Persona!”
It was a red alert, so the plotline reset. Like an NG during filming, Yu Zhi returned to the beginning. The juice was still intact on the table, and beside her, Chen Yihan still had those puppy-dog eyes.
Tsk tsk tsk, that’s an insult to dogs.
Yu Zhi took a deep breath. This time, she didn’t overreact. She just glared at him. “If you don’t let go, my boyfriend won’t be here anymore.”
Though her voice was soft, the displeasure in it was unmistakable. Chen Yihan’s eyes dimmed, and he finally let go, though his hand still lingered, secretly brushing against the hem of Yu Zhi’s clothes.
Yu Zhi withdrew her hand to the table.
Only then did the plotline proceed.
She swore, having learned from the previous NG, she kept a safe distance from that glass of juice—not even touching it.
But that juice still ended up spilling—this time, Chen Yihan knocked it over while serving her food.
Clearly, this was a predetermined plotline, unavoidable.
The boy swiftly reached out to catch it, while Yu Zhi quickly stood up and stepped back. This was likely the reason she had been flagged for being Out of Character last time.
A drama queen would only dodge in such a situation, not panic and try to help.
Some juice still splashed onto her dress, but this time, as expected, no System warning sounded.
“Oh dear!” The two across the table finally looked over, with Ning Mei exclaiming first, “Momo, are you alright? Did it get on your clothes?”
As soon as Chen Yihan turned his head, he saw the stain on his girlfriend’s dress.
The boy immediately went into high alert mode. Without a doubt, in the princess’s priorities, his status was definitely below her new dress, new hairstyle, and new jewelry.
He immediately grabbed a tissue to wipe it for her, but Yu Zhi impatiently pushed his hand away.
“What are you doing? Aunt Ning just bought me this dress, you clumsy oaf!”
“Exactly, exactly, so clumsy.” Aunt Ning patted Chen Yihan twice, then turned to comfort Yu Zhi, “It’s alright, Momo, it’s just a dress. Aunt Ning bought you others too—you can change into another one.”
Uncle Chen also chimed in reassuringly, “Don’t worry, our house has plenty of clothes. No shortage at all.”
Both in and out of the story, the couple had a kind and amiable Character Persona, and even though Yu Zhi in the book was a drama queen, they always spoke to her gently.
Yu Zhi suppressed her guilt toward them, maintaining a displeased expression on her face.
“You all keep eating. I’m going upstairs to change.”
“Ah! Alright, change into something else first. Should Aunt Ning go with you…”
Ning Mei wanted to follow her upstairs but was nudged aside by her troublemaker son. The boy, clearly feeling guilty for his mistake, followed behind Yu Zhi without daring to utter a word.
However, as soon as they rounded the corner of the staircase, Chen Yihan eagerly closed the distance.
“My dear, my baby,” Chen Yihan said with a bitter smile, knowing he couldn’t escape punishment today, “It’s my fault, all my fault.”
Yu Zhi remained silent.
“Tomorrow, I’ll take you shopping for clothes. We’ll buy whatever you want, as many as you like, okay?”
“I’ll drain my boyfriend dry.”
Yu Zhi ignored him the entire way, only slamming the door shut when she finally entered the walk-in closet, leaving the boy outside.
Though he was shut out, his voice wasn’t.
“Baby, look, we’ve been dating for so long. My parents like you so much—they treat you better than their own son. If they knew you were my girlfriend, wouldn’t they be overjoyed?”
“You know what they say, ‘Don’t let good things go to outsiders.’ But they’re the opposite, always thinking about passing someone as wonderful as you to someone else.”
There was no response from inside the room.
Chen Yihan finally fell silent, his gaze fixed quietly on the closed door.
A wordless frustration spread in his chest as he thought about his parents’ earlier suggestion for Yu Zhi to start dating and their plans to introduce her to “high-quality prospects” for marriage.
He wished he could grab Yu Zhi’s hand right then and tell them that he was the one dating her now, and he would be the one marrying her in the future.
The boy subtly exhaled the heavy feeling in his chest and gently placed his hand on the door.
But what about his girlfriend? What was she thinking?
Chen Yihan didn’t know why he felt so flustered. Perhaps it was the occasional sense of distance from Yu Zhi, as if she were far beyond his reach, that filled him with unease.
He even wondered if Yu Zhi simply saw him as a servant, but that might still be a relatively better scenario. Worse yet, was she toying with him…
Just then, the door before him suddenly swung open, and his little darling popped her head out.
“Get in here and zip me up.”
His girlfriend’s expression was “fierce,” yet in an instant, it blew away the dark clouds of his wild thoughts. The gloom in his eyes hadn’t fully faded, but the corners of his mouth had already instinctively curved upward.
He held back, afraid of angering Yu Zhi.
“Alright, alright.”
Chen Yihan followed her inside, gently closing the door behind him.
Yu Zhi had already turned around.
It was quite exasperating. The purple dress she had changed into had a zipper at the back. She had originally intended to zip it up herself, but before her hand could even reach her back, the System gave her a yellow light warning.
Fine, fine. A drama queen can’t even zip herself up.
The boy zipped it up slowly, and Yu Zhi grew impatient after waiting for a while. “Are you done yet?”
A low hum came from behind her.
Whether it was the sound or the gaze, Yu Zhi could feel a wave of heat radiating from behind her. But perhaps her urging had worked—the boy didn’t dare to defy her too much and finally stopped dawdling.
Since it was an autumn-winter dress, Yu Zhi wore a thin base layer underneath. The base layer had a low neckline, and when Chen Yihan zipped it all the way up, his finger seemed to accidentally brush against the skin on Yu Zhi’s neck.
Yu Zhi stiffened instantly, as if countless tiny goosebumps had densely spread across the skin of her neck. She quickly turned around and glared at him.
Chen Yihan’s raised hand hadn’t yet lowered. Seeing Yu Zhi turn around, his eyes flashed with undisguised admiration.
“Our baby looks so beautiful,” he said with a smile.
Hmph, Yu Zhi also smiled. “Just a little prettier than usual, right?”
Author’s Note:
None.