“Check… what?”
Xu Jingran’s voice was a little dazed, and her eyes wouldn’t leave his.
“Check out your boyfriend’s body,” Lu Ran laughed, like a peacock showing off.
He turned slightly, letting the light highlight the contours of his shoulders and back, his arms strong and smooth. “Like it? I trained it just for you.”
Xu Jingran’s cheeks flushed.
But Lu Ran suddenly noticed something else. “Baby? Did you move dorms?”
He saw her background had changed.
Xu Jingran nodded softly. “Jiang Si helped me switch dorms. He said the special student dorms weren’t good, so I’m staying in Villa No. 2 now.”
Jiang Si?!
Lu Ran’s brow barely furrowed.
What was Jiang Si trying to do? Last time, he tried to make them break up. Could he be planning to tell Xu Jingran about their bet?
Lu Ran couldn’t sit still. Looking at Xu Jingran sitting obediently on the screen, his voice softened suddenly.
“Baby, rest first. I’ll come to Villa No. 2 tomorrow to see you.”
“And then… you can touch me, okay?”
“Jiang Si, stay away from my girlfriend. Don’t say anything weird to her.”
Lu Ran warned Jiang Si in the student council office.
Jiang Si looked a little surprised. “I didn’t do anything. I just saw she was being bullied as a special student, so I asked my brother to help her switch dorms.”
“She’s my girlfriend, and you’re my brother. I’m doing this for your own good,” Lu Ran said seriously.
Lu Ran looked skeptical. Was that true?
Jiang Lijin was reviewing files from other departments, not even looking up.
“I helped her. Don’t bother me with trivial things like this in the future.”
Lu Ran finally relaxed. He didn’t trust Jiang Si, but he trusted Jiang Lijin.
Jiang Lijin was proud and arrogant; to everyone else, he seemed to see them as nothing but trash.
Lu Ran patted Jiang Lijin’s shoulder. “Thanks, brother. Thanks for taking care of my girlfriend.”
Jiang Si was speechless. “When did you decide that after a race you’d break up with her? Since when?”
Lu Ran couldn’t really take care of Xu Jingran properly. Better for him to handle it.
Leaning back on the sofa with his hands behind his head, he said casually, “Forget it. Our bet is canceled. I already had the car sent to your garage.”
Both brothers’ eyes turned to him instantly.
Jiang Si couldn’t help but snicker. “You didn’t really fall for a special student, did you?”
Lu Ran’s violet eyes flickered with a complicated light as he answered Jiang Si with a question of his own:
“Why do you care? She’s my girlfriend now. No one can separate us.
Do you know how well-behaved, cute, and pure she is?”
He stood up and took out his phone, flipping through photos one by one, his voice gentle and soft as honey dripping: “Look. You have no idea how cute my girlfriend really is.”
He decided the old bet would remain in the past, never to ruin his relationship again.
Both of them fell silent.
Jiang Si’s eyes couldn’t leave Lu Ran’s screen.
Lu Ran was a total weirdo.
He had taken so many photos of Xu Jingran:
Cheeks puffed while eating…
In school uniform holding books, pure and innocent…
Smiling sweetly in the sunlight…
Even wearing panda pajamas, fresh and adorable…
They knew.
Of course, they knew how cute his girlfriend was.
[This is hilarious. Jiang Si’s eyes were glued to the screen.]
[Lu Ran: Do you know how cute my girlfriend is? If you find out, you’re doomed!!!]
[The scene is too beautiful; I can’t look. Three people with mischief in their hearts… ah, how can the side character handle this?]
[They’re the type who’d spoil her endlessly…]
[Jiang Si’s look could strip Baby Jingran bare…]
[Lu Ran is such an incompetent husband. He has no idea the people in front of him really want his girlfriend (>_<).]
Lu Ran put away his phone and tapped his fingers on the table. “Let’s just pretend that bet never happened.”
As the one in control, he could rewrite the rules.
He couldn’t bear to see Xu Jingran’s pure eyes filled with tears.
No one was allowed to make her cry—not even him.
“Don’t slip up in front of my girlfriend,” he reminded them cautiously.
Jiang Si and Jiang Lijin, both strikingly handsome, looked up at the same time.
Jiang Si raised an eyebrow casually. “Relax.”
Jiang Lijin snapped the cap of his jeweled pen closed, the sound crisp and precise. He slid it into the breast pocket of his designer suit, amber eyes narrowing slightly. “I have no interest in your messy affairs.”
[Betting on a spicy snack—Jiang Si will definitely slip up.]
[Bro, your wife smells amazing.]
[Sharing a wife, bro? Not me…]
[Jiang Lijin’s mouth is still so tight… wonder if it’s the same below?]
The St. Tian International Noble Academy’s Freshman Ball had a tradition spanning thirty-four years.
On this day, nobles, commoners, and special admit students alike could wear their finest jewelry and gowns and gather in the academy’s grandest building—the Sterling Castle—to share in the glory.
Officially, the academy claimed the ball was classless, equal, and celebratory for all.
In reality, there were hidden rules.
It was the aristocracy’s first chance to play a romantic “game of choice.”
Noble students would carefully select a “gift” from among the elegantly dressed students.
For special admit students, especially those who were beautiful but from poor families, it was a cruel dividing line.
Some would be shamed to the very bottom of the academy’s social ladder for awkward behavior or cheap dresses.
Others would be “chosen” by noble heirs, gaining protection, sponsorship, and the chance to change their destiny.
Even such changes often came at a high price.
Yet everyone enjoyed the game, year after year.
New students always arrived, some pitifully rejected, losing face and dignity.
Others caught the genuine affection of nobles, becoming the talk of the circle.
Xu Jingran held the gilded invitation to the Freshman Ball, her eyes troubled.
Her new room had a large window overlooking a perfectly manicured rose garden—a far cry from her previous dorm.
The invitation came from the student council, along with three dresses.
“Baby, wear this. You’ll be the most beautiful at the ball.” — Lu Ran
The first was a lavender strapless gown made of satin, shimmering like pearls in the light, with tiny crystals hand-sewn along the hem. Matching heels, jewelry, and even perfume were included.
Xu Jingran touched the soft fabric. Lu Ran had been… thoughtful.
The second dress arrived in a pure black box. A card bore handwritten, elegant English in flowing script:
“Black suits the games of the night.”
No signature.
The black gown had nearly an open back, held together by delicate crisscrossed straps. The fabric was a dark, subtle silk that gleamed faintly, like waves on the deep sea. A long pearl necklace accompanied it.
Xu Jingran’s cheeks flushed. She could imagine how scandalous she’d feel wearing it. Could she even go out in this?
The last dress was white.
“White is perfect for you.” — Jiang Si
An ivory off-shoulder gown with a thin strap on the left shoulder adorned with a tiny bow. A matching pearl clutch made the ensemble elegant, cute, and pure.
Three dresses—how was she supposed to choose?
“Wow, these are beautiful! They must be expensive. Lucky girl to have such a boyfriend.”
“Who sent the one without a signature? So hard to guess.”
“Jiang Lijin—a quiet, reserved type. So picky, yet sent the dress with the least fabric…”
“Admit it, man. You just want to see her in it.”
“Kids make choices? Take them all! All in!!!”
“Can’t wait to see what the heroine wears. Bet she’ll stun everyone at the ball.”
“Forget the side character, the heroine owns the show. This story is ours to enjoy.”
“Come on, Jingran baby, try them all! Let’s see which one looks best…”