Sang Yu averted her gaze, her expression indifferent as she looked at Zhang Qile.
“I work part-time here.”
As soon as she finished speaking, another voice chimed in with a hint of frivolity: “How old are you to already be working part-time?”
Hearing this, Sang Yu glanced over and saw the person sitting across from Zhang Qile, who had turned around at some point. His eyebrows were raised, and his gaze held undisguised admiration and curiosity.
Noticing Sang Yu looking behind him, he flashed what he thought was a charming smile: “Which school are you from, beautiful?”
The short-haired girl standing beside Huo Yan also gave Sang Yu a casual once-over for a few seconds. “Taken with her? You’re such a beast, going after a young girl?”
Sang Yu didn’t answer his question, nor did she look at the short-haired girl who had spoken. Instead, she asked Zhang Qile, whom she was more familiar with:
“What would you like to buy?”
Zhang Qile grinned and handed a fifty-yuan bill to Sang Yu. “Three cups of instant noodles, a pack of cigarettes, and a lighter, please. Thanks, little classmate.”
Sang Yu shook her head to indicate it was no trouble, took the money, and turned to leave.
From beginning to end, she never once glanced at the person in the corner. Naturally, she didn’t notice how Huo Yan’s eyes darkened the moment she left, his tongue pressing against his teeth in an unreadable expression.
After Sang Yu left, the boy who had asked about her age couldn’t hold back any longer and eagerly pressed Zhang Qile for information: “Hey, is that girl from your school? She’s really something!”
Beside him, Zhang Qile frowned, his tone slightly disdainful. “Wang Yang, that’s enough. You and Jiang Qin are quite the pair.”
After saying this, he instinctively glanced at Huo Yan, but from his angle, Huo Yan had his back to him. For a moment, he had no idea what his Brother Yan was thinking.
Wang Yang continued his inquiries: “Qi Le, if we’re brothers, just tell me—does that girl have a boyfriend? I’ve never seen anyone who looks so… how should I put it? Innocent yet alluring—”
Jiang Qin raised her eyebrows, her expression full of contempt. “Girls these days, just starting their freshman year, tsk. They can act as innocent as they want, but who knows how wild they are in private.”
“Tsk,” Wang Yang laughed. “The way you put it, shouldn’t I be even more—”
“Screech—”
Before he could finish, a harsh sound of metal scraping against the floor cut him off.
The two of them turned toward the noise and saw Huo Yan standing up. He glanced casually at Wang Yang, a barely perceptible menace in his gaze that made Wang Yang shrink back, unable to utter another word.
Only after Huo Yan left did Wang Yang pat his chest as if he had narrowly escaped disaster. “Damn, that look from Brother Yan just now! Did I somehow offend him?”
Zhang Qile, who thought he understood what was going on, kept his thoughts to himself and spoke with an air of profundity: “I advise you to give up on the little classmate.”
After all, the little classmate had just complained about a sore waist.
Zhang Qile clicked his tongue inwardly. Brother Yan was truly a beast—the little classmate was still in the bloom of youth, yet she was already facing such torment.
Of course, he kept these later thoughts to himself and went back to playing his game.
Wang Yang was burning with curiosity, but since Zhang Qile refused to say more, he didn’t dare ask Huo Yan either.
Seeing that Huo Yan had left, Jiang Qin also frowned, her expression turning sour, before she turned around and sat down to continue playing her game.
Sang Yu placed the items Zhang Qile needed on a tray and carried it over. From a few steps away, she spotted Huo Yan leaning against the wall by the doorway, one leg propped up, a cigarette dangling from his lips.
Even through the haze of smoke, his nonchalant expression was unmistakable. When his gaze fell on her, it carried a mix of frivolity and a chilling undertone, making it impossible to guess what he was thinking.
She had seen that look too many times. Her heart skipped a beat uncontrollably, but then she recalled what she had witnessed earlier, and a spark of anger flared up again. Pretending not to see him, she reached out to open the door, only to be blocked by Huo Yan.
Sang Yu looked at him, irritation simmering in her eyes. Before she could speak, Huo Yan asked, “So your backache is from working here?”
Her gaze instinctively followed his, only to find his brazen eyes trailing downward from her chest before settling on her waist. One eyebrow arched, a lazy, provocative smirk playing on his lips—casual yet impossible to ignore.
Sang Yu remained silent, her breathing growing heavier, unsure whether from anger or embarrassment. When she finally spoke, her voice carried a hint of vexation. “What else could it be?”
Yet no matter how annoyed she sounded, the underlying soft, coquettish tone in her voice was impossible to miss.
Huo Yan clicked his tongue, grinning unabashedly. “Is that so? How bad is it?”
As he spoke, his hand moved forward as if he intended to lift her clothes right then and there to see for himself.
Sang Yu froze, her face flushing crimson. This time, she was truly furious—both embarrassed and incensed—as she slapped his hand away.
“Pervert!”