He Mingchu glanced at her. “Not afraid of Jin Yu anymore?”
Lin Xiyue calmed down. Oh no, she thought. She had been so excited about the plan nearing success that she forgot about this person.
She hesitated, but the plan with Jin Yao had to be carried out.
Seeing her troubled expression, He Mingchu knew she was still very afraid.
“I’ll go with you.”
Lin Xiyue didn’t even think before replying, “No—”
Her refusal was too abrupt, arousing He Mingchu’s suspicion.
He Mingchu narrowed his eyes. “Why not?”
Lin Xiyue’s eyes darted around. “Well, Jin Yao and I have some girl talk to discuss. It’s not very convenient…”
He Mingchu stared at her for a few seconds, then came up with another idea. “Then I’ll go to the Jin residence and invite Jin Yao out for you. Is that acceptable?”
Lin Xiyue wavered between hesitation and agreement, eventually nodding hesitantly.
Anyway, she didn’t want to set foot in the Jin residence again.
The original novel had mentioned that Jin Yu’s room had a secret chamber filled with small components he had collected.
Human body parts.
Just thinking about it gave her chills.
She had completely forgotten about this detail during her first visit.
Now that she remembered, there was no way she would step into that wolf’s den again.
Lin Xiyue sat in a dessert shop near the Jin residence. Seeing her expectant look, He Mingchu bought her a bowl of sweet osmanthus and foxnut soup to enjoy.
“Thanks, brother!”
Lin Xiyue was delighted.
This was He Mingchu’s first time at the Jin residence. Looking at the villa before him, he felt no particular emotion.
He had lived in places far more luxurious than this before. If he wanted, he could easily earn enough to buy another one.
Soon, a servant came to open the door. “Hello, our young lady asks you to come in.”
He Mingchu frowned. “I’m here to deliver a message. Has she forgotten who she made plans with today?”
“I haven’t forgotten, but I just want to invite you in for a cup of coffee now. Is that not allowed?”
Jin Yao leaned over the second-floor balcony, eating an ice cream bar, watching him with great interest.
He Mingchu replied, “I don’t have time. I have things to do. If you don’t want to go, I’ll take her and leave.”
Jin Yao understood the difference between one full meal and a lifetime of meals.
Once she and He Mingchu got into the same school, there would be plenty of opportunities to see him.
She quickly called out to him, “Wait! I’ll change clothes and come down right away.”
Afraid He Mingchu would grow impatient, Jin Yao hurried through her preparations. When she reached the ground floor, He Mingchu took one look at her and walked far ahead.
“What kind of person is he!”
Jin Yao muttered under her breath.
How had she ever thought He Mingchu was a gentle person?
After bringing Jin Yao to the dessert shop, He Mingchu didn’t even exchange a word with her. Instead, he directly said to Lin Xiyue, “Go straight home once you’re done with your business.”
Lin Xiyue replied, “Got it.”
Only after He Mingchu had turned the corner and disappeared from sight did Lin Xiyue take the notebook out of her cloth bag.
“Just fill out your application in this order, following the preferences on this paper. With your grades, you’re sure to get into the same school as him!”
Jin Yao examined it carefully, then looked at Lin Xiyue. “What about you?”
Lin Xiyue said, “Me? Don’t worry about where I’m going!”
Anyway, I won’t be with you all.
Jin Yao asked, “Really? You’re not going to the same school as He Mingchu?”
Lin Xiyue thought to herself, going to the same school as him meant going to the same school as you. Being around the male and female leads, what good days could a cannon fodder like her have? Constantly worrying about their plot developments had exhausted her—truly exhausted.
“I’ll be fourteen soon. I can’t always follow my brother around, right? I need to learn to be independent.”
Jin Yao smiled. “Little girl, quite ambitious.”
Lin Xiyue: You’re the little girl—
“Alright, I’ve finished my task. I’ll head back now.”
Jin Yao grabbed her. “No rush. Since you helped me, let me treat you to some sweet soup!”
She bought two bowls of red bean with small glutinous rice balls, and the two ate together.
When He Mingchu returned home, intending to retrieve the half-finished project from his room, he suddenly noticed a pile of books scattered on the floor of Lin Xiyue’s room.
He entered, picked up all the books from the floor and placed them back on the desk. Under the oil lamp, he spotted the corner of a note that read: Lin Xiyue will definitely be admitted.
He Mingchu moved the oil lamp aside, expecting to see her transcribed school preferences, but instead found several unfamiliar school names.
He frowned.
Without a word, he placed the preferences back exactly as they were.
He Mingchu pondered carefully but couldn’t figure out why his little pet didn’t want to attend the same school as him.
Had he treated her poorly?
Impossible. With Lin Xiyue’s temperament, if he had treated her badly, she would have openly or covertly opposed him long ago.
Had she discovered his dark nature?
Also impossible. Lin Xiyue usually remained quite close to him. If she had realized he and Jin Yu were cut from the same cloth, she probably would have packed her bags and fled overnight.
That left only one possibility.
This conjecture infuriated him.
Lin Xiyue wanted him and Jin Yao to get into the same school.
So enraged, he crushed the glass jar in his hand, shards embedding deep into his palm.
The moment Lin Xiyue returned, she saw He Mingchu staring expressionlessly at his palm, now pierced with numerous glass fragments.
“He Mingchu! What are you doing!”
She rushed over immediately, pulling his hand away.
Blood dripped, making Lin Xiyue grimace in distress.
“How did it get this bad? Come on, let’s go to the clinic!”
He Mingchu remained motionless, staring coldly at Lin Xiyue. “Do you even care?”
Lin Xiyue nodded. “Of course I care! You’re my brother!”
He Mingchu pressed his lips together.
Lin Xiyue found a cloth strip and tied it above the wound near his heart, telling him to raise his hand as she pulled him toward the clinic.
He Mingchu silently allowed her to lead him.
The clinic wasn’t far, but it was crowded.
Seeing that no one else had wounds as severe as his, Lin Xiyue suddenly burst into loud sobs.
“Brother! Don’t die! What would I do if you died!
“You’re losing so much blood—are you going to bleed out?”
The surrounding crowd immediately made way.
“Hurry, doctor! This young man is in critical condition!”
Hearing “critical condition,” those ahead quickly cleared the path, not wanting to risk bad luck.
The doctor opened a trauma treatment room and examined He Mingchu’s wound.
“How did this happen? Such deep punctures? Did you crush a glass jar?”
He Mingchu turned his head away. “No, the glass jar suddenly shattered.”
Admitting he had crushed the glass jar himself would indeed sound delusional.
Lin Xiyue urged anxiously, “Doctor, stop interrogating him and just treat his wound!”
The doctor glanced at Lin Xiyue. “Look how scared your little sister is—crying like a tear-streaked kitten!”
He picked up the tweezers unhurriedly. “We need to remove the glass fragments from the wound first. Bear with it.”
He Mingchu nodded.
It was just pain. He could endure it.
Watching the doctor’s movements, Lin Xiyue felt her teeth ache and turned her head away, unable to look.
He Mingchu knew he had frightened Lin Xiyue. He extended his uninjured right hand and grasped her cold one.