Cute Nee

Ye Shuang touched his lips.

At this moment, although An Shiyu looked completely unfazed, the tips of her ears were already tinged with pink.

"What's your answer?" An Shiyu suddenly asked in a whisper.

But her voice was so soft, it seemed as if it could melt into the wind.

"I..." Just as Ye Shuang opened his mouth, An Shiyu stuffed something into it.

"?!"

Ye Shuang reached in and pulled it out, only to find it was a pack of tissues.

Ye Shuang: "..."

"Forget it, the success rate isn't very high. You'd better just shut up for now," An Shiyu said.

Ye Shuang: "?"

Wait, what success rate?

What are you doing?

"Ah, right, right, I forgot to claim today's game rewards. Gotta dash." As she spoke, An Shiyu tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, revealing her fair neck. She then took off like a gust of wind.

She left Ye Shuang alone, utterly bewildered, before he could even process what had happened.

Huh? ↗

Ye Shuang still couldn't figure out An Shiyu's thoughts.

"..."

Was she... shy?

...

Meanwhile, An Shiyu ran down the hill. She glanced back first, then steadied her slightly ragged breathing.

She touched her neck, then brushed her fingers against her lips.

As if remembering something, her face flushed red.

"Well, well, well, blushing are we?" A voice came from beside her. An Shiyu looked up to see another "fish" leaning against a large tree with her arms crossed, her expression full of glee. "Looks like you don't get it at all."

"When did you get here?" An Shiyu asked.

"From right about here." Chao Yiyu said, shaking the phone in her hand. On the screen was a clear picture of Ye Shuang and An Shiyu kissing. An Shiyu was even standing on her tiptoes to reach Ye Shuang due to the height difference.

"So cute, that effort of standing on tiptoes." Chao Yiyu tilted her head, looking at the phone. "Hmm..."

"Just a bit weak, though, running away without daring to hear the reply."

"Adorable, hometown dialect"

A whooshing sound cut through the air. Chao Yiyu tilted her head slightly. With a thud, a black throwing knife embedded itself in the tree trunk just a centimeter away from her ear.

A few severed strands of hair drifted to the ground. Chao Yiyu also noticed An Shiyu's face, now even redder.

"Wow, dangerous. Why are you overheating? I didn't even say much."

"Give me the phone."

"No way~"

The two "fish" then began a chase.

...

It was already afternoon when Ye Shuang got home, and the messages he sent to An Shiyu remained unanswered.

"Today was really tiring... I wonder if it's because I didn't rest well." As Ye Shuang spoke, he noticed the house was empty and quiet, with only a fat cat lying on its side on the sofa, stretching its paws.

"Chen Qin and the others probably went shopping. They should be back soon, since we have plans tonight." Ye Shuang sat on the sofa petting the cat, then suddenly gave a wry smile.

"Really busy in a certain sense, schedule packed."

After sitting quietly on the sofa for a moment, Ye Shuang noticed his phone vibrate. He glanced at it—

Chen Qin: When are you coming back, A Ye?

It was a message from Chen Qin, probably asking when he'd be back.

Ye Shuang tapped on his phone.

Ye Shuang: I'm already home.

Ye Shuang: 10k belly up.jpg

Chen Qin: I booked a restaurant for tonight. And then... you have to accompany me somewhere.

Ye Shuang: Where?

Chen Qin: You'll know when the time comes.

Chen Qin was being mysterious, which made Ye Shuang pause for a moment. But after thinking about it, he couldn't guess what Chen Qin was up to.

However, at that moment, he noticed that a clock icon had appeared next to Chen Qin's chat avatar on his phone.

Ye Shuang: "..."

What's going on with the system lately? So frequently.

Ye Shuang was also a bit puzzled about the reason. Could it be that the system evolved?

Does it mean I can enter now? I don't need to face the person directly anymore; I can enter a past timeline just by looking at a chat avatar?

In a certain sense, that's really impressive.

"..." Ye Shuang glanced at the clock on the wall.

Well, since I have nothing better to do, I might as well go in.

I hope I can see my parents.

With that thought, Ye Shuang once again dove into Chen Qin's timeline.

...

The familiar expanse of white, the familiar buzzing sound. Ye Shuang couldn't remember how many times he had experienced this; he was even starting to get used to it.

When his senses returned, Ye Shuang found himself sitting at a desk.

Ye Shuang: "..."

This place—

Is this my old middle school?

Ye Shuang quickly confirmed this after looking at the classroom he was in and the blue school uniform he was wearing.

Reaching into the desk drawer, Ye Shuang checked a workbook and realized it was from his third year of middle school.

"This time, the timeline shift is quite slow." Ye Shuang glanced at the countdown clock, then stood up.

"A Ye, don't just sit there. We need to finish cleaning up early."

Ye Shuang was startled. He turned around to see Chen Qin from their middle school days walking in through the classroom door, carrying a mop. The teenage girl had long, straight black hair and a pure, lovely face.

"Huh? What are you looking at?" Noticing Ye Shuang's gaze, Chen Qin was also taken aback.

She looked down at herself, as if checking something.

Was her clothes dirty?

"Nothing. Cleaning duty, right?" Ye Shuang smiled, then stood up to help with the chores.

On the blackboard, under the duty roster column, the names Chen Qin and Ye Shuang were clearly written in chalk.

They always seemed to have a connection—not only often assigned to the same class but also almost always seated together.

Even cleaning duty was done together.

"Oh?" Chen Qin noticed Ye Shuang cleaning diligently and efficiently, tilting her head in surprise. "You're actually not slacking off and making me do your work? Not bad."

"Just alright," Ye Shuang replied with a faint smile.

"Your smile is weird, like an uncle's," Chen Qin commented, noticing his expression.

Then she looked at Ye Shuang, seemingly lost in thought, twirling a strand of hair around her finger.

"A Ye, the high school entrance exam is coming up. Which school are you applying to? Private or public?"

"Hmm?"

"My dad actually wants me to go to a certain school, that really prestigious Yinshan Academy," Chen Qin said. "What about you?"

"Me?" Ye Shuang was momentarily stunned, then suddenly remembered what happened on this day.

Back then, Chen Qin had asked him the same question.

And Ye Shuang's answer at the time was First High School.

"First High School, I guess?" Ye Shuang hesitated slightly before speaking.

"Ah? My scores probably aren't good enough for that." Chen Qin's expression turned a bit troubled. In their class, only about two or three students on average could get into First High.

"Hmm?"

Chen Qin suddenly shook her head. "Never mind, it's fine. First High School, right?"

She suddenly clenched her fist. "Then it's settled, First High!"

Looking at Chen Qin, suddenly filled with determination, Ye Shuang remembered—

Back then, her grades were only around average. This girl, Chen Qin...

Just how much effort did she put in to catch up to his level?