The Art of Playing Hard to Get: Turning Initiative into Passivity

At the same time.

While her younger sister Chi Qingchi was receiving a "crazy foot massage" in Lin Yu's room,

the elder sister Chi Qingshui was enjoying a peaceful moment.

Seated in the pavilion of their residential complex, she was deeply engrossed in a book, savoring her solitary academic time.

The book in her hands, Photography: Theory of Light and Composition,

was one of the two Lin Yu had gifted her earlier that day.

As she read,

Chi Qingshui’s pen never stopped moving, underlining key points in the text.

After every ten pages,

she would pause to meticulously transcribe the highlighted sections into her study notebook.

This marked-up book would eventually be returned to Lin Yu,

while the notes she took would be reviewed and practiced repeatedly.

This routine

was a near-daily part of Chi Qingshui’s life since starting school.

However…

In the past, she would do all this at home.

Even with Qingchi around, her focus remained unshaken.

But now, she simply couldn’t settle down indoors.

That’s why she had chosen to study outside.

It seemed only by leaving the apartment could she reclaim her usual concentration.

Inside the apartment, she was still focused—

just focused on wondering what Lin Yu was up to…

Ding!

Her phone chimed with a WeChat notification.

Chi Qingshui immediately set down her pen and snatched up her phone.

At the same time,

she silently congratulated herself.

Good thing she was logged into her alternate account—she hadn’t missed an important message!

Lin Yu: Wifey, there’s a group dinner at the apartment tonight. I might have to eat alone… Comfort me~

Lin Yu: (sad face)(sad face)(sad face)

Chi Qingshui: “???”

She was well aware of the apartment dinner plans.

What confused her was why Lin Yu wasn’t joining.

Could it be…

because the attendees were all girls, and he was afraid she’d get jealous? So he’d rather skip it?

How silly!

She wasn’t some vinegar-guzzling drama queen!

Why would she throw a fit over him dining with his roommates?

Dreaming in Rain: Huh? What’s going on? Why aren’t you joining them, hubby?

Dreaming in Rain: Did you have a falling-out with one of your roommates?

Dreaming in Rain: (hug)(hug)(hug)

Soon,

a reply came through.

Lin Yu: Nah, it’s not that.

Lin Yu: Sigh… I just don’t want to trouble anyone…

Chi Qingshui: “???”

This only deepened her confusion.

What did he mean?

How could a simple meal be troublesome?

She pressed for an explanation:

Dreaming in Rain: Hubby, I’m still not following. Why would it be trouble?

Lin Yu: It’s kinda complicated. Let me explain…

Lin Yu: (Long message 1, omitted)

Lin Yu: (Long message 2, omitted)

Lin Yu: (Long message 3, omitted)

Immediately after,

Lin Yu sent three mini-essays totaling nearly 500 words, meticulously detailing his thought process.

If this were a casual chat with an ordinary friend about unrelated topics,

such lengthy texts might have been skimmed or ignored.

But for online lovers—especially those who’d never met—

sharing life’s minutiae with such care

was proof of affection and devotion.

Chi Qingshui read every word attentively, absorbing Lin Yu’s emotional shifts.

The gist of his essays was simple:

Among his roommates were two female university classmates.

The dinner was happening near their campus.

If classmates were to see this, it might cause unnecessary trouble for the two female students.

Taking everything into consideration,

Lin Yu decided to "sacrifice" himself for the sake of the two girls (her and her sister).

Chi Qingshui kept refreshing the messages, reading them twice in a row.

For her and Xiao Chi to attend the gathering naturally and comfortably, Lin Yu had gone to such lengths.

Her online boyfriend was actually such a thoughtful guy!

Aside from marveling at Lin Yu's thoughtfulness,

Chi Qingshui was also amazed by his typing speed.

How could he type so much in such a short time?

Is my online boyfriend an octopus or something?!

After pondering for a moment and carefully choosing her words, Chi Qingshui finally made up her mind…

「Dreaming in Rain: Hubby, hug hug~」

「Dreaming in Rain: I know you meant well, but what you did wasn’t quite right, you know?」

「Lin Yu: Why isn’t it right? You’re a girl too, sweetheart. Tell me, I’m listening.」

……

In Lin Yu’s bedroom.

[Ding!]

[An outstanding move—your kindness in considering others at every turn has won your partner’s admiration and affection!]

[Reward: 50 Spirit Stones]

[Ding!]

[An outstanding move—actively sharing your thoughts and feelings about life has made your partner feel incredibly sweet!]

[Reward: 50 Spirit Stones]

[……]

As the messages kept coming,

the system continuously chimed with snack-like notifications.

The long message he wrote wasn’t in vain—it had a huge effect.

Until another message arrived from his little girlfriend:

「Dreaming in Rain: I think you shouldn’t make decisions for others. What if they don’t mind at all? Wouldn’t that make you seem like you’re assuming they’re petty?」

Reading the message,

Lin Yu felt utterly confident.

This was in the bag!

He played hard to get with his reply:

「Lin Yu: You’re so right, sweetheart. What should I do then?」

"Typing…"

The status lingered for a long time.

Finally, a lengthy mini-essay appeared in the chat box.

The gist was that he could politely ask first whether the sisters planned to attend.

If they did, it would prove Lin Yu’s worries were completely unnecessary.

If they didn’t, he could then explain his concerns to them properly.

Lin Yu couldn’t help but laugh when he saw the message.

Who would’ve thought?

Even the top student, the young miss, had her moments of low EQ.

She was blindly offering solutions while already knowing the answer.

If they didn’t attend…

Was Lin Yu supposed to say:

"You’re not going because I’m going? Then I won’t go!"

Lin Yu could only laugh internally.

Even so,

Lin Yu swiftly replied:

「Lin Yu: You’re amazing, sweetheart. I’ll go ask them now.」

Though he couldn’t see Chi Qingshui in person,

Lin Yu could practically picture her flustered expression as she hurriedly switched accounts.

「Lin Yu: Big Chi, are you and Xiao Chi attending the group dinner tonight?」

Less than a minute later,

a reply came through:

「Chi Qingshui: Xiao Chi wants to go, and I don’t have anything else to do, so I’ll tag along.」

Lin Yu: Perfect. Little sister takes all the blame.

However,

another message quickly followed:

「I’ll bring one of the books for you tonight—I’ve finished it. The other one’s still in progress. You’re going too, right?」

Though everything was going exactly as Lin Yu had anticipated,

seeing Chi Qingshui’s concern that he might not attend

made him feel like Michelangelo, meticulously carving out a masterpiece of happiness… Damn, this was kinda sweet!