Competing for Favor, Good Sister, Fairness

Gazing at the figure not far away, she bit her lip, slowed her steps, and quietly approached. Raising her hands, she covered the other person’s eyes and playfully teased in a deliberately altered voice, "Guess who I am. If you guess right, there’s a reward~"

"What kind of reward?" Lin Wanning asked, amused.

"Hmm..." For a moment, she couldn’t think of anything specific, so she replied, "There’s definitely a reward, just guess already!"

"Then I’ll guess... you’re Li Qingxue," Lin Wanning said with a laugh, still blindfolded.

"Ah! How did you figure it out?" Li Qingxue released her hands from Lin Wanning’s eyes, puzzled. She had even disguised her voice—there was no way she should’ve been recognized.

"Your scent," Lin Wanning pointed at Li Qingxue. "Everyone’s smell is different. We’ve bathed together so many times—I’d recognize yours anywhere."

With that, she reached out to tickle Li Qingxue. "Didn’t you say there’d be a reward for guessing right? Then my reward is tickling you!"

"No way! You’re just trying to take advantage of me again!"

"Fine, then let’s go bother Yuying together instead," Li Qingxue suggested, trying to escape the tickling.

"Oh, Qingxue, you’re really something! I was going to help you, but now it looks like Wanning and I should team up to tickle you instead," Hu Yuying chimed in, having just arrived in time to hear the remark.

The trio played around for a while before setting off to explore A University’s campus.

The university grounds were enormous. As mentioned before, unless you deliberately sought someone out, running into them by chance was rare.

Despite having been enrolled for so long, Hu Yuying and Li Qingxue hadn’t visited many parts of the campus. With Lin Wanning visiting, the three decided to wander around together.

"Your school is seriously huge!" Lin Wanning marveled. "No wonder it’s one of the top universities in the country."

She glanced at the other two. "Guess that means you two were top-tier students back in the day, huh?"

"My brother went to the same school as you. What was he like back then?"

At this question, Hu Yuying and Li Qingxue exchanged a knowing smile.

Seeing their reaction, Lin Wanning grew even more curious and pressed for details.

"Well, back then, Long Aotian and I were at the same school, but we barely interacted. Still, his reputation wasn’t exactly... stellar. You could say he was the school’s resident troublemaker," Li Qingxue explained after some thought.

Back then, there had been no overlap between them—one was the teachers’ model student, the other their biggest headache.

Hu Yuying nodded in agreement. Though she had transferred in during the second half of senior year, Long Aotian had always been kind to her. Yet, according to other students, his reputation had been... less than ideal.

"Really?" Lin Wanning couldn’t believe it. Her kind, caring brother had been a delinquent? A troublemaker?

"Really. Most of what I heard about Long Aotian back then wasn’t exactly flattering."

"Then how did you two end up meeting him? And honestly, I can’t even imagine him being like that."

"I transferred in during the second half of senior year. On my very first day, people kept warning me about Long Aotian—how he was the toughest guy in our grade, how he could knock someone out with one punch..." Hu Yuying seemed to recall the moment she first met him.

Then, with a soft laugh, she added, "But the Long Aotian I got to know wasn’t like that at all. He was kind—protected me from bullies, taught me how to stand up for myself. Because of him, I went from being a pushover to someone who could confidently talk to others and make friends."

"Yeah, I met him around the same time," Li Qingxue chimed in, smiling. "I was going through a rough patch and went for a walk by the river. He was there, just lounging in the sun. When he overheard me venting, he chimed in with a comment, and that’s how we started talking. We’d chat occasionally after that."

Her smile was radiant, drawing attention effortlessly. "He was really wise—saw things clearly. He never told me what to do, just laid out the pros and cons and helped me untangle my own thoughts."

"Honestly, he felt so mature—nothing like the rumors."

Hu Yuying nodded eagerly. "Yeah, in certain moments, he was incredibly mature. He told me to call him ‘big brother’ and promised to protect me. And he’s kept that promise ever since."

"Sure, a lot of people said bad things about him, but to me, Long Aotian was the best."

After hearing their stories, Lin Wanning sighed softly. "I never knew someone could change so much."

A long time ago, she had pestered her brother to tell her how he and Yuying met. Back then, there had been a strange dissonance in his words.

Now, hearing about his transformation during senior year, she wondered if something had happened—something that made him change overnight.

Whatever it was, as long as it made him happy and kept him from feeling lonely, that was all that mattered.

Her gaze drifted to Hu Yuying, admiration swelling in her chest.

She was the one who gave her brother purpose.

If not for Hu Yuying, her brother wouldn’t be in Capital City now—and she’d never have met this kind, compassionate man who’d pull her back from the brink no matter how far she fell.

No wonder Hu Yuying meant so much to him...

Checking the time, the trio headed toward the university gates.

"Now Yuying gets personal chauffeur service. We’re so jealous," Li Qingxue teased.

"Blame your big mouth for that."

"Details, please."

Hu Yuying’s face lit up with happiness as she explained. Long Aotian had thought she was in trouble and, worried, bought an electric scooter to ferry her around.

"Then you should be thanking me," Li Qingxue said smugly. "If I hadn’t told Long Aotian, you’d never have gotten to experience his sense of responsibility firsthand."

"Yeah, yeah," Hu Yuying laughed, tugging at Li Qingxue’s arm. "I’ll save you extra servings of all the good food from now on."

"What about me?" Lin Wanning pouted.

"Look, even Wanning’s fighting for favor now."

Hu Yuying grinned. "We’re all sisters here. There’s enough to share—good things should always be enjoyed together..."

"Such a fair and wonderful sister!" Lin Wanning hooked her arm through Hu Yuying’s other side and stuck her tongue out at Li Qingxue.

The three burst into laughter together...