Tsk, why are you so stubborn?!
Tang Yu resisted the urge to hold her forehead while secretly thinking of a way to divert Yin Zhao-an's attention away from her.
"Tang Yu~"
A sweet voice broke the awkward atmosphere. In response, Tang Yu reacted as if she had just heard her savior's voice, while Tang Yu frowned in dissatisfaction.
Fang Ling froze for a few seconds when she saw the person sitting opposite Tang Yu. Then, she squeezed into Tang Yu's seat, embraced Tang Yu's arm, and softly asked, "Tang Yu, who is this? Is she your friend?"
"Mhm."
"She's my big sister."
Two voices rang out simultaneously. Fang Ling blinked her eyes in confusion and moved her gaze between the two people. However, as both Tang Yu and Yin Zhao-an had their heads lowered, Fang Ling could see neither of their expressions.
"Uh… So… Are you friends or her big sister?" Fang Ling tentatively asked.
After taking a napkin out of her pocket and wiping her mouth with it, Tang Yu said, "We're friends."
Bang!
A loud sound suddenly came from the chair opposite Tang Yu. After giving the confused Fang Ling a cold look, Yin Zhao-an left the classroom with her lunch box without saying a single word.
Once Yin Zhao-an was gone, Fang Ling patted her chest in relief and turned to Tang Yu, saying, "That friend of yours is so scary. Does she hate me or something?"
How would I know what's going through her mind? Tang Yu mentally retorted. Then, she shook her head and said, "I don't know. She doesn't have a very good temper."
"I can see that." Fang Ling nodded in agreement.
…
As soon as school was over, Tang Yu dashed out of the classroom with her schoolbag as usual. Fang Ling had learned from her past mistakes, having packed her bag even before class was over. So, when she saw Tang Yu running out of the classroom, she quickly ran after the other party.
After finally catching up to Tang Yu and grabbing onto the edge of Tang Yu's shirt, Fang Ling asked while gasping for air, "Why… Why do you keep running so quickly?"
Suddenly, Tang Yu stopped running. Confused, Fang Ling lifted her head and saw a tall figure standing by the school gate.
"Oh, it's your friend," Fang Ling ignorantly pointed out to Tang Yu.
Tang Yu weakly sighed when she saw Yin Zhao-an's figure.
"Fang Ling."
"Huh?" Fang Ling blankly turned to Tang Yu.
"Can you walk with me part of the way?"
After hearing Tang Yu's request, Fang Ling turned to look at the BMW parked outside the school. Then, she pondered for a second before nodding, "Give me a moment. I have to inform my driver first."
When Fang Ling approached the car, a young man in a suit got out of the driver's seat. Just as he was about to open the door to the back seat, Fang Ling stopped him and exchanged a few words with him. Then, the young man turned to look at Tang Yu before nodding to Fang Ling.
Afterward, Fang Ling skipped and hopped back to Tang Yu. Then, she linked arms with Tang Yu and smiled brilliantly as she said, "I got the OK, so let's go."
"Tang-Tang!"
While the two were making their way out of campus, Yin Zhao-an caught sight of Tang Yu. Immediately, she ran over and held onto Tang Yu's hand.
Tang Yu no longer felt the same throbbing when she held hands with Yin Zhao-an this time. A burst of joy appeared in her heart when she noticed this change.
While embracing Tang Yu's other arm, Fang Ling smiled and greeted Yin Zhao-an, saying, "Hello, I'm Fang Ling, Tang Yu's friend."
Yin Zhao-an found Fang Ling a huge eyesore when she saw the girl linking arms with Tang Yu. So, she coldly responded, "Yin Zhao-an."
"Oh! I know you! You're the first in our grade, aren't you?!" Fang Ling's eyes sparkled when she heard Yin Zhao-an's name. "I've heard of your name before, but I never got to meet you!"
Yin Zhao-an quietly held Tang Yu's hand, having no intention of making conversation with Fang Ling.
After receiving a cold shoulder, Fang Ling put on a pitiful look and looked at Tang Yu. Then, when she received a comforting smile from the other party, her expression instantly brightened.
Fine! Seeing as you are Tang Yu's close friend and a top student, I won't fuss over this matter with you! Hmph!
…
There was a car slowly following the group. Yin Zhao-an quickly noticed the car's suspicious behavior and warily looked back several times, subconsciously getting Tang Yu to walk faster.
Fang Yu finally noticed Yin Zhao-an's strange behavior when she started having trouble keeping up with Yin Zhao-an's pace. Then, after realizing what was getting Yin Zhao-an so worked up, she hurriedly explained, "The car behind us is my ride. It's not a bad guy's car."
"If it's your car, why aren't you riding it, then?"
"Because… Ah—" Fang Ling let out a small cry when she felt additional pressure being put on her hand. Then, after glancing at the culprit, she quickly changed what she was going to say, saying, "It's because Tang Yu is my good friend! I want to send her home!"
"It hurts…" Tang Yu suddenly hissed in pain.
Yin Zhao-an snapped out of her daze and hurriedly let go of Tang Yu's hand, only to see a red handprint on Tang Yu's delicate hand.
Tang Yu frowned in pain. Then, while massaging her reddened hand, she thought to herself, This will probably take some time for it to subside… How unexpected. Since when did she get so strong?
While Tang Yu was thinking about some irrelevant matters, Yin Zhao-an panicked and looked at Tang Yu with slightly reddened eyes. Although she opened her mouth to try to say something, she ultimately fled after leaving behind an "I'm sorry."
This time, it was Tang Yu's turn to be stunned. Why…does it feel like I just bullied her? Shouldn't I, the "victim," be the one to cry?
At this point, no matter how dense Fang Ling was, even she had noticed something was amiss with the relationship between Yin Zhao-an and Tang Yu. With a nosy mindset, she leaned into Tang Yu and whispered, "Tang Yu, this friend of yours…seems to care about you a lot?"
Tang Yu's heart suddenly thumped. Then, in a slightly guilty tone, she said, "It's…because our families are close…"
Upon hearing Tang Yu's response, Fang Ling put on a look of realization as she said, "Oh, so that's why she's looking at me like I'm her love rival."