Is it hard to chase the school beauty?It doesn't matter, she still has roommates

Chapter 690 How far have you progressed?
Although Yang Xiaobin was being held by Zhang Yiyi and had a smile on his face, the smile seemed a bit stiff and his eyes were a bit unfocused. There was almost no eye contact between the two, and there was no natural intimacy between them like that of newlyweds.

This deliberate "sweet" performance aroused a hint of doubt in Qin Luo's heart.

Just then, Qin Luo's phone vibrated in his pocket.

He took out his phone and saw it was Xia Minmin.

"Sorry, I have to answer the phone."

Qin Luo whispered something to Xiao Yu, then got up and left the private room, heading to the relatively quiet corridor.

"Mr. Qin, your items are ready. I am currently in the hotel lobby on the first floor."

Xia Minmin's clear and capable voice came through.

"Okay, I'll come down and get it."

Qin Luo hung up the phone.

He remembered that Xiaoyu had mentioned today was the day Zhang Yiyi would officially announce her wedding date, and as someone Xiaoyu had brought along, it wouldn't be appropriate for him to come empty-handed.

But he didn't have time to prepare, so before boarding the plane, he sent a message to Xia Minmin, asking her to help prepare a decent gift.

Qin Luo took the elevator down to the magnificent lobby on the first floor.

Xia Minmin stood there, her posture upright, her temperament aloof and outstanding.

She was holding a beautifully packaged handbag gift box bearing the logo of a top luxury brand.

"Mr. Qin, this is a limited edition handbag, the latest model, prepared according to your request. It suits the tastes of young women."

Xia Minmin handed the gift box to Qin Luo.

"Thanks for your hard work."

Qin Luo took it and nodded.

"Of course. Is there anything else you need?"

"No, you can go back now."

"Okay, Mr. Qin."

Xia Minmin bowed slightly, turned and left, her movements swift and decisive.

Qin Luo took the gift box but did not immediately take the elevator back.

He glanced at the emergency staircase next to him, thinking he'd kill some time by taking the stairs.

He pushed open the heavy fire door and stepped onto the stairwell platform on the seventh floor, but his steps faltered slightly.

The stairwell was dimly lit and filled with a faint smell of tobacco.

He saw Zhang Yiyi with her back to him, leaning against the cold wall, a slender cigarette between her fingers.

She tilted her head slightly and exhaled a smoke ring into the air. Her back view exuded a weariness and loneliness that was completely different from what she had felt in the private room just now.

In the dim light of the emergency lights in the stairwell, Qin Luo even saw her quickly raise her hand and wipe her eye with the back of her hand.

Although it was just a side profile, Qin Luo could sense that she seemed to be suppressing something, and her eyes were a little red.

Seemingly hearing footsteps, Zhang Yiyi suddenly turned around.

When she saw it was Qin Luo, her face instantly switched back to that bright and cheerful smile, with astonishing speed, as if her previous vulnerability was just an illusion.

"Huh? Qin Luo? Why did you come up the stairs?"

Zhang Yiyi greeted everyone with a smile, her tone relaxed, and casually stubbed out the half-smoked cigarette in the trash can in the corner.

She saw the gift box in Qin Luo's hand, and a knowing look flashed in her eyes.

"Yeah, I just went downstairs to get something."

Qin Luo answered calmly, his gaze lingering for a moment on her slightly reddened eyes, without revealing anything.

Zhang Yiyi took out a pack of women's cigarettes from her elegant handbag, pulled one out, and handed it to Qin Luo.

"Have one?"

Qin Luo did not refuse and accepted it.

Zhang Yiyi took out a lighter and lit it for him.

Qin Luo took a sip, and a cool minty flavor mixed with a faint fruity aroma filled his mouth; the taste was very mild.

"Thank you for the gift."

Zhang Yiyi looked at the gift box in Qin Luo's hand, her face filled with sincere gratitude, but a hint of bitterness was hidden deep in her smile.

"Thank you for spending so much money. And thank you for coming today... to keep Xiaoyu company."

You're welcome, congratulations.

Qin Luo handed her the gift box, his tone sincere.

"I wish you happiness."

"Thank you."

Zhang Yiyi took the gift box, hugged it to her chest, and tightened her fingers slightly, causing her knuckles to turn white.

She tried her best to maintain a smile.

"I will. Let's go back, don't keep everyone waiting."

After saying that, she pushed open the fire door and walked out, her back straight, transforming once again into the radiant, happy bride-to-be who was about to enter the hall of marriage.

Qin Luo watched her struggling back and took a thoughtful drag on his cigarette.

The refreshing coolness of the mint seemed unable to suppress the faint trace of sadness lingering in the air.

He could sense that Zhang Yiyi had something on her mind, and that it was related to this marriage.

But since it was just a chance encounter, and it was someone else's private matter, he had neither the right nor the interest to delve into it.

Everyone has their own choices and burdens to bear.

He stubbed out his cigarette and followed them outside.

Back in the private room, the atmosphere was still lively, and everyone had already started eating.

Qin Luo's gaze swept over the main seat and found Yang Xiaobin sitting there alone with a glass of red wine in front of him.

He kept his head down, silently drinking one glass after another, his brows furrowed. His face showed no joy at the prospect of becoming a groom; instead, it was filled with irritability and gloom, completely out of place with the festive atmosphere of the private room.

Qin Luo had just sat down in his seat when he heard a commotion from the person next to him.

Xiaoyu was surrounded by three boys at one corner of a round table.

These three boys looked like Zhang Yiyi and Xiaoyu's old classmates. They were a bit tipsy, their faces and necks were red, and they were holding their glasses, relentlessly urging Xiaoyu to drink.

"Xiaoyu! It's been so long since we last met, are you not going to give me face? We have to have a drink!"

"That's right! It's Sister Yiyi's big day, everyone's happy! Let's have a few drinks to celebrate!"

"Look, we've toasted you several times already, and you've been holding this glass of juice for ages. That's not very nice of you, is it?"

Xiaoyu held a glass of orange juice in her hand, her little face full of difficulty and resistance.

"I really can't drink... I have to drive later! And I have a very low alcohol tolerance, one glass and I'm out! How about I toast everyone with juice? The sentiment is the same!"

She tried to explain, her tone pleading.

One of the boys, with slicked-back hair and wearing a floral shirt, had clearly drunk the most. He waved his hand and said with a touch of self-important "generosity".

"Driving? Call a designated driver! Low alcohol tolerance? You can practice! How about this, Xiaoyu, we won't make things difficult for you! The three of us will each drink a third of a glass of red wine, and you'll drink three glasses of juice! Is that fair? Is that alright?"

The two boys next to him also joined in the commotion.

"Yes, yes, yes! Three glasses of juice! That's fair and reasonable!"

Three glasses of juice? The juice glasses in this private room are quite large! Three glasses would make your stomach bulge! And the other person only drank a third of a glass of red wine. How is that fair? They're clearly trying to get Xiaoyu to drink more because she's easy to talk to!
Xiaoyu frowned, her face tense.

"This...this is too much! I really..." "Oh, Xiaoyu! Don't spoil the fun!"

The slick-haired boy interrupted her, his tone slightly impatient.

"We're all old classmates, what's wrong with having some juice? You're not looking down on us guys, are you?"

His words carried a hint of moral blackmail and threat.

"I..." Xiaoyu was speechless, both angry and anxious, her eyes even turning red.

She didn't want to ruin her best friend's special day, but the other person's aggressive behavior made her very uncomfortable.

Just then, a cold and penetrating voice rang out, clearly drowning out the noise in the private room.

"She said she wouldn't drink, and she means it."

Qin Luo had arrived unnoticed, his tall figure exuding an invisible pressure, directly blocking Xiao Yu and the three boys.

He looked at the slick-haired boy with indifferent eyes, his tone calm but carrying an undeniable chill.

"And what do you mean by looking down on you?"

"You guys, all grown men, surrounded her, a girl, forcing her to drink things she didn't want to drink, ignoring her refusal like she was invisible, and then you turned around and accused her of looking down on you?"

"I don't think it's her looking down on you."

Qin Luo's gaze, like a cold blade, slowly swept over the three boys whose faces instantly turned ugly, each word striking clearly into their hearts.

"It's you guys who take yourselves too seriously."

"They have absolutely no self-awareness."

That statement was incredibly hurtful! It was like rubbing their faces into the ground! Normally, given the temperaments of these three, being publicly humiliated like that would have caused them to flip the table, curse, or even resort to violence.

But today is different!
This is the wedding banquet where Zhang Yiyi announced her wedding date! What is Zhang Yiyi's background? They all know very well that her family has some influence in Yanjing, and she herself has a bold and straightforward personality and values ​​loyalty very much.

Anyone who dares to cause trouble and disrupt her business today will face unimaginable consequences! Moreover, although Xiaoyu seems gentle and easy to talk to, her family background… is something they absolutely cannot afford to offend! And now, standing beside her is Qin Luo, a "boyfriend" with such a powerful aura who clearly doesn't want to be messed with…

A surge of frustration and fear of the consequences instantly extinguished all their anger.

The slick-haired boy's face flushed red and then turned pale, and in the end he could only awkwardly force a smile that looked worse than a grimace, trying to save face.

"Ha...haha...Brother Qin is right! We were all drunk and confused! We should punish ourselves! We should punish ourselves!"

As he spoke, he picked up the glass of red wine in front of him, tilted his head back, and drank it all in one gulp.

The other two quickly finished their drinks, awkwardly returned to their seats, and dared not look at Xiaoyu again.

A minor incident was thus abruptly quelled by Qin Luo's single sentence.

Qin Luo didn't expect the other party to be so cowardly, not daring to say a single tough word in response.

He didn't bother to look at them again and turned back to sit down next to Xiaoyu.

Xiaoyu immediately leaned closer to him, her big eyes sparkling with admiration and gratitude. She secretly gave Qin Luo a thumbs-up under the table and whispered something.

"That was so cool! Thank you! I was so annoyed with you just now!"

"Small things."

Qin Luo picked up his water glass and took a sip, his tone indifferent, as if he had merely shooed away a few flies.

"In the future, if you encounter someone who is persistent in urging you to drink, just say 'no' if you don't want to. Don't worry about saving face. Your feelings are the most important thing."

He had already noticed that Xiaoyu had a people-pleasing personality and didn't know how to refuse others. Just like back in Mindu, she would sometimes reluctantly agree to do things she didn't want to do because she was too embarrassed to refuse.

Xiaoyu nodded vigorously, keeping Qin Luo's words in mind.

Qin Luo thought of the scene he had just witnessed in the stairwell and turned to Xiao Yu in a low voice.

"By the way, I ran into Zhang Yiyi outside just now. She was smoking in the stairwell, and her eyes were red, like she had something on her mind."

"what?"

Xiaoyu's smile vanished instantly, replaced by deep worry.

“Yiyi, she…” She immediately stood up.

"I'm going out to check on her!"

Xiaoyu quickly walked out of the private room, looked around in the corridor, and seeing no one, went straight to the fire door of the stairwell that Qin Luo had mentioned earlier.

Pushing open the heavy door, a strong smell of tobacco hit me.

In the dim light, Zhang Yiyi was indeed still leaning against the cold wall.

Several thin cigarette butts were scattered at her feet, and half of one was still between her fingers, wisps of smoke rising and blurring her somewhat haggard profile.

Her eyes were visibly red and swollen, clearly from crying.

"Yiyi!"

Xiaoyu ran over with a pained expression and grabbed her arm.

"What's wrong? Did Yang Xiaobin bully you? Tell me!"

Her tone was urgent and full of protectiveness.

Zhang Yiyi was startled by Xiaoyu's sudden appearance and instinctively tried to hide the cigarette, but it was too late.

She hurriedly wiped the corner of her eye with the back of her hand and forced a relaxed smile.

"N-nothing! What could be wrong with me! It's just...it was just windy, and some sand got in my eyes!"

"Don't lie to me!"

Xiaoyu didn't believe it at all, her voice choked with sobs.

"We grew up together, do you think I can't tell if you're happy or not? Your eyes are swollen like walnuts! Tell me, what happened? Did that Yang Xiaobin treat you badly? Tell me, and I'll help you get revenge!"

Xiaoyu clenched her little fists.

"I'm really...it's okay, Xiaoyu."

Looking at her friend's concerned eyes, Zhang Yiyi felt a warmth in her heart, but also a deeper pang of sorrow.

She suppressed her turbulent emotions, took a deep breath, grabbed Xiaoyu's hand, and changed the subject.

"Hey, stop talking about me! Tell me about you! What's going on between you and that Qin Luo? Confess! The way he looks at you, he practically wants to eat you alive! Tell me! Has he already won you over?"

Her familiar gossipy smile returned to her face, but the bitterness deep in her eyes had not completely faded.

"Oh dear! Yiyi!"

Xiaoyu's face flushed red again, her previous worry instantly replaced by embarrassment.

"What do you mean by 'take it down'? That sounds awful! We...we're just friends!"

"normal friend?"

Zhang Yiyi chuckled and pulled Xiaoyu to sit down on the cold stair steps.

"Do you think I'm a three-year-old? Do you think you'd bring a regular friend here? Do you think a regular friend would stand up for you and shut those idiots up? Do you think a regular friend would give you a dirty look?"

She leaned closer to Xiaoyu, lowered her voice, and gave a mischievous smile.

"Tell me the truth, how far have things progressed between you two? Have you... um?"

She made a suggestive gesture.

Xiaoyu's face turned bright red, and she was so embarrassed that she kept hitting Zhang Yiyi.

"Zhang Yiyi! Are you trying to kill me?! There's nothing! There's absolutely nothing!"

"Nothing at all?"

Zhang Yiyi looked incredulous.

(End of this chapter)