Host! I told you to do a task! I didn't tell you to bbb.

Pei Yu'an had just returned to his dormitory when he took out his phone and started typing rapidly on the screen, not even bothering to put down his backpack.

[Sister Liu, I'm at the dorm! I just walked in!]

Zhao Lei, wearing headphones, shouted "Flash!" at the computer screen.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Pei Yu'an standing there and casually took off his headphones: "Hey! Third brother, where have you been all day?"

Pei Yu'an paused, his cheeks flushing slightly. He quickly stuffed his phone into his pocket and pretended to be calm as he tugged at the hem of his hoodie.

"I didn't go anywhere, I just stayed outside for a while."

He turned and walked toward the desk, his back ramrod straight as he spoke.

Zhao Lei raised an eyebrow, clearly not believing him, and rushed over to hook his arm around his shoulder.

"You stayed for a while? You look so distracted, and your face is all red. Tell me honestly, did you go see some girl?"

"Is the third child blushing?"

Liu Hai had just returned from fetching water when he heard this, and immediately came over, his eyes scanning Pei Yu'an's face.

"I knew you'd been acting strange lately, always leaving early and coming home late. You must be in a relationship!"

Pei Yu'an was surrounded and questioned by the two men, his ears turning so red they were almost bleeding. He hurriedly pushed their hands away.

"Don't talk nonsense, I just went to the library to do practice problems."

He grabbed the water glass on the table and gulped down several mouthfuls, trying to hide his panic.

"Can doing practice problems make your eyes sparkle and your lips curl into a wide smile?"

Lee Jun-hee had just finished showering and came over while drying his hair, his eyes full of mockery.

"I think you've gotten too obsessed with 'practice problems,' haven't you? Tell me honestly, who is this person? Do we know each other?"

Pei Yu'an was speechless, grabbed his change of clothes and rushed to the bathroom.

He left behind the words "You're overthinking it," and as he closed the door, he could still hear the boisterous laughter coming from inside the dormitory.

He leaned against the cold bathroom door, took out his phone, and the screen still showed his chat with Liu Yunshu.

She replied with "Okay," followed by a cat rolling around emoji.

The boy's lips curled into an uncontrollable smile. "Sister Liu, do you have a Weibo account?"

Yes, Guagua is a variant of Ergua, but it's rarely used.

Pei Yu'an stared at the string of nicknames, his fingertips flying across the search box, and an avatar instantly popped up on the screen.

It's a woman's profile picture, as beautiful as Sister Liu, no! Not as beautiful as Sister Liu!

Profile picture: ⚆_⚆?

He flipped through them one by one, like unwrapping a candy he had been hiding for a long time.

Just as I was rummaging through the pages, there was a knock at the door. "Third brother, what's up? Did you fall into the toilet?"

"Coming, coming!" Pei Yu'an quickly washed up and opened the door to go out.

Zhao Lei clutched his backside and darted inside. "Luckily, my sphincter muscles are still intact, otherwise the city gate would be in grave danger!"

Pei Yu'an watched Zhao Lei's hurried departure and shook his head helplessly.

Three days later, Pei Yu'an planned to go to Liu Yunshu's house early in the morning.

Early in the morning, Liu Yunshu sent a WeChat message saying that Chen Yu's mother had arrived and she had gone to Chen Yu's place.

Pei Yu'an's fingers tightened around the phone, the edge of the screen digging into his knuckles until they turned white.

He hovered his finger over the input box, deleting and revising it several times.

Finally, she only sent one message: "Sister Liu, please be careful. Let me know if anything happens."

After sending it, I felt it wasn't enough, so I added an emoji with a shield, like a little beast always ready to protect its master.

Before Liu Yunshu could reply, Ye Yuwei called first.

He answered the phone, his voice still slightly tense: "Feed? Mom."

"Xiao An, come have dinner with me today." Ye Yuwei's voice came through the receiver, with her usual tone.

Pei Yu'an frowned, still clutching his phone between his fingers.

With her mind filled with images of Liu Yunshu having to deal with Chen Yu's mother, her tone unconsciously became somewhat perfunctory: "Mom, not today, I have something to do."

"What could possibly happen on the weekend? Hurry up! I'll wait for you at the school gate!" He then hung up the phone.

Pei Yu'an stared at the darkened screen, grabbed a handful of hair in frustration, and finally picked up his coat and resignedly walked outside.

When they arrived at the school gate, Ye Yuwei was already waiting there. When she saw Pei Yu'an come out, she quickly stepped forward and took his arm.

"Xiao An, we haven't eaten together recently. Mom will have dinner with you today. Let's go."

As she spoke, she pulled his arm and led him into the taxi.

The air conditioning in the taxi was on full blast, but Pei Yu'an still felt stuffy all over.

My fingertips unconsciously traced the edge of the phone case, the screen flashing on and off.

Liu Yunshu still hasn't replied to the message.

Ye Yuwei sat beside her and began to speak with great interest:

"I'll take you to try that private kitchen I told you about last time. Their squirrel-shaped mandarin fish is especially authentic."

Ye Yuwei continued talking to herself, completely unaware of Pei Yu'an's absent-mindedness; perhaps she didn't care.

The taxi came to a steady stop in front of the private restaurant, and the carved wooden door opened to reveal a sandalwood fragrance.

Ye Yuwei seemed to be searching for something, her gaze sweeping across the restaurant lobby until she saw...

"Mr. Chen! Oh, what a coincidence that you're dining here too!"

Her voice suddenly rose several octaves, filled with carefully rehearsed surprise and enthusiasm.

As she spoke, she tightly gripped Pei Yu'an's arm and strode quickly toward the table.

Pei Yu'an paused, followed his mother's gaze, and his heart clenched. Sitting in front of him was Liu Yunshu.

As if by telepathy, Liu Yunshu also looked up at that very moment.

Their eyes collided suddenly in mid-air.

Her hand holding the chopsticks paused almost imperceptibly, and a hint of surprise flashed in her eyes.

Then she returned to her usual calm, only lightly brushing the edge of the tablecloth with her fingertips.

It was the peak lunch hour on the weekend, and the restaurant was a bit noisy.

Ye Yuwei put on a perfectly timed, slightly embarrassed smile and said:

"Mr. Chen, what a coincidence! We came here specifically to try this place, and we never expected to run into you. How about... we join you at a table? It'll make it more lively, you don't mind, do you?"

As she spoke, she looked at Chen Yu with a flattering gaze.

At this moment, Chen Yu wished he could kick her out. His fists, which were resting on his knees, clenched and unclenched repeatedly.

Chen's mother looked at Ye Yuwei, who had come uninvited, with a puzzled expression. A clear displeasure flashed in her eyes. She moved her lips, about to politely refuse.

Liu Yunshu, who was standing to the side, spoke up, "I don't mind, this table is big enough, there's enough room for everyone."

Her voice was gentle, without a trace of emotion.

Chen Yu subtly glared at Ye Yuwei, warning her not to speak carelessly.

Ye Yuwei pursed her lips, which meant she had received the signal.

Her eyes darted around quickly, and her hands were already making a move.

She pressed Pei Yu'an down to sit directly opposite Liu Yunshu, and then plopped down opposite Chen Yu.

Chen's mother felt it was too cramped for the three of them to sit in a row, so she asked the waiter to add a chair and sat on the outside side. She was very unhappy and muttered to herself:

That Liu Yunshu, what kind of good person is she pretending to be! She made me sit here in the aisle!

And this woman who suddenly appeared out of nowhere, she has no sense of propriety at all. What kind of guest would make the host sit outside!

As soon as Ye Yuwei saw Chen's mother sitting on the outside, she immediately picked up the kettle on the table.

He poured her a glass of warm water with great care, his face full of ingratiating smiles.

"Aunt Chen, please have some water, it's warm, freshly made, it'll be perfect for soothing your throat."

After speaking, she turned her gaze to Liu Yunshu, her eyes lingering on Liu's delicate face.

A feeling of jealousy and sourness welled up in my heart instantly.

This face is breathtakingly beautiful!

But soon, another kind of malicious smugness took the lead:

What good is beauty if she can't hold onto her own man's heart?

"This must be Mr. Chen's wife, right? She's really beautiful. No wonder Mr. Chen talks about you every day."

"Oh?" Liu Yunshu lazily rested her chin on one hand, her eyes darting around as she glanced sideways at Chen Yu beside her.

The last syllable rose slightly, carrying a hint of uncertainty, "What does A-Yu keep saying about me every day?"

Under the table, feet clad in exquisite high heels gently and almost imperceptibly caressed Pei Yu'an's calves with a soothing, tentative rhythm.

Chen Yu's heart fluttered at her gaze, and his Adam's apple bobbed involuntarily.

Almost instinctively, he reached out and tightly wrapped his arms around Liu Yunshu's waist, his tone deliberately conveying a deep intimacy:

"What else could I possibly talk about? Of course, I'd talk about what my dear wife does every day, and how I wish I could keep her in my pocket every second."

As soon as he finished speaking, the tenderness on Chen Yu's face froze instantly, turning into an ugly expression.

It turned out that Ye Yuwei was watching the couple's intimate interaction, oblivious to everyone else.

A surge of anger mixed with intense jealousy rose within her, and she secretly stretched out her foot under the table, boldly and provocatively rubbing the tip of her shoe against his calf.

Chen Yu's body tensed instantly, his heart filled with shock and anger: This crazy woman! What does she want to do?!

Pei Yu'an was shocked the moment he saw Chen Yu, because this man was his mother's cheating partner!

Pei Yu'an felt his blood rush to his head, and the laughter of Ye Yuwei and the chatter of Chen's mother all turned into buzzing noise.

At that moment, he felt someone gently brush against his calf. The touch was soft yet deliberately probing, like a feather scratching a taut nerve.

Pei Yu'an snapped back to reality, his gaze fixed on Liu Yunshu's drooping eyelashes.

Her fingertips were still casually fiddling with the tablecloth, a perfectly measured smile on her face, as if the little fuss under the table had nothing to do with her.

It's Sister Liu!

Pei Yu'an's dim eyes seemed to be ignited instantly, bursting out with an astonishingly bright light.

She was comforting me! This realization almost made him ecstatic.

Yes! If... if Chen Yu hadn't cheated on his mother.

How could there possibly be a possibility between him and Sister Liu?

This absurd reality has now become the only bond connecting them!

Thinking this, a complex and indescribable emotion welled up in his heart.

Without realizing it, and even with a touch of gratitude, she glanced up at Chen Yu, who was currently in a "romantic" moment, and her mother, who was still trying to put on a "chance encounter" act.

Chen Yu felt a chill run down his spine from that gaze, and his fingers unconsciously tightened, pinching Liu Yunshu's side until it hurt slightly.

She subtly shifted her body to avoid his touch.

At this moment, Chen's mother said she was going to the toilet and got up to walk over there.

Just as Chen's mother got up to leave, Liu Yunshu also got up to say she was going to the restroom. Before leaving, she glanced at Pei Yu'an.