Why are all the heroines falling for me, the villain?

She muttered to herself with a hint of disappointment, then asked curiously, "Li Zhu, have you ever seen the sea? Have you ever heard the sound of a zither?"

"I've seen the sea, um... it's blue, the sea is very big, there's so much water, the beach is full of people wearing very little clothing sunbathing, you can build sandcastles, and you can collect lots of seashells and conches..." He stammered as he spoke to the girl's expectant and longing gaze, gesturing wildly with his hands.

Li Zhu seemed to have found a topic to talk about with the girl, but his limited vocabulary couldn't find any words to describe the vast and boundless scene where the sea and sky met. He could only clumsily use his outstretched hands to depict the boundless sea and the surging waves.

"The blue color sounds like a super big sapphire, and you can build sandcastles on the beach, collect countless seashells and conches... Ah, everything sounds so interesting, I really want to go to the beach!"

Haiyin swung her legs and counted the fun things one by one with her little fingers. At this moment, Xiaolizhu did not understand why the sun-drenched, salty sea was worth the girl's longing for. He just obediently answered her questions.

"Li Zhu, besides seeing the sea, have you ever heard the sound of a zither?"

Haiyin is like a curious child, so it's no wonder she asks so many questions. Usually, apart from the teachers and the dean, no other children are willing to talk to her, so when she meets Lizhu, she becomes a little more talkative.

“My dad took me to see other people play the piano… uh, do you know what a piano is?” Li Zhu couldn’t explain it clearly. He didn’t know how to describe those adults in black clothes playing a big piano.

"I know, I know! I saw it in a comic book. It looked like a big cabinet lying horizontally, with some black and white alternating keys in front that you could play." Haiyin suddenly became very excited, gesturing wildly.

“But Dad only took me there once. I overheard Mom scolding him, saying that Dad was wasting so much money on something as trivial as a noise.”

Li Zhu recalled that when her father was scolded by her mother, he didn't talk back and always had a gentle smile on his face. Later, her mother and father dressed up nicely and went there again, but they never came back.

"What's wrong?" Haiyin stroked his head and comforted him.

Li Zhu suddenly showed a very sad expression, which bothered her.

"Don't be sad. When I have money in the future, I'll take you to the beach to collect seashells and take you to listen to the most expensive piano..." Haiyin's tone was like that of someone coaxing a homeless puppy.

……

From then on, the two became good friends and were inseparable. With Haiyin by his side, he was no longer bullied. They didn't care about the ridicule from others, as if the two of them together had ostracized the whole world.

Later, because Haiyin's surgery fees were not raised in time, she missed the best time for treatment. Her health deteriorated over time, and even going to school became a problem. She could only stay in the orphanage, watching the old locust tree at the gate lose its leaves. Perhaps when all the leaves fell, she would be gone.

Li Zhu refused adoption several times, choosing instead to stay with Hai Yin, who had no one to adopt her. He went to school while keeping her company.

Haiyin was filled with happiness, thinking that Lizhu would stay with her like this until the very end of her life.

……

It wasn't until Li Zhu went to high school that this happened.

He brought a very beautiful woman back to see her, saying she was his girlfriend from high school.

Despite it being a long-awaited reunion, Haiyin's joy was shattered. She stood there blankly, staring at the two holding hands, her mind blank, unable to hear anything Lizhu was saying.

At that moment, her heart felt as if it were being submerged in a deep ocean, so painful that she wanted to scream, but found that the figure that had always been closest to her had disappeared.

"I still don't understand why God would arrange for two people who were destined to be apart to meet?"

For an ordinary person, the story would end here, but this stubborn girl was like a blood-stained warrior. Even if she had to crawl, she would crawl to the side of her beloved before she died.

Through self-study, she successfully transferred to Lizhu's class in her second year of high school.

Even though she had a girlfriend, she still expressed strong love for Li Zhu.

During the nearly two months of relentless bombardment, many things happened between the three of them. Haiyin was like a dazzling firework that streaked across Lizhu's life.

One winter night, wrapped in a red scarf, she stood downstairs at Li Zhu's house, holding a megaphone and shouting breathlessly, "Li Zhu, come down quickly, I have something to tell you, it's very, very important."

"Haine? Why aren't you asleep at this hour? You'll disturb the neighbors. Besides, Kui said that if I say even one more word to you, she'll kiss me twice."

Sleepy-eyed Li Zhu poked his head out of the window. The chill outside made him shrink his neck and shiver slightly, wrapped in a blanket. He looked at Hai Yin under the streetlight and replied.

"Come down quickly, I really have something very important to tell you." She stared blankly at Li Zhu by the window. The voice coming from the loudspeaker was intermittent, sounding like there was a malfunction and the sound was not picking up well.

"Li Zhu, come down quickly, come down and listen to me..."

For some reason, there was a hint of pleading in the girl's voice, something that was the least likely thing to happen to this stubborn girl.

"I am very important..."

As she spoke, she suddenly staggered and fell backward onto the snow, her face deathly pale. She placed her hand on her chest, her beautiful features contorted in pain.

Just like many years ago, when that child pushed her to the ground, but this time she could never get up again.

In an instant, Li Zhu was wide awake. Ignoring the blanket covering her, she rushed downstairs in her short-sleeved shirt and shorts.

Li Zhu knelt on the snow and hurriedly reached out to place his hand on her neck; her pulse was almost imperceptible.

"Hey, Haiyin, wake up! Wake up!" He shouted, holding Haiyin, whose face was completely pale. His expression was panicked, as helpless as when he lost his parents many years ago.

"Is anyone there? Come out and save him!" Li Zhu cried out, but the cold winter night seemed to swallow all sound, and no one answered him.

At this moment, Haiyin in his arms seemed to have just woken up. She frowned her beautiful brows and even opened her eyes with some difficulty.

Li Zhu gently brushed the snow off her face. She seemed to feel the warmth from her fingertips. Her eyelashes trembled slightly, and with her eyes half-closed, she finally saw the person she most wanted to see at that moment.

But why did Li Zhu look so sad? She hadn't seen him so upset in a long time, and she had to comfort him properly.

"Don't cry. When I have money, I'll take you to see the sea and listen to the zither..."

I'm sorry, she was just too tired, too tired to finish her last sentence.

And then he fell asleep forever.

……

Chapter 105 Playing Hard to Get

That winter night was exceptionally cold.

It wasn't the soft, white snow, nor the reddened knees, nor the stiffened knuckles, but rather a heart caught off guard by the howling wind of a winter night.

As a result, the blood flowing through my body seemed to solidify, and the biting cold of that entire winter night chilled me to the bone.

After that, when Li Zhu looked up at the sky, she had another thought: a bright star had appeared in some corner of the sky.

……

Three days have passed in the blink of an eye.

Without the sound of the koto, without the beautiful tree, Rin-chan's daily life was dull—no, it was much warmer.

Yes, after that love letter, Hinata Kotone never came to see Riku again, and even when they met, they acted like strangers.

It's like the two bumped into each other by accident, and then Qin Yin brushed past them without even glancing at them.

'Something's not right. What is Hyuga Kotone thinking? What was that declaration all about?'

Li Zhu felt like a prisoner awaiting execution. The more calmly the zither played, the more ominous he felt, and the more wild thoughts raced through his mind.

Unbeknownst to him, this was also the first tactic in Qin Yin's love strategy: feigning indifference to lure the enemy into a trap.

This is a "love manual" that Hyuga Miki, Kotone's mother and the current head of the Hyuga family, has treasured since her student days. Kotone regards it as a sacred book.

The first page reads: Remember, girls must downplay their feelings for him and not dwell on how much they like him.

Before you succeed, treat him as someone you like, someone you'd like to be friends with.

If you can't do it right away, then ignore him for now. You can think about his bad points. He's just an ordinary person, after all. This way, you can temporarily weaken your strong feelings for him, and your behavior when you're around him will be much better.

Hinata Kotone nodded as she looked at the notes above, deeply agreeing. She then closed the notebook and began planning the location and timing for their next "chance encounter" in another notebook of her own.

And so, the story of these three days unfolded.

Because the rooftop was too dangerous to go to, Li Zhu changed the place where she ate rice to a more lively location.

At noon, Li Zhu brought her lunch to the school cafeteria, but by sheer coincidence, there was only one empty table left.

What else could he do? Amidst the astonished gazes around him, Li Zhu placed a double-layered blue and white lunchbox on the table, pulled out a chair, and swaggered down to sit down.

The tables in the cafeteria are not very big, only big enough for two people. The tabletops are oval-shaped, with one seat in front and one behind.

Just as he was about to open his lunchbox, someone walked towards him, also placing a four-tiered lunchbox that looked incredibly high-end. Someone, like Li Zhu, had brought a lunchbox to eat at the school cafeteria.

Li Zhu was overjoyed. It turned out that he was a brother with the same ideals. He was not alone on his path!

He never expected that someone else would be like him, daring to bring their own lunch to the cafeteria despite the surprised looks from others.

Just as I was about to greet this gentleman, I glanced over and saw that the bento box opposite me was engraved with exquisite patterns, with gold lace and red box decorations, exuding an air of luxury!

Compared to Li Zhu's box, it's like a queen dressed in luxurious attire; you know there's definitely some extremely expensive delicacy inside even before you open it.

Looking up, you see the owner has a pair of distinctive phoenix eyes, a beauty mark at the corner of her eye, and a cool and beautiful face. Encountering Qinyin in the cafeteria is like seeing a pure white tulip among the clusters of French roses in the school's flowerbed—a pleasant surprise.

"Huh?" Li Zhu paused for a moment as she opened the box, then looked at Qin Yin as she pulled out a chair and sat down.

"What's going on? The guy who brought his own lunch to the cafeteria has become a disciplinary committee member?!"

At this moment, the students who were eating quietly began to whisper and murmur among themselves.

Having received an aristocratic education, they were not supposed to talk or make any obvious noises while eating, but what was happening before their eyes was simply too intriguing.

The young lady of the Hyuga family is having lunch with a man who had previously rejected her. What strange roles do they play in this complicated relationship?

I longed to get closer and listen, to see them exchanging glances up close, but their inherent upbringing and the distance between the tables prevented them from doing so.

"..." Faced with Li Zhu's question, she silently opened her lunchbox without giving any response.

In comparison, Qin Yin was much calmer than Li Zhu. She only glanced at him once, and then there was no further interaction. She started eating her lunch on her own, treating the person sitting opposite her as if he were a human-shaped air.

Seeing this, Li Zhu also carefully began to open her own bento box.

Qin Yin's lunchbox was filled with expensive lobster, fine Wagyu beef, sushi that looked appetizing but whose names she didn't know, tempura... The dishes were neatly arranged, fragrant, and delicious, making one want to devour them.

Li Zhu's lunchbox only contained fried pork slices prepared by her mother, a hard-boiled egg cut in half, some green vegetables and corn kernels. Perhaps because the lunchbox wasn't high-end enough, the lunchbox she made in the morning was already quite cold.

Following the scent, Li Zhu secretly glanced at it before reluctantly looking away.

He thought to himself, "Hmph, it's not like I haven't eaten those kinds of things before. I'm tired of all the ones Yuko brought (slurp)."

He took a bite of the fried meat with resentment, and couldn't help but shout in his heart, "Ah, it's the taste of mom! The taste of childhood!"

Ah, that makes me feel much better.

'Thank you, Mother. Li Zhu has been spying on me! Several times already! This method seems to be working!'

Despite Li Zhu's prying eyes, Qin Yin remained outwardly calm, but her heart was already surging with excitement. She even picked up shrimp meat and put it to her mouth more frequently. This scene made Li Zhu's mouth water and she was very envious.

The poor girl probably misunderstood something; she didn't know that what Li Zhu was looking at was the food in her bento box. Her food was not as attractive as that fragrant, perfectly colored Wagyu beef.

After all, the child was used to being hungry. From his past life to the present, he hadn't eaten much good food. It's a truly sad story.

If Qin Yin were to immediately give the leftover scraps to Li Zhu, his affection for Qin Yin might actually increase dramatically.

[You fed Li Zhu Boston lobster meat, as well as Wagyu beef, abalone, and other top-quality delicacies. His favorability towards you has increased by 3!]

It's something like this, like playing some kind of game.

If it works out, wouldn't that mean you've won a man's heart by winning his stomach?

Li Zhu would steal glances from time to time, but Qin Yin would pretend not to notice. Their back-and-forth was all subtle and unspoken, yet the silent dining table seemed to be the stage for an impending battle.

Those around them stared in disbelief, wondering why these two, who were exchanging glances, weren't actually talking. They were even sitting together eating lunch, so were they just putting on a show?

"No wonder this couple had a divorce dispute during the sports festival."

"I guess they've lost their passion and love for each other; their love has such a short shelf life."

???

What the hell is this divorce? Wasn't it a rejection of a confession? How come this story is getting more and more outrageous?

If Li Zhu could hear what they were saying, she would definitely give them a proper lesson on how the news department was on the verge of being disbanded because of spreading rumors.

And so, the lunch ended in a silent, tentative exchange between them.

Chapter 106 Little Genius Li Zhu

School in the afternoon.

"Strange, I haven't seen that crazy woman lately. Could it be that she saw how badly I get along with Hinata Kotone and finally realized that I'm no threat to her?"

Li Zhu tentatively walked out of the classroom, passing through the courtyard and the fountain square, but did not find any suspicious figures of Fujiwara Miki.

"!"

Just as she was about to walk out of the school gate, two girls walked towards her. Li Zhu stood there expressionless, a slight nervousness rising in her heart.

She thought to herself, "It's Hinata Kotone and Fujiwara Miki. Why are they walking together?"

This is bad. One is a crazy woman who misunderstands me, and the other is a stubborn girl who recently launched an attack on me. Neither of them is easy to mess with.

"Could it be that they came here specifically to block my way home?" Li Zhu was a little suspicious. After all, she had recently encountered a stalker and some threats, so she was naturally more cautious about what she was thinking.

To be honest, most ordinary people will never encounter something like that in their lifetime, but he, an ordinary person, unwittingly stumbled into an unknown vortex, unable to control his own destiny, suffering terribly...

As the two drew closer, Li Zhu had no choice but to suppress her curiosity and nervousness, squinting slightly as she observed the two chatting and laughing. They naturally noticed Li Zhu as well, seemingly casting him a smiling glance.