Pursuing Her Best Friend after Confession Failed-Chapter 102 - 87 As a Web Novel Writer, Crafting a Story Is Reasonable, Right? (Please Subscribe)
Li Yuan’s footsteps suddenly halted. He gave Zhong Tingyue, whose smile was as radiant as a blooming flower, a serious look. He suddenly recalled a story Bai Weixi had mentioned years ago. Although the memory had blurred over time, he could guess how Zhong Tingyue’s previous life had ended.
Zhong Tingyue’s family situation seemed... special. It had the melodramatic feeling of an urban romance novel. As a web novelist from a future generation—even if he was just a struggling one—he had lived through the explosive era of online literature and seen every kind of plot imaginable. Crafting a melodramatic, urban campus romance was a piece of cake for him, presenting no difficulty whatsoever.
And reality is often more melodramatic than fiction, beyond anyone’s imagination.
Li Yuan’s mind spun rapidly. Based on the existing clues, it took him only ten seconds to conjure up a full-blown melodramatic love story.
I’m a Great Writer of web novels now. Weaving a love story shouldn’t be a problem, right?
Li Yuan gazed into Zhong Tingyue’s beautiful eyes. "Are you sure you want me to tell you?"
Zhong Tingyue felt a little shy under his stare, but she looked at him and said firmly, "Mhm, go ahead."
"Alright, I’m really going to say it then. You won’t get mad, will you?"
"Hmph. I’m not that petty."
Li Yuan put on a profound expression as he looked deeply at Zhong Tingyue and began with great emotion, "The story begins with a chance encounter during our freshman year of university... It has a beautiful beginning but a tragic ending. It’s probably all just a dream.
"In our past life, you and I were a deeply devoted couple, pledged to be together forever. We met by chance on campus, fell in love at first sight, and quietly developed feelings for each other...
"But later, when your family found out about us, they forced us apart because our social statuses were mismatched. Facing their strong opposition, we were separated. As an unaccomplished man with nothing to my name, I naturally failed to win your family’s approval...
"Even though we loved each other deeply, people are social creatures. A love without a family’s blessing is ultimately doomed to end in tragedy...
"I returned to my home in the north, while you were confined to Jiangnan. We were left to gaze at each other from across the river... From then on, it was impossible for us to meet again, and we became the most familiar of strangers.
"You were in the south of Nanshan, and I was in the north of Beihai... In the end, you married a man you didn’t love... As for me, I grew old in solitude, singing ’Nanshan South,’ the song I wrote for you, lost in memories of our past.
"Every love story starts out wonderfully, but the sweeter the beginning, the more devastating the end...
"Little Moon, that was our love story in a past life. I don’t know if it’s real or not. Maybe it was just a dream I had late one night... but it appeared in my mind so clearly.
"To find out if the story was true, and to see you again, I resolutely returned to the place where that dream began. And here, at this university, I truly did meet you again.
"One life was a dream, fantastical yet tragic. This life is reality, filled with trepidation. Every second of every day is an agony for me..."
Li Yuan finished speaking softly and let out a sigh, his expression one of profound affection, as if lost in remembrance.
Zhong Tingyue listened, mesmerized by Li Yuan’s narrative, a hint of tears welling up in her eyes. In that instant, she was bewildered. Could his story be true? Was it a sign pointing toward her destiny? Was her supposedly vibrant life fated from the moment of her birth to be so beautifully tragic, so poignantly bright? Was Li Yuan truly the man from my past life, the one I loved and ultimately lost? Although, as a highly educated university student, she didn’t believe in past or future lives, she found herself hesitating.
Zhong Tingyue watched Li Yuan quietly before suddenly speaking, "Li Yuan, that song in the story, ’Nanshan South’... did you really write it for me? I want to hear it..."
Li Yuan was startled. He looked at Zhong Tingyue, whose face was streaked with tears and held an infatuated expression, and felt a wave of uncertainty. Could the melodramatic love story I spun from a few fragments actually match her real situation? There’s no way it’s that much of a cliché, right?
Thinking it over, he realized it was entirely possible. Zhong Tingyue was from the Jiangnan region, a place rich in culture where, despite economic development, the influence of traditional clans was also very strong.
In his previous life, Zhong Tingyue always had the air of a cold, aloof goddess, never giving any man the time of day. Perhaps there was a real reason for it. After all, Xia University was full of so-called ’high-quality men.’ It was unreasonable for her to find none of them appealing.
"Yes," Li Yuan answered definitively. He looked at Zhong Tingyue and asked, "Do you really want to hear it?"
Zhong Tingyue replied with certainty, "I do!"
Li Yuan asked again, "You want me to sing it now? Won’t that be a bit mortifying?"
Zhong Tingyue stared intently at Li Yuan’s face and answered earnestly, "Just sing it for me. A song from such a heartrending love story must be beautiful, and also very sad, right?"
It is very sad. They say that if a dog hears the intro to ’Anhe Bridge,’ it has to stop for a smoke and shed a few tears before it can move on. Well, ’Nanshan South’ is the perfect expression of unattainable love, of being in love but fated to be apart...
Looking at Zhong Tingyue’s expectant face, Li Yuan couldn’t bring himself to refuse her. He hesitated before saying, "I’m tone-deaf and not a very good singer, so please don’t laugh at me."
"Your two roommates are here, too. If they heard me, I think I’d die of embarrassment."
Zhong Tingyue’s smile only widened. She took a step closer to Li Yuan, until they were almost touching.
