Pursuing Her Best Friend after Confession Failed-Chapter 103 - 87 Am I, a web novel author, justified in making up a story? (Please subscribe)_2
Her voice whispered by Li Yuan’s ear, and he could even feel her breath, as fragrant as an orchid.
"Now, at this distance, only I can hear."
Li Yuan’s heart fluttered. It was a sensation completely different from when he was with Xia Zhijin. Feeling Zhong Tingyue’s intense, expectant gaze, a single thought crossed his mind.
Every lie told requires countless others to maintain it.
Li Yuan felt a pang of regret. If I had known, I never would have concocted this story. How am I supposed to keep up this act?
With a beauty by his side and the die already cast, he had no choice but to go through with it. He steeled himself and cleared his throat. "Alright, I’ll sing then."
...
You are in the brilliant sun of the south, with heavy snow swirling,
I am in the cold night of the north, where all four seasons feel like spring.
If I can make it before the sky turns dark,
I want to forget the look in your eyes.
...
A dream too vast to finish in one lifetime,
To wake from that grand dream to a life of absurdity.
Nanshan South, a northern autumn’s sorrow...
A south wind’s murmur, a wine cup of sorrow...
A tombstone stands in Beihai...
When Li Yuan finished quietly humming "Nanshan South," he turned his head to look at Zhong Tingyue again.
By then, she was already in tears. Crystalline teardrops slid silently down her flawless, exquisitely jade-like cheeks.
With reddened eyes, Zhong Tingyue stared blankly and asked in a choked voice, "Li Yuan, this song, ’Nanshan South’... did you really write it for me in your past life?"
Li Yuan hesitated for a moment, offered a silent apology in his heart, and nodded.
Receiving Li Yuan’s affirmation, Zhong Tingyue’s face bloomed into a smile as radiant as a spring day.
"Thank you, Li Yuan. I really love this song. I also really love this story. Even though its ending is heartbreakingly beautiful, I will treasure it in my heart forever."
As Li Yuan met Zhong Tingyue’s gaze, he suddenly felt a stir in his heart. Her look seemed to contain a myriad of emotions.
"Little Moon, do you believe in past lives?"
"I didn’t before." Zhong Tingyue smiled radiantly, her eyes fixed on Li Yuan as she murmured softly, "But now, I do."
"Actually, the moment I saw you, I also felt a sense of familiarity, as if I had met you before but just couldn’t remember. At first, I thought perhaps we were former classmates, so I checked the records of everyone from my kindergarten to my high school graduation, including those who transferred or skipped grades. I searched and searched, but I never found a name like yours...
"Later, I thought you might have gotten my information from somewhere as a deliberate ploy to hit on me.
"But just now, after hearing your story, I finally understand. Perhaps something like fate truly does exist in this world...
"Thank you, Li Yuan. You’ve let me experience a profound emotional trial ahead of time."
As Zhong Tingyue spoke, she fell silent. Her mind was in turmoil, her thoughts a tangled mess.
The story Li Yuan told... it feels as if it could truly happen to me. A beautiful beginning, but the end will surely be tragic. From the moment I was born, I was fated to be a Little Moon trapped in a well. I was given the finest things in life, but that was just part of a transaction...
Li Yuan was unaware of the shift in her emotions. He wasn’t a steadfast atheist anymore. After all, the miracle of rebirth happened to me. Denying fate now would just be fooling myself.
Li Yuan met Zhong Tingyue’s gaze, his expression serious. "Little Moon, I used to be a firm atheist, but now I believe it too. Sometimes, fate is just that miraculous."
"Perhaps some great creator reversed yin and yang, overturned time and space, all just to set your reflection straight."
... 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞
Zhong Tingyue and Li Yuan walked side by side, their steps unconsciously slowing to a crawl.
Suddenly, she asked in a playful tone, "So, Senior Li Yuan, will you still pursue me in this life?"
Li Yuan stopped in his tracks, his mind reeling. He never expected Zhong Tingyue, the future aloof Goddess, to say something like that. He glanced at her, unable to figure out her angle or her intentions.
Is she kidding? Or is she just kidding?
"You’re a bit hard to pursue. I’m afraid the more I chase, the further apart we’ll become, repeating the same tragedy. So, I won’t pursue you in this life.
"Just like this, watching you from afar, quietly admiring you... no meeting, no disturbance, and thus, no sorrow. That’s quite nice in its own way."
Zhong Tingyue was taken aback. She had expected Li Yuan to go along with her and say, "Alright, then I’ll pursue you one more time." She never thought he would go off-script.
Zhong Tingyue bit her lip, her voice sounding softly in Li Yuan’s ear, "Senior, if you don’t even try, how can you be sure I’m hard to pursue?"
A slight smile touched Li Yuan’s lips. Is this Little Moon, who hasn’t yet transformed into the aloof Goddess, actually interested in me?
He grumbled internally. Damn, lying is exhausting. How many brain cells have I already killed just to cover up that first lie? Luckily, I write novels. I’ve seen all these kinds of tropes before; this won’t stump me.
Li Yuan continued to feign a profound demeanor. "Even if I did succeed, it would just be repeating the path of our past life. The loneliness of one person is better than the heartbreak of two. I think I’m better off growing old alone."
Zhong Tingyue froze, the hope hidden in her eyes instantly dimming.
She understood. Li Yuan was gently rejecting her.
「...」
Walking ahead, Xu Tingrou and Ding Shanshan were whispering to each other.
"Tingrou, I told you so, right? There’s definitely something going on between Tingyue and Li Yuan. Hmph, look how close they’re walking. They’re practically holding hands."
"Shanshan, I think I heard singing just now. It felt very sad. Was Li Yuan singing to Tingyue?"
"Singing? How come I didn’t hear anything?"
"I vaguely heard the lyrics, ’Nanshan South, North of Beihai...’ repeated a few times. Shanshan, I remember, didn’t Tingyue mention her hometown has ’Nan’ in its name?"
"I can’t remember. Hehe, but there’s definitely something fishy between them, and Tingyue refuses to tell the truth."
"Should we try to pry it out of them later when we’re eating?"
"Let’s not. If Tingyue doesn’t want to talk about it, it’s probably a little secret just between the two of them."
「...」
Modu was a city that never slept. The September nights were especially pleasant, and even around nine o’clock, the streets were still bustling with people.
The group of one man and three women—Li Yuan, Zhong Tingyue, Xu Tingrou, and Ding Shanshan—arrived at a barbecue restaurant next to the university.
This restaurant was an old, well-established place, and at this hour, there was still a steady stream of customers.
After ordering some beef and lamb skewers, squid, and other barbecued items, Li Yuan asked, "Beautiful ladies, would you like juice or milk?"
Ding Shanshan smiled, "I’ll have juice."
Xu Tingrou hesitated for a moment. "I’ll have some juice too."
"I’d like some beer."
The one who spoke was Zhong Tingyue. Li Yuan looked at her in surprise, his brow furrowing slightly. "Tingyue, are you sure you want beer?"
Xu Tingrou and Ding Shanshan were also puzzled. "Tingyue, you drink? We’re fine with juice."
Zhong Tingyue, seemingly lost in her own world, shook her head slightly and looked at Li Yuan. "Li Yuan, could you have a drink with me?"
Xu Tingrou and Ding Shanshan exchanged a glance, both sensing that something was wrong. Zhong Tingyue’s mood was definitely off. The flames of gossip within them suddenly began to blaze fiercely. They were dying to know what the relationship between Li Yuan and Zhong Tingyue was and what had happened between them. In the short, less-than-twenty-minute walk, Zhong Tingyue seemed to have become a completely different person.
Li Yuan looked at Zhong Tingyue. When a beautiful young woman of her caliber, a campus belle, shyly asked him to have a drink with her, what reason could he possibly have to refuse?
In any case, Li Yuan couldn’t think of one.
