Pursuing Her Best Friend after Confession Failed-Chapter 105 - 88: Little Moon’s Fluttering Heart, Goddess’s Request (Subscribe Please)_2
Even though Xia Zhijin deliberately tried to be inconspicuous, many of the boys had already discovered her divine beauty. It is truly difficult to hide a person’s beauty. This was especially true for Xia Zhijin, who, thanks to Li Yuan, had caught the attention of the other students in Computer Science Class One. Everyone, regardless of gender, wanted to see what the girl who had Li Yuan so utterly smitten—to the point of spending a fortune on her—actually looked like.
However, Li Yuan glanced again at Zhong Tingyue, secretly comparing them. Zhong Tingyue and Xia Zhijin have entirely different temperaments. Although Zhong Tingyue hasn’t yet transformed into the cold and aloof Goddess, the pride in her very bones makes her seem like a rose—beautiful, but self-admiring and unapproachable. But what does that have to do with me? I already have Xia Zhijin, this treasure of a girl.
As the group was chatting, the waiter brought over the barbecue Li Yuan had ordered.
Li Yuan poured a glass of beer for the slightly downcast Zhong Tingyue.
Raising his own glass, he looked at Zhong Tingyue, Xu Tingrou, and Ding Shanshan with a smile. "To the three beautiful ladies, our meeting is fate. Let’s drink together. May our university years be exciting and unforgettable."
"Come on, cheers! I hope I can find a sweet romance in university," Ding Shanshan said, clinking her glass of orange juice with Li Yuan’s.
Xu Tingrou smiled. "I hope to make memories in university that will be worth cherishing for a lifetime."
Zhong Tingyue simply picked up her beer, glanced at Li Yuan without a word, closed her eyes, and took a large gulp from the glass.
COUGH, COUGH, COUGH! It was Zhong Tingyue’s first time drinking beer, and she choked a little.
But she just frowned, mustered her courage, and, as if drinking poison, followed Li Yuan’s lead and forced down the entire glass of beer.
Seeing Zhong Tingyue drink so intensely, Ding Shanshan quickly patted her on the back. "Tingyue," she said with a frown, "if beer tastes that bad, don’t drink it. Have some juice instead."
Zhong Tingyue just shook her head silently. Before long, a blush crept onto her cheeks.
It was the first time Xu Tingrou had seen Zhong Tingyue act like this, and it felt strange, a sense of dissonance. Zhong Tingyue was incredibly, almost unrealistically, beautiful. During military training, countless boys had tried to pursue her—more than you could count on two hands—including Li Yuan’s own handsome roommate. Zhong Tingyue had always been cold and dismissive toward other boys, so why was she showing this soft, girlish side specifically to Li Yuan? And even taking the initiative to drink?
As for how outstanding Li Yuan is, I haven’t really seen it. His looks, height, and family background seem decent enough. But this is Xia University, one of Modu’s finest. What kind of high-quality men doesn’t it have? There’s definitely a story here. Xu Tingrou’s gaze shifted back and forth between Li Yuan and Zhong Tingyue, trying to figure something out.
As they ate their barbecue, the conversation livened up. Zhong Tingyue, meanwhile, kept drinking one glass after another. Can she really hold her liquor?
When Xu Tingrou saw Li Yuan about to open another bottle, she quickly intervened, "Tingyue, you’ve already had a whole bottle. Don’t drink any more."
She then turned to Li Yuan. "Li Yuan, you’re not really trying to get Tingyue drunk, are you?"
Zhong Tingyue didn’t answer. Instead, tears suddenly welled up in her red-rimmed eyes and began to stream down her face.
Seeing this, Ding Shanshan quickly asked, "Hey, Tingyue, why are you crying? If something’s wrong, you can tell us."
Xu Tingrou was also stunned. She started crying from drinking? It seems Zhong Tingyue really is upset.
"Tingyue, if you’re truly sad about something, just cry it all out. Shanshan and I are right here with you."
"That’s right, Tingyue, don’t cry. You can tell us anything. Did Li Yuan bully you?"
Li Yuan’s hand, holding his beer, trembled as he glanced at Ding Shanshan. Are her words making me out to be some kind of jerk? Wait, this actually is because of me, isn’t it? How should I explain this? A tragedy caused by a web novel author inventing a story on the spot? 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮
Li Yuan opened his mouth but didn’t know how to explain. It seems I’ve unintentionally hurt a very special girl’s heart. Could the story I made up today be the direct cause of Zhong Tingyue’s rapid transformation into the distant Goddess?
Zhong Tingyue suddenly stopped her tears. Her cheeks flushed and slightly tipsy, she looked at the silent Li Yuan and once again gathered her courage. "Li Yuan, if that Little Moon trapped in the well tried with all her might to escape, will... will you help her?"
After speaking, Zhong Tingyue stared expectantly at Li Yuan, awaiting his response.
Ding Shanshan and Xu Tingrou also sensed something was wrong. Zhong Tingyue’s emotional turmoil really did seem to be caused by Li Yuan.
Li Yuan understood the hidden meaning in her words. The Little Moon in the well was her, and the reason she was trapped was likely similar to what he had guessed. It was incredibly cliché, but such situations were all too real.
Feeling guilty, Li Yuan couldn’t bear to shatter her hope. He met Zhong Tingyue’s gaze and nodded solemnly. "I promise you. Though I might not be able to do it right now, I believe that one day in the future, I will definitely be able to rescue that poor Little Moon and help her break free from all her shackles and restraints."
In an instant, Zhong Tingyue’s face bloomed into a radiant smile. Her beautiful eyes were fixed on Li Yuan, like a clear sky after a storm, welcoming a brilliant dawn.
"Li Yuan, thank you."
Ding Shanshan was completely lost. "Tingyue, Li Yuan, why do I feel like you two are speaking in riddles?"
Xu Tingrou chimed in, "What do you mean ’feel like’? They *are* sharing secrets. We’re just the outsiders here."
Realization dawned on Ding Shanshan. She winked at Zhong Tingyue. "Oh, oh, oh! Just like on the way here, right?"
Zhong Tingyue glanced at Li Yuan with a shy expression. This was indeed a secret that belonged only to the two of them.
She looked at Li Yuan, who was drinking by himself, and her cheeks reddened slightly. Extending her snow-white hand, she said, "Senior, another bottle of beer, please."
Li Yuan said with surprise, "Tingyue, you’ve already had one bottle. Are you sure you want to keep drinking?"
Zhong Tingyue’s smile was radiant. "Mhm. Would you be willing to have another drink with me, Senior?"
"Alright then." Li Yuan quickly opened another bottle and poured her a glass.
Ding Shanshan nudged Xu Tingrou’s arm and whispered in her ear, "Tingrou, look. Do you think Tingyue is trying to get drunk on purpose?"
Xu Tingrou answered hesitantly, "It kind of looks like it. We’ll let her have one more bottle, at most. We absolutely can’t let her drink any more than that."
This late-night supper passed without incident. There was no cliché scenario of other guys coming over to ask for Zhong Tingyue’s number, sparking a conflict, only to be put in their place by Li Yuan. This was Daxia University, one of Modu’s four prestigious 985 universities. The security in the surrounding area was excellent, as it was under close watch.
On the way back to the dormitory, Ding Shanshan and Xu Tingrou supported the slightly tipsy Zhong Tingyue, one on each side.
Ding Shanshan smacked her lips in satisfaction. "Li Yuan, thanks for the late-night meal. We’ll forgive you for lying last time."
Li Yuan drank merrily. Drinking with girls was nice, but it wasn’t as satisfying as drinking with my buddies.
"Tingyue has had a bit too much. You two take her back to the dorm. She’ll sleep it off and everything will be fine in the morning."
Xu Tingrou steadied Zhong Tingyue. "Li Yuan, Tingyue is in good hands with me and Shanshan, don’t you worry."
"Shanshan, Tingrou, I’m not that drunk. Really, I’m fine."
Zhong Tingyue’s pretty face was flushed from both shyness and the alcohol.
She had finished two whole bottles of beer. Her beautiful eyes turned to Li Yuan, and she suddenly spoke again. "Li Yuan, can you walk with me for a bit? Alone?"
Li Yuan looked at Zhong Tingyue, unable to figure out what she was up to. It’s already half-past ten at night, and she wants me to go for a walk with her?
Beside her, Ding Shanshan and Xu Tingrou were also baffled. It was so late, and they didn’t feel safe letting Zhong Tingyue go out alone, especially with a boy like Li Yuan. With Zhong Tingyue looking so bashful and tempting, if Li Yuan’s baser instincts took over, wouldn’t she be devoured whole, without a single bone left behind?
