Don’t let her talk about studying fool you. Deep down, she was thinking that since Liang Sheng came from such a wealthy family, the guy she was with had to be some drop-dead gorgeous catch. She really wanted to catch a glimpse of him.
Liang Sheng and Ni Sihan were huddled around the coffee table in the living room. Ni Sihan flipped open her workbook and pointed to a problem. “Liang Sheng, this one’s so tough~ Could you teach me? I heard you’re super good at studying!”
Liang Sheng took the workbook Ni Sihan handed over and took a close look. Oh man, this wasn’t something kids their age could even tackle! This was the kind of thing professional mathematicians wrestled with. How was she supposed to know it? Talk about putting her on the spot!
“Um, Sihan,” Liang Sheng scratched her head, “we don’t need to worry about this one. It won’t be on any test—not even the Gaokao. It’s totally normal not to know it~”
But Ni Sihan wouldn’t let it go. “Liang Sheng~ I just wanna know~ Could you, maybe ask someone else for me?”
Liang Sheng really wanted to say no. She rolled her eyes dramatically.
“I don’t know anyone who could handle this,” Liang Sheng said, pulling out her phone. “Tell you what, I’ll add you to the class group chat. You can ask Teacher Dong Yue about it—she’s probably the only one who would know.”
“Yay~” Ni Sihan beamed. She’d just added another target for her little scheme to her Koukou contacts.
After Liang Sheng pulled Ni Sihan into the group, the girl immediately friended Teacher Dong Yue on Koukou.
“Ding-dong~” The doorbell rang.
Who the hell keeps showing up today? It never ends! Liang Sheng jumped up irritably, stomping over to answer it.
“Hey there~” Gu Yuqi leaned against the doorframe, grinning at the disheveled Liang Sheng in the doorway.
Liang Sheng blinked. “Ah…?”
Slam! The door shut hard.
The gust from the door left Gu Yuqi stunned. What the—? Why’d she slam it in my face?
Wait a second. When her little junior sister had opened the door, Gu Yuqi swore she’d caught a glimpse of a long-haired girl sitting in the living room. Who was that? So… was slamming the door Liang Sheng’s over-the-top way of hiding her mistress?!
Gu Yuqi, who was usually so level-headed and not one for wild theories, suddenly spiraled into a panic of overthinking.
Liang Sheng had slammed the door because she was a total mess and didn’t want her Yuqi senior sister to see her like that and think less of her.
She quickly ran a hand through her hair to straighten it up, then flung the door open again. Less than a minute had passed.
Gu Yuqi saw Liang Sheng reopen the door, but her face had lost its usual smile, replaced by a weird, strained expression. Gu Yuqi craned her neck inside, trying to spot if her little junior sister had stashed away that other woman she’d glimpsed.
Well, damn—nope. Was the affair really that shameless? Gu Yuqi’s smile froze on her face.
“Ah…” Liang Sheng followed her senior sister’s gaze. “That’s Ni Sihan. She’s the neighbor I told you about today. She came over because she had a question she couldn’t figure out.”
Liang Sheng launched into her explanation.
She wasn’t even sure why she was bothering to explain, but seeing the lost, anxious, pained look in Gu Yuqi’s eyes made her feel like she had to.
“Ahem.” Gu Yuqi finally snapped out of it.
Right~ Her Liang Sheng junior sister was such a good girl. There was no way she’d sneak around with another girl behind her back. Wait, no—nope. Why was she even thinking like that? She and Liang Sheng weren’t anything like that. Ahem, but as her senior sister and good friend, it was totally normal to care.
Gu Yuqi’s mind was a total mess right now, jumping all over the place.
Liang Sheng saw Gu Yuqi standing there like a statue, not coming in, and felt utterly confused.
“Yuqi senior sister, come on in already. What are you spacing out for?” Liang Sheng’s naughty hand landed with a solid smack on Gu Yuqi’s perky butt.
Gu Yuqi jolted, her face flushing red.
Once she recovered, she wrapped an arm around Liang Sheng’s waist and leaned in close to her ear. “Hmm? Is my junior sister being naughty? Shouldn’t that kind of thing be something I do to you in bed~?”
This time, it was Liang Sheng’s brain that short-circuited. She felt like steam was pouring out of her head, like her mind was frying inside her skull.
“Senior sister!” Liang Sheng shoved Gu Yuqi away, pouting. “There are other people here!”
Ni Sihan stared, utterly dumbfounded once again.
Gu Yuqi didn’t miss a beat. She flashed Ni Sihan a smile. “That’s just how we say hi. Don’t mind us.”
Ni Sihan nodded, her cheeks a little pink. If Gu Yuqi were a guy, she’d totally have a crush on her.
“Well then, um… Yuqi senior sister, why don’t you stay and study with us?” Ni Sihan said. “I’ve got this one problem I can’t get. Could you teach me?”
Gu Yuqi glanced back at Liang Sheng, pouted, and blew her a kiss before sauntering over to sit across from Ni Sihan.
Liang Sheng blushed again. She huffed and puffed as she plopped down next to Gu Yuqi. When her senior sister shot her a look, she scooted uncomfortably toward Ni Sihan.
“Pfft.” Gu Yuqi laughed softly and grabbed Liang Sheng’s arm. Whoosh—she yanked her right back into her lap.
“Ah, Little Junior Sister Liang Sheng, throwing yourself into my arms again? And right in front of company~” Gu Yuqi whispered.
“Yuqi senior sister… you!” Liang Sheng stammered.
Gu Yuqi grinned and steadied Liang Sheng. “Oops, Little Junior Sister Liang Sheng, watch your step. How’d you trip and fall like that?”
Liang Sheng glared at Gu Yuqi, her face burning, too flustered to speak. After humming and hawing for a bit, all she could manage was, “Thanks, Yuqi senior sister. I’ll be more careful next time.”
Gu Yuqi chuckled a few more times before turning her attention to the table. “Alright, Ni Sihan, which problem are you stuck on?”
She deliberately didn’t call her “junior sister”—that was reserved for her Little Junior Sister Liang Sheng.
Ni Sihan slid her workbook over to Gu Yuqi. “Senior sister, it’s this one.”
Gu Yuqi picked it up, studied it for a moment, then frowned and pointed at the problem. “High schoolers—or even college kids—don’t need to know this stuff. And honestly, I have no clue either.”
Ni Sihan took the workbook back, looking glum. “Okay… guess I won’t bother then.”
Liang Sheng: “???” Hold up—I said the exact same thing earlier. Why didn’t you listen to me??
“Ding-dong~” The doorbell rang again.
Damn it. Liang Sheng shot to her feet in frustration. Another pest? I barely sat down!
She yanked the door open to find Liang Jin’s smiling face.
Liang Sheng’s expression didn’t even twitch. She gave her cousin a deadpan stare. “What do you want?”
Liang Jin’s smile froze. She started hollering, “Big Sis Liang Sheng, how can you not invite your dear little sister inside?!”
Liang Sheng blocked the doorway, raised an eyebrow, and sighed. “Fine, come on in. But the place is kinda crowded right now.”
