Although Shen Lianyao had already sat down, Shen An was still standing.
He was dodging the cold glare she shot his way, but Zhao Qingyu was also fidgeting in her seat. The normally haughty woman had no choice but to lower her head, avoiding Shen An’s gaze as well.
Though there were only four people in the small office, the atmosphere crackled with a strangely delicate tension.
Song Rui was probably the only one sitting comfortably—the clear winner.
No, even she didn’t dare look at Zhao Qingyu. And with that, a pecking order had firmly taken shape.
The air remained stiff and awkward.
The earlier commotion had completely thrown off Zhao Qingyu’s plans. Now she sat there on pins and needles, her usual arrogance evaporated.
Naturally, she didn’t dare say a word.
Shen An couldn’t speak either. He needed to keep Zhao Qingyu intimidated, standing there like a silent statue—not just holding his own tongue, but forcing hers to stay silent too, lest she stir up more trouble.
Song Rui desperately wanted to break the ice, but after glancing at Shen An and sneaking a peek at Zhao Qingyu, she thought better of it and gave up.
She turned her gaze to Shen Lianyao instead, hoping her friend would shatter the deadlock.
Shen Lianyao occupied the top spot in this little hierarchy for the moment.
Though she was furious with Shen An, she couldn’t settle scores with him here and now.
This standoff wasn’t getting anyone anywhere, and with Song Rui shooting her a pleading look, Shen Lianyao finally spoke up to break the silence. “Senior Sister Zhao, are you here to hold a meeting for us?”
“If so, please go ahead and speak.”
Shen Lianyao intended to hand the reins of the conversation back to Zhao Qingyu.
Zhao Qingyu’s delicate eyebrows arched slightly at that. It was a hot potato she had no interest in holding. Better to cut and run—of the thirty-six stratagems, retreat was the best.
“Uh… actually, there’s nothing much to say. Let’s call this meeting done.”
She shot to her feet at once, keeping her back to Shen An and refusing to meet his eyes even for a second. “Carry on without me. Just don’t forget about this weekend’s schedule—make time for it yourselves.”
And with that, she bolted. Her footsteps were hurried, her retreating figure radiating the embarrassment of a hasty escape.
Shen An’s two unexpected takedowns had left her utterly flustered.
Just sitting there filled her with an inexplicable surge of guilt—a bitter taste she rarely experienced.
Deprived of her composure, her usual rationality and cool-headedness abandoned her. All she could think about was getting away from this place, away from Shen An’s “moral judgment.”
With Zhao Qingyu gone, Song Rui visibly relaxed. Color returned to her face, and even her posture loosened up.
But now Shen An was the one feeling awkward.
He hadn’t expected her to dip out so decisively. Talk about throwing your teammates under the bus!
He’d been counting on her to smooth things over, say a few words to warm up the mood and ease the tension.
Now she was in the clear, leaving him alone to face Shen Lianyao’s “moral judgment.”
However, Shen Lianyao had no intention of blowing up at Shen An.
Or rather, she didn’t think he was worth the effort. Wasting breath on someone like him—even yelling at him—felt pointless.
The moment Zhao Qingyu was out the door, Shen Lianyao stood up. “If there’s nothing else, I’m leaving.”
With those flat words, she walked out of the office.
Less than a minute later, only Shen An and Song Rui were left staring at each other.
Song Rui eyed him cautiously. “Um… should we go get food now?”
Shen An was about to nod.
But then he reconsidered. Shen Lianyao and Zhao Qingyu had just left in opposite directions—one probably heading back to the Troupe Leader’s Office, the other maybe to the cafeteria.
In other words, this was his golden opportunity to catch up to Shen Lianyao, explain himself, and beg for leniency!
Decision made, Shen An didn’t hesitate for a second.
He turned to Song Rui and said softly, “Wait here for me. Once I’m back, we’ll go eat.”
Song Rui blinked in confusion. “You… you have something else to handle?”
“Yeah, but it should be quick. Just hang tight.”
Shen An nodded, then strode toward the door.
As he reached it, Song Rui suddenly called out, “Is what Shen Lianyao said… true?”
Shen An paused.
Song Rui stood up, looking at him with deep concern. “Did you really arrange for her to come to the office?”
Shen An turned back with a smile. “What do you think?”
Song Rui pressed her lips together, clutching the hem of her clothes. She hesitated. “I… I think… it wasn’t you.”
“You must have had your reasons, right?”
The concern in her eyes shifted to earnest hope.
She simply refused to believe Shen An was the culprit, the one pulling strings behind the scenes.
If he really was, it would devastate her—a crushing sense of betrayal.
Even if he was lying to her, she wanted to hear from his own mouth that he wasn’t.
Shen An sighed and walked back to her side, ruffling her silky hair. “You’re sharp for once. You got it right.”
Song Rui’s eyes lit up with delight. “Really?”
“Yeah. I’ll explain the details later. Let me take care of this first.”
“Okay! I’ll wait here. Hurry back, though.”
“Are you that hungry?”
“No, but if we go too late, the cafeteria will be picked clean.”
“Silly girl, if it’s empty, I’ll take you to the South District to eat.”
“Oh~” Song Rui sat back down obediently.
Having soothed Song Rui, Shen An bolted out of the office, racing after Shen Lianyao like a rocket.
The other members of the Art Troupe stared as he dashed by, their faces etched with surprise.
Yu Wen’s Model Group happened to be practicing outside the office.
She watched Shen An streak past and muttered, “What’s he in such a hurry for?”
The Drama Group’s practice area was outside too.
Wang Yuqiong watched him intently, confusion clouding her face more than anyone else’s.
This guy…
What was he up to now?
Delayed a bit by reassuring Song Rui, Shen An ran the whole way out of the Art Troupe. He finally spotted Shen Lianyao just as she was about to step into the elevator.
He didn’t even have time to catch his breath before bellowing, “Lianyao, wait!”
Shen Lianyao glanced back and saw Shen An panting hard. She let out a cold scoff and ignored him completely, deaf to his plea.
Damn.
Time for the trump card.
“Ah!”
A loud thud echoed from behind him, followed by Shen An’s cry of pain.
Shen Lianyao’s heart skipped a beat, a flicker of hesitation crossing her face.
Did he… fall?
For all her grievances against him—even bordering on hatred—Shen Lianyao wasn’t heartless enough to ignore someone in distress.
She hit the elevator’s close-door button and spun around to check.
Rounding the corner, she found Shen An sprawled motionless on the floor.
Panic flashed across her face. She hurried over and crouched down, gently shaking him. “Shen An? Shen An? What happened?”
Though alarmed, she kept her cool, scanning him for any obvious injuries or bruises.
She wasn’t a doctor and couldn’t diagnose from the outside.
After shaking him with no response, she pulled out her phone and stood, ready to call for an ambulance.
At that moment, a hand grabbed her.
Shen Lianyao jumped, nearly dropping her phone. She looked down to see Shen An grinning up at her.
That bastard—utterly infuriating.
The worry that had welled up in her instantly boiled over into uncontainable rage.
She slapped his hand away, her face icy as she gritted out, “What the hell are you playing at? You liar.”
Huh?
Liar?
Shen An didn’t quite get what she meant.
But it didn’t matter—he’d stopped her.
First, he caught his breath. “Just wait a sec. Let me get some air…”
“Are you that hungry? You left in such a rush, I had to chase you all the way here.”
Shen Lianyao didn’t want to hear his voice!
She turned to leave, but Shen An grabbed her hand. “Come on, Granny, at least let me breathe…”
She yanked free again, frowning deeply. “Keep that up, and I’ll report you for sexual harassment.”
Shen An straightened up, took a deep breath, and finally steadied himself.
“I have some things I want to say to you.”
His expression turned serious.
Shen Lianyao’s lips curved into a chilly smirk. “What could you possibly have to say? What excuses are you going to make up this time to fool me?”
“Didn’t you already admit it in front of Senior Sister Zhao back in the office?”
“What, now you’re going to claim you had your reasons?”
Shen An nodded solemnly. “I really did have my reasons.”
Shen Lianyao snorted. “Then why didn’t you say so earlier?”
“Well, my reasons are a bit… delicate. Not something to share with a crowd.”
Shen An studied the anger and undisguised disgust on her face.
He realized a standard explanation wouldn’t cut it anymore.
Unless he came clean about taking the fall for Zhao Qingyu.
But who knew if Shen Lianyao would bring it up with Zhao Qingyu later?
Intentional or not, if Zhao Qingyu found out, everything he’d done would turn into pointless foolishness.
Not only would it fail to maintain Zhao Qingyu’s favorable impression of him, but it would instantly transform all the goodwill he’d painstakingly built into outright animosity.
After all, this would confirm his scheming nature—something Zhao Qingyu could never accept.
And so, at this moment, Shen An could only choose an extraordinarily powerful explanation, one that Shen Lianyao absolutely couldn’t mention to Zhao Qingyu.
“So, tell me,” she said, a playful tease in her tone. “What’s this big secret hardship you can’t share in front of others?”
Shen An drew in a slight breath and gazed into her eyes. Softly, he said, “Because I want to be with you.”
The teasing smile on Shen Lianyao’s face slowly froze.
She stared at him in stunned disbelief, suspicion flickering in her eyes, wondering if she’d misheard.
“Huh?”
Shen An pressed his lips together and repeated it three times: “Because I want to be with you.”
“Did you hear that clearly this time?”
Shen Lianyao had heard it clearly.
She had heard every word.
But her reaction was surprisingly flat.
She merely glanced at Shen An. “That’s your reason?”
Well, damn.
Even the usually confident Shen An felt a flicker of doubt rising in his chest at her indifferent response.
No way…
Zero reaction?
“Uh… yeah, that’s it.”
If even this didn’t work, Shen An was fresh out of ideas.
He’d just have to grit his teeth and muddle through the next four years alongside Shen Lianyao.
Shen Lianyao wasn’t entirely unresponsive, though. At least the contempt and disdain were plain on her face.
She turned away. “I don’t buy that reason. Liar.”
As she started to walk off again, Shen An didn’t rush after her.
He noticed she’d thrown around the word “liar” three times now.
Liar…
What exactly had he lied to her about?
Perhaps she wasn’t without reaction after all. The real sticking point was right here—this “liar” business!
Collecting his thoughts once more, Shen An stepped forward and caught Shen Lianyao’s hand again.
Softly, he said, “I didn’t lie to you.”
It played out the same as before. She shook off his hand without a hint of gratitude.
“Would a liar ever admit they were lying?” she shot back coldly.
“Sorry, I really don’t get what you mean,” Shen An said with genuine sincerity. “Can you tell me exactly when I lied to you?”
“You don’t know?” Shen Lianyao let out a laugh, as if he’d just told the biggest joke in the world.
She sneered. “Fine, let me spell it out for you.”
“At the first class meeting, when I ran for class president, you gave me your vote—the only one I got.”
“Do you remember what you said back then?”
Shen An blinked. “I said a lot of stuff. Can’t quite recall. Care to jog my memory?”
“You told me that from the first moment you saw me, you could tell I was a really responsible person. That’s why you thought I’d make a great class president, and you said you’d vote for me!”
Shen Lianyao’s voice was ice-cold.
He remembered now. He scratched his head in confusion. “But I did vote for you, didn’t I…?”
A faint smile touched Shen Lianyao’s lips, but it brimmed with chill. “You did vote for me. But not because you thought I’d make a good class president.”
“You only did it so I wouldn’t lose too pathetically. So I’d serve as a proper foil for Wang Yuqiong.”
“That was your real reason!”
“You’re shocked, aren’t you? Wondering how I know? Wang Yuqiong told me herself.”
“You went against your own words. You lied to me! Still denying it? Liar!”
Oh man…
Shen An never would have guessed… that this was the root of the problem.
He never would have guessed… that for all her aloof exterior, Shen Lianyao’s mind was incredibly perceptive, her sensitivity even sharper than Wang Yuqiong’s.
A single offhand comment might seem to roll right off her on the surface, but inside, it could unleash a storm.
She just hid it masterfully, her expressions under iron control.
No one could spot a thing.
