Brothers and sisters.
Tell me, at a rally with over a thousand people, lunging to grab a hat that was flying away, nearly tumbling head over heels down the stairs—granted, someone pulled her back to safety.
But was hiding now doing her any good?!
She could hear it: the once-silent gymnasium now buzzing with excited chatter.
The students down below had completely lost their minds!
Ye Zhibai, hunkered down in hiding, could only catch the general clamor from downstairs. There was no way she could make out what they were saying.
First off, she could rule out that they were discussing the Gaokao during this pre-exam pep rally.
People were curious by nature, and every student’s attention had shifted to the second floor. If the school leaders weren’t there, things would have been even worse.
It wasn’t just Ye Zhibai who was panicking.
The Head Maid was freaking out too!
She had only wanted to bring the Eldest Miss to watch, never imagining it would disrupt the Second Miss’s speech!
The Head Maid crouched down, hiding as well. She wiped the cold sweat from her forehead, tilted her head toward Ye Zhibai, and forced a smile to reassure her.
“Eldest Miss, please don’t worry.”
I know you’re anxious, but hold on—if you panic, I’ll panic too, but are you saying I should panic first?
“It’s really fine, Eldest Miss. No need to be nervous. The Second Miss is great at thinking on her feet. She can take control with just a few words—public speaking is her specialty!”
“Oh… oh?”
If that was true, thank goodness!
Come on, Yun’er, show them what you’ve got. Break this awkward moment and save me—woe is me!
Ye Zhibai clutched the baseball cap she had risked her life to reclaim, worth a whopping eighty bucks, and prayed fervently in her heart.
Ye Zhiyun never disappointed Ye Zhibai.
The chaos downstairs lasted only a few seconds.
Then Ye Zhibai heard a voice brimming with calm assurance.
“Everyone, quiet down.”
It was a steady command, piercing through the entire gymnasium from north to south.
Those words were like a stabilizing anchor, taking immediate effect.
It wasn’t the content that mattered when it came to maintaining order—it was who said them.
Yun’er had that kind of authority.
Ye Zhibai subtly let out a breath of relief as the noise from the boisterous first floor gradually faded.
It looked like… they’d weathered the storm without disaster. But Ye Zhiyun definitely knew Ye Zhibai was there.
After all, the invisible Guang Yu had been standing by the railing, watching the whole time.
She patted Ye Zhibai’s shoulder, giving the girl—who didn’t dare peek down—a live play-by-play.
“Your sister picked up the microphone. Your sister stood up. Your sister walked to the center of the podium.”
Ye Zhibai scooted closer to Guang Yu so the Head Maid wouldn’t overhear.
“Don’t say ‘your sister’ every time… it sounds like you’re cursing me out. Whew… anyway, we’re good. Yun’er has the situation under control. Next, she’ll probably say a couple of closing remarks, pretend nothing happened, wrap up the speech, and bail us out.”
“Oh… but that’s not what it looks like from here… Your sister—er, your little sister—seems to be clearing stuff off the podium.”
“Huh?!”
Ye Zhibai whipped around. High time she saw the situation with her own eyes!
She didn’t dare be too bold, peeking out with just half her head.
Sure enough, Ye Zhiyun wasn’t giving any closing speech.
Instead, she had stood up and was simply packing away her notebook and phone from the podium—items that belonged to her.
She slipped the notebook and fountain pen into a folder, then picked up the microphone again.
Here it comes! The closing words!
Not quite.
“That’s it for today’s speech. Classes, return to your classrooms in order.”
You won’t even give a proper wrap-up!
At least wish everyone luck on the Gaokao!
With the school leaders staring in stunned confusion, Ye Zhiyun switched off the microphone.
She didn’t forget to nod politely to the teachers in respect.
Nor did she forget to wave to the dazed students as a blessing.
But the way she hurriedly vanished from the podium—shifting from a brisk walk to a jog, then breaking into a full sprint toward the spiral staircase connecting the first floor to the second—was anything but polite!
“Sister, care to explain why you’re here? Or am I seeing things?”
No, no, no—Yun’er, you’re young; there’s no way you’d have blurry vision.
It’s all my fault, this rotten troublemaker sneaking out on a whim and ruining your speech. I’m truly, deeply sorry!
Her heart was overflowing with guilt, enough to fill an ocean.
But the more nervous Ye Zhibai got, the more her mouth blurted out her rawest, most ill-advised true thoughts.
“It was a miscalculation.”
“A miscalculation?! That’s what you’re calling this, Sister?!”
“As expected.”
“No kidding! You knew I’d be mad, but you did it anyway. Sister, I just don’t get it!”
You don’t get it? Do you think I do?!
I just wanted to grab the baseball cap the Head Maid bought me for eighty bucks. What’s wrong with that?!
Ye Zhibai and Ye Zhiyun were locked in a heated standoff on the empty second-floor spectator stands of the gymnasium.
The Head Maid and Guang Yu felt the pressure of spectating in the background, though the Head Maid had no idea Guang Yu was standing right there.
By now, all the students had followed orders and returned to their classrooms in an orderly fashion.
No matter how curious they were about what had happened, no one dared defy the school leaders’ explicit command to clear the gymnasium. Otherwise, it’d be a stern warning—or worse!
Ye Zhibai sat in one of the spectator seats, clutching her baseball cap. She felt a twinge of grievance inside, but on the surface, she was rock-solid.
Unfazed, steady as a mountain.
She looked utterly shameless, like a dead pig unafraid of boiling water.
She couldn’t help it; that was just her face.
It had been a long time since Ye Zhiyun had been this angry.
She wasn’t mad at Ye Zhibai—
Okay, fine! She was mad at Ye Zhibai!
Sister, you’re supposed to be resting at home—why run around outside?!
Ye Zhiyun had seen it clearly: her sister had nearly fallen from the stands!
A wave of lingering fear gripped her heart, leaving her both terrified and helpless toward Ye Zhibai. “Sigh… Sister, I’ll ask you about this later. Think it over carefully first. I’m really mad this time—furious! But… the biggest problem isn’t you.”
The first half was sisterly coquettishness.
The second half turned bone-chillingly cold, like a winter freeze.
Ye Zhiyun’s peripheral glare, sharp as a knife, fixed on the tense Head Maid nearby.
“You… why did you let my sister go out? I remember… my orders to the Maid Corps were clear: no matter what, ensure she rests at home for the day, right?”
It was terrifying, dreadful, utterly despairing.
But what of it?
The Head Maid, who had moved Ye Zhibai to tears with her loyalty, was already prepared to lose her job.
She removed her maid’s cap, placed a hand over her heart, and bowed respectfully to Ye Zhiyun.
She was smiling.
“Second Miss, I’ve been honored and fulfilled to serve the Ye Family for over a decade. Today, due to my negligence, I allowed the Eldest Miss to go out, creating a safety risk. I failed in my duties and accept the consequences.”
“Oh?” Ye Zhiyun snorted coldly, her aura flaring. “I figured you’d have some explanation.”
“There’s no defending it. I’m overcome with fear.”
“……”
Come on, explain something!
Ye Zhiyun was about to lose her mind! Sister won’t clarify, you won’t explain—how am I supposed to know what’s going on?!
Guang Yu couldn’t stand it anymore.
She used mind transmission to give Ye Zhibai a nudge.
“Ye Zhibai, why are you so worked up? She’s your sister— you hold the power here, got it? You clam up when you’re nervous… Here’s the opener: just say… um, start with—’It’s not the Head Maid’s fault.’ Then improvise from there. Improv is your specialty, right!”
Right!
Thanks, Guang Yu. You snapped me out of it.
Ye Zhibai steadied her nerves, slowly stood, and walked over to Ye Zhiyun.
She even raised the baseball cap in her hand.
“It’s not the Head Maid’s fault. This… this is all the baseball cap’s fault.”
“Hey!!”
Guang Yu nearly died of frustration!
You’re a genius—one sentence and you’ve absolved yourself and the Head Maid completely!
But can we not bring up that stupid hat right now?!
“Sister?”
Seeing Ye Zhibai speak up, Ye Zhiyun swallowed hard, suddenly the nervous one.
To avoid the hat distracting her thoughts, Ye Zhibai handed it to the Head Maid.
Then, with a serious expression, she explained to Yun’er.
“Yun’er, I asked the Maid Corps to let me out. It was stuffy at home; I wanted some fresh air.”
“Sister, you’re saying that again!” Ye Zhiyun was actually the most aggrieved of all. “You promised me! When I’m not home, when I’m worried, you won’t go out—absolutely not! But look at what you did! This morning, you reassured me so I could come to school in peace, but that’s not how you acted! What am I supposed to do? Tell me!”
She was truly angry.
Yun’er was so kind.
Even without an explanation, she had already pieced it together. Ye Zhibai could tell: Yun’er had never intended to punish the Head Maid. She just wanted the full story.
The Head Maid couldn’t bear to see the two sisters quarreling.
She choked up for a moment, readjusted her maid’s cap, glanced first at Ye Zhibai, and then spoke to Ye Zhiyun in a soft, gentle voice.
“Second Miss… why do you think the Eldest Miss chose Qihai No.1 Middle School as her destination when she went out? And why would she come all the way to this gymnasium? You can clearly guess the reason…”
“……”
“So, throwing a tantrum at her… that’s really not fair. The Eldest Miss is truly so kind. She’s always been thinking of you.”
Ye Zhiyun understood perfectly well.
Her sister had come here to check on her school life, to see if it was going smoothly, if giving speeches had worn her out… something along those lines.
But… Ye Zhiyun refused to give in.
She was grateful for her sister’s concern—deliriously happy about it, even.
Yet compared to those feelings, Ye Zhiyun had to place her sister’s health and safety above everything else.
If she relented now… there would be a second time, a third time. That simply wouldn’t do!
Meanwhile, Ye Zhibai had been biding her time for quite a while.
She was waiting for the right moment.
She hadn’t forgotten for a second what precious item was tucked away in her pocket.
It was the talisman that could turn peril into safety… the Protective Amulet that had already proven its worth once before.
As Ye Zhiyun wrestled silently with her dilemma, Ye Zhibai quietly fished the treasure from her pocket.
—Yun’er’s Student ID Card.
Ye Zhibai cradled it in her hands once more and held it up before Ye Zhiyun’s eyes.
“……”
Er… she was a little nervous and pushed a bit too hard.
She nearly jammed it right into her sister’s face.
Ye Zhibai sheepishly drew her hand back, positioning the Student ID Card squarely in Ye Zhiyun’s line of sight.
“This is…?” Ye Zhiyun peered at the object in her hands, her eyes slowly widening.
“Yun’er, your Student ID Card. You left it at home.”
For a moment, Ye Zhiyun nearly broke down.
But before tears could well up in her eyes, she hardened her resolve, clenched her jaw, and pressed on.
“Sister… that’s no excuse. You know full well I don’t need a Student ID Card.”
“Yun’er.”
“What…?”
When Ye Zhiyun looked up, she froze.
Ye Zhibai tilted her head, her silver hair cascading like a waterfall, lighting up an entire era of youth with its brilliance.
Her cherry lips parted slightly, her expression as serene as a tranquil lake, and she spoke the words that sent shockwaves crashing through Ye Zhiyun’s heart.
“I’m here to congratulate you early… on a happy high school graduation?”
“!”
The gymnasium’s massive fan kicked in again on its timer.
A gust of wind swept once more into the spectator stands.
But this time, no matter how fiercely it blew, it couldn’t dislodge the baseball cap now clutched firmly in her hand.
The only thing the wind might stir…
was Yun’er’s heart at that moment—the one long since captured by Ye Zhibai, forever beyond escape.
