Chapter 68: The Object of Unrequited Love

Fang Ye stood right beside her. When he wasn't smiling, he gave people a chill deep down in their bones.

His striking, deep-set facial features made every expression and movement instantly noticeable.

At the moment, his expression was calm and unremarkable as he had the leisure to pivot to another topic.

Could it be that he hadn't seen it?

Surely he hadn't seen it, right?

Bai Li let out a massive sigh of relief in an instant.

As time gradually passed, more and more students returned from the cafeteria to the dormitory building. Not wanting to delay her rest, Fang Ye prepared to leave.

Yet, he didn't seem entirely at ease. In the end, he still gave her a few parting instructions—telling her to speak up if anything came up, to ask for money if she needed it, not to overwork herself, not to push too hard, and to call him if she couldn't handle military training so he could ask for leave from her teacher on her behalf. These were the kinds of nagging things only parents would say.

Bai Li listened earnestly, yet she felt a sudden urge to laugh.

Last night, upon learning that Bai Li was interested in the handsome guy from the finance department, Chen Sang had stayed up late searching for various rumors about Fang Ye.

Everyone said he was rather mysterious.

He rarely spent time on campus.

So much so that many people perceived him as a glamorous yet aloof figure.

What Bai Li had heard back in Lingjiang was much the same.

Her brother didn't necessarily have a bad temper, but he certainly didn't have a good one either.

Right now, this earnest, nagging demeanor clashed far too much with his detached and cold appearance, creating an immense sense of contrast.

Yet Bai Li knew one thing: he had always been uniquely good to her alone.

Therefore, once Fang Ye finished his last sentence, she said with utmost sincerity, "Brother, thank you, I understand everything."

Fang Ye smiled casually. "Alright, I'm heading out. Take care of yourself."

"Mhm, I will." Bai Li felt a turbulent wave of emotion in her heart. "Goodbye, Brother."

Staring at her somewhat serious little face, Fang Ye reached out to gently tidy the strands of hair blown astray by the wind. As if remembering something, he whispered a reminder:

"Your wallpaper is quite blurry. Staring at it for too long hurts the eyes. You should change it next time."

With that, the corners of his lips curved upward as he walked away.

……?！！

Bai Li froze in place all by herself.

The warmth in her heart was instantly supplanted by a rush of panic.

What was blurry?

The wallpaper!

Oh no! He saw it!!!

Did he think she was acting completely weird?

Bai Li didn't even dare to call out to Fang Ye to offer an explanation, because Fang Ye hadn't directly accused her of anything; he had simply told her to change it next time.

Was that his tactful way of telling her not to use him as her wallpaper?

Or was he purely commenting on the terrible pixel quality and suggesting she switch to a clearer picture?

Being a teenage girl still somewhat green and inexperienced, she couldn't quite decipher the hidden meaning. She could only tell herself to keep her composure and try to act as normally as possible from then on.

Not daring to linger any longer, she walked back to the dormitory step by step.

She was terrified that one careless move might expose her unspoken, hidden feelings entirely.

...

After Fang Ye walked out of the Qingda campus gates, a black car was waiting for him. The driver was a man wearing sunglasses; while his outfit was understated in color, every single item on him carried a hefty price tag.

Seeing Fang Ye slowly slide into the passenger seat, the man finally spoke up, "Did you see your sister?"

Fang Ye crossed his fingers, gently closed his eyes, and let out a weary sigh. "Mhm, I saw her."

The man laughed ostentatiously. "It's not that I'm trying to meddle, but your sister is a bit strange. When she arrived at school, she didn't even look for you first. And you're just as strange—you're busy enough to go crazy, sleeping a mere three hours a day, yet you still managed to find the time to go to the supermarket and buy her daily necessities, plus bubble tea. Why not just transfer her the money directly? That way, the young lady could buy whatever she wants according to her own wishes."

The sunlight of this season was dazzlingly bright, and a ceaseless stream of traffic flowed outside the window. Fang Ye curved his lips slightly and said, "She wouldn't accept the money. She just arrived in Beichang without preparing anything, so I should look after her."

"A sister who won't take money?" The man chuckled. "Your sibling dynamic is quite complicated."

Whether it was the word "complicated" that struck a nerve in Fang Ye, he was suddenly reminded of the young lady's phone wallpaper, and then of her belated look of sheer terror, as if she were terrified he might discover something.

Discover what, exactly?

Casually, Fang Ye took out his phone and tapped on the young lady's WeChat chat box. The messages there still lingered from a few days ago.

Tapping into her profile, a fleeting glance at her Moments revealed a few photos.

Yet when he clicked into it, there was nothing at all, save for a single gray line.

He sat in a daze for a moment, his thin lips pressing tightly together as his fingertips tightened around the phone.

A few seconds later, he put the phone away.

His voice carried a hint of a smile.

"Hh, a sister who even blocks her own brother."

Driving the car, Lu Jing wore an exaggerated, teasing expression. "Oh, well then, I can be certain of something."

Resting his right cheek on his fingers, Fang Ye lazily tilted his head. "What?"

"Brother Ye, your sister is dating someone outside! The lock screen is probably covered because her Moments have pictures of her partner. If you don't believe me, check her wallpaper—it's definitely that guy too."

The daylight was far too piercing. Fang Ye's expression remained faint, making it impossible to read his emotions, yet his demeanor turned as gloomy as a snowy sky.

Dating?

He had once heard the young lady mention that she had someone she secretly liked.

As for the wallpaper?

His gaze drifted elsewhere, and the corners of his lips quirked into an imperceptible smile. "No, the wallpaper is me. It has nothing to do with that guy."

Lu Jing nodded. "That's pretty strange. Few people use their brother as a screen saver. Still, you should keep an eye on her. There are too many scumbags these days—what if someone swindles your sister away?"

Fang Ye stared intently at the profile picture on his phone screen.

Yes, it was indeed very strange.

...

After Bai Li returned to her dorm in a daze, Chen Sang and the other two had already come back from the cafeteria. The watermelon juice on the table remained completely untouched, and all three of them were scrutinizing Bai Li with probing gazes.

Having just survived the harrowing ordeal of almost having her secret crush exposed, Bai Li failed to process what this atmosphere meant.

Guan Xiaoyuan couldn't hold it in any longer. Letting out a sharp shriek, she swarmed around Bai Li and wailed, "Liuzi, I admire you so much!!"

Bai Li blinked in bewilderment. "What?"

Chen Sang pointed at the watermelon juice on the table. "This! This was bought by that hunk from the finance department, right? I saw him holding this brand of beverage during military training today! Wow! To think you'd chat him up the very first time you met! And you even managed to cadge drinks for us from him! You love us way too much!!"

Bai Li: "???" My friend, what are you talking about? I don't understand a single word.

With a look of sheer terror and utter incomprehension, she pieced things down for a long while before finally grasping the meaning behind her roommates' words.

To put it simply, they assumed she had fallen for Fang Ye at first sight upon looking at his photo, hit on him the moment they met, and even finagled the drinks Fang Ye had bought for his classmates.

Such an absurd hypothesis.

Yet somehow, it all seemed remarkably logical to them.

Not a single person considered the possibility that Bai Li had known Fang Ye all along.

Because if they really knew each other, why would she have ever asked Chen Sang for Fang Ye's picture in the first place?

Bai Li had no way to clear her name. Just as her roommates were busy strategizing and telling her what steps to take next, she finally spoke up to explain, "No, that finance senior... is my brother."

"..."

A momentary silence hung in the air.

Looking at her roommates, who now looked even more shocked than before, Bai Li let out a soft sigh. Had she known this misunderstanding would happen, she should have made it crystal clear when asking for the photo.

Just as she was about to elaborate further, her phone suddenly lit up.

The screen displayed a message sent to her by Fang Ye.