Nangong Ruihui remained aloof toward people she wasn’t close to. Zhou Yuan hadn’t come to ask the student council president for help, so Ruihui had no reason to keep smiling at her. She didn’t even feel like getting off Mu Yao’s slender body.

Compared with Mu Yao, Nangong Ruihui was more rational than emotional. She was a realist. Once Zhou Yuan graduated, they would belong to two different worlds. Ruihui had no need for useless connections. Staying ordinary classmates was enough.

But Mu Yao… was different.

He was like a toffee with a molten center. At first, it had no flavor—perhaps even a little bitter. But the more carefully you savored it, the more addictive it became.

And now, it had developed a rich, lingering sweetness.

Nangong Ruihui no longer wanted to change seats. Mu Yao suited her perfectly. Even if they couldn’t get married someday, they could still be best friends, right?

She was sure Mu Yao would agree.

Some of his qualities were unlike those of children from a prestigious clan. There was a unique, unadorned elegance about him that was utterly captivating. Nangong Ruihui had long since decided to become truly close to him.

And it was rare for Mu Yao to like her as well.

This had nothing to do with benefits or status.

“……”

Zhou Yuan was already frozen stiff.

Nangong Ruihui might have no shame, but Mu Yao still did. In his excitement, he turned his head, accidentally brushing his lips against Nangong Ruihui’s lips as she leaned close.

He felt sick on the spot.

“Bleeegh—!!”

This time, Nangong Ruihui was the one who blushed. She pushed him away, while Mu Yao crouched down, clutching his stomach and retching repeatedly.

A kiss on the cheek was already his limit.

After all, Mu Yao was still a boy. His body retained its instinctive physical reactions. Though their lips had only lightly brushed, being disgusted for several days afterward was perfectly reasonable.

This wasn’t about liking or hating someone.

Even childhood friends or lifelong best friends who had known each other for over a decade couldn’t take something like this without reacting. It was impossible for four lips to meet without stirring up a single ripple in the heart.

Zhou Yuan had completely broken down. She screamed and ran out.

Mu Yao, meanwhile, casually grabbed a toothbrush, squeezed toothpaste onto it, and began scrubbing the inside and outside of his mouth with all his strength.

“Do you really have to go this far?” Nangong Ruihui watched his performance. “You said you liked me before. Was that a lie? Someone you like kissed you. This isn’t the reaction you’re supposed to have.”

“Stop talking!”

Mu Yao’s mouth was full of foamy toothpaste. He didn’t want to hear another word from Nangong Ruihui.

His mind and body had both been contaminated!

The fact that he could still answer her through the foam was already showing her plenty of mercy.

“Oh, come on. How many girls in the academy are begging for a kiss from me? You should’ve seized the opportunity.” Nangong Ruihui climbed off the bed. She had no idea how much longer Mu Yao planned to rinse his mouth. “Zhou Yuan’s already gone. You don’t have to pretend in front of her anymore.”

“Gurgle, gurgle, gurgle—ptooey!”

Mu Yao spat out the last mouthful of water. He glared at Nangong Ruihui with deep resentment, then gasped for breath.

“Haa… haa… I wasn’t pretending for her! You’re awful! Why did you have to get so close to me?”

“That’s a bit too dramatic. It was just—”

Nangong Ruihui stopped before the word “girl” could leave her mouth.

“It was just an accident. Yao-Yao wasn’t prepared, was he? Besides, our lips only touched for a second, darling~”

“I don’t care, I don’t care! You definitely did it on purpose!”

Mu Yao wasn’t going to recover anytime soon. Nangong Ruihui could only smile bitterly and let him carry on.

In her eyes, Mu Yao’s reaction was completely abnormal. She could tell that he liked her, but she couldn’t understand why brushing lips for a moment had caused such an enormous response.

She didn’t think about it any further.

She simply decided that Mu Yao had gotten shy.

The day of Mu Yao’s photoshoot finally arrived. Nangong Ruihui had gone to wait for him at the academy gates bright and early.

The sun was shining, and the sky was cloudless. Nangong Ruihui leisurely enjoyed it all, along with—

The person she was waiting for.

“Yao-Yao~”

When she saw Mu Yao quicken his pace toward her, Nangong Ruihui opened her arms. Interactions like this had become perfectly ordinary between them.

“I’m coming, I’m coming~”

Beautiful as ever, Mu Yao switched from walking to running. Nangong Ruihui must have been waiting for him for ages.

Mu Yao wasn’t late. Nangong Ruihui had simply arrived early.

Besides, a girl being five minutes late once in a while was no big deal. It didn’t mean she had no sense of time.

With a soft thump, Mu Yao threw himself into Nangong Ruihui’s arms and rubbed against her several times.

Every one of those movements was part of his preparations for the day Nangong Ruihui confessed her feelings to him.

Conquering a boy who thought he was above everyone else was incredibly satisfying.

Nangong Ruihui was always bullying him and taking advantage of him. He had to gather it all together and get his revenge in one glorious act!

Mu Yao wore a purple, starry evening gown with delicate lacework. With his naturally lovely face and no makeup, he could already rival the academy’s uncrowned campus beauty.

Nangong Ruihui almost wanted to switch back into girls’ clothes herself. Seeing him had awakened her awareness as a woman.

A breeze quietly lifted the ends of Mu Yao’s hair. They brushed lightly against Nangong Ruihui’s face.

She smiled in silence, her heart filled with quiet delight.

The gown was only for the journey to Leji Entertainment’s studio. After all, he had now resumed his identity as Long Xueer, so he had to pay attention to his appearance at all times.

“Ruihui, is the butler coming to pick us up?”

Mu Yao rose onto his tiptoes and released Nangong Ruihui.

The height difference between them looked especially cute today. Perhaps it was because Nangong Ruihui was wearing elevator shoes. Her height had shot up close to 170 centimeters, leaving Mu Yao, who was only 163 centimeters in shoes, trembling in defeat.

“Mm. He’ll be here in two minutes.” Nangong Ruihui dropped another outrageous hint. “That gives Yao-Yao plenty of time to kiss me~”

“As if I’d kiss you! Have you no shame?”

Mu Yao gave Nangong Ruihui a “fierce” punch. Nangong Ruihui only felt a little ticklish.

As a return gift, Nangong Ruihui pinched Mu Yao’s slightly raised, soft little butt.

Mu Yao cried out in pain.

“Go ahead and bully me as much as you like! Will you only be happy after you bully me away?” Mu Yao complained, his expression warning Nangong Ruihui not to push her luck.

“You should be satisfied that you have a chance to become my woman. I’m only bullying you because I care about you~”

Nangong Ruihui had yet to leave the academy, and there was far less scholarly air about her than there was about Mu Yao.

The future head of the Nangong Clan had to be an elite capable of handling every family affair the moment she graduated. Someone overly bookish simply wouldn’t do.

“Yuck, yuck, yuck!”

Mu Yao’s gaze shifted. He spoke more tactfully.

“But… thank you anyway. I would’ve had to go alone otherwise. The company’s busy today, and no one was available to pick me up…”

“What are you talking about? The Nangong Clan hired an exceptional butler so he could be useful.” Nangong Ruihui smiled. “If he can’t even come pick up my Yao-Yao, then what do we need him for?”

“He’ll be hurt if he hears you say that.”

*I really don’t understand how women think. Wait… I guess I’m a woman too.*

Although their ways of thinking didn’t completely align, the more Nangong Ruihui looked at Mu Yao, the more suitable he seemed to be as the next Elder Sister.

The Elder Sister of Yingshengya Academy had to possess a heart filled with universal love. That was the teaching conveyed by the Virgin Mary.

At that moment, the academy’s sixteen-spout fountain began spraying all at once in the center of the grounds. The stone statue of the Virgin Mary shone brilliantly, as if celebrating in advance the birth of the next Elder Sister.

Mu Yao smiled unconsciously.

His smile spread freely, treating all living beings as equals.

Nangong Ruihui was deeply captivated. She remained lost in it for a long while.

*A lotus flower beaded with dew… a symbol of your purity…*

In an instant, Nangong Ruihui recalled a hymn of praise to Mary.

Beep-beep—

“Young Master Ruihui, Miss Mu Yao, please get in.”