He seemed not to notice the encouragement in Yuyang’s eyes, or the faint sympathy there.

Luo Hao grinned brightly—and even managed to roast himself.

“Hahaha! Give me a few more years—no, maybe just a few months—and I, Luo Hao, will definitely find a girlfriend too!”

Haozi... you...

Yuyang couldn’t bring himself to say anything more. He was just about to change the subject...

...when Luo Hao started praising him again.

“Besides, I’m in no hurry! I’ve got Brother Yang and all you other single brothers right here with me. Speaking of which, Brother Yang, you’re a real ‘paragon of virtue.’ You’ve been voted school heartthrob, and you still haven’t found a girlfriend. Aren’t people always saying you get enough love letters every day to fill a whole cabinet?”

As Luo Hao went on, a certain possibility occurred to him, and he suddenly felt deeply moved.

“Wait... Brother Yang, are you holding back for us? So we don’t get jealous? Is that why... Ah, Brother Yang! You’ll always be our big brother!”

How do you keep coming up with these things?!

“Haozi, you’re overthinking it.” Yuyang told him honestly, “I’m just worried a girlfriend would get in the way of my studies. And we’re still in high school, right? Why are we even thinking about girlfriends? Isn’t it too early?”

“Sniff... As expected of Brother Yang. You even came up with an excuse like that so your brothers wouldn’t worry...”

“...”

Well, guess there was no explaining his way out of this one.

Then he wouldn’t bother explaining. It wasn’t anything important, anyway.

Yuyang looked up. The line of second-year students still hadn’t finished filing out.

Luo Hao looked too, then turned back to ask him:

“By the way, Brother Yang, you were ridiculously late. How late did you get here? You didn’t even make it to the meeting or get a chance to sit down in class. Were you standing at the back the whole time?”

“What else?”

Yuyang was trying to figure out how long it’d be before the first-years came through. Distracted, he let his thoughts spill out without thinking.

“It wasn’t just because I was late. Tang Qihuang stopped me outside the auditorium and asked me a few questions, so that took up a lot of time too. Otherwise...”

“What?!”

Before Yuyang could finish, Luo Hao’s sudden shout cut him off.

Yuyang froze for a moment. Then, once he realized what had happened, he slapped Luo Hao hard on the shoulder.

“What the heck, Haozi! Could you stop freaking out like that? You scared the life out of me!”

“I’m the one who should be freaking out, Brother Yang! Who did you say stopped you just now?!”

“Tang Qihuang. What about it?”

Yuyang didn’t understand. Was that really something to get so worked up over?

Luo Hao, meanwhile, had his mouth hanging open, like his jaw was about to hit the floor.

“No way... Brother Yang, you must mean someone with the same name, not the Student Council president...”

“No, I mean the Student Council president, Tang Qihuang. The one who was just speaking onstage.”

“Brother Yang!! I’m so jealous!!”

Luo Hao threw his head back with a long sigh. The air really did smell sour with lemon!

“She’s the Tang Family’s young lady, the school’s Student Council president, Qifeng No. 1 High School’s two-time reigning school beauty, and...”

“That’s enough!”

Yuyang smacked him on the back of the head this time, finally quieting him down.

“I know. So what does that have to do with me?”

“She stopped you, Brother Yang! You must’ve talked to her!”

“If she stopped me, of course she had something to ask...”

“I’m just so jealous!”

“...”

Seriously. He’d only talked to her, and Luo Hao was already this jealous.

Now Yuyang understood why Luo Hao hadn’t been able to find a girlfriend all these years.

He’d seen too little of the world. In a word, he was hopeless.

Well, not completely hopeless.

He was still trying to console himself.

“No... no, I can’t be so negative. But, Brother Yang, you really are ridiculously lucky...”

Yuyang sighed and decided to leave.

He hadn’t learned anything useful about reincarnation, and there was no point hanging around. He’d better head back.

But as soon as he turned around, he saw the line of Class 3, First Year, heading this way.

Yuyang hurried over to the corner to call Yuxi over, so she could join the line and return to class with them.

He made a point of reminding her:

“I won’t walk you back, then. After school at noon, wait for me downstairs at the first-year building, Xiao Xi. I’ll come get you. Don’t wander off.”

“I know... Big brother, I’m really not a little kid. I won’t wander off. And I’ll see you at noon...”

“Mm. See you at noon. I’ll make you something delicious when we get home.”

Then Yuxi waved to Yuyang as she joined the line for Class 3, First Year.

Yuyang waved back.

Yuxi had just walked out of the auditorium when Yuyang felt a chilly gaze on his back.

He whipped around and saw Luo Hao staring at him with eyes like two lemons.

Haozi pointed toward the auditorium exit with a trembling finger.

“B-Brother Yang... you have a girlfriend? And she’s a silver-haired beauty who’s just as gorgeous as the president? You...”

“Don’t get the wrong idea. She’s my little sister.”

“Oh! So she’s your little sister, Brother Yang. As expected of the big brother—you’ve got such a beautiful little sister. Sniff... But even so, I’m still so jealous!”

You’ve been jealous nonstop this whole time.

At least he hadn’t taken any real damage yet. Luo Hao could still hold on.

But only a few seconds later, Lin Qingyu came trotting over to Yuyang.

She looked like she was getting impatient.

“Honestly! Yuxi’s already left, and you still haven’t come back to class with me, Yuyang. I’m not waiting anymore. I’m going ahead!”

“Ah... Qingyu, take it slow. Watch your step so you don’t fall.”

“I’m not going to fall! I’m not some rare beast! Do you think I’d trip on flat ground or something?!”

After saying that, she huffed and headed for the exit on her own.

But after a few steps, she stopped. As if she’d remembered something, she slowly turned back.

“Oh, right, Yuyang. Let’s have lunch together. I made enough for you and Yuxi too... Hmph! It’s just that I accidentally used too many ingredients, okay? Don’t get the wrong idea! I’m leaving!”

“Sure, sure. I won’t get the wrong idea.”

Yuyang watched her leave the auditorium too, smiling wryly.

Then he caught another whiff of lemons.

“Brother Yang...”

There was barely any emotion left in Luo Hao’s voice.

Yuyang turned around, speechless. It looked like Luo Hao, a single guy who’d been battered by one dose of lovey-dovey sweetness after another, had finally broken.

“People don’t share one another’s joys and sorrows. All I feel is that they’re noisy.”

Luo Hao slowly shook his head, then gave Yuyang’s shoulder a wry pat. “Brother Yang... We really aren’t cut from the same cloth. Lemons will be my constant companions. I get it now. You really can’t compare one person to another.”

“Haozi... you...”

“You don’t have to say anything, Brother Yang.” Luo Hao’s smile suddenly turned carefree. “Don’t worry. The guys won’t be jealous. We’ll support you with everything we’ve got!”

Honestly, add some music to that moment, and he might’ve actually looked pretty cool.

But as the saying goes, nobody stays cool for more than three seconds.

And sure enough, just three seconds later, Luo Hao was practically running on his way back to class.

“Aaaah! This is so frustrating! Explode, you hateful normie!!”

Yuyang watched Haozi’s retreating figure grow smaller and smaller.

But he wasn’t worried at all.

Yuyang knew that even if Haozi was feeling down now, he’d come around and make up with him on his own soon enough.

Why?

Because in a little while, he’d need to copy Yuyang’s math homework.