Stop Chasing the School Belle, My Shy Deskmate is Sweet and Soft - Chapter 27

Qiao Shaoxuan’s face turned beet red.

“You, you’re definitely cheating!”

“I’m cheating again? Earlier, you accused me of cheating, so we switched dice, yet I’m still cheating now?”

Qiao Shaoxuan stammered, unable to come up with a coherent response.

He finally realized that his half-baked dice-rolling skills were a joke compared to Xia Tian’s. It was like trying to show off swordsmanship in front of Guan Yu—utterly pathetic.

Xia Tian glanced at Fang Yu. “Fang Yu, pack up all the fruit platters Master Qiao has bought and give them to him.”

“On it!” Fang Yu grinned, gleefully packing up Qiao Shaoxuan’s fruit platters and handing the bags over to him, not forgetting to throw in a few jabs.

“Wow, Young Master Qiao, who knew you loved fruit so much! I never would’ve guessed. Hahaha!”

“Fang Yu, you—!”

Watching Fang Yu with that smug look on his face, Qiao Shaoxuan felt both humiliated and enraged.

Not only had he lost face, but he had also just spent 100 yuan on a pile of fruit platters that he didn’t even want!

Instinctively, he glanced back at Xu Yuan, only to see that she and Chen Jiayi had already distanced themselves from him, not bothering to acknowledge him at all. They even looked a little disgusted.

At that moment, Qiao Shaoxuan felt utterly pathetic.

He had been humiliated by Xia Tian, laughed at by the crowd, and now even his goddess had abandoned him.

His face burned with embarrassment, and he wished he could find a hole to crawl into.

His toes practically curled into the ground, as if he were trying to dig his way into the Taklamakan Desert…

Xia Tian chuckled and ignored Qiao Shaoxuan, turning to the crowd. “Everyone, that’s it for tonight. We’ve sold out of the last twenty fruit platters. Thank you all for your support!”

The crowd nodded in acknowledgment. After watching Xia Tian’s dice game with Qiao Shaoxuan, they realized that Xia Tian had been going easy on them earlier. He could completely control the outcome of the dice rolls if he wanted to.

He had only held back because he hadn’t been taking it seriously.

But when a rich kid like Qiao Shaoxuan came along with 100 yuan to blow, Xia Tian went all out and showed his true skills.

As the crowd dispersed, Xia Tian and Fang Yu began cleaning up the trash left behind.

At that moment, Xu Yuan approached, looking at Xia Tian with a mixture of pity and affection.

“Xia Tian, I misunderstood you before. I thought you didn’t like me anymore, but seeing how hard you’re working to save money for my watch, it really pains me to see you like this. You know what? I don’t need the latest model of the watch. I’ll settle for an older version.”

Xia Tian blinked, stunned, as he stared at her.

Did this woman hit her head or something?

“You… you think I’m doing all this to buy you a watch?”

Xu Yuan didn’t catch the sarcasm in his voice and eagerly nodded, tears of gratitude welling up in her eyes.

“Yes! But you don’t have to work so hard. I’m not that materialistic. See? I’m even willing to give up on the newest model for you!”

“Uh… sorry to burst your bubble, but I am materialistic. Also, just so we’re clear, my hard work has nothing to do with you.”

The smile on Xu Yuan’s face froze instantly.

She couldn’t believe what she was hearing.

Didn’t Xia Tian just say, in front of so many people, that the girl he liked was here tonight?

How could his attitude change so quickly?

Wait… Xia Tian didn’t know she had overheard him earlier!

Xu Yuan quickly grabbed his arm. “Come on, Xia Tian! I heard what you said earlier to the crowd. You don’t have to pretend anymore…”

“Don’t you know? Open, honest love is far better than a love hidden deep inside. There’s no need to secretly admire me anymore—I much prefer when you openly and boldly pursue me.”

Xia Tian looked at her with a mix of amusement and disbelief.

What on earth had this woman imagined in her head?!

Unable to hold it in anymore, Xia Tian burst out laughing, clutching his stomach.

Xu Yuan froze. “Why are you laughing?”

“You didn’t seriously think I was talking about you earlier, did you?”

Xu Yuan frowned, her eyebrows furrowing. “Who else could it be? There’s no other girl here, and you’ve been working so hard just to win me over, haven’t you?”

Hearing this, Fang Yu could no longer contain his laughter. He rushed over and gave Xu Yuan a huge eye-roll.

“Xu Yuan, did Qiao Shaoxuan’s simping give you this much confidence?”

“Can’t you see that there’s a beautiful girl standing right there? She has a better figure and a prettier face than you!”

Xu Yuan followed Fang Yu’s gaze, her eyes landing on the girl standing next to Xia Tian—the one who had been handling the money.

Biting her lip in frustration, Xu Yuan retorted, “What are you talking about? That girl’s just someone you guys hired to attract customers!”

Fang Yu looked at her like she was an idiot.

“Are you blind? That’s Ye Ningyu! The top student in your class—Ye Ningyu!”

What?!

Ye Ningyu?!

Both Xu Yuan and Chen Jiayi were stunned as they stared at the shy girl standing beside Xia Tian.

Even though she looked somewhat familiar, Xu Yuan couldn’t reconcile this beautiful, shapely girl with the image of the timid, bookish Ye Ningyu she had in her mind.

The Ye Ningyu she remembered was someone who always wore her school uniform, constantly hid her face in her collar, and could barely speak without stuttering.

How could this girl possibly be her?

“You… you’re lying! There’s no way this is Ye Ningyu!”

Xu Yuan refused to believe it, but the next second, her delusion was shattered.

Ye Ningyu took a small step forward and said softly, “C-Class monitor… I really am Ye Ningyu.”

Xu Yuan’s head was buzzing, her mouth slightly agape, her expression one of utter shock.

It was as if she had just discovered a whole new world.

This was really Ye Ningyu!

The same Ye Ningyu who was always invisible in class, only standing out when the exam rankings were posted!

“So… so the girl you were talking about earlier wasn’t me—it was Ye Ningyu… wasn’t it?”

Xu Yuan, unwilling to accept Fang Yu’s explanation, turned to Xia Tian, her eyes already welling with tears, hoping he would deny it.

But Xia Tian, without a hint of emotion, nodded.

“Who else?”

At that moment, everything suddenly clicked for Xu Yuan.

Xia Tian’s 180-degree shift in behavior hadn’t been an act. He wasn’t hiding his feelings for her—he genuinely didn’t like her anymore.

And all the rumors about Xia Tian walking Ye Ningyu home? They weren’t rumors. They were true.

In an instant, tears welled up in Xu Yuan’s eyes.

Everything she had assumed, everything she had imagined—it was all just a fabrication in her own mind.

Xia Tian had long since stopped liking her.

“Little Yuan, don’t cry… Xia Tian, you should apologize to her!” Chen Jiayi pleaded.

“You must be dreaming. Why should I apologize? I’m not some brown sheep grazing on the plains of Green Hills. There’s no reason for me to apologize.”

Xia Tian coldly dismissed their pleas, turning away from Xu Yuan and Chen Jiayi without a second thought.

“Fang Yu, Little Ye, let’s go.”

Xia Tian grabbed Ye Ningyu’s arm and started walking out of Qingshui Park.

Little Ye, still in shock, stared at Xia Tian’s profile, her heart pounding in her chest.

In the moonlight, his side profile looked incredibly handsome.

“The moon is bright, but its brightness is useless, yet it still shines. I like you, even though it’s pointless, but I still like you.”