Stop Chasing the School Belle, My Shy Deskmate is Sweet and Soft - Chapter 28

After they left Qingshui Park, Xia Tian finally released Ye Ningyu’s arm.

The three of them stood at the park entrance, each with different expressions.

Fang Yu could barely contain his excitement, turning eagerly to Xia Tian.

“Little Tian, tonight was absolutely amazing! Not only did you slap Qiao Shaoxuan in the face, but you also completely shut down Xu Yuan. It feels like all the grudges from before have finally been settled!”

Xia Tian chuckled lightly, his expression calm and unaffected. “It’s not that big of a deal. They’re insignificant people, really. If Qiao Shaoxuan hadn’t acted like a clown, I wouldn’t have wasted my time on him.”

To Xia Tian, Qiao Shaoxuan and Xu Yuan didn’t matter.

They were just passersby in his life, no one worth caring about.

Ever since his rebirth, the only person that mattered to him was Little Ye. All he wanted to do was work hard, make money, and ensure a happy future for her.

Fang Yu, seeing how composed his best friend was, scratched his head in confusion.

Wait… shouldn’t Little Tian be more excited than I am?

What Fang Yu didn’t realize was that the Xia Tian standing before him was no longer the same 18-year-old boy.

Finally, Ye Ningyu snapped out of the surprise from earlier, when Xia Tian had grabbed her arm and hurriedly pulled her away.

At first, she had let herself wonder if Fang Yu was right—could it be that Xia Tian really didn’t like Xu Yuan anymore?

But after calming down, Ye Ningyu quickly dismissed the thought.

Compared to Xu Yuan, who was radiant and full of charm, what did she have to offer? Nothing.

And there was also her painful past…

“Xia Tian must have just said those things to get back at the class monitor,” Ye Ningyu sighed to herself.

She didn’t think happiness like that could fall into her lap.

She reached into her pocket and pulled out the money they had earned from the evening’s sales, neatly stacked.

“Xia Tian… you sold 599 fruit platters tonight. Here’s 2,995 yuan…”

“What are you talking about? We sold them. You helped too,” Xia Tian corrected.

Ye Ningyu immediately shook her head. “N-No, I was just taking the money. I didn’t do the hard work.”

Xia Tian firmly denied it. “You’re wrong. Because you were handling the money, Fang Yu and I were able to focus on our tasks. Without you, we’d have been overwhelmed. You helped a lot!”

“R-Really?”

“Of course!” Xia Tian looked at her seriously this time.

He was genuinely praising her.

Without her help tonight, things would have been chaotic for him and Fang Yu.

At that moment, Fang Yu chimed in, nodding earnestly. “Little Tian’s right, Little Ye. Without you, we wouldn’t have managed. Don’t sell yourself short.”

Embarrassed by the praise, Ye Ningyu blushed red and quickly looked down at the ground.

“Thank you, Xia Tian. Thank you, Fang Yu.”

Xia Tian smiled, pleased with her response.

But then he raised an eyebrow and glanced at Fang Yu. “Wait a minute… what did you just call her?”

“Uh… Little Ye?” Fang Yu stammered, not realizing what he’d done wrong.

Bam! Xia Tian kicked him playfully in the butt.

“How dare you! You think you can just call her Little Ye? That’s my nickname for her!”

Watching the two boys banter, Ye Ningyu couldn’t help but giggle, covering her mouth with her hand.

It was probably the happiest night she’d had all year.

She had never imagined she could spend so much time with the boy she liked, seeing so many sides of him…

After Xia Tian and Fang Yu finished messing around, they checked the time. It was already past 9 p.m.

Xia Tian took the 2,995 yuan and split it into three portions.

He kept 995 for himself.

“Fang Yu, this is yours. Little Ye, this is yours. Take it.”

When Ye Ningyu saw Xia Tian trying to give her so much money, she panicked and shook her head vigorously.

“X-Xia Tian, I can’t take this money!”

“Even if I helped, it wasn’t worth this much… Plus, you two covered the costs and did all the physical work. I can’t accept it.”

Xia Tian raised his eyebrow and scolded her. “What are you talking about? Take it!”

“N-No, I can’t!”

“Take it!”

“No!”

This time, Ye Ningyu’s expression was firm. No matter what, she wasn’t going to accept the money.

Xia Tian squinted at her, surprised by her stubbornness.

Realizing she wouldn’t budge, he reluctantly took half of it back, intending to give her 500 yuan instead.

But she still shook her head. “Five hundred is too much…”

She then pulled a 100-yuan bill from the stack and quietly tucked it into her pocket.

Smiling sweetly, she said, “That’s it. This 100 yuan will be my payment for the night!”

Xia Tian wanted to protest further, but after seeing how determined she was, he thought better of it.

If he kept insisting on giving her money, she’d just refuse.

In that case, he would find another way to give it to her later.

Fang Yu, on the other hand, shuffled awkwardly. “Little Tian, I think you’re giving me way too much… You came up with the idea, and you did all the dice-rolling. I was just running errands and handing out fruit platters. I don’t feel right taking this much.”

Xia Tian grinned mischievously.

“Don’t worry, my dear son. I know you feel uneasy about taking it. That’s why the money I’m giving you includes the funds for our next venture.”

“?”

Oh, great. Way to treat me differently, huh?

It’s true—women are like clothes, and brothers are like toilet paper… disposable and ready to be tossed aside.

Xia Tian checked the time and put his playful mood aside.

He needed to take Ye Ningyu home; otherwise, her mother would start worrying.

He turned to Fang Yu with a serious expression.

“Okay, enough joking. Take my share of the money too, and head to the market. Buy 1,000 yuan worth of fruit. The real money will be made later tonight—what we did earlier was just a warm-up.”

“What? It’s already so late. Are we pulling an all-nighter?”

“And even if there’s still fruit at the market, who will we sell it to? The park’s already quieting down, and most people are heading home.”

Fang Yu was confused.

But Xia Tian didn’t give him a lengthy explanation. “You don’t need to worry about who we’re selling to. Just take the tricycle and go to the market. You’re right, the cheaper fruit is gone by now, but we’ve got enough money to buy in bulk. Go directly to a wholesale vendor.”

“Remember to get plenty of plastic containers. Buy 1,000 yuan worth of fruit, and then have a restaurant cut it all up and pack it into boxes. Be quick about it.”

Fang Yu had more questions, but Xia Tian was already wheeling his bike over, ready to take Ye Ningyu home.

Just before he left, Xia Tian handed Fang Yu another 1,000 yuan.

“Two thousand should be more than enough to cover everything. I’ll meet you at Bar Street in an hour.”

With that, he motioned for Ye Ningyu to hop on the bike.

Fang Yu watched them ride off, standing there in a daze.

After a moment, he clenched his fists. “No way I’m doubting Little Tian! We’re brothers—not by blood, but by choice! I trust him completely!”

Biting his lip, Fang Yu decided to take the risk.

They had started with just 100 yuan, but now they’d multiplied their money thirtyfold!

This was his chance to turn his tricycle into a motorbike, and maybe even turn that motorbike into a car!

And so, in the dark streets of Bei’an at 9:30 p.m., a determined young man pedaled a tricycle with all his might.

—

As Xia Tian pedaled his bike, the night air turned chilly.

He told Ye Ningyu, who was sitting on the back seat, to put her hands into the pockets of his jacket.

“Xia Tian, I’m not cold.”

“Oh, I’m cold. If you put your hands in, I’ll feel warmer.”

“Huh? Oh… okay.”

Xia Tian chuckled quietly to himself.

Little Ye was way too easy to trick. How would she manage without him?

He sighed inwardly.

As they passed a stoplight, Ye Ningyu spotted an old man struggling to carry a large burlap sack toward the bus stop.

With her kind heart, she immediately noticed and tapped Xia Tian on the shoulder.

“Xia Tian, I… I want to help that elderly man.”

“You stay here. With those skinny arms of yours, the old man probably has more strength than you do.”

Xia Tian sighed, glancing at the man.

He parked his bike by the curb and jogged over to help the old man with his sack.

When he reached him, Xia Tian hoisted the sack onto his shoulder.

The old man looked at him in confusion. “Young man, what are you doing? You’re going to help me carry this?”

Xia Tian nodded with a bright smile and said,

“That’s right, old man! Let me give you a hand!”