127 CH127

Tang Yin was shocked by how easily Zhifeng had let the whole thing go, and even more so by Wang Zhifeng saying that he’d let Lin Yi ‘get back to her in a bit’!

That was simply not something the dean would say! He’d always been disapproving of boy-girl relationships developing in school, but now……

Tang Yin sighed faintly. Was this due to the power Lin Yi’s identity gave him, as well?

She only walked off back to her class quietly, sitting down at her seat as she contemplated on the events the past few days. She was a bit troubled…… Did Lin Yi like her, or not?

She raised her head slightly to peek out into the hallway- Lin Yi was having a nice chat with the dean, and she pouted her lips in response. You’d have to be a young master to do that sort of thing.

Tang Yin was both frustrated at and afraid of Lin Yi. She’d be able to mess with him and vent her frustrations on him a little if she were mindful of his image, but one misstep was all that was needed for Lin Yi to unleash his fury on her…… She dared not imagine the things he’d do to her if she ever crossed the line.

There were too many rich little masters who wouldn’t hesitate to do whatever they wanted at school- the iron rules in Songshan’s First School prevented that from taking place. Tang Yin herself wouldn’t be as safe as she was if it weren’t for the reputation the school had to maintain… It was the star school of the state, after all, with amazing college acceptance rates and everything. The board of directors was also composed of members with powerful backgrounds, in addition, and even the most carefree and devious of delinquents in the school had a sort of bottom line they’d never cross regardless of what kind of family they were from. The school would expel them without a hint of hesitation otherwise.

She remembered her friend, her bestie since childhood, who now stayed home all day due to her crippled legs…… She’d been filled with hopes and dreams of the future once, very much like Tang Yin herself was, but now……

It was said that poor kids matured faster, and Tang Yin was one such example. She was a girl who understood the reality of cruel society, especially so with the whole thing with her father. She understood perfectly well how weak and vulnerable her family was, and she never expected any pity coming from the princes who’d toyed with her before…… Her bestie’s boyfriend had said that he’d bring her friend out of poverty and offer her a life of luxury, and he even said that in front of Tang Yin’s face as well. But how did that turn out?

As a result, Tang Yin started closing herself off gradually without even realizing it herself, growing cautious and suspecting of princes like Lin Yi as time went on. Perhaps it was that very sense of caution that led her to mess with Lin Yi, out of both passion and self-defense. Even so, Tang Yin understood that her actions would only cause herself trouble, should Lin Yi ever decide to take down that facade he was putting on……

Tang Yin regretted ever crossing Lin Yi in the first place, as she thought about it. She even stepped on his shoes a couple of times. What if he decided that he didn’t want to put up with that bullshit anymore……

Tang Yin’s mind was a mess when a sudden tap on the window startled her with a jump. She raised her head, frightened as she looked at the window- Lin Yi was standing there with his hand against it.

“W-what are you doing?” Tang Yin asked, starting to get a little afraid- she’d just been thinking of how Lin Yi might throw his facade away all of a sudden and decide to force himself on her…… The timing of Lin Yi’s appearance couldn’t be worse.

Lin Yi was able to tell what Tang Yin was saying by reading her lips, but he pointed at the window handle, indicating that Tang Yin wouldn’t be able to hear him with the window closed.

“Oh……” Tang Yin saw that the window was closed, as well. She then got the window open, a little stiff as she did so.

“You seem to be afraid of me?” Lin Yi asked- the girl looked like a porcupine defending against a predator, and that wasn’t the kind of direction he wanted his relationship with her to be going in…… He wanted something innocent, a nice relationship a young couple would have. He didn’t want to be that dominant over the partner……

“Why would I be?” Tang Yin said as she twisted her body backwards, so as to put some distance between Lin Yi and her. The movement didn’t look very natural. “You, on the other hand- what exactly are you planning?”

“Nothing..?” Lin Yi replied innocently. He did find Tang Yin to be quite an attractive woman, with an interesting personality on top of that- but surely all men had thoughts like that? He hadn’t even made any advances on the girl yet.

Tang Yin only bit her lip as she looked at the insanely innocent look in Lin Yi’s eyes. “You got rid of Zou Ruoming, and even made my mom accept you…… You bought me a dress, too…… Weren’t you trying to date me..?”

Lin Yi was shy, but she’d decided midway that she’d reject Lin Yi once and for all, since their conversation had gotten to this point and all.

“Ugh…… Bought you a dress?” Lin Yi didn’t expect the girl to still think of the dress as a gift when he’d gotten her to pay fifty kuai for it. Maybe he was too good at gifting things to people.

But it seemed that his guess was right- Tang Yin did assume that he was chasing her…… It wasn’t a stretch to see what he’d been doing as methods to hit on her, after all. Lin Yi smiled bitterly at the notion- Huaijun would probably be laughing at him at this point if he ever found out.

“Alright, you got me. Well?” Lin Yi teased, deciding to admit to Tang Yin’s accusation as his dark sense of humor fueled him.

“Y-y-you! How could you!” Tang Yin didn’t expect Lin Yi to just drop the act from that little prod!! She lost all her bravery that instant, and lowered her head timidly, unsure of what she should do next. She didn’t even dare look Lin Yi in the eyes anymore, at that point.

Tang Yin’s head was so lowered it looked like she was trying to stuff her head in her shirt! Her hair started falling to the front, revealing her snow white skin as her head continued drooping.

Lin Yi was about to tease her a bit more when he noticed a fluttering in Tang Yin’s long lashes, and her body started shuddering a bit as well. A shine lit up at the edge of her eye, and a trail of crystal water slid down her cheek.

Lin Yi blinked in surprise- Tang Yin was crying!! He didn’t remember the porcupine to be that easy to break?! Wasn’t she always stepping on his feet, full of bravery? He’d never expected someone who seemed that strong to cry after a single tease!

Wasn’t she holding up pretty well when Wang Zhifeng was giving her a scolding?!

“Okay, okay, don’t cry……” It was a first for Lin Yi to be consoling a girl, and he started panicking, unsure of what to do. “I’ll buy you some sweets if you stop crying……”

Tang Yin couldn’t believe her ears- Lin Yi was mocking her, laughing at her for crying like a little kid!! She felt so frustrated, and more tears started coming down…… She put one hand on the table as she sobbed.

“Hey, hey…… Here, I’ll promise you something, okay? I’ll fulfill one request of yours if you stop crying……” Lin Yi hadn’t made promises to people before, but he’d definitely follow through if he did end up making one.

Huaijun would probably jump back in shock if he learned that his captain made a _promise_ just to get a girl to stop crying.

“Who’d want that……” Tang Yin said through quivering lips. She stopped paying Lin Yi any attention after that.

Helpless, Lin Yi decided to get back to his classroom. He didn’t want the students coming back from the exercise break to see him standing by class nine’s window like that.

*[Long Taos]: side characters in Chinese operas who perform acrobatics and fight scenes

*[12.47 to 13.07]: don't ask me about the tree sap