Su Jinning just smiled and stared straight at him: "So, you have to call me brother now."
Zhou Xingqi chuckled and released his hand: "Of course, I'm very polite."
“I can tell.” Su Jinning raised an eyebrow and naturally put her arm around Shen Moyu’s shoulder.
The two smiled at each other, their equally beautiful eyes looking harmless. But Shen Moyu felt awkward and quickly changed the subject: "When did you arrive?"
Zhou Xingqi stared intently at Su Jinning's arm that was hooked around Shen Moyu's shoulder: "I just got back this morning with a friend. It happened so suddenly that I didn't have time to tell you."
"I see. How long are you staying this time?" Shen Moyu smiled and asked casually.
Zhou Xingqi smiled innocently: "I'll stay as long as you want!"
In an instant, Su Jinning's smile vanished. Looking at the unfamiliar boy who smiled like a friendly neighbor, he felt a tightness in his chest.
The atmosphere froze for a few seconds, then Su Jinning simply smiled and patted his shoulder: "You two chat, I'll go upstairs first."
Su Jinning left without looking back, carrying two bags. Shen Moyu wasn't stupid; he could see the emotions hidden in Su Jinning's eyes. He had imagined Su Jinning's jealousy countless times, but what he feared most was that Su Jinning would pretend not to care.
"elder brother."
"Hmm...what's wrong?"
"Your friend..." Zhou Xingqi narrowed his eyes: "Is he in a bad mood?"
Shen Moyu was a little unsure how to respond, so she quickly explained, "No, you're overthinking it."
"Oh." Zhou Xingqi shrugged and casually changed the subject. "Then you guys keep having fun. My friends and I are going back too."
Shen Moyu nodded: "Okay."
After Zhou Xingqi walked away, Shen Moyu felt a headache coming on. He had never seen Su Jinning jealous since they got together, and had even thought about experiencing it once, but seeing his nonchalant and pretentious demeanor, he felt utterly overwhelmed.
"Finished talking?" Su Jinning leaned against the stairwell.
Shen Moyu nodded: "Mm." He opened his mouth, but didn't know what to say.
Seeing that Su Jinning was just carrying this thing and walking forward on his own, he still went up and grabbed his arm.
"What's wrong?"
Shen Moyu didn't want to drag things out, so she got straight to the point: "Are you jealous?"
Su Jinning was taken aback for a moment, then suddenly laughed: "You're quite direct."
Shen Moyu ignored those words and continued to explain, "We don't have a complicated relationship. He's just a friend of mine. We met during a speech in junior high school."
"Ah." Su Jinning nodded in a mocking manner, and chuckled lightly, "Qin Zhi too, right? You were together?"
"No...it wasn't the same time." Shen Moyu was telling the truth, but he felt his explanation was absurd.
Su Jinning asked a probing question: "Is this a matchmaking corner for you guys?"
Shen Moyu rolled her eyes and continued, "After we met at that math competition, I found him to be quite smart. We've had a few interactions and gotten along quite well, so we've kept in touch and our relationship has always been good."
Su Jinning looked at him and sighed.
The two walked up the elevator side by side. There were few people around, so Shen Moyu lowered her voice and said, "His family seems to have a very good background. When I transferred from No. 8 Middle School to No. 1 Middle School, it was he who used his connections to get me in."
Su Jinning looked at him in disbelief: "He used his connections to get you in?"
Shen Moyu nodded frankly: "Yes. Zhengde No.1 High School is a private school after all. They require more than just scores; it also has to be within the designated catchment area. Especially for someone like me who transferred in the second year of high school, it's quite a challenge."
Su Jinning laughed, unsure whether it was a laugh of helplessness or a laugh of anger: "So I should thank him for bringing us together?"
Shen Moyu laughed and shrugged. "Maybe."
Although Su Jinning said that, she still couldn't help but become suspicious.
What kind of relationship and background allowed him to use his connections to get Shen Moyu in?
"What does his family do? Are they so willing to pull strings just for a friend?"
Shen Moyu thought about it carefully for a moment, then said calmly, "I don't know. I asked him, and he only said that his family has a company overseas."
Su Jinning frowned, genuinely finding it hard to believe. However, judging from the young man's attire, he certainly looked like a wealthy young master.
Shen Moyu thought for a moment and said, "I didn't care that much. After what happened at No. 8 Middle School, I was just anxious to transfer schools. I'd be more than happy if he could help."
Su Jinning fell silent upon hearing this, and upon reflection, it was indeed true.
Since Shen Moyu was willing to explain, he didn't want to hold onto the matter any longer.
"Alright, alright." Su Jinning put her arm around Shen Moyu's waist and moved closer. "I was just joking. He's just a fifteen or sixteen-year-old kid. Why should I take him seriously?"
Seeing his smug smile, Shen Moyu immediately punched him, saying, "You did that on purpose, didn't you?"
"Hey hey!" Su Jinning hugged him with a grin, "But, I'm really annoyed. He keeps calling you 'brother, brother' whenever he sees you. Is he a rooster?"
He looked jealous and aggrieved, which made Shen Moyu laugh: "You're crazy."
It was already past 2 PM when the four of them left the arcade. Chen Hang and his friend had made plans to see a movie, but Su Jinning and Shen Moyu didn't want to disturb them, so they said goodbye and parted ways.
"Want to go buy dog food for Rolling Ball?" He put his arm around Shen Moyu's shoulder.
Shen Moyu readily agreed. As they walked to the pet shop three miles away, Su Jinning's phone suddenly rang.
"Dad," he called out as he answered the phone.
Shen Moyu didn't want to listen in, so she went in and bought the things herself first.
When he opened the door, Su Jinning had already finished her phone call and was waiting for him. She was carrying a large bag of things.
Shen Moyu walked over with the dog food in her hand and looked at what he was carrying: "You went to the supermarket again?"