Qu Yun naturally didn't kill her; he simply said, "If you call out, I'll treat you to a meal."
You Ran understood that life is only once, so she shouted out almost without thinking, "Teacher, I want to eat hot pot."
Qu Yun smiled, his clear, bright eyes becoming slightly longer. He ran his hand through You Ran's hair, gently tugging at it: "Good girl."
You Ran despised herself at this moment, but between dignity and her stomach, she resolutely chose the latter.
After a lukewarm teacher-student relationship unfolded, You Ran pulled Qu Yun to a hot pot restaurant.
Because she was eating at Qu Yun's restaurant, You Ran grabbed the menu and ordered wildly. When the dishes arrived, she lowered her head and ate voraciously until her stomach was about to burst before she stopped eating.
"Tell me the truth, have you not eaten for days?" Qu Yun asked.
“26 hours,” You Ran said truthfully.
"Your current situation is quite miserable." Qu Yun placed a piece of tender beef into You Ran's oil dish.
"You flatter me." You Ran picked up the beef and placed it aside.
It's best to be cautious about what the civilized beast gives you.
"Judging from the current situation, you probably have nowhere to stay?" Qu Yun asked.
"Smart," You Ran replied casually.
After agreeing, You Ran suddenly raised her head, stared straight at Qu Yun, and asked, "You wouldn't be thinking of... having me live with you, would you?"
"If you apologize for what you did last semester, I'll provide you with free accommodation," Qu Yun offered.
“You were the one who messed with me last semester, weren’t you?” You Ran said.
“But,” Qu Yun said, his eyes light as he casually glanced at You Ran, “it will take a lot of effort for me to mess with you.”
"So, I should apologize for not deliberately running into the wall and instead troubling you to push me?" You Ran wanted to confirm Qu Yun's meaning.
"Your comprehension is very high, which makes me quite pleased," Qu Yun said with a smile.
You Ran's eyes began to dart around, searching for anything that could serve as a murder weapon.
"How about we go take a look at my house before we decide?" Qu Yun suggested.
If it were You Ran from last semester, she would have picked up the entire oil pot and poured it over Qu Yun's head, but now, she took a deep breath and agreed to the suggestion.
Qu Yun's house was near the school. After they finished eating, the two decided to walk home as a way to digest their food.
The two walked side by side, and although the atmosphere was unusual, many pedestrians mistook them for a couple, and many women looked at You Ran with envy in their eyes.
"I've noticed that your appearance seems to be quite popular with women." Although they were enemies, You Ran still spoke the truth and praised Qu Yun generously.
Qu Yun's answer was: "Actually, she is also popular with men."
"Your tone is really irritating." You Ran said disdainfully, "It's better to be more humble."
"I was just stating a fact," Qu Yun said.
"How do you know you're popular with men? Are you one of those types?" You Ran started her gossipy ways again: "Or have you been preyed upon by many men? Did you succeed? Are you usually the top or the bottom?"
“If you ask again, my conditions won’t be as simple as an apology.” Qu Yun’s tone was slightly threatening.
"Judging from your expression, it must be," You Ran continued.
"I'm canceling our agreement." Qu Yun said, quickening his pace to shake off You Ran.
You Ran refused to give up the accommodation and meal tickets even if it meant death, and tried to catch up quickly, but her legs were not as long as his, and she almost ran out of breath. In the end, she could only pounce on him and grab Qu Yun's arm.
Qu Yun lowered his head and glanced at her coldly: "Let go."
It leisurely raised its head, slightly opened its mouth, and made this sound: "...Meow".
After that meow, the ice on Qu Yun's face gradually melted, and he reached into You Ran's hair: "Good girl."
A smile graced his leisurely face, but his heart, which had suffered endless humiliation, was bleeding profusely.
Tonight, she's going to bite off pieces of Qu Yun's flesh and eat him whole!
Seeing that You Ran was clearly adopting a cat-like posture, Qu Yun was satisfied, and the two continued walking forward.
As she approached the school gate, You Ran's phone suddenly rang. Upon closer inspection, she saw that the number belonged to Bai Ling.
These days, in order to avoid the person she doesn't want to see, You Ran doesn't answer any calls from strangers, but her own mother's call made her lower her guard.
"Mom, I'm fine, don't worry. I'm with... a friend. But I might not be back for a few more days," You Ran answered the phone, reporting in as relaxed a tone as possible.
There was silence on the other end.
"Mom?" You Ran called out.
"It's me... Do you remember?" A male voice came from the other end, slightly magnetic. As always, the beginning of each sentence was a bit heavy, as if he was a little impatient, but the last syllable suddenly became mellow, with a comforting gentleness. This change was like a mystery, making people's hearts rise and fall, unable to find their bottom.
When you care about something this much, your feelings have already deepened.
The voice was both familiar and strange, so strangely detached that it felt like being scratched by a sharp claw, startling you so much you wanted to hang up immediately.
But just as You Ran's hand touched the red button, the voice on the other end stopped her: "I just want to ask a few questions."
Since it wasn't a real meeting with him, You Ran held on for a while longer: "Okay, ask away."
"Are you avoiding me?" This was Gu Chengyuan's first question.
"...No." You Ran lied.
"Then why did you leave the day before I was supposed to come back?" This was Gu Chengyuan's second question.
This time, You Ran didn't lie, but she chose to remain silent.
"So you've been hiding near your home, haven't you?" Gu Chengyuan asked.
“No,” You Ran finally answered his question honestly, “I’m at the university.”
"Now?" Gu Chengyuan asked.
"Yes." You Ran didn't detect the certain tone in Gu Chengyuan's voice.
"Are you living at the university?" Gu Chengyuan asked, probing further with each question.
"Why are you asking this?" You Ran suddenly became wary. Based on her understanding of Gu Chengyuan, none of his words were without purpose.
You Ran didn't need to think hard, because in the next second, she saw her target—a car parked at the university gate, and inside the car sat a man.
She was about the same age as Qu Yun, with a heroic profile and a firm, sexy curve to her lips.
A casual glance reveals a sinister glint in his eyes, but upon closer inspection, one sees only gentle, undulating vines.
He arrived here, but Gu Chengyuan had been here for a while. Just now, he was trying to trick her into revealing information, and You Ran instantly understood this.
As always, she could never guess what he would do next.
All You Ran could do was run away. She wanted to grab her meal ticket and accommodation ticket, Qu Yun, and run away from the school gate, but when she turned around, she found that Qu Yun was looking at her.
"Do you know him?" Qu Yun asked.
"He" naturally refers to Gu Chengyuan.
You Ran gleaned an important piece of information from Qu Yun's words: "You know him too?"
"Gu Chengyuan and I are alumni of the same university. Although we don't have much contact, he is a prominent figure on campus." Qu Yun's voice was calm, like a bowl of porridge without longan, lotus seeds, or red dates, just a plain bowl of porridge.
"And what about you?" Qu Yun asked, "What is your relationship with him?"
You Ran kicked a pebble at her feet and said, "He... is my brother."
"My own brother?" Qu Yun asked.
Looking up casually, the sunlight was blinding: "My half-brother."
Gu Chengyuan did not discover them and returned safely to Qu Yun's home.
When Qu Yun opened the security door, You Ran stuck her head under his arm and eagerly peered inside.
Qu Yun's home is a duplex, quite large, with over a hundred square meters, exquisitely decorated, elegant and grand, with black, white and gray as the main colors.
Because this house is a high-rise apartment building located in the city's prime location, where every inch of land is extremely valuable, You Ran calculated that the price of one square meter here is enough for her to live on for a year.
Recalling the snail-shell-like dormitory where she and her classmates had lived for many years, she couldn't help but feel a strange envy and dark ulterior motives towards the wealthy and powerful families living in luxury.
She decided that she would never give up this wonderful place, even if it meant death.
"I've already seen the house. Now it's up to you to decide whether you want to apologize to me." Qu Yun sat down on the soft sofa, assuming a comfortable position.
You Ran sat down on the sofa opposite him, crossed his legs, and transformed into a street thug, saying, "I've decided to stay here, but I'm not apologizing. What can you do about it?"
The moment she finished speaking, You Ran was grabbed by the collar by Qu Yun and thrown out the door.
You Ran pounded on the door desperately: "How could you be so heartless as to abandon me?!"
You Ran's voice was deliberately amplified, with the intention of drawing out the neighbors and making them misunderstand that Qu Yun had wronged them, thus creating invisible but enormous social pressure on him and forcing Qu Yun to accept her.
Unfortunately, in modern society, people are indifferent. The leisurely voice was enough to penetrate the wall, but the neighbors around did not make a sound.
Qu Yun reopened the door and made a concession: "If you meow like a cat once a day, I'll let you stay for one day."
Seeing You Ran's grief and indignation, Qu Yun stopped pressuring her and closed the door again.
But a terrible cry, like that of a cat being skinned alive, came from outside the door.
Qu Yun opened the door: "Although it's not what I wanted, I'll let it go today... Come in."
You Ran lowered her head and walked into the house, rushing towards the bedroom upstairs, intending to hide in the room and lick her wounds alone, but Qu Yun reached out and blocked her way: "What are you doing?"
“Go to my room,” You Ran answered honestly.
“There is no ‘room of yours’ here,” Qu Yun said.
"Then where will I sleep?" You Ran asked nervously. Could it be that her meow from the old cat earlier was all for nothing?
Qu Yun glanced at her, then went upstairs. A minute later, she came downstairs with a pillow and a blanket in her hand and threw them on the sofa.
"You're letting me sleep here!?" You Ran's eyes widened. Although the sofa was soft, it wasn't a bed. Besides, shouldn't a normal man politely give up his room?
Unfortunately, Qu Yun wasn't a normal man; he nodded, "Yes."
Recalling the way this man disciplined her last semester, You Ran had to admit that Qu Yun was already being kind enough by not making her sleep in the toilet.
"What do you want to eat tonight?" Qu Yun asked.
"Steamed prawns and braised pork!" You Ran hurriedly replied, secretly pleased that the humiliation she had suffered was still worthwhile.
Next, Qu Yun handed her two red banknotes and an eco-friendly shopping bag: "Go ahead."