8

News of Jiang Yan's fight quickly spread among the second-year students. By the time of evening self-study, everyone was talking about it.

"I heard Jiang Yan knocked someone out and caused a concussion. The other party's parents came to the school, and now they're in the principal's office."

"So what? Jiang Yan's family is wealthy. They might just pay their way out of this."

"Maybe. But I heard from other classes that the other party's parents are lawyers, so it might not be so simple."

The classroom buzzed with gossip about Jiang Yan. Some claimed he was the son of an influential official in Xicheng, while others said he was the illegitimate child of a wealthy tycoon. Lin Tiao listened with amusement.

By the end of the evening self-study session, the chatter continued, and Lin Tiao was busy playing on her phone. Soon, the classroom fell silent as she noticed Jiang Yan standing right in front of her.

She met his gaze and noticed a faint handprint on his right cheek. Neither spoke, and neither did anyone else in the classroom.

Jiang Yan bent down, retrieved his black backpack and uniform jacket from under the desk, and left through the back door.

Lin Tiao glanced back and saw that Song Yuan and Hu Hanghang, seated in the back row, had red eyes.

When Jiang Yan left, students slowly came back to their senses. Someone muttered, "Isn't Jiang Yan expelled?"

Xu Yichuan suddenly stood up, kicking over the trash can in the back with a loud thud. He shouted, "You're the one who's getting expelled! Didn't your mother teach you not to speak carelessly?"

The person who had been criticized, though annoyed, didn't dare to argue back and could only roll their eyes in frustration.

At this moment, Mr. Yu walked into the classroom with a stern face. "What's all this noise? Haven't you made enough of a mess? If you don't want to study, get out!"

Lin Tiao was surprised. It was the first time she had seen Mr. Yu so angry. She had always thought of him as someone who would remain calm even if the sky fell.

Mr. Yu didn't stay long and left after a few minutes. Xu Yichuan, Hu Hanghang, and Song Yuan quickly followed him out.

Lin Tiao glanced at the empty seats next to her, deep in thought.

---

No extra classes were scheduled for the second-year students at No. 10, so the weekend remained a break.

Lin Tiao spent a day and a half at home. On Sunday afternoon, she went to the hospital. It was late by the time she left, already past five o'clock.

The sky had taken on an evening hue, with sunset spreading across the western clouds. The sun was gently receding, its light softening.

Lin Tiao walked along a small path.

At the end of the road stood a modern, multi-story shopping mall, surrounded by a maze of old alleyways.

At this time, the alleys were lined with many small stalls selling local snacks and trinkets.

Lin Tiao walked through the stalls and entered the mall, heading straight for the arcade on the fifth floor.

Being a weekend in a bustling area, the arcade was crowded. Lin Tiao went to the counter and exchanged two hundred yuan for game tokens.

As a child, her parents often went on business trips, leaving her with a daycare teacher. The teacher's daughter would frequently take her to the arcade downstairs.

As she grew older, she would come alone, spending entire afternoons there.

Lin Tiao had a particular fondness for claw machines and could spend hours playing them.

She approached a claw machine in the corner, inserted coins, moved the joystick, pressed the button, and tried again and again. Slowly, she got the hang of it, accumulating a growing pile of stuffed toys at her feet, with more and more spectators gathering around.

After a while, Lin Tiao cleared two-thirds of the prizes from the claw machine and noticed a crowd had gathered around her. Unfazed, she collected the stuffed toys in a bag provided by the staff and went to buy a drink.

In the arcade, vending machines sold beverages at higher prices than outside. Lin Tiao inserted five coins and received a can of cold cola. She opened it with a satisfying "ding" and enjoyed a few sips while leaning against a nearby table, casually surveying the room.

Nearby, people were cheering for a basketball machine competition, the sounds of excitement and encouragement filling the air. Lin Tiao glanced through the crowd, seeing basketballs continuously arcing through the air. She didn't pay much attention until she finished most of her cola and went to the restroom. When she came out, she heard a loud cheer from the basketball machine area.

"Awesome, bro! You broke the record!"

Lin Tiao paused, turning to see the crowd beginning to disperse. As they moved apart, she spotted the person standing in front of the machine.

The boy was wearing a white t-shirt and black athletic pants, with the cuffs rolled up slightly, revealing his slender ankles. Leaning against the machine, he was looking at his phone. The colorful lights above cast a warm glow on his shoulders, softening his usually intense demeanor.

As Lin Tiao hesitated about whether to approach, the boy suddenly looked up and saw her through the crowd. They locked eyes for five seconds.

Lin Tiao noticed him squinting slightly, as if trying to recognize her. A few seconds later, Jiang Yan walked over to her, stopping about a meter away. "What are you doing here?"

The tall, lean boy cast a shadow over her as he stood close, his dark eyes fixed on her.

Lin Tiao couldn't help but lick her lips nervously. "Just out to have some fun."

Jiang Yan glanced at her, then at the bag of toys she was holding, and raised an eyebrow. "Are you here alone?"

"Is it that surprising?" Lin Tiao regretted her response as soon as it left her mouth. She wanted to say something to make up for it but ended up just opening and closing her mouth without words.

Jiang Yan noticed her awkwardness and was reminded of Friday afternoon when she had looked down from the balcony, shocked but relieved.

He lifted his gaze, gently touched Lin Tiao's cast, and said in a mock threatening tone, "You've got some guts, don't you?"

"…" Lin Tiao took a small step back, her gaze shifting to his left arm. Looking for a new topic, she asked, "Oh, what happened to the cast on your arm?"

"Had it removed."

With the conversation faltering again, Lin Tiao was left struggling with what to say next. Fortunately, Jiang Yan broke the silence. "It's getting late. Have you eaten?"

Lin Tiao was about to politely refuse, indicating that they weren't close enough to dine together, when Jiang Yan spoke again. "Let's go have dinner together."

"…Okay."

Jiang Yan seemed familiar with the area. After leaving the mall, he led her toward the old alleys they had passed earlier.

The two walked in silence until they reached a restaurant. Jiang Yan finally spoke, "Let's see what we want to eat."

Lin Tiao took the menu from the staff, picked a couple of dishes, and handed it back to Jiang Yan. "I'm done with my selection."

Jiang Yan glanced at her choices, raised an eyebrow, and asked, "Is this all?"

Lin Tiao nodded. "Yes, just these."

Jiang Yan didn't say more. He quickly marked five or six additional items on the menu and handed it to the waiter.

As they sat across from each other in silence, the surrounding noise of eating, drinking, and laughter contrasted sharply with their quiet. It almost felt like they were there for a confrontation rather than a meal.

Fortunately, the restaurant served food quickly. Soon, their table was covered with plates. Noticing Lin Tiao's difficulties, Jiang Yan helped her set up her utensils and clean the table.

Lin Tiao, surprised by the gesture, said, "Thank you."

Jiang Yan glanced at her, placing the spicy stir-fried baby bok choy and garlic hollow heart vegetables she had ordered in front of her. He then moved his own dishes to his side of the table.

Lin Tiao was taken aback, looking at him with a puzzled expression. "Do you have some kind of illness?"

Jiang Yan looked at her with a half-smile and took a swig from a can of beer. "Isn't it that whoever orders it eats it?"

"..."

Lin Tiao almost jumped up. "Jiang Yan, I need to remind you that you invited me to dinner!"

Seeing her frustration, Jiang Yan couldn't help but laugh. He moved a plate of crayfish to her side. "Eat up."

Lin Tiao stared at the brightly colored, meat-filled crayfish in front of her, then at her casted arm. Taking a deep breath, she looked at Jiang Yan with a flat expression. "I feel like you're trying to make things difficult for me."

The night market was brightly lit, and Lin Tiao's delicate features were strikingly visible under the lights. Her long lashes curled, and her dark eyes shone brightly.

"Jiang Yan."

After she called his name, Lin Tiao realized this was the first time she had used his name so formally in all their time together.

For a moment, neither knew how to continue the conversation.

Clearly, Jiang Yan was equally perplexed. They both looked at each other with confused expressions in the light.

After several seconds, Jiang Yan averted his gaze, took the crayfish back, and put on a disposable glove. He skillfully peeled a crayfish and placed the peeled meat into Lin Tiao's bowl.

"..."

Lin Tiao was stunned by his action, unable to speak. She swallowed nervously, her left hand gripping her chopsticks but not moving.

As she wrestled with her hesitation, Jiang Yan peeled another crayfish and placed it in her bowl. Noticing she hadn't eaten yet, he asked, "Aren't you going to eat?"

"Yes!"

Lin Tiao quickly used her somewhat clumsy left hand to pick up a piece of crayfish and put it in her mouth.

The crayfish was spiced with a devilishly hot seasoning Jiang Yan had specifically requested. The intense heat and numbing spice spread across her tongue, overwhelming her taste buds.

Her eyes watered from the spice, but she endured and continued eating.

She had to eat the crayfish peeled by Jiang Yan, even if it made her cry.

Fortunately, after peeling a few more crayfish for her, Jiang Yan stopped. Lin Tiao, her lips tingling from the spiciness, drank most of the cold beverage on the table in one go.

To prevent Jiang Yan from peeling more crayfish for her, Lin Tiao decided to start a conversation. "So, what happened the other day?"

"Hm? What day?" Jiang Yan seemed caught off guard by the question and took a moment to understand. After a few seconds, he gave a vague response. "Disagreements."

Seeing he didn't want to elaborate, Lin Tiao didn't press further and reminded him, "Li Kun is quite concerned about this matter, and Mr. Yu is also quite upset."

"Got it." After saying this, he reached over and placed another peeled crayfish into her bowl.

"..."