Chapter 5: Why’d You Stop Chasing Me?

Afternoon, 4 p.m. Jiang Qin and Guo Zihang stepped out of a diner, stuffed and satisfied.

Guo still couldn't let go of his bar fantasy, begging Jiang Qin to take him for the experience. But before they'd gone far, two familiar figures appeared ahead.

One was their class's math rep, Wang Huiru. The other? Class beauty Chu Siqi.

The girls strolled arm-in-arm from the pedestrian street, one munching a sausage, the other holding a candied hawthorn stick.

The summer heat left them sweaty, strands of hair clinging to their foreheads, faces flushed pink. Their quick breaths made their budding chests rise and fall.

Wang Huiru was pretty in a delicate, girl-next-door way, with dimples when she smiled. Her overalls screamed youthful energy—a beauty in her own right. But next to Chu Siqi, she paled.

Chu Siqi wore a beige dress, its hem brushing her knees. Her eyes sparkled, features refined, lips full, skin snowy white—making Wang Huiru look like a sidekick.

The four locked eyes. Wang Huiru reacted first, raising a hand.

"Jiang Qin, Guo Zihang, what're you guys doing here?"

Hearing her call, Jiang Qin looked up, his gaze accidentally crossing Chu Siqi's in the bustling crowd.

Then he dropped his smile, turning away with a cool indifference.

Maybe it was the memories of his past life, but Jiang Qin viewed relationships with a godlike detachment. He genuinely had no fondness for Chu Siqi.

Still, his near-40 soul gave him enough maturity to not storm off—just enough to keep it at that.

"We're doing business!"

Guo Zihang, ever the sunny type, grinned at everyone. If he were better-looking, he'd be a textbook "warm guy," but his face didn't quite make the cut—more like a "blazing goblin."

When Wang Huiru asked what they were up to, Guo spilled everything about their boxed-meal hustle, brimming with pride like it was a big deal.

And he wasn't wrong—it was brag-worthy.

In this era, high schoolers were shy. A stranger asking directions could fluster them, let alone making money.

Sure, some dreamed of earning cash to "experience life," but they'd stick to part-time gigs like handing out flyers.

Jiang Qin, though? He'd pulled off a slick middleman play—earning hundreds with nothing but wits. Who wouldn't be impressed?

Wang Huiru's dad, an elementary school teacher, made 3,000 yuan a month. After deductions, it was less than 100 a day.

Profit size aside, Jiang Qin clearing 270 in a day blew her mind.

Especially when Guo animatedly described Jiang Qin tossing cigs to the net cafe manager and selling an address for 200—Jiang Qin's image in her head shot up a few notches.

"Jiang Qin, how'd you suddenly start doing business?"

"Saving up for a wife," he quipped.

Wang Huiru laughed. "Starting now? How fancy a wife are you aiming for?"

Jiang Qin smirked. "Depends how many I marry. More wives, more money."

"You want multiple? Dream on!"

She chatted with Guo about college applications next, her tone full of excitement for university life.

Jiang Qin stayed on the sidelines, smiling but silent.

He'd already lived college once—no big longing there, no urge to chime in.

Even when Guo and Wang Huiru's fantasies about college were wildly off, he didn't play know-it-all.

Life's meaning comes from living it. No one's entitled to shatter others' dreams, no matter how much you know—unless they ask.

Meanwhile, Chu Siqi watched Jiang Qin, her gaze icy, her mood sour.

Since rejecting his confession, he'd changed.

No more QQ chats, no good-morning or good-night texts, no sneaky profile comments. He'd swapped his avatar, changed his bio.

It was like they'd become strangers.

Worst of all, she'd been browsing his profile yesterday when it locked mid-scroll. Checking back, it was sealed tight.

It pissed her off, fueling a growing sense of grievance. So she'd casually messaged him, asking why he locked it—was it everyone or just her?

No reply—not even a punctuation mark.

But why?

You liked me, not the other way around! Why'd you stop messaging me? Why block me from your space?

I never said I hated you or told you to stop chasing. Why'd you quit on your own?

Fuming, she recalled that afternoon riding the bus home. Spotting Jiang Qin by the roadside, she'd assumed he was there to apologize.

She'd planned it out—if he groveled enough, admitted he was just being stubborn, she might toss him a bone.

But he'd only nodded and biked off.

A teenage girl's heart is fragile, her pride sky-high. Being brushed off by a guy who'd chased her hard left her reeling with hurt.

She'd gone home, thrown a fit, and sworn never to speak to him again. No matter how he begged, she wouldn't budge.

Yet just now, meeting him on the street, she'd started imagining again.

If he'd just say hi, grovel a bit, admit his mistake, she'd deign to snap back coldly.

But he'd stood there, calm as ever, chatting with Wang Huiru without so much as glancing her way.

The more she thought, the angrier she got, her chest heaving, her grip tightening on Wang Huiru's arm.

Wincing, Wang Huiru snapped back to reality, glancing at her bestie, then at Jiang Qin. She remembered their post-exam drama.

No wonder they weren't talking.

Jiang Qin must be too ashamed to face the goddess who'd rejected him, right?

She actually liked him, though—especially after Guo's hype. He had a maturity other boys lacked.

So she decided to play matchmaker. Maybe she'd spark something good.

"Jiang Qin!"

"Hm?"

Wang Huiru's eyes glinted slyly. "You said you're earning for a wife—hinting at our Siqi, huh?"

Jiang Qin's face paled, his right eyelid twitching. "Sis, spare me."

"Not her?"

"Temple's too small—can't handle the blessing."

Chu Siqi snapped, teeth grinding, eyes misty. "Jiang Qin, what's that supposed to mean?"

He waved dismissively. "Nothing. I'm out—enjoy yourselves."

"Don't you dare! I didn't say you could leave!"

Pretending not to hear, Jiang Qin waved again, hopped on his bike by the curb, and melted into the street crowd without looking back.

Reborn, he saw no point explaining himself to someone he'd never cross paths with again. Why bother?

Stay true, stick to the mission—think I'm joking?

Chu Siqi stood rooted, watching him vanish, feeling utterly wronged as tears spilled over.

She wasn't some cliché novel heroine suddenly realizing she liked him and regretting it.

She just felt… dismissed. Like he saw her as something annoying, something to avoid.

Seeing her bestie choke up, Wang Huiru panicked.

Didn't she reject him? Why's he the one leaving and she's the one crying? What's this plot twist?