Chapter 162
Li Qingxue shook her head. "I'm not feeling well, and my emotions are all over the place. Don't tell anyone, or I'll strangle you."
With that, she pinched Long Aotian's waist hard.
"Ouch! Easy there."
"Why didn't you just move away if it hurt?" Li Qingxue looked at Long Aotian, puzzled.
He chuckled and flicked her forehead. "If I move away, who will I let you pinch?"
"If you're feeling down, just tell Brother Long. He’s more than willing to help you through it. And don’t listen to your roommate’s nonsense; they’re just kids who don’t know anything."
As she said this, she flicked Li Qingxue's forehead again. Seeing her wince, Long Aotian continued, "You’re so silly, always so curious about everything."
"Next time you dare tease me, watch out! I’ll punch you!"
...
Back in the private room.
Li Qingxue sat back down, sipping her ginger tea with brown sugar in small gulps.
"What were you doing just now?" Lin Wanqing asked softly.
The blush on Li Qingxue's cheeks hadn’t faded, and being asked about what she was doing made it deepen even more.
Before Li Qingxue could say anything, Lin Wanqing added in a whisper, "I just went to the restroom."
At this, Li Qingxue's heart tightened, unsure of how to respond.
Lin Wanqing suddenly chuckled lightly. "Let’s talk about it another day."
Li Qingxue bit her lip and nodded gently.
On the way back.
"Qingxue, watch out for the cars."
Faced with Hu Yuying's concern, Li Qingxue suddenly felt at a loss.
She felt like she wasn’t a good friend; this emotional tug-of-war made her feel like she was betraying Hu Yuying.
It was an unbearable feeling.
"What’s wrong?" Hu Yuying gently held Li Qingxue's hand, sensing that something was off with her.
"I'm fine." Li Qingxue grasped Hu Yuying's small hand, but the inner struggle compelled her to ask, "Yuying, do you like Long Aotian? More than just seeing him as a brother?"
Caught off guard by the question, Hu Yuying was momentarily stunned, then turned to look at Li Qingxue.
She didn’t know how Li Qingxue had figured it out, but her heart urged her to be brave.
So she nodded lightly. "Yes, I don’t just see Brother Long as a brother."
Hearing Hu Yuying's answer, Li Qingxue let out a sigh of relief. "I’m sorry."
"You don’t need to apologize because I can’t say it’s okay."
Hu Yuying continued to lead Li Qingxue across the street. "Brother Long is great, and there are probably many people who like him. I’m just one of them. So, Qingxue, you really don’t need to say sorry."
She turned to Li Qingxue and smiled. "Besides, didn’t you say that if someone else likes Brother Long, it’s fair competition?"
"Is that really how you feel?" Li Qingxue looked at Hu Yuying earnestly.
Hu Yuying nodded candidly. "I care about Brother Long, so I care even more about whether he’s happy."
"I like him like sunshine warming my heart. I truly, truly hope Brother Long can be happy because he deserves it."
"Even if that person isn’t me, at least that sunshine has once shone on me..."
**Chapter 196: Is He a Brother or Something More?**
Seeing Hu Yuying like this, Li Qingxue smiled.
She wasn’t laughing at herself for finally being able to pursue Long Aotian without jeopardizing their friendship.
She was smiling because she finally understood why Long Aotian always showered Hu Yuying with affection.
Because Hu Yuying truly deserved it.
It turned out that wanting to treat someone well meant doing so without expecting anything in return.
"Yuying, we’ll always be good friends, right?" Li Qingxue gently hugged Hu Yuying and asked softly.
"Of course, we will always be good friends." At that moment, Hu Yuying could feel Li Qingxue's emotions—nothing more than the bond of eternal friendship.
Suddenly, Hu Yuying shivered slightly, her cheeks flushed as she whispered, "Qingxue, could you please take your hand off my backside? We’re still outside."
"No way! You’re so soft; it feels so nice to hold you."
"Then I’ll hold you."
"Ying~" Li Qingxue trembled for a moment. "Yuying, if only you were a boy, I’d definitely marry you."
Hu Yuying laughed, looking up at the sky. If she were a boy, would someone really like such a timid version of herself?
It was Brother Long who changed her. Without meeting him, how unfortunate her life would have been.
Brother Long was truly wonderful, the best in the world, which is why she willingly wished for his happiness.
That was her way of respecting him.
She gently patted Li Qingxue's back.
When she first learned that Li Qingxue liked Brother Long, she had panicked.
Now, she could calmly express her feelings to Li Qingxue because Brother Long’s heart had once raced for her.
That was enough. No matter the outcome, at least it had once beat for her.
Three days later, the first long holiday of college arrived.
That afternoon.
Li Qingxue arrived at a café outside the campus.
"Over here." Lin Wanqing raised her hand to signal when she saw Li Qingxue enter.
Seeing Lin Wanqing, Li Qingxue smiled lightly and walked gracefully to her.
Lin Wanqing rested her chin on one hand, her eyes sparkling as she looked at Li Qingxue. Compared to their last meeting, Li Qingxue had changed noticeably.
It was a change that was hard to describe, but it was evident in her attitude.
"You seem to have changed a lot these days," Lin Wanqing said softly.
Li Qingxue nodded without hiding it. How could she not have changed?
When facing Long Aotian, her heart would flutter.
When facing Hu Yuying, she felt guilty.
But all of that had vanished after their conversation that afternoon.
Her mood had cleared, and she naturally appeared different.
"Qingxue, do you like Long Aotian?" Lin Wanqing asked directly, seeing Li Qingxue nod.
Her straightforward nature didn’t like beating around the bush, and since she considered Li Qingxue a friend, she asked plainly.
"Yeah, I like him. How could I not like someone like him?"
Li Qingxue's honesty surprised Lin Wanqing a bit.
Then she chuckled. "I knew it."
"Yeah, after getting to know him, how could anyone not develop feelings?"
Li Qingxue looked at Lin Wanqing in surprise. "Could it be that you do too?"
"Yeah, that’s why I wanted to meet you."
In Long Aotian's stories, Hu Yuying was his first friend, someone they helped and saved each other, and their bond was deeper than that of Li Qingxue and Hu Yuying.
Both Hu Yuying and Li Qingxue were her friends, and she didn’t want to see any rift between them.
That’s why she thought of talking to Li Qingxue today.
Why talk to Li Qingxue instead of Hu Yuying? Because Hu Yuying was the most important person to Brother Long.
Lin Wanqing could see that.
But today, it seemed she had overthought it. Li Qingxue was in great spirits, and that strange mood from the other day didn’t seem to affect her anymore.
During their chat, Li Qingxue shared everything about her conversation with Hu Yuying that afternoon.
After listening to Li Qingxue, Lin Wanqing smiled and said, "Hu Yuying is really great. No wonder Brother Long said she’s someone very important."
"Really? What did Long Aotian say?" Li Qingxue was curious.
"Earlier, I asked Brother if he had a girlfriend, and he said no, but there’s someone very important to him in his heart."
"Although he didn’t say who that important person is, I could feel that it’s Hu Yuying."
Li Qingxue took a sip of her coffee and tentatively asked, "Then knowing that Long Aotian already has someone important in his heart, how can you still like him?"
This was a question without a clear answer, at least Lin Wanqing couldn’t provide a standard response to Li Qingxue’s inquiry.
Just like why Li Qingxue liked Long Aotian in the first place.
Seeing Lin Wanqing shake her head, Li Qingxue continued to ask softly, "So what do you think?" Purely out of curiosity, as Li Qingxue loved gossip.
"What do I think? It’s simple. Being with Long Aotian makes me really happy, and I feel a sense of security that’s hard to describe."
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