"Alright, alright, we've been out long enough; time to head back now, unless our star student here actually wants to be late for school," Ye Feng said reluctantly after catching up to Lin Shiyun and sitting hand-in-hand with her on a park bench for a moment.
"Seems so," Lin Shiyun replied, noticing more and more people gathering for their morning exercises in the park. She realized it was about time to go home, change, and get ready for school.
"Of course it is. 'Seems so,' indeed. Where do you live? I'll walk you home," Ye Feng said with a playful tug on her nose.
"Villa No. 10." Now that they were both clear on their feelings, Lin Shiyun didn't feel the need to hold back any longer.
"Well, well, what a coincidence! I'm at No. 9. Turns out we're neighbors," Ye Feng chuckled, taking her hand as they walked back the way they came.
"Not bad, young man! Got it all sorted out already. Guess I wasn't wrong about you!" Along the way, they ran into the old man from earlier, who gave them an approving nod.
"Thanks, sir," Ye Feng replied, still holding Lin Shiyun's hand. She blushed, but her face was lit with happiness.
"No trouble at all. Just take good care of this young lady. Wishing you both happiness," the old man said, smiling at their interlocked fingers.
After walking Lin Shiyun to the entrance of her villa, Ye Feng turned toward his own.
"Who would have thought? Turns out Shiyun's place is right next door. This is going to be interesting," he mused, stepping inside.
After a quick shower, he changed out of his exercise clothes and put on something casual. Slinging his backpack over his shoulder, he headed back to Lin Shiyun's place.
"Lin Bo, you don't have to drive me anymore; from now on, I'll be going with Ye Feng," Lin Shiyun called to her family's driver as she slipped out the door and saw Ye Feng squatting idly on the ground, drawing circles with his finger. She couldn't help but giggle, sneaking up behind him and covering his eyes.
"Guess who?" she asked in a playful, disguised voice.
Ye Feng, of course, knew it was her right away, but rather than spoiling her fun, he decided to play along.
"You're Xiao Bai?" he guessed.
"No."
"Xiao Hei?"
"Nope."
"Then you must be Xiao Hua."
"No!" Lin Shiyun pouted, dropping her hands from his eyes. "Tell me, who are Xiao Hei, Xiao Bai, and Xiao Hua?"
"You see over there? That's Xiao Hei, and that one's Xiao Bai," Ye Feng pointed to a pair of black and white dogs across the street.
"And Xiao Hua?"
"Xiao Hua is my pet dog back home," Ye Feng said, laughing.
"Oh, you're going to get it for teasing me!" Lin Shiyun exclaimed, trying to catch him.
"You'll never catch me!" Ye Feng laughed as he dashed away.
…
"It's been so long since I've seen the young lady so happy," Lin Bo sighed, watching Lin Shiyun walk off to school with Ye Feng. "But those two… They're destined to end in heartbreak," he shook his head with regret, recalling the marriage arrangement made by the elders.
He had assumed Ye Feng was just a wealthy young man from Beihai, forgetting that Ye Feng had also just arrived on a train from Tianjing.
…
"Boss!" "Morning, boss!"
The moment Ye Feng entered the classroom with Lin Shiyun, he found Hao Jian and Fan Tong waiting by his desk, respectfully standing by as though they'd been waiting for his arrival.
"When did you become their boss?" Lin Shiyun asked, half-curious, half-amused.
"Well, you see, Sis, it went like this…" Hao Jian quickly recounted how he and Fan Tong had pestered Ye Feng yesterday until he agreed to be their boss, conveniently leaving out the details about Left Fei.
"Sis? Me?" Lin Shiyun blushed.
"Of course, Sis! I'm not blind. Seeing you two so in sync has me feeling green with envy," Hao Jian said with a sly grin, obviously having noticed them walking in hand-in-hand.
Fan Tong shot Ye Feng a discreet thumbs-up, whispering, "Boss, you're the real deal. You melted the Ice Goddess in a single day. Teach your little bro a trick or two!"
"Go away, kid. I've got breakfast to buy. It's all about sincerity, alright? No tricks involved," Ye Feng replied, shaking his head. He couldn't help but wonder how this guy was his little brother—it was almost embarrassing.
Meanwhile, Lin Shiyun turned to Fan Tong, noticing his secret conversation with Ye Feng. "Fan Tong, don't you dare lead him astray," she said, waving a little fist.
"Well, um, Boss and Sis haven't had breakfast yet, have you? I'll go buy some right now!" Fan Tong stammered, quickly slipping out of the classroom to avoid further embarrassment.
He muttered under his breath, "It's not us leading him astray; it's the boss setting the bad example…"
Soon Fan Tong returned with a large assortment of breakfast items. "Boss, here you go. I got one of everything from the stall, so you can pick whatever you like."
"Not bad, Ye Feng. I didn't realize your little bro was quite the big spender," Lin Shiyun teased him.
Ye Feng was speechless, thinking to himself, Who's the real big spender here? Owning a 'Heaven's Arrival' Bentley—who else would dare call themselves a big spender in front of you?
"Hey, you skinny thing. That's not fair! Why don't you ever get me breakfast like this?" Hao Jian grumbled.
"Look at all that fat already—you're trying to bulk up even more?" Fan Tong scoffed.
"You guys eaten yet?" Ye Feng asked, biting into a siu mai.
"Not yet," Hao Jian admitted, swallowing back his hunger.
"Then come and join us. There's no way just the two of us could finish all this," Ye Feng replied, glancing at Lin Shiyun who was nibbling daintily on a spring roll.
"Ah, Boss, you're the best! Truly a bro through and through," Hao Jian said as he eagerly grabbed a meat bun.
"A bro, really?" Ye Feng muttered to himself with a slight eye roll.
Fan Tong could only shrug helplessly, clearly used to Hao Jian's antics.
"So, you two were waiting for me here this early. What's going on?" Ye Feng asked, turning to them.
Fan Tong hesitated and then said, "Boss, let's talk outside."
Ye Feng glanced over at Lin Shiyun, who was still enjoying her breakfast.
"Go on, go on. I won't keep you from your business," she said with a gentle smile, understanding his need to handle the situation.