Chapter 79: Su Qinghe: Sorry, I Can’t Promise You
"Xiaoning’er, that’s enough!"
Wu Xiaoyan, who was sitting beside her, simply couldn’t watch anymore. She quickly tugged Han Ning’s hand and spoke up.
Even though Han Ning was her best friend, and logically she should be on her side...
But!
What Han Ning had just said was simply too much. She really couldn’t listen to another word.
Just then,
Su Qinghe slowly raised her head, looking at Han Ning with a serious expression. The conflict in her eyes gradually gave way to determination.
"I’m sorry... I... I can’t agree to that..."
Su Qinghe’s voice was quiet, but her tone was incredibly firm!
"Hm?"
Han Ning froze for a second.
She hadn’t expected the timid, meek Su Qinghe to not back down an inch this time!
"Classmate Su, you..."
Han Ning fell silent for a moment. Just as she was about to speak, Su Qinghe cut her off.
"Who I choose to be friends with is my own business. I’m sorry, Classmate Han, but I can’t agree to this!"
Su Qinghe said, her tone resolute.
Han Ning: "..."
Meanwhile,
over at the food counter, Gu Yifan had already gotten his meal and was scanning the room for Su Qinghe.
Thanks to Su Qinghe’s unique presence, it was easy to spot her in the crowd.
Suddenly!
Gu Yifan noticed someone sitting across from Su Qinghe, which he found strange.
Han Ning?
’Why would she be with Su Qinghe?’
Seeing this, Gu Yifan frowned slightly, then picked up his tray and walked briskly toward Su Qinghe’s table.
He reached her in no time.
His sudden appearance stunned the three of them for a moment.
He, in turn, noticed that the atmosphere at the table was a little off.
After putting his food down on the table, Gu Yifan glanced at Han Ning with a frown, then turned to Su Qinghe and asked, "Hanhan, are you okay?"
His question seemed to be for Su Qinghe, but it was really aimed at Han Ning and Wu Xiaoyan.
Because he knew Han Ning’s personality, he was worried that his sweet, simple Hanhan would get bullied by her!
"No... I’m fine..."
Su Qinghe shook her head lightly and spoke in a small voice.
Gu Yifan gave Su Qinghe a deep look. He knew his little airhead was lying, but he didn’t call her out on it.
"Oh... Well, let’s eat first then."
he said lightly, nodding.
"Mhm."
Su Qinghe nodded obediently.
Gu Yifan then sat down and pushed one of the meals in front of Su Qinghe.
Meanwhile, Han Ning and Wu Xiaoyan were left in an awkward position, not knowing whether to sit or stand. They were completely at a loss.
"I’m going to eat now. Wu Xiaoyan, if you two aren’t eating, could you please move?"
Gu Yifan said this with a blank expression, as if he’d only just noticed Han Ning and Wu Xiaoyan were there.
Han Ning: "..."
Wu Xiaoyan: "..."
Hearing Gu Yifan’s cold tone and attitude, Han Ning felt incredibly wronged. Her nose tingled, and her eyes couldn’t help but turn red.
"Gu Yifan, what’s that supposed to mean!"
she said, biting her lower lip, her voice full of grievance and on the verge of tears.
"Hm??"
Seeing Han Ning suddenly look like she was about to cry, Gu Yifan couldn’t help but frown.
He looked up at Han Ning and said calmly, "Classmate Han, I don’t mean anything by it. I just don’t like having outsiders around when I’m eating."
The moment she heard the word "outsiders," Han Ning instantly blew up!
"I won’t leave! I refuse to leave! Let’s see what you can do about it!"
she said, her eyes red, her expression a mixture of aggrieved anger and proud defiance.
"Oh. Fine. You won’t go? I will."
"Hanhan, let’s go. We’ll eat over there."
Gu Yifan glanced at her and said coolly.
"Oh, okay."
Su Qinghe was stunned for a moment, but she didn’t say anything, just nodded obediently.
With that, the two of them stood up, took their trays, and left.
Han Ning didn’t quite process it as she watched Gu Yifan and Su Qinghe’s departing backs. She just stood there, stunned, for a little while.
When she saw Gu Yifan and Su Qinghe sit down at an empty table nearby, she couldn’t hold it in any longer. Tears began to stream uncontrollably from her eyes...
"Gu Yifan!"
"You bastard!!!"
She shouted through her tears, then turned and ran out of the school cafeteria, wiping her eyes as she went.
"This..."
"Hey, Xiaoning’er, wait for me!"
At that, Wu Xiaoyan snapped back to reality and hurriedly chased after Han Ning.
Gu Yifan frowned as he glanced toward the cafeteria entrance, then averted his gaze.
Su Qinghe, meanwhile, kept her head down, silently eating in small bites.
However, her heart was anything but as calm as she appeared on the surface.
’She didn’t even know where she’d found the courage to say something like that to Han Ning.’
’All she knew was that when Han Ning told her to stay away from Gu Yifan, her heart had been a mess, but more than that, it had been filled with resistance!’
’In that moment, her mind flashed back through all the little things that had happened between them since she’d met Gu Yifan.’
’After a long silence, an answer seemed to form in her heart—she didn’t want to leave Gu Yifan!’
’And so, for the first time, she had mustered her courage and seriously rejected Han Ning’s demand.’
"Hanhan~"
"Did Han Ning say something to you just now?"
Gu Yifan asked, seemingly nonchalant, as he peeled a shrimp.
"Huh?"
Hearing Gu Yifan’s voice, Su Qinghe snapped out of her thoughts.
"I... I..."
She hesitated, unsure if she should tell Gu Yifan what had just happened.
"Hm??"
Gu Yifan’s hands paused in their task of peeling the shrimp. He frowned at Su Qinghe. "Don’t want to talk about it?"
Seeing that Gu Yifan seemed a little angry, Su Qinghe quickly shook her little head and said, "No... It’s not that."
"Then tell me!" Gu Yifan retorted irritably, unable to stop himself from rolling his eyes.
"Well..."
After a slight hesitation, Su Qinghe slowly raised her head to look at Gu Yifan and said in a small voice, "Han Ning... she... she told me to stay away from you..."
"Hm?"
Hearing this, Gu Yifan’s hands, which were peeling a shrimp, froze once again.
After a moment, he looked up at Su Qinghe and asked with a calm expression, "Oh? And what did you say?"
He then stared into her eyes, waiting for her answer.
Su Qinghe’s face flushed under Gu Yifan’s intense gaze, but she still answered in a small voice, "I... I didn’t agree to it..."
Hearing this, a fleeting smile flashed across Gu Yifan’s lips. His hands resumed their work, and after peeling the shrimp, he placed the meat on Su Qinghe’s plate. He looked up at her and said lightly, "Good... From now on, no matter who asks you, just say that."
"Huh?"
’Asks me? Say that?’
Su Qinghe didn’t quite understand. She tilted her little head and gave Gu Yifan a puzzled look.
"Oh, okay..."
But seeing that Gu Yifan had no intention of explaining, she didn’t dare ask any more questions and simply nodded obediently in the end.
...