Chapter 23: Oh, a love letter?

A deal was swiftly struck. Lu Qingyue accepted the letter, promising to deliver it within half an hour. She turned to head toward Jiang University when suddenly another girl called out to her.

“And this one, this is for Senior Cheng. Aren’t they quite close? You should be able to see him too, right?”

Senior Cheng? He gets one as well?

But she wasn’t so sure she could reach him. Lu Qingyue was about to refuse, but the girl quickly scanned the code and transferred five yuan to her.

Lu Qingyue: “???”

She watched as her WeChat balance increased by five yuan, blinked in confusion, and snapped back to herself, hurrying after the girl.

“...Wait, I’m not familiar with him!”

At least she knew where Lu Yi’s dorm was, and if nothing else, he’d go home during holidays. But Cheng Xingye was different. Aside from knowing he lived in the community on Pingxi Road, she had no clue where he might appear.

Seeing her hesitation, the girl quickly pressed her hand, saying,

“Isn’t he often with Senior Lu? It’s fine, just give it to him whenever you see him.”

Lu Qingyue uttered a sound of surprise, and before she could react, another envelope had been thrust into her hands. The girls, having paid, were already arm-in-arm, running off into the distance.

With her errands in hand, Lu Qingyue left the school gate and headed straight into the neighboring Jiang University’s basketball court.

It was still early, well before dinner. Students without classes were either gaming in their dorms or playing basketball. It didn’t take much effort for Lu Qingyue to spot Lu Yi and Cheng Xingye.

The two of them were legends at Jiang University. People coming and going across the court would pause and glance over after realizing who was playing.

Their styles were completely different. Lu Yi played with explosive force, as if he bore a grudge against the ball, determined to tear down the hoop with every dunk. In contrast, Cheng Xingye’s approach was calm and steady. He wore a white sweatshirt today, the sleeves rolled up to reveal a slender, strong arm where faint blue veins lay beneath the cool white skin.

Many girls watched from the sidelines, but he paid them no mind, skillfully dribbling and breaking through defenders, shooting cleanly at the basket.

The orange ball spun around the rim and dropped neatly through the center.

Cheering and shrieks erupted from the girls nearby, and the infectious atmosphere had Lu Qingyue clapping and shouting along.

Cheng Xingye was already starting the next round, but hearing the commotion, he turned and was surprised to see Lu Qingyue at the edge of the court—almost thinking he was seeing things.

Since the last KTV gathering, he hadn’t seen the young girl for a whole week.

His family had been dealing with matters lately, leaving him tied up. By the time he was free, she had already started her semester.

For a moment, Cheng Xingye was distracted, only to notice someone behind him tossing the ball, sending it flying straight toward Lu Qingyue.

She watched as the ball came at her, instinctively dodging.

Suddenly, a flash of white appeared before her eyes.

In that split second, the basketball nearly struck her nose, but it didn’t.

She was caught off guard as a strong hand shielded her head, guiding her aside and away from the ball’s trajectory.

Cheng Xingye protected her with one hand, intercepted the ball with the other, and threw it forcefully back onto the court.

His movements were swift and precise. Lu Qingyue’s face was pressed against his chest, her breath filled with the familiar scent of sea salt mingled with the heat of exercise.

The boy who’d misfired the shot rushed over, startled, to check if anyone had gotten hurt.

Cheng Xingye, breathing heavily, couldn’t help but curse,

“Damn! Didn’t you see someone standing here?”

He was usually laid-back and aloof, rarely losing his temper. Seeing his cold expression now, the boy knew he’d messed up and quickly apologized,

“Sorry, Brother Xingye. Little sister, are you alright?”

Lu Qingyue’s head was still buried in Cheng Xingye’s shirt; she poked her head out and shook it,

“I’m fine.”

Seeing she hadn’t been hit, the boy sighed in relief, apologized to Cheng Xingye a few more times, and hurried back onto the court.

The incident drew everyone’s attention. Surrounded by seniors, Lu Qingyue—a notorious troublemaker at school—felt exposed and shrank silently into Cheng Xingye’s arms, too timid to utter a word.

Cheng Xingye let go, stepping back a little, loosely draping an arm over her shoulders as he led her to a quiet area by the court.

Lu Yi stopped playing and came over.

He’d just finished a game, sweat on his brow, panting as he bent over, palms on his knees, lazily opened a bottle of water and handed it to Lu Qingyue, asking,

“What brings you here? Got your eye on one of these pretty boys?”

Cheng Xingye choked unexpectedly, raising his eyes in disbelief.

Lu Qingyue, after the interruption, nearly forgot her purpose.

She quickly dug out the two pink envelopes from her bag, handing one to each of them.

“Pretty boys? I’m here to deliver these!”

Lu Yi & Cheng Xingye: “???”

Neither reached for the envelopes; their expressions turned complicated and odd.

Lu Yi cleared his throat, “...You do know we’re siblings, right? Incest gets you drowned in a pig cage.”

Lu Qingyue was exasperated by his twisted logic, slapped the envelope onto his chest, “What are you thinking? I’m just running errands!”

She used all her strength; Lu Yi nearly coughed up blood and felt she was taking revenge.

He took the envelope, flipping it over, searching for a name, but finding none, asked in confusion,

“Where did this come from?”

Lu Qingyue replied, “A girl from my school asked me to pass it to you. Senior Cheng gets one too!”

She stuffed the other envelope into Cheng Xingye’s arms.

Normally, Senior Cheng would never accept such things, but Lu Qingyue forced it on him, so he instinctively took it.

Two grown men stood side by side, each holding a pink envelope, their faces full of speechless bewilderment—a comical sight.

Lu Yi was beside himself. He tapped Lu Qingyue’s head with the envelope,

“What do you do at school? Running errands to deliver these things?”

Lu Qingyue immediately covered her head, “I didn’t want to...”

Lu Yi jabbed her forehead again, “Why don’t you just refuse?”

Refuse? Impossible. Not in this lifetime.

They’d paid, after all.

Thinking she’d earned ten yuan out of thin air, Lu Qingyue felt secretly delighted and murmured,

“Five yuan per delivery! One shouldn’t abandon money for pride.”

Lu Yi: “...”

Cheng Xingye: “.......”

Both were dumbstruck. Just then, Chen Shujie came over, cradling a ball, raising his brow with interest at the sight of their envelopes,

“Well, love letters? Any for me?”

Lu Qingyue smiled at him,

“Not this time! Brother Shujie, you’ll have to attract more fangirls. Maybe next time I can earn a little from you too!”

Chen Shujie: “???”