Chapter 518: Set Up??!!! Total Collapse

Time flew by.

Jiang Sifan’s days had been incredibly fulfilling lately. Aside from attending classes, he spent all his time on studio work. On top of that, he had to carve out time to study this year’s college entrance exam questions. His sole purpose was to help He Lingyi scrape together a few extra points.

One day, after stepping out of the studio, Jiang Sifan pulled out his phone and opened his chat with He Lingyi. Their last conversation was three days ago when he asked how her first mock exam went; she hadn’t replied.

He sent another message: [Are you done with the exam? How did it go?]

Like a stone dropped into the ocean, the message went unanswered. He shoved the phone into his pocket and headed back to the dorm.

Halfway there, his phone buzzed. He pulled it out, but it wasn’t He Lingyi—it was Aunt Zhang.

Aunt Zhang’s voice came through the line, laced with obvious anxiety. “Xiaojiang, do you know what’s wrong with Lingyi? Ever since she got back from her first mock exam, she’s locked herself in her room. She won’t talk, and she won’t eat. When I asked her how she did, she just cried. I keep knocking, but she won’t open the door.”

Jiang Sifan stopped in his tracks and stood by the roadside. “Aunt Zhang, don’t panic. I’ll head over and take a look.”

“Okay, okay, please come over. I really don’t know what to do anymore,” Aunt Zhang replied repeatedly.

Jiang Sifan hung up, hopped onto his e-bike, and rode toward He Lingyi’s house.

Forty minutes later, he stood at He Lingyi’s front door.

Aunt Zhang answered the door, her eyes red. Grabbing his arm, she pulled him inside and lowered her voice. “Xiaojiang, you’re finally here. She’s been locked in her room since she got back yesterday afternoon. I brought her food, but she won’t eat a bite. What are we going to do?”

“Aunt Zhang, don’t worry. I’ll talk to her,” Jiang Sifan said with a nod.

He walked up to He Lingyi’s bedroom door and knocked. “Lingyi, it’s me.”

There was no sound from inside.

He knocked twice more. “Lingyi, open the door. Tell me what happened.”

After a long pause, He Lingyi’s muffled, tearful voice finally came through. “Brother Sifan, just leave me alone. I’m too ashamed to face you.”

“What nonsense are you talking about?” Jiang Sifan leaned against the doorframe, his tone gentle. “It’s just an exam, isn’t it? If you did poorly, you just try harder next time.”

“I did horribly. Just horribly.” He Lingyi’s voice was broken, interspersed with sobs. “I only got a bit over sixty in math, and I messed up my English, too. My total score didn’t even reach the first-tier university cutoff. Am I just stupid? I worked so hard… I did practice questions until midnight every day, but I still got scores like this.”

Jiang Sifan fell silent for a couple of seconds before speaking up again. “Lingyi, open the door. Let’s talk face to face.”

“I won’t.” Stubbornness bled into He Lingyi’s voice. “I don’t want you to see me like this. I look so ugly when I cry.”

Jiang Sifan chuckled. “Last time you ate cake, you got frosting all over your face. That was way uglier than this.”

Silence instantly fell over the room.

“That’s different,” He Lingyi said, her voice dropping.

“How is it different?” Jiang Sifan said with a laugh. “Open the door. I’ll take you out for some good food, and we can talk while we eat.”

“I’m not going,” He Lingyi still refused.

Jiang Sifan thought for a moment and switched tactics. “Tell you what. Let’s not meet as tutor and student today. Let’s just be friends. What’s there to hide between friends?”

It was quiet again for a moment.

Then, with a CLICK, the lock disengaged, and the door opened a crack.

He Lingyi stood behind it. Her eyes were swollen like walnuts, her nose was red, and there were still unswept tear tracks on her cheeks. Wearing a wrinkled pajama set and with her hair in a messy tangle, she looked entirely haggard and pitiful.

Looking at her, Jiang Sifan’s heart softened. “You do look really ugly,” he teased with a smile.

He Lingyi glared at him, looking like she wanted to cry all over again.

“Just kidding,” Jiang Sifan hurriedly added. “Come on, go get changed. I’ll take you out for a stroll.”

He Lingyi lowered her head, hesitating for a second, before turning back into her room and shutting the door.

Aunt Zhang had been standing in the living room, eavesdropping the whole time. Seeing that He Lingyi was finally willing to open the door, she heaved a sigh of relief. She quickly fished her phone from her pocket and transferred five hundred yuan to Jiang Sifan.

“Xiaojiang, take this money. Take her out for a nice meal and help her clear her head,” Aunt Zhang said, grabbing Jiang Sifan’s hand with red eyes. “This child has been stubborn since she was little. Whenever she doesn’t do well on an exam, she beats herself up over it. She won’t listen to a word I say, so please help me talk some sense into her.”

“Aunt Zhang, you don’t need to send me money,” Jiang Sifan declined.

“Take it, take it,” Aunt Zhang insisted, leaving no room for argument. “If you don’t accept it, I won’t let you take her out.”

Left with no choice, Jiang Sifan accepted it.

Ten minutes later, He Lingyi emerged.

She had changed into a white hoodie and pulled her hair into a ponytail. She had washed her face, but her eyes were still swollen and her nose was still red. Keeping her head down, she didn’t dare look at Jiang Sifan.

“Let’s go,” Jiang Sifan said with a smile.

He Lingyi trailed behind him as they left the house.

Throughout the ride, He Lingyi didn’t say a single word. She sat on the back seat of the e-bike, her hands gripping the edge of the seat rather than wrapping around Jiang Sifan’s waist. As the wind whipped through her hair, she turned her face to the side, staring at the shops lining the street. Her eyes were red, but she didn’t cry.

Jiang Sifan caught a glimpse of her in the rearview mirror but kept quiet.

He rode the bike to Xinjie Crossroad and parked outside a shopping mall. They walked inside side by side. He Lingyi stayed close to him, her head lowered and her pace sluggish.

“What do you want to eat?” Jiang Sifan asked.

“Anything,” He Lingyi said softly.

“‘Anything’ isn’t on the menu. Try again.”

He Lingyi didn’t reply.

Not taking offense, Jiang Sifan led her on a lap around the mall before finally stopping in front of a grilled fish restaurant.

He glanced at the menu by the entrance, then turned to He Lingyi. “This place looks pretty good. How about grilled fish?”