After Marrying the Cold and Elegant Beauty, I Fell in Love (GL) - Chapter 25.1

Han Shuangshuang held Shen Yuru’s arm, walking downstairs cheerfully.

Her heart and eyes were completely full of Shen Yuru now; she didn’t notice anything else. However, as they descended, Shen Yuru’s gaze remained indifferent, landing briefly on Shi Nianxue.

Shi Nianxue turned around, hiding at the corner of the stairs as if deliberately avoiding them, and did not reveal herself.

Han Shuangshuang clung to Shen Yuru tightly. “Sister Shen is so good. To me, Sister Shen is the only light. Sister Shen is the sky, Sister Shen is the earth, Sister Shen is my! Earth! God!”

Excitedly babbling cheesy lines, she added, “Sister, why don’t we just go back to school? There’s nothing worth staying for here.”

Shen Yuru didn’t respond but allowed Han Shuangshuang to lead her out of the Han family villa. However, once they were away from everyone’s sight, Shen Yuru suddenly and gently brushed off Han Shuangshuang’s hand.

Looking at Shen Yuru, who had suddenly distanced herself, Han Shuangshuang was bewildered. Weren’t we just fine? Why the sudden change of face?

[System: The System doesn’t know either! This is a normal human emotional shift. Humans are inherently fickle and heartless.]

Han Shuangshuang quickly spat in her mind. Ptooie! Shen Yuru was showing signs of improving; she couldn’t let herself subconsciously add more “villain bugs” to her.

Shen Yuru walked ahead on her own, forcing herself not to look back at Han Shuangshuang’s reaction. She had decided to slowly distance herself; she needed to observe for a while longer. She had to figure out Han Shuangshuang’s true motive for approaching her. She didn’t want to be deceived again or live within a lie.

So she had to stay cold; she had to draw a line.

Han Shuangshuang stood stunned for a moment. Seeing Shen Yuru getting further away, she jogged to catch up. But just as she was a few steps away, Shen Yuru also started to jog.

Han Shuangshuang sped up, Shen Yuru sped up. Han Shuangshuang ran for a while until she was out of breath and slowed to a walk; Shen Yuru slowed to a walk too. The two maintained a tacit distance; Han Shuangshuang simply couldn’t catch her.

“Shen Yuru, why are you running? I’m not a wolf or a tiger! Weren’t we fine in the villa?” Han Shuangshuang was genuinely irritated. “SHEN! YU! RU!”

She refused to believe it. Shen Yuru had a weak heart and a fragile body; there was no way she couldn’t outrun her. But she had underestimated Shen Yuru’s stubbornness.

The two of them actually ran for five kilometers, all the way from the Han villa back to the school. Han Shuangshuang felt that Shen Yuru didn’t even need “healing” anymore. A normal person couldn’t run 5km, yet Shen Yuru’s constitution seemed surprisingly sturdy.

[System: Host, humans can trigger latent physical potential under certain circumstances.]

Han Shuangshuang leaned against a stone pillar by the school gate, gasping for air. She looked at Shen Yuru, whose body was trembling slightly, yet she maintained her image and didn’t gasp for breath as shamelessly as Han did.

Han Shuangshuang: “What… exactly… did I do wrong? Just say it! Why are you… avoiding me?”

Shen Yuru finally turned around, looking down at the hunched-over, panting Han Shuangshuang. Because of the chase, Shen Yuru’s breathing was also slightly hurried, and a flush had appeared on her face. The corners of her phoenix eyes were red, and a few physiological tears made them sparkle, devoid of their usual gloom.

Shen Yuru said coldly, “Stop pestering me. Today was to repay the favor you did for me. After this, we have nothing to do with each other.”

Han Shuangshuang: “Huh?”

As expected, you can’t spoil a villain; they get weird the moment you do. What kind of tantrum is this now?

While gasping, she asked urgently, “Weren’t we just fine? What happened? Tell me! If there’s a problem, we can solve it together. Why the sudden break? Are my feelings that worthless? Is my affection that disregarded?”

Hearing the interrogation, Shen Yuru’s cool lips moved, but she still didn’t speak. She just turned her face away coldly, no longer looking at Han Shuangshuang’s desperate expression.

Han Shuangshuang felt her jaw tighten and her fists clench. Since the soft approach wasn’t working, she’d go hard. She stood up, took a deep breath, and lunged toward Shen Yuru.

Surprisingly, even after 5km, Shen Yuru was still agile. No matter where she lunged, Shen Yuru flexibly dodged. At this moment, Shen Yuru was like a tumbler toy, her body tilting 360 degrees with supple grace.

Han Shuangshuang rolled up her sleeves. “I don’t believe in this jinx today!”

Shen Yuru moved like a ballerina, her body incredibly lithe. Though she didn’t move far from the spot, Han Shuangshuang simply couldn’t catch her.

Exhausted, Han Shuangshuang squatted on the ground, panting. “Why is my life so bitter? Fine if the person I like doesn’t like me back, but even physical contact is being rejected. I might as well not live. Father doesn’t love me, mother is gone, a stepmother only gives me pickles to eat, and I even have to babysit a brain-dead stepsister!”

She spoke with passionate, winding tones, making it sound very dramatic and full of emotion. Shen Yuru’s eyebrows twitched. Seeing people gathering around, she had to step forward and reach out, wanting to pull Han Shuangshuang up.

Han Shuangshuang just sat on the ground, mimicking Shen Yuru’s previous posture by turning her head away, ignoring the extended hand.

“First a stick, then a sweet date, huh? I don’t care about your dates! My life is so bitter! People are born under the five elements, but I was born under the sign of the ‘simp’! And they don’t even care! Why am I so miserable?”

Now, not only were Shen Yuru’s eyebrows twitching, but her temples were throbbing too. Because the crowd was growing, and whispers were starting. Shen Yuru hated being under the judgmental gaze of others.

She forced a few words through her teeth, “Han Shuangshuang, get up right now.”

Han Shuangshuang was almost ready to roll on the ground and throw a tantrum. “No, no, I won’t! I just won’t!”

Suddenly, from somewhere, Shen Yuru found the strength to bend down. She slid both hands under Han Shuangshuang’s armpits and with a sharp lift, pulled the girl right off the ground.

Han Shuangshuang clearly hadn’t expected Shen Yuru to have this move in her; she froze. The two of them stared at each other blankly.

Shen Yuru’s face was red—partly from the run and partly from the shame of being watched. “Han Shuangshuang, you like me that much? You aren’t even afraid of being this embarrassing?”

Han Shuangshuang nodded firmly. “I just do! Is liking someone a mistake? Is saying it boldly a problem? Does being devoted mean being a simp? And do simps have to be laughed at?”

Shen Yuru’s beautiful eyes gazed at her. She bit her lip, seemingly defeated. “Fine! You just wait.”

As if she had no other choice, she grabbed Han Shuangshuang’s wrist to lead her away from the gate quickly. Han Shuangshuang went along reluctantly, immediately pulling a “reversing the roles” move: “I don’t care. If Sister Shen doesn’t give me a reasonable explanation today, I won’t forgive you. Even a kiss wouldn’t coax me back!”

Shen Yuru felt three black lines appear on her head. In all her years, she had never felt so speechless. This Han Shuangshuang really knew how to turn black into white; how had she not noticed before how glib she was? With a few words, she had completely flipped the narrative.

Clearly, she was the one who hadn’t figured out Han’s motive, yet Han was acting innocent. Instead of confessing, Han was even accusing her and making a scene in public.

“HAN! SHUANG! SHUANG!” Shen Yuru lost count of how many times she had gritted her teeth. She realized that since meeting Han Shuangshuang, her emotions had become significantly harder to control. Before, she could hide her state perfectly. But now, with Han, her anger broke through, and her happiness couldn’t be hidden.

“What exactly do you want?” Shen Yuru let go of her hand and turned around, her eyes unusually wide. “I’ll only ask once: what is your purpose for approaching me?”

Han Shuangshuang froze for a few seconds, her mouth opening wide into an “O” shape, but only managing to let out a sound: “Huh? Huh? HUH!?”

Her expression suddenly shifted to one of profound gravity. She took a few steps toward Shen Yuru, met her gaze, then raised her hands to cup Shen Yuru’s ears. She planted a kiss right on Shen Yuru’s forehead. It was an incredibly forceful kiss, so much so that Shen Yuru’s beautiful features scrunched up.

Shen Yuru didn’t understand the gesture. She tried to grab Han’s wrists, but Han was using all her strength and wouldn’t be refused. The kiss left a red mark on her forehead.

Shen Yuru was fuming; her breathing was more labored now than it had been after the 5km run. “Han Shuangshuang, what are you doing?”

Han Shuangshuang crossed her arms, looking defiant. “Sister Shen gave me a kiss on the forehead before—did you give me your brain too? That’s why you asked such a brainless question. I’m kissing you back to return your brain!”

The word “ridiculous” flashed in Shen Yuru’s mind. “Did you even hear what I said?”

Han Shuangshuang glared with her puppy eyes, huffed, and then gave a threatening look. Her expression seemed to say that if the brain hadn’t been returned yet, she’d kiss her again.

Shen Yuru felt the rest of her words get stuck in her throat. She swallowed, blinked, let out a breath, and relaxed. “Since you don’t want to say it, I won’t ask.”

“It’s not that I don’t want to say it! I’ve said it many times! I like Sister Shen, that’s why I follow you. If I didn’t like you, why would I bother?”

Shen Yuru suddenly covered her ears and shook her head, acting as if she “couldn’t hear” and “wouldn’t listen.” Han Shuangshuang just kept chanting in her ear like a mantra.