From drowsily attending class to being both drowsy and confused, Shen Yuqing really wanted to grab Song Wangzhuo by the collar and ask him what exactly he was trying to do.
However, the morning passed quickly.
Shen Yuqing slowly packed up his things and left the classroom almost immediately after Song Wangzhuo. Walking behind him, Shen Yuqing deliberately noted the direction Song Wangzhuo was heading—toward the cafeteria.
He yawned and prepared to go home, but before he could take more than a few steps, someone called out to him.
“Yuqing! Brother Qing!”
Shen Yuqing looked up to see Lin Sui waving at him from a short distance away. His gaze shifted slightly, and he noticed a man standing beside Lin Sui.
The man was a head shorter than Lin Sui, wearing frameless glasses and dressed simply, giving off a refined and scholarly air.
This face was not unfamiliar to Shen Yuqing—it was none other than the youngest son of the Song family, Song Lejin.
Lin Sui shouted, “Come here!”
Shen Yuqing had no choice but to walk over. As soon as he reached them, Lin Sui slung an arm over his shoulder. “Lejin, this is Yuqing.”
Song Lejin extended his hand. “Hello, I’m Song Lejin.”
Shen Yuqing shook his hand briefly. “Shen Yuqing.”
In his memory, the original owner had no prior interactions with Song Lejin. He hadn’t expected Lin Sui and Song Lejin to seem quite close.
He hadn’t heard Lin Sui mention this before—he’d have to ask him about it when he got the chance.
Lin Sui said, “Come on, let’s grab lunch together and show Lejin around the campus while we’re at it.”
Shen Yuqing declined. “There’s food waiting for me at home.”
Lin Sui scratched the back of his head. “But someone at your place is already eating, right? Come on, skip going home—let’s eat together!”
Half-pushing, half-dragging, Lin Sui steered Shen Yuqing toward the cafeteria. Song Lejin also said gently, “Yuqing, let’s have lunch together.”
Though they were the same age, if they were to compare birthdays, Shen Yuqing was born in December, Lin Sui in February, and Song Wangzhuo and Song Lejin in June—making Shen Yuqing the youngest of them all.
Still, Lin Sui had always been fond of teasing and had gotten used to calling him “Brother Qing.”
Now that Song Lejin had spoken up, Shen Yuqing couldn’t refuse. He nodded. “Let me just tell Xiao Zhao.”
Lin Sui agreed cheerfully. “Sure.”
After making a quick call to Xiao Zhao, Shen Yuqing followed Lin Sui and the others to the cafeteria.
This was his first time visiting the cafeteria.
Slinor Academy’s cafeteria was spacious, divided into two floors. The lower floor offered reasonably priced meals that were also quite tasty, while the upper floor operated on an à la carte system, with prices comparable to those of outside restaurants—slightly more expensive.
As soon as the three of them stepped inside, Shen Yuqing’s gaze instinctively swept over the dining area, quickly spotting Song Wangzhuo sitting in a corner, quietly eating with his head down.
Lin Sui asked, “What do you guys feel like eating?”
Song Lejin replied, “Let’s just eat downstairs. The upper floor might take too long.”
Lin Sui then looked at Shen Yuqing, who said, “Whatever’s fine.”
He wasn’t picky—it didn’t matter to him.
Lin Sui’s usual two sidekicks weren’t around today, so he’d have to fetch the food himself. He glanced at Shen Yuqing, who nodded. “I’ll go with you.”
Lin Sui immediately turned to Song Lejin. “Lejin, go find us a seat. We’ll be right back. Your tastes haven’t changed, right?”
Song Lejin smiled and nodded. “Then I’ll leave it to you and Yuqing.”
Lin Sui shook his head, “Hey, no trouble at all.”
With that, he led Shen Yuqing toward the food counters.
Once they were farther away, Shen Yuqing asked, “Do you like Song Lejin?”
The way he was fawning over him—it was like he was practically wagging his tail in front of him.
Lin Sui’s ears turned red. “What are you talking about, Qing-ge? We’re neighbors. Now that he’s back, Uncle Song asked me to look after him a bit. Isn’t that normal?”
“Normal?” Shen Yuqing raised an eyebrow slightly. “And why haven’t I heard about this neighbor of yours before?”
“W-well, it’s not like there’s much to say,” Lin Sui replied dismissively. “Besides, after he presented, he was mostly studying abroad. We didn’t keep in touch much, so there wasn’t anything worth mentioning.”
Ah, so that was it.
Lin Sui didn’t seem keen on lingering on the topic of Song Lejin. Each of them grabbed a tray, piled high with the lunch Lin Sui had bought—especially his own, stacked so high it looked like he’d taken one of everything from every counter.
And he still claimed he didn’t like him.
As the two carried their trays back, Shen Yuqing noticed that the person sitting next to Song Lejin was none other than Song Wangzhuo.
Well, well. The real and fake young masters sitting together.
But Song Wangzhuo paid him no mind, focused on his phone as he ate.
Shen Yuqing noticed—it was the one he had gifted him.
So he wasn’t that stubborn after all, willing to use the new one.
They walked over, and Lin Sui naturally took a seat beside Song Lejin, while Shen Yuqing sat across from them.
As he sat down, he instinctively glanced at Song Wangzhuo.
From a distance earlier, he hadn’t been able to see what Song Wangzhuo was eating, but now it was clear—a plate of greens and some eggplant.
The cafeteria portions weren’t exactly generous. For a growing alpha, was that really enough to fill him up?
And wasn’t Song Wangzhuo always working part-time? Logically speaking, someone in his situation—no family to support, just himself to feed—shouldn’t he be spending a bit more on decent meals?
Shen Yuqing averted his gaze just as Lin Sui spoke up. “The cafeteria food is just okay. Once you get familiar with the school, I’ll take you around the area.”
Song Lejin smiled brightly. “Sounds great! Thanks, A-Sui-ge.”
Lin Sui coughed lightly. “It’s nothing, really.”
He exchanged a glance with Song Lejin before awkwardly turning his attention to Shen Yuqing across the table—only to see him covering his lips slightly, mouthing silently: A~Sui~ge~
Lin Sui: “…”
Shen Yuqing watched Lin Sui’s flustered expression with quiet amusement.
Lin Sui then wordlessly plopped a piece of meat into his bowl—simple logic: if he was eating, he couldn’t talk.
Fine by him. Shen Yuqing was happy to enjoy the peace.
Song Lejin turned out to be far more outgoing than expected. Throughout the meal, he chatted about his experiences abroad, and even Shen Yuqing, a self-proclaimed homebody, found himself somewhat intrigued.
But his peripheral vision kept drifting back to Song Wangzhuo, who had already finished eating and was gathering his dishes to leave.
“Would you guys like some soup?” Song Lejin suddenly asked.
Shen Yuqing nodded. “Sure.”
“I’ll go get three bowls,” Lin Sui said, setting down his chopsticks eagerly.
But Song Lejin was faster. He sprang up, turning as he spoke—”I’ll go— Ah!”
Before he could finish speaking, his exaggerated movement caused him to collide with Song Wangzhuo, who was about to walk past him from behind.
Song Wangzhuo hadn’t anticipated this either, and the plate in his hand slipped, spilling the leftover food all over Song Lejin.
He seemed momentarily stunned too. Fortunately, it was only a small amount, but the greasy sauce had already soaked into Song Lejin’s clothes.
Lin Sui immediately sprang to his feet, glaring at Song Wangzhuo as he snapped, “Song Wangzhuo, it’s you again!”
But Song Lejin quickly interjected, “It’s fine, it’s fine! He didn’t mean to. Brother Asui, don’t be so harsh.” Then he turned to Song Wangzhuo and said, “You can go. I’m alright.”
Song Wangzhuo’s gaze lingered on Song Lejin’s clothes—the white top now stained; the marks glaringly obvious.
“I’ll compensate you for the clothes,” he said.
“Compensate? That’s all?” Lin Sui fumed at his cold tone.
Shen Yuqing frowned. “Lin Sui.”
By now, the entire cafeteria had turned their attention to them.
Shen Yuqing continued, “What’s done is done. There’s no need to shout about it.” After a pause, he added, “I’ll have Xiao Zhao bring a new set of clothes. Stop making a scene.”
Lin Sui huffed but didn’t press further, though his expression remained stormy.
Shen Yuqing glanced at Song Wangzhuo, noticing the other was looking back at him. “You can go,” he said.
Only then did Song Wangzhuo pick up his tray and leave the tense situation behind.
With his clothes ruined, Song Lejin couldn’t continue his meal. Shen Yuqing asked for his size and messaged Xiao Zhao.
Fifteen minutes later, Xiao Zhao arrived with clean clothes.
While Song Lejin changed in the restroom, Shen Yuqing and Lin Sui stood guard outside.
Lin Sui grumbled irritably, “That Song Wangzhuo… We let him off last time, and now he dares to pull this stunt again.”
Shen Yuqing shot him a sidelong glance. “Song Lejin was the one who bumped into him,” he said. Sitting opposite them, his attention had been on Song Lejin at the time, so he’d seen it clearly.
But Lin Sui refused to believe it. “No way! He definitely crashed into Lejin on purpose. Besides, Lejin couldn’t see him—if he hadn’t been walking so fast, would they have collided?”
Shen Yuqing sighed. “Calm down. Don’t let your crush cloud your judgment.”
Yet now he recalled Song Lejin’s earlier words—how they’d subtly shifted all blame onto Song Wangzhuo. Hmm.
This Song Lejin… might be more troublesome than he seemed.
