Volume One, Chapter Five: The Graduation Ball

When they reached the lakeside, Jiang Yu once again scanned her silhouette; from behind, she looked different.

Her hair flowed down like a waterfall, her calves slender and straight, her thighs shapely and alluring. Moving his gaze upward, though not overly voluptuous, the gentle curves were just right, stirring boundless longing. Her waist, as graceful as a willow branch, seemed almost lethal in its beauty.

Further down, her toenails were painted, and her translucent toes gleamed mischievously under the moonlight.

It seemed she sensed the intense gaze.

Su Muyu turned around. “Do you really like feet?”

“No,” Jiang Yu was caught off guard and hurriedly denied it.

“Then why are you staring at my feet?”

“I just had my head down... didn’t know where else to look.”

Su Muyu fell silent for a moment. “You like that Zhao Yiyi so much that you wrote a song for her after your breakup?”

Jiang Yu couldn’t help but sigh again; this woman was too enchanting. Every gesture, every smile, made one marvel at the wonders of creation.

But her tone was off—there was reproach laced with grievance, making him feel as if he were some heartless scoundrel.

“You heard it?”

“I was at Little Moonlight earlier, too.”

Jiang Yu scratched his head, “That song was just something I wrote in my spare time, it has nothing to do with her.”

Strange, she seemed somewhat displeased.

“Really?”

“Of course it’s true. One Chinese won’t deceive another Chinese.”

Upon hearing this, Su Muyu’s mood seemed to improve a little, and her cheeks flushed faintly. “Zhao Yiyi came to us and said she wants to withdraw from the duet with you at the graduation gala.”

Jiang Yu was momentarily stunned, then realized that he hadn’t heard that name mentioned all day. Even when his roommates talked about her, it was always about ‘green tea’ types—he almost forgot Zhao Yiyi was his ex-girlfriend.

Su Muyu was referring to the graduation gala Zhao Yiyi had messaged him about. The annual graduation gala was organized by the student council and supervised by faculty advisors.

Su Muyu, a well-known celebrity, was naturally a student council leader, and this time, she was in charge of the gala.

For contemporary college students, graduation often meant unemployment, especially for those from the Film Academy. The annual graduation gala was the most important opportunity for them.

Many industry bigwigs and famous guests would attend as spectators; if a student caught their eye and was discovered, their career would progress much more smoothly.

For example, his ‘green tea’ ex-girlfriend was scouted and debuted as part of a group—not that she skipped ten years of struggle, but certainly saved herself at least two and a half.

Originally, she and Jiang Yu were to perform a show together, but now, to secure those two and a half years and not upset her benefactor, she simply and decisively gave up the performance.

Su Muyu understood what the gala meant to a soon-to-be graduate from the Film Academy. After hesitating, she looked at Jiang Yu: “Do you have any other duet partners?”

“No,” Jiang Yu answered without hesitation.

The original Jiang Yu had cut off ties with almost all the girls for Zhao Yiyi’s sake—only a few brothers remained around him!

And he remembered the show they were rehearsing—it was about mutual understanding and irresistible emotion.

If it were a performance of “The Romance of Tang Bohu and Autumn Fragrance,” he could accept it.

But now, having his brothers on stage in a scene of mutual attraction and uncontrollable emotion... forget it.

This green tea girl really caused trouble even after breaking up.

“If you don’t have a suitable partner, I can perform with you.”

When Su Muyu said this, her cheeks were already crimson, though the moonlight made it less obvious.

“I was wondering why you came to me—you just want to join the show, huh?”

Jiang Yu joked, but seeing she didn’t laugh and kept staring at him, he gave a sheepish grin and replied,

“That’s too much trouble for you. Is it okay if I sing solo?”

Su Muyu hadn’t rehearsed the program; if she participated, it would be an overwhelming advantage. And with her current status, there was no need.

If she helped him, Jiang Yu wouldn’t mind, but it might cause her inconvenience.

“You want to sing solo?”

“Mm.” Jiang Yu nodded. “Did you hear the song I sang at Little Moonlight tonight? Rather than finding someone last minute, I’d rather do it myself and avoid anyone trying to piggyback.”

Jiang Yu had no intention of helping others anymore.

He’d helped once and ended up in this mess.

Now, he’d learned to let go of the urge to help and respect others’ destinies.

His crossing over was for his own enjoyment, his future wife’s happiness, his family’s well-being, and maybe some benefit for close friends—not for others.

“You have original songs?” Su Muyu asked with delight.

Jiang Yu tapped his forehead and smiled gently. “I don’t have one yet, but I’m confident I won’t mess it up. Worst case, I’ll let you hear it first.”

Su Muyu nodded. “I believe in you. Keep it up! I’ll take care of things with the school for you, Xiaoyu.”

At the last address, Jiang Yu was momentarily stunned.

He hadn’t heard it in ages—it was what they called each other in high school: Xiaoyu and Xiaoyu, different characters, same pronunciation.

“Thank you for believing in me, Xiaoyu.”

Back at the dormitory.

Jiang Yu didn’t get a word in.

He was immediately surrounded by three brutes.

“Take my Immortal Grape-Picking Strike!”

“Childless Kick!”

“Speak up, Fourth—honest confession means you go home for New Year; resistance just makes it worse. Monkey Steals the Peach!”

“Damn, Fourth, I wondered why you never showed interest in girls—you’ve been secretly involved with the campus belle!”

“Don’t call me Fourth, call me Fourth Brother. Fourth Brother, share your secrets, will you?”

Their faces ran the full gamut of emotions.

“You’re pinching my bird and still want me to share my secrets? I’ve never seen such shameless people... Sorry, sorry, my mistake!”

Jiang Yu struggled to escape their grasp, straightening his hair that they’d messed up.

“Su Muyu is my high school classmate. We’ve been close since then. This time, it’s because that green tea girl messed with me at the graduation gala, so she just wanted to ask if there was another way.”

Hearing this, the three finally stopped their rough antics.

“You’re kidding!” Wang Hong looked skeptical. “Just for that, you had to sneak off to Lovers’ Hill?”

“What do you mean, sneak? We talked openly under the moonlight. Damn, I drank too much tonight; I need a beef noodle soup to warm my stomach. If you want to come, follow me!”

With that, he left the dorm.

The three exchanged glances and hurried after him.

In the 24-hour Lanzhou Noodle Shop.

“I’ll barely believe you,” Wang Hong slurped noodles without beef. “Can’t believe Su Muyu is Fourth’s high school classmate—you hid it so well!”

“Yeah, never mentioned it,” Xiong Tao mumbled around noodles.

Jiang Yu rolled his eyes, “It’s just Su Muyu, why are you all so excited?”

“Just Su Muyu? She’s one of the top rising stars, the media calls her a leader among young artists, great acting, sings beautifully, has released albums—way better than those talent show trainees!”

“How dare you compare our goddess to those nobodies.”

Wang Hong finished his soup and slung an arm around Jiang Yu, grinning, “Back to the point, Fourth, do you really have no feelings for Su Muyu?”

The question made Jiang Yu pause.

With a girl that beautiful, saying he had no feelings would be a lie—that’s why he wanted to refuse her offer to perform together.

“I’m full, going back to sleep. Third, pay the bill!” Jiang Yu stood up and strode outside.

The other two bounced up and ran out after him.

Wang Hong was left stunned. “Damn, Fourth, you said you wanted to eat—how come I’m paying again!”