How come you're also my ex-girlfriend?

Lin Jia lowered her eyes slightly, facing Xu Yan who remained unresponsive, and the girl's gaze, and sat down as if possessed.

He should have sought advantage and avoided harm, avoided direct conflict, and prevented Xu Yan from taking the initiative. He should have made him realize his mistake and abandon any thought of seeking him out. What instinct had overridden his reason? Lin Jia didn't know, even though the girl beside him was excessively beautiful.

She still harbored a sliver of hope: What if they weren't close? What if their relationship was as fragile as chicken cartilage?

Xu Yan would still realize that he was the only one who had ever reached the place closest to him.

Xiao Yujie was a little confused until her best friend sat down next to her, and then she realized what was going on.

Looking at Xu Yan eating noodles in front of them, seemingly oblivious to their presence, and that girl who looked completely unconcerned yet was excessively beautiful... what a pathetic guy, even when eating noodles he has to sit with pretty girls!

Xu Yan pretended not to see them? Xiao Yujie didn't care; she would just pretend not to see Xu Yan too. What was there to be afraid of?

But to her surprise, her good-for-nothing best friend Lin Jia sat down for a while and then said quietly, "What a coincidence, you're eating noodles here too."

The boy ignored him, focusing on eating his noodles, and didn't even respond when he added a little vinegar.

On the contrary, Jiang Yiyao, who was eating leisurely, looked up with interest at Lin Jia, who had a 'wanting to say something' look on her face, and asked, "You two know each other?"

Facing such a beautiful girl, Lin Jia naturally felt pressured. However, she didn't rush to explain her relationship with Xu Yan, because she knew very well that the competition between girls lay in these subtle details, and whoever acted rashly first would lose.

She wasn't sure what the girl's relationship with Xu Yan was. Maybe she was a new friend she had just met? Or maybe she was one of the people attracted to the boy's appearance... But it didn't matter. She knew all too well how to sow discord between them and make the other person feel 'distrust' of Xu Yan.

After all, she had accumulated a wealth of experience over the previous two years. She was best at dealing with teenagers who harbored naive fantasies about love but whose personalities were riddled with flaws.

Lin Jia wore a forced smile, as if countless words were hidden in her pitiful eyes: "We should know each other, right? But those things seem to be in the past, they're not important anymore."

She was clearly saying those words to Jiang Yiyao, but as she finished speaking, she glanced at the seemingly unresponsive boy with endless regret.

Xiao Yujie was a little anxious. She didn't understand why Lin Jia was putting on such a humble posture in front of this strange girl.

Of course, Lin Jia didn't understand her best friend's intentions, but she was already imagining the 'damage' of her behavior.

Perhaps after leaving, this pretty girl will become restless and will be unable to resist subtly probing into the nature of Xu Yan's relationship with him.

How Xu Yan answers is not important; the key is that the seed of doubt has been planted. She will, like many other girls who had approached Xu Yan before, give up because of his presence.

Jiang Yiyao chuckled, but the laughter displeased Lin Jia.

What an arrogant and contemptuous laugh! It seemed as if the laugh could see right through one's own thoughts.

Jiang Yiyao didn't respond to Lin Jia's question, but instead turned to look at Xu Yan, who had almost finished eating, and asked, "Hey, what do you say?"

Xu Yan looked at Jiang Yiyao with a puzzled expression. "What did you say?"

"It seems like she's saying that your past doesn't matter anymore, but it sounds like there's a lot of unrequited love and resentment hidden inside?"

Before Xu Yan could answer, Lin Jia interjected, "This classmate, you don't need to misunderstand our relationship... There was nothing between us to begin with. It's not worth letting those past events affect your current relationship..."

"It's definitely not worth it."

Actually, Lin Jia had some things she didn't finish saying, such as: Let the past be the past. Or: Don't worry about my existence. I'm just relieved to see that he's living a good life now.

The extent of this girl's relationship with Xu Yan is not important. The key is that just by saying that, she will definitely harbor resentment and displeasure, which will be amplified infinitely in subsequent developments.

Unexpectedly, Jiang Yiyao interrupted Lin Jia directly.

Not only that, she smiled and looked up, her expression unreadable, yet it inexplicably put pressure on Lin Jia.

It's the kind of sense of crisis that a hunter involuntarily feels when encountering a more skilled hunter.

Before Lin Jia could think of a next move, Jiang Yiyao put down her chopsticks, pulled out a tissue, and said with a smile that remained unchanged, "Boys are very childish creatures..."

Is this why she can't help but belittle Xu Yan to prove her worth? Or is she trying to distance herself from him to demonstrate her arrogance?

Lin Jia suddenly felt a little bored.

But soon.

"They can hardly grow without experiencing certain things. Sometimes they even know the truth, but they can't help but have wishful thinking, which is commonly known as not turning back until they hit a wall."

No, something's not right.

Lin Jia squinted her eyes.

Jiang Yiyao continued, "But I think it's actually a good thing to meet girls who aren't so great, like green tea or white lotus types, because that's how they realize what's best."

"..."

"Moreover, because of these girls, they grow, just like leveling up in a game. The girls who appear later will actually be grateful for their appearance, as it makes them more mature and rational."

It's hard.

Lin Jia's fist, gripping the chopsticks, hardened.

Meanwhile, Jiang Yiyao, who was opposite her, began to shine brightly. She even felt that this girl was radiating a light as dazzling as the rising sun.

Jiang Yiyao didn't mince words and went straight to the conclusion.

"So it's not that the past isn't important, it's that the people from the past aren't important."

After saying that, she smiled and looked at the boy who had also put down his chopsticks, "What do you think?"

Xu Yan nodded dismissively, "That's well said, but I didn't quite understand..."

Jiang Yiyao chuckled and pulled out two tissues, but instead of taking them from the table, she took out wet wipes from her pocket that she seemed to have prepared for a long time.

As she handed it to Xu Yan, she smiled and said, "Whether you understand or not doesn't matter. Are you done eating? Wipe your mouth."

"Oh."

Xu Yan took the tissue, wiped her lips briefly, and then said with a strange expression, "I'm not that delicate. You can use it yourself."

As Jiang Yiyao picked up her schoolbag and stood up with Xu Yan, she shook her head: "Who knows if it's clean or not."

"That's true... Let's go, I've already paid."

"Okay, I'll treat you next time."

"You actually have a conscience."

"I've already said I'm a good girl."

"..."

She's right; whether Xu Yan understands or not is completely irrelevant.

The key point is that Lin Jiaquan understood, which is why her expression was so unpleasant.

Xiao Yujie, who was standing next to her and had no idea what these open and covert attacks were saying, was both confused and furious.

Her flushed face seemed even more anxious than Lin Jia's, whose face was somewhat pale.

"Who...who is she? How can she be so annoying!"

Lin Jia looked at her friend with a gloomy expression, "Did you understand what she said?"

Xiao Yujie shook her head, "I didn't understand... but it just made me so irritable. Why is it so unlucky to start the morning like this!"

Lin Jia: ...

More than the 'subtext' of Jiang Yiyao's words, what Lin Jia cared about was that the girl who appeared next to Xu Yan this time seemed to be a type she had never encountered before.

It was still raining outside, but it felt as if I was getting soaked inside the house.

……

Chapter 50 She's watching you, always...

Lin Jia didn't even know how she finished her breakfast.

The noodles that I used to find incredibly delicious now taste bland and even... my stomach and intestines feel a bit twisted and spasmodic.

I think I've heard the saying that mood can affect the function of internal organs.

Lin Jia never imagined that she would be affected by Xu Yan to this extent... There was never anything like this when they were in the same class, so how did things change after they left?

How annoying... He's annoying too, and that girl is annoying too.

Especially that beautiful mirror, like one cast from a gemstone, makes one want to smash it.

But after she finished eating, as she stood up, she suddenly looked up and looked around.

"What's wrong with Jiajia?"

Xiao Yujie looked at her best friend with a strange expression.

"I feel like someone is watching me..."

She looked around but didn't find any obvious eyes watching her. The only thing that caught her attention was a girl quietly drinking porridge in the corner of the breakfast shop.

Her thick black bangs almost completely covered her face; she wore black-rimmed glasses and a school uniform jacket...

Is it her?

I don't seem to know them.

"Oh my, you're so pretty, it's normal for people to notice you. Let's go, we'll miss morning self-study soon."

"Ah."

Maybe I'm overthinking it. As for whether she's pretty or not... no one is as pretty as that girl.

Thinking of Jiang Yiyao made her feel pressured, and even the thought of Xu Yan brought her a bittersweet feeling.

After all, when that girl was putting pressure on him, he didn't stop her at all, didn't say a word to her, and didn't even give her a glance.

There is a clear difference between deliberately ignoring something and obviously not caring.

"So you're this aggressive towards people of the same sex?" Xu Yan couldn't help but tease with a smile as they walked out of the breakfast shop.

"Tch." Jiang Yiyao, who was holding an umbrella, also dropped the gentle expression she had shown towards Xu Yan and reverted to her arrogant and domineering demeanor. "I've seen plenty of these little green tea b*tches. How dare she bring up the past in front of me... Doesn't she know how many years we've known each other?"

Xu Yan couldn't help but laugh, "Then one tea can still subdue the authority of another."

"Wait a minute, haven't you mentioned me to her at all?"

Jiang Yiyao narrowed her eyes and suddenly began to scrutinize the boy.

Xu Yan blinked. "I'd like to bring it up, but how? You weren't back then, and we haven't seen each other for almost two years."

Originally intending to accuse Xu Yan, Jiang Yiyao became hesitant and timid upon hearing Xu Yan's seemingly innocent words.