When Yan Huan arrived, he had yet to notice the subtle atmosphere between the three mothers. He rely swept his gaze across the gymnasium and asked about Ye Shiyu.
"Auntie Ye, is Sister Shiyu back yet?"
But the mont Ye Lan saw Yan Huan, she imdiately let out a sigh of relief, her expression looking as if she had just received a general pardon.
"Not yet. Your Sister Shiyu said she was taking a friend to the infirmary. It is great that you are here, Xiao Huan. Co here, quick."
Then, she hurriedly pulled Yan Huan over.
Yan Huan originally thought it was just going to be a casual greeting, but to his surprise, the mont he walked over, Ye Lan grabbed his shoulders and hid behind him, treating him like a human shield.
"??"
Completely baffled, Yan Huan blinked and looked forward.
Elvira stood with her arms crossed, her sky-blue eyes as profound as ever.
Sakuramiya Lily gently fanned herself with a folding fan, smiling amiably yet exuding an invisible sense of oppression.
Yan Huan was not the least bit afraid, rely glancing back at Auntie Ye in confusion.
Due to her height, she was only peeking out with half her head visible over his shoulder.
Seeing Yan Huan look back, she pouted slightly, her face full of apology.
Ah, this...
'What is going on with you, Auntie Ye?'
While Yan Huan was still puzzling over this, Sakuramiya Lily, who was now behind him, spoke up.
"Hehe, Student Yan, we were just talking about you."
"We wanted to know, for the ball at the end-of-term High Table Dinner, will you be stepping onto the dance floor? You would definitely look very handso dancing. Who are you planning to choose as your partner?"
This was exactly where Sakuramiya Lily was cunning.
By asking so casually, she acted like an elder from a different generation who was entirely oblivious to the unspoken romantic implications of student dance partners. Her entire goal was to fish for an answer from Yan Huan.
If he assud they did not know and accidentally spoke his sincere heart, he would be completely dood.
"Ugh!"
On his shoulder, Ye Lan's grip tightened slightly, as if trying to warn him.
But when Yan Huan turned his head back to look at her, she imdiately resud her usual, kindly smile.
It was just that her smile carried a slight hint of a guilty conscience...
"..."
It was obvious that Auntie Ye was absolutely terrible at this sort of thing.
Compared to Yan Huan, who was a battle-hardened veteran from dealing with the Modifiers, she was far too green.
However...
Bringing up this question truly put Yan Huan in a tough spot.
He first brushed his fingers against the small flower in his right pocket.
That was given to him by Ye Shiyu.
Next, there was the one resting in his breast pocket...
That was from Bai Yi.
Then, safely tucked away in another pocket, was the hydrangea hairpin...
That was a gift from Sakuramiya.
Currently, he had accepted three invitation flowers, and he had already made a promise to Mouse Sakuramiya...
Everyone would be attending the High Table Dinner, and everyone would see him. He could not just back out now to save his own skin and claim that accepting the invitation from Self-Doubting Sakuramiya did not count, could he?
'This is tricky. Very tricky...'
"It is hard to say about the dancing. The Student Council will be in charge of the High Table Dinner by then. I will have to run around everywhere, choosing venues and things like that, so I might not even have ti to practice dancing."
Yan Huan smiled naturally, his expression completely relaxed. In stark contrast to him, Ye Lan lied like an absolute rookie.
"If I go up to lead the dance without practicing... Aunties, surely you would not want to see
make a fool of myself in front of a massive crowd, right?"
"Oh my, that is an easy fix! Principal Hers has already said that your Student Council will not be handling the event. Naturally, you will be able to go practice your dancing."
Yan Huan paused slightly, looking over at Principal Hers, who had been standing to the side acting like a mute wallflower.
It was not until Yan Huan looked his way that the principal, as if suddenly coming to life, offered a stingy response.
"Mhm."
"Hmm..."
Yan Huan thought for a mont. Before he could speak, he caught sight of Sakuramiya Hitomi running over from the corner of his eye, panting heavily as she lifted the hem of her dress.
She was wearing the exact sa clothes and dress as Perfect Sakuramiya, except she had a sun hat resting on her head.
Through the translucent material of the sun hat, one could easily see that the mouse ears were not visible inside. He did not know if she had used the power of her Reality Barrier to hide them before coming out.
Out of habit, however, she still chose to wear a hat.
"Principal Hers, wait... wait a minute! No matter what, this is the final event our current Student Council term is responsible for. Please, let us handle it!"
"Uh..."
Principal Hers did not reply, rely casting a glance at Ye Lan and Sakuramiya Lily.
Before Ye Lan could react, Sakuramiya Lily shot a speechless glare at her own daughter, who had arrived fashionably late.
She felt an imnse speechlessness, akin to a professional gaming booster watching her hopelessly inept daughter pull off the most pig-headed maneuver imaginable.
"...However, that would be incredibly exhausting. It would be quite unfortunate if President Yan ended up running himself ragged," she remarked with a subtle smile.
"It is fine! Let
be the one in charge of it!"
However, as her daughter patted her chest proudly, Sakuramiya Lily nearly choked on her own breath.
'Hitomi, are you an absolute idiot?!'
'Do you think my concern over whether Yan Huan is busy stems from genuine worry about his health?!'
'If he gets swept up in work, how will he have ti to romance you? How will he have ti to practice dancing?!'
'Since Ye Lan already brought it up, we should be using the montum to force Yan Huan into revealing his dance partner!'
'But look at you! Oh, sure, you freed Yan Huan from his obligations, but now you are the one burdened with all the work! What the hell is the point of that?!'
'Are you trying to clear the way and create opportunities for other girls?!'
"..."
Sakuramiya Lily flashed a forced smile, utterly speechless. She simply gave her daughter's small hand a subtle pinch, signaling for her to shut up.
But Sakuramiya Hitomi, who had only just erged, was completely imrsed in her own world.
"The President handled all the previous events, while I mostly just helped coordinate. Please let
handle it this ti. Principal Hers, Auntie Ye, President, what do you all think?"
Principal Hers had no objections, while Ye Lan glanced at the dead-inside aura emanating from Sakuramiya Lily and could not help but feel a pang of sympathy.
"..."
As for Yan Huan...
He actually understood what Self-Doubting Sakuramiya was trying to do.
This was the Student Council's final event, and she had only just resolved the issue of Perfect Sakuramiya replacing Hitomi. If she did not seize this opportunity, wouldn't her newly reclaid Student Council life just end before it even began?
Naturally, she probably also wanted to use this chance to prove that she was far more excellent than Perfect Sakuramiya.
"Well... in that case, let our Student Council handle it this year."
Yan Huan had no objections. It would make his life easier, allowing him to free up more energy to deal with the issues concerning Hitomi's Main Body.
Conversely, it would also give Self-Doubting Sakuramiya sothing productive to do.
"...Then, President Yan, you still have not told us aunties if you have chosen a partner for the dance. We plan on coming to support you, you know."
Sakuramiya Lily's lips twitched stiffly, but she took a deep breath and continued trying to carry her clueless daughter.
Yan Huan smiled slightly. Just as he was about to speak, her daughter suddenly blushed, tugging at her mother's sleeve as she quickly interrupted.
"Mama! This is the President's private business. You... stop asking him about it."
"..."
Interrupted once again by her romantically inept daughter, Sakuramiya Lily's smile completely collapsed.
Beneath her sleeves, her pale hands clenched into tight fists. She nearly lost control and asked Principal Hers for so blood pressure dication.
Seeing this, Ye Lan hastily interjected.
"Yes, yes, this is all the children's business. Let them decide for themselves... Co now, let us head forward and keep strolling."
"..."
In front of her, Yan Huan and Ye Lan were working together in perfect harmony; right beside her, her own pig-headed teammate was dragging her down.
anwhile, hiding in the shadows was a terrifying lioness, quietly watching the situation unfold.
Truly, in all her decades of life, Sakuramiya Lily had never felt so utterly exhausted.
Back in the day, when she, a commoner, tore through the Eldest Misses of rival families and successfully married into the Sakuramiya family, she had thought it was barely a challenge.
The problem was, this wasn't even supposed to be a high-tier match, yet her teammate had forcibly dragged it down into hell-mode difficulty. How on earth was she supposed to play this out?!
But since things had already reached this point, pressing the issue further would only make her look incredibly tactless.
She could only glare dagger-like at her disappointing daughter, snapping in a foul mood.
"You... just do not co crying to
later when Yan Huan is dancing with another girl."
Hearing this, however, Sakuramiya Hitomi pursed her lips and stealthily leaned close to her mother's ear, whispering.
"Mama, I actually already gave the President a flower earlier, and he officially accepted it."
"Hm?"
Upon hearing her daughter's words, Sakuramiya Lily cast an astonished glance at her. She almost could not believe her own daughter was capable of pulling off such a move.
It felt as though she were witnessing her daughter finally evolving into a functioning human being.
"And Mama, I promise to deliver a flawless conclusion for this High Table Dinner!"
"Is that so?"
As she spoke, Self-Doubting Sakuramiya pinched the hem of her dress and asked in a low voice.
"So, Mama... Have I... gotten better than before?"
"Mhm."
Hearing this, Sakuramiya Lily blinked. Helplessly pinching her daughter's cheek, she murmured softly, "In my eyes, you have always been perfectly wonderful."
"Mama..."
However, Sakuramiya Hitomi seed slightly dissatisfied with this answer, puffing out her cheeks in a cute pout.
Looking ahead, Ye Lan was also whispering with Yan Huan.
"Xiao Huan, Principal Hers ntioned that it is a tradition for the Student Council President to lead the dance?"
"Yes, Auntie Ye, that is correct."
Ye Lan nodded, but inwardly, alarm bells began ringing. She could not resist probing further.
"Then, Xiao Huan, have you already picked out a dance partner?"
Toward Ye Lan, Yan Huan did not have his guard up too high.
Besides, he had already accepted all three flowers by now.
So, after a mont of thought, he could only hesitate and reply sowhat vaguely.
"...To be honest, I probably will be leading the dance, Auntie Ye."
"I see..."
Ye Lan blinked, a massive warning siren going off in her head. Yet, it was not appropriate to press the issue, so she simply watched as Yan Huan turned around to join Elvira in heading inside the gymnasium to find the missing Aria.
"Auntie Elvira, Aria is over here..."
"Mhm."
Watching Yan Huan's retreating back view, Ye Lan could not help but sigh. She was just about to turn around and tell her daughter about this.
But the mont she pulled out her mobile phone to send a text and turned around, her daughter's expressionless face abruptly filled her field of vision.
"!!"
Ye Lan jumped in fright. Clutching her chest, she took a step back and playfully scolded.
"You scared
to death, Shiyu..."
Ye Shiyu tilted her head in confusion, but imdiately asked.
"Did you talk to Principal Hers about that matter, Mama?"
'To think the very first thing she worried about upon her return was Xiao Huan's workload for the end-of-term Student Council events...'
Ye Lan smiled, touched by her daughter's consideration, and recounted what had just happened.
But as she reached the end, Ye Lan hesitated before saying.
"Also, Shiyu, you need to ntally prepare yourself."
"Just now, I asked Xiao Huan if he had chosen a dance partner. He hesitated and thought about it for quite a while in front of
before admitting that he would lead the dance, but he simply refused to tell
who his partner was."
Hearing this, Ye Shiyu blinked, and her breathing imdiately hitched.
Her mother did not know, but how could she herself not know?
The answer was already incredibly obvious.
That dance partner was her!
There were already countless clues piecing together to confirm this conclusion.
Firstly, she had just given Xiao Huan the invitation flower. He had certainly understood her aning, which was why he had been quietly pondering whether to agree.
Now, it seed Xiao Huan had already accepted.
But why would he hesitate in front of her mother?
That was even simpler to deduce.
Her mother was his adoptive mother, and she was his Sworn Older Sister!
In any normal household, even without blood ties, a romance born from adoption would be utterly scandalous.
Xiao Huan was unaware that her mother secretly knew she liked him and even fully supported their relationship.
Therefore, from Xiao Huan's perspective, he felt like a villain stealing away his older sister. He worried that her mother would get the wrong idea about him, which caused his hesitation and kept him from revealing his dance partner.
'Xiao Huan must have felt so deeply conflicted back then, right?'
'Auntie Ye treats
so well, yet I harbor these kinds of feelings toward her daughter, my older sister... Will she think I am a terrible person?'
'But I truly like Sister Shiyu... No matter what, I do not want to let these feelings go...'
Imagining Xiao Huan's hesitant, tornted, and utterly adorable expression at the ti, Ye Shiyu's usual expressionless face slowly flushed with a peach-blossom pink.
She hesitated for a mont, but still leaned closer to her mother, whispering softly.
"Mama, actually, today when Xiao Huan and I went to get the internship files... I..."
"..."
While listening, Ye Lan's eyes widened in sheer disbelief. She stared at her daughter and stamred.
"So you an to say... the dance partner Xiao Huan ntioned is..."
"...Yes."
Ye Shiyu lightly pursed her lips, her eyes downcast as she gave a barely perceptible nod.
Imdiately after, she gently promised her mother.
"I... I will keep working hard, and... treat Xiao Huan well, Mama."
"..."
Hearing this, Ye Lan's expression grew rather complicated.
But eventually, a warm smile blood on her face. She reached out to caress Ye Shiyu's cheek and murmured.
"Oh, you..."
Right at that mont, Sakuramiya Lily, beaming with a wide smile, strolled over to them.
"Ms. Ye, how about we all share a al together tonight? You shouldn't have any pressing work this evening, right?"
"Of course."
Ye Lan turned around with a bright smile, accompanied by a deeply joyous Ye Shiyu right behind her. To their surprise, they found that Sakuramiya Lily and Sakuramiya Hitomi were wearing nearly identical, beaming expressions.
On both sides, all four won were displaying radiant smiles that scread, "We have achieved ultimate victory!"
'Hm?'
Ye Lan and Sakuramiya Lily blinked at each other, neither having the slightest clue why the other party looked so incredibly happy.
anwhile, back inside the gymnasium, within the won's restroom, Elvira dampened a tissue with a little water and began wiping the dust off her daughter's pants.
Her daughter had always been an active child. From the ti she was little until now, whenever she started playing, she completely abandoned her image, more than happy to roll around on the floor.
It wasn't too bad earlier with Yan Huan keeping an eye on her, but the sudden ti stop had caused her to plop right down on the ground, leaving the back of her pants completely covered in dust.
"Alright, all done."
"Yay!"
Almost as soon as she was wiped clean, Aria flashed a bright smile and eagerly tried to dash out to find Yan Huan.
However, her mother grabbed her by the collar from behind, yanking her right back.
"Aria, there is sothing I need to ask you."
"Uhm... what is it?"
Aria turned to look at her mother, her face full of confusion. Elvira tossed the damp "wet wipe" into the trash, stared at her, and asked.
"Do you know about the High Table Dinner?"
"What is that?"
"...The High Table Dinner ball. Did Yan Huan never ntion it to you?"
Elvira frowned as she asked.
Aria blinked, seemingly sensing a trace of her mother's displeasure.
After all, her daughter was naive and oblivious to the ways of the world.
'But if he does not take the initiative to tell her, is it because he thinks leading the dance with her—a target of public scrutiny—would be humiliating? Or is he thinking that since she is completely clueless anyway, he can safely juggle multiple won and invite soone else to dance?'
Aria blinked. Her eyes darted around slyly, and rubbing the back of her head, she subconsciously began to cover for Yan Huan.
"Maybe Yan Huan told
about it, but I forgot."
In reality, Yan Huan truly had told her about it, and she truly had forgotten all about it.
"..."
Speechless, Elvira rubbed the space between her eyebrows and asked helplessly.
"Then what about the dancing? Did he not ask you?"
"Dancing..."
ntioning this word, Aria seed to rember sothing and nodded vigorously.
"He did! I rember Yan Huan bringing up sothing about... dancing. He asked
if I knew how to dance!"
"Oh?"
Hearing this, Elvira raised an eyebrow, her mood clearly improving.
This proved that Yan Huan was not treating her child like a fool to be deceived, but was treating her with sincere feelings.
"And what did you say to him at the ti?"
"...I do not think I said anything! I was too focused on playing my video ga back then!"
"..."
The expression on Elvira's face instantly stiffened. For a mont, she had absolutely no idea what to say.
"But later on, I kept feeling like it was super important! I was planning on asking Yan Huan about it again."
"Oh? And did you ask him after that?"
Elvira's eyes lit up slightly, once again sensing massive character growth in her daughter.
However, eting her mother's hopeful gaze, Aria rubbed the back of her head in embarrassnt and confessed the honest truth.
"Nope! After that, An Le taught
sothing super amazing, and my head was so full of it that... that I completely forgot!"
"..."
"But Mama, An Le is seriously super amazing! The thing she taught
was incredible!"
"..."
Elvira's face filled with profound helplessness. Yet, staring at her eager, high-spirited daughter who was overflowing with a desire to learn, she simply could not bring herself to utter another word.
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