[The Coffee Shop — September 16, 10:50 AM]
Over the past hour, the shura field had cooled from open warfare to a cold simmer.
The earlier intensity between Lin Weiwei and Xiao Yue had settled into something more manageable—still present, still dangerous, but no longer threatening to ignite at any moment.
They'd moved from the cramped corner couch to a better spot near the back of the café, where a large curved sofa could accommodate three people comfortably. A low table sat in front of them with a separate couch across from it.
Lin Feng sat in the center. Lin Weiwei had claimed his left side, her hand resting possessively on his arm, while Xiao Yue occupied his right with her shoulder pressed against his in quiet territorial insistence.
Neither woman had yielded their position, and neither had stopped watching the other—but they'd reached an unspoken truce. For now.
While they waited, Lin Feng had ordered tea and light refreshments. A pot of oolong sat steaming on the table, accompanied by small plates of pastries and sliced fruit, with four cups arranged neatly on saucers. Basic hospitality and proper hosting etiquette.
The café staff had been more than happy to accommodate their every request.
After all, Xiao Yue was effectively their lady boss, and Lin Feng and Lin Weiwei were the young master and young lady of the Lin family—one of Jiangcheng's four great families, whose estate sat just across the street.
The curved sofa in the back corner offered the privacy such distinguished guests required.
Lin Feng checked his phone. 10:50 AM.
Four minutes until Zhang Tingting's expected arrival.
What else does she know? What else can she tell me about Long Tian?
The name echoed through his mind—Long Tian, the protagonist, the system user.
He'd seen the man's face yesterday in Central Plaza, that golden hair catching the sunset while natural charisma radiated from every movement. Now Lin Feng finally had a name to match that face.
And soon, he'd have more information.
-----------------------
[10:54 AM]
The café door swung open, and Zhang Tingting stepped inside.
She spotted Lin Feng immediately—that silver hair made him impossible to miss, catching the late morning light like polished metal.
But then she noticed his companions.
Two women. Both attempting disguises. Both failing spectacularly.
Zhang Tingting's steps slowed as she processed what she was seeing.
The girl on Lin Feng's right wore a hood pulled low over her face, concealing her hair and most of her features while casting shadows across her eyes. But her posture remained impossibly graceful, and every micro-movement spoke of perfect breeding. The way she held her teacup, the angle of her wrist, the slight tilt of her chin—that level of refinement couldn't be hidden by a simple hood.
I saw this person yesterday. The girl who was with Lin Feng at the restaurant.
The girl on Lin Feng's left had taken a different approach entirely. Her makeup was applied deliberately wrong, with the foundation too dark in some places and too light in others—the kind of amateur mistakes that should have made her look plain.
Her clothes were oversized and baggy too, just a loose jacket over shapeless pants, nothing that should draw attention.
But her bone structure betrayed her completely. Perfect facial symmetry, flawless skin visible even under the bad foundation, exquisite features that no amount of wrong makeup could disguise.
Zhang Tingting's breath caught.
Wait—that's Lin Feng's sister!
The memory surfaced instantly—those same eyes meeting hers across the crowded restaurant, that elegant finger raised to her lips in silent warning.
What is she doing here? And why the terrible disguise?
Zhang Tingting's gaze flicked between the two women, and her conclusion came immediately.
These two are absolute beauties. Why are they wearing disguises?
She found herself comparing them to Su Qingxue—the campus belle, the school's acknowledged goddess, the woman everyone considered the most beautiful girl at Qinghua University.
The comparison wasn't even close.
These two women were far beyond anything Su Qingxue could ever hope to be. It was like comparing a pond to the ocean, a candle to the sun.
Something twisted in Zhang Tingting's chest.
They're both way out of my league too.
She blinked.
Hold on. Why am I comparing them to myself?
Her jaw tightened, and she shook the thought away before it could settle.
Her gaze drifted back to Lin Feng.
He sat between the two beauties like it was the most natural thing in the world—relaxed, confident, completely at ease.
Since when did Lin Feng look so... commanding? Since when did he have this kind of presence?
She couldn't quite remember him being this attractive before, this magnetic. Her cheeks warmed slightly, and she looked away.
Lin Feng noticed her standing there and gestured toward the empty couch across from them.
"Please, sit."
The invitation was polite and welcoming, with a pot of tea already waiting on the table between them. They'd prepared for her arrival—a seat ready, refreshments laid out.
Is he... hosting me?
Zhang Tingting walked over and settled onto the couch across from the three of them. The tea sat untouched between them as silence stretched for a long moment.
"Thanks for meeting me." Zhang Tingting shifted on the couch, her fingers fidgeting with the hem of her sleeve. "I know this sounds crazy, but something is wrong with Su Qingxue."
Lin Weiwei's eyes narrowed at the mention of that name, and Xiao Yue's expression went cold and flat. The hostility was palpable but controlled—cold looks, guarded postures. Neither woman spoke.
Zhang Tingting pushed past their glares and focused on what mattered.
"Tell me everything." Lin Feng leaned forward slightly, his full attention on her now.
Zhang Tingting took a breath and began.
"Yesterday, after everything that happened at the restaurant, I took Qingxue back to our dorm. And she was..." Zhang Tingting paused, searching for the right word. "Strange. Really strange."
She leaned forward, her brow furrowing.
"I mean—she just got publicly humiliated in front of three hundred people. Videos everywhere, comments calling her a gold-digger, her reputation in shreds. She SHOULD have been furious, right? Crying, screaming, wanting revenge—something."
Zhang Tingting shook her head slowly.
"But she wasn't. She was calm. Almost... peaceful? She kept saying 'I'm fine' with this soft little smile, like nothing had happened at all."
Lin Weiwei's brow creased slightly. Whatever she'd expected to hear, it wasn't this.
"Her father called screaming about business deals and loans—threatening her with bankruptcy, total ruin—and she just sat there going 'Yes, Father. I understand.' Still calm. Still that weird little smile."
Zhang Tingting rubbed the back of her neck.
"And then she started staring at her phone." She swallowed. "At YOUR photo, Lin Feng. Your WeChat profile. For five minutes straight, not moving, not blinking."
Something flickered in Lin Feng's eyes.
Xiao Yue glanced sideways at him, then back at Zhang Tingting. Her posture had shifted—less hostile now, more alert.
"She had this look on her face I'd never seen before. It was just... raw. Unguarded. Almost painful to watch." Zhang Tingting's voice dropped lower.
"Honestly? I thought she was finally realizing something. After four years of treating you like dirt, I thought maybe she was—"
She stopped herself and shook her head, her jaw tightening.
"Then her phone buzzed. The message came from this guy—Long Tian." Zhang Tingting rubbed her temples. "And I swear to god, it was like watching a different person climb into her body. Same face, same voice, but everything behind it? Gone. Replaced with... something else."
Lin Weiwei's grip on Lin Feng's arm tightened.
"One second she's drowning in whatever she was feeling about you. The next?" Zhang Tingting let out a hollow laugh. "She's glowing! Literally bouncing on the bed. Smiling so wide it looks like it hurts her face."
Zhang Tingting put on a dreamy, faraway voice—mimicking Su Qingxue.
"And then she started saying things like—" Zhang Tingting put on a dreamy, faraway voice. "'We're destined to be together.' 'The moment I saw him, I knew.' 'He's a dragon among men.'"
She dropped the voice.
"Dragon among men. She said that to my face. I'm not kidding!"
Xiao Yue's eyes narrowed. "About someone she just met?"
"YES! Thank you!" Zhang Tingting gestured at Xiao Yue like she'd finally found an ally. "She met him once! ONE time! A few hours earlier in the library! And now he's her destiny?"
She caught herself, pressed a hand to her forehead, took a breath.
"Sorry. I just—it doesn't make sense. None of it makes sense."
"What did you say to her?" Lin Feng asked quietly.
"What do you THINK I said?" Zhang Tingting's voice rose again. "I said, 'Qingxue, Lin Feng chased you for four years. FOUR YEARS. Fifteen million yuan. And you're telling me this random guy is your soulmate after one afternoon?'"
Her fingers dug into her knees.
"You know what she said?"
She looked directly at Lin Feng, and something hardened in her expression.
"She said you were pathetic. Desperate." A bitter edge crept into her voice. "Said thinking about you made her skin crawl."
Lin Weiwei's jaw clenched. Xiao Yue's expression went sharp and cold.
"Five minutes." Zhang Tingting held up her hand, fingers spread. "Five minutes earlier, she was staring at your photo like—like you were the only person in the world. And then one text message later, you're disgusting to her?"
She let her hand drop.
"How does that even work? How does someone flip like that?"
The silence stretched between them.
"But that's not even the worst part." Zhang Tingting rubbed her arms like she was trying to warm herself. "She tried to get me to meet him."
Lin Feng's brow furrowed slightly. "Meet him?"
"Yeah, she said it like this—" Zhang Tingting's voice shifted, bright and eager, imitating. "'Tingting, you should come with me tomorrow! Maybe you'll like him too!'"
She dropped the act, her face twisting.
"With this smile. You know those girls in malls with the clipboards? The pyramid scheme types who corner you near the escalator and act like they're doing you a favor?"
Xiao Yue tilted her head. "She wanted to share him? With you?"
"EXACTLY!" Zhang Tingting's voice cracked. "Her soulmate! Her destiny! And she's trying to—to recruit me into his fan club or something? Who does that?!"
She was breathing harder now.
"So I panicked. Made up some excuse about a culinary exam and just—ran." She exhaled. "I went to my cousin's place. Zhang Yuting. Just needed to talk to someone normal, you know? Get my head straight."
Her face twisted.
"And you know what? My cousin also said the same damn thing—right to my face!"
Lin Weiwei went still.
"Word for word. Same phrases, same dreamy voice, same—" Zhang Tingting's hands made helpless circles in the air. "'He's different from other guys.' 'We're destined.' 'The moment I saw him, I knew.' All of it. About the same guy."
"Does your cousin know Su Qingxue?" Lin Feng asked.
"They've never even met! At least I don't think—" Zhang Tingting caught herself, lowered her voice. "They've never spoken. Ever. But they're using the same words. The same sentences. Like they're both reading from some script I can't see."
She pressed her palms against her eyes for a moment.
"And when I tried to ask questions? Point out how weird this all was?" She dropped her hands. "They just smiled at me. Both of them. This empty, patient smile. Like I was the crazy one."
Her voice wavered.
"And it's not just them. My whole family keeps pushing me to meet this guy too. 'Oh, Long Tian is so amazing!' 'He's so special!' 'He's perfect!'" Zhang Tingting's voice dripped with frustration. "Like they all drank the same Kool-Aid."
Zhang Tingting looked up at Lin Feng, and her eyes were pleading.
"Please tell me I'm not losing my mind."
-----------------------
Lin Feng listened to every word, his expression carefully neutral even as the pieces clicked together in his mind.
Two women. Same guy. Same exact phrases.
That's not a coincidence. That's a pattern.
The "script" observation was more accurate than Zhang Tingting could possibly know. They WERE following a script—the protagonist's conquest script. Pre-programmed responses designed to accelerate romantic attachment.
But what struck him most was Zhang Tingting herself.
She could SEE it. Even without any framework to explain what she was seeing. Even without knowing that systems or protagonists or affection mechanics existed—her mind had recognized the wrongness instinctively.
That's interesting.
She's resisting whatever Long Tian is doing to them. But why her? What makes her different from Su Qingxue and Zhang Yuting?
He tucked the question away for now.
"That does sound wrong," Lin Feng said carefully. "Like something is influencing them."
"YES." Zhang Tingting practically sagged with relief. "Exactly. Like they're not themselves anymore. Like something crawled inside their heads and started pulling strings."
Lin Weiwei and Xiao Yue exchanged another glance. Whatever rivalry simmered between them, this conversation had pushed it to the background.
Zhang Tingting's gaze drifted from Lin Feng to the two women flanking him, then back again.
Something else was clearly on her mind.
-----------------------
Zhang Tingting hesitated. Her fingers curled around the untouched teacup on the table.
"Lin Feng..." She started, then stopped. Tried again. "About the past three years..."
The words came out heavy and reluctant.
"I took your money. I helped you chase someone who never deserved you." She couldn't meet his eyes. "Three years of passing along your gifts. Arranging meetings. Enabling... all of it."
Her voice dropped lower.
"I'm sorry."
Lin Feng waved a dismissive hand. "Don't worry about it. That was pocket change to me anyway."
Zhang Tingting's head snapped up.
"Pocket change?" She leaned forward, her eyes sharp. "Lin Feng, I added it up once. You spent over 400,000 yuan through me alone. Four hundred thousand. That's not pocket change to anyone."
Lin Feng's eye twitched internally.
400,000 yuan. And that's just for Tingting, the matchmaker.
In my past life, it would've taken me YEARS to earn that much!
Goddamnit—not only was the original Lin Feng a bootlicker, he was a fucking spendthrift too!
Lin Feng reached up and combed his fingers through his silver hair—casual, unbothered, the body language of a man who couldn't be troubled by such trivial sums.
"No big deal." His voice stayed smooth. "Pocket change."
He leaned back, perfectly at ease. Or so he wanted them to think.
But none of the women were buying it.
Zhang Tingting noticed the slight twitch at the corner of his eye. Lin Weiwei noticed the way his jaw tightened for just a fraction of a second. Xiao Yue noticed the pause that lasted half a beat too long.
All three women arrived at the same conclusion.
He's lying. That definitely bothered him.
"No! No! Really! It's really no big deal," Lin Feng added before any of them could comment. He picked up his teacup and took a casual sip. "At least I've cut myself off from Su Qingxue now. Consider it... tuition fees."
He set the cup down with a soft clink.
"It was just… well… payment for learning what kind of person she really was."
Zhang Tingting didn't fully buy the "pocket change" act. But she noticed something else.
The old Lin Feng wouldn't have brushed this off. His first instinct would've been to defend Su Qingxue—insist that the money was worth it, that he didn't regret a single yuan because he loved her.
Every time he did that, it made her want to shake him.
But this Lin Feng just... moved on. No justifications. No rationalizations. No desperate clinging to the past.
When did Lin Feng get to be like this?
-----------------------
Zhang Tingting's gaze moved from Lin Feng to the two women beside him. Then back to Lin Feng.
"But what about YOU?"
The question emerged with genuine confusion.
"Why are you suddenly surrounded by..." She gestured vaguely at Lin Weiwei and Xiao Yue. "...when you were so dedicated to Su Qingxue just two days ago?"
The moment she asked it, both women's attention sharpened.
Lin Weiwei's fingers stilled on Lin Feng's arm. Her eyes narrowed with sudden interest.
Xiao Yue's head tilted slightly. Her gaze fixed on Lin Feng's face with laser focus.
They also wanted to know the answer to this question.
Three women stared at Lin Feng. Waiting. Demanding an explanation.
Ah.
This question.
Lin Feng met their gazes calmly.
"After what happened in the restaurant yesterday—" He began.
He hadn't actually witnessed the library encounter between Long Tian and Su Qingxue. But they didn't know that.
"—I decided to let Su Qingxue go."
"She clearly wanted someone else. Someone new. Why would I keep chasing her?"
He paused for effect.
"Then I just happened to realize something."
He gestured casually at Lin Weiwei and Xiao Yue. Completely nonchalant. As if he were commenting on the weather.
"That there are two women who actually like me."
His expression remained perfectly serious.
"I'm just too handsome, you know."
Zhang Tingting blinked.
"Oh Heavens… Being too handsome is a sin." Lin Feng continued without missing a beat. "Why am I soo good?"
He sighed dramatically.
"Such sin… such burden… The heavens must be punishing me to spend my youth enjoying this gift the gods gave me."
Silence.
Zhang Tingting's eyelid twitched. The classic "are you serious right now" expression spreading across her face.
Lin Weiwei stared at him like he'd just stepped in dog poop.
Xiao Yue's expression clearly communicated: "This guy is an idiot."
All three women stared at him in complete disbelief at his narcissism and absolute shock at his shamelessness.
But...
The explanation was too stupid to be a lie. Too absurd to be manipulation.
Just pure, unfiltered ego talking.
Who would make up something THIS ridiculous as a cover story?
Zhang Tingting shook her head slowly. She decided to move past it and return to the main topic.
Though she couldn't help but see Lin Feng in a new light.
His acting skills were terrible. That narcissistic explanation was so obviously fake that it circled back around to being almost endearing.
There had to be real reasons behind his sudden change. But he clearly wasn't ready to share them.
And besides…
Her gaze lingered on him longer than she intended.
That silver hair catching the late morning light. Those sharp features. The easy confidence in the way he carried himself.
Since when did Lin Feng look so... dashing?
Then her eyes drifted lower, and she noticed something else.
Faint marks scattered across his neck—reddish, unmistakable. And his lower lip looked swollen, like someone had bitten it.
Her gaze flicked to Lin Weiwei on his left.
Lin Weiwei's expression stayed composed, but something smug flickered at the corner of her mouth. The look of a cat who'd gotten the cream.
Then to Xiao Yue on his right.
Xiao Yue wasn't looking at Zhang Tingting at all. She was staring at the marks on Lin Feng's neck, her jaw tight, her eyes sharp enough to cut glass.
Oh.
OH.
Zhang Tingting's face went hot.
So THAT'S how it is.
She cleared her throat and looked away, suddenly very interested in her untouched teacup.
-----------------------
But even as she avoided eye contact, Zhang Tingting found herself watching the dynamics between the three of them.
Lin Weiwei's fingers rested on Lin Feng's arm—possessive, comfortable, like she belonged there. Every few seconds, her thumb would trace a small circle against his sleeve, almost unconsciously.
On his other side, Xiao Yue leaned into him, her shoulder pressed against his. When Lin Weiwei's hand shifted higher on his arm, Xiao Yue's eyes flicked toward it, and she pressed closer.
That's nothing like Qingxue.
When Su Qingxue talked about Long Tian, her eyes went empty. Glassy. Like someone reciting lines they'd memorized but didn't understand.
But these two?
Lin Weiwei caught Xiao Yue looking at her hand on Lin Feng's arm. She didn't move it. Instead, her fingers curled tighter, and a small smile tugged at the corner of her mouth.
Xiao Yue's jaw tightened. She shifted her weight, angling her body to block Lin Weiwei from Zhang Tingting's view.
Neither of them said a word. They didn't need to.
This is what Qingxue should be like. Not just smiling and offering to share.
-----------------------
Lin Feng set down his teacup.
The smile dropped from his face. His posture straightened, shoulders squaring, and when his gaze locked onto Zhang Tingting, something in those dark eyes made her stomach flip.
The ambient noise of the café—the soft jazz, the clink of porcelain, the murmur of other customers—seemed to fade into nothing.
Zhang Tingting's hands stilled in her lap. She forgot what she'd been about to say.
"Whatever happens." Lin Feng's voice came out quiet, but it cut through the air like a blade. "You must never approach Long Tian."
Zhang Tingting's mouth opened, then closed. "What? Why?"
Lin Feng didn't answer. He leaned forward, elbows resting on his knees, silver hair falling across his forehead.
"How did your cousin and Su Qingxue both fall for the same guy so fast?"
"What..." Zhang Tingting shook her head. "What kind of question is that?"
She tried to look away from him—at the teacup, at the window, at anything else—but her eyes kept drifting back. Heat crept up her neck, and she had to swallow before she could focus on his actual words.
Then they hit her.
Su Qingxue's face flashed through her mind. Those glassy eyes staring at Long Tian's photo. That dreamy voice reciting destiny and soulmates like a prayer.
Zhang Yuting's face followed. That same smile. Those same words. That same empty patience when Zhang Tingting had pushed back.
Two women. Same script. Same guy.
The pattern's been staring me in the face this whole time.
Her fingers curled into the fabric of her pants.
Something is wrong with how women react to Long Tian.
"What, does he have some kind of supernatural power over women?" The laugh that came out of her sounded thin and brittle. "Did he feed them love potions or something?"
Nobody laughed with her.
The words hung in the air, and Zhang Tingting found herself wishing she could snatch them back. Because now that she'd said it out loud—
What if it's not a joke?
What if there's actually something wrong with him?
Lin Feng held her gaze. The seconds stretched.
"I don't know," he said finally. "But I don't think he's a good man."
Zhang Tingting nodded.
The joke she'd made to calm herself down didn't feel like a joke anymore. It felt like something her gut had been trying to tell her all along.
Stay away from Long Tian. Don't let him anywhere near you.
On Lin Feng's left, Lin Weiwei's fingers had stopped their idle movements on his arm. On his right, Xiao Yue sat perfectly still, her teacup frozen halfway to her lips.
Neither of them knew who Long Tian was—just a name, just a warning.
But they'd seen the way Lin Feng's expression had changed. They'd heard the steel underneath his quiet voice.
That was enough.
-----------------------
"So what do we do?" Zhang Tingting asked, her fingers wrapped around the teacup she still hadn't touched. "About Qingxue and my cousin?"
The late morning light had shifted while they talked, slanting deeper through the café windows and casting long shadows across the table. Somewhere behind them, a barista was steaming milk, the hiss and gurgle filling the silence.
Lin Feng tapped his fingers lightly against his own cup, thinking.
"Do you know if Long Tian has any plans today? Anything your cousin or Su Qingxue mentioned?"
Zhang Tingting's brow furrowed as she searched her memory.
"Actually... yeah." She straightened in her seat. "Qingxue said she was meeting him for coffee. Around 2 PM, at Cloud Nine Café."
Lin Feng's fingers stilled on the porcelain.
"And Yuting mentioned the same thing," Zhang Tingting continued, her tone still casual. "Cloud Nine Café. 2 PM. She was tearing through her closet trying to find the perfect outfit when I left last night."
She shrugged, reaching for her teacup.
Then she froze, the cup halfway to her lips.
Wait.
Cloud Nine Café. 2 PM. Qingxue.
Cloud Nine Café. 2 PM. Yuting.
The teacup clinked back onto its saucer.
"Hold on." Zhang Tingting's voice climbed an octave. "Hold on—hold on—"
She pressed both hands against her temples, her eyes widening as the pieces crashed together in her head.
"They both have dates with him. Same time. Same place. Same—"
She looked up at Lin Feng, then at Lin Weiwei, then at Xiao Yue, as if one of them might tell her she'd misheard something.
Nobody corrected her.
"Is he planning to meet BOTH of them at once?!" Zhang Tingting's hands dropped to her lap. "Does he WANT them to run into each other? What kind of psychopath does that?!"
Lin Weiwei and Xiao Yue exchanged a sharp glance across Lin Feng's chest.
The café's ambient jazz played on, oblivious to the small crisis unfolding at their table. A couple at a nearby booth laughed at something on a phone screen. Life continued, normal and unbothered, while Zhang Tingting's worldview cracked a little wider.
Lin Feng leaned back against the curved sofa, his expression thoughtful.
"Maybe we should find out."
Zhang Tingting blinked at him. "You want to go watch them?"
Lin Feng's gaze drifted toward the window. His shoulders dropped slightly, and when he spoke again, his voice had gone soft.
"I once loved Qingxue so much. Chased her for four years. Spent everything for her."
He let out a quiet sigh, his fingers tracing the rim of his teacup.
"I just want to see if she's happy in Long Tian's arms now."
Zhang Tingting's chest loosened.
There it is. That's the Lin Feng I know.
Still thinking about her happiness, even after everything she did to him.
She could picture him doing exactly this—sitting in some corner of Cloud Nine Café, watching from a distance, torturing himself with the sight of the woman he loved being happy with someone else.
Idiot. Hopeless, self-sacrificing idiot.
Her gaze drifted to Lin Weiwei's hand on his arm, then to Xiao Yue pressed against his other side.
And yet here he is, sandwiched between two beauties who are clearly fighting over him.
What a shameless scoundrel.
Something twisted in her stomach at that thought—something sharp and uncomfortable—and she shoved it aside before it could take root.
"Yes," she said, her voice steadier now. "I'll come. I want to check on Qingxue anyway."
On Lin Feng's left, Lin Weiwei's fingers had stopped their idle tracing on his sleeve. They curled inward instead, nails digging into the fabric.
On his right, Xiao Yue's teacup hovered frozen in mid-air, her knuckles white around the handle.
Neither woman looked at each other.
They didn't need to.
Su Qingxue.
We're going to sit there and watch him watch Su Qingxue.
Lin Weiwei's grip tightened on Lin Feng's arm. Xiao Yue set her teacup down with a sharp clink.
But when Lin Feng glanced at them—a quick, questioning look—both women smoothed their expressions into careful neutrality.
"We'll come too," Lin Weiwei said, her voice perfectly even.
"Of course," Xiao Yue added. "Someone needs to keep an eye on this Long Tian."
Their eyes met briefly over Lin Feng's shoulder.
Something passed between them—quick, sharp, wordless.
Then Lin Weiwei released her death grip on Lin Feng's arm. Xiao Yue unclenched her jaw and set her teacup down gently.
-----------------------
[11:28]
Lin Feng pulled out his phone to check the time. 11:28 AM.
Two and a half hours until the meeting.
He looked at the three women around him—Lin Weiwei adjusting her hood, Xiao Yue smoothing down her sleeves, Zhang Tingting still clutching her bag strap like a lifeline.
Long Tian has a dual-dating quest today. Qingxue at 2 PM along with Yuting.
His fingers tapped against the phone screen.
That's too early. The double date shouldn't happen until after he finishes his first conquest.
Did something change after we crossed paths yesterday?
Is the system reacting to me somehow?
His jaw tightened.
Doesn't matter. Whatever's going on, I need to see it with my own eyes.
And if I'm lucky, I might finally get a look at how this bastard operates.
"Let's go." Lin Feng rose from the couch, and his voice carried a quiet authority that hadn't been there before. "We have work to do."
Lin Weiwei stood immediately, her hand finding his arm like it belonged there.
Xiao Yue rose a moment later, positioning herself on his other side with practiced ease.
Zhang Tingting was the last to stand.
She watched the three of them—the way they moved together, the way the two women flanked him like bodyguards, the way Lin Feng's entire demeanor had shifted from playful narcissist to something sharper and more focused.
Something changed today. I don't understand what, but something definitely changed.
She thought about Su Qingxue's empty smile. About Zhang Yuting's dreamy voice. About her family pushing her toward a man who scheduled two dates at the same time like it was nothing.
None of it made sense anymore.
But Lin Feng? The women around him? The jealousy and the rivalry and the messy, complicated emotions written all over their faces?
That was real. That was human.
Zhang Tingting grabbed her bag and followed them toward the door.
She didn't fully understand why, but right now, staying close to Lin Feng felt like the safest place to be.
The late morning light caught his silver hair as he pushed open the café door, and Zhang Tingting found her eyes lingering on him longer than necessary.
Since when did he look like that?
She shook the thought away and stepped out into the September sun.
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[#18: Zhang Tingting] ★☆☆☆☆☆☆ (1-Star Heroine)
├─ Previous Affection: 48
└─ Current Affection: 43
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[END OF CHAPTER 25]