'Have I gotten so angry that I'm starting to see things?', Hua Shu began rubbing her eyes, unable to believe that the romantic setting before her was real.
Well, she had every reason to be surprised: the closer they got to the stairs leading to the ground floor, the more balloons, flowers, and garlands she saw. Practically, the stairs had been transformed into a sort of "path of love."
But who could have orchestrated such a spectacle? The school administration didn't allow such decorations even on Valentine's Day, so it was unbelievable that a student would be permitted to bring so many items into the building just to create the right atmosphere for a confession.
Furthermore, didn't the school have a strict policy discouraging relationships between students? Even if such a spectacular scene was taking place between two students who were close to graduating, it still set a bad example for those in the lower years. What if, impressed by the display, they began dreaming of fairy-tale romances? It was also possible that some might try to imitate it.
However, seeing that her actions produced no result other than irritating her eyes, Hua Shu had to accept that what she saw was real.
"Fengying... It's not possible that these things were set up for you, is it?" Hua Shu asked half-heartedly; after all, considering how the day had unfolded so far, it was a perfectly plausible continuation for yet another boy to confess to Liu Fengying.
Unlike Hua Shu, whose expression was filled with worry—like an adventurer approaching a boss room for the first time—Liu Fengying was much calmer. After all, in her previous life, she had been the target of confessions so grandiose that those in this world could not even imagine them; mountains of treasures and all sorts of powerful spiritual artifacts had been laid at her feet. How could she, then, be intimidated by some cheap "kitsch"?
"I have no way of knowing; after all, it's not like I can see more than you can. Anyway, we'll find out when we get there..." Liu Fengying replied, placing her hand on Hua Shu's head to calm her down. Honestly, she thought the girl looked like a raw recruit, overcome with emotion before a battle that promised to be extremely difficult.
Hua Shu found Liu Fengying's nonchalance a bit irritating; here was the eunuch dying of worry while the emperor relaxed without a care in the world. She figured that someone who had prepared such a lavish confession was determined to succeed, so they wouldn't be easily turned away. Moreover, the fact that they were able to organize such a scene in the middle of the school was clear proof that this was no ordinary person; Hua Shu was worried that they might have other aces up their sleeve.
Another problem was that such a confession was bound to attract a large crowd. Surrounded by a bunch of people encouraging her to say "Yes," a girl could feel intimidated to firmly refuse, as she wouldn't want to publicly humiliate the person confessing or ruin everyone's mood. Moreover, the one who rejects such a confession might be seen by some as ungrateful and heartless. They would say, "Look, the poor boy braved his emotions and expressed his feelings in front of everyone, and the girl didn't even want to give him a chance"; Hua Shu told herself that if such a public confession wasn't moral blackmail, she couldn't imagine what else it could be.
The more she imagined the scene where Liu Fengying was forced to accept the confession, the angrier Hua Shu became. For a moment, she forgot that Liu Fengying was by no means someone easy to harass; rather than a lamb surrounded by a pack of wolves, she was more like a wolf in the middle of a flock of sheep.
'Let's see which pig intends to eat my cabbage...' Hua Shu said to herself, her fighting spirit suddenly ascending to a new realm. Even if she was to be looked upon unfavorably by the entire school, she intended to crash the party of those plotting against Liu Fengying.
The silver lining was that the terrain where the battle was to take place wasn't completely unfavorable: since the bottom of the stairs was visible from the upper floor, Hua Shu didn't have to wait until she and Liu Fengying descended to determine her enemy's identity and the number of troops he had managed to gather. Thus, about ten meters before reaching the steps, Hua Shu leaned over the concrete railing to scout the ground floor.
Well, the situation downstairs was much as she expected: there were about twenty students, mostly boys, forming a semicircle around the stairs, and probably another hundred onlookers scattered throughout the hallway—in other words, a true ambush.
'Where is the bastard who planned this?' Hua Shu wondered, scanning the front rows. Not only was the scene very crowded, but her eyes were also slightly irritated, making it difficult to focus; it was as if she were looking at an abstract modernist painting, made up of a chaotic amalgam of silhouettes and garish colors.
However, in all that chaos, something managed to catch her eye: a large bouquet of red roses, and the one holding it...
"Wait a minute, isn't that Han Yu, the one who's been chasing after your sister for a while?" Hua Shu exclaimed when she caught sight of the boy she suspected to be the protagonist of this confession. Even though Hua Shu wasn't the type to be interested in who was dating whom, having accidentally seen posts on the school forums featuring Han Yu and Liu Zihan, she had come to partially understand their situation.
"Well, it seems it was a false alarm...", Hua Shu continued, visibly relieved; she figured it was almost certain that Liu Zihan was the one expected at the base of the stairs.
"So it seems..." murmured Liu Fengying, who had also stopped to let Hua Shu have her fun.
What did Fengying think about all of this? Well, she didn't have an opinion yet. Life experience had led her to the conclusion that there is no point in analyzing something that hasn't happened yet, especially if it has no direct impact on her plans.
Consequently, they headed down the stairs without a care, as Hua Shu began talking enthusiastically about the dessert she wanted to eat; honestly, having a pleasant time with Liu Fengying made the romantic decor seem far less conspicuous to her.
However, Hua Shu's happiness was short-lived. Before she and Liu Fengying could finish descending the last few steps, the boys who had come to support Han Yu began to close ranks, the atmosphere suddenly turning into a "thou shalt not pass" situation.
"Damn it!..." Hua Shu blurted out, seeing Han Yu heading toward them with an expression that could easily be labeled as "lovestruck" due to his gentle smile. Since his eyes were fixed on Liu Fengying, it was obvious she was his target.
Taken by surprise by this unimaginable turn of events, Hua Shu forgot all her ideas about how to interrupt the confession, allowing Han Yu to deliver his prepared lines without any hindrance.
"Liu Fengying, can you give me a moment?" he began, after stopping about two or three steps away from her.
Finding herself face-to-face with the fourth boy to confess to her that day, it was impossible for Liu Fengying not to be annoyed. Perhaps a straight girl, even if she didn't want to enter a relationship, would at least feel flattered seeing that she was desired by so many boys. But for her, who liked girls, these confessions amounted to nothing more than a waste of time.
She was even more frustrated when she realized that not a single girl had confessed to her; in fact, in the three days since she had started going out, she had been approached only by young men.
To her, the situation seemed somewhat paradoxical. In the world where she had spent her previous life, although some values were more primitive than in this world—for instance, less importance was placed on life, and one could kill anyone who annoyed them without remorse—there was nonetheless a greater freedom regarding love. Thus, about one in three people who tried to approach her had been a young woman.
In this world, however, despite people considering themselves so advanced in their thinking, they were forced to conform to all sorts of norms, sometimes in total antithesis to their true nature—a fact that also reflected on how a person managed their attraction to someone else. For example, a girl who found another girl attractive, instead of trying to win her over, would dread to think what her grandmother would say if she heard she was in a relationship with a girl.
Taking this into account, Liu Fengying told herself it wasn't wrong to follow her desire to flirt with all the girls she liked; to ensure she caught a "fish" she would truly be satisfied with, she had to cast as wide a net as possible.
As for the identity of the one wanting to confess to her now—especially considering the stories of his previous passion for her half-sister—Liu Fengying considered him merely conceited, convinced he deserved the very best: as long as Liu Zihan was considered the greatest beauty in school, Han Yu wanted to be with her; now that she had taken her half-sister's place, Han Yu had suddenly developed feelings for her overnight, completely forgetting his former love.
Because of this, Liu Fengying had even less patience to listen to him.
"Okay, what is it? I'm in a hurry to get to the cafeteria, so say what you have to say quickly..." she hurried Han Yu along, with the mindset that the sooner the confession ended, the sooner she could reject him and leave.
It wasn't as if she took pleasure in collecting "broken hearts"; she believed it would be best if Han Yu understood from her attitude alone that he stood no chance and withdrew. But since there was little chance of that happening, she had to deliver a formal rejection to ensure he wouldn't cross her path every single day until the end of the school year.