Chapter Thirty-Seven: The Banquet Officially Begins

Yang Xiaofan had thought Qin Nuanyu was upset for some serious reason, only to find it was about this matter. He couldn't help but feel speechless and, at the same time, a bit tender-hearted. This silly girl was already worrying about such things.

He pinched Qin Nuanyu's little nose and drew her into his arms.
"Silly, I may be wealthy, but my heart remains steadfast. Since I chose you, I will never do anything to betray you—this is my promise. You just need to let go of everything and be with me; nothing else matters."

"Mm!"
Qin Nuanyu burrowed into Yang Xiaofan's embrace, nuzzling her head sweetly.

...

For the rest of the time, Yang Xiaofan and Qin Nuanyu were practically inseparable. Two young people caught in the throes of love had no concept of restraint. So it went for several days, until at last, the day of the freshman welcome event arrived.

Though called a welcome party, it was not really an evening affair; performances began around two in the afternoon in the school's grand auditorium.

"Hurry up, hurry up, we're almost late."
Driving to the auditorium, Yang Xiaofan executed a stylish maneuver to park, then the two of them rushed in hand-in-hand.

Qin Nuanyu's face was flushed, whether from running or some other reason, as if she had just finished exercising.

They dashed into the dressing room, where their classmates immediately surrounded them.

"Class president, how come you two are so late? The show is about to start, and our class's performance is among the first!"

"I know, I'll do Xiaofan's makeup right away."

"Brother Fan, come with me."

"Got it."
Yang Xiaofan hurried off with his classmates to get his makeup done, while Qin Nuanyu patted her chest in relief.

Luckily, she’d chosen to grab a cup of milk tea in the car; otherwise, Yang Xiaofan wouldn’t have been willing to hurry over. If they’d been late, it would have been terribly embarrassing.

She had barely caught her breath when, accompanied by a pungent waft of cheap Chanel perfume, a figure appeared before Qin Nuanyu.

To her surprise, it was Chen Yi.

Chen Yi was already made up, dressed in a white gauzy dress with two little wings on her back, looking as delicate as an angel.

"Hello, Qin,"
"Hello."
Qin Nuanyu was a bit taken aback, apparently unsure why Chen Yi had come to find her. Chen Yi spoke again:

"Qin, I’m a fan of Yang Xiaofan from your class. I love listening to him sing. If I’m not mistaken, he’s likely to win first place at this freshman event, isn’t he?"

Being complimented on her boyfriend naturally made Qin Nuanyu happy, but she kept up appearances.

"Not necessarily. You sing beautifully too, and have many fans. You might pull in quite a few votes."

Chen Yi pursed her lips in a smile, using her trademark, tea-like charm.

"I know my own limits. My ability can’t compare with Yang Xiaofan’s. But sharing the stage with a singer like him is an honor in itself."

"Oh, by the way, I always drink this pear blossom tea before singing to keep my throat moist. Give it to Yang Xiaofan before he sings—it should help him."

"Alright, thank you on his behalf."

"You’re welcome. Goodbye."
Chen Yi smiled as she left, and as she turned away, a faint, sinister smile flickered at the corner of her lips.

She would never hand this water to Yang Xiaofan directly; he wouldn’t accept anything from her. But through Qin Nuanyu, his official girlfriend, the odds of him drinking it were much higher.

If he drank the water, victory would be assured. Even if he didn’t, she had backup plans for him.

Watching her leave, Qin Nuanyu couldn’t help but frown slightly. A woman’s intuition told her Chen Yi couldn’t be so kind-hearted.

Hadn’t the news often warned that singers should never drink water offered by others?

So Qin Nuanyu didn’t hand it to Yang Xiaofan; instead, she placed it on the table nearby.

"So handsome!"
Seeing Yang Xiaofan after his makeup, Qin Nuanyu was instantly captivated.

Yang Xiaofan had a solid foundation, and in formal attire with a touch of makeup, he utterly outshone the popular idols.

He was dazzlingly handsome.

This was Yang Xiaofan without even investing in his looks or charisma. If he did, he’d become a heartthrob in an instant, living off his looks for a lifetime.

Seeing the class president’s jaw drop in astonishment, Yang Xiaofan grinned smugly.

"How about it? Scoring such a handsome boyfriend, you’ve hit the jackpot, haven’t you?"

"You wish."
Qin Nuanyu rolled her eyes.

"The performances have started outside. Hurry up and get ready—you can go on stage soon."

"Don’t worry, I’ll definitely bring back first place for you."

Saying this, Yang Xiaofan grabbed the pear blossom tea, opened it, and took two gulps.

"Perfect timing—I was thirsty and you brought tea. We really are attuned to each other."

Qin Nuanyu's expression changed slightly.

"You shouldn’t just drink anything. I didn’t buy this tea for you."

Yang Xiaofan frowned in confusion.

"If you didn’t buy it, then who did?"

"Chen Yi. She said she’s your fan and that this tea moistens the throat before singing. She asked me to give it to you, but I didn’t mean for you to drink it—why did you?"

"Chen Yi?"
Yang Xiaofan felt a vague sense of unease but tried to reassure her.

"It’s fine, don’t worry. The bottle was sealed, never opened, so there shouldn’t be any big prob—cough, cough..."

Just as he spoke, Yang Xiaofan couldn’t help but cough twice, reaching for his throat, which felt itchy and in need of a rough cough.

Qin Nuanyu was terrified.

"Xiaofan, your throat...what’s happening? Don’t scare me."

Yang Xiaofan rubbed his throat, his face darkening, his voice turning hoarse.

"Looks like I’ve been caught."

"What? No way! How could Chen Yi do this? We’re all students—how could she be so cruel?"

"People are complicated. She’s a typical manipulator, nothing surprising. Before, she tried to tempt me outside the boys’ dorm to get me to go easy on her, but I ignored her. I didn’t expect her to plot so far ahead."

Just then, the student in charge of instruments rushed over, nearly in tears.

"Class president, Brother Fan’s guitar for the performance—the strings are all broken, no idea who did it."