Chapter One Hundred Sixteen: Framed Once Again

During dinner, Ren Jiaxuan came over and knocked on the door. Dong Yanyan excitedly ran to open it.

“This is for you!” Ren Jiaxuan pulled out a budding rose from behind his back. He gently blew on it, and the flower blossomed.

“Wow, that’s so cool!” Dong Yanyan’s eyes sparkled as she took the flower and wrapped her arms around his. “Jiaxuan, you’re like my very own Doraemon! What’s inside this box?”

Ren Jiaxuan rubbed her nose playfully and smiled. “Of course, this is Doraemon’s treasure box. Take a look and see if you like it.”

Dong Yanyan eagerly opened the box, revealing a colorful array of fun items. The others in the dormitory crowded over curiously, picking up fans and cups, gesturing excitedly.

Dong Yanyan quickly shielded the box and teased, “You bandits, no grabbing! Wait until I’m done using them before you borrow anything!”

“Exactly, exactly. I only borrowed these too, so don’t break anything,” Leng Yue laughed.

“Just playing for a little while, can’t I have some fun?” Tiantian held up a magic fan and smirked at Ren Jiaxuan. “Ren ge, what do you say?”

Dong Yanyan snatched the fan back and teased, “With your big mouth, once you get your fill of fun, the whole school will know, and my magic tricks will be ruined.”

“How mean! Even so, you can’t say it like that! As if I talk too much,” Tiantian stomped her foot and pretended to be angry.

Ren Jiaxuan pinched her nose and laughed. “If you weren’t fast with your mouth, no one would be. Yanyan, you have to keep this box well. No letting her play with it!”

“You two are just mean! Such cheapskates!” Tiantian rolled her eyes and carried her rice bowl upstairs.

Dong Yanyan and Ren Jiaxuan exchanged smiles before she said, “You should go eat too.”

Ren Jiaxuan draped his arm over her shoulder and chuckled softly in her ear, “I’m heading off first. Wait for me tonight.” Then he left.

That got him good, really! Dong Yanyan shook her head. After tidying up, she continued eating.

*

After dinner, Dong Yanyan carried a thick stack of greeting cards upstairs. Lin Feng was busy moving desks with a few boys, clearing space at the back of the classroom for rehearsals. Leng Haoyang saw her enter and snatched the cards from her hand with a grin. “Let me see if there’s one for me!”

She let him distribute them freely; after all, these cards were just exchanged among classmates for warmth and fun.

Song Mingcheng was still hunched over his desk, absorbed in drawing circuit diagrams, seemingly detached. Dong Yanyan tugged his arm and pulled him outside the classroom.

“Did Lin Feng really hit your eye? I want to know why. From what I remember, he’s never been violent,” she asked with some guilt.

Song Mingcheng raised his brows in displeasure. “You mean I’m not human? That’s between him and me. You don’t need to know.”

“Are you mad at him?” Dong Yanyan probed cautiously.

He smiled. “Mad at him? They’re just kids to me. I’m a grown man. Why would I get angry at children?”

Dong Yanyan wasn’t so sure. “But why don’t I see them as kids? Since we’re starting over, I think it’s important to find our place. Otherwise, won’t it feel like our emotional age is prematurely aging?”

“I can’t pretend real experiences didn’t happen. Otherwise, I’d be betraying heaven’s favor. I know better than ever what I must do.” A flicker of something unusual passed over Song Mingcheng’s face. Dong Yanyan suddenly realized just how different he was from her. She was seeking to reclaim her youthful memories, eager to blend in, relive those missed moments of family, love, and friendship, and perhaps gain some experience and rewards along the way. But he approached everything with the mindset of a mature man, carefully plotting his future step by step.

“I’m surprised you cared so much about Lin Feng for so long, yet this time, you made peace with Ren Jiaxuan instead,” Song Mingcheng remarked.

Dong Yanyan smiled. “I only realized yesterday that when your heart is full of one person, there’s no room for anyone else. I like Jiaxuan now.” She paused, then added, “Don’t you think I’m kind of frivolous? Liking this one, then that one. Actually, I just want someone who treats me well and whom I like.”

Song Mingcheng gave a faint smile. “Do we really need to explain so much between us? You’re the closest person to me here. I understand you no matter what, just as you trust me with everything.”

Dong Yanyan nodded gratefully and handed him a card. “Happy New Year!”

He took it and smirked disdainfully. “You really like these childish things, don’t you?”

“I think these fleeting things are what we should cherish most. They’re marks of time,” Dong Yanyan replied sweetly. “Open it and see.”

Song Mingcheng casually flipped through the card. In colorful fluorescent pen, it read: “Dear fellow villager, wishing you happiness year after year.”

Dong Yanyan stifled a laugh, watching his handsome face contort in conflict, then magically smooth into a smile as warm as a spring breeze. The transformation was so sudden she took a step back involuntarily.

“Yanyan, you’re such a tease.” He patted her shoulder with a deeply ambiguous smile and a low, captivating tone. “Thank you, I really like it.” Then he tucked the card away and happily returned to the classroom.

Suddenly, Dong Yanyan had a bad feeling: when a small creature acts so unusually, it must mean an earthquake is coming. She forced a smile and slowly turned around, only to see Ren Jiaxuan leaning at the broadcasting classroom door, hands in his pockets, looking coolly at her. She stumbled, nearly spitting out a mouthful of blood.

“...Once again, I’ve been set up by him.” She looked at Ren Jiaxuan’s indifferent expression and felt her heart drop. This was it—experts debunking rumors, disaster almost certain.

She stomped her foot dejectedly and silently hugged the wall, preparing to return to class.

Ren Jiaxuan spoke up, “Don’t you want to explain to me?”

“It’s like this: he bumped his head yesterday, right? So I gave him a card wishing him happiness year after year, and he’s taking revenge!” she said weakly.

Ren Jiaxuan shot her a cold glance. “Come here.”

Dong Yanyan frowned but walked over, carefully tugging his sleeve and smiling. “You look really cool like this.”

Ren Jiaxuan glanced at her and finally burst out laughing. “You’re just teasing! How are you like this? You get restless if you don’t flirt with someone every day, right? I’m telling you, you need to fix that! Which guy can stand your teasing?”

Seeing him smile so beautifully, Dong Yanyan’s heart suddenly blossomed with joy.

“Jiaxuan, why aren’t you coming in? We’ve been waiting for you forever!” Du Jingxuan came running to the door, holding her script and teetering on her heels. She suddenly noticed Dong Yanyan and squealed, hiding behind Ren Jiaxuan.

“Yanyan, it’s like this... we need to rehearse the script soon... really need to...” she said timidly.

Dong Yanyan nodded. “I understand, you guys go ahead. I have to get back to class.”

Ren Jiaxuan shook his head with a wry smile, grabbed the script, and tapped Du Jingxuan’s head. “Don’t you have any backbone? You’re from a big college. Why are you scared of a small vocational student like her? You’re embarrassing our broadcasting class!”

“It’s all your fault!” Du Jingxuan pouted and stamped her heel hard on his foot. Ren Jiaxuan yelped, hopping in pain.

“Jiaxuan, you two stop it. Come stand over here,” Li Zhe called from the front, knocking on the blackboard.

*

Back in class, the back area was cleared. Yang Ruining, Liu Siying, and others were rehearsing a dance. Yang Lili held the program list and beckoned Dong Yanyan over. “Yanyan, your magic act is last. How’s your preparation going?”

“I’m practicing the technical parts, but my magic show is more about performance. Some lines need to be coordinated with the host, so I have to organize the script,” Dong Yanyan smiled gently. Having Jiaxuan as her boyfriend was a blessing — she had the advantage of proximity.

Yang Lili smiled knowingly. “Then practice for now. I’ll find time to coordinate with the host; they’ll definitely cooperate.”

Dong Yanyan found an empty desk at the back and practiced with a nesting cup set and a few ping-pong balls. Back then, Lulu was a big fan of Liu Qian’s magic — not just watching but learning. She would practice with her in her spare time. Though her hands weren’t very nimble, she could easily fool kids. Later, the Wisdom Tree program started a similar segment, and she often made simple props with Lulu to perform tricks together.

Thinking of Lulu, a wave of melancholy swept over her. Things with Xu Cheng were impossible now. She wondered if she would ever be mother and daughter with Lulu again in this life. Everything had changed, and she was no longer who she was. Even if she managed to get Xu Cheng into bed, with thousands of tiny tadpoles, there was no guarantee the child would be hers. Like her rebirth, a chance event had altered everything. Who knew what her future life would become? She only hoped Lulu was well in the twenty-first century, in that space — that was all she could wish for.

She stared at Xu Cheng’s back, lost in thought for a long while. These matters were best not pondered; the more she thought, the more confused and tangled she became.

“Yanyan, what are you thinking about?” Yang Lili sat down opposite her, smiling.

Dong Yanyan snapped out of it and grinned. “Let me show you a little magic trick. Watch!” She placed three paper cups upside down on the table, hiding a ping-pong ball under one. Then she quickly shuffled their positions.

“Guess which cup the ball is under?”

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