Chapter 74 (Please subscribe to this chapter!!) Autumn signifies the end.

“Jiang Nian? How did he get promoted? He didn’t cheat, did he?”

That’s classic, a brainless attack right from the first sentence.

“He didn’t cheat, don’t you dare just blurt that out.”

Le Zhi slammed his chopsticks on the table, frowned, and glared at those people, his expression not looking too good.

He had already fallen out with them once before, and today he only came out of consideration for Zhou Yuting’s Face.

There was no need to give Face at all; it wouldn’t have helped even if he did.

“Who knows?”

“If you don’t know, why are you blabbering? Did your mom tell you in a dream?” Le Zhi didn’t hold back and immediately cursed back.

He used to be like an idiot, but that didn’t mean he lacked violence Qi. Anyone who could be friends with Jiang Nian usually had a bit of a temper privately.

He wasn’t afraid of the people opposite him flipping the table. Let them fight. Anyway, the county town was so small; fighting was always the same. If there were connections, the elders would mediate.

The classic opener: the children are ignorant, so they apologize to each other, and it’s over.

No connections? Just watch me get into xxx, then I’ll just beat you up again, and it’ll be over. Such a temper? What kind of Jianghu gangster is this? Let’s see if three sticks can shatter your Jianghu dream.

“You… do you know?” That person softened.

Le Zhi was speechless, too lazy to talk, and unwrapped a new pair of chopsticks.

He hadn’t really felt it before, but ever since Jiang Nian was promoted to the Olympiad Class, he suddenly felt a sense of bewilderment.

There were only a few, less than eight months, left in senior year. Was he still going to waste time?

Before, they used to tease each other and pursue Zhou Yuting.

Now, he suddenly realized the other party had left the group and wasn’t playing anymore, so he didn’t have much interest in Zhou Yuting now either.

Sometimes, he even wondered if living a different way would truly be different.

“Alright, Jiang Nian’s promotion must be due to his own ability.” Liu Feipeng didn’t participate in these topics, letting his subordinates handle all the dirty work so he could maintain a good reputation.

“Yes, the Olympiad Class.” Zhou Yuting smiled and said nothing more, a faint ache in her heart. “But his personality isn’t very good, so he probably isn’t having a great time in the new class either.”

“Yeah, he hasn’t contacted any of us friends recently. After getting promoted, he completely stopped interacting with us,” someone complained. “Even when we run into him on the road, he doesn’t say hello.”

Yu Tongjie was a bit surprised by this and looked at Zhou Yuting.

“You and Jiang Nian used to be in the same class?”

Upon hearing this, not only Zhou Yuting, but also Le Zhi and Liu Feipeng looked at Yu Tongjie. They only knew Yu Tongjie had also been promoted when he arrived, but hadn’t paid attention to which class. After all, they weren’t following Jiang Nian’s recent situation, but they didn’t expect such a coincidence.

“Brother Yu and Jiang Nian are in the same class, so he must know him very well, right?” Someone became interested and proactively asked, “After he got promoted recently, has he been living a particularly miserable life?”

Before Yu Tongjie could speak, Le Zhi interjected.

“If you can’t speak properly, then don’t speak. No matter how miserable he is, isn’t he still better than you? Why don’t you try getting into the Olympiad Class?”

The more Yu Tongjie listened, the more outrageous it felt. He scratched his head. He knew Jiang Nian’s grades were real—a painful lesson. He couldn’t proactively clarify the situation. While he wouldn’t outright slander him, he secretly hoped others would throw more mud at Jiang Nian.

Saying Jiang Nian’s personality wasn’t very good, he agreed with that!

Damn it, he was like an electric boy!

He’d explode at the slightest touch.

Zhou Yuting saw that Yu Tongjie didn’t deny it and couldn’t help but feel a surge of joy in her heart.

If Jiang Nian’s grades were really bad, the news should have reached her ears. However, it hadn’t, which meant his grades didn’t have much embellishment. But after he was promoted, he hadn’t contacted anyone, completely silent.

This actually matched his personality; he had decent popularity in class but no close friends. He probably remained the same after being promoted. The Olympiad Class was full of Prodigies, all seeds for top-tier universities. It was normal for a student from a regular class like Jiang Nian to be promoted and not fit in.

Even if he caught up with the study progress, could he get along with the people around him? In short, her heart finally felt balanced.

“Alright, let’s not talk about Jiang Nian anymore, let’s talk about something else,” Zhou Yuting said with a smile.

At this moment, she had already let go.

Liu Feipeng raised his wine glass and chuckled softly.

“Yuting, didn’t Jiang Nian used to pursue you?”

As soon as this topic was brought up, the other people at the dinner table seemed to find an outlet. They all chimed in, with various jeers and constant jokes.

“That kid used to buy lemonade, it was so funny.”

“How could he be worthy of Sister Ting? He couldn’t catch her, so he changed classes, right? It’s hilarious. If you ask me, our Brother Peng and Sister Ting are a perfect match.”

“What nonsense are you talking about? Don’t talk rubbish.” Zhou Yuting was displeased; Le Zhi was still at the table.

Le Zhi’s reaction was very indifferent; without Jiang Nian present, Zhou Yuting was more of a sunk cost to him. He had liked her for a year or two; it was impossible to suddenly let go. This reaction, in Liu Feipeng’s eyes, meant he had softened. He couldn’t help but smile as he drank.

Yu Tongjie couldn’t understand what these people were doing; their relationships seemed a bit messy. Especially that Liu Feipeng, he really wanted to pee on him; he was even better at pretending than I was. What’s my status, what’s your status?

He had some impression of Le Zhi; his dad seemed to be that person. Speaking so aggressively reminded him of a certain old acquaintance, and he suddenly felt uncomfortable all over. Why was Jiang Nian always haunting him? Get lost!

Just as Yu Tongjie was listening to everyone slander Jiang Nian, feeling quite comfortable, someone suddenly said, “Jiang Nian is probably autistic every day, hahahaha.”

“Sister Ting is probably the prettiest girl he’s ever seen. After getting promoted, everyone else is just greasy and ugly. They probably don’t even bother with him; he just buries his head in books.”

“No, no, you’re exaggerating,” Zhou Yuting waved her hand, but honestly, she felt quite pleased.

“Ugly?” Yu Tongjie couldn’t sit still, looking at the others with disbelief. “No, you haven’t been to the Olympiad Class, have you? Are the girls in our class ugly?”

Zhou Yuting froze. Seeing Yu Tongjie a bit angry, she quickly tried to smooth things over.

“Brother Yu, he didn’t mean it like that.”

“Yes, I meant everyone around Jiang Nian is ugly.” That person nodded, flustered. He just liked to follow the crowd, he wasn’t brainless. This gathering today was clearly centered around Yu Tongjie. He was still a bit confused, what was wrong with talking about Jiang Nian? Was there a problem? He had originally intended to use a clown as a joke, but it seemed to have backfired and ended up in a ditch.

“Can you f*cking talk properly!” Yu Tongjie suddenly stood up and slammed the table.

Hearing the phrase “everyone around Jiang Nian is ugly,” Yu Tongjie’s nameless anger flared up. Insulting Jiang Nian was acceptable, but if it splashed onto Li Qingrong, it was not! Although they didn’t have much of a relationship, they had only started interacting more recently due to the sports meet. But Yu Tongjie didn’t care; splashing onto her was still damnable!

Liu Feipeng was also numb. Last time, his subordinate badmouthed Jiang Nian and offended Le Zhi. Now, he said it again, and somehow inexplicably offended Yu Tongjie?

“Young Master Yu, there might be a misunderstanding here—”

“Misunderstanding my ass!” Yu Tongjie was already planning to leave. He pointed at Liu Feipeng and said, “Stop fantasizing all day long. If you have nothing to do, go up to the fourth floor and see what beauty is!”

“Jiang Nian is indeed a scoundrel, just talk about him.”

Although Yu Tongjie had a slight crush on Zhang Ningzhi when he first got promoted, this last trace of affection vanished after she reported Jiang Nian. Besides, he was now a pure love advocate and couldn’t harbor feelings for two people in his heart. He originally wanted to talk about the class monitor, but from the perspective of pure love, even in his own words, he didn’t want to put Jiang Nian and the class monitor together, so he changed his words.

“Just talk about his female deskmate, she’s more beautiful than all the girls in your class combined, plus her!”

Yu Tongjie pointed at the bewildered Zhou Yuting, “…are all more beautiful! Go out and see more, stop fantasizing here. What a joke, saying the Olympiad Class has no beauties!”

As his words fell, an enraged Yu Tongjie grabbed his phone and left, grumbling.

“What a bunch of idiots, don’t call me for this kind of thing again! Eat your mom’s barbecue!”

At the entrance of the barbecue restaurant.

The people at the table, Zhou Yuting was stunned, her mind a blank.

Yu Tongjie started from zero frames, and she didn’t know which words had provoked him. He seemed like an honest person, but suddenly he exploded in rage, cursing everyone.

What happened?

Liu Feipeng was truly a bit broken this time, his fists slightly clenched.

He suspected he was having a streak of bad luck recently. His small group, which he used to control so smoothly, was now constantly having issues. Last time he offended Le Zhi, this time he inexplicably offended Yu Tongjie.

Ever since Jiang Nian was promoted to the Olympiad Class, everything had been off.

From now on, the name Jiang Nian was forbidden. Otherwise, his reputation would be ruined. Spending so much money and still getting cursed at, if this got out, he’d be a complete clown.

Le Zhi’s chopsticks were still in his hand; he just felt that what Yu Tongjie had just said sounded familiar. Isn’t this my line?

He looked up at this small group that he once thought was cool and stylish. Suddenly, he felt it was a bit like an unfinished building, full of holes.

Forget it, let’s go.

Le Zhi threw down his chopsticks, picked up his phone, and prepared to leave.

“I’ll transfer the money for the meal to the group later. This one’s on me. Don’t call me for this kind of thing anymore. I’m preparing for the college entrance exam; I don’t want to play anymore.”

As his words fell, Le Zhi left without looking back.

Zhou Yuting was dumbfounded. The fish in her pond, both those who had entered and those who hadn’t, had all run away. Le Zhi’s conditions were good. Upon closer thought, Jiang Nian’s conditions were actually quite good too. Although neither was as rich as Liu Feipeng’s family, nor as steady as Liu Feipeng, they were potential stocks for the future. Now, all gone.

The small circle she had played in for two years, the harmonious fish pond she had painstakingly built. All gone in the span of one meal. Was it Jiang Nian’s fault? He didn’t even come and probably had no idea. But everything started because of him. Zhou Yuting suddenly felt some regret.

If she had said a few words for Jiang Nian that summer in the KTV, would everything be different now? Jiang Nian wouldn’t be burying his head in studies, and she would be the one promoted to the Olympiad Class. After entering the Olympiad Class, her value would further increase, and manipulating them would become even easier. But… now…

The barbecue stall owner walked over with several dishes, glanced around, and noticed people were missing. He said, “The dishes you ordered can’t be canceled; the kitchen has already made them.”

The night wind swept by. Zhou Yuting looked at the dim yellow streetlights in the distance and suddenly felt a bit overwhelmed.

What Jiang Nian had said that night reappeared in her mind.

“Your dream is your dream. What does it have to do with me? If we were friends, there might still be room for maneuver, but unfortunately, I won’t be friends with you anymore.”

“Once bitten, twice shy. Why do you think I got promoted? Wasn’t it to get away from you and your disgusting circle? People change, baby.”

“I haven’t liked you for a long time. I don’t feel anything for you at all. Go home and play house by yourself.”

The flickering night wind stirred up withered yellow leaves. On the avenue not far away, the streetlight glow spilled down, like a golden Dao had been laid out.

Zhou Yuting suddenly shivered, and a phrase inexplicably popped into her mind.

“Perhaps… autumn signifies an end.”

Please give me monthly votes, please give me monthly votes, bro, please give me votes. In reality, I’m just a goblin who’s never been in love.

Please give me votes. It’s really hot in a room without air conditioning. I boiled some water to fill my stomach, and the moment the water boiled, tears flowed down. Wuwuwu, there are now two boiling things in the house.