Chapter 44: New Term Campus Belle

Gu Xingnan reached out and pulled him, signaling him not to be so loud.

He lowered his voice: "There's no evidence now; arguing is useless. My dad mentioned yesterday that Jiang Huan has been working with the Yu Family on a project, originally intending to cooperate with A Ci's family, but after Jiang Ji's accident, half the cooperation fell through. He must be desperate, looking for someone to take the blame."

A Ci and A Jin have been close friends since childhood.

Jiang Huan trying to frame someone is simply absurd.

Mu Youyu raised her eyebrows slightly, curled the corner of her mouth in a cold smile, and said, "I actually don't think it was an accident."

Although Jiang Ji has made many enemies outside, his father is backing him up.

Moreover, out of respect for the Jiang Family's reputation, it doesn't seem like an enemy's doing.

Jiang Liangjin turned to look at her, the chill in his eyes easing a bit: "Where do all these accidents come from? The ones hit were Jiang Ji and Yu Cheng—his own son and someone who could tie down the Yu Family—and the driver died on the spot, cutting off all clues. Who would believe this wasn't Jiang Huan's doing?"

He returned to school and had someone look into it, discovering that the correct leads had all been cut off.

The driver's identity information was fake, with no relatives or property under his name—like he appeared out of nowhere.

A typical scapegoat.

Plus what Jiang Yun and Jiang Huan said…

He also investigated himself and found that those two had people hit his own son and his brother, Jiang Ji.

The two would stop at nothing to ruin him.

Upon hearing this, Yu Ci calmed down and was about to say something when Jiang Liangjin spoke first, his tone calm: "It's fine; we don't need to worry. My dad will handle it."

They had already reached the school gate, so they didn't say much more on the matter.

"Youbao!" a voice called, drawing everyone's attention.

Mu Youyu heard the familiar voice and instinctively turned, seeing a head of flamboyant pink hair.

She exclaimed delightedly, "Lin Ning!"

Lin Ning stepped forward and gave her a tight hug, asking, "Baby, do you have class this afternoon?"

Mu Youyu nodded and returned the hug, "I have class. Is something up, Lin Ning?"

Lin Ning let go and said, "I want to ask you out!"

The two of them hadn't gone out to play in a long time.

Yu Ci greeted, "Lin Ning, long time no see."

Lin Ning then noticed the people beside Mu Youyu: "A Ci, Xingnan… Jiang Liangjin."

Although they've known each other since childhood,

but she likes Mu Youyu the most; she got to know Gu Xingnan and Yu Ci because of Mu Youyu.

She and Jiang Liangjin have nothing to say to each other.

Yu Ci and Gu Xingnan sometimes look after her a bit more, counting as childhood friends.

In her first year of high school, she and the others weren't in the same school, and since Mu Youyu wasn't in this city, they only met at family gatherings or necessary occasions, never privately.

Moreover, she's been wholly focused on Ye Zeli over the past year.

Plus, after Jiang Liangjin previously asked her about Mu Youyu's whereabouts and she didn't tell him, she's had little contact with the others.

Gu Xingnan said calmly, "Lin Ning."

Jiang Liangjin's attitude toward her was ordinary: "Lin Ning."

Seeing his cold face, Lin Ning couldn't muster energy, whispering to Mu Youyu, "Youbao, why is Jiang Liangjin still so cold? He's like a block of ice."

Mu Youyu let out an "ah" and instinctively looked toward Jiang Liangjin.

Only to see him lowering his gaze at her; the coldness in his eyes when facing Lin Ning earlier seemed to have quietly melted with warm water, even the corners softening.

Noticing Mu Youyu's gaze, his dark brown eyes lifted slightly, the black mole beneath the left eye's corner looking somewhat alluring, and he asked, "What's up?"

This contrast made Lin Ning's eyes widen on the spot as she leaned close to Mu Youyu's ear and exclaimed, "!! Youbao, look! He's not so icy when speaking to you! Just now, greeting me felt like he was demanding I owed him money."

Mu Youyu gazed at Jiang Liangjin with the same expression as before and instinctively said, "Where's the coldness?"

Lin Ning: "……" Garlic bird garlic bird, he's being double‑standard, she's seen through it since childhood.

People at the school gate spotted several handsome men and beautiful women, recognized their identities, and began to chatter.

"Ahhh, is this the new campus belle?"

"So beautiful! She looks even better than in the photos!"

"It's not in vain that I hired people overnight to vote for her! Now that she's on the list, I'll get to see her more…"

The Lan Lin campus network was student‑run, featuring votes for the Five Campus Belles; the rankings fluctuated at first, then stabilized, and haven't changed in ages.

The original Five Campus Belles were Bai Yun, Luo Yi, An Guan, Leng Yueyou, and Leng Yueyue.

Yesterday, after Mu Youyu's photo was added to the list, her votes have been rising.

By noon today, the results came out—in just one day, the newcomer Mu Youyu's votes became the highest among the five!

The Five Campus Belles ranking thus changed, kicking out the lowest‑vote holder, Leng Yueyue.

"Besides, three of the Four Campus Hunks are here too! Ah, they and the new belle are practically childhood sweethearts!"

"Young Master Jiang's gotten even more handsome!"

"And there's one from the neighboring Nan Feng campus belle, right?"

"How did those five end up together!"

"Never mind them, just feast your eyes!"

"……"

The Lan Lin afternoon class bell rang.

"Youbao, text me after class and I'll come find you!" Lin Ning said, waving goodbye to Mu Youyu.

The others went into the school together.

Lan Lin has three afternoon classes; because aristocratic families emphasize all‑round development, there are also many free‑practice courses, making up half the schedule alongside the main courses.

Mu Youyu had already looked at the schedule; this afternoon, Class A had exactly four free practice periods.

At their school, the free practice course's curriculum matches its name; everyone chooses what they want to learn, and no one supervises.

Mu Youyu and Jiang Liangjin went to the art studio.

Yu Ci and Gu Xingnan went to the archery range in another building.

The school has many art studios; the one they picked holds about ten people.

In the studio, tools are swapped for brand-new ones each day; you don't need to bring your own, and it's very clean.

Mu Youyu sat on the stool, first fixed the drawing paper to the board, twirled the pencil between her fingers, was pondering which part of the outline to sketch first, when a palette was handed to her from the side.

Jiang Liangjin had already prepared her usual few colors, even dipping the paintbrush in paint.

When handing it to her, he avoided the paint‑stained part of the brush handle, gripping only the clean tip.

She asked, "Aren't you taking any painting supplies?"

Why keep staring at her?

"No need, I'm just watching you paint." His voice was lower than usual, soft against her ear.

Mu Youyu let out an 'oh', set the pencil aside, and when she took the paintbrush her fingertip accidentally brushed his, the warm sensation making her pause.

She looked up and saw Jiang Liangjin lowering his gaze, his eyes on her paper; the mole at the corner of his left eye flickered in the light, making him seem less cold than usual.

Two female students nearby whispered, their voices not kept low: "Young Master Jiang actually knows how to mix paint; I've seen him come to the studio before and hardly ever lift a finger…"

Another girl quickly tugged her sleeve, glancing toward Jiang Liangjin, obviously afraid of being overheard.

But the studio was inherently quiet, yet the words still drifted into Mu Youyu's ears.

Her hand holding the paintbrush paused, her cheeks secretly warmed, and she unconsciously glanced at Jiang Liangjin.

Jiang Liangjin seemed not to have heard, looking at her with a natural expression.

Mu Youyu withdrew her gaze, fingertips holding the paintbrush; the moment the tip touched the paper, her hesitation vanished.