Chapter 26

The screaming still echoed across the court, but Yan Xiao was already bristling.
She looked like a cat with tape stuck to its fur, every cell in her body radiating outrage. Waving her arms furiously, she glared at him. “Don’t touch my head!”
Qiu Li only watched her, amusement flickering in his eyes, his voice low and indulgent. “Mm.”
Mm?
She kept glaring.
First he’d provoked her with a head pat, then he’d laughed at her, and now he was answering with that infuriatingly calm “mm”? What mm?!
Just as she was about to explode, a girl, surrounded by a few giggling friends, was nudged forward, blushing furiously as she held out a bottle of juice. “This is for you. Good luck in the game!”
Yan Xiao’s attention immediately shifted. She knew this girl. One of the school’s prettiest, excellent grades, polite, sweet. A second-year who’d secretly liked Qiu Li for years.
Even though Qiu Li was technically an illegitimate child, and his half-brother Qiu Zhan despised him, he was still the son of Qiu Chengyi, one of the wealthiest men in the city. Combine that with his flawless grades, striking looks, and cool personality, it was no wonder girls lined up for miles.
No matter how cold or distant he acted, they never stopped trying, love confessions, little gifts, creative “coincidences.”
Yan Xiao, still fuming from that humiliating head pat, was ready to use this poor love-struck junior as ammunition to thoroughly mock Qiu Li.
But before she could even open her mouth, the scheming villain struck first.
Without warning, he plucked the half-full water bottle from her hand, cracked it open, and motioned toward the girl. “Thanks, but I already have one.”
The girl froze.
So did Yan Xiao.
Then she lunged. “That’s mine!”
Qiu Li simply lifted his arm higher.
He was 1.85 meters tall. She was barely 1.60. She didn’t stand a chance.
But she tried. Jumping, reaching, hopping, determined to reclaim her bottle, while Qiu Li just kept raising his arm higher, expression calm and amused.
Zhou Hang, watching the whole thing from the sidelines, muttered under his breath, “First place, are you…teasing a cat?” Because honestly, that’s exactly what it looked like. Like his sister dangling a toy over their pet at home.
Qiu Li shot him an icy glare that could kill, but instead of snapping, he turned back to Yan Xiao, and, right in front of her, tilted his head back and drank the rest of the water in one smooth motion.
Yan Xiao: “…”
Wow. Tall, huh? Think that makes you great? You petty, vindictive man!
When he’d finished, he grabbed a fresh, unopened bottle from beside her, twisted off the cap, and handed it over. “Why are you sitting here? Isn’t it hot?”
Zhou Hang, who had been watching the rejected girl slink away in heartbreak, sighed dramatically and decided to stop paying attention. He started fanning himself with his shirt collar, shouting in mock complaint, “Hey! Where’s my water? I scored one too! Why don’t I get a bottle?”
He’d been too busy watching the drama to notice Qiu Li had opened that water for Yan Xiao, but when he turned and saw her holding it, open and ready to drink, his eyes lit up.
“Ah! Little sister!”
He snatched the bottle right out of her hands, grinning. “You’re the best! You even opened it for me, I, PFFT! Cough cough!”
Before he could take a sip, Qiu Li’s gaze sliced toward him like a blade. His hand tightened around the bottle, hard.
Water sprayed straight into Zhou Hang’s face.
“Little sister?” Qiu Li’s voice was quiet, but frigid. “And what exactly does she have to do with you?”
Dripping wet, Zhou Hang wiped his face and grumbled, “Why not? Everyone in school knows…”
He didn’t finish the sentence. One look at Qiu Li’s expression and he shrank back immediately. “I-I’m just gonna get some water,” he muttered, gesturing weakly before grabbing a random bottle and bolting.
Even though Zhou Hang hadn’t said it out loud, Yan Xiao knew perfectly well what he’d meant.
Throughout Yanwen, there was a long-standing rumor: the only girl who’d ever spoken more than ten sentences to Qiu Li, besides any teacher, was her.
He usually ignored everyone, no matter who they were. On a good day, you might get a glance. That was it.
So naturally, the whole school assumed they’d grown up together and that he treated her like a little sister, the one person he was genuinely gentle toward.
Of course, to Yan Xiao, that so-called “gentleness” was completely fake. Pure performance. But no one else knew about their tangled history, so the misunderstanding just kept spreading.
Some girls even asked her for help, to deliver gifts or love letters to him.
And Zhou Hang? He was just one of the many blind fools who’d fallen for that illusion, which was exactly why he’d called her “little sister” in the first place.
When Zhou Hang had barely opened his mouth and Qiu Li immediately cut him off, his tone dripping with impatience, as if just being associated with him was an insult, Yan Xiao couldn’t decide whether she wanted to laugh or scream.
Once Zhou Hang scampered off, Qiu Li twisted open another bottle and handed it to her. “It’s too sunny here. Why aren’t you sitting in the shade?”
Yan Xiao glanced toward the trees, the corners of her brows twitching. “Too far. I can’t see clearly from there.”
If she sat under the shade, Qiu Li wouldn’t be able to see her from the court, how was she supposed to get under his skin then?
The little villain had grown up, and his tricks were only getting craftier. Pretending to be concerned about her getting sunburned, when really, he just wanted to send her away. Did he take her for an idiot?
Qiu Li drank half his water, wiped the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand, and glanced at her with a faint, knowing smile.
Yan Xiao: “…”
What is that look supposed to mean? ‘I see right through you but I won’t say anything, let me just smirk so you can stew in your own embarrassment’? Seriously?!
Already on edge after an entire day of no score increases, that one mocking look pushed her straight over the edge.
She snatched the half-empty bottle from his hand. “Stop drinking my water!”
He rarely saw her this worked up. Maybe it was the heat, or maybe it was the frustration that had been building for weeks, but all he saw was a puffed-up, angry ball of fluff.
And he found it adorable.
He watched her for a moment, then calmly reached out. “Give it back.”
Yan Xiao hid the bottle behind her back.
Qiu Li narrowed his eyes slightly, then, in one smooth motion, placed a large hand on top of her head. He was tall, his reach long; she barely had time to react before he effortlessly plucked the bottle right out of her grasp.
Pinned under his palm, completely outmatched in height and strength, Yan Xiao could only seethe. Aaaah! I’m going to strangle you, you overgrown villain!
The referee’s whistle blew.
Qiu Li released her, and she looked up, cheeks flushed and eyes blazing red, glaring at him through clenched teeth. “I. Said. Don’t. Touch. My. Head!”
He hadn’t planned on teasing her again, but seeing her puffed up like that, furious, flushed, utterly helpless, he couldn’t resist.
Ruffling her hair once more, he chuckled. “Mm. Remember to cheer for me.”
Yan Xiao: “…”
The teams lined up again, the players stretching and bouncing in place.
The referee raised the ball high between the two centers, everyone’s attention focused, the crowd holding its breath in silence.
And just as the referee’s hand twitched to release the ball,
“CLASS THREE! LET’S GO!”
A clear, ringing voice cut through the stillness. Every head turned toward the bleachers.
Yan Xiao was standing up, hands cupped around her mouth like a megaphone. “Class Three, go! Class Three! You’ve got this!”
The audience blinked, stunned. Even the players on the court froze for a moment.
Especially Class Three’s team.
Yan Xiao…was cheering for them?
Still poised and ready for the jump ball, Qiu Li didn’t turn his head. He just smiled, the corners of his mouth curling upward.
So she’s mad, huh?

Author’s Note:
Xiao-xiao: Yes! I’m mad! Hate me already!
Young Master Li, smiling lazily: Oh?
System: [Ding][Ding][Ding][Ding][Ding]……