The Little Brat’s Sweet And Sassy

Lu Huaiyu put his phone aside and picked up the black chess pieces one by one again.

He even kept the chessboard.

When he looked at his phone, the screen was still black.

It looked like Ning Li still had not finished her call yet.

...

Winter nights in the Capital were windy and chilly.

"Sister Li, I heard about what happened with you and Grandma." 

The young man's voice on the other end of the call sounded excessively calm, so no one knew what his state of mind was at this time.

Ning Li gently exhaled. White mist lingered in the air and there was a slight astringent feeling in her mouth.

After a while, she said, "Min, I didn't mean to hide it from you. It's just that you were abroad at the time and your company's management is so strict. Even if I had told you, there was no way you could have rushed back to…"

"I could've come back."

The young man interrupted her and there was finally a ripple in his voice.

He soon realized that he had let his temper show and calmed down again.

"I could've taken leave and come back."

He had always been good and obedient in front of her. If not for the fact that Ning Li had hidden too much from him for too long, he would not have acted out.

The corners of Ning Li's lips curved faintly, but with a hint of helplessness.

"You know your company. It was a critical time before your debut. If you had taken time off, you might have missed this opportunity forever."

"You and Grandma were more important than all of this."

The young man's voice was a bit willful.

Ning Li sighed lightly in her heart.

This was what had happened in her past life. He had rushed back after learning the news of his grandmother's death, despite her objections.

Due to that, he had missed a critical point in his career.

If not for that, he would not have gone through so much trouble.

"Grandma always loved you, so she would not have blamed you. Besides, I'm fine now, so you don't have to worry."

The young man was silent for a moment.

After he had returned to the country, some news had been easy to get even though he had not had the time to return to Lincheng.

He knew that Ning Li had been staying with Su Yuan and the Ye family in Yunzhou.

How well could a mother treat a daughter that she had abandoned for ten years and refused to see even once?

However, Ning Li had said that she was doing well.

It was a while before he said, "Sister Li, I heard that you're in the Capital now?"

"Yeah, for the physics competition winter camp intensive training."

The wind was strong, so Ning Li turned her back to block the wind.

"I'll be back in Yunzhou soon."

"Are you outside?"

His voice was a little tense.

The wind was quite loud.

He actually had a lot to say, but he decided to swallow his words.

"I saw that it's negative eight degrees in the Capital today. It's too cold, so you should go back inside."

Ning Li smiled and said, "It's fine. I just came out of the classroom, so I don't feel very cold. Anyway, you should concentrate on your training. I'll go back to the dorms."

He paused for a moment. "There's a show in the Capital soon. Why don't I…"

Ning Li knew what he was thinking and refused. "There's no need. Just focus on your work during this period of time."

"But…"

She sighed and said, "Min, please listen to me."

When she said that, he could never refuse her.

After a long time, he said, "Fine…"

...

Ning Li hung up the phone and saw a missed call from Lu Huaiyu.

She thought about it and called back.

After a few rings, the call was connected.

"Lili?"

"Second Brother, I'm sorry, I was busy earlier, so I missed your call."

Lu Huaiyu had already returned to his bedroom and casually asked, "So you're done with your call?"

Ning Li was stunned, then she nodded and responded, "Mm."

Lu Huaiyu looked at the time.

That call had lasted for nearly ten minutes.

"Second Brother, was there a reason that you were looking for me?" Ning Li asked.

Lu Huaiyu did not call her very often, especially after she had gone to the winter camp. He knew that they had a tight schedule, so he did not contact her often.

He paused for a moment and did not answer her question.

When he heard the sound of wind from her end, he asked, "You're not in the dorms?"

"I'm going back soon."

Lu Huaiyu's eyebrows were slightly furrowed.

'She was on the phone outside for ten minutes just now?'

His voice was slightly gruff as he said, "Don't stay outside for so long the next time you take a call outside. You'll catch a cold."

Ning Li heard his serious tone, so she obediently answered, "Okay…"

Lu Huaiyu remembered that she was still outside. In the end, he still felt heartbroken and asked in a low voice, "Are you cold?"

Ning Li pulled over the hood of her down jacket, paused for a moment, and said softly, "Yeah, a little."

Her voice sounded a bit muffled and soft, which touched his heart.

Lu Huaiyu inclined his head slightly and started unbuttoning his shirt.

When he heard this, he paused for a moment.

He could hear the strong wind in the background.

Ning Li did not speak, and all he could hear was her shallow breathing.

Afterward, Lu Huaiyu spoke gently. "Are your hands cold?"

The low and gentle voice with his usual nonchalant tone landed in her ear.

Ning Li blinked and gently breathed into her hand. She lowered her head slightly and hid her head in her hood.

After a while, she said in a soft voice, "Yeah…"

Lu Huaiyu suddenly chuckled.

Ning Li's face instantly turned red.

"Second Brother, I'll go back first then."

Lu Huaiyu did not bother to continue teasing her and gave a faint "mm".

Ning Li hung up the phone and walked in the direction of the dorms.

...

Ye Ci was at the stairwell in the dorms, talking to Su Yuan on the phone.

So many things had happened today that she felt so aggrieved and did not know how to vent it.

Su Yuan was always very gentle when she spoke to Ye Ci. "Lil Ci, what's wrong? Are you homesick?"

Ye Ci let out a low "mm" with a suppressed cry.

Su Yuan heard it and knew that Ye Ci was not just homesick.

She asked with some concern, "Why are you crying? Is it because you're too tired over there?"

Ye Ci rubbed her eyes. "Yeah... The course schedule is quite intense. There are some parts that I didn't understand thoroughly in today's class too." 

Su Yuan did not know much about this, so when she heard this, she subconsciously said, "Then, why don't you ask the teacher?"

"The teacher's class time is fixed, so it's not always convenient to ask them."

"Then...what about your classmates? I remember that there are more than 50 students in your class, right?"

Ye Ci paused for a moment before saying, "Mom, you forget that we're actually not considered classmates. We're all competitors in the finals."

Since it was a competitive environment, who would take the time to explain anything to her?

Su Yuan understood at once.

'It makes sense… They may even wish that Ye Ci won't understand the topics…'

After some thought, Su Yuan said, "What about Ning Li? She's there as well, so get her to teach you."

Although Ning Li's temper upset Su Yuan, she had to admit that Ning Li's current performance was indeed better than Ye Ci's.

Ning Li had gotten first place in the province, so she had to be better than Ye Ci, right?

Ye Ci hesitantly spoke. "It's already very troublesome for Sister Ning Li in the preliminary round… Sister Ning Li, you're back?"

She was talking on the phone when she saw Ning Li coming upstairs, so she immediately called out to Ning Li.

Su Yuan heard this and said, "Lil Ci, please pass the phone to Ning Li.. Let me talk to her."