After hearing her words, Lin Qingye paused, then chuckled. His laugh was low and husky, reverberating from the bottom of his throat. If not for their current relationship, one could even detect a hint of indulgence in it.

"Alright." Lin Qingye let her be.

Xu Zhinan turned on the tattoo machine, which emitted the buzzing sound of rapidly spinning coils.

Lin Qingye suddenly said something else. Xu Zhinan didn't hear it clearly, so she turned off the machine again and asked, "What?"

"Don't tattoo 'Xu Zhinan'."

"Then what should I tattoo?"

"Ah Nan." Lin Qingye said lightly, "I like calling you that."

Xu Zhinan found this person incredibly annoying, always saying such things with a nonchalant air, just like he used to.

She didn't argue with him, just nodded and asked, "Okay, any other requests?"

"Nothing else, you decide."

Lin Qingye knew that Xu Zhinan was a skilled tattoo artist. Although her shop was small, it had a very good reputation.

Xu Zhinan turned the tattoo machine on again. She had done this type of tattoo many times before.

This was a University Town, and many student couples considered tattoos a romantic gesture. Some would tattoo each other's names on their bodies, or a string of memorable dates, or even two halves of a character, one for each person.

Besides artistic skill, tattooing also requires a foundation in calligraphy.

When she had first started practicing, she had even bought various famous copybooks—semi-cursive script, regular script, and cursive script—and practiced by copying them over and over.

With Lin Qingye's personality, the rigid and proper regular script wasn't suitable, while just two words in cursive script would look messy on his back.

Xu Zhinan finally decided on "Ah Nan" in Mi Fu's semi-cursive script.

Once decided, the tattooing was simple. Xu Zhinan composed the design in her mind, moved closer, and rested her hand on Lin Qingye's shoulder blade. The needle, carrying black ink, pierced his skin again and again.

The skin on the shoulder blade is thin and close to the bone, especially for the second character, "Nan," which had many strokes and was right over the protruding bone.

Every prick of the needle brought a stabbing pain.

There was no anesthetic. With the continuous pricks of the needle, the stabbing pain merged into one.

At first, Lin Qingye's expression didn't change, but later he had to clench his teeth to keep from making a sound. The line of his jaw tightened. He remembered what Xu Zhinan had told him before: everyone's pain tolerance for tattoos is different.

Neither of them spoke during the tattooing process. The room was completely silent.

Xu Zhinan's technique was skilled. After clearing her mind of distracting thoughts, her hand moved quickly. Soon, the two words "Ah Nan" were tattooed on his back.

Semi-cursive script, black, with a clear outline and smooth lines. The surrounding skin was still red, making it exceptionally conspicuous against his pale complexion.

Xu Zhinan used a tissue to wipe away the blood seeping from the tattoo, threw it in the trash, applied a protective film, and stood up. "It's done."

Lin Qingye had been holding the same position for a long time. The moment he moved, it pulled at the tattoo on his back. He hissed, his brows slowly knitting together.

Xu Zhinan threw her gloves into the trash as well. She glanced up at him, only to find the rims of his eyes were red, the color around them vivid, as if he had cried.

But he hadn't made a sound just now; he had probably held it in.

Xu Zhinan lowered her head again. "When you shower, don't use body wash on the tattooed area. Avoid alcohol and spicy food during the healing period. Also, the skin there is very thin, so some blood might seep out in the next day or two. That's all normal. Try not to touch the wound with your hands."

Lin Qingye put on the clean short-sleeved shirt Xu Zhinan had tossed him earlier.

It carried the unique scent of a laundry detergent different from the one on his other clothes.

It wasn't that Lin Qingye had never been injured growing up; he had always felt his reaction to pain wasn't particularly strong.

But this time, it was unexpectedly painful.

It was probably because of the good spot Xu Zhinan had chosen.

Just as she said—it hurts more here.

Lin Qingye tilted his head, pressed on his shoulder as he stood up, walked over to her, and took out his phone. "How much?"

"No need." Xu Zhinan shook her head, disinfecting and tidying up her equipment. She said calmly, "From now on, we have nothing to do with each other. You go your way, and I'll live my own life."

Lin Qingye raised an eyebrow. He was silent for a moment, then took a step forward, closing in on her. "You've got some nerve."

His voice held a hint of a smile, but it was very low, sounding roguish and rakish, with a devil-may-care attitude.

"To be so ruthless, then turn around and say something like that to me."

He took a large stride, his shoe tips touching Xu Zhinan's, almost pressed together.

Xu Zhinan instinctively took a step back. Her back hit a shelf, causing it to wobble, and a box of tissues fell at her feet.

She swallowed dryly, her chest heaving slightly. Then she raised her head and said, word by word, "Lin Qingye, you should feel the pain too."

Sunlight streamed in, illuminating her clear pupils.

At her words, Lin Qingye gradually straightened up.

The last final exam was tomorrow. Xu Zhinan hadn't booked any clients to begin with. After watching Lin Qingye leave, she stayed alone for a while to calm herself down, then locked up the shop and returned to school.

The scene between her and Lin Qingye at the dormitory that morning was bound to cause a stir.

Zhao Qian saw the new post on the school forum as soon as she woke up. Now that she was in the know, she immediately forwarded the link to Xu Zhinan the moment she returned to the dorm.

The forum post had many candid photos, showing Lin Qingye sitting on the steps with Xu Zhinan standing in front of him, as well as later pictures of him grabbing her wrist.

It was probably a burst shot; there were several photos, almost enough to be compiled into a video.

`SHOCKING!! The Two Demigods of Pingchuan University in the Same Frame Again! Lin Qingye Was Waiting for Xu Zhinan Downstairs at the Dorms Early in the Morning!!!`

[WOC??? Do they really have a connection???]

[Wasn't there just a post asking if anyone had a photo of Lin Qingye and Xu Zhinan together? How did things progress this quickly??]

[My internet suddenly lagged, am I on 2G???]

[OP, don't go! How can you just post the pics and leave? What exactly happened?]

...

[OP just ate a meal and came back to find so many people. I'm shocked.]

[Actually, I didn't hear what these two demigods were saying either (Lin Qingye's aura is too strong, I didn't dare get close, I'm a coward...). Anyway, the Light of Pingchuan threw a piece of clothing at Lin Qingye, then was about to turn and leave when Big Boss Lin grabbed her wrist. Then Big Boss Lin gave a hard pull, and the Light of Pingchuan almost fell into his arms (Ahhhhhhh my maiden heart is exploding!!! Everyone, just imagine it!!! A face like that, a real-life idol drama unfolding before my eyes!!!)]

[Anyway, the whole time, the Light of Pingchuan had a cold expression, super cool! And... I think Lin Qingye's smile was a bit doting...]

[Later, I don't know what Lin Qingye said, but the Light of Pingchuan left with him. A friend of mine said they thought they saw the two of them go to Xu Zhinan's tattoo shop.]

[!!!!! A man and a woman, all alone!! What were they doing!!!]

[Excuse me, but based on OP's description, not only do they know each other, but it seems they have some kind of entanglement...]

[Hearing the person above say that, I suddenly remembered the thing discussed during the graduation party. Could it be that Xu Zhinan is Lin Qingye's ex-girlfriend, and she was the one who threw that water?]

[The more I think about it, the scarier it gets!!!!]

[My scalp is tingling!!!!!]

[To be honest, the only person who would dare to throw water in Lin Qingye's face is probably the Light of Pingchuan. Look at these photos! She's not even smiling!! Someone like me who grins with 20 teeth showing the moment I see a handsome guy has no hope.]

...

Because no one heard what they actually said, it was all just speculation, and in the end, nothing conclusive was determined.

Meanwhile, the first episode of Here for the Song was about to air. The pre-show hype had reignited Lin Qingye's fanbase, which had quieted down over the years, and the school forum became one of the sources for fan material.

Soon, that post was crossposted to the fan Super Topic.

However, the fan circle was much more disciplined than the school forum. This kind of unsubstantiated rumor was quickly and orderly suppressed and deleted by the fans, and it didn't cause much of a stir.

The next day, after the last exam.

Xu Zhinan returned to the dorm with Zhao Qian and Jiang Yue.

Jiang Yue's home was in the north, and she planned to stay at school to study over the summer break. Zhao Qian had bought her ticket long ago and was leaving in the afternoon. Xu Zhinan had also applied to stay in the dorm.

During the summer, she would be spending a lot of time at the tattoo shop and also participating in the Tattoo Design Contest she had signed up for earlier. Her home was quite far, so it would be more convenient to sleep in the dorm if she worked late.

"Break, at last!!" Zhao Qian was so excited she was practically skipping. "Memorizing all that stuff these past few days made my head spin. I was about to die."

Jiang Yue smiled and asked, "Looking at you, you must have done well on the exams."

Zhao Qian waved her hand. "At my level, I can't even be sure if I did well. I just scribbled down a lot of nonsense. Anyway, no matter what, I'm on! Break! Even if I have to take a make-up exam, that's next semester's problem!"

Xu Zhinan: "There's also your usual grade. You've been studying for so long, you'll definitely pass."

Jiang Yue also encouraged her, "Yeah, yeah, look at Lin Qingye. He didn't come to class for a whole semester, and for Modern History..."

She stopped mid-sentence, suddenly realizing something was wrong.

Before, mentioning Lin Qingye was just gossip, but now things were different.

Jiang Yue cut herself off, glanced at Xu Zhinan, and shut her mouth.

Xu Zhinan shook her head, not minding it. "It's fine. You guys can just talk like you always have. Say whatever you want."

Yesterday at the tattoo shop, after she said her last words to Lin Qingye, he had looked at her, then taken a step back, his presence no longer suppressing her.

He had nodded, smiled faintly, said, "Alright," and turned to leave.

Until last night, when Xu Zhinan lay in bed recalling the event, she still felt like what had happened during the day was like a dream.

She had actually tattooed her own name on Lin Qingye's back.

It's just that, since he never held her in his heart before, then let it be carved into his flesh and bone, just as he said.

If he already has a girl he wants to hold in his heart, it won't be too late to have the tattoo removed.

"Holy shit."

Zhao Qian was the first to walk into the dorm, and a curse escaped her lips as soon as she looked up.

The dorm room floor was a mess. Books, pencils, and shards of glass were scattered everywhere.

"What happened?" Jiang Yue peeked out from behind her and was also stunned. "...Was there a thief or something? I'll go ask the dorm manager."

Zhao Qian stopped her. "There was no thief."

Only the things from one desk in the room had been thrown on the floor. Everything else was neatly in place. How could it have been a thief?

The things on the floor all belonged to Xu Zhinan.

She looked for a moment and quickly understood who had done it.

Ruan Yuanyuan had embarrassed herself by confessing to Lin Qingye at the senior graduation party. She had probably now seen the discussions on the forum about Xu Zhinan and Lin Qingye's relationship.

Connecting that to the fact that Xu Zhinan had known about her confession beforehand, she must have done this in a fit of anger.

"Damn it." Zhao Qian also figured it out. "Is Ruan Yuanyuan fucking crazy? Does her family own the school? She thinks she can do whatever she wants?!"

Jiang Yue helped her pick up the books and papers from the floor, adding, "Exactly. She usually laughs and jokes with Ah Nan, and then suddenly she does this."

Xu Zhinan lowered her gaze, got a broom, and swept the fragments of the broken glass cup. "I was in the wrong too."

Zhao Qian was about to faint from anger and wouldn't let her say that. She immediately retorted, "How were you in the wrong!"

Xu Zhinan dumped the glass shards into the trash can, then took out the trash bag and put another one over it.