Winning the male lead

When Jiang Qu returned, Le Tian was packing his things. He had requested to change dorms, but the homeroom teacher refused. However, when Jiang Yue went to ask, the teacher suddenly took the initiative to notify Le Tian that he had to move.

Jiang Qu pushed open the door and saw Le Tian stuffing things into his suitcase. Taking off his school uniform blazer, he casually said, “What, going home?”

Le Tian was startled. He still wasn’t used to Jiang Qu not slamming the door. Lowering his head, he softly said, “Moving dorms.”

Jiang Qu paused in the middle of loosening his tie, stiffly turned his face, and stared at him. “Say that again?”

Le Tian thought, Even if I say it a few more times, it won’t change anything. Your brother is way more of a psycho than you—you can’t beat him.

Seeing Le Tian silently continue packing, he suddenly yanked off his tie and threw it on the ground. He strode over, kicked over Le Tian’s suitcase, grabbed his arm, and snarled, “I only hit you once, and you’re this dramatic?! You were the one who made the mistake first!”

Le Tian’s voice was as soft as a mosquito’s. “N-no, it’s not because of that.”

“Then what is it?” Jiang Qu asked irritably.

Le Tian didn’t answer.

Jiang Qu kicked the bookshelf hard, making a loud thud.

Le Tian shivered. Ah, that familiar feeling—it’s all coming back.

Jiang Qu gritted his teeth and said, “If you don’t explain yourself today, you’re staying in this dorm and not going anywhere!”

Le Tian said, “B-but I have to move out.” His voice carried a hint of a sob, and his big, watery eyes blinked, filled with indescribable fear.

Jiang Qu saw his expression and suddenly realized something. His gaze darkened terrifyingly, and in an instant, he kicked the bookshelf again, this time shattering its door.

Le Tian: Welp, there we go—liftoff.

“I knew it! It must be him!” Jiang Qu’s grip on his arm tightened as his face twisted with rage. “He takes everything from me! Even a stuttering weakling like you!”

Le Tian: …Kinda offensive, not gonna lie.

Jiang Qu turned his face, his anger contorting his features. He glared at Le Tian. “Was it Jiang Yue who told you to move?!”

Le Tian blinked, playing innocent.

Jiang Qu let go, his eyes burning with fury. “Fine! Fine!” He turned and stormed out.

Le Tian made a token effort to call after him, “Jiang Qu, where are you going!” Then he turned to his system and said smugly, “Ah, having two guys fighting over me—I almost feel bad.”

System: “Your face is grinning like a baboon’s butt.”

He sweetly replied, “Thanks for calling me pretty.” After all, Jiang Yue did say my butt was nice.

System: “…” Shameless! Absolutely shameless!

Jiang Qu stormed toward Jiang Yue’s class like a hurricane. Jiang Yue had just finished a competition; his hair was slicked back in a mature style but had become slightly messy in the wind. He was still wearing polished dress shoes, his whole presence radiating fury. As he passed, people instinctively stepped aside, whispering, Who pissed off Yangde High’s number-one lunatic again? Is he about to get his thirteenth disciplinary record for fighting?

It was break time, and the classroom was bustling. Jiang Yue, as always, was in a league of his own—no one dared get too close. Even the girls who liked him only admired him from a distance; casually approaching him wasn’t just about being rejected—it could be downright terrifying. A single glance from his long, narrow almond-shaped eyes was enough to send chills down their spines.

The classroom door was suddenly kicked open with a loud bang, causing gasps to erupt. When they saw the dark-faced Jiang Qu, the girls subtly gathered together, excited whispers filling the air.

Zhang Qingning barely looked up, shook her head, and went back to solving problems.

Jiang Yue, as usual, didn’t even raise his head.

Jiang Qu unbuttoned the top two buttons of his shirt, rolled his wrists, and barked, “Jiang Yue, get out here!”

Jiang Yue finally reacted, lifting his gaze. His eyes were utterly devoid of emotion—not angry, not confused, not even contemptuous. He was like a mirror, reflecting Jiang Qu’s raging fury, making it even more unbearable for him.

Just then, Le Tian arrived, panting heavily. His legs were short, and this body wasn’t built for running—he was out of breath by the time he reached the classroom door.

Jiang Yue’s gaze landed on him, hunched over and gasping for air. He suddenly stood up and walked to the entrance. He was almost the same height as Jiang Qu—both around 185 cm. The two of them standing in the doorway captured everyone’s attention.

He calmly asked, “What is it?”

Jiang Qu gritted his teeth. “Yeah, I got something to say!”

Jiang Yue’s eyes flicked outside. “Let’s talk somewhere else.”

Jiang Qu sneered. “Yeah, let’s find a nice open space and have a ‘good talk.’”

Before Le Tian could even catch his breath, the two long-legged guys were already gone. The girls in the classroom rushed out excitedly.

“Oh my god, that was so intense!”
“That scene just now was amazing!”

Le Tian, still gasping: …Hey, hello? I’m the main character here!

System: …You don’t even have a name in their eyes.

Jiang Qu and Jiang Yue walked in silence until they reached the small garden behind the school building. The area was shaded by a canopy, blocking out sunlight and prying eyes.

Jiang Qu paced angrily in front of him, barely restraining himself from throwing a punch. He suppressed his rage and growled, “Did you tell Ding Le Tian to move out?!”

Jiang Yue didn’t hesitate. “Yes.”

“Why?!” Jiang Qu exploded. “Are you insane?! You took my mom, you took my friends, and now you want to take my roommate too?! Jiang Yue, do you even know the meaning of ‘greedy beyond reason’?!”

Jiang Yue let him finish, then calmly said, “He likes men.”

Jiang Qu: “…”

Every time Jiang Qu went up against Jiang Yue, he never won. This time was no different. His fury, like a punch landing on soft cotton, lost its force. He stammered, “Y-you’re lying!”

Jiang Yue looked at him indifferently. “Ask him yourself.” He turned toward a dark corner. “Come out.”

Le Tian, who had been hiding and watching the drama unfold: …Oops.

None of the other students dared get involved, but Le Tian had no such fear. He was the main character—he had to be here!

He slowly stepped forward, his eyes visibly red.

Jiang Qu looked at his pitiful expression, already feeling defeated, but still held on stubbornly. “Ding Le Tian, tell me—do you like men?!”

Le Tian glanced at Jiang Yue first, pulling Jiang Qu’s hatred toward him, then gave a tiny, almost imperceptible nod.

Jiang Qu suddenly felt like he was being attacked from all sides.

His loathing for Jiang Yue clashed with his disgust toward homosexuality, warring in his mind. In the end, seventeen years of resentment won out. “So what?! You don’t get to decide who my roommate is!”

Le Tian looked up in surprise, his gaze softening with emotion. Buddy, I’m already basically your brother’s person—being your roommate isn’t even on the table.

Jiang Yue remained indifferent. “Whatever.” He turned and left, not even sparing Le Tian a glance as he brushed past him. The faint scent of grass lingered in the air.

That scent had accompanied Le Tian for a week—through dark nights, in a cramped single bed, through endless trembling and silent tears.

Le Tian: Ah, the scent of a scumbag—so good.

Standing still, he lowered his head, biting his lip, silently shedding tears.

Jiang Qu awkwardly stood there for a long time before shoving his hands into his pockets and grumbling, “Stop crying. I didn’t hit you. I didn’t even yell at you.”

Jiang Qu: … He was inexplicably rejected to his face.

“You looking for a beating?” Jiang Qu clenched his fist, wanting to punch him, but then remembered that if he did, he’d only suffer more in the end. He reluctantly put down his raised hand and instead gave Le Tian a slap on the head. “Hey, tell me, how did that freak find out you like men?”

Le Tian fell silent.

Jiang Qu’s eyes suddenly widened. The anger that had just subsided flared up again, and he raised his voice, “Don’t tell me—you confessed to him because you like him?!”

Le Tian frantically waved his hands. “N-no! I really didn’t!” His face was full of panic, not seeming fake. Jiang Qu, reassured, let out a breath and threatened viciously, “I don’t care who you like, but if you dare like him, I’ll break your legs!”

Le Tian thought to himself: If I really become your sister-in-law, just try touching me—Jiang Yue will destroy your entire paradise.

He nodded, wiped his tears with his hand, and said hoarsely, “I don’t like him.”

Jiang Qu added, “And you’re not allowed to like me either.”

Le Tian: … As if, you little brat.

Jiang Qu urged, “Did you hear me?”

Le Tian nodded. “I heard you.”

Jiang Qu had been confessed to by a guy before—in public, no less. At the time, there were a lot of people watching, and the guy was reckless, even trying to kiss him. He punched him straight in the face, breaking his nose. From then on, everyone knew he was homophobic.

Aside from that one guy, he had never encountered any other gay people. He figured that someone as short and useless as this stuttering idiot probably wasn’t much of a threat. So he snapped at Ding Le Tian, “Go clean up the dorm! You always have so much drama!”

Le Tian: …

The bookshelf had been kicked apart, but Le Tian still went to report it for repairs. After that, he rushed to class. Before leaving, Jiang Qu gave him another round of strict warnings: “Don’t talk to Jiang Yue! Got it? Or I’ll beat you up.” He raised his fist at him.

Le Tian shrank his neck. “B-but what if he talks to me first?”

Jiang Qu glared at him. “Then just ignore him!”

Le Tian nodded silently, thinking: Not talking is fine, but doing other things is totally okay, right? Hehehe.

The last class in the morning was P.E., and this time, they had swimming.

Yangde had a heated swimming pool that was on par with professional sports venues. Swimming class was very popular among students, after all, they were all seventeen or eighteen—at that age, there was always a hint of romantic tension in the air.

There were two people in the class who never participated in swimming: Zhang Qingning and Jiang Yue. Zhang Qingning claimed she couldn’t afford the school’s standard swimsuit, so she refused to join. Jiang Yue, on the other hand, was someone who did whatever he wanted at school. No teacher dared to say a word to him. He had money, power, and was a genius—everyone was happy to make exceptions for him.

Le Tian didn’t go to the classroom. Instead, he went straight to the gymnasium. By the time he arrived, the class had already changed into the school’s standard swimsuits and was playing in the heated pool. He grabbed his locker key and headed to the changing room.

Yangde’s swimsuits had a uniform blue-black color scheme. The boys’ suits were simple swim trunks that reached just above the knees. Le Tian took off his clothes, changed into his swim trunks, and had just closed his locker when he turned around and saw Jiang Yue leaning against the doorframe, arms crossed, watching him silently. From the looks of it, he had been there for a while.

His face instantly turned red. “Y-you… Why are you here?”

Jiang Yue stepped forward and naturally wrapped an arm around his waist. Le Tian panicked and tried to pry his hand away. “T-this is the changing room!”

Jiang Yue lowered his gaze, his deep eyes staring at him. “Why haven’t you moved out?”

The flush on Le Tian’s face slowly faded. He lowered his voice. “Jiang Qu won’t let me.”

Jiang Yue: “You listen to everyone?”

Le Tian stayed silent.

Jiang Yue said calmly, “So useless.”

Le Tian: … These two brothers are exactly the same. Whenever they’re mad, they take it out on me.

Suddenly, Jiang Yue pushed him against the lockers with a bang.

Le Tian thought to himself: Oh, great. Now you’ve learned this move too.

He looked at him with wide, nervous eyes. “You…”

Jiang Yue leaned down and kissed him.