Xu Muyan felt a sense of relief when she saw Chu Bai leave.

She then smiled and looked at Wang Haoran. “What question do you want to discuss with me?”

Xu Muyan had a favorable impression of Wang Haoran, with a friendliness level of 20, so she didn’t mind at all when he approached her with study-related questions.

“Actually, I don’t have any questions for you,” Wang Haoran replied with a smile.

“Ah…” Xu Muyan was taken aback.

“In this class, you’re not the only one who’s good at studying. Why does Chu Bai only ask you?” Wang Haoran pointed out.

“Well… how would I know?” Xu Muyan shook her head, though she had her suspicions but was too embarrassed to voice them.

Wang Haoran, however, directly revealed the truth: “Chu Bai isn’t genuinely seeking your help with questions. He’s just trying to get close to you.”

“Don’t be too kind. You need to learn to say no. Don’t always spend your precious study time helping others when you don’t owe them anything.”

Hearing this, Xu Muyan nodded in agreement with Wang Haoran’s words and made up her mind. If Chu Bai came to her with questions again, she would refuse unless she was free.

“Did you come over specifically to tell me this?” Xu Muyan looked into Wang Haoran’s eyes, trying to discern his intentions. Is he concerned about me?

“What kind of look is that? I often come to discuss studies with you, but do you really think I have any intentions towards you? I’m the school heartthrob, you know. I don’t know how many girls have written me love letters. Just because you’re pretty, you think I like you too? I’ve already told you before, I don’t date people from my own circle. Do you need me to reiterate that?” Wang Haoran mercilessly teased Xu Muyan.

In truth, he did have feelings for Xu Muyan, but he couldn’t let her find out. Otherwise, she would distance herself from him.

In simple terms, he could flirt with her, but he couldn’t let her realize he was flirting!

“You’re so mean… Forget it, I’m going to do my homework and ignore you!” Xu Muyan turned her head away, her face flushed, refusing to look at Wang Haoran.

[Ding, Xu Muyan’s favorability towards the host increased by 10. Current total favorability: 30 (Very Friendly).]

[Ding, the host has influenced the original plot, gaining 200 villain points.]

“Is that even possible?” Wang Haoran was momentarily stunned by the system message. What just happened? I wasn’t even flirting with her. In fact, I was teasing her. How did her favorability towards me increase? The more I act disinterested, the more interested she becomes. So, this girl really falls for the ‘playing hard to get’ tactic?

Wang Haoran instantly felt he had found the key to winning over Xu Muyan.

…

In another part of the classroom, Chu Bai was observing the interaction between Wang Haoran and Xu Muyan. Since many students were studying, Wang Haoran and Xu Muyan spoke in low voices, making it difficult for Chu Bai to hear them.

However, he could see Xu Muyan’s body language and expressions. “Xu Muyan seems upset. What did that scumbag Wang say to her? Did he say something inappropriate?”

Chu Bai clenched his fists, wanting to give Wang Haoran a beating. For him, it would be a piece of cake. Wang Haoran, a rich kid with no real strength, was no match for him. But after some thought, Chu Bai held back. Beating up Wang Haoran might be easy, but the consequences would be hard to bear. After all, money talks.

“After the college entrance exams, there will be a two to three-month break. I’ll go out of town to gamble on stones, and then I’ll have plenty of money!” Chu Bai secretly made up his mind.

Because of the afternoon’s events, Chu Bai was in a foul mood all afternoon. It wasn’t until after dinner in the cafeteria that his mood improved slightly.

Returning to the classroom, Chu Bai found a note in his desk with some words written on it.

“Chu Bai, I didn’t mean to distance myself from you. I was forced to. Seeing you unhappy all afternoon made me feel bad. I originally planned to tell you after the college entrance exams, but I can’t stand seeing you unhappy. After the first evening self-study session, I’ll wait for you at the girls’ dormitory in our class. I have something important to tell you. Remember, don’t let Wang Haoran see this.”

The note wasn’t signed, but the handwriting was elegant, clearly a girl’s.

“It’s from Xu Muyan!” Chu Bai quickly concluded. The familiar handwriting and the words on the note could only be from Xu Muyan.

He was instantly overjoyed and began to imagine things. What does Xu Muyan mean by this? She wants to meet me but is afraid Wang Haoran will find out? Could it be that she actually likes me? Is she deliberately keeping her distance and getting close to Wang Haoran to avoid trouble from him? Yes, that must be it! Otherwise, why did her attitude towards me change so drastically after she learned about Fan Jian and the others blocking me after school?

Chu Bai was very excited but soon calmed down, pretending nothing had happened. He tore the note into pieces and ate it. Perhaps because it was a note from Xu Muyan, he found it strangely pleasant to eat.

He didn’t forget Xu Muyan’s warning. This matter couldn’t be publicized! He had to “destroy the evidence.” Many people in the class were close to Wang Haoran. If they found out and reported it to him, it would be disastrous.

Chu Bai was secretly excited for a while but soon regained some composure, realizing something was off. Xu Muyan was a day student, not a boarder. Why would she arrange to meet at the girls’ dormitory? After all, the school was big, and there were plenty of places to meet.

Chu Bai wanted to ask Xu Muyan to confirm if she wrote the note. However, Xu Muyan didn’t bring her phone to school, so texting was out of the question. Asking her face-to-face was also inappropriate, given Wang Haoran’s many informants in the class.

During the evening self-study session, Chu Bai felt restless, doing nothing but watching the time on his phone, counting the seconds.

In the classroom, another person was also keeping an eye on the time.

As the first evening self-study session was about to end, in another part of the classroom:

“Ouch…” Wen Jing clutched her stomach, looking pained.

“Jingjing, what’s wrong? Are you feeling unwell?” her deskmate Xu Muyan asked with concern.

“Yeah, it hurts.”

“Let me take you to the infirmary.”

“It’s just that time of the month, nothing serious.”

“Then I’ll ask Teacher Song for leave and have your family pick you up?”

“No, that’s too embarrassing. I’ll just rest in the girls’ dormitory for a while. I should be fine after half an hour.”

“I’ll ask one of the boarding girls for the key.”

“Ask Zhang Li. She’s nice and easy to talk to. Oh, and keep it quiet. I don’t want anyone to find out. It’s embarrassing.”

“Got it.”

After their whispered conversation, Xu Muyan left her seat and quietly approached a girl named Zhang Li in the class. Xu Muyan whispered a few words to Zhang Li, who then handed over a key.