Chapter 113: Du Zhuo Couldn’t Possibly Like That Girl
The other three helped He Yue pick out a pretty dress. After she put it on, she spun around once in front of them and asked, “How is it?”
They all nodded. “Looks great.”
“Good. Now, where’s that guy?”
Lin Yuejiu brought He Yue to the meeting place. Xu Nianshen and Du Zhuo were already waiting there. Lin Yuejiu made the introductions: “This is Du Zhuo, the male lead.”
He Yue extended her hand. “Hello, I’m He Yue.”
Du Zhuo lightly shook it. “Hello, I’m Du Zhuo.”
He Yue raised an eyebrow. “Don’t worry, I can definitely make the girl you like jealous. You’ll absolutely succeed in your confession!”
Her confidence startled Du Zhuo for a moment, but he soon nodded. “Alright.”
Lin Yuejiu smiled. “We’ll leave you to it, then. My roommate knows the details—just ask her.”
“Got it.”
Lin Yuejiu and Xu Nianshen left hand in hand.
He Yue and Du Zhuo stood together. “Come on, let’s start the plan.”
“What plan? You tell me.”
“First, tell me where the girl you like usually hangs out. That way we can ‘accidentally’ show up and provoke her.”
“Provoke her? You mean, like… aggressively?”
He Yue waved her hand. “Relax, nothing harmful. Just a light little push—enough to make her aware of her own feelings.”
“Alright. You say it, I’ll follow.”
So the two began working things out together.
From then on, Lin Yuejiu didn’t personally get involved in the details. It was all He Yue and Du Zhuo cooperating. Each time He Yue returned to the dorm, she would report the progress to Lin Yuejiu, who would nod, then have Xu Nianshen check with Du Zhuo on how things were going from his side.
Finally, one day, Chen Qianxi asked Lin Yuejiu out. It was at the same milk tea shop as before. She even ordered a cup for her.
“Jiujiu, does Du Zhuo have a girlfriend now?”
Lin Yuejiu’s hand paused while inserting her straw. “That I’m not sure about. But Xu Nianshen told me he has indeed been close to a girl lately.”
Chen Qianxi grew annoyed the moment she mentioned it. “Close? More like…”
Lin Yuejiu raised an eyebrow at her.
“…extremely close.”
Lin Yuejiu took a sip of her milk tea to hide the smile tugging at her lips. “And how do you know he’s been so close to some girl?”
Chen Qianxi poked her drink with her straw. “I happened to see it last time.”
“Where did you see it?”
“The library.”
“And what exactly did you see?”
Chen Qianxi recounted the details.
That day, she had gone to borrow some reference books. After picking one up, she saw Du Zhuo sitting with a girl. He was writing out the solution steps for her. After she understood, she smiled at him, and Du Zhuo scratched his head, smiling shyly back. She thought she might have been mistaken, but it looked like his ears had turned red.
After listening, Lin Yuejiu nodded. “So that’s how it was.”
She remembered He Yue had told her about this. He Yue had noticed Chen Qianxi browsing nearby, so she deliberately put blush on Du Zhuo’s ears. While he was explaining the problem, she had him cover his ear with his left hand, passing her the solution steps. Then, when she smiled, he moved his hand away, making it look as though Du Zhuo’s ears had flushed red because of her.
When Lin Yuejiu first heard this, she had been genuinely impressed and immediately gave He Yue a thumbs-up.
“Jiujiu, what are you thinking about?”
“Huh?” Lin Yuejiu snapped out of it. “Sorry, I was distracted. Go on.”
Chen Qianxi said seriously, “This is how I see it. When a relationship hasn’t been confirmed yet, and you don’t really know the other person’s background, it’s best not to fall for someone too easily. Otherwise, it can only bring trouble.”
Lin Yuejiu held back her laughter. “And how do you know it would cause trouble? What if they actually like each other?”
“Impossible. Du Zhuo could never like her,” Chen Qianxi said with certainty.
“How are you so sure? Did he tell you he already likes someone else?”
Chen Qianxi’s eyes shifted uneasily. “Anyway, it’s just impossible. He doesn’t like that type.”
“What type does he like, then?”
“This… I’m not sure. But I know for sure he wouldn’t like a girl like the one we saw that day.”
“And how do you know that?”
“That girl’s quite pretty. He… doesn’t deserve her.”
Lin Yuejiu couldn’t hold back her laughter. “Do you have to insult him like that?”
“I’m telling you, it’s impossible. Absolutely impossible.” Chen Qianxi kept repeating herself.
Back at the dorm, the others looked over. “Well? Did you manage to make her realize?”
Lin Yuejiu shook her head, glanced at He Yue, and after a moment’s thought said, “I don’t think it’s enough.”
“You mean the provocation wasn’t strong enough?”
She nodded. “For a girl as stubborn as her, we’ll have to go harder.”
“Alright, I’ll think of something tougher,” He Yue muttered, rubbing her chin.
Zhao Xin snapped her fingers. “What’s there to think about? The simplest way is physical contact.”
The other two turned toward her. “Then we’ll need to come up with a story to make that happen.”
“You said you wanted something harsher—I’ve got a great idea.” Zhao Xin gave them a knowing smile.
“What’s your idea?”
“Fake it.”
Zhao Xin explained her plan, and after hearing it, the other two gave her a big thumbs-up.
The next day, He Yue went to Du Zhuo and explained the scheme. After listening, Du Zhuo scratched his head. “Will this really work?”
“Of course. To deal with her, we have to be a bit ruthless. Here’s how the plan goes…”
After hesitating for a while, Du Zhuo finally nodded. “Alright, if Goddess Lin says this will work, then it must work.”
“Good, let’s go.”
That afternoon, Chen Qianxi was summoned to the counselor’s office because she had been caught sleeping in class during an inspection. The counselor thought she did it on purpose, but Chen Qianxi explained she’d just been exhausted from coursework. Hearing that, the counselor stopped scolding her and instead advised her to get more rest and not push herself too hard just because she was young. Chen Qianxi obediently nodded.
When she left the office, she sighed in relief. Luckily she’d been quick-witted with her excuse, or she would’ve gotten lectured.
On her way back to the dorm, she passed a small garden where couples often hung out. Sure enough, she saw another couple there. She looked away at first, but something felt wrong, so she glanced back—only to realize it was Du Zhuo!
She slowed her steps, approaching quietly. She couldn’t see the girl’s face since she was turned away, but she could see Du Zhuo clearly. His face was tense—and Du Zhuo rarely got nervous unless it was something he really cared about. Did that mean he cared about the girl in front of him?
Chen Qianxi suddenly felt angry. Very angry. Furious, even.
Du Zhuo whispered to He Yue, “Are we really doing this?”
“Of course. She’s probably watching right now. If we want her to realize her own feelings, we need to be bold—otherwise a stubborn girl like her won’t figure it out so quickly. Come on.”
Du Zhuo nodded nervously. “Okay… here I go.”
He Yue sighed. “I said lean in, not actually kiss her. Fake it, you know? Don’t be so nervous.”
“She’s watching. I’m nervous.”
“Ugh, hurry up! You’re so hesitant—that’s why you can’t win her over.”
Chen Qianxi couldn’t hear their words, only saw them. The girl nodded, and then Du Zhuo leaned in close.
From Chen Qianxi’s angle, it looked exactly like Du Zhuo was kissing the girl. She couldn’t watch any longer—she turned and ran away.
