The door to the Rehearsal Room was actually locked from the inside. Ye Zhou tried it once more to confirm it wouldn’t open before knocking with a puzzled expression.
Knock, knock, knock —
The door opened from within to reveal Jiang Yingxue. She held a phone in one hand, wore a loose white shirt, and carried a playful smile on her face.
“Oh, our little baby Ye Zhou actually came, and he isn’t even late. Good boy, good boy~”
‘There must be something fishy going on,’ Ye Zhou thought.
He instinctively took one step back, swallowing hard as his Adam’s apple bobbed up and down.
“President Jiang, why are you here too?”
“Me? The Vice President specifically called me here to lock you in~”
Jiang Yingxue tilted her head and blinked her beautiful eyes, feigning innocence. One strand of silver hair swayed near her ear with the movement.
She then leaned in closer, pressing one slender index finger against her red lips. Her voice was as soft as a mosquito’s hum:
“With me here, the Vice President won’t do anything to you.”
“So just relax and show the same ability you usually have for this Ability Assessment.”
“Don’t embarrass me, understand?”
The faint, elegant scent of perfume drifted over, and Ye Zhou nodded very seriously.
With Jiang Yingxue’s guarantee, the heart that had been hanging in Ye Zhou’s throat finally settled. After all, for any student, no matter what kind of test it was, the mere mention of the word “assessment” would make anyone nervous.
Ye Zhou peeked past Jiang Yingxue at Shen Yuzhen. She was sitting with her head down, her expression unreadable.
“President Jiang, I have to correct you. You insisted on coming; I didn’t ask you to,” Shen Yuzhen stated.
‘Hey, hey, hey! President Jiang, are you sure you’re here to protect me and not just playing with me because your mischievous side kicked in?’
“Oh, alright, alright. Come on in, our little baby Ye Zhou. Look at how terrified you are. Could the Vice President and I really eat you alive?”
Jiang Yingxue closed the door behind him with a smile, her hands gently pushing Ye Zhou’s shoulders toward the stage.
“That’s not necessarily true,” Shen Yuzhen, who had been silent for a long time, suddenly chimed in.
“Ah, haha…” Ye Zhou’s lips twitched as he gave a forced laugh. “President Jiang, it would be best if you didn’t call me ‘little baby.’ It’s a bit cringey.”
“OK. This is your first time meeting in person, right?”
Jiang Yingxue clapped her hands and laughed. “Why don’t you two introduce yourselves first?”
Shen Yuzhen adjusted her black-rimmed glasses and clicked her tongue inwardly.
“Haven’t we already introduced ourselves in the club group chat?”
“But what’s the harm in doing it again in person?” Jiang Yingxue replied with a narrow-eyed smile.
Shen Yuzhen turned to face Ye Zhou, her face full of reluctance.
“Hello. I am the Vice President of the Drama and Film Club, Shen Yuzhen.”
“Uh… Hello. I’m Ye Zhou from the Department of Computer Science in the College of Engineering. I’m a new member who joined the Drama and Film Club this semester. Vice President, please look after me from now on.”
Ye Zhou felt incredibly awkward. He had extended his right hand but didn’t know where to put it until Jiang Yingxue grabbed it. She also grabbed Shen Yuzhen’s right hand and held them both up high.
“Great, great! Now that you’ve met, you two have to get along peacefully in the future!”
…
“President Jiang, let me state this beforehand: I expect you to be fair and impartial, not to show favoritism.”
Sitting in the first row below the stage, Shen Yuzhen had somehow found a newspaper. she rolled it up tightly and held it to her mouth like a microphone.
‘Hmph, I want to see exactly what kind of talent this boy named Ye Zhou has to be allowed into the club as an exception,’ she thought.
“Do I look like the type to go easy on people? I’m ready. Let’s begin.”
Jiang Yingxue flashed an “OK” sign with a smile.
When she closed her eyes and slowly opened them again, her face was flush with shyness, and her eyes were slightly red. She gazed at him with a seductive charm, her lips slightly pursed, embodying the anticipation and nervousness of a woman in love.
Ye Zhou was momentarily stunned. He didn’t even have a script; it looked like this was going to be an improv performance.
Jiang Yingxue unfastened two or three buttons of her white shirt. The collar slid down to her fair shoulders, revealing half of her snowy chest and a glimpse of her black lace lingerie.
Ye Zhou felt his nose grow hot and quickly covered it.
His heart was filled with unparalleled shock: ‘Wait, what? Why is President Jiang being so seductive and bold right from the start? Is this improv assessment even decent?’
Jiang Yingxue swayed her hips and walked toward Ye Zhou with a feline grace.
Her voice was soft and sweet, the tail of her sentences drifting upward like a feather brushing against one’s ear. Every word felt like it had a hook in it.
“Little baby Ye Zhou~ Look at the new lingerie I bought. Is it pretty?”
“It… it’s pretty.”
Ye Zhou’s cheeks turned crimson instantly. His pupils contracted, and he stuttered in a panic, unable to speak clearly. Sweat broke out on his forehead, and his hand froze mid-air, completely overwhelmed by the sight.
Although his reaction was genuine, he believed that if he were playing a passive male role against a dominant female lead, this was exactly how he should act.
‘Yes, that’s it. That’s exactly how I should respond!’
“Is that so?”
Jiang Yingxue was originally shorter than Ye Zhou, but she was wearing black stiletto heels with red soles, which made her height just right.
She slid one long, pale leg between Ye Zhou’s legs, her knee slowly pressing upward. Simultaneously, she leaned in for a wall-slam.
Her red lips hovered near Ye Zhou’s ear, her warm breath brushing against his skin.
“Then tell me… is the lingerie prettier, or am I?”
‘Well, here comes the classic life-or-death question. I remember this being on the test.’
Ye Zhou mentally screamed that this was bad. At this rate, the “little head” was going to seize control from the “big head.”
Thus, he quickly clamped his legs together, pinning Jiang Yingxue’s leg just as it reached the critical point.
Only then did he find the gap to let his “big head” regain control over the “little head.”
However, he truly didn’t know where to look. This President Jiang wasn’t just “aggressive” in personality; she was currently pressing against his chest. Her sheer presence was so “overwhelming” that it left him speechless.
Between the blindingly white skin and the intoxicating scent of her perfume, who could possibly withstand this test? Even Liu Xiaohui, known for sitting steadfastly, would lose his composure!
Thinking of this, Ye Zhou bit his tongue to use the pain to force himself back to reality so he could re-enter the scene.
The tips of his ears turned red as he looked away, stammering, “S-Sister, everything you wear looks good. There’s simply no comparison!”
At the same time, he was incredibly satisfied with himself. ‘Yes, yes, yes. This is exactly how the male character should play it. Acing this improv for the assessment should be a piece of cake, right?’
However, Shen Yuzhen, sitting in the first row, did not agree. She furrowed her brows and waved her “newspaper microphone,” clearly showing her dissatisfaction.
“Stop, stop, stop! Ye Zhou, what on earth are you acting out?”
“As a couple in the middle of a passionate romance, the girl has been this proactive, yet all you can do is gape and stammer like an idiot.”
“What’s the difference between your behavior and having no reaction at all?”
“Let’s just talk about the simplest, most common action, shall we?”
“While saying those sweet words, couldn’t you at least use your hands to give her a warm, affectionate embrace? Can you not even handle that?”
***