“Where are we eating after class?”
“Let’s go to the food stalls. Can Qiu Ye still eat barbecue with a fracture?”
“I think it’s fine. Protein helps with recovery.”
As class neared its end, Lin Mingxin, Chen Zhilong, and Qiu Ye had already huddled together to discuss what they should have for dinner.
Bai Yao rested his chin on one hand, staring at the PowerPoint presentation the teacher was playing while distractedly eavesdropping on their discussion.
‘Now that I think about it, it seems like quite a few classmates are secretly looking at me?’
He made an effort to strike a masculine pose, discarding the girlish posture caused by his so-called “feminine charm.”
He tried to make himself look as composed as possible, rather than timidly shrinking back his head in embarrassment.
‘They must have noticed I’ve gotten more handsome!’
Bai Yao felt that he was actually quite good-looking now.
His skin wasn’t flawless, but it was at least smooth and acne-free.
His features were delicate, and with a little grooming, he could pass for a handsome, Korean-style young man.
‘Or they might be whispering that I’m a sissy…’
He knew his looks leaned toward the feminine side.
His originally thin and small frame was now as soft as a girl’s, and with his ear-length hair, he looked just like a tomboy as long as he didn’t speak.
**[You have caught a man’s attention! Hmm, he doesn’t look very handsome, and he’s just a scrawny dog.]**
‘System, are you sick?!’
Despite his rich inner monologue, Bai Yao maintained a cold, expressionless face.
“Are we still going for a run tonight?”
Bai Yao looked at Wang Zuhao out of the corner of his eye.
‘What? Are you addicted to night running?’
‘I don’t want my body to become even more feminine!’
“No,” Bai Yao answered coldly.
Wang Zuhao’s disappointment was visible to the naked eye.
He slumped onto the desk and started playing with his phone.
‘What is wrong with this guy?’
Bai Yao’s brow furrowed slightly.
Before the National Day holiday, Wang Zuhao’s attitude toward him had become a bit subtle because of his “Unfading Charm.”
Now, that subtleness was even stronger…
‘Could it be that this guy, who says he hates sissies more than anything and excludes me at every turn, actually fell for a “sissy” like me because the system made me pretty?!’
After all, the system had mentioned that Wang Zuhao would eventually fall for that perverted stalker girl…
The terrifying thought gave Bai Yao a shock.
He quickly shook his head, unable to imagine what it would be like to be liked by Wang Zuhao.
He glanced at Wang Zuhao’s face—it was fleshy and coarse, his build was stocky, and his features could only be described as “manly” at best.
There wasn’t a hint of handsomeness to be found.
‘Ugh! Why the hell am I paying attention to a man’s looks again?’
Bai Yao’s lips pressed into a thin line, and he quickly suppressed his feminine behavior.
Although a week of training during the National Day holiday allowed him to switch between masculine and feminine mannerisms quickly, he still subconsciously displayed a bit of the latter at times.
This point seemed to have been noticed by Wang Zuhao as well.
Bai Yao’s heart tightened.
‘He’s definitely going to mock me again…’
But Wang Zuhao only spared him a glance, said nothing, and continued playing on his phone.
The bell rang just at that moment.
The instant the bell went off, the teacher pulled out the flash drive and grabbed the lesson plans even faster than the students, taking the lead in leaving the classroom.
“Are we eating now?”
Chen Zhilong stood up and called out to his roommates.
“It’s my treat today! Order whatever you want!”
Qiu Ye suggested mischievously, “Australian lobster!”
“Don’t have it!”
“Alaskan king crab?”
“Don’t have that either.”
“You just said we could eat whatever we wanted.”
Qiu Ye hooked his right arm around Bai Yao’s shoulder with a grin.
“Isn’t that right?”
Bai Yao gave him a speechless look but allowed the arm to stay across his shoulders.
“As if a food stall would have those.”
Chen Zhilong could take a joke.
He turned to call Lin Mingxin, who was still on his phone.
“Stop playing, or we’re leaving you behind.”
“Promotion Match.”
Lin Mingxin didn’t take his eyes off his phone as he stood up to follow Chen Zhilong.
‘Lin Mingxin is such a gaming geek in his daily life…
You’d never guess he’s actually a combat expert.’
Bai Yao thought to himself as Qiu Ye guided him out by the shoulder.
He felt like there was a wall next to him.
Given his short stature, standing next to Qiu Ye created a sharp contrast in height…
‘Does this make me look like a little wife?’
Bai Yao ducked low, escaping from Qiu Ye’s arm.
He walked off to the side, keeping half a meter of distance from his roommates.
“Bai Yao is still so unsociable.”
Seeing this, Chen Zhilong sighed helplessly.
“I thought you two were getting along well.”
“I think we’re doing fine?” Qiu Ye had long since grown accustomed to Bai Yao’s “cold exterior, warm interior” personality.
“What’s the budget? Don’t let us actually eat you into poverty.”
“Three hundred?”
“Isn’t that a bit much? There are only four of us.”
Wang Zuhao leaned in.
“Are we drinking? If we’re drinking, I’ll pay.”
“No, I only broke my arm because I was drinking.”
Qiu Ye shook his head repeatedly in fear.
“If you guys want to drink, go ahead.”
“Don’t be a wimp! What are you afraid of?!”
“I just got out of the hospital for a fracture, okay? If you get drunk, no one’s going to look after you.”
The group returned to the dorm chatting and laughing.
After putting away their textbooks, they headed back out toward the student street near the back gate.
The student street was no longer as desolate as it had been during the National Day holiday.
Just past 6:00 PM, right after classes had ended, the entire street was packed with college students.
There were people picking up parcels, shopping for snacks, couples holding hands sweetly, and friends jokingly putting their arms around each other.
The atmosphere everywhere was youthful and lively.
Bai Yao felt a bit out of place.
With a slight slouch and an expressionless face, he followed behind his roommates into a food stall.
The food stall was very busy today, but luckily they arrived early enough that a small private booth was still available.
Bai Yao took the seat furthest inside.
As soon as he sat down, Qiu Ye sat next to him.
“What are we eating? Check off what you want. Bai Yao?”
Chen Zhilong tossed over a menu and a pen.
Bai Yao glanced at it and then pushed the menu to Qiu Ye.
“You’re not ordering?”
“Whatever is fine. As long as it’s meat.”
Qiu Ye thought for a moment and asked uncertainly, “Steamed fish? You like light food, right?”
Since they had practically lived and eaten together in the hospital, he had a rough idea of Bai Yao’s tastes.
However, Bai Yao shook his head in disgust.
“If you’re going to eat fish… do they have Sweet and Sour Fish?”
Although he ate light meals, he generally only ate fish if it was fried.
He absolutely loathed steamed fish.
“Alright then. How about an order of Drunken Spare Ribs?”
“Mhm. Why do you keep asking me…”
Bai Yao muttered as he looked down at his phone.
He wasn’t quite used to Qiu Ye’s current attitude toward him.
‘Could it be that Qiu Ye likes me too?!’
He wondered if his thoughts had been led astray by the system.
Everyone he looked at seemed like a closeted homosexual who liked him.
**[You’ve rested for half a day! It is time to launch the next offensive against Qiu Ye!]**
**[Do not doubt it! He likes you! SYSTEM CERTIFIED!]**
‘Don’t doubt it, my ass! You also certified that I’m a woman and a man-slayer!’
**[Miss Bai Yao, although you are in your thirties and your looks and body are no longer what they were in your youth, your charm remains undiminished and can still conquer men!]**
**[Please use your charm to attract Qiu Ye’s gaze for over one minute! Task Reward: 100]**
‘As expected, I shouldn’t have associated with Qiu Ye too much. Look! Another task related to Qiu Ye, and it’s getting more and more outrageous!’
In the past, being looked at for a few seconds counted as “attention” and could earn him one hundred yuan, but now it was one minute?
What normal man would stare at another man for that long?
Bai Yao suddenly recalled a few days ago when he had secretly watched Qiu Ye sleep…
He wondered if that had lasted more than a minute.
‘But my chest is already developing, so I guess I probably don’t count as a normal man anyway. How tragic!’