Chapter 314 - 180: Go Fall in Love Yourself
"Wh-what are you talking about?! That’s nonsense! No! I don’t want to be in a relationship! Shipping is so much fun! Dating is so much trouble..."
After she spoke, Zhuo Peipei ducked her head and jabbed at the rice on her tray with her chopsticks.
Watching Zhuo Peipei’s reaction, the gears in Shen Yuan’s mind started turning. ’This reaction... Interesting!’
It was obvious Zhuo Peipei was completely unprepared for the idea of dating.
And what’s more, Zhuo Peipei knew exactly what he was talking about.
’But based on her reaction, she isn’t completely opposed to it. She’s just... not ready for it?’
’Tsk. Ah Jie might actually have a shot.’
’This is actually a good thing for the plan I’ve mapped out for Ah Jie!’
Shen Yuan mentally filed away this crucial piece of information, his expression remaining impassive.
But soon after, Shen Yuan felt another kick under the table.
When he turned to look at Li Zhi, he saw the pretty girl giving him a teasing look.
Without a change in expression, Shen Yuan picked up his soup bowl and took a sip. At the same time, he very naturally nudged Li Zhi’s thigh with his knee under the table.
Li Zhi felt the light touch on her leg. She glanced at Shen Yuan, a small smile playing on her lips, but she didn’t call him out.
He Zhiyu stared blankly at the three of them, the little author’s mind still trying to catch up.
Shen Yuan went on eating, but the blueprint for Ah Jie’s "Sugar Text" plan was becoming clearer in his mind.
After the meal, Shen Yuan and his friends returned to their classroom. It was still a while before evening self-study, but quite a few people were already there.
The moment Shen Yuan walked into the classroom, Yang Ze darted over, hooking an arm around his and pulling him close. With a flurry of winks and nudges, he whispered, "Lao Yuan, come on, let’s go to the bathroom! I can’t hold it anymore!"
"Huh? Hey! I already went!"
Before Shen Yuan could finish, Zhou Shaojie and Chen Mingyu were on him, flanking him on his left and right and pinning him in place.
Sun Xiansheng pushed him from behind, chiming in, "It’s fine, it’s fine! You drank a lot of water at lunch. If you try hard, you can probably squeeze a little out."
Before Shen Yuan could even react, the group had half-pushed, half-dragged him out of the classroom.
Li Zhi watched the scene unfold, a smile gracing her lips.
He Zhiyu noticed the smile on Li Zhi’s face and asked suspiciously, "Zhizhi, what’s going on? What are you smiling about? It was the same in the cafeteria just now. I feel like you know something I don’t."
Seeing He Zhiyu’s clueless expression, Li Zhi couldn’t help but sigh internally.
The pretty girl reached out, gently patting her best friend’s head. "It’s nothing," she soothed. "Don’t overthink it. Just focus on your shipping, okay?"
At Li Zhi’s words, He Zhiyu’s eyes immediately lit up.
"Does that mean you and Shen Yuan have made some progress?"
Li Zhi gave a dry laugh, her expression quickly turning cold. "No."
The hallway was empty, with only the dim yellow sunlight spilling onto the floor.
As they walked, Yang Ze let go of Shen Yuan, impatiently lowering his voice. "Quick, Lao Yuan! How did it go in the cafeteria? What was Zhuo Peipei’s reaction? Spit it out!"
Shen Yuan caught his breath and glanced at a nervous Ah Jie beside him, a smile touching his lips.
Not wanting to keep Ah Jie in suspense, Shen Yuan got straight to the point. "Zhuo Peipei’s reaction was pretty promising."
"She said stuff like ’what’s so great about dating,’ but..." Shen Yuan looked at Ah Jie and patted his shoulder. "She’s not totally against it. I think she’s just not ready."
"Ah Jie, Zhuo Peipei isn’t dumb. She would have guessed I was talking about you. The way she acted... at the very least, she didn’t show that she hates you."
Ah Jie’s eyes instantly lit up like a candle in the dark. He mumbled excitedly, "So... so should I write something a little... sweeter?"
However, Shen Yuan mercilessly smacked Ah Jie on the back of the head with a sharp SMACK. He snapped, "Sweet my ass! Is anything you write as sweet as *Defend and Steal*? Ah Ze, the outline!"
"Huh? Here?" Yang Ze looked at Shen Yuan in surprise. "Out here in the open? Is that really a good idea?"
Shen Yuan glanced down the hallway. "What’s the big deal? Hand it over."
"Alright, if you want it that badly now."
With that, Yang Ze put on a bashful expression, then turned and presented his rear end to Shen Yuan.
"Be gentle, then."
"Not your ass, you dumbass! The outline! I want the OUTLINE!!"
Shen Yuan smacked Yang Ze’s ass, making him yelp in pain.
"Fuck! You couldn’t have gone a little easier?!"
As he spoke, Yang Ze rubbed his butt while pulling a crumpled piece of scratch paper from his pocket.
"Here." He held it out. "I guarantee, if Ah Jie uses this to go after Zhuo Peipei, it’s a guaranteed bullseye every time!"
Shen Yuan took the paper and frowned as he glanced over it.
A few scenes were listed on the paper in crooked handwriting: the rooftop, the athletic field on a rainy day, the mall...
"Dude... this is supposed to be a secret crush, right? Why are all your locations so... public?"
Yang Ze nodded thoughtfully, a puzzled look on his face. "What’s wrong? You can’t go to the rooftop for a secret crush? In all those school dramas I watch, the main characters are always running up to the rooftop to shout their feelings out."
Shen Yuan slapped his forehead. ’These guys are a lost cause.’
Shen Yuan’s eyes widened as he stared at Yang Ze. "For crying out loud," he said, exasperated. "You try shouting your lungs out on the rooftop! Forget the rooftop, if you shouted like that right here, the first-years would probably hear you!"