I'm in Senior Year, and the System Says I'm Going on a Blind Date with My Childhood Sweetheart

"Ah Jie, since you’ve already admitted you like Zhuo Peipei, we’ve got to plan out our next move!"

Even though the others were giving him the cold shoulder, Sun Xiansheng’s enthusiasm for the matter didn’t wane in the slightest. In fact, getting to enjoy the drama made him even more excited, and he stubbornly refused to leave.

Shen Yuan leaned against the railing, one hand casually tucked in his pocket and the other arm slung around Zhou Shaojie’s neck. "Ah Jie," he began, "let’s stop beating around the bush. Let’s talk about what’s actually going to work."

"Do you want to go after Zhuo Peipei?"

Hearing this, Zhou Shaojie turned to look at Shen Yuan, and after a moment of silence, he finally nodded.

But when he spoke, his words completely contradicted his nod. "I’m scared to," he said.

At that moment, there was no trace of the Ah Jie who would goof off and pull stunts in front of the whole class.

He lowered his head slightly and said quietly to Shen Yuan, "Yuan, my situation is different from yours. I actually confessed and got rejected for real. I’m afraid we might not even be able to be friends anymore."

Hearing this, the other guys frowned.

"What are you afraid of, Ah Jie! If you don’t make a move, how will you know if she will?" Sun Xiansheng said loudly, patting Zhou Shaojie’s shoulder with a confident expression. "I say you go find Zhuo Peipei right now, tell her straight up, and just—MMPH!"

Before he could finish, Yang Ze and Chen Mingyu clapped their hands over his mouth.

Yang Ze and Chen Mingyu exchanged a look and, without a word, simply dragged Sun Xiansheng away.

"Okay, okay, Teacher Hou, come on, just stand over here and listen quietly. That’s all you need to do," Yang Ze said as he dragged Sun Xiansheng along.

Sun Xiansheng struggled with all his might, but Yang Ze and Chen Mingyu were too strong for him. He couldn’t break free.

Teacher Hou could only resign himself to his fate.

"Ah Ze, you got any good ideas?"

Yang Ze pursed his lips. "If you’re asking me about games, I can help. But for romance and stuff, I should be asking you. Lao Yuan, you’re the only one here with any dating experience."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, I wouldn’t call what I have ’dating’," Shen Yuan said, quickly waving his hands in denial.

"But at least you have experience, right?" Chen Mingyu chimed in. "You must have some idea how to get a girl to like you."

The moment he finished speaking, the other four guys all nodded in agreement.

Four pairs of eyes turned to land squarely on Shen Yuan.

Shen Yuan pressed his lips together, thinking for a moment before speaking. "Personally, I think if you want to get close to a girl and get her to like you, you have to start with something she’s interested in."

He paused briefly before explaining, "For example, we all know that Li Bao loves doing practice problems. So, if you were to go to her with a question, she probably wouldn’t turn you away."

"The catch, though, is that when you’re talking to her, you absolutely can’t look too dumb."

After saying this, Shen Yuan’s gaze slowly shifted to Zhou Shaojie. He asked him point-blank, "So, what exactly does Zhuo Peipei like?"

Zhou Shaojie answered almost instantly. "She likes shipping couples, writing Sugar Text, and eating sweets."

Shen Yuan’s mouth twitched at the answer. He couldn’t help but mutter, "This silly kid eats so much sugar all day, she’s bound to get diabetes... Wait a minute..."

Suddenly, as if realizing something, he jabbed a finger at Zhou Shaojie. "Aha! So that’s it, Ah Jie! You’ve secretly done all this research on her?! You’ve been plotting this all along, haven’t you!"

Faced with Shen Yuan’s accusation, Zhou Shaojie remained surprisingly calm. He explained slowly,

"Hey, we’ve been deskmates for over a year. If I didn’t even know what she likes, wouldn’t that make me a total idiot? Besides, if I don’t even know that basic stuff, how am I supposed to go after her?"

Zhou Shaojie’s explanation made everyone there nod in agreement.

"Damn! I didn’t realize you were so prepared, Ah Jie!"

Seeing Yang Ze’s "I knew it" expression, Zhou Shaojie gave an embarrassed smile.

He said quietly, "I might have done some prep work, but the reality of the situation is a whole other thing. Honestly, if you guys hadn’t brought it up, I probably would have kept this buried forever and never said a word."

That’s how secret crushes are. You might let it linger until high school graduation, and then just keep letting it go, until it finally rots away inside your heart.

Never sprouting, dying alone in some forgotten corner.

Shen Yuan looked at Zhou Shaojie and clapped him on the shoulder. "So, since you know what Zhuo Peipei’s interests are, what angle do you think you should approach from?"

Zhou Shaojie frowned, thinking for a moment before answering hesitantly, "I don’t think shipping couples with her is realistic. Besides, she’s been shipping you and Li Zhi lately, so there’s no way I could join in on that."

Yang Ze nodded in understanding, then teased, "If you two silly kids were shipping them together, you’d probably just die of jealousy!"

Zhou Shaojie shot Yang Ze a harsh glare but didn’t argue.

He took a deep breath and continued, "So if we rule that option out, there’s really only one choice left."

"Sugar Text! That’s it! You can discuss Sugar Text with Zhuo Peipei! It’s the perfect way to get her attention!"