The next day, Friday.
Chi Yuzhou sat in the classroom corner, yawning repeatedly as always.
Well, freedom required sacrifices.
Better than losing sleep time against his will later.
Chi Yuzhou quietly rested his head on the desk to catch up on sleep. Just then, Hua Qi entered the classroom.
Hua Qi took his seat but didn’t pull out his phone to message his online girlfriend like usual.
Compared to yesterday, he glanced at Chi Yuzhou far more often.
Only when class started and the bell rang did Chi Yuzhou slowly straighten up.
Yet the blunt stare from beside him was hard to ignore.
What did his deputy class monitor neighbor want?
Chi Yuzhou couldn’t decipher Hua Qi’s gaze. He followed it to the ring on his finger.
Was there something wrong with this Mystic Ring?
The ring wasn’t very noticeable—it was only natural he’d think that.
But Hua Qi wasn’t just staring at the ring. He seemed determined to see Chi Yuzhou’s eyes hidden under his bangs.
Hua Qi watched silently, as if searching for decisive proof. He didn’t speak all morning.
At lunch break, Chi Yuzhou waited until most classmates left before heading out.
The moment he reached the hallway, Hua Qi seized the chance and called after him.
“Chi Yuzhou.”
“Hmm?”
Chi Yuzhou wasn’t surprised. It felt like confirmation was coming.
What had Hua Qi discovered?
Class 3’s room was near the hallway’s end. Hua Qi paused, waiting for fewer passersby before continuing.
“This is sudden, but… could I ask how to interact with girls?”
“Me?”
Chi Yuzhou pointed at himself. His bangs hid his eyes, but Hua Qi read deep confusion from his slightly tilted head.
Honestly, Chi Yuzhou’s appearance gave zero credibility for such advice.
Asking him was worse than playing extra Galgames.
Just as Chi Yuzhou thought Hua Qi was grasping at straws, the other spoke again.
“Sorry. I didn’t mean to follow you to that bar yesterday.”
Hua Qi bowed lightly to apologize.
“I saw you after school by chance. I planned to ask then, but—”
Before he finished, a voice cut in from behind.
“Chi Yuzhou.”
Xiao Yingwan appeared beside them, delayed by practice problems.
Under Chi Yuzhou’s gaze, she gently tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. Her cool voice spoke.
“Are you sure you won’t let me treat you to dinner as an apology?”
“No.”
Chi Yuzhou shook his head, tone flat. “I accept your thought, but no need.”
“Is that so? Then… I’ll find another way to apologize.”
Xiao Yingwan vanished down the hallway alone.
If not this time, she’d try again later.
Her arrival and departure were equally sudden.
Only a slightly exasperated Chi Yuzhou remained.
This woman was even more stubborn than he’d thought.
After handling Xiao Yingwan’s abrupt chat, Chi Yuzhou turned back to Hua Qi. He caught a flicker of… open admiration in the other’s eyes?
What was going on?
Chi Yuzhou asked, “Why ask me for advice?”
“Because… I saw how you talked with Xiao Yingwan.”
“What way?”
“Yesterday at noon, and just now. You held your own against someone as aloof as her. You even refused her casually. I think… you’re amazing.”
Hua Qi added after a pause, “Any other guy—or me—we’d never stay that calm if she invited us. She’s Xiao Yingwan.”
“…”
Chi Yuzhou stayed silent. He shifted to Hua Qi’s earlier mention of following him.
“What did you see after school yesterday?”
“I saw…”
Hua Qi answered carefully.
He’d only spotted Chi Yuzhou’s back, then saw him enter a dim alley. He couldn’t make out his face when he emerged.
Only when an earring glinted by chance did Hua Qi confirm it was him. Finally, he saw Chi Yuzhou enter the bar called Full Moon Night.
Hua Qi sat closest to him daily. Sometimes, when Chi Yuzhou napped, the earring peeked out.
Seemingly, only Hua Qi knew about it.
“You waited outside until I left the bar at midnight?”
“Yeah. I was worried. If you hadn’t come out all night, I’d have reported it. I left only after seeing you get in a car.”
The car’s angle was poor. Hua Qi glimpsed a woman whose beauty seemed to surpass Xiao Yingwan’s. That only strengthened his resolve to seek Chi Yuzhou’s help.
“Why didn’t you go inside?”
“I’m still months from being eighteen.”
Minors don’t enter bars? Fair enough.
Was Hua Qi this rigid? But his intentions seemed good.
Facing Hua Qi’s earnest gaze, Chi Yuzhou didn’t know how to react.
Hua Qi continued, “I won’t pry into your life outside school. I just… want to learn from you.”
“I doubt I can teach you anything.”
Chi Yuzhou recalled often borrowing notes or asking Hua Qi for homework help. He added casually, “I’m usually the one learning from you.”
“No problem!”
Seeing Chi Yuzhou hadn’t refused, Hua Qi pressed on.
“Honestly, it’s less about advice. I just want to know how you’d handle certain situations.”
“…”
So he wanted Chi Yuzhou as a reference?
Chi Yuzhou saw no issue.
If anything, women caused trouble.
Without Xiao Yingwan’s stubborn apologies, he might not have drawn his neighbor’s attention.
Problems always started with women.
Damn it.
Chi Yuzhou said nothing. He turned toward the convenience store. Hua Qi followed closely.
“So what situation are you talking about?”
“Well…”
Hua Qi had planned to explain later. Now, he thought it over.
“Say a friend of mine has a girlfriend. But after school started, she barely chats with him. What should my… friend do?”
“Online dating?”
Chi Yuzhou remembered the green glow once reflected on Hua Qi’s glasses. He asked lightly.
Hua Qi nodded. Chi Yuzhou was surprised.
Hua Qi—or his friend—wasn’t drop-dead handsome, but decent-looking. Starting a real relationship shouldn’t be hard. Why choose a virtual one?
“Does your… friend really like her?”
“Very much!”
