Liu Youyou's eyes lit up, and she inwardly exclaimed: I'm shipping it, I'm shipping it! Such great chemistry! As expected of my OTP!
However, the two boys looked stern with furrowed brows, their expressions serious, exuding an aura that seemed to say 'keep away'.
She cleared her throat and said with a sweet smile, "Are you sure you don't want any? It's extra sweet with ten pumps of sugar!"
Her words seemed to carry a hidden implication.
Su Lian glanced sideways at Chi Wang, who had his gaze fixed intently on the milk tea, looking as if he might change his mind any second.
He inwardly scoffed. Clearly wanting to drink but pretending to be cool. What's the point of drinking milk tea so late at night? It's not good for your health at all.
Cavities, insomnia, weight gain, and a series of related complications.
This class beauty was probably an obstacle in supervising Chi Wang's healthy lifestyle.
Amateurs who don't understand wellness.
Chi Wang was still lost in thought, confused by his own instinctive reaction. He should have been happy that his friend could find a pretty girlfriend, but at this moment, he couldn't feel happy at all.
It must be the fault of autumn's first cup of milk tea. After evening self-study, he'd have to personally order a cup for Su Lian.
Mr. Health Nut, you ordering him ten pumps of sugar shows you don't understand him at all.
Trying to pursue someone without even doing proper background research. Three pumps at most, no boba.
Amateurs who don't understand the details.
Thinking this way, his hand reached out towards the two cups of milk tea: "Never mind, I'll drink both."
At the same time, Su Lian also reached out his hand, gripping the two cups of milk tea tightly. Both of their fingers applied force simultaneously, and the scene once again fell into an awkward atmosphere.
Liu Youyou stood on the spot, her heart screaming: Ahhhh, this is perfect! It's like they're in perfect sync! Automatically ignoring the two cups of milk tea! Rounding up, it's basically holding hands!!!
"What are you trying to do?"
"Didn't you say you weren't going to drink?"
"It's not good to drink too much milk tea, I'll help you drink it."
"No way, you still have a fever, drinking two cups will make it worse."
"Your arm was just slashed, you think it's fine just because it's bandaged?"
"If you really want to drink that badly, I'll order you ten cups later, any flavor you want."
The two maintained expressionless faces and casual postures. They bickered back and forth, oblivious to others, but to onlookers, their exchange took on a different flavor.
Qi Tian rubbed his chin, looking suspiciously at the intense verbal battle: "I'm not quite understanding the current situation. Are they... fighting over drinking the class beauty's milk tea?"
"Damn, it's a love triangle, how exciting."
"So who does the class beauty actually like? I'm conflicted."
"I don't know who she likes, but I can tell these two bros are about to fight."
As the discussions increased and imaginations ran wild, the three of them leaning against the back of the classroom became Third High School's exclusive scandalous drama of the day.
"It's just two cups of milk tea, no need to go this far," Lin Yan laughed awkwardly as he casually picked up Song Jiaci's milk tea nearby and placed it on the desk in front of the two. "Two cups each, plenty to go around."
Gu Anjiu quickly nodded in agreement: "Big shots, please stop arguing. If it's still not enough, I'll get two more cups for each of you after evening self-study."
Su Lian: "..."
Please stop, thank you. If I drink any more, I'll throw up right in front of you.
"No pressure, no pressure. You two can continue your argument. The bell has rung, I'll take my leave first." Liu Youyou tilted her head slightly with a satisfied smile and curved eyes, returning to her seat.
As soon as she left, the two fell back into silence, not speaking anymore.
Gu Anjiu, sitting in front, felt a deathly killing intent emanating from behind. The chubby boy wrapped his coat tightly around himself, shivering.
It seemed the two big shots behind had begun a silent cold war. Though he didn't quite understand, he could feel the wide-ranging impact, which was quite lethal.
"You two..."
"Shut up." They said in unison once again.
Su Lian lowered his eyes, writing forcefully with his pen, almost piercing a hole through the thick textbook. Each stroke was like slashing the book with a knife.
What does their lovey-dovey behavior have to do with him anyway?
Truly a steel straight man, softening at the class beauty's coquettish act.
Not understanding what this person was angry about, Chi Wang expressionlessly lowered his head, looking at the pile of dense math problems, feeling dizzy and lacking energy.
The phone in his pocket vibrated once. He secretly took it out, lowered the screen brightness, and wedged it between the pages of his book to check.
An unknown user had sent a private message: Hello classmate! I'm Liu Youyou from Class 6, Grade 2. Thank you for posting that video, I'm totally shipping it for real! Sister, if you're interested, scan the code to join the organization. It will open up a whole new world for you! You're not fighting this battle alone!
Chi Wang raised his head to look at Liu Youyou in the distance, who was pretending to read a book, and clicked his tongue lightly. This class beauty wasn't trying to impersonate him, what exactly was she up to?
The next second, a QR code popped up, with the group name displayed as: Taro Pudding Bobo Support Group
Shocked again, how could his crappy account even have fans now? This was truly strange.
Chi Wang slowly applied for a small WeChat account, scanned the code to enter the group, and found that there were actually more than ten members chatting enthusiastically inside.
Taro Pudding Bobo No.2: Here comes our leader @Taro Pudding Bobo Cutie
Taro Pudding Bobo No.6: Youyou sis just relayed the milk tea scene, I'm shipping it like crazy!!!
Taro Pudding Bobo No.5: Paying respects to the boss! What an eye for talent!
Taro Pudding Bobo No.9: Wuwuwu I'm in the next class, can't see the live scene, tears falling into the Jialing River QAQ
Taro Pudding Bobo No.7: By the way, please spread the QR code everyone, let's expand the organization!
It took Chi Wang a while to react, his expression becoming increasingly grave.
It was hard to put into words, these girls were shipping him and Su Lian.
Excuse me, but it felt like he had joined this group in the wrong way. It truly was a new world, not a place for a straight guy like him to set foot in.
So, was it too late to leave the group and rejoin now?
While he was in a daze, his small account was frantically @'ed: Boss! We're giving you No.1, hurry and change your name!
Wavering for a few seconds between exposing his crush on Su Lian and his shifted feelings for Chi Wang, or pretending to be a fan lurking in the group, Chi Wang painfully chose the latter.
Amidst the cheers and support of a sea of purple avatars, Chi Wang reluctantly changed his small account ID to: Taro Pudding Bobo No.1.
Inexplicably becoming the leader of his own CP fan club was even more embarrassing than when he had pretended to be a girl confessing to Su Lian in private messages.
Indeed, he shouldn't have lied from the start. One lie requires another lie to cover it up, endless like descendants.
Forget it, just play dead and pretend this account never existed.
Noticing his deskmate's distraction, Su Lian couldn't help but nudge him with his elbow: "Do your problems, stop playing with your phone."
"Oh, right away." Chi Wang was still recovering from the internal shock, his expression dazed. "You're talking to me now? Cold war over?"
Su Lian let out a light snort, his expression growing colder.
For the entire evening, the chat records of that group had already refreshed to 999+, constantly vibrating, it was truly maddening.
When the evening self-study bell rang, Chi Wang looked at the group member count again, and holy shit, it had already exceeded one hundred and fifty, and even the group name had been changed to Taro Pudding Bobo Fan Club Group 1.
Even pyramid schemes would be in awe of this growth rate.
Pinduoduo mutual click groups collectively paled in comparison.
This world was truly bizarre. Did so many people really like seeing men get together with other men?
Chi Wang let out a long sigh, casually switching back to his main account. He expressed his utter incomprehension towards this strange turn of events.
"Finished your homework?" Su Lian stood up and flipped his textbook closed, delivering another critical hit.
Before one wave had subsided, another arose. Chi Wang came back to his senses, guiltily using his exercise book to block his phone: "Ah, I still have half left to do."
These words didn't sound very credible. Su Lian reached out and snatched the book to take a look, coldly stating: "Three hours of evening self-study, and you've done eight multiple-choice questions, with five of them having wrong answers. Are you filling out a lottery ticket?"
"I was wrong, I shouldn't have been distracted." Chi Wang put away his phone and quickly admitted his mistake.
The nearly 1.9-meter tall guy slightly lowered his head, just short of dropping to his knees on the spot.
Gu Anjiu stood up, stared at him for a while, and shook his head with great disdain: "Wang bro, do you know what you look like right now?"
The ever-ready comedic foil Lin Yan quickly chimed in: "Like someone who stayed out partying until 3 AM, trying to sneak back home quietly but got caught by his wife and is now crying and begging for forgiveness."
Su Lian: "..."
These people might all have some serious mental issues.
"A true warrior dares to admit his mistakes and reform," Chi Wang said seriously as he packed his books into his bag. "I'll finish writing when I get back tonight, I swear."
Su Lian gave a faint "Mm" in response: "There's still an hour until 11 PM, hurry back to the dorm and keep writing."
His gaze fell on the unopened milk teas, then lightly drifted away.
"Alright, let's go," Chi Wang sighed in relief, slinging on his backpack, thinking that a sick Su Lian was indeed easier to deal with.
Halfway through, his pocket buzzed again chaotically. Chi Wang irritably took out his phone: "Damn, didn't I switch accounts and block it?"
Walking downstairs side by side, Su Lian asked, "Block what?"
Chi Wang casually made something up: "Nothing, just a work group chat, it's annoyingly noisy."
If Su Lian discovered that group and saw his death note nickname, without a doubt, he wouldn't live past tonight.
Clicking into the WeChat dialog box, messages and screenshots from Chi Qing popped up.
PikaChing: Bro, this alt account is yours, right? Don't think I can't tell
HumanDelusion: .
Chi Wang's scalp tingled. Wait, what had he just posted in the group to go along with everyone else?
Oh right: "Chi Wang is so handsome, Su Lian is so cool, they're really truly a perfect match made in heaven TAT"
Flipping back to check the group chat history, his sister had been pulled into the group just a second after. A misstep, embarrassing, utterly humiliating.
HumanDelusion: Tch, I've never seen you this clever before
PikaChing: Nonsense, I only sent that video to you, who else could it be?
HumanDelusion: Keep it secret, otherwise your Su Lian bro will kill me
PikaChing: Are you sick? Why did you join a fan club... it's all girls in there...
HumanDelusion: You think I wanted to? I was forced into it
After typing this line, Chi Wang gazed at the vast night sky and let out another heavy sigh.
Who could have imagined that he, the great tyrant of Third High School, was now mingling in a fan club, posting cute emoticons and squealing along with everyone else.
Too stupid, too embarrassing, and too suffocating.
PikaChing: I can keep it secret, but hand over the hush money
With a grand wave of his hand, HumanDelusion transferred 3000 yuan to PikaChing.
HumanDelusion: Is that enough?
PikaChing: Who wants your stinking money? Dad gives me more allowance than you, didn't you know???
HumanDelusion: ... So what do you want?
PikaChing: Find a nice notebook and get both of your signatures on it for me
Here it comes, Chi Wang gritted his teeth and typed viciously: Fine, I'll find a chance to get the signatures. Now give the money back
The other side replied with a string of infuriating emoticons: No refunds! How naive! This is a deposit!
Well well, what's with this profiteering tone? As expected of his sister.
Chi Wang put away his phone, turned to grab the pile of medicine from room 403, and pushed Su Lian by the neck towards the opposite door: "Take your medicine, and let me check your temperature again."
Su Lian looked up warily: "Are you trying to use this as an excuse to avoid doing homework?"
"..." Chi Wang said helplessly, "Your Majesty, I'm worried your fever might come back, and there aren't many doctors at the hospital late at night."
Su Lian gave an "oh" and was docilely pressed onto the sofa, automatically raising a hand to his forehead: "38 degrees."
His throat felt a bit itchy, so he lowered his head and coughed twice, feeling unwell all over.
The thermometer hovered on his forehead for a few seconds. Chi Wang stared at the numbers: "It really is still 38, take your medicine. It'll probably take until tomorrow for the fever to go down."
So he boiled water, mixed the medicine, handed it over, and also grabbed a piece of candy.
Su Lian swallowed the medicine, a bitter taste still lingering in his mouth, when a round object was pushed through his lips.
He bit half the candy, mumbling indistinctly: "Stop feeding me candy, it's too sweet."
"You seem to be enjoying it though, don't be a tsundere," Chi Wang raised an eyebrow.
With the candy against his tongue, the sweet and sour flavor dissolved, masking the bitterness. Su Lian finally didn't argue: "Fine, it's alright."
Body honest but mouth dishonest, when would Su Lian ever say what he really meant?
Chi Wang smiled, bent down to unzip his backpack, and dropped his workbook on the table: "Alright, I'm going to start doing exercises now."
Su Lian didn't respond, leaning drowsily against the small sofa. Cold medicine always made him sleepy.
The room was quiet except for the sound of writing. Chi Wang finished a large portion in one go when his phone rang, reminding him that food had been delivered to the dormitory entrance.
He carefully tiptoed around the sleeping person, went downstairs to slowly retrieve the food, and placed it on the small table.
Autumn was gradually settling in, with a noticeable drop in temperature these past two days. Chi Wang looked at the thin figure on the sofa, collar exposed, feeling that a gust of wind would make him sick again.
"Get up, go sleep on the bed," Chi Wang patted his shoulder, speaking softly.
His head swayed from left to right as Su Lian replied hoarsely: "Don't want to move."
"You'll make your cold worse like this. Should I carry you?" Chi Wang reached out his hand, then looked at the top bunk, his expression freezing.
Damn, carrying a grown man up two flights of stairs seemed a bit difficult.
Su Lian lifted an eyelid, looking amused: "Weren't you going to carry me?"
"..." Chi Wang laughed awkwardly, "If you're not afraid of falling and breaking bones, I can give it a try."
Su Lian raised a hand to rub his brow: "I'd rather not make things worse. Have you finished your homework?"
Looking down, he saw a large cup of milk tea on the small table, with a small thermos beside it.
Following his gaze, Chi Wang explained: "The first milk tea of autumn, to make up for the ones before. The thermos has soup my mom made herself. Takeout food isn't nutritious enough, it's too low quality."
"I'm not that delicate," Su Lian replied stubbornly, though his heart softened a bit.
He didn't usually get sick, but he could recall one or two times he'd caught a cold in his memories. His parents divorced early, and when he was five his mom left with her suitcase without looking back. At home it was just Su Huasheng, a grown man who didn't really know how to take care of others.
Each time he'd just endured it, and the illness would pass. He was used to it and didn't think much of it.
Later he met Chi Wang, who cared for and looked after him, spoiling him a bit.
But after traveling back in time, he gradually got used to being alone again. Now suddenly being treated like this, he felt a bit unaccustomed.
Chi Wang reached out and poked his forehead: "I wish you'd be a princess and the pea. You're not even as good as Little Nine, at least he howls when he's in pain."
Su Lian didn't speak, thinking that Chi Wang's home was quite far, it wasn't easy to come all this way. Having someone make soup and bring it over from so far away, yet he hadn't even thanked them in person.
He blinked and said softly: "Thank your mom for me. Why did you even tell her about this?"
"The housekeeper had the day off, no one was home, so the old lady had nothing better to do and made it herself. The driver brought it over, didn't have to walk, not tiring," Chi Wang explained in one breath, pushing the thermos towards him. "Since you're awake, want to drink some?"
Su Lian sat up, reached out to unscrew the thermos, and a rich fragrance wafted out. One look and he could tell it contained many nourishing ingredients.
He lowered his head and gently blew on it, poured some into a cup and took a sip. The broth was rich and flavorful, with an authentic taste.
"It tastes very good. Your mom's cooking skills are excellent."
"It's rare to hear you compliment someone. I've been taking care of you all day, how come you're not thanking me?"
Just when things were getting serious for a moment, of course he had to start being shameless again. Su Lian took a big gulp of soup and asked flatly: "How do you want me to thank you?"
Chi Wang considered for two seconds, then said casually: "Well then, call me 'Chi-ge' one more time?"
After all, that previous time sounded pretty nice.
This again? Su Lian extended his leg to kick him: "If you bring this up again, I'll assassinate you."
Chi Wang laughed even more unbridledly: "So you admit you were calling me that? To be able to say it so smoothly, you must have called me that thousands of times in your heart, right?"
Su Lian finished most of the thermos of soup, feeling too full to argue: "Think whatever you want. I'm going to take a shower."
With that, he climbed up from the small sofa and slowly walked towards the opposite door.
As long as I don't face reality, reality won't make me feel embarrassed - this was the truth Su Lian had realized after traveling back in time.
Halfway there, someone hooked an arm around his shoulder. Chi Wang said: "Stay in my room tonight, it'll be easier to take care of you."
Su Lian thought for a few seconds, considering the trio's nightly concert in the dorm, and reluctantly nodded: "Alright, just for one night."
Seeing him leave, Chi Wang returned to his seat to battle with math. Unable to focus, he switched back to his alt account, and his phone buzzed again.
The phone hadn't stopped all night. He frowned and opened the fan club chat to see a message tagging everyone.
Taro Pudding #57: Late night treat for new members, sisters! A creation by the literary giant of our time, Xia Yun from Class 9 Grade 1. Flowing and natural, deeply touching, brilliantly crafted, a masterpiece at first stroke. So, just look but don't share outside!
Taro Pudding #75: Our motto is: keep it in our circle, never dance in front of the real people!
A row of thanks to the experts appeared, followed by a flood of "aaaaaah" screams.
Looking at the uniform 30-40 second voice messages, Chi Wang felt a headache coming on. He didn't understand the world of girls - what were they all screaming about?
His finger tapped on an image. The text flipped and blurred, not a single word legible.
Taro Pudding Bobo #1 humbly asked: "How do you read this?"
Taro Pudding Bobo #124 replied: "You're so silly. Download the image and flip it to witness the miracle."
"Oh, you can do that?" Chi Wang muttered, reluctantly saving the image. He opened his photo album, flipped the picture horizontally, and suddenly the content became clear.
His eyes slowly scanned down the lines of text. He coughed lightly and discreetly shifted his long legs to a new sitting position.
"Su Lian's neck was very white, the veins clearly visible. Chi Wang's fingers gently caressed it, unable to resist leaning in to kiss it. His teeth lightly grazed the gland, then suddenly pierced it deeply, slowly injecting a pine-scented pheromone."
"He tried to struggle, but Chi Wang held him tighter, pinning him against the wall, not letting him move..."
The image of Su Lian's skin color flashed through his mind. He'd seen it when they were running that day - indeed, it was very white, blindingly so.
But that wasn't the point. The subsequent content of the article became increasingly bold, shockingly explicit. It made even the iron-blooded school tyrant, unmoved by anything, blush.
As a pure high school boy, he had seen some special educational materials on human anatomy before.
Although he didn't quite understand what Alpha and Omega meant, or what these pheromones were all about, one thing was clear - this was fan fiction about him and Su Lian, and it was unabashedly erotic.
Chi Wang held his forehead, taking a slight breath. He thought to himself that if these girls put this much effort into studying Chinese literature, they'd all score 140 and get into Tsinghua or Peking University.
Taro Pudding Bobo #87: "@Taro Pudding Bobo #1, how is it? Satisfied?"
If he dared say he wasn't satisfied, he'd probably be hunted down by the whole group.
Taro Pudding Bobo #1: "It's so well written! I love it, love it!"
Taro Pudding Bobo #85: "............"
Chi Wang clicked on the purple avatar. Oh, #85 was his dear sister.
Maybe he should just end it all. This world was ultimately too cruel for him.
As he was lost in thought, his worldview shattering and rebooting, the door opened again. Su Lian entered with tousled hair: "What's wrong with you?"
Hearing his voice, Chi Wang suddenly looked up, feigning composure: "Huh? Nothing."
"Do you have a fever too? Your face is so red," Su Lian raised his hand to Chi Wang's forehead. The temperature was normal. "No fever. Are you very hot?"
"Su Lian's hands roamed freely, sliding to deep places..."
For some reason, a passage from that story popped into his mind. With the hand still waving in front of him, the scene suddenly became vivid.
Chi Wang cursed under his breath, his throat bobbing slightly: "Mm, it's stuffy. It is a bit hot."
As he spoke, he stood up and pressed the button by the door, turning the fan to its highest setting.
Su Lian glanced at him suspiciously, catching sight of the lit screen peeking out from between book pages. He thought to himself, playing with his phone again.
He quickly walked over, his expression cooling: "Not doing your homework again? Who are you chatting with?"
Chi Wang hastily closed the book, covering up the embarrassing little composition: "No one. My genius friend sent me some review materials on difficult points. I'm working hard to grasp the profound mysteries within."
Su Lian nodded slowly, extending his left hand: "Then let me take a look too."