In the end, it was Gu Qianran who carried the suspiciously heat-struck Bai Ziyuan back to the dormitory.
The dormitory was quiet. Ji Tang was sketching, and Bai Zilu was going through her investments. The atmosphere was surprisingly warm and cozy.
Bai Ziyuan even felt like she was intruding on a tender family scene.
"You're back? Xiao Yuan, why is your face so red?" Bai Zilu looked up, grinning mischievously. Bai Zilu knew perfectly well why Bai Ziyuan was blushing. It was a rare opportunity to see her arrogant little sister embarrassed and shy. If she didn't tease her now, she might as well change her surname.
Bai Ziyuan glared at her furiously, cheeks puffing up like steamed buns. Evil sister! If it weren't for Ran Ran being here, your dog head would not be safe!
She scrambled for an excuse. "I got overheated, alright?"
Ji Tang's eyes fell on the condensation dripping from the cup in Bai Ziyuan's hand. "While drinking iced milk tea?"
Bai Ziyuan tried to argue her way out. "Well, you see, the energy from the milk tea converted into heat and then flowed to my face through my capillaries!"
Both science ace Gu Qianran and physics prodigy Ji Tang almost choked on their water.
Bai Zilu, who had not chosen science as her major, did not think anything was wrong. Ji Tang cast a look at Gu Qianran, who pretended not to hear. Helpless. Fine, pamper her then.
She stared meaningfully at Bai Ziyuan. "Your physics teacher and biology teacher must want to strangle you right now."
Bai Ziyuan, however, was not afraid of Ji Tang. Having managed to bluff her way through, she immediately threw herself into Gu Qianran's arms with a pitiful little whimper.
Gu Qianran's tolerance for Bai Ziyuan had been steadily increasing. She did not think there was anything wrong with Bai Ziyuan clinging to her like this.
Although Gu Qianran knew Bai Ziyuan was obviously making things up to cover something else, she never forced her to speak. Instead, she glanced at Ji Tang. "Count your money properly and stop bullying her."
Then she turned to Bai Zilu. "You too."
Bai Zilu had just opened her mouth when she felt the weight of Gu Qianran's unintentional aura of authority. She immediately shrank back and nodded meekly.
The once-arrogant elder sister was reduced to a deflated balloon.
Bai Zilu mournfully realized that in this dormitory, despite being the oldest, she was at the bottom of the food chain.
Alas. No money, no power. I am a pitiful soul. [self-hug.jpg]
From one food-chain underling to another, Bai Zilu suddenly felt camaraderie toward Ji Tang. Her gaze became that of a comrade-in-arms.
She patted Ji Tang's shoulder. "To the oppressed masses at the bottom, I salute you with revolutionary greetings!"
Drawn in by Bai Zilu's goofy energy, Ji Tang joined in. She solemnly clasped Bai Zilu's other hand, her tone ringing with conviction. "Comrade Bai Zilu, let us hold hands tightly!"
Discovering that Ji Tang was secretly just as goofy as she was, Bai Zilu was overjoyed. Usually she cracked jokes alone with no one to catch her references. But now, she had a dormmate who could. How could she not seize the chance?
Soon the two were bantering back and forth in high spirits. Gu Qianran said nothing, quietly helping Bai Ziyuan tidy up. She had guessed from the story's trajectory that her butterfly effect had led Ji Tang to confront her family instead of keeping silent.
For a high school student, that took a lot of courage. If Bai Zilu's silliness could help Ji Tang vent her emotions, Gu Qianran would support it completely.
The more Bai Zilu talked, the more she felt she had discovered a hidden gem. Ji Tang looked so serious, yet was sharper and quicker at wordplay than she was. Every now and then Ji Tang even dropped one or two lines worthy of extra points in a composition.
Ji Tang explained casually, "I used to write essays for submission fees back in elementary school. But I realized earning six or seven hundred a month was too little, so I quit."
Bai Zilu: … What else could she say but shout 666.
Truth be told, Ji Tang's scholarly yet rebellious features were exactly Bai Zilu's type. And who didn't enjoy chatting with a pretty girl?
So Bai Zilu lost herself in talking to Ji Tang, forgetting her original vow to both keep an eye on Ji Tang and fish for information on her sister's behalf.
Meanwhile, Bai Ziyuan's heart was restless the entire evening. Tonight, she would be sleeping under the same roof as Ran Ran. Ahhh, how exciting! Even if they were not sharing the same bed, being able to observe Ran Ran up close was more than enough.
Gu Qianran, however, noticed how distracted Bai Ziyuan seemed, though she could not put her finger on why.
"Little cutie, why do you keep spacing out?"
"Ah!" Bai Ziyuan jumped. Flustered, she blurted out, "I… I was just thinking about the person I like!" That's right! I think about you all the time! Ran Ran, please understand my heart!
Ji Tang and Bai Zilu, who knew the truth, gave Bai Ziyuan looks full of contempt for her cowardice, but under Gu Qianran's imposing presence, they dared not say anything.
Reality proved once more that Gu Qianran was hopelessly straight. She patted Bai Ziyuan's head. "You're in high school now. It's natural to have innocent feelings and want to fall in love. Since you like him so much, why not take the first step? Call him, for example."
Bai Ziyuan: … It's not that I'm afraid. I'm just terrified that when I call, it'll be your phone that rings…
Her covert confession had failed again. Bai Ziyuan sighed to herself.
Ji Tang and Bai Zilu, seeing disaster looming, quickly steered the conversation elsewhere. Gu Qianran gave them a puzzled look. "I suspect you're hiding something from me, but I have no evidence."
All three of them shook their heads in unison, faces plastered with exaggerated innocence.
Gu Qianran raised an eyebrow, but said nothing more.
After dinner, everyone studied for a while before it was time to sleep.
What must come, must come. Bai Ziyuan's heart pounded with excitement, though she pretended to be calm as she climbed into bed.
From her bunk she could see Gu Qianran lying peacefully across from her. Gu Qianran's long lashes trembled faintly like tiny brushes, her sleeping face utterly captivating.
Bai Ziyuan swallowed hard and shut her eyes, determined to sleep. But she tossed and turned, unable to stop thinking about Ran Ran—Ran Ran smiling at her, Ran Ran indulging her, Ran Ran shielding her, Ran Ran sleeping beside her…
She thought she must be poisoned. Whenever she saw Gu Qianran, her head filled with nothing but her.
Then she heard rustling from across the room. "Can't sleep? Not used to it?" That familiar cool voice floated down from above.
"Mm… did I wake you?" Bai Ziyuan answered weakly. Guilt surged. She had disturbed Ran Ran's sleep! She was about to apologize when she heard Gu Qianran say, "If you can't sleep, I'll tell you a story."
Ah. Another trick for little kids. Bai Ziyuan deflated. When would Ran Ran realize she wanted to be a girlfriend, not just a child?
But Ran Ran personally telling her a story… That was too exciting. Bai Ziyuan's emotions tangled in a knot.
Gu Qianran gently patted her back and began, her voice soft. "They say there was once a land called Huaxia. The realm was divided into three, and three great warlords rose to prominence…" She narrated Romance of the Three Kingdoms with such vivid detail that even Ji Tang and Bai Zilu craned their necks to listen.
Listening to Gu Qianran's gentle tone and feeling the soothing rhythm of her hand, Bai Ziyuan's consciousness drifted. Just before she fell asleep, she caught Gu Qianran looking at her tenderly, phoenix eyes gleaming like a river of stars, radiant and gentle all at once.
Ran Ran… what a gentle person…
When Bai Ziyuan's breathing steadied, Gu Qianran knew she had fallen asleep. Ji Tang and Bai Zilu stared at Gu Qianran, unsatisfied. Gu Qianran hushed them with a gesture. "Shh. Little cutie's asleep. We'll continue tomorrow."
Ji Tang immediately ducked under her blanket. Hmph. As always, you just spoil her.
Watching Bai Ziyuan's serene face, Gu Qianran closed her own eyes, content.
Bai Zilu never thought she would sink so low as to crave bedtime stories told by someone else. Yet these stories felt so vivid, as if they had truly happened.
Seeing Gu Qianran and Bai Ziyuan's daily interactions, Bai Zilu finally understood why Bai Ziyuan liked Gu Qianran.
Her charisma was overwhelming. Even Bai Zilu, up close, felt willingly subdued by Gu Qianran's presence. But to call it love?
For her, Gu Qianran might be impressive, but not her type. What kind of person did she actually like?
The image of Ji Tang's face flashed in her mind. She shook her head furiously. She must be starved for romance if she was imagining her new junior as a potential partner.
Tch. Maybe it was just because Ji Tang's looks suited her taste. To talk about liking her was impossible.
After a while, Bai Zilu stopped overthinking and fell asleep too.
The night passed quietly. In the humble dormitory of Nankou No. 12 High School, four girls dreamed their sweet dreams.
The next morning, Gu Qianran woke refreshed. Whether at Gu Lian's house or at the Gu family's mansion, she had always felt stifled. But here in the dorm, she felt free.
In her mind, a tune played on repeat: This is the feeling of soaring!
Ah, no barking mad dogs to disturb her ears, no household squabbles to exhaust her. Perfect bliss!
And then the barking began. The system delivered a new task in its dry voice: [Mission Twenty: Assist the male lead's father in persuading the Boss of □ to join an investment.]
The system had no expectations. It already anticipated more mockery. Why did its host always act like the one in charge?
The system was having such a hard life.
But Gu Qianran replied cheerfully, "Sure! When?"
[What? Host, you actually agreed?] The system was overjoyed. For once, it felt hope!
Of course Gu Qianran would not refuse. Last time, Li Junze's idea of joining forces to crush the Li family had struck her as brilliant. If she helped her father this time, she could get her foot in the Li family's door.
With Li Junze's assistance, the Li family's downfall would come far faster than she had originally calculated. That meant she could enjoy life sooner instead of endlessly biding her time in misery.
As for this mysterious □, the plot had revealed it to be a terrifyingly large organization. How terrifying? They even dabbled in small-scale gun trafficking.
Truly, a world built on a brainless novel could not be compared with reality. Otherwise, in Huaxia, the moment you bought a gun the police would be knocking at your door to "store it safely."
Guns, huh? Gu Qianran suddenly thought of some memorable scenes from her past life.
Heh. She already had an idea on how to deal with those brutes of □.
How to fight wolves? Simple. Become a wolf yourself, fiercer than they are. That is what it means to fight magic with magic, to defeat wolves with wolves.