Chapter 35: Now We Are Acquainted

Lin Bai rubbed his hair in frustration. "But if I do that, it will hurt Ruowei. You should know that!"

[Beep! I am only responsible for issuing verification tasks; human emotions are outside my scope of work.]

[Beep! Reminder to the Host: You have five days left. Please pick up the pace.]

The cold, emotionless system left Lin Bai speechless. Just then, his phone rang. Expecting it to be Qin Ruowei, he checked the screen and saw it was Li Ruonan instead.

After a moment of hesitation, Lin Bai answered. "What's wrong?"

"What are you doing?" Li Ruonan’s voice on the other end was as playful as ever.

"Lying down."

"I haven't eaten yet."

Lin Bai: "..."

"West Campus cafeteria. See you in twenty minutes."

"Okay, tee-hee!"

After hanging up, Lin Bai took a deep breath, his eyes hardening as he sat up.

"Where are you going now, man?"

Ignoring Zhao Fangting, Lin Bai put on his shoes and left the dormitory.

...

Third floor of the West Campus cafeteria. He chose this spot because it was far from the East Campus cafeteria, minimizing the chance of running into anyone he knew.

"Still mad?"

Li Ruonan sat across from Lin Bai, a meal and a glass of warm water in front of her. Lin Bai hadn't ordered anything; he planned to eat with Qin Ruowei later.

"No."

Lin Bai replied flatly, his mind racing to find a solution.

Li Ruonan pouted. "So afraid of being seen by your girlfriend? What’s the big deal? These days, what college student doesn't have a few mistresses? Haha, I’m not demanding—just being your mistress is fine. How about it? Will you consider it?"

She leaned in closer, her eyes full of playfulness and mischief.

Lin Bai suddenly looked up and stared straight at her. "Fifty thousand. I'll buy your virginity, and after that, we’ll be even."

That was it. This was the only solution Lin Bai could come up with. Right now, it seemed to be the only way to save his skin without hurting Qin Ruowei. Besides, the system only required him to take Li Ruonan's "first time"; it didn't specify the method.

Across from him, Li Ruonan froze. Three or four seconds later, she grabbed the water glass and splashed it at Lin Bai!

The entire glass of water soaked his face, not a drop spared.

"Go to hell, you scumbag!"

After cursing, Li Ruonan turned and ran, giving Lin Bai no chance to explain or salvage the situation.

Lin Bai had anticipated this. He didn't chase after her; he wiped the water from his face, leaned back in his chair, and let out a long breath.

"Sigh—"

There weren't many people on the third floor of the West Campus cafeteria, or else he would have become famous again. Wiping the water off his clothes, he stood up, ready to head back.

Just then, an argument in the corner caught his attention.

"Listen, Xu Youmeng, you’re being way too ungrateful. My brother Cai has money and status; don't push your luck! You’re just using him as a fishing lure, aren't you?"

Following the voice, Lin Bai saw an old acquaintance: Yuan Fengcai. Since the last incident, perhaps warned by Yuan Hai, Yuan Fengcai hadn't bothered him much. He hadn't expected to run into him here.

Lin Bai intended to ignore them, but when his eyes swept over the girl sitting opposite Yuan Fengcai, he froze in place.

9.5 points!

That's right! Above the girl's head, the number 9.5 was strikingly visible.

A beauty score of 9.5!

Qin Ruowei was only an 8!

What kind of heaven-defying beauty was this?

[Beep! Main quest triggered!]

[Main Quest: Win the affection of Xu Youmeng within one month.]

[Quest Reward: 5,000 quest points.]

The system's voice chimed in right on cue, exactly as Lin Bai had expected. Given the system's nature, it would never let such a monstrously beautiful woman go.

Now he had no choice. He had to bite the bullet and walk toward Yuan Fengcai.

When he reached them, Yuan Fengcai, with his back turned, hadn't noticed his arrival. Up close, Lin Bai could finally see Xu Youmeng's face clearly. As their eyes met, his heart began to beat faster involuntarily.

Her shoulder-length black hair hung loose, and her skin was as fair as mutton-fat jade. With vermilion lips, phoenix eyes, and willow-leaf eyebrows, even a simple blink of her eyes seemed to carry an enchanting allure.

Interestingly, her attire was nothing special—a worn-out, yet impeccably clean white T-shirt on top, and an outdated pair of skinny jeans that perfectly hugged her rounded, straight, and slender legs.

Even in plain clothes, she couldn't hide her exquisite, perfectly balanced features. It was easy to imagine how stunning she would look if she dressed up even a little.

"I'm talking to you, are you deaf? Where are you looking?"

One of Yuan Fengcai's lackeys waved a hand in front of Xu Youmeng's face, his tone aggressive. Yuan Fengcai frowned and turned around; when he saw Lin Bai, his brow furrowed immediately.

"What are you doing?"

The lackey noticed Lin Bai too. "Brother Cai, who is this?"

Yuan Fengcai waved for him not to ask, staring at Lin Bai. "Lin Bai, our business is settled. What do you want now?"

Lin Bai smiled and tilted his chin toward Xu Youmeng. "I'm not here for you. I'm here for her."

Yuan Fengcai was stunned, and the lackey couldn't help but stand up and shout. "Who the hell are you? You dare to eye Brother Cai's girlfriend? You want to die?"

Lin Bai was speechless. He admired this type of student lackey—no situational awareness, just mindless barking.

"Is this how you educate your lackeys?" Lin Bai stared at Yuan Fengcai.

Yuan Fengcai's expression turned ugly. "Lin Bai, you already have Qin Ruowei. Xu Youmeng is a sophomore in the School of Art and Design. Don't tell me you know her too."

Ignoring him, Lin Bai walked up to Xu Youmeng and extended his hand openly.

"Hello, classmate. Let’s get to know each other. I'm Lin Bai, a freshman from the School of Foreign Languages."

Xu Youmeng looked up, her eyes filled with a hint of curiosity as she sized up the handsome underclassman. After a few seconds, she put down her chopsticks and shook his hand briefly.

"Xu Youmeng."

Her voice wasn't particularly sweet—it was even a bit raspy, as if she hadn't spoken in a long time.

Lin Bai looked at Yuan Fengcai. "Now we know each other."

Yuan Fengcai's expression was grim to the extreme, his fists clenched tightly as if he were about to explode. Lin Bai, however, remained completely unbothered, his expression relaxed and natural.

"Classmate Xu Youmeng, care for a walk?"

Xu Youmeng looked at Lin Bai. She could probably guess that he was trying to help her out of a tight spot. She pursed her lips into a smile and nodded. "Okay."

With that, Xu Youmeng, having finished most of her meal, picked up her tray and left with Lin Bai.

Just as they turned to leave, Yuan Fengcai's voice came from behind.

"Lin Bai! Don't get too cocky. Xu Youmeng isn't someone you can mess with. Don't say I didn't warn you!"

Lin Bai waved a hand without looking back. "Thanks for the warning."

...

Leaving the cafeteria, Lin Bai and Xu Youmeng walked slowly along the campus path.

"Thank you," Xu Youmeng said, her voice sounding much smoother.