The mortal enemy's sarcastic jab: Does your senior make you that happy?

Lu Xiaoxiao froze for a moment and looked up at Shao Enci's grave expression. "You bought the fruit tea so fast?"

Shao Enci gently set the fruit tea down in front of her and said expressionlessly, "There was no line, so it was quick."

In fact, as soon as he reached the milk tea shop, he caught sight of He Jiran heading toward the cafeteria out of the corner of his eye. He paused, glanced down at the blueberry oolong tea a girl beside him had just bought, and said in a low voice:

"Excuse me, I'm in a hurry. One thousand yuan for your drink."

The girl froze for a moment. Once she confirmed he wasn't joking, she immediately pulled up her payment QR code.

Shao Enci scanned the code, paid, and took the fruit tea. The whole exchange took no more than ten seconds.

As he turned to head back, he didn't even hear the excited voice message the girl sent behind him. She was sharing the good news with her best friend, telling her she'd met a handsome fool with money to burn.

By the time Shao Enci returned to the cafeteria, He Jiran still hadn't finished speaking.

He Jiran ignored his remark and turned his gaze back to Lu Xiaoxiao's face. Straightening his back slightly, he said in a low voice, "I'm talking to Lu Xiaoxiao. Why are you butting in?"

Shao Enci sat down right beside Lu Xiaoxiao, draping an arm naturally over the back of her chair. He leaned forward slightly, as if using his entire presence to draw a boundary. "Can't you see what we are to each other?"

He Jiran's lips twitched. "You're showing off a brotherly relationship?"

The words "brotherly relationship" left Shao Enci momentarily speechless. His thin lips parted slightly, as if he hadn't expected He Jiran to use those words to shut him up.

Before he could speak, Lu Xiaoxiao couldn't hold it in any longer. She lowered her head and let out a laugh.

When He Jiran saw her laugh, the corners of his mouth curved up too.

At that moment, 037's voice rang out in Lu Xiaoxiao's mind:

[Mission 27 countdown: 9 minutes, 59 seconds.]

Shao Enci lowered his arm from the chair and slipped it around her waist without drawing attention to the movement. He bent his head close to her ear, his phoenix eyes narrowing slightly as he said sarcastically, "What are you laughing at? Does He Jiran make you that happy? Should I give you two the table?"

Lu Xiaoxiao slapped his hand away and gave him a coquettishly reproachful look. By the time she turned back to He Jiran, her tone had returned to normal. "Senior He, if there's anything you need tonight, we can talk on WeChat. I need to eat now. The food won't taste good once it gets cold."

Her words were polite and her tone gentle, but her meaning was clear.

Hearing her turn He Jiran down, Shao Enci felt much better.

He Jiran fell silent for two seconds, then looked away from her face, gave a slight nod, and turned toward the food counter.

Shao Enci's deep gaze followed him for a few steps. When he looked away, he murmured mockingly, "He's got a thick skin. Even after being turned down..."

Before he could finish, Lu Xiaoxiao picked up a piece of red-braised pork rib and offered it to him, stopping his words.

The young man opened his mouth instinctively, and the rib slid between his lips and teeth. Sweetness spread through his heart, leaving him secretly pleased.

Lu Xiaoxiao finally breathed a sigh of relief. She lowered her head and picked up a piece of sweet-and-sour hairtail, but before she could finish it, a shadow fell across the seat opposite her again.

He Jiran sat down across from her with his tray.

He set the tray down securely, picked two pieces of sweet-and-sour pork with pineapple from his own bowl, and put them in her lunch box. "Your favorite."

Lu Xiaoxiao blinked, her chopsticks hovering in midair. "...Thank you, Senior He."

Shao Enci shot He Jiran a cold sideways glance. Then, with his eyelids lowered, he picked up a piece of spicy chicken and put it in Lu Xiaoxiao's bowl. His voice was gentler than usual as he said:

"Eat more. If someone wants to be a third wheel, let him."

He Jiran's expression remained indifferent, as though he hadn't heard.

Shao Enci picked up another piece of stir-fried beef and held it to her lips, a flirtatious look in his eyes and a hint of laughter in his voice. "Open up, baby. You fed me just now, so this is your reward."

Lu Xiaoxiao went rigid. She raised her starry eyes to look at him, her expression awkward, as if a fish bone were lodged in her throat.

She recalled how she had acted while doing missions before, and finally understood what it felt like to be a bystander.

"Go on, eat." Shao Enci acted as if he hadn't seen her stiffen, his tone languid. "If you don't want me to feed you like this, how about mouth-to-mouth? That works too. Didn't you feed me that way at Happy Valley on May Day?"

He Jiran tightened his grip on his chopsticks and lowered his head, covering his mouth with the back of his hand as he choked on his rice.

Lu Xiaoxiao leaned close to Shao Enci and lowered her voice. "Bro, can you act normal? What happened to being cold and aloof? Has one He Jiran completely broken your character?"

Shao Enci gazed at her with his handsome phoenix eyes, a hint of pride in his gaze and a careless drawl in his voice. "Then make him leave."

Before Lu Xiaoxiao could answer, 037's voice rang out in her mind:

[Mission 27 additional condition: Forcibly kiss your mortal enemy for one minute in front of your senior. Countdown: 4 minutes, 59 seconds.]

Lu Xiaoxiao stared in shock. "Wait, 037, why is there an additional condition? Are you messing with me?!"

037:

[Xiaoxiao, stop talking nonsense. Just complete the mission.]

"..."

She took a deep breath and met the young man's calm, ink-black eyes with her clear gaze. She watched his sexy, prominent Adam's apple bob a few times, then cupped his handsome face in both hands and said, "Don't talk. Close your eyes. I'm going to kiss you now."

She gave him no time to assess the situation. Her soft lips pressed against his slightly cool, thin ones, and the scent of lychee and roses unique to her curled around his nose.

Shao Enci's eyelashes trembled. He didn't close his eyes, watching the girl who was so close to him, his breathing quicker than usual.

In that moment, he felt as though the whole world had stopped, leaving only the inexperienced kiss she had offered him of her own accord.

He Jiran's pupils contracted sharply. His chopsticks, suspended in midair, slipped from his grasp and struck the edge of his tray with a crisp clatter.

Looks converged on them from every direction. Some people began whispering to one another, while others raised their phones to take pictures.

But those sounds seemed to be separated from Lu Xiaoxiao by a layer of water, unable to reach her.

All she felt was Shao Enci's hand moving to her waist and tightening, as if he were afraid she would pull away.

Lu Xiaoxiao hadn't expected him to extend the tip of his tongue and roam freely inside her mouth in full view of everyone. His other large, broad-knuckled hand cradled the back of her head, deepening the kiss.

[Congratulations, Xiaoxiao. Mission 27 complete.]

When the full minute was finally up, Lu Xiaoxiao felt as though Shao Enci had sucked all the oxygen into his own lungs. She pushed him away with effort.

The astonishment in Shao Enci's eyes had long since faded, replaced by surging tenderness and joy.

Having merely received her kiss until now, he lifted his head slightly as she drew back and gently chased her lips to kiss the corner of her mouth. His movement was restrained yet yearning, unwilling to let this sudden tenderness go so easily.

The teasing cries around them grew louder, countless gazes fixed firmly on the two of them.

"Holy crap, this is so exciting! Campus heartthrob Shao is actually kissing his girlfriend in public in the cafeteria?!"

"Isn't that Senior He Jiran from Tianji Class sitting across from them? Oh my god, watching the whole thing must be torture!"

"Help, did Shao Enci just chase after her for another kiss?"

He Jiran's face turned pale. Unable to remain seated any longer, he shot to his feet, knocking over his tray and sending food scattering across the floor.

Without a word, he squeezed his way through the crowd of onlookers in a sorry state and hurried out of the cafeteria.

All the commotion around them seemed to fade into the background.