How Did You Recognize Me?

On the streets of Suotuo City, a boy and a girl stood side by side.

The boy was dressed extravagantly and looked twelve or thirteen years old. He stood over 1.7 meters tall and wore a fitted black outfit. A Flame Fan was printed on the back of it, making it particularly conspicuous. His Blue Silver Hair fell past his shoulders, and his fair skin and handsome features made him quite striking. At that moment, however, his expression was somewhat unpleasant. His gaze occasionally drifted toward the girl beside him, as though she were the reason.

The girl was shorter than the boy. Her black hair cascaded over her shoulders, and her fair skin contrasted with a figure that was extraordinarily full and voluptuous for her age. Her expression carried a faint chill. There was not even a trace of life in her black eyes, clashing somewhat with her originally beautiful face. Her limbs were slender and well-proportioned. Although she exuded a deathly coldness that made others uncomfortable, she could still converse normally with the boy. There were not many smiles on her face, but whenever she did smile, it was genuine, without the slightest hint of falsehood.

These two were Zhu Zhuqing and Zu Zong, who had been fighting fiercely not long ago.

When Zu Zong heard Zhu Zhuqing say, "Zhuqing from the Star Dou Great Forest," he was completely dumbfounded.

After treating the little girl in the Mountain Cave for several days, he had taken her to a nearby town and found a healing-type Soul Master to treat her.

Not long afterward, he had even contacted her "elders," who came to take her away.

Before they parted, however, she seemed to have said, "Zu Zong, one day, you have to come save me."

They had spent less than a month together in total. Zu Zong had only taken it as childish banter and had not thought much of it, casually replying, "Definitely! You're welcome to come find me anytime."

Yet it had come true. She had really come looking for him.

Zu Zong looked at Zhu Zhuqing beside him. Drawn by the force of gravity, his gaze could not help drifting downward.

"Gulp." He swallowed. This was the difference between fried eggs and ostrich eggs. It was simply too stimulating.

Noticing Zu Zong's gaze, Zhu Zhuqing shyly lowered her head. Her face turned crimson, and a layer of pink quickly spread all the way down her neck.

She glared at Zu Zong and gritted her teeth. "What are you looking at? Who was it that called me a fried egg back then? You even said there was nothing worth looking at."

Zu Zong smiled awkwardly. It seemed he really had teased her about that before. He immediately changed the subject. "By the way, Zhuqing, how did you become an ostrich—no, how did you end up joining Shrek Academy?"

Damn! I almost said what I was thinking—

Zu Zong clearly remembered that in the original story, Zhu Zhuqing joined Shrek Academy partly to escape Zhu Zhuyun's pursuit and partly because she still held a sliver of hope for Dai Mubai. Now, it seemed he had accidentally stolen her away first. And from what Zhu Zhuqing said, she had come looking for him. That was rather thought-provoking.

"Didn't you say you were at Nuoding Junior Soul Master Academy? So I went there to find you. But the teachers told me you had already graduated, so I made the trip for nothing."

There was something Zhu Zhuqing did not say: Zhu Zhuyun's assassination attempts against her had become increasingly frequent lately. She did not want Zu Zong to worry about her.

"Huh?" Now that Zhu Zhuqing mentioned it, it was true. He had gone with Xiao Wu to enroll at Heaven Dou Royal Academy. Then Zhu Zhuqing had arrived afterward. It was practically the standard trope of a melodramatic romance—where the male and female leads passed each other by.

"Then why did you go to Shrek Academy?" There were not many people at Nuoding Academy who knew Zu Zong had joined Heaven Dou Royal Academy, but there were still some. It should not have been difficult to find out with a little asking around.

Hearing that, Zhu Zhuqing pouted and complained, "A flat-headed Uncle told me. He said you had gone to enroll at Shrek Academy. But after I enrolled, I didn't see you at all. Instead, I saw..."

At that point, Zhu Zhuqing's expression turned desolate, and the corner of her eye kept glancing toward Zu Zong beside her.

Zu Zong suddenly understood.

Damn! It was that "Grandmaster" Yu Xiaogang again. Back then, Yu Xiaogang had either come every few days to take him as a disciple or recommended Shrek Academy. To stop him from pestering him, Zu Zong seemed to have casually fobbed him off by saying he would join Shrek Academy. In the end, he had dug a pit for himself and sent the girl right to his rival's side.

Seeing Zhu Zhuqing's desolate expression, Zu Zong helplessly shook his head. "You mean that blond-haired simp from today, right?"

"A simp?" Black lines appeared on Zhu Zhuqing's forehead. Was that some kind of pet? It seemed Zu Zong had invented another new word, but none of that mattered. What she cared about now was Zu Zong's feelings. "Don't misunderstand. There's nothing between him and me."

Before Zhu Zhuqing could finish speaking, Zu Zong pulled her into his arms. His actions gave the most direct answer.

Zu Zong's heart felt soft and sour, overflowing with tenderness. He did not know why. Clearly, they were more than friends but not yet lovers. Yet when he heard Zhu Zhuqing mention Dai Mubai, he could not help embracing her.

Zu Zong admitted that he was jealous. Although he firmly believed that the girl he had met in the Star Dou Great Forest had nothing to do with Dai Mubai, he was still jealous.

If his first encounter with Zhu Zhuqing today had only been a simple fondness for a fictional character, then after learning that she was "Zhuqing," it had become genuine affection. A real, flesh-and-blood kind of love. Thinking back on the month they had spent together two years ago, he realized that this girl had unknowingly taken up residence in his heart.

"Zu Zong, you..." It was Zhu Zhuqing's first intimate contact with the opposite sex, and she was beyond nervous. Zu Zong had hugged her in the Star Dou Great Forest before, but she had been unconscious then. Now, the masculine scent washing over her stirred her senses, leaving her mind completely blank.

Zu Zong smelled nice. His embrace was warm and reassuring. That was Zhu Zhuqing's most direct impression.

Zu Zong slightly closed his eyes and blew a warm breath into Zhu Zhuqing's ear. Her body trembled, then immediately went soft as she leaned against his chest.

In a soft murmur only the two of them could hear, Zu Zong whispered into Zhu Zhuqing's ear, "I don't care who that Dai Mubai likes or what his status is. I only know that you are the Zhuqing who called out for me to 'save you' before we parted back then, and I promised you. So you're mine. You'll never escape."

"Mhm!" Zhu Zhuqing nodded, pressing her little face against Zu Zong's solid chest. So love at first sight truly existed in this world! Perhaps in that Mountain Cave in the Star Dou Great Forest, she had already fallen for him from the very first moment she saw him.

Dai Mubai (choking on cold water): Why did it feel like I should dye my hair green?

Xiao Wu (already crying unconscious in the bathroom): —555555555—Six years! This old lady slept with you for six years. Then the moment you pulled up your pants, someone stole you away—55555555—

"From now on, I'll call you Xiao Zong! Calling you Zu Zong feels so awkward!"

"Mhm, that's fine, Zhuqing!"

"By the way, Xiao Zong, you didn't recognize me at the gates of Suotuo City today. So how did you recognize me in the darkness just now?"

Hearing that, Zu Zong subconsciously lowered his head, directing his gaze toward the bottomless valley between Zhu Zhuqing's breasts. Though wrapped in black leather, a stretch of snow-white skin was still exposed.

"Gulp." He swallowed. So huge!

When Zhu Zhuqing did not receive an answer for a long while, she thought Zu Zong had gotten distracted by something else. Looking puzzled, she raised her head and happened to meet his eyes. She discovered that his gaze had changed. Though it was still tender, there was now a strange glint in it—the same glint she had seen in Dai Mubai's eyes.

Recalling their earlier conversation, Zhu Zhuqing suddenly understood. Good grief! This old lady had been thinking about you day and night for more than two years, yet all you remembered were my boobs.

The more she thought about it, the angrier she became. Zhu Zhuqing broke free from Zu Zong's embrace, raised her ten-centimeter high heel, and viciously stomped on his foot.

"Ah!"

That night, more than half of Suotuo City heard Zu Zong's miserable scream.

P.S.: The protagonist and Zhuqing have officially confirmed their relationship in the true sense. Xiao Wu has already cried herself unconscious in the bathroom.

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