All Intimate Relationships Are Shackles

After settling the matter of what to call each other, a smile flashed in Wang Ge's eyes. "Now there's only one last issue left."

"Go ahead." Chen Yanxi had regained her composure.

Wang Ge gathered his thoughts. "Since we're going to pretend to be boyfriend and girlfriend, there'll definitely be some physical contact..."

Seeing Chen Yanxi frown again, Wang Ge hurriedly said, "It's not because I have any ulterior motives. For a couple, intimate contact is perfectly normal. If there isn't any, people will definitely see right away that we're pretending!"

Chen Yanxi's expression softened slightly. After thinking for a moment, she asked, "How far do we have to go?"

The corners of Wang Ge's lips lifted. In a rather relaxed tone, he said, "Don't worry, I won't make things too difficult for you. Just the things ordinary couples do in front of their friends—holding hands, hugging, that sort of thing."

Hugging... Chen Yanxi frowned and pondered for three or four minutes before finally sighing and nodding with some difficulty. "Fine."

After saying that, she added with a cold little face, "If you do anything excessive during this process, I'll leave immediately, and I'll never set foot in the library again, no matter when."

Never set foot in the library again... How was that any different from saying, "I'll never speak to you again"?

Cute. I like her.

Wang Ge nodded happily. "Don't worry. I know where the line is."

Then he leaned a little closer and chuckled. "We can save those excessive things for when we're really together, right?"

Faced with those blatantly teasing words, Chen Yanxi merely quietly opened her book and acted as though she had heard nothing.

Wang Ge did not mind either. His goal for tonight had already been achieved, so he happily began humming a tune.

"Oh, right."

After humming for two minutes, he suddenly remembered something and asked, "Xixi, are you brave?"

"...Please don't call me that already. I'm not used to it yet."

Chen Yanxi paused. "As for courage, I think I'm fairly brave... Why do you ask?"

"It's precisely because you aren't used to it that you need to get used to it in advance."

Wang Ge said it as though it were only natural, then explained, "The weekend outing will probably include that newly opened haunted house in the city. I heard it's really scary. My friends have wanted to go for a long time."

Chen Yanxi thought about it and said, "I've never been to a haunted house before, but I should be fine."

Wang Ge thought for a moment and smiled. "That makes sense. You should be pretty brave. Even without knowing me very well, you dared to stay alone with me in the library late at night, a man and a woman by ourselves. You weren't even afraid that I might suddenly give in to my animal instincts, do something to you, and make you lose your chastity."

At that, Chen Yanxi suddenly looked up at Wang Ge. She frowned slightly but said nothing.

"What's wrong?" Wang Ge asked curiously.

"Nothing." Chen Yanxi paused, shifted her gaze away, and looked out into the darkness beyond the window. After hesitating, she said, "I just think that if you really couldn't control yourself and did something to me, then the person who lost their chastity shouldn't be me."

Shouldn't be you? Then would it be me?

Wang Ge frowned slightly. After pondering it for two seconds, he understood what Chen Yanxi meant and could not help laughing. "I misspoke. It really shouldn't be you. You'd be the victim. I'd be the one losing my chastity."

Hearing that, Chen Yanxi's lips curled up slightly, and she seemed to be in a better mood as well.

"But the prerequisite for losing one's chastity is having chastity in the first place." Wang Ge abruptly changed the subject and winked at her. "So the reason you aren't afraid of me is because you believe I'm someone who values his own chastity, right?"

"More or less."

"Can I take that as praise for my noble character?"

"...As you wish."

"Haha." Wang Ge leaned back in his chair and said with feeling, "This way of thinking is still a bit ahead of today's society, but hearing it come from you doesn't surprise me at all.

That's why I like you, Chen Yanxi. I can always see qualities shining in you that other girls don't have."

Chen Yanxi fell silent for two seconds, then said sincerely, "With your abilities and experience, there's no need for you to keep wasting your time on me. You can find a better girl than me."

But my system says you're the best and most outstanding girl around me... Wang Ge muttered inwardly, then asked seriously, "Since you think I'm so great, why won't you agree to be with me? Is it because I'm not your type? Or is there already someone you like?"

"Neither." Chen Yanxi shook her head. "I've said many times that I don't want to form an intimate relationship with anyone.

All intimate relationships are shackles. Carrying them only adds to one's burden."

"But as long as one lives, where are there no shackles? Family, school, society, even morality and law—there are shackles everywhere. Compared to those, aren't the shackles brought by intimate relationships much more beautiful?" Determined to debate her, Wang Ge's tone grew slightly heated.

But Chen Yanxi had no intention of debating him. She turned her gaze toward the window, pressed her lips together, and remained silent.

She had never liked arguing with others, because it was meaningless. No matter how fiercely people debated matters of thought and belief, it was useless. One person could never truly persuade another with words.

Ever since, years ago, she had repeatedly tried to persuade her parents only to receive curses and angry scoldings in return, and sometimes even a slap, she had understood that truth.

Seeing Chen Yanxi like this, Wang Ge felt as though he had punched empty air.

He smiled rather helplessly. "Fine. If you don't want to, then you don't want to. I can't force you."

Then he changed the subject and said with a smile, "It's fine. I have plenty of time. I can wait."

After all, the deadline the system had given him was one year. Only two months had passed so far. There was still plenty of time.

Chen Yanxi pressed her lips together and said nothing.

"Ring, ring, ring~"

The dismissal bell rang.

"School's over." Wang Ge stood and stretched. "I'm heading home, Xixi. See you tomorrow."

"Mm. See you tomorrow."

Chen Yanxi returned the book to its original place, then turned off the library lights and closed the doors and windows.

After walking out of the library, she looked at Wang Ge's back with complicated feelings.

Wang Ge's figure gradually disappeared into the darkness, but she remained standing at the library entrance, not knowing what she was thinking.

Soon, she came back to her senses, let out a faint sigh, and turned toward the dormitory building.

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