Seeing Through the Ruse

After getting on the bus, Xiao He sat in a corner, feeling utterly dejected, while Ye Wanqing sat beside him.

"Could you at least look a little happier? If you're going to put on an act, make it convincing. I've gone so far as to sacrifice myself and come along with you. Do you know you're the first guy besides my dad to hold my hand?" Ye Wanqing whispered unhappily.

"It's already pretty strong of me not to cry. And you still want me to look happy?" Xiao He replied irritably.

"?" Ye Wanqing frowned at him in confusion. "What do you have to cry about?"

"My college life is over." Xiao He sighed.

From now on, he definitely would not be popular with the girls. If he tried flirting with anyone, they would only think he was a scumbag cheating behind his girlfriend's back. And among the guys, he would become the target of endless envy because of his big-breasted girlfriend. It would have been one thing if he actually had such a girlfriend, but she was fake.

His only consolation was probably that he could still make some money through this contract, but earning this money was really hard...

Why was it so hard to make money while lying down? Xiao He sulked dramatically in the corner.

"Where are you going for your autumn outing?" Ye Wanqing asked curiously from beside him.

"Some mountain, for a summer camp." Xiao He answered listlessly. "Two days and one night."

"You have to spend the night outdoors? Then what about showering and using the bathroom?!" Ye Wanqing asked with a frown. Xiao He rolled his eyes. "Don't you think you should've asked that before coming?"

"Can we go back early?" Ye Wanqing asked unhappily.

"Whatever..." Xiao He propped up his chin and stared lifelessly out the window.

"Can you pull yourself together? Your college life is already like this. Are you not even going to make money anymore?" Ye Wanqing asked with a smile that did not reach her eyes. Xiao He thought about it and found that reasonable, so he smiled slightly. "Baby, want some water?"

"No." Ye Wanqing smiled faintly as well. "I'm a little sleepy, so I'll sleep for a while. Wake me when we get there, okay? Baby."

That one "baby" gave both of them goosebumps all over, enough to make them lose their appetites for breakfast.

The bus drove slowly, taking about an hour to reach their destination. It arrived at the foot of the mountain, traveled along a winding mountain road, and then entered a campsite. The surroundings were quite nice, with green mountains, clear waters, birdsong, and fragrant flowers. There was a simple but quaint cabin in the woods, with several long tables and benches around it.

After getting off the bus, their homeroom teacher, Cai Ling, called the students into the campsite, where everyone received a tent.

The campsite manager spent half an hour teaching them how to pitch tents, and then the students began busying themselves around the camp. Ye Wanqing seemed to hate this kind of outdoor activity and kept complaining under her breath.

"What's fun about this kind of activity? Coming all the way into the mountains in weather this hot to do this..."

"We even have to figure out food ourselves. If you'd told me earlier, I would've brought a few packs of instant noodles."

"There are so many mosquitoes... I didn't even bring mosquito coils."

Faced with his "girlfriend's" string of complaints, Xiao He chose to remain silent and let her go on. When women complained, it was best not to say anything. After a while, they would tire themselves out and shut up. But Ye Wanqing seemed to be an exception...

She complained without end, and Xiao He was getting a little annoyed. But he could not lose his temper in front of so many people, so he only frowned. "Can you stop complaining? We're already here. Complaining won't change anything, so why not cooperate a little? At least it'll make things easier for both of us, right?"

Ye Wanqing's momentum immediately faltered. Pouting, she muttered, "Okay..."

She looked a little cute with that aggrieved expression, and Xiao He could not bring himself to keep scolding her. Shaking his head, he sighed. "All right, wait here for a bit. I'll go ask if they have mosquito coils. The homeroom teacher said we wouldn't need to bring anything."

"Oh..." Ye Wanqing responded and continued struggling with the lousy tent. Xiao He was about to ask their homeroom teacher about mosquito coils, but halfway there, someone intercepted him. Huang Ling suddenly sidled up beside him, as if she had been waiting for this opportunity.

"You and Ye Wanqing are pretending to be a couple, aren't you?" Huang Ling asked bluntly.

"!" Xiao He jumped in fright. "What? Is it that obvious?"

"It's obvious." Huang Ling smiled. "The way you two look at each other gives it away. That's not how people look at someone they like. Besides, when you introduced her to me before, didn't you say she was your roommate? If I had such a cute girlfriend with such a great figure, I'd definitely show her off to everyone. There'd be no need to hide it."

"You're pretty sharp..." Xiao He gave an awkward laugh. "We are pretending to be a couple."

Since she had already seen through it, he did not bother trying to smooth things over. The contract said he could not disobey orders, but the order only prohibited him from exposing the matter himself. If someone else guessed it, that had nothing to do with him.

"Why? What's the purpose? Undercover work? Or are you just using her to save face in front of your classmates?" Huang Ling asked curiously. Xiao He hesitated before saying, "Well... I can't tell you. I signed a contract."

"There's even a contract? Then it must involve money." Huang Ling said in surprise.

This girl was really perceptive! Xiao He stared at her in astonishment, then pleaded, "Could you not tell anyone?"

"Hm..." Huang Ling pursed her lips and smiled, tilting her head at him playfully. She seemed to be feeling a little mischievous. "There's no benefit in telling anyone anyway, but since you want me to keep quiet, I suddenly feel like getting something out of you."

"This girl... could she be a devil?" Xiao He hesitated for a moment. "Then... what do you want?"

"Treat me to a meal after we get back." Huang Ling smiled. "People go soft after eating someone's food. If you treat me to something delicious, I won't be able to say anything."

"So she's an angel..." Xiao He marveled inwardly. Huang Ling was giving him an opportunity.

What she meant was that she did not mind him having a fake girlfriend like this, and she was still willing to keep interacting with him.

Thinking of this, Xiao He relaxed. In his view, his partnership with Ye Wanqing probably would not last very long, perhaps only a month or so. After all, his ability was not especially outstanding. China had over a billion people; proportionally speaking, there should be more than a hundred mutants. Surely some of them would be stronger than him.

Soon, Xiao He returned to Ye Wanqing with a box of mosquito coils.

"Here, the mosquito coils the campsite manager handed out." Xiao He passed them to Ye Wanqing.

Ye Wanqing took the mosquito coils, then looked at the tent behind her. "This... I can't put it up."

"Didn't they just teach us?" Xiao He frowned, motioning for Ye Wanqing to step aside. Then, in just a few swift moves, he set up the tent. Ye Wanqing stood behind him, glaring at him with wide eyes, looking thoroughly unconvinced.

"There, it's done." Xiao He did not argue with her. "Hurry up. There's still a lot to do."