"How did you and He Zhen meet?"
"How long have you known each other?"
"Did he add you first, or did you add him?"
"Peachy, say something!"
Yao Tao: ...
How was she supposed to explain? It had been an accident.
But Zeng Rou looked as though she wanted to eat her alive.
Should she be terrified, terrified, or perhaps terrified?
"Are you interrogating her?" Han Qinglu hurriedly pulled Zeng Rou back before she practically climbed onto Yao Tao. "Look, you've scared our junior."
That was Han Qinglu for you. A goddess really was a goddess-she knew how to look after a newbie!
Yao Tao shyly pinched the hem of her clothes. Why wasn't Han Qinglu the female lead?
"What's there to be scared of?" Zeng Rou took a sip of soda. "I'm not going to eat Peachy!"
"Besides, don't you want to know too?" Zeng Rou gave Han Qinglu a playful wink.
"I give up!" Han Qinglu actually wanted to know too.
Staying in character, Yao Tao softly explained what had happened between her and He Zhen.
It couldn't have been simpler or more ordinary.
They had talked outside the restaurant, Wei Fang had invited her to eat with them, and that had led to today.
The only unexpected twist was that He Zhen had used Han Qinglu, Cheng Yu, and the others to draw their classmates' attention, changing the original plan for a class barbecue.
"Not only did he use us as bait, he even volunteered to team up with you?" Zeng Rou didn't know whether to laugh or be angry. "Who would've thought? That brat's even resorting to scheming!"
"He didn't exactly ask me out. He just asked me about it." Yao Tao couldn't really figure it out either. She had only tossed out an excited suggestion, never expecting He Zhen to actually agree.
She was a little baffled herself.
But who cared!
Even game developers handed out plenty of perks to longtime players. She had been sneaking peeks at He Zhen for so long-what was wrong with getting a little reward?
Hehehe...
Yao Tao had a pretty thick skin.
"It's nice, though," Han Qinglu said. "He Zhen hasn't hung out with us in ages. This is nice."
"You're always making excuses for him!" Zeng Rou didn't believe He Zhen would be that considerate. Her eyes shifted as she asked Yao Tao, "Did He Zhen really know Fu Xin's class was having a barbecue?"
"He did." Yao Tao nodded. She had emphasized it twice!
He Zhen had been playing dumb.
"Aha!" Zeng Rou slapped her thigh. "That brat's playing hard to get!"
"Huh?" Han Qinglu had to admire her best friend's imagination. "Don't go making things up."
Yao Tao practically set her pricked-up ears on the table. Girl, don't hold back!
She thought He Zhen was playing hard to get too!
Zeng Rou said, "Think about it. He used us as cover. Once Fu Xin finds out, won't she come pestering him again?"
Han Qinglu said, "It was probably just a coincidence. Don't overthink it."
Zeng Rou said, "Then there sure are a lot of coincidences!"
Zeng Rou said, "Nine times out of ten when we make plans, Fu Xin calls and whisks him away. The other time, he pretty much just stands us up. You call that a coincidence?"
Zeng Rou said, "That's premeditated!"
Han Qinglu could see Zeng Rou's resentment rising rapidly again. "All right, isn't he here to make it up to us today? Don't be angry."
"Was that his idea?" Zeng Rou slapped the table. "It was mine!"
Yao Tao listened in a fog of confusion. She hadn't known He Zhen was so close to her goddess Han Qinglu and the others.
Had she missed something?
A bonus chapter???
Or had she skipped a huge section?
As far as she remembered, they had only had a casual connection through their parents' business dealings.
But from Zeng Rou's tone, they seemed pretty close?
Yao Tao's ears perked right up.
"Just watch if you don't believe me! I'll bet Fu Xin calls that brat away today too!" Zeng Rou looked utterly exasperated.
Han Qinglu glanced at her angry friend, then at Yao Tao, who seemed frozen like a block of wood, and hurriedly cut in. "He won't. Yao Tao's here. He Zhen wouldn't abandon a girl with us like that."
After all, they had only just met. He Zhen wouldn't do that.
Han Qinglu reassured Yao Tao, but inwardly, she wasn't all that certain herself.
Zeng Rou might have been speaking in anger, but after thinking it over, Han Qinglu had to admit... she wasn't wrong.
"What wouldn't he do? All Fu Xin has to do is stand there. She doesn't even have to beckon, and He Zhen will sniff his way over all by himself!" Zeng Rou had completely forgotten about Yao Tao and was simply venting on their own group's behalf. "That heartless little ingrate! Who was it who used to trail after us as a kid, calling us big brother and big sister?"
"That little sweetheart must've died the day he met Fu Xin!" The more Zeng Rou thought about it, the angrier she got. Her mood changed faster than anyone could turn a page!
[Aaaah, tell me more!]
[Fill me in on everything I missed!]
[How did I not know about this part?]
[I'm dying to know, damn that author!]
[How many other things did you leave out that I, your reader, don't know about?!]
He Zhen hadn't even opened the door when he heard Yao Tao's thoughts screaming wildly.
After learning that Qin Zhen was the male lead, Fu Xin was the female lead, and he was... the second male lead, supposedly devoted but actually a pathetic simp, he had unlocked another piece of knowledge.
So Tao Tao was a reader...
Then was his world a book?
He Zhen had already had his suspicions. It wasn't as though he had never encountered such fantastical ideas.
He could hear Yao Tao's thoughts. What else couldn't happen?
He simply hadn't expected Yao Tao to be a reader.
She didn't seem to have a system or any missions either. Had she simply... transmigrated into his world?
"Surprise!" Seeing that He Zhen hadn't opened the door right away, Zhao Yixiao, who already had everything in his hands ready, made his move. He was afraid that if he waited any longer, it would all go off outside!
Rainbow streamers fluttered and scattered, making Zhao Yixiao the only person celebrating.
"Uh..." Zhao Yixiao was baffled. They had only gone out to buy a few things. How had Zeng Rou gotten angry in the meantime?
"Um, are you guys okay?" Zhao Yixiao asked uncertainly.
"We're fine!" Han Qinglu nudged Zeng Rou's arm.
"What did you buy?" Yao Tao's question came at just the right moment.
[Even though I really want to hear more!]
[This isn't the time!]
[I'm such a considerate sweetheart!]
No one else could hear this round of self-praise, but He Zhen heard every word.
[He Zhen, oh, He Zhen. Who knew you'd been charming girls since you were little!]
[Tsk, tsk, tsk!]
[I called you blind a couple of times, but you really are blind!]
[With a gem like my goddess right in front of you, you still stood her up every single time!]
[What a cold heart you have!]
[Once the gentle second male lead gives all his tenderness to Fu Xin, there's none left for anyone else!]
[Had I known she'd gotten it first, why would I have bothered coming all this way?]
[Sob, sob, sob.]
[My poor heart!]
He Zhen: ...
He Zhen didn't know what he was doing. By the time he came to his senses, he had already unwrapped a Cornetto and shoved the ice-cold treat straight into Yao Tao's mouth.
Before you continue