Chapter 12

"He's handsome, okay? But I'd be happy with Wangwang too."

"Me too, me too! I'd take either!"

Lu Mengmeng held back a laugh. "A bunch of boy-crazy girls."

In truth, He Qinghuan was more popular than Gu Wang. Gu Wang had only cleared his name recently. A reformed troublemaker naturally drew more attention, and most of the people paying attention to him were girls.

He Qinghuan was different. Born into the main line of a prominent family, he had held first place in their year for two years and counting. Not just the girls, but plenty of boys sincerely admired him too. He had already transcended the ranks of ordinary mortals.

Meng Ou watched them squealing in excitement and curled her lip. He Qinghuan was not someone they could even dream of having. Someone like him... Meng Ou lowered her eyes. Who would dare get involved with him?

Even her father, the school principal, treated He Qinghuan with the utmost respect. He had also privately warned Meng Ou not to provoke He Qinghuan. Meng Ou was a teenage girl too, and she had been attracted to him at first. But after hearing her father talk about the He family, she no longer dared entertain any thoughts about him.

If someone like him really fell in love, it would probably be pretty frightening too.

The lights in the auditorium were off, and it was too dim to tell who was sitting where. He Qinghuan asked Li Shuya where their class was seated, then headed toward the back.

The boy had broad shoulders and an ethereal air. With the stage lights behind him, his face was strikingly handsome, though the profile of his features revealed a certain sharpness.

Wen Ting came over carrying two bouquets and ran into He Qinghuan, her face flushing.

He Qinghuan smiled. "For me?"

Wen Ting shook her head shyly. "They're for Wangwang and Meng Ou. I'm going to give them the flowers onstage when they finish performing. I can't give flowers to both of them by myself, so I'm going to find someone else to help."

Of the two bouquets, one paired champagne roses with eucalyptus, while the other consisted entirely of pink roses, so plentiful that they looked stunning.

He Qinghuan reached out to touch the flowers and looked at Wen Li. "Which one is Gu Wang's?"

Looking into his eyes, Wen Ting briefly lost focus, then held out the champagne roses. "This one."

He Qinghuan took them smoothly and said softly, "I'll give Gu Wang his."

"But... aren't you the host?" Wen Ting's voice grew quieter and quieter, because He Qinghuan had already walked away with the flowers.

Gu Wang was playing a game. The evening show had not started anyway, and his performance was near the very end. He was teamed up with Shen Zhao, who kept insisting he had to reach King rank before he could settle down to study. But once Gu Wang joined, he felt he would be able to start studying tomorrow, and he could not help despairing.

The stage lights were quite bright. Gu Wang had his head lowered when the space before him suddenly darkened. Someone was blocking the light.

His Li Bai had returned to base and had not moved since. Finding this strange, Shen Zhao stood up to look toward Gu Wang. Once he saw what was happening, he muttered, "Fuck."

He Qinghuan stood in front of Gu Wang, holding a bouquet of roses.

Author's note: He Qinghuan: Why do so many people like Wangwang? So annoying.

Chapter 19

Gu Wang tilted his face up and blinked. He Qinghuan's face looked indistinct in the dim auditorium. With the light behind him, Gu Wang could not make out his expression, but he was certain He Qinghuan was looking at him.

Wasn't he the host?

Why had he come down from the stage?

He Qinghuan shifted the flowers to his other hand and lowered his eyes to Gu Wang, who sat lost in thought. "Could you let me through?" he asked softly.

The aisle was extremely narrow-so narrow that even if Gu Wang chopped off his legs below the knees, he would still end up touching He Qinghuan.

Feeling aggrieved, Gu Wang pulled his legs as far under his chair as he could and pressed his back tightly against the backrest, his face tense as though facing a formidable enemy.

With his long legs, He Qinghuan stepped straight across the aisle without any hesitation. Gu Wang kept chanting inwardly, I can't feel it, I can't feel it. I'm dead, I'm dead. He Qinghuan's influence on the Original Host was still there.

Gu Wang felt his ears starting to burn.

Just as He Qinghuan was almost past him, the student in front suddenly leaned back. His seat was probably broken, because the whole thing tipped backward when he leaned against it. Facing Gu Wang, He Qinghuan was knocked by the seat straight down onto him.

But He Qinghuan reacted quickly, bracing one hand against the back of Gu Wang's chair in a flash, leaving Gu Wang completely enclosed beneath him.

In that instant, the fragrance of roses and the faint scent of mint on He Qinghuan flooded Gu Wang's nose.

Beneath He Qinghuan, the first things to meet Gu Wang's eyes were his slightly open collar, the faintly visible stretch of collarbone, and his Adam's apple.

Gu Wang swallowed and forced himself to look away.

He Qinghuan was indeed frightening, but his face and physical attributes were truly impressive. No wonder so many people liked him, like moths drawn to a flame.

The accident had happened too quickly. Not only had Gu Wang failed to react, but the student in front of him was also scared senseless. He apologized over and over. "Sorry, sorry! I didn't know this chair was broken. I-I-I-I... are you two okay?"

He Qinghuan's gaze settled on Gu Wang's half-lowered eyelids and the lashes that kept trembling, whether from nerves or shyness. His eyes darkened slightly. After a long moment, he straightened and told the frightened student calmly, "We're fine."

The student breathed a sigh of relief, and Gu Wang did too as He Qinghuan moved away from him.

When He Qinghuan had pressed down toward him just now, Gu Wang had felt as though he could not breathe. He Qinghuan's eyes had stayed on his face the entire time. Gu Wang's heart had raced, and he had not even dared raise his eyes.

He really was quite afraid of He Qinghuan. He was too changeable and too unfathomable, nothing like a high school student.

Gu Wang stole a sideways glance. A large bouquet of roses sat between his seat and He Qinghuan's. Whatever else might be true, he thought, He Qinghuan's popularity was beyond question. Someone had already given him flowers before he had even gone onstage.

He Qinghuan was called away before he could sit for long. Gu Wang had no idea what he was trying to accomplish, running back and forth and even carrying that bouquet along. The book had clearly stated that He Qinghuan threw away everything his admirers gave him, without exception.

The stage went dark, then the surrounding lights suddenly came on. The school dance team opened the show, every dancer sporting a sizzling figure. The boys below whistled as though they were trying to blow their lungs out.

Gu Wang even heard Shen Zhao's voice. He looked up and discovered that Shen Zhao had somehow acquired a glow stick and was shouting until his face turned red.

Gu Wang was speechless.

After a warm-up performance lasting a little over a minute, the hosts delivered their opening remarks. When He Qinghuan emerged from backstage, the screams from the audience suddenly grew louder.

They drowned out even the sound from the speakers.

Gu Wang suspected the girls had not come to watch the show. They had come to watch He Qinghuan.

What was so great to look at?

Gu Wang straightened away from the backrest and raised his eyes toward the stage. He Qinghuan wore a black suit, his hair styled with gel. A cool, distant air radiated from every part of him. Even with the audience screaming themselves hoarse, he still finished his lines with a faint smile and an unchanged expression.

After finishing, He Qinghuan lifted his eyes toward the audience and happened to meet Gu Wang's gaze.

Gu Wang's face stiffened, and he leaned back against his chair as though hiding.

He was just... average. In any case, there was no way he would repeat the Original Host's mistakes.

At that thought, Gu Wang grew much calmer. His expression turned mild, and he stood up, apologizing as he made his way out to get some air.

The moment Gu Wang stepped through the auditorium's back door, he ran into someone.

Seeing Gu Wang, Jiang Chi sneered and looked him up and down a few times. His expression suddenly changed, and he demanded, "Do you think He Qinghuan will like you just because you've changed?"

Gu Wang leaned against the wall and smiled. "Did your village only just get internet? Everyone knows I'm not interested in He Qinghuan anymore. Instead of wasting your time hounding me, why don't you figure out how to win him over?"

Gu Wang tapped his fingers lightly against the wall behind him. He could more or less guess what Jiang Chi would say next.

Sure enough...

The male lead who would one day become ruthlessly decisive was still just a teenage boy troubled over his crush. He looked frustrated. "How would I know how to win him over? If I could get him, would I be standing here bullshitting with you?"

Gu Wang looked at him. "So many people are pursuing He Qinghuan. Why do you keep singling me out?"

Jiang Chi sneered. "Because you're the most shameless. Who knows if you'll get even more shameless later?"

Gu Wang was momentarily at a loss for words. It was true. In the book, the Original Host had eventually even drugged He Qinghuan, marking the beginning of his tragedy. More accurately, the Original Host's tragedy had begun when he fell for He Qinghuan.

"You and He Qinghuan can do whatever you want. I'm telling you one last time: I don't like He Qinghuan anymore." Gu Wang tilted his head, his gaze firm.

Jiang Chi was briefly distracted, then said awkwardly, "How do I know you're not playing hard to get?"

Gu Wang raised a hand helplessly. "I swear."

Jiang Chi lifted his chin slightly, his expression relaxing. "Then swear."

"I swear, I..."

Bang! The back door was suddenly pushed open. Since it was made of iron, even a light push made a loud noise when it hit the wall.

Gu Wang and Jiang Chi looked over at the same time.

He Qinghuan stood there.

His face was calm and his expression indifferent. His gaze landed on Gu Wang, his eyes darkening. "Meng Ou's looking for you."

He left without looking back once he had spoken. Gu Wang looked at Jiang Chi beside him. The moment he saw He Qinghuan, Jiang Chi had gone completely still and begun floating on air, looking like an entirely different person from the one who had just insisted Gu Wang swear an oath.

Although Gu Wang did not know why He Qinghuan had come to fetch him, he did not dwell on it. He ran backstage and found Meng Ou still curling her hair into big waves. Seeing him enter, she put down her curling iron and asked, "Where did you go?"

Gu Wang pulled over a chair and sat down, pretending to ask casually, "Did you send... someone to find me?"

He hesitated, but still did not say He Qinghuan's name. If she had, it would be fine. If she had not, it would only invite unnecessary speculation.

He did not want to get tangled up with He Qinghuan again.

Meng Ou nodded. "Yes. It's not our turn yet, but I thought I'd be less nervous if you stayed with me."

Gu Wang smiled at her. "Even you get nervous?"

The stages Meng Ou had performed on before today were much bigger than the one in the school auditorium.

"Mm." Meng Ou's eyes flickered, then her usual expression returned, and she chided him, "What? I'm still a girl, you know. Why can't I get nervous?"

With that, she reached out to pinch Gu Wang's face.

Gu Wang dodged backward. Meng Ou had long manicured nails decorated with rhinestones. They were practically claws.

The chair had wheels underneath. As Gu Wang leaned back, it rolled backward too. Playing around with him, Meng Ou lifted her skirt and chased after him.

But in the next second, Gu Wang's chair bumped into someone...

The chair almost tipped forward. The person behind him swiftly caught Gu Wang around the body and steadied the chair with his other hand.

Gu Wang recovered his senses, then looked up to find Meng Ou staring at him thoughtfully.

What was wrong?

Not knowing who he had bumped into, Gu Wang apologized first. Only after standing and turning around did he realize it was He Qinghuan. No wonder Meng Ou wore that expression.

"Thank you," Gu Wang said stiffly.

He Qinghuan rubbed his fingertips together and chuckled. "You're welcome."

Gu Wang's shirt was thin, its collar open to reveal a stretch of slender, pale collarbone. When He Qinghuan had caught him just now, his fingertips had lightly brushed over Gu Wang's collarbone. It had felt surprisingly nice.

Gu Wang had already gone out with Meng Ou.

The incandescent light indoors made He Qinghuan's features look even cooler, but his eyes were as black as ink. He stood alone beneath the light, the corners of his lips curving slightly upward.

When the female host announced Gu Wang's class, the corner where they were seated erupted. Of course they had to support their own.

Most of the audience was already bored. To please the teachers, shows like this featured a particularly large number of poetry recitations and choral performances, all much the same in style and offering nothing new. Everyone slumped haphazardly in their seats.

Only when they heard the host announce a dance performance-a mixed ballroom dance, at that-did they listlessly crane their necks toward the stage.

The stage was completely dark.

A beam of white light shone down at center stage, falling on the girl's head.

She wore a vivid red strapless tulle dress, her skin smooth and pale. She slowly raised her eyes, revealing her cool, stunning features to the audience.