Gathering

The next day, Huo Yutong stood alone at the academy gates, as if waiting for someone.

A closer look would reveal an unusual shyness in her expression. Her small hands were clasped and twisting behind her back as she paced back and forth restlessly, looking utterly distracted.

That morning, when Xiao Xiao learned that she was going out to Shrek City, she was shocked and hurriedly asked what was going on.

In the week they had known each other, Huo Yutong's routine had basically been limited to the classroom, cafeteria, and dormitory, with the occasional trip to the academy gates to sell Grilled Fish. For someone like her to suddenly suggest going out for fun was truly bewildering.

When she learned that Huo Yutong was going out with a boy, Xiao Xiao's gaze immediately changed.

More specifically, her gossiping soul had been ignited.

She wore an unprecedentedly curious expression as she continuously questioned Huo Yutong about Tang Wulin, even volunteering to help her put on makeup.

Unable to withstand her enthusiasm any longer, Huo Yutong could only flee the dormitory as though escaping.

As a result, she had come out far too early, and there was still a long time before her agreed meeting time with Tang Wulin.

With no mood to do anything else, she simply waited for Tang Wulin at the academy gates.

"..."

In truth, Huo Yutong knew why Xiao Xiao had been so excited.

She just thought her roommate had found someone and wanted to gossip about it.

Huo Yutong felt utterly helpless about that.

Xiao Xiao had never even been in a relationship herself, yet when it came to theory, she could go on and on as if she were some battle-hardened veteran of the dating world.

And most importantly, Huo Yutong and Tang Wulin were not in that kind of relationship.

She had agreed to go out with him partly because he had helped her so much that she found it difficult to refuse him, and partly because she felt somewhat guilty for hiding Tian Meng's matter from him and wanted to make it up to him. That was all.

Yes, that had to be it.

Huo Yutong repeatedly told herself that in her heart.

At that moment, a voice she had only known for a short time, yet had somehow already grown accustomed to, came from behind her.

"Eh, Yutong, you're already here?"

He was here.

Huo Yutong took a deep breath, suppressed the complicated thoughts in her heart, and turned around.

Not far behind her, Tang Wulin and a young man with blue-pink hair were walking toward her.

Both were exceptionally handsome and refined. Simply walking together on the street drew countless gazes. Moreover, perhaps it was an illusion, but Huo Yutong always felt that they resembled each other in certain ways. Walking side by side, they looked like a pair of close brothers.

Tang Wulin quickly came before her, scratching his head awkwardly with a guilty look on his face.

"Sorry, I thought arriving ten minutes early would be enough. Have you been waiting long?"

"Not at all. I just got here too."

Huo Yutong said without changing expression, selectively forgetting the fact that she had just paced back and forth at the academy gates for over an hour.

Then, she looked at the young man beside Tang Wulin with curiosity.

"Who is this?"

Although Huo Yutong had already seen from afar that the person beside Tang Wulin was a beautiful young man, she was still startled by her looks when they met up close.

If Beibei was a refined, scheming kind of handsome man, and Xu Sanshi was an outgoing, bold kind of handsome man, then Wang Dong was the very embodiment of the phrase "beautiful young man."

She truly was incredibly beautiful, and it was a beauty that transcended gender. Whether male or female, it did nothing to diminish her charm.

Long eyelashes, fair and tender skin, and pink-blue eyes as lovely as gemstones—if it had been any other girl their age standing here, merely being so close to her might have been enough to make her heart race.

Unfortunately, because Huo Yutong had spent so much time with Tang Wulin lately, she had become almost immune to beautiful young men with this androgynous style. She was basically viewing Wang Dong with simple appreciation.

Tang Wulin said, "Her name is Wang Dong. She's my roommate. The idea to bring you out for fun this time was inspired by her, so she'll mainly be deciding our route this time. Is that okay?"

He had half-forced Huo Yutong to come out this time because he wanted her to relax during the weekend.

But as an unregistered outsider who had come from ten thousand years in the future, how could he possibly know what was fun in this era?

In this area, Young Master Wang Dong was clearly much more capable, so Tang Wulin had consulted her the previous night.

Tang Wulin had originally thought Wang Dong would get angry upon learning that he was bringing someone else along. Unexpectedly, after Tang Wulin told her about his situation, her interest immediately soared to unprecedented heights. She could not hide the expression of someone delighted by the prospect of drama, and she patted her chest as she declared that he could leave everything to her. She would definitely ensure that Tang Wulin left Huo Yutong with an unforgettable memory.

Though Tang Wulin vaguely felt that she was not very reliable, he could not find a more suitable candidate on short notice, so he could only let her have her way.

"I have no objections."

This was Huo Yutong's first time visiting such a large city for fun. Over the years, she had lived the life of someone at the very bottom of society, so she likewise knew nothing about how to enjoy a festival. She was more than happy to have Wang Dong lead the way.

She extended her hand toward Wang Dong.

"Hello, I'm Huo Yutong. I suppose I'm Tang Wulin's senior fellow disciple and classmate. Please take care of me."

"Mm, please take care of me too."

Wang Dong also extended her hand and shook Huo Yutong's.

As their small hands clasped, Huo Yutong immediately felt something strange.

Wang Dong's hand was far too soft. Could such softness really be explained merely by calling her a feminine boy?

Could it be caused by her Martial Soul?

Before she could reach an answer, Wang Dong had already withdrawn her hand and asked, "Yutong, it's almost noon. Have you eaten lunch yet?"

Huo Yutong lightly shook her head.

"No."

It was a little past ten. Huo Yutong had waited here for over an hour, meaning she had left the dormitory before nine.

Obviously, she had neither the time nor the opportunity to eat lunch.

"Then perfect."

Wang Dong revealed a cheerful smile.

She took out a small booklet and explained, "This booklet lists the events for this year's Shrek City Opening Festival. You can find every officially organized event in it, and quite a few privately organized events are recorded here as well."

Connecting those words with Wang Dong's earlier question, Tang Wulin immediately understood.

"You mean there's an event related to lunch in there?"

"That's right."

Wang Dong wore an expression that said he was teachable, quickly flipping the event booklet to a certain page and pointing at its contents.

"This is our first destination."