Guilty.
It was as if she had suddenly received high praise from Gu Ximian, but Zhuang Chi’s first reaction wasn’t happiness, but guilt, which then turned into apprehension.
…If she had to say it, it was like she’d only scored a few points higher than An Chen on an open-book test while he took his closed-book. There was no way to say she was that impressive, and besides…
It was hard to say if Zhuang Chi was being overly worried, but she always felt that attracting Gu Ximian’s attention was very likely not a good thing for her.
“…It was really just a coincidence.” Adhering to this faint sense of crisis, Zhuang Chi decisively shook her head in denial. “Besides, An Chen was talking to Ling Jing at the time, so he was far away. If he had been standing next to you like I was, then… then he definitely would have reacted faster than me, yes.”
Gu Ximian listened as she tried her best to finish this speech, which sounded like she was making excuses for An Chen. She didn’t refute anything, only smiling. “Perhaps.”
The topic she herself had brought up was thus vaguely brushed aside by her, and the two of them fell into a silence due to the interruption. This made Zhuang Chi a little restless again—she herself felt that she was truly a troublesome person. When someone struck up a conversation with her, she was on edge; when they stopped talking, she didn’t feel much more at ease. She silently reflected on this, her eyes lowered in a half-daze, her gaze falling on her bandaged right hand. The bloodstains and wound were covered by the white bandage. If it weren’t for the faint stinging pain that remained, it would almost make one feel that the series of events that had just occurred wasn’t quite real.
…Thinking about it carefully now, this situation seems really incredible, Zhuang Chi thought calmly. On her first day of university registration, she discovered that this world was actually a novel she had once written. Immediately after, she met the female lead at the school gate, saved her from the claws of a hawk summoned by an arrogant female school tyrant, and was even injured for it—wow, it was all so nonsensical.
And now she was alone in a room with the female lead, not even daring to breathe too loudly. After all, it was rather difficult for Zhuang Chi to clearly recall the entire plot of the novel, but she still remembered the core of the whole book very clearly—that is, the fact that “Gu Ximian is the absolute protagonist.” It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that every person or thing she had created back then was to serve Gu Ximian. To be even more dramatic… it wouldn’t be a problem to say Gu Ximian was the center of the world. That was her character’s role.
So… Zhuang Chi let out a silent, stuffy sigh. So, considering it from a certain perspective, if she didn’t want to continue being dragged into unreasonable plot developments like the one just now, then perhaps it would be better not to approach Gu Ximian too rashly…?
…She felt like she was thinking some very rude things, and her mood became a mess. As Zhuang Chi thought this, she drooped her head listlessly and couldn’t help but sigh again. Gu Ximian heard the sound and looked at her, asking softly, “Does the wound hurt a lot?”
“Ah, no.” Realizing her actions had caused a misunderstanding, Zhuang Chi subconsciously straightened her back. She spoke more when she was nervous. “It doesn’t hurt much. The doctor also said just now that it wasn’t a very deep cut, it just looked scary because of all the blood. I don’t feel much now, you don’t have to worry…”
Saying she didn’t feel much was naturally an exaggeration, and Gu Ximian could probably tell, as her eyes still held a hint of worry. “But it’s your right hand that’s injured. It will definitely be inconvenient in your daily life.”
“It’s fine, it’s just my wrist that’s hurt, it doesn’t really affect the movement of my right hand much. And it’s not like I’m going to be lifting weights or anything…”
While Zhuang Chi was still rambling on about how this little injury was no problem at all, she saw Gu Ximian suddenly take out her phone and look at her expectantly. “Shall we exchange contact information?”
“If there’s anything inconvenient or if you need help, just feel free to find me. Anytime is fine. No matter what, you got hurt because you were helping me. And… I guess we’ll have many opportunities to meet in the future,” she paused, then continued, “after all, we’re both freshmen.”
Is… is that so? Zhuang Chi thought blankly. Although she didn’t know the specific number of students enrolled at St. Blaisedon, generally speaking, a university should have about three or four thousand new students in each class, right? Would two people among them really have many opportunities to meet?
Unsure if she had really caught some hidden meaning, Zhuang Chi still silently took out her phone and exchanged WeChat contacts with Gu Ximian—what else could she do? Was she supposed to say, “No, I don’t want to exchange contact information with you”? That line felt like something a third-rate cannon fodder villain who gets taken offline by the female lead in the next chapter would say.
Taking a huge step back, even if she really wanted to keep her distance from Gu Ximian, it absolutely didn’t mean she wanted to be disliked or resented by her…!
…Sigh, it feels like there’s no need to think so much. Anyway, there are plenty of people who add each other on WeChat and never send a single message, right? It’s not like she would actually take the initiative to ask Gu Ximian for help because of this injury—
Gu Ximian, who was seriously operating her phone over there, had no idea about Zhuang Chi’s rich inner monologue, but she seemed to notice her ever-changing expression and looked up. Zhuang Chi quickly straightened her face and pressed her lips together firmly, striving not to reveal the slightest trace of her inner emotions.
And it was unknown what Gu Ximian saw in Zhuang Chi’s expression, but in any case, she watched for a moment and then said very suddenly, “Why don’t we try it out now?”
…Try what?
Feeling like she hadn’t kept up with the conversation, Zhuang Chi’s expression immediately broke, returning to a dazed look. Gu Ximian, on the other hand, looked inexplicably intrigued and continued, “You look like you’ve already made up your mind not to ask me for anything, so I plan to ask first… Is there anything you want my help with right now? Or perhaps…”
She paused, then smiled lightly, her gentle voice seemingly tinged with a bit of half-hearted teasing. “It’s not limited to things you need my help with. Anything you want to ask me, anything you want me to do, just consider it the reward you deserve for helping me. Anything is fine, try asking for one thing, shall we?”
Her smile was so beautiful that Zhuang Chi didn’t dare to look for long. When she averted her gaze, her heart was already pounding uncontrollably. A beat later, she finally processed what Gu Ximian had just said and subconsciously repeated it, “…An-anything is fine?”
“…” Gu Ximian was quiet for a long moment, her clear eyes like twinkling stars. Zhuang Chi didn’t know what she was thinking during those few seconds of silence, but she heard her voice seem a little deeper than before when she spoke again, yet it was still decisively affirmative. “Yes. Go ahead.”
…The atmosphere feels a bit strange. Even Zhuang Chi, whose brain hadn’t been working well all day, sensed that something was off. The current atmosphere was inexplicably making it hard to breathe.
How could Gu Ximian say something as incredible as “anything is fine” so casually, and in a tone that made it feel like if she said she wanted ten billion, it could be easily satisfied—no, in this world, it was really hard to say. Heaven knows what the ridiculously extravagant family background she had set for Gu Ximian back then had actually materialized into…
Hey, don’t get sidetracked. Zhuang Chi shook her head slightly, interrupting her own wild thoughts. Although she didn’t know what Gu Ximian was thinking—sigh, she really was an unreliable author—perhaps it was okay not to think too much about it?
After all, thinking about it carefully now, she really did have a request that was very suitable to be made in this situation.
“…Alright, then I won’t be polite.”
Zhuang Chi took a shallow breath, bravely raised her head, looked directly into those clear eyes, and said, “Gu Ximian, can you please—”
“…Is that really all?”
Walking along the tree-lined path, Gu Ximian still seemed somewhat unable to let it go, frequently looking over at Zhuang Chi who was walking beside her.
“Although I said ‘anything is fine,’ it’s just a matter of ‘taking you to the registration office’…” Even Gu Ximian seemed puzzled, her voice tinged with surprise. “…I would have done that even if you hadn’t specifically asked.”
“Is that so? You’re so nice then.” Still not used to the magnificent buildings around her, but in a bright mood, Zhuang Chi withdrew her gaze from a bizarrely shaped decoration by the roadside and smiled. “This has already been a huge help to me. I don’t know the way from the infirmary to the registration office. Thank you.”
It was killing two birds with one stone! She had not only made a request for help as Gu Ximian suggested, but had also successfully escaped the predicament of being alone in a small space and was on her way to register! Yay!
Zhuang Chi was very happy, feeling that her move was truly brilliant. This even made the campus environment, which looked even more gaudy than from the outside, much more pleasing to the eye. But after walking for a while, she felt that something was not quite right. Zhuang Chi scanned her surroundings in confusion before realizing the source of this strange feeling, and couldn’t help but frown. “…Are a lot of people looking at us?”
Gu Ximian seemed to still be thinking about the previous matter. Hearing her words, she finally looked up at their surroundings, showing no emotion of surprise or shock, and just briefly affirmed, “I suppose so.”
…Ah, they must all be looking at Gu Ximian. Zhuang Chi suddenly figured it out and felt she had misspoken. After all, Gu Ximian was so beautiful, it was probably commonplace for people to stare at her on the street. How could she be so tactless as to point it out? It’s not like Gu Ximian had a choice. What if her words made her uncomfortable—
“It’s probably because word of what happened earlier has already spread, so they’re looking at you.”
“…”
The explanation she heard from Gu Ximian was completely different from what she had thought. Zhuang Chi was stunned for a long moment, then turned her head stiffly. “…Looking at me?”
“Yes. Most of them, probably.” Compared to her, Gu Ximian seemed quite calm and thoughtfully explained further, “Today is the freshman enrollment day, so there’s a lot of foot traffic to begin with. The incident also happened right at the school gate, and there were many people around. Plus, Ling Jing and An Chen seem to be rather famous students here… so the whole thing probably spread very quickly.”
“And you have a bandage on your hand now,” she said, her eyes curving. It seemed she wanted to laugh a little, but she held it back on her face, continuing with that rather serious expression, “It would probably be hard to find a second freshman who injured their hand today. It’s quite a distinctive feature, so you’d be recognized at a glance.”
“…”
…She’s right. Thinking about it carefully, that was indeed the case. In the original plot, this incident was also supposed to spread throughout the school, so this was normal… Wow. Could there be a worse freshman debut than this? Would everyone who sees her in the future exclaim, “You’re the one who got clawed by the hawk”? That’s so lame! If only I had known, I would have worn a jacket today!
Understanding it rationally and accepting it emotionally were two different things. Zhuang Chi’s expression was quite complicated, which Gu Ximian saw. This time, she finally laughed, the corners of her lips curving gently, yet she still deliberately asked her, “What’s wrong, don’t you like being stared at?”
Although she really didn’t like it… Zhuang Chi had learned her lesson this time. Gu Ximian clearly seemed used to such gazes. If she complained about “not liking it” after being stared at for just a little while, it would feel very rude. So she thought for a moment and slowly shook her head. “…It’s okay. Anyway, when we’re talking like this, I don’t notice them.”
Gu Ximian, who had been walking beside her, paused in her steps, suddenly falling half a step behind Zhuang Chi. Zhuang Chi quickly slowed down and turned to look at her. Gu Ximian was also looking at her, not blinking, with what seemed to be a hint of novelty in her eyes.
“…”
She clearly wanted to say something, but Zhuang Chi waited patiently for a long while and heard nothing. She only saw Gu Ximian’s long eyelashes flutter once, and with a lowering and raising of her eyelids, her mood seemed to change, returning to that gentle, smiling, soft gaze.
“Then let’s talk more.”
“Although it’s a bit… for me to say this myself,” she smoothly changed the topic without giving any time for a reaction, smiling at the bewildered Zhuang Chi, “but when I say ‘anything is fine’ to someone, I usually don’t get a response as… simple? Or should I say, as pure as yours.”
“…” Her tone was light, but Zhuang Chi suddenly felt a tightness in her chest, as if she could sense some heavy past from those words—but Gu Ximian was only eighteen now, and they were still at the beginning of the novel. Zhuang Chi had no way of knowing what had happened in Gu Ximian’s past that she hadn’t written about, so she could only respond helplessly and feebly, “…Is-is that so…”
“Yes,” Gu Ximian nodded and said with a smile, “For example, if it were Ling Jing, and I said that to her, she would definitely ask me ‘what does your pheromone smell like’ or directly say ‘let me smell it’—although she already did that without even getting permission.”
…It felt like she was telling it as a joke, but it was really hard to laugh. Zhuang Chi hesitated, not knowing if she should laugh to play along. Before she could decide, she saw Gu Ximian suddenly take a step closer to her, coming right to her side. A strand of her long black hair brushed dangerously past the tip of Zhuang Chi’s nose, carrying a faint scent of shampoo, which made her subconsciously lean back.
“Don’t you want to know?”
For a moment, Zhuang Chi again failed to understand what Gu Ximian was saying. Her mind was filled only with the panicked thought, “Is Gu Ximian standing a little too close to me!” Her nose, which had been tickled by the strand of hair, felt a little itchy, but she didn’t dare to reach up and rub it. She just stared stiffly as those thin lips not far away parted slightly. “Something that so many people care about, don’t you want to know?”
The atmosphere became strange again, just like in the infirmary earlier. There was a sense of pressure, as if the air had grown heavy. Zhuang Chi subconsciously held her breath. Although this question was no question at all for her, she certainly couldn’t say that now. Without much thought, she answered instinctively, “…Didn’t you say before… that it has no scent?”
And Zhuang Chi felt that she might have been telling the truth. Although she had personally created the setting for Gu Ximian’s pheromones, thinking about it now, it was truly unreasonable and had no scientific basis whatsoever. If the scientific explanation given by the doctor was that Gu Ximian’s pheromones actually had no scent, but would just make those who smelled them subconsciously think they were smelling their favorite scent, that would sound quite plausible. At least it would be more reasonable than her setting, which explained nothing…
But for some reason, judging from Gu Ximian’s expression, Zhuang Chi felt that she looked as if she was momentarily speechless, stunned by her ignorance. After a long while, she slowly blinked. “…I was just making that up at the time.”
“…” Zhuang Chi was also at a loss for words. A thousand words galloped through her mind, finally settling into a silent, “…Oh.”
Silence fell. Zhuang Chi didn’t know what to say, while Gu Ximian, surprisingly, showed a bit of awkwardness, as if she was embarrassed that her casual remark had actually fooled someone. Zhuang Chi felt it would be better if she just laughed at her a couple of times or moved on from the topic. Acting like this just made her feel even dumber.
Just as she was finally about to say something to change the subject, Gu Ximian suddenly spoke, “What… what is your favorite scent?”
…How sudden, Zhuang Chi thought. And it’s quite a difficult question. Thinking about it carefully, it would probably be hard for most people to say with certainty what their favorite scent is… it feels like a very vague thing. Being asked so suddenly now, she couldn’t recall many scents on the spot…
As if by some supernatural force, Zhuang Chi suddenly recalled the scent left behind when Gu Ximian’s hair had brushed past her nose. It was very faint, but she could smell a subtle sweetness, probably the fragrance of some kind of flower.
“…Probably the scent of flowers.”
What a vague answer, since she had just said it casually. But that seemed to be enough, because Zhuang Chi saw Gu Ximian’s eyes widen slightly in what looked like surprise, and then she slowly leaned close to her ear. “…What a coincidence, my pheromones smell like flowers.”
The voice by her ear was soft and very close. Zhuang Chi could almost feel Gu Ximian’s breath on her ear, which startled her so much that she shot backward. She tried hard to suppress the urge to raise her hand and rub her ear. She didn’t know why, but her heart suddenly accelerated, pounding forcefully against her chest, making her whole body heat up.
And the instigator looked at her as if she hadn’t noticed a thing, the corners of her eyes and brows carrying a slightly mischievous smile. She raised her index finger to her lips and silently mouthed to her: Don’t tell anyone else.
Zhuang Chi’s throat was a little dry. A thousand words in her mind converged into a single sentence, gradually taking shape in her bewilderment.
This… this should count as Gu Ximian bluffing her, right…?
