Chapter Three: Another Number

From what Feng Duoduo said, it seemed she should be busy chasing after the campus heartthrob. Ah, so many people liked him—just thinking about it was discouraging. Yuan Zhong flipped through the forum posts, sighing for the eight-hundredth time, feeling all hope was lost for herself.

After all, people are emotional creatures. Even when reason tells you there’s no chance, you can’t help but show support, taking joy in just catching a distant glimpse, even secretly liking some posts.

"Hey, are you chasing after a guy, or are you just a fangirl?" Feng Duoduo asked.

Upon reflection, her recent actions did resemble those of a fangirl.

"His phone number, his WeChat, his dorm room—name it, what else do you need?" Feng Duoduo was exasperated with her passivity.

Yuan Zhong didn’t dare—more accurately, she was too embarrassed to use any of those numbers. After some hemming and hawing, she said, "Let me think about it a bit more."

"Think? Think about what? How will you know the outcome if you don’t try? At least take the first step!" Feng Duoduo encouraged her.

Ah! Yuan Zhong looked at Feng Duoduo and thought: If only I were as bold as you, I wouldn’t be so troubled.

Feng Duoduo saw right through her, shaking her head. "Zhongzhong, you need to be more confident. Besides, that guy doesn’t seem the type to judge by appearances."

Yuan Zhong listened in silence, not knowing what to say. Just then, Lin Hui rescued her by pulling her away to the library.

"Thank you," Yuan Zhong said on the way.

"It’s nothing. I was getting annoyed with Feng Duoduo too."

"She means well, though."

"You don’t need to listen to her. She has no real experience in chasing after anyone." Lin Hui tried to comfort her.

Yuan Zhong said nothing. Feng Duoduo had always had plenty of admirers, but she had also pursued people before—she knew what it was like. "Well, anyway, thank you both," she replied.

Lin Hui turned to look at Yuan Zhong, then linked her arm through hers and smiled. "You’re so gentle and sweet, Zhongzhong. You’re bound to be happy."

Though the words made little logical sense, Yuan Zhong understood the kindness and nodded with a smile.

As they passed the science building, they saw a small group gathered nearby. A few girls stood at a distance, faces full of excitement, whispering and pointing. Yuan Zhong glanced over—her heart skipped a beat. She hadn't expected to run into him here!

A middle-aged man—probably a teacher—was talking to the campus heartthrob and two other boys. The heartthrob was listening intently.

Lin Hui saw them too, turned to Yuan Zhong, and asked, "Do you want to walk over?"

"No, no, no!" Yuan Zhong’s face was stricken with panic as she immediately turned to leave.

"Hey, they’re waving us over," Lin Hui called from behind.

Yuan Zhong stopped, lowered her head, and slowly turned around.

One of the boys jogged over, smiling in greeting. "Hello, classmates, we meet again."

Lin Hui’s expression was cold and silent. Yuan Zhong forced herself to calm down and replied with a smile, "Yes, we meet again." They had eaten together once before.

"Our group was doing an experiment here—it just finished. How about you?" The boy seemed quite friendly.

"We’re headed to the library," Yuan Zhong answered, knowing Lin Hui wouldn’t respond to such questions.

"Really? We don’t have library cards yet, but we’d love to check it out." The boy’s gaze flickered between Yuan Zhong and Lin Hui.

"Ah, is that so? Then, um..." Yuan Zhong hesitated, unsure whether to invite them. Without a library card, you couldn’t borrow books, but entering was fine.

Lin Hui glanced at Yuan Zhong, then spoke up: "Let’s go together then. How many of you are there?"

"Wait, let me check." The boy ran back to consult with the heartthrob and the other boy. Soon, all three came over.

Ah, going to the library with the campus heartthrob! Yuan Zhong’s face flushed again.

Lin Hui smiled and, for once, took the initiative. "Hi!"

"Let’s introduce ourselves again," the boy said. "I’m Chen Jing, this is Ma Yuzhe—you remember, right? We had a meal together. And this is Zhang Shun. Zhang Shun, this is Lin Hui and Yuan Zhong."

"Hello," Yuan Zhong murmured shyly, head lowered.

Lin Hui simply nodded, then strode towards the library.

On the way, Chen Jing kept finding topics to talk about, and Yuan Zhong always answered politely. Sometimes Ma Yuzhe would chime in, but Lin Hui and Zhang Shun stayed silent.

They soon reached the library. Lin Hui pointed to the second floor: "We’re going to Section Four for some materials. Do you need to borrow books? Yuan Zhong’s card still has some slots left."

Yuan Zhong nodded slightly, not daring to look at Zhang Shun.

"We’ll have a look first. If we want to borrow books, how do we find you?" Chen Jing asked.

"Do you have Yuan Zhong’s WeChat? If not, you can add her," Lin Hui suggested.

"Alright, thanks. I’ll scan yours." Chen Jing took out his phone.

Yuan Zhong quickly brought up her WeChat QR code and approved his friend request.

Ma Yuzhe and Zhang Shun made no move; Yuan Zhong felt a wave of relief, unsure if it was disappointment or ease.

"How long will you be here?" Zhang Shun finally spoke.

Yuan Zhong kept her head down, not answering. Lin Hui nudged her: "He’s asking you."

"Oh, we..." Yuan Zhong didn’t know what to say—should she say ‘whenever’?

"We don’t want to take up your time. You handle your own things, and if any of us want to borrow a book, we’ll find you before you leave. That’s better," Zhang Shun explained.

"Alright, no problem," Yuan Zhong replied. Seeing Zhang Shun looking at her, her mind went blank, frozen in place.

Zhang Shun then turned to Lin Hui. "So, when were you planning to leave the library?"

Lin Hui checked her watch. "Around four, I think."

Zhang Shun nodded. "Thank you." Then he turned and left.

Chen Jing said to Yuan Zhong, "He always looks so serious—it’s a bit intimidating. Don’t mind him."

Yuan Zhong shook her head, feeling only embarrassment.

Lin Hui, seeing Yuan Zhong a bit crestfallen, found them a place to sit. "Let’s wait here. Or should I go?"

"No, definitely not!" Yuan Zhong grabbed her arm, pleading. "I’ll be scared alone."

Lin Hui was helpless—she couldn’t bear to leave Yuan Zhong behind. She picked up a book and idly flipped through it. Seeing Yuan Zhong still in a daze, she tapped her on the forehead. "Wake up, kid."

Yuan Zhong’s eyes finally focused. She looked at Lin Hui and asked, "Did I seem really stupid just now?"

Lin Hui shook her head. "Not really."

"What do you mean, ‘not really’?" Yuan Zhong pressed—she cared a lot; after all, it was her first time talking to the heartthrob.

Lin Hui laughed. "You always speak gently and slowly, so it didn’t seem that different from usual. Don’t overthink it."

That would have to do. If she ended up helping them borrow books later, she must behave better. But what was better? At the very least, act normal, Yuan Zhong told herself.

At last, when it was three-thirty, Yuan Zhong checked WeChat for the Nth time. "Ding"—a message arrived. She hurried to open it.

"Leaving now?" Lin Hui asked, seeing the smile on her face.

"Yes, they want to borrow some books." Yuan Zhong stood, returned her book, and went downstairs. She was ready this time—no more embarrassing moments.

At the self-checkout, only Chen Jing was there, waving to Yuan Zhong and Lin Hui from afar.

Yuan Zhong felt a little disappointed but kept smiling as she helped him borrow his books.

"Don’t worry, I’ll return them on time," Chen Jing promised.

"It’s fine. If you need to renew, just let me know." Returning a book didn’t require a library card; Yuan Zhong was already thinking ahead, saying this absent-mindedly.

Chen Jing grinned and nodded.

On the way back to the dorm, Yuan Zhong’s thoughts were a jumble. Lin Hui nudged her. "Come play games with me when we get back."

"My rank isn’t high enough to queue with you," Yuan Zhong replied. After playing a bit, she’d grown to like Honor of Kings—it was fun, and her win rate was decent, so she’d advanced quickly, but she was still far from Lin Hui’s rank.

"Just spend a little more time," Lin Hui said.

"I will. Lately, I don’t have much else to do anyway," Yuan Zhong agreed out of habit.

Lin Hui smiled, as if hiding something.

Feeling a bit embarrassed, Yuan Zhong emphasized, "I’ll play when I have time, really. But I’m not as into it as you are."

"Since you’re so determined to chase your idol, I’ll give you another number—his game ID: ‘Chaplin’s Smile.’ That’s him," Lin Hui said, a bombshell.

"Really? He plays games too?" Yuan Zhong’s eyes widened.

"Boys loving games is normal. Once, in ranked, a friend pulled him into the team, and that’s how I found out his account. So, level up quickly and we can queue together. Now you’ve got motivation, right?"

In-game, you didn’t have to reveal your identity. Yuan Zhong felt this was a good arrangement for her—quietly drawing close without fear of rejection or embarrassment.

She quickened her pace. "Come on, let’s hurry back."

Lin Hui laughed. "Wait for me."

On Lin Hui’s game screen, Yuan Zhong carefully checked out ‘Chaplin’s Smile’—Stellar 1 rank. To team up, her own account needed to be at least Platinum 4. She counted—just four levels, sixteen stars. Thinking she only needed sixteen wins, the goal suddenly felt within reach.

Looking at his favorite heroes—mostly marksmen—Yuan Zhong decided to practice support heroes, determined to do well. For their first in-game cooperation, she wanted to make a good impression.

Without delay, she opened her phone and logged into the game. This time, she was serious—she bought all the support heroes, watched guide videos, then started playing ranked matches. Combining theory and practice, her level rose quickly, earning stars in both ranked and regular games.

But reality has a way of playing tricks, and not in a funny way.

In ranked, she ran into a few hopeless marksmen and her rank actually dropped. In one game, she played soft-support Cai Wenji and ended up as MVP on the losing side.

So useless, yet you still queue for ranked—does your mother know? Yuan Zhong wanted to curse, suddenly understanding Lin Hui’s penchant for trash talk.

During the game, the marksman kept complaining that Yuan Zhong’s Cai Wenji didn’t know how to position and hadn’t protected him: Are you playing for the other side? Actor, reporting you!

Finally out of patience, Yuan Zhong replied: Can’t carry on your own so you blame me?

Marksman: I’m a squishy—if you’re not standing in front of me, how can I survive to carry?

Yuan Zhong nearly spat blood: Your positioning is so bizarre—you’re practically glued to the enemy! How am I supposed to block for you? When you’re attacked, you don’t dodge; when I’m trying to heal you, you run all over the place. What, have you had your fill of your mother’s milk and now you’re overfed?

Her reply was too long, so she had to break it up. Before she finished typing, the game ended. Yuan Zhong was left fuming.

She glanced over at Lin Hui, who was in a heated five-man ranked game. ‘Chaplin’s Smile’ was playing Gongsun Li, nimble as ever, a solid MVP. Yuan Zhong watched in admiration. "He’s really good with Gongsun Li."

Lin Hui tilted her head. "Not bad. The assassin was the real MVP that match, though."

"I think the marksman carried," Yuan Zhong insisted.

Lin Hui laughed. "You’re just blinded by affection."

Yuan Zhong hurriedly checked—her mic was off. She breathed a sigh of relief.

Lin Hui handed her an earbud. "Listen in."

The voice chat was lively:

"Cover Ali’s retreat, Ali, go heal up."

"No need, I’ll just get a bit of health from the jungle here."

"Hey, their marksman’s alone—guys, let’s go!"

"Heh, I love orphaned marksmen…"

So, this was what his happy voice sounded like—so different from when they’d met in person. Pity he didn’t talk much. Yuan Zhong propped her chin in her hand, watching the big ‘Victory’ on the screen, her mood soaring along with it.