Shi Qing seemed genuinely delighted by Tong Xinyu's gesture of goodwill.
The school bully, who always wore a cocky expression, even went as far as to curl up the corners of his mouth, offering Tong Xinyu a handsome smile.
Accepting the delicately wrapped small box, he appeared pleasantly surprised, repeatedly asking, "You're not fooling me, are you? Is this really for me? Not for Zhuo Junli?"
"It's true, why would I lie to you?"
Tong Xinyu's eyes sparkled with a hint of embarrassment and shyness, and when her hands were finally free, she nervously fiddled with them and gathered the courage to say, "I baked them last night, added some milk. My uncle raises cows, and this milk definitely has no additives. It has a distinct milk fragrance."
Shi Qing said with a hint of teasing, "A real man, how can he eat cookies that taste like milk?"
However, he was being honest and quickly opened the exquisite packaging, revealing the box of cookies inside.
When he opened it, he found neatly arranged rabbit-shaped cookies that emitted a strong milk aroma without having to get too close.
The school bully picked up one of the little rabbit cookies, and his expression became even more eager. "Rabbits?"
"Yes," Tong Xinyu replied.
Seeing that he seemed to like them, she blushed with excitement and continued, "This rabbit mold is my favorite. The cookies it makes look especially cute, like real little rabbits."
After introducing them, she fidgeted and cast occasional glances at Shi Qing, whispering, "Do you like them?"
"I do!" Shi Qing's response was affirmative.
Tong Xinyu suppressed her inner excitement and couldn't help but give a small, joyful foot stomp while trying to maintain a composed demeanor. "If you like them, that's great! It's almost time for class; I'll go back to my seat now."
The girl, full of enthusiasm for her new crush, returned to her seat with a happy expression.
Zhuo Junli remained in his original position, sitting with a pendant in his hand, deep in thought. If it were before, the school bully would have noticed something was amiss and would have coaxed him with a teasing, "I'm showing you mercy" attitude.
But now, Shi Qing's attention was clearly drawn to the little cookies in his hand. He cradled them with care, as if reluctant to eat them, and examined them from top to bottom, growing fonder the more he looked.
He looked like someone who genuinely appreciated the gift from Tong Xinyu.
Zhuo Junli's chest heaved a little more, and he gripped the pendant around his neck even tighter. If these were any other days, Shi Qing would have noticed his unease, but at this moment, Shi Qing's attention was fully focused on the cookies.
He cherished the small cookies, displaying a reluctance to consume them. He handled them delicately, and his face showed genuine affection.
Zhuo Junli's resentment was building up. He was jealous of Tong Xinyu for diverting Shi Qing's attention, for Shi Qing's fondness for the rabbit-shaped cookies, and for Shi Qing's compliments.
Shi Qing had figured this out a long time ago. Zhuo Junli, despite being bullied before, had managed to lower his resistance to a level of 85 in less than two weeks. Shi Qing had taken liberties with him, and Zhuo Junli had silently accepted it all.
The reason behind this was simple: Shi Qing had been fierce and impatient with everyone else at school, but with Zhuo Junli, he had been helping him in his own way.
Zhuo Junli, a naturally thoughtful top student, couldn't possibly have missed the underlying intentions behind Shi Qing's actions. However, he didn't feel disgust or flee; instead, he silently enjoyed it all. The prerequisite for this enjoyment was that Shi Qing treated him this way and this way alone.
The system was on the verge of a meltdown, but Shi Qing remained unruffled. He hooked his arm around Zhuo Junli's neck, seemingly unaware of his stiffness, and presented the little rabbit cookies in front of the young man again.
"Don't you think this rabbit looks a lot like you?"
Zhuo Junli hesitated for a moment. He gazed at the school bully with a faint smile, a proud look on his face, and kept poking the small rabbit's ears.
"Like you, small and weak."
Shi Qing clearly felt Zhuo Junli's body gradually relaxing. The elegant and attractive neck tilted slightly toward him. Zhuo Junli finally spoke, as gentle as ever, "Does it resemble me?"
In both expression and tone, Zhuo Junli displayed absolute harmlessness, gazing at Shi Qing with clear, light-brown eyes that had a hint of curiosity.
"In my eyes, am I a rabbit?"
The school bully burst into laughter, his eyes and eyebrows carrying a hint of amusement. He was delighted and arrogant, thinking that Zhuo Junli might not appreciate being compared to a rabbit.
"Don't you think so? Just like you, timid and easily frightened."
For a high school boy in his peak self-esteem years, such descriptors were almost insulting.
However, Zhuo Junli's expression remained unchanged. He asked softly, "Do you like me this way?"
"Of course, I..."
The school bully spoke casually, nearly tripping over his words. Luckily, he applied the brakes in time and coughed twice.
"Of course, I don't like it," he said, his tone exaggerated. "A grown man acting so weak. I can't stand people like that."
After saying this, he seemed to realize he might have gone too far. There was a pause in his expression, and a hint of regret flashed in his eyes as he cautiously looked at Zhuo Junli.
"Ahem!"
He cleared his throat and continued with a serious tone, "Well, it's not that bad, as long as you stay out of trouble and don't go chasing after girls in our class, I can still watch out for you."
Zhuo Junli narrowed his eyes slightly but didn't reveal his true thoughts. He hung his head, looking somewhat dejected.
The school bully sitting next to him seemed a bit anxious. He awkwardly comforted Zhuo Junli, patting his neck, "Alright, alright, actually, I quite like rabbits. Rabbits are great; even though they're weak, they're small. When they get bullied, they can still stand their ground, right?"
Zhuo Junli finally raised his head and gave him a gentle, watery smile.
Shi Qing continued to reassure, "So, you have my protection. If anyone bullies you in the future, just come to me, and I'll take care of it!"
The young man's smile deepened, and he nodded at the school bully, his clear eyes filled with innocence.
"Okay."
[Ding! Zhuo Junli's rejection level: 100]
[Ding! Zhuo Junli's rejection level: 80]
[Ding! Zhuo Junli's rejection level: 68]
The system was about to go crazy. Shi Qing paid it no mind.
The school bully was busy sharing the cookies with Zhuo Junli. Perhaps because of what he had just said about protecting him, Zhuo Junli actually made a request, asking if he could try one of the cookies.
Though he said he wanted to try them, there was a clear lack of enthusiasm in his eyes when he looked at the rabbit-shaped cookies in the small box on the table.
Even though Shi Qing liked rabbits, he could only like one rabbit.
The school bully didn't notice this and generously handed him one of the cookies.
Crunch—
Zhuo Junli bit off the rabbit's head.
Crunch—
Zhuo Junli bit off half of the rabbit's body.
Crunch—
He put the whole rabbit-shaped cookie in his mouth, lowered his gaze slightly, and chewed expressionlessly.
With each bite, his teeth exerted extra force.
"Is it delicious?"
Shi Qing was also eating. Tong Xinyu was indeed skilled; the small cookies were both delicious and chewy, with a rich milky flavor.
He quite liked them and reached for another.
Then, his hand met Zhuo Junli's.
Zhuo Junli timidly raised his gaze, his beautiful face displaying innocence. But his slender fingers were surprisingly firm as they covered the box of cookies before Shi Qing.
In a low voice, he asked, as if worried that Shi Qing wouldn't agree, "I really like these. Can you share some with me?"
The school bully looked a bit puzzled, furrowing his brows slightly. "I remember you don't like milk, right?" Their school was known for its generosity; they had even distributed free milk at lunchtime before. For Zhuo Junli, who came from a less affluent background, this box of milk-flavored cookies was an unexpected treat.
Although Zhuo Junli hadn't expected Shi Qing to know his preferences, he felt slightly better. But he remained resolute and said, "Maybe these cookies have good milk in them. I really like them."
"Alright, I'll share some with you."
The school bully was generous with Zhuo Junli, even though he initially gave him only half. But Zhuo Junli wasn't satisfied with just half. More accurately, he couldn't bear to see Shi Qing, who had been kind to him, eat half of Tong Xinyu's gift.
In a soft voice, he asked with a pitiful look, "After I finish these, can I have some of yours?"
Shi Qing waved his hand generously. "Sure, help yourself."
From afar, Lu Tao had been watching them. Seeing Shi Qing sharing the cookies, he hurried over and said, "Shi, can you share some with me too? I didn't eat much this morning."
"Get lost, get lost! Your eagle eyes didn't see that there's not much left even for me?" The school bully waved him off impatiently, holding the remaining half of the cookies protectively. Clearly, he loved the taste and the rabbit shape.
Lu Tao pouted, feeling wronged. "You already shared some with Zhuo Junli; just give me a few, they smell so good."
"Is Zhuo Junli the same as you?"
Once he said that, the school bully realized something was off and quickly added, "Zhuo Junli couldn't afford cookies. Can't you?"
After he finished speaking, he realized that he was touching a sensitive spot with Zhuo Junli. His expression became increasingly uncomfortable.
Thinking about apologizing? When had Shi Qing ever apologized to anyone?
After a few awkward seconds, Shi Qing finally patted the young man's shoulder and said, "Well, I didn't mean it that way."
"I know."
But Zhuo Junli wasn't upset at all. Instead, he wore a faint smile on his face, showing an unusually good temper towards Shi Qing.
After the laughter, he turned to look at Lu Tao.
"Lu Tao, if you want some, I'll share some with you."
Without waiting for Lu Tao's reaction, he gave away most of his half of the cookies.
Lu Tao held the cookies, deeply moved. "Wow, you're so good to me. Can I have these then? Are you sure you have enough for yourself?"
"It's okay." Zhuo Junli still had the appearance of someone easy to get along with. "I'll just eat Shi Qing's."
Lu Tao happily carried the cookies away.
Seeing that class was about to start, the school bully, in his recent efforts to compete with Tong Xinyu for Zhuo Junli's attention, had been trying to appear studious. Now, he was checking the class schedule, grabbing his books, and searching for his test papers.
When he was done rummaging through his things and reached for the cookie box, he realized it was empty.
"Hmm?"
He lowered his head, retrieved the cookie box from the desk drawer, and found that it was completely empty, with only some cookie crumbs remaining.
Then, he looked at Zhuo Junli, who was meticulously wiping the corners of his mouth with a tissue.
"You ate them all?" Shi Qing sounded somewhat surprised. "So many?"
"Yeah." Zhuo Junli's tone, however, carried a hint of gritted teeth. "I like these."
"In that case, I'll ask Tong Xinyu to make more and bring them next time."
"No need." The young man's expression stiffened as he tried to maintain a natural look. "Our study workload is already substantial, and it wouldn't be right to ask her to make cookies in addition."
"Well, there's no harm in it. Don't girls like little dresses and stuff? I can exchange some dresses with her."
The school bully generously waved his hand. "You like these cookies, and I'll bring you a box every day."
He added with a grin, "After all, you're following me."
Zhuo Junli: "..."
He felt like he was swimming in a sea of milk.
The young man wanted to persuade further, but Shi Qing had an expression that said, "You don't need to feel bad about a small amount of money like this, it's nothing for me." After the first class, he openly discussed it with Tong Xinyu.
Tong Xinyu was thrilled when she saw Shi Qing approaching her. When she heard that Shi Qing asked if she could bake cookies for them, she vigorously nodded.
"No problem, no problem! I'll bake some for you every day if you like!"
When Shi Qing left, her desk mate asked in a low voice, "Didn't you say your current crush is Shi Qing? Aren't you upset that Zhuo Junli ate the cookies?"
"Why would I be upset?"
Tong Xinyu still had an excited, flushed face as she whispered, "Even though Shi Qing is my current crush, Zhuo Junli is still my second crush. But I'm a very loyal person. Even if I like both of them, I'll only treat my first crush well."
But if both her first and second crushes asked her for something, that would be a different story, hehe.
The girl who had never been in a relationship before was shocked, "Tong Xinyu, you're so fickle."
Tong Xinyu felt even more embarrassed. She covered her face with one hand and pushed her friend away with the other. "No, I just have a lot of crushes."
"Anyway, baking cookies won't take much time. I'll send cookies every day, cast a wide net, and see who confesses to me first, hehehe."
Her desk mate asked, "Why don't you confess to him yourself?"
"Because I'm shy, and I need to maintain a little modesty. Let me tell you, when I went to give Zhuo Junli the cookies earlier, his expression didn't look too good. Maybe he was jealous. Hehehe, I told him that he definitely likes me."
Tong Xinyu was proud yet shy, and she had a hint of anticipation. "You see, I'm Tong Xinyu, what virtues do I possess to have two crushes on me? I'm so excellent!"
Meanwhile, Zhuo Junli couldn't hear the girls' conversation, but he could see how Tong Xinyu shyly smiled at Shi Qing and how she chatted with her friends after Shi Qing left.
Zhuo Junli closed his eyes slightly, and the words and actions of Tong Xinyu in her daily life flashed through his mind one by one. He also took into account her expressions and gestures when she brought the cookies earlier, as well as her friendship with her desk mate.
Right now, there's an eighty percent chance she's discussing Shi Qing with her desk mate.
About sixty percent of their discussions are about relationships.
He could eat up the cookies Tong Xinyu brought for Shi Qing, but he couldn't openly prevent them from getting closer.
He could take the cookies, but he couldn't change Shi Qing's fondness for the bunny-shaped cookies.
The young man opened his eyes and quickly started solving math problems while feeling an inexplicable sense of frustration.
"Oh!" Shi Qing stretched his neck and, seeing him working rapidly, said, "Are you practicing martial arts? You're almost leaving afterimages."
"Snap."
Zhuo Junli stopped his pen as he turned to Shi Qing and asked seriously, "Why did Tong Xinyu's attitude change so quickly?"
The school bully became instantly alert, "Why are you asking about this?"
"I'm warning you, if you dare to have any intentions towards Tong Xinyu, you won't be able to sleep at night. I'll make sure of that."
Zhuo Junli's protective demeanor made Shi Qing soften his expression a bit.
"I really have no interest in Tong Xinyu. I'm just curious."
"Alright."
After confirming multiple times that there seemed to be no affection for Tong Xinyu in his eyes, Shi Qing leaned back in his chair, crossed his arms, and looked self-assured. Then, he recounted yesterday's incident.
After finishing, he added, "Those troublemakers, they used to go to the same school as me. They've watched too much TV and formed some kind of gang. Every time there's a break, they stay on the street for a few days and rob students who pass by."
The school bully expressed strong disapproval, snorting disdainfully, "One of my little brothers who I used to protect got robbed by them before. I took my people to deal with them, and since then, they behaved. But after I transferred to this school, they started again. It's fortunate that these guys, as trashy as they are, still have some principles. They only bully the weak and don't bother girls. Otherwise, with Tong Xinyu looking so pretty, if I hadn't arrived in time..."
He looked quite proud, "Tong Xinyu used to glare at me before, and she was always so harsh, but she got scared and almost cried when she faced those guys. Still, she asked me to protect her."
"But this kid used to look quite annoying. Now, when I look at her, I see someone who knows how to return a favor and is actually quite cute."
Zhuo Junli silently observed Shi Qing, who was full of pride.
Previously, he could ensure that Shi Qing was only annoyed when he saw Tong Xinyu and wanted to steal him away from her sight.
But now, Shi Qing had actually started to find Tong Xinyu cute.
He carefully watched Shi Qing's facial expressions and body language, analyzed the combinations, and finally made a deduction:
Shi Qing liked to protect the weak.
This might be why he liked bunnies.
After his analysis, the young man looked at Shi Qing. There was a hint of vulnerability in his eyes, like a little bunny with no self-defense capability.
"I need to collect last month's salary this afternoon. What if I encounter them?"
The school bully straightened up confidently, "Don't worry, if you run into them, just mention my name."
Zhuo Junli looked at his watch. It would take about ten minutes to get from the school to this location. Shi Qing should be in the dormitory. Including the five-minute walk from the dormitory to the school gate, that's fifteen minutes.
He calculated the time and, with about three minutes left, put his school bag on his back and walked towards the direction of the barbecue stall.
Several people were eating barbecue, and when they saw Zhuo Junli approaching, one of them poked the leader, "Bro, look, it's a student."
"Perfect, let him pay for this meal. If there's any money left, we can go to the arcade tonight."
Just as he got up, the leader pulled him back, slapped his head, and scolded, "Are you an idiot? Can't you see he's wearing a longyi school uniform? If we call Shi Qing, that jinx will come again, and we'll get beaten up."
The follower suddenly realized, "Right, right, right!"
Zhuo Junli overheard their conversation, and when he approached, one of them nudged the leader, "Hey, bro, look, a student."
"Just in time. Let him pay for our barbecue. If there's money left, we can go to the arcade tonight."
As he stood up, the leader pulled him back, smacked his head, and scolded, "Are you an idiot? Can't you see he's wearing a longyi school uniform? If we call Shi Qing, that jinx will come again, and we'll get beaten up."
The follower suddenly realized, "Right, right, right!"
So, Zhuo Junli walked over, and the group of people eating barbecue acted as if they were blind and couldn't see him at all. Zhuo Junli had a total of seven plans in his mind, so he wasn't worried. While waiting, he had already scoped out the area. There were no surveillance cameras around.
The young man stopped there and, after confirming that only these hooligans were paying attention to him, he took off his bag and started searching for something. Several red bills fluttered lightly to the ground as he searched, but the owner of the bills acted as if he hadn't seen anything. He picked up the money and put it back in his bag, then continued walking forward.
The people at the barbecue stall stared at the red bills on the ground, and one of them said, "..."
One of the younger guys said, "Bro, should we call him?"
—Slap!
He received another slap.
"Are you brainless? We don't push away money that's delivered to our doorstep!"
The leader directly ran over to pick up the money, counted it, and it happened to be five hundred yuan.
He chuckled, "What luck! Hey! We don't even have to exert any effort; the money comes to us on its own."
"Bro, bro! Bro!"
One of the younger guys kept pulling him.
"What?!"
The younger guy said, "... Look ahead, isn't that Shi Qing?"
The leader squinted and indeed saw Shi Qing.
At this moment, the school bully, still wearing a Longyi school uniform, looked furious, and the student who had just passed by them was talking to him. He even pointed in their direction while speaking.
He thought, "... Why do I have a bad feeling about this?"
His bad feeling was soon confirmed.
With everyone feeling tense, Shi Qing came over angrily with Zhuo Junli in tow. The young man held Shi Qing's arm and spoke in a timid voice, looking like he needed protection:
"Just now, when I passed by here, they robbed me."
The others were like, "???"
"I told them you were covering me, but they still forced me to give them money..."
They were like, "??????"
"They took all the five hundred yuan I earned from my part-time job last month."
The group of people was speechless.
"That's unbelievable!"
One of them said, "Listen, it's not like he said, Shi-ge, please listen to us, we didn't..."
The school bully, looking fierce, interrupted, "What do you have in your hand?!"
The leader of the hooligans dumbly looked at the five hundred yuan in his hand and said, "... Five hundred yuan."
Shi Qing asked, "Is this money yours?"
"It's not..."
"But I can explain, really! It's just that he walked by here earlier, and then we..."
Shi Qing said, "Stop talking nonsense and come fight!"
Ten minutes later, Zhuo Junli watched as Shi Qing, who was imposing and victorious, easily overwhelmed the opponents. His light brown eyes shone slightly.
[Alert Level: 59]
Fifteen minutes later, Shi Qing walked out of the battlefield, took the school uniform jacket handed to him by Zhuo Junli, put it on while still walking, and then draped his arm over Zhuo Junli's shoulder as they approached.
He swaggered through the group of people leaning against the wall and sitting on the ground, saying, "A bunch of useless guys, they dared to bully my people. Don't let me catch you next time, or you'll get beaten every time you see me."
The injured hooligans said, "..."
"I'm going to report this to your school. What you guys are doing is entrapment... E-en-trap... Ahhh!!"
A miserable cry rang out.
Zhuo Junli innocently took his foot off the guy's leg and said, "Sorry about that."
The hooligan said, "..."
Shi Qing snorted, "You're apologizing to the guys who robbed you and harassed students, guys who snatch away a student's weekly allowance and even take your part-time job earnings? Scum!"
The hooligans said, "..."
They watched helplessly as Shi Qing, with his arm around Zhuo Junli, walked away while scolding them. The aggrieved group finally erupted:
"Who the hell robbed him? You shameless troublemaker, deliberately causing trouble for us!!!"
"This is entrapment law enforcement!!! Ahhhhhhh—"
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