Chapter 395 – The Aloof Male God’s Exclusive CP – Operation Chasing Tang (02)
Arriving in a new world, Bai Tang felt a strong sense of nostalgia at returning to his university days. In particular, universities back home were completely different in style from those abroad, which made him even more curious and interested in campus life.
In this world, Bai Tang’s parents had passed away early, leaving him only a sum of inheritance. Everything in his life was decided by himself. If he were to end up with the male lead in the future, at least they would be spared the trouble of persuading elders.
Bai Tang strolled along the campus road lined with camphor trees, feeling the breeze tinged with a woody scent. The natural fragrance relaxed him unconsciously, and the corners of his lips lifted into a smile that revealed faint dimples.
Click—
An ill-timed shutter sound shattered the beautiful moment. Bai Tang looked toward the sound and saw a male student holding a DSLR camera. Realizing he had been caught, the boy panicked and said awkwardly, “I—I didn’t mean to. The scene was just too beautiful, I couldn’t help myself.”
Sunlight filtered through the leaves and fell in scattered patches over the youth. The dappled light swayed gently, making his flower-like smile even more radiant. The boy with the camera stared blankly, still holding the DSLR up.
Click, click—
Another burst of shots.
Bai Tang puffed his cheeks slightly. “Emmm…” What was he supposed to say now?
“Um, uh… I really couldn’t help it,” the photographer apologized repeatedly. Embarrassed, he turned his head away, then secretly glanced back at Bai Tang. A bead of sweat slid down his long neck and disappeared beneath his collar.
The boy’s face grew even redder, his body seeming to heat up.
“The sun is really strong today…” he said, grasping for something to talk about. As soon as he finished, he felt his topic was incredibly stupid.
“I’ve detected that this person has developed feelings for Tang Tang,” Qiu’er said. “Tang Tang, don’t be fooled by this pretty boy just because he looks decent. Compared to the male lead, he’s far inferior. We should hurry up and find the male lead instead.”
Qiu’er was firmly on the male lead’s side now, naturally defending him and ruthlessly eliminating anything that might threaten the main romance.
Not even the slightest spark could be allowed.
Xiao A: …I think I’ve finally figured out what’s wrong with Qiu’er.
Bai Tang didn’t think much of it. He took the initiative and said, “My name is Bai Tang. What’s yours?”
“My name is Yan Yang. I’m from the photography club. I usually just like taking pictures…” Yan Yang explained, trying to excuse his impolite behavior.
Bai Tang didn’t blame him. It was only a few photos—he wasn’t going to lose a piece of flesh over it.
Qi Yuanxu walked out of the teaching building and immediately noticed the white-clad youth standing on the campus road. The boy was as pure as a child, his bright eyes like stars. With just one glance, he could deeply captivate anyone.
The mentor walking beside him stopped and followed Qi Yuanxu’s gaze, sighing in admiration.
“What a beautiful child.”
People naturally enjoy admiring beautiful things. The young man was already delicate in appearance, and when paired with his clean, refreshing aura, it only added to his charm.
Qi Yuanxu felt inexplicably displeased seeing Yan Yang standing so close to Bai Tang. Even he didn’t know why—he just felt uncomfortable.
He strode toward the two who were chatting and laughing. As Bai Tang and Yan Yang turned around, a figure was already standing in front of them.
Inside Bai Tang’s consciousness, Qiu’er shouted, “Tang Tang, it’s the male lead! It’s the male lead—he’s come to find you!”
Qiu’er’s volume was far too loud, making Bai Tang frown slightly as a dull ache formed in his head.
However, in Qi Yuanxu’s eyes, that expression seemed like dislike—perhaps even annoyance directed at him.
“Senior Qi!” Yan Yang exclaimed excitedly.
Qi Yuanxu was a legend at the university, a famously aloof male god. There was nothing he couldn’t do—top-tier in both ability and coldness. Countless girls admired him, while boys envied and resented him, yet none could earn even a second glance from him.
Qi Yuanxu also happened to be Yan Yang’s idol. Now that his idol was standing right in front of him, Yan Yang felt so happy he was about to faint.
So nervous that he didn’t know where to put his hands, Yan Yang stammered, “S-Senior Qi, h-hello, I’m Y-Yan Yang…”
Yan Yang was nervous—but Qi Yuanxu was even more so.
Qi Yuanxu stared fixedly at Bai Tang. Only after a long moment did he force himself to look away, afraid that lingering too long would only deepen the other’s dislike of him.
“Hello.” Qi Yuanxu shifted his gaze to Yan Yang.
A scrawny weakling—skin pale, barely any muscle. One look told him the boy couldn’t lift or carry anything. In short, far too weak.
After sizing Yan Yang up and reaching this conclusion, Qi Yuanxu finally felt a little better. Yan Yang was clearly inferior to him.
But… could it be that the youth liked the weak type?
Qi Yuanxu extended his left hand. Yan Yang froze, then hurriedly switched hands and shook hands with his idol.
Ah! I shook hands with my idol! So exciting!!!
After shaking Yan Yang’s hand, Qi Yuanxu extended his right hand toward Bai Tang instead. He deliberately softened his voice, showing as much gentleness as possible.
“Hello, classmate. I’m Qi Yuanxu. May I get to know you?”
His deep yet warm, jade-like voice was so pleasant it was almost intoxicating. Bai Tang paused for a moment, then smiled and reached out his hand.
“Hello, my name is Bai Tang. I’m from the Business Administration Department. Please take care of me, Senior Qi.”
His soft, milky voice felt as though someone had stuffed a piece of cotton candy into one’s heart—soft and sweet, making the heart tingle.
Qi Yuanxu’s lips curved into a beautiful smile. The youth’s admiration put him in an excellent mood.
He opened his umbrella and held it over Bai Tang’s head. “The afternoon sun is strong. I know an ice dessert shop near the school gate—the cold drinks there are quite good. How about we go there and rest for a bit?”
“Sure~” Being able to spend time with his ols husband, Bai Tang naturally wouldn’t refuse.
After taking a few steps, Bai Tang suddenly stopped and called out to Yan Yang, who was still standing there in a daze.
“Yan Yang, want to come along too? It’s really hot here—let’s go enjoy some air-conditioning.”
Yan Yang had thought he would be heading back to the photography club alone. Now, getting the chance to drink cold beverages with his idol felt like a dream come true.
He happily followed the other two, but Qi Yuanxu was not very happy.
He narrowed his eyes slightly, then quickly returned to his usual expression. After greeting his mentor, he guided Bai Tang toward the school gate.
Along the way, Qi Yuanxu used the excuse of introducing the ice shop’s drinks to subtly probe Bai Tang’s preferences. To his surprise, he discovered that the things Bai Tang liked were almost exactly what he had imagined he would like. Even Qi Yuanxu himself found this astonishing.
Classes had not officially begun yet, so there were relatively few people on campus, and the ice shop was also sparsely populated.
As soon as they stepped inside, the cool air-conditioning drove away the heat clinging to them from outdoors.
Yan Yang let out a satisfied sigh. Summer was still most comfortable in places with air-conditioning.
Qi Yuanxu asked the shop owner for a clean towel, then raised his hand to wipe the sweat from the youth’s face.
Bai Tang froze for a moment, his cheeks flushing slightly. In a soft, sticky voice, he said, “I’ll do it myself.”
Flustered, he took the towel and shuffled a step to the side, putting some distance between himself and his old hisband, afraid of being drawn in by the other man’s hormones.
They were still outside, and after all, they had “just met.” The little squirrel felt he should remain reserved, lest the other think he was frivolous or trying to climb the social ladder, leaving a bad impression.
Bai Tang wiped his forehead carelessly, messing up the loose strands of hair at the front. It made him look a little dazed—oddly cute.
The youth’s guarded reaction made Qi Yuanxu feel slightly uncomfortable, but he soon reminded himself that they had only just met. A sense of distance was normal.
Yan Yang was clearly a regular at this ice shop and easily ordered his favorite cold drink.
From Bai Tang’s perspective, he had never visited this place before. Drinks weren’t a necessity—saving money wherever possible was better. Although Bai Tang’s parents had left him a considerable inheritance, university required money, living expenses required money, and every activity cost money as well. Some unscrupulous relatives, seeing that he was alone, came to borrow money. If he refused, they spread rumors among the neighbors, forcing the original owner of this body to lend it out. After several such incidents, there wasn’t much money left. His summer job had ended a week before the semester started, and since he didn’t want to go home, he returned to campus early.
“What’s good here? Hurry up and introduce them to me,” Bai Tang said eagerly.
Once food was mentioned, the foodie little squirrel instantly became excited. Qi Yuanxu had introduced quite a few options, but just hearing the names wasn’t enough to know which were good. Besides, someone like Qi Yuanxu—born with a silver spoon in his mouth—probably rarely visited small shops like this.
Holding the menu, Bai Tang moved closer to Yan Yang. The two of them chattered away about the shop’s signature items and viral drinks. The sight made Qi Yuanxu’s eyes ache with irritation.
“This one—and this one—are both pretty good.”
“Sounds great. Let’s order that, then.”
Bai Tang closed the menu and called softly toward the counter, his voice sweet and glutinous.
“Boss lady, one Darjeeling Adventure, and one iced bayberry drink.”
“Alright~ Please wait a moment,” the shop owner replied cheerfully. After taking the order, she turned around with a smile and began preparing the drinks.
After ordering, Bai Tang turned and smiled at Qi Yuanxu. “Senior, I ordered a drink for you. If you don’t like it, we can order something else.”
Seeing that Bai Tang hadn’t left him out, Qi Yuanxu’s sour mood finally eased a little.
He sat down beside Bai Tang and asked casually, as if it were an afterthought, “Tang Tang seems quite familiar with Classmate Yan. Are you two classmates?”
“Nope, we only met today~” In this world, Bai Tang’s role was a cannon-fodder character so minor he could hardly be more insignificant. He had no direct connection with either the male or female lead—if one really had to force a connection, it would only be that he was in a class next to the female lead’s.
Qi Yuanxu was very satisfied with this answer. He reached out and brushed aside Bai Tang’s slightly messy bangs, plucking a thin blade of grass from his hair.
Bai Tang’s face flushed, whether from embarrassment or the heat, it was hard to tell. He laughed it off.
“How did grass get in there? It must’ve been because the wind was too strong just now.”
Come on, pull yourself together. It’s just brushing his hair—why is your heart racing? Be reserved, reserved… Bai Tang scolded himself inwardly.
Qiu’er, who had been closely observing the two of them, was silently screaming in the little white room.
“Come on! Get closer! Ahh, so dumb—didn’t the master used to be great at flirting? Why is he like this now…?”
Xiao A, who was peeling an apple beside him, shook his head with a smile. “Here, open your mouth.”
“Ah—” Qiu’er took a big bite of the apple, but his eyes never left the screen.
The shop owner soon brought over the cold drinks. Bai Tang held his own cup and slurped noisily through the straw, stubbornly avoiding Qi Yuanxu’s gaze.
After a long moment, Bai Tang sensed that Qi Yuanxu was still looking at him. He hurriedly pushed the drink in front of him over.
“This one’s yours, Senior~”
Qi Yuanxu took it, his fingers brushing lightly across the back of Bai Tang’s hand.
Bai Tang recoiled as if burned. He stole a glance at Qi Yuanxu, his face faintly red, then quickly turned away and focused on drinking his beverage.
Qi Yuanxu took in Bai Tang’s reaction, amusement flickering in his eyes. He lifted the cup and took a small sip, but in his mind, he was already drafting a Plan to Chase Tang. He cast a glance at Yan Yang, who still had no idea what was going on.
That kid? Not worth worrying about.
Author’s Note:
The male lead—cold on the outside, secretly sultry on the inside—has emotions that go up and down, then up and up and up o(^＠^)o