Chapter 163: Preferring Sex over Friends

With one hour remaining until today's training session ended, Yu Qian stood beneath the shade of a tree, enduring the baptism of countless fiery gazes.

Some were filled with admiration, some with curiosity, but the vast majority were tinged with jealousy.

Zhou Jingchen already had a substantial following of obsessive fans and self-proclaimed wives. Now that they had finally entered university and broken free from their previous constraints, who wouldn't have their heart flutter at the sight of a campus idol who was tall, handsome, academically brilliant, and from a wealthy family?

Following those fluttering heartbeats came the inevitable jealousy upon seeing Yu Qian, the girl who had captured the idol's favor.

During the five-minute break in the middle of the session, Zhou Jingchen had run over just to keep Yu Qian company, making the expressions on the faces of the girls across the playground look even uglier.

Zhou Jingchen had originally worried that Yu Qian would be unbearably hot standing out here in the midsummer heat, especially since she was dressed so bundled up. To his surprise, she hadn't shed a single drop of sweat; she remained cool, fresh, and pristine throughout.

Seeing him approach, she had even removed her sunglasses, her eyes curving into crescent moons with a smile.

The shark-silk garment gifted to her by the Weaver Girl was specially crafted to counter sultry summer weather, so she was completely unaffected by conditions like this.

"Are you really not hot?" Seeing that the time was drawing near, Zhou Jingchen lingered, reluctant to leave.

"I'm truly not hot. Be a good boy and go back to military training; I certainly don't want you performing poorly and having to repeat it next year." Yu Qian removed her hat to show him that not a single drop of sweat had formed, then gently pushed him away. "Go on, go on, don't worry about me."

Zhou Jingchen kept turning his head as he walked back to his formation, even glancing over at Yu Qian before the instructor noticed.

Every time his gaze drifted over, Yu Qian would flash him a large, heart-shaped gesture with her hands.

The annoyance that had festered in his chest for so long dissipated entirely because of this, and a soft, doting smile involuntarily spread across his face.

This gentle smile was caught by the girls who had been keeping a close watch on him, fueling an even deeper jealousy and dislike toward Yu Qian.

Having spent days trying to get close to the campus idol without ever eliciting a single smile from him, they were furious that some little bitch from goodness knows where had come along and stolen his heart.

When the training finally ended, those girls who had constantly lingered near Zhou Jingchen exchanged glances and walked toward Yu Qian while Zhou Jingchen was being intercepted by some male classmates.

The closer they got, the more apparent it became how exceptional Yu Qian's figure was. Once they stood right in front of her, they felt like dwarfs staring up at a giant, forced to tilt their heads up just to look at her, completely devoid of any imposing aura.

Taking a few steps back to meet Yu Qian at eye level, one of them demanded, "What is your relationship with Zhou Jingchen?"

This interrogative tone was remarkably discourteous.

Yu Qian looked at them, and even through her dark sunglasses, they could sense the utter disdain in her eyes. "None of your damn business."

There was nothing to explain to romantic rivals attempting to snatch Zhou Jingchen away, so her tone was even sharper and more impolite.

The group of girls was fit to be tied. Having focused on their studies and reigned as top students for so many years, they were accustomed only to flattery and praise; where had they ever heard such vulgar language? "As expected, people with poor education have no conversational skills either, spilling vulgarities left and right."

Glancing at them sideways, Yu Qian walked straight toward them.

Fearing that Yu Qian was about to pick a fight, the girls startled and retreated several paces, only to find that Yu Qian simply brushed past them.

"Hah."

Turning around, they realized Yu Qian was heading directly toward Zhou Jingchen.

They wanted to step forward and pull her back, but were intimidated by her presence. By the time they hesitated, she had already reached Zhou Jingchen's side.

"Ah-Chen." Standing just outside the circle enclosing him, Yu Qian called out to him softly.

Upon seeing her, Zhou Jingchen immediately grabbed Yi Ting by the arm and told his classmates, "If you have any questions, ask him."

With that, he walked out and led Yu Qian away.

Watching them leave before their very eyes, neither the girls nor the boys could find any justification to stop them again.

However, now that Zhou Jingchen was gone, Yi Ting was still right here.

So the crowd shifted their target, surrounding Yi Ting anew to pry for information about the pair.

Han Su and Yu Yang had come over to invite the others to dinner, only to find Yi Ting trapped dead in the center of the crowd with no way forward or backward, while Zhou Jingchen was nowhere to be found.

"Where's Chen-Chen?" Han Su asked in her characteristically sugary-sweet tone.

Having finally found his saviors, Yi Ting broke through the encirclement in a couple of strides, grabbed the two of them, and bolted. Once they reached the safety of the cafeteria and caught their breath, he blurted out, "Chen-Chen's little cutie showed up, so he went off to keep her company."

"Huh? Choosing sex over friendship again, are we?" Yu Yang teased.

"Choosing sex over friendship isn't something new today; aren't you used to it yet?" Yi Ting rolled his eyes in response.