“What? You mean you only like girls who don’t like you? What kind of messed up logic is that?”

“That’s what he said.”

“He’s got a screw loose, clearly.”

After hearing Zhang Shaoqing’s so-called “dating philosophy” from Wen Yang, Ning Chu was completely speechless.

“Isn’t that a total paradox? How are you ever supposed to get a girlfriend then?!”

“Why do you sound exactly like Wen Yang? A girlfriend isn’t urgent. I’m a rich second-gen, you think I’d ever worry about that?”

The tiny rental only had one chair and table, so the three of them sat cross-legged on the bed.

Scratching his head, Zhang Shaoqing grumbled:

“Honestly, I think there’s something wrong with me too. I nearly had Qian Qian in the bag, and suddenly I just lost all interest.”

“And then I had a fight with my family again, so I just ran out here to hide for a few days.”

He sighed gloomily.

“Ling Ling’s still the best...”

No—if you followed his twisted logic, he’d always keep liking that childhood friend catgirl. The only reason was that she never liked him back. If Ling Ling really agreed to be with him, he’d probably lose interest in her too.

Ning Chu silently rolled her eyes. So this is what a villain looks like... figures he’d be this warped.

She had already cleaned up the mess in the apartment, stuffing all the questionable things into her suitcase. On the surface at least, there was nothing incriminating left.

Leaning against the bedframe with her knees pulled up, Ning Chu asked,

“So what’s your plan for the next few days? Renting a place?”

“My mom froze my bank card. Can’t afford it.”

Worst-case scenario confirmed!

The little love-nest she and Wen Yang shared was about to be invaded by a shameless squatter—Zhang Shaoqing! From now on they’d probably be stuck sneaking off to that couple’s hotel...

“Wen Yang, you’ll take care of me, right?” Zhang Shaoqing said with a grin, totally unfazed. “I’m low-maintenance—just give me water and two steamed buns a day.”

“I don’t have money. It’s all with Ning Chu.”

Immediately, he turned to her. Ning Chu shook her head so fast it almost flew off.

“Go get a part-time job!”

“Tch~ You think I can’t do part-time? I’ll go find work today!”

Yeah right... Ning Chu rubbed her temples, imagining what disaster a pampered rich kid would make of a part-time job.

She tried again:

“And what about Qian Qian? You should at least take responsibility, shouldn’t you?”

“Take responsibility for what? I never did anything to her.”

“No, I mean, she probably likes you now, doesn’t she?”

Zhang Shaoqing didn’t answer. Instead, he turned to Wen Yang:

“Any day-pay jobs around here? Something that just covers meals.”

“How about handing out flyers? A hundred yuan a day.”

“Perfect! I’ll check it out later!”

The abrupt topic change made Ning Chu’s expression darken.

He’s like a damn kid, always dumping trouble on me!

Looking totally unconcerned, Zhang Shaoqing still sneaked glances at her.

Even without staring, it was obvious—Ning Chu wasn’t the same as before. Less childish, more mature, radiating feminine charm, even a trace of allure.

He had watched her grow from a little boyish brat into a mature young woman, after all.

“I didn’t notice it before, but after just half a month—you’ve gotten even prettier~”

“Shut up!”

“Hey, look at your old photos!” He pulled up his phone and scrolled to a shot from military training, holding it up next to her face.

“See? Totally unrecognizable now!”

On the screen, a scrawny kid in oversized fatigues looked small and pitiful, that baby face hardly resembling the one in front of him now.

After all, she had gone from boy to succubus...

Yep, that was definitely blackmail material.

Ning Chu froze, a blush shooting from her cheeks to the tips of her ears. She snapped, mortified:

“Delete it!”

Zhang Shaoqing immediately snatched his phone back, grinning like a rogue.

“Not deleting!”

“Wen Yang! Get him!”

The moment Ning Chu gave the order, Wen Yang immediately shoved Zhang Shaoqing flat onto the bed. He thrashed desperately, wriggling like some helpless worm, but he was no match for Wen Yang’s strength.

“What the hell! Why are you listening to her?!”

“She’s my girlfriend—who else would I listen to?”

“Exactly~”

Humming smugly, Ning Chu tried to snatch Zhang Shaoqing’s phone. But he gripped it tight, refusing to let go. She tugged several times like they were playing tug-of-war, but still couldn’t pry it from his hand.

Her brows furrowed. Instead, she bent down and flipped through her own phone’s album—pulling up a shot from back in September.

“Here, look. Who’s this?”

It was a picture of Zhang Shaoqing and Wang Jie slumped against each other on a cart, both dazed and goofy. Taken from a carefully chosen angle, it made Zhang Shaoqing’s usually decent-looking face appear ridiculously sleazy.

“Holy shit! You thick-browed bastard, you’ve been secretly snapping pics?!”

He struggled to snatch her phone back, but she had already scooted away, putting distance between them. Meanwhile Wen Yang pressed him down harder, pinning him in place.

“You can sneak photos of me, but I can’t do the same?” Ning Chu smirked triumphantly.

“Hurry up and let go—I’m checking your photo album.”

“That’s not free content, you know!”

“...”

She could already imagine what a guy’s gallery might look like.

For example, Wen Yang’s had been full of model photo shoots, a handful of lewd pics, and lots of her own photos. The first batch, she had long since deleted and replaced with herself.

But Zhang Shaoqing wasn’t just any guy. He was a little twisted, a borderline-pervy, not-yet-blackened villain. Finding heavy tastes in his album wouldn’t surprise her.

If he had an encrypted album too... that was better left unseen.

“Wen Yang, you check it. Delete all our blackmail material. Make sure it’s wiped clean.”

“You gonna hand it over nicely, or do I have to take it?” Wen Yang asked, glancing down at Zhang Shaoqing.

“Damn it, the two of you ganging up to bully an honest man!”

After a round of noisy scuffling, the apartment finally quieted down.

Ning Chu leaned back with a satisfied grin after erasing the incriminating photos—only to realize she’d just classified her old male self as blackmail material.

‘...Have I really fallen this far into womanhood already?’

Shaking off the thought, she pulled a spare key from her pocket and handed it over.

“Here, you can use this. It’s almost noon, I’m heading back to eat with Wen Yang. And listen—he’s not gonna feed you. If you don’t want to starve, find a day job, or at least one that covers meals.”

“Got it, your nagging’s worse than my mom,” Zhang Shaoqing grumbled, sitting sulkily at the desk and rummaging through his suitcase.

He seemed totally oblivious to the fact that he’d already become their biggest headache—utterly shameless!

Just picturing herself forced to spend money on hotel rooms from now on made Ning Chu bristle. She shot him a vicious glare at his back.

Wait, maybe this was actually a good chance. If she had to stop fooling around at home, maybe she could finally clear her head...

‘I can’t keep living in a haze of lust like this….’

She silently scolded herself.

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Link for character illustration:

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