02

 

Song Yu woke up the next day, staring at the red exclamation mark in the chat box, feeling a little lost.

Why did Tan Yue delete him?

Scrolling up the messages, Song Yu stared for a long time, but couldn't figure out which of his words had offended the other party.

He lowered his head and sent another message.

Still a red exclamation mark.

A little angry...

Song Yu pursed his lips, taking advantage of the other party deleting him, and secretly sent another message.

Little Fish: [Big idiot.]

After doing something bad, Song Yu wasn't so depressed anymore, so he calmly added the person back.

He re-applied for a friend, and in the reason for the application: [Brother, why did you delete me?]

He waited for five minutes, but there was still no response.

It seems that the task of online romance with the protagonist is not simple.

There was no use in Song Yu's haste. He put down his phone and went to the bathroom to wash up.

He didn't have to go to work during the day, but that didn't mean there were no other things to do. Song Yu's room was small to begin with, and with his brother's two things, there was no room to even step.

Song Yu found two cardboard boxes, packed everything inside, and stuffed them under the bed.

The space under the bed hadn't been cleaned in a long time, covered in dust and cobwebs. He bent over and slowly cleaned it, choking on the dust that kicked up, coughing until tears streamed down his face.

He rubbed his neck and cheeks with the back of his hand, ending up looking like a little cat covered in dirt.

Completely unaware, after tidying the room, Song Yu found a craft knife in the corner and prepared to scrape off the paint on the wall near the door.

*

Zhao Ran rarely had a day off, but he was used to being diligent and woke up automatically early.

He heard a very faint sound coming from next door, like someone sweeping.

The person living next door… Zhao Ran's mind immediately conjured up that unforgettable, beautiful face.

These low-rent apartments were partitioned, offering almost no soundproofing; someone typing or cursing next door was as if they were in the same room.

The man lay on his bed, listening to the sounds from next door for a full hour.

After cleaning for an hour, the young man finally finished. Zhao Ran thought he would rest; after all, his thin arms and legs didn't seem like the strength to work for long periods.

But a few seconds later, he heard the door open again.

However, there were no footsteps.

What was he doing?

Zhao Ran's heart inexplicably itched. He tossed and turned several times on the cramped bed, his back burning uncontrollably.

Finally, he got up.

As soon as he opened the door, he looked towards the door next door—

and saw his pretty neighbor squatting against the wall, his cheeks dirty, his eyes red as he stared at him.

He looked so small, like he could be lifted with one hand.

Zhao Ran dismissed these strange thoughts, his tone unconsciously softening: "What...are you doing?"

"There's paint on the wall, I need to scrape it off." The boy's tone was different from the ones he'd encountered on construction sites; it was soft, so soft it made his bones tingle.

It even sounded like he was about to cry.

Zhao Ran looked closely and noticed the boy's fingers gripping the knife handle were red from being rubbed.

The rest of his fingers were white and delicate.

So pampered.

Such a delicate person shouldn't be doing this kind of rough work.

Zhao Ran walked over and immediately smelled the fragrance.

He had smelled it when he met the other person last night, and at the time he thought it was shampoo.

Zhao Ran's face inexplicably started to burn. Seeing the young man looking at him, he stammered, "I... I'll help you. You definitely won't finish scraping it like this."

Song Yu put down the razor blade and looked at the man gratefully, "Thank you."

Zhao Ran worked on construction sites, so scraping this amount of paint was nothing to him. He took out his special tools from the room, scraped off the layer of red paint on the wall, and then applied a layer of white putty, quickly making it look brand new.

This was probably the only pleasant thing that had happened to Song Yu in the two days he had been in this world.

He was very grateful to Zhao Ran, staying by his side and wiping the man's sweat with a wet wipe from time to time, constantly calling him "Brother Zhao," "Brother Zhao," in a very soft voice.

Zhao Ran's mouth was dry, and he didn't understand why he was so hot after doing so little work today.

He was only wearing a black vest, his dark muscles bulging, veins faintly visible. Occasionally, he would accidentally brush against Song Yu's pale arm, the stark contrast between the two colors creating a subtle sensation.

"Okay." Zhao Ran habitually reached for his vest to wipe his sweat, but then, remembering something, quickly put it away. "Who splashed paint on you? Maybe you should install a security camera at the door."

Song Yu didn't mention his debt and nodded.

Scraping paint and repainting walls were incredibly strenuous work in his eyes, especially since Zhao Ran had done the plaster himself. Even if the other party asked for a few hundred yuan, it wouldn't be unreasonable.

But Zhao Ran had been working hard all this time, covered in sweat, all for free.

Song Yu felt embarrassed: "Let me treat you to dinner."

Then, thinking of his meager savings: "I'll go downstairs and get some takeout, then call you over to eat."

Zhao Ran froze, staring at him: "Your face..."

"Huh?"

"...Your face is covered in dirt."

After being reminded, Song Yu went to the bathroom to wash his face before coming downstairs.

Zhao Ran stared at that slender figure, belatedly standing there dumbfounded for a long time.

For some reason, even with Song Yu's face covered in dust, making him look like a little cat, he still found the boy clean and fragrant. On the contrary, he himself was covered in sweat, and he didn't want to bother the other person.

*

There was a very affordable food stall downstairs; Song Yu ordered four dishes and two servings of rice for only 42 yuan.

He carried them upstairs and saw Zhao Ran as soon as he reached the door.

The other person must have just showered; his short hair was still damp, and he had changed into short sleeves.

Seeing him approach, the man reached out and took the bag.

Song Yu's fingers, which had been constricted and turned white, finally felt relieved. He opened the door, and the two sat around the only table in the room.

Zhao Ran looked strong and had a big appetite; Song Yu gave him most of his rice.

After finishing, the man voluntarily cleaned up the trash on the table and went back to his room.

Song Yu glanced at his phone; the protagonist's request still hadn't been accepted.

009 didn't post anything related to the other person for the time being, and two days passed like this. Aside from sending one or two friend requests as a routine check-in, Song Yu didn't do anything else.

The landlord came the day after he finished repairing the wall, glanced at him, collected three months' rent, and left.

Song Yu's account was short another thousand yuan.

Staring at his meager savings, he pitifully went to work.

Fortunately, the bar wasn't too crowded lately, so working wasn't too tiring. According to the original storyline, his colleagues who often mocked his preference for men didn't seem to be causing trouble much.

However, Song Yu remained vigilant because he noticed that while they weren't actively picking fights, they were secretly watching him, clearly looking for an opportunity to humiliate him.

Around 11 PM, Song Yu was wiping glasses in a corner when he heard someone say, "Damn! Stop slacking off, the boss is coming!"

Song Yu stopped, instinctively straightening his back and adopting a serious work ethic.

Soon, he saw two tall figures in the dim light.

009 Reminder: [Host, the one in front is the bar owner, and the one behind is his friend.]

The bar owner's name is Shen Yize, the second male lead in this world, and also the main protagonist's childhood friend four years his senior.

Shen Yize opened this bar when he was a junior in college, but he rarely came, leaving most of the management to the manager.

The stairs were to Song Yu's right; craning his neck, he could only see half of Shen Yize's profile.

That face was cold and calm, appearing more mature and composed than his peers.

According to the information 009 provided, Shen Yize's character was roughly the typical devoted second male lead.

In terms of plot, he and the other man had no interaction.

Lost in thought, the man behind Shen Yize suddenly stopped, leaned on the stairs, and gave him a mocking smile.

Song Yu was startled, immediately averting his gaze and lowering his head.

A few seconds later, 009 reminded him that Shen Yize and the other man had reached their room on the second floor.

Song Yu let out a soft sigh, and suddenly someone sat down next to him.

He looked up; it was the boy he'd accidentally bumped into that day, named Li Xu.

The other man casually picked up a cup, pretending to wipe it, and after a moment whispered to him, "You haven't given up on the boss yet?"

Song Yu: "?"

He didn't know how to answer, so he pretended not to hear.

Li Xu continued, "I heard the boss went to S University, he was the campus heartthrob of his year, but it seems he's never been in a relationship."

"Maybe he just likes men."

"..."

Song Yu replied dismissively, "I know."

Li Xu still seemed unwilling to leave, staring at him: "Besides, you're so pretty, I think the chances of success are high. Men are all about looks."

"If it were me, I would definitely say yes."

Song Yu: "..."

He was a little confused, wondering if the other person was mocking him, when someone called Li Xu away.

Song Yu breathed a sigh of relief, ignoring what the other person said.

Today was his turn to clean.

After putting the cleaned cups back in the cabinet, Song Yu went to the changing room to mop the floor.

Halfway through mopping, 009 said: [Host, a mission has arrived.]

Song Yu perked up his ears.

Not only did it arrive, but two at once.

Mission one was to get Tan Yue to add him as a friend tonight; mission two was to establish an online relationship with Tan Yue within a week.

?

A week...?

This mission was really a bit too much, he started to bargain with 009.

009: [You need to complete the first task first, with a deadline of midnight tonight.]

Song Yu glanced at his phone.

Less than an hour left.

He frantically opened WeChat and sent several more friend requests.

As expected, there was still no response.

Song Yu ignored WeChat and opened another game-based social app, sending several messages to the other party.

The progress bar didn't budge.

None of this was as effective as sending photos before.

But he had only taken those few photos last night and sent them all to Tan Yue. Should he ask for leave to go back and take more?

Just as Song Yu was worrying, 009 suddenly said: [Host, the data from the previous world is still stored here.]

Song Yu was at a loss and hummed in agreement.

Soon, 009 retrieved the data of him wearing a sailor uniform and stockings, took a screenshot, and sent the photo to Song Yu's phone.

Song Yu stared at himself sitting on the table with his legs crossed, his ears burning: [...Is this...is this okay?]

009: [Host, there's half an hour left.] Song

Yu didn't care much and sent all the photos 009 had sent to Tan Yue. He didn't even notice in one of the photos that the instep was taut.

It looked like someone was being deeply kissed, only tensing up when they couldn't take it anymore.

After sending the photos, Song Yu, worried that the other person wouldn't use the app, sent several more friend requests on WeChat.

【Brother, I sent you photos.】

【I'll send more later.】

After sending them, 009 suddenly reminded him: 【Host, the second attacker is still 100 meters away from you.】

Like a lazy employee, Song Yu immediately turned off his phone and put it in the closet, then picked up the mop and turned his back to the door.

Soon, the door was pushed open.

A clear, alluring voice came from behind: "Your name is Song Yu, right?"

Song Yu turned around and saw that the person who came in was Shen Yize's friend, the one who had smiled at him on the stairs earlier.

But soon, Shen Yize also came in.

Song Yu whispered, "Boss."

Shen Yize nodded slightly.

"Why are you being so serious? My name is Lin Qin, I'm a friend of your boss."

Completely different from Shen Yize's composed personality, Lin Qin was a bit of a joker. He'd noticed the handsome young man's gaze had been fixed on Shen Yize, and after a few casual probes, he discovered Shen Yize knew about it.

"I'm not interested in dating right now," Shen Yize replied.

Lin Qin thought the young man was quite handsome, and maybe a chat would work. However, Shen Yize had a strong sense of self-preservation, and Lin Qin couldn't fathom his thoughts even after all these years.

"Fine, if you're not interested, I'll go after him."

The two went downstairs, and Lin Qin casually inquired with the supervisor before finding Song Yu, who was on duty in the changing room.

Under the bright incandescent lights, the boy's face was even more stunning than before, his fair skin soft and delicate, his light-colored eyes looking up as if they had hooks.

Lin Qin's breath caught in his throat for a few seconds.

His expression turned serious, and he bluntly asked Song Yu for her WeChat.

Song Yu hesitated.

The other party was the boss's friend, so he didn't dare to refuse directly. He subconsciously bit his lip and thought for a few seconds before looking helplessly at Shen Yize.

His lips, which had been bitten until they were soft and red, looked as if they were soaked with rose juice. The boy subconsciously licked his lips and called out, "Boss..."

Shen Yize's gaze lingered for two seconds before he looked away without making a sound and said to Lin Qin expressionlessly, "You know the result. Stop harassing my employee."

It seems Shen Yize is quite protective of his employees.

Song Yu showed a grateful expression.

Perhaps feeling rejected, Lin Qin sighed, "Looks like I'm still not charming enough."

Afraid of embarrassing him, Song Yu immediately said, "It's because I don't like guys, it's not your problem."

Lin Qin raised an eyebrow, his expression unreadable, "Hmm?"

Shen Yize was slightly taken aback, then quickly regained his composure.

Just then, someone outside called for help, and Song Yu immediately put the mop aside, "Boss, I'm going to help."

With that, she eagerly ran out of the changing room.

After the person left, Lin Qin glanced at Shen Yize and teased, "Looks like you're just being presumptuous, or has he already given up on you and found someone new?"

Shen Yize's expression was indifferent, but his eyes revealed no emotion.

Soon, Lin Qin left the changing room, and Shen Yize followed closely behind. The next second, his gaze inadvertently swept over the trash can in the corner, and he stopped.

The changing room was usually used by employees to change clothes and was cleaned three times a week; the trash can wasn't used for garbage.

Shen Yize bent down slightly.

Inside were some deliberately torn pieces of paper.

*

Freshman year has a lot of courses, especially during exam week.

Tan Yue, despite his aloofness, wasn't the type to skip classes.

However, he'd been noticeably distracted in class these past few days, even skipping basketball, and going straight back to his dorm with just his backpack after class, constantly checking his phone.

The symptoms were obvious; either he was in a relationship or had broken up.

His roommate, returning from basketball, couldn't help but ask, seeing Tan Yue slumped over his phone, "Who is it? They've got you hooked."

Tan Yue propped his chin up slightly and glanced at him.

"Little Fish" hadn't seemed very enthusiastic these past few days, barely paying him any attention. Probably seeing he wasn't falling for it, she took pictures and sent them to other men.

Tan Yue scoffed.

The other guy was probably a player, calling him "brother" right off the bat and saying she liked him.

He turned his phone face down and went to shower.

While showering, those photos kept popping into his mind.

Summer was just around the corner, and the dorm's air conditioning wasn't working well. Tan Yue came out of the bathroom wearing only a towel.

Most freshmen were still teenagers, but Tan Yue's physique was top-notch, with well-defined features yet retaining a youthful, naturally flowing physique.

Water droplets trickled down his hair from his collarbone to his abs, disappearing into the towel along his V-line.

Unfortunately, this embarrassing scene went unnoticed in the boys' dorm.

His roommate was playing games and didn't even bother to glance at him: "By the way, Tan Yue, your phone rang several times while you were showering. I deleted the post an hour after I posted it, don't blame me."

Tan Yue was putting on his shirt, and after straightening it, he opened his phone and glanced at it casually.

In his recent private messages on his game account, "Little Fish" had sent him several messages.

He didn't open them and put his phone back on the table.

But less than half a minute later, he picked it up again. He'd just

read them and then block him.

That was what Tan Yue thought before opening the message.

However, the moment he opened the screen—

Tan Yue's pupils contracted sharply.

His roommate glanced back unintentionally and saw the usually aloof school heartthrob with tightly pursed lips and flushed ears.

"Holy crap? What's that good stuff you're looking at?"

Tan Yue immediately turned off the screen.

The more he hid it, the more suspicious it seemed.

"Good things should be shared! Did a girl send you photos? Which ones? It's not the 'Look at yours' kind, is it?"

"Play your game."

Tan Yue said, then strode to the upper bunk.

The boy leaned against the wall, scrolling back and forth through the photos of short skirts and white stockings that "Little Fish" had sent.

Her legs were slender but not skinny, her thighs full and smooth, the edges of her stockings squeezing out a bunch of soft flesh.

He could probably sink in with the slightest touch.

Most people would think that the other person was deliberately seducing him when they saw these photos, but Tan Yue felt that "Little Fish" just liked him.

And since they were in the same school, she probably had a crush on him for a long time.

It was because she liked him so much that she was so direct that night.

That's normal.

Without knowing him, she probably wouldn't see his other good points.

He had to give her a chance.

Tan Yue convinced himself of this.

Before passing the test, he also saved those photos to his album.

*

Song Yu was busy until the end of his shift.

The supervisor saw that his cheeks were red from exhaustion and couldn't bear to let him continue cleaning the changing room: "Little Song, you can go home directly. The changing room isn't dirty. I'll mop it for you in a bit."

Song Yu thanked her, changed his clothes, and left through the back door.

As he came out of the alley, 009's voice suddenly sounded: [Host, mission one is complete, and the points have been credited.]

W-what?

Song Yu was surprised and took out his phone to check—

it really was passed...

even the progress bar had increased to 10%...

It seems that sending photos of her wearing skirts really works.

Having mastered the method, Song Yu gathered all the skirts at home during the day the next day. He planned to take photos all at once and send her two sets every day, trying to complete the online romance within the specified time.

His brother's girlfriend was quite tall, and Song Yu could wear almost all of them, except for a few leather skirts that were a bit tight.

Fortunately, 009 wasn't an outsider. It was quick and efficient, taking photos of him as soon as he put on an outfit, finishing in less than half a day.

Song Yu chatted with Tan Yue for three more days.

He wasn't very good at flirting, mostly asking about his day and whether he was happy, then sending photos after only a few exchanges.

Tan Yue remained aloof, mostly replying with "reading," "library," or "playing ball"—a cool guy who rarely spoke more than five words in three sentences.

Song Yu thought he had failed, but then the progress bar jumped to 30%.

It seemed there was still some hope.

So he asked 009: "How high should it go?"

009: "That's determined automatically by the system."

Song Yu nodded.

Then, on the afternoon of the fourth day, because he was too tired from work the night before and slept until 5 pm, he couldn't message Tan Yue at the usual time as before. But Tan Yue proactively sent a message: "What are you doing?"

The progress bar rose a little more.

Song Yu was about to send "Just woke up," but then, remembering she wanted to flirt, she changed it to: "[Thinking about my brother.]"

There was no reply.

Perhaps feeling he was being too casual…

Song Yu retracted the message.

Just then, someone knocked on the door. He put down his phone, opened it, and saw Zhao Ran from next door.

Zhao Ran ruffled his hair haphazardly, as if he hadn't invited anyone before, his voice a little unnatural: “I made too much food, do you want to come over and eat?”

Song Yu had just woken up and was indeed hungry, so he nodded and gave him a friendly smile.

His dark skin completely concealed the faint red at the tips of Zhao Ran's ears.

As soon as he entered Zhao Ran's room, Song Yu smelled the rich aroma of food. He had only wanted to fill his stomach, but Zhao Ran's cooking skills surprised him. He

had even made pork rib and lotus root soup.

Song Yu ate his fill, but Zhao Ran kept putting food into his bowl.

Song Yu was a little embarrassed: "Eat some too."

"You're too thin, eat more."

After a moment, the boy's soft voice echoed in the room: "I have meat on me too."

Zhao Ran wanted to say, "With such a thin waist and legs, where's the meat?" But the next second, as if he had thought of something, his cheeks flushed, and he immediately buried his head in his food, not daring to look at Song Yu.

*

After the meal, Song Yu helped clean up the dishes, but Zhao Ran didn't let him wash them; he basically just stood there watching.

Song Yu was so bored that he looked around. He noticed that the man's room was much larger than his own, and it even had a separate kitchen.

There was even a projector.

When Zhao Ran came out, he saw him staring at the projector: "I bought it for my family before, but we didn't need it, so I brought it here."

Song Yu glanced at him.

In the information 009 had given him, Zhao Ran was a supporting character with even less screen time than him, the third male lead, and was basically mentioned in just a few sentences.

—Single-parent family, his only relative, his mother, was sick, and he dropped out of school to take care of her, but she still passed away two years ago. Afterwards, he came to the city to work.

His role in the story was minimal; he only helped Song Yu a few times when creditors came to collect debts.

Song Yu lowered his eyes.

After a while, he got up and turned on the projector.

The projector was brand new and working.

Song Yu let Zhao Ran choose a movie and went to close the curtains.

The two of them watched a movie in the dark room.

Zhao Ran felt conflicted—the constant scent emanating from Song Yu made him tense, yet he felt relaxed.

He stared at the boy's gentle profile and suddenly felt an urge to kiss him.

* It

was past nine o'clock when the movie ended. Song Yu returned to his room, hurriedly changed his shoes, grabbed his phone, and rushed to the bar.

He used to dare to arrive right on time, but recently the boss had been coming to supervise him every day, so he couldn't be fired yet.

Fortunately, the bar wasn't crowded on a weekday. While Song Yu was idly wiping the tables, 009 suddenly sounded: [Host, the protagonist has sent a message.]

Song Yu was pleasantly surprised.

Seeing the progress bar increase a little, he suddenly remembered that he hadn't sent the other person a photo today. Sneaking away to the bathroom stall, Song Yu opened the chat window and found two

messages from Tan Yue, sent around 6 PM. 

The first was a photo of a basketball. The second— Tan Yue: [Just finished playing basketball, what are you doing?] 

He was proactive in sending the message, and it was longer than before. Song Yu felt a glimmer of hope. 

But with Tan Yue's aloofness, it would take at least a few months of chatting. There were only three days left until the deadline. Song Yu still felt he couldn't finish. 009 encouraged him: [You can try being affectionate with him.] 

But Song Yu usually acted affectionately by throwing himself into the other person's arms or hugging their arm and speaking softly. This was an online relationship; they couldn't meet or talk. 

How could he be affectionate only through text…? 009: [Let me check for you.] Soon, 009 found it: [I see the suggestion is that you need to change your form of address.] 

Song Yu: "?" Hearing 009's suggested form of address, Song Yu's cheeks burned, and his fingers involuntarily clenched his clothes. 

How could he call him that? The other person will probably think he's too easy and delete him again… After agonizing for a long time, Song Yu decided to go all out for the mission. 

Anyway, they're just online friends; blocking him won't make them know who he is. If it doesn't work, he can just add him again with a different account. Song Yu comforted himself and sent two photos of himself wearing a plaid skirt and a tulle skirt. 

The next moment, enduring the shame, he sent the edited message. * A little after 10 p.m., close to the dormitory lights-out time. Tan Yue, as usual, returned to the dormitory with a cold, handsome face, carrying only his backpack. 

Only today, the chill emanating from him seemed even stronger. His phone vibrated a few times. 

The boy didn't even put down his backpack, taking it out of his pocket with a slightly hurried movement. "Xiao Yu" had messaged him. 

Tan Yue opened it; the other person had sent several photos. 

Scrolling up, before he could even open the larger images, the other person sent another message— [Which outfit do you like…husband?] 

Tan Yue's eyelids twitched violently. His Adam's apple bobbed quickly. Clearly, Song Yu had no idea how impactful this title would be for an 18-year-old male college student who had spent the entire night waiting for news.

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