Chapter 11: The Aftermath

When Shen Ru entered his room alone, the system's pop-up instantly appeared.

[Mission 2 completed!]

[Congratulations, congratulations, congratulations! Important things must be said thrice.]

[You have been awarded 50 points.]

[Mission 3: Receive Little Red Riding Hood's red riding hood]

Shen Ru was absolutely confused and asked, "What is this hood thing? I don't see Hua Xiu wearing a red riding hood every time she visits her grandmother."

The system was filled with disdain. [Ha, you're going to ask questions about the mission now? I thought you weren't like my other hosts.]

Shen Ru rolled his eyes. "Anyone would ask the system after receiving this mission. Isn't it too mysterious?"

[Remember when I said that the fairy tales in the worlds you enter have been modified?] Shen Ru nodded. [I can't exactly reveal what and where the red riding hood is but I'll give you a clue. Hua Xiu's red riding hood might not literally be a red riding hood. It could've been modified to fit this modern world.]

After thinking for some time, Shen Ru sighed and started contacting Old Hao to have someone investigate Hua Xiu. Perhaps Hua Xiu always brought an object with her everywhere, which could count as her "red riding hood". Similarly, he'll start paying more attention to her habits, albeit in a discreet way.

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The next day, Shen Ru wasn't surprised to see Hua Xiu. He had already relayed his testimony at the police station and found out that Hua Xiu lied and said that Li Zhong manipulated her to let him visit Hua Zhi. Considering Hua Xiu's young age and actress-level skills, the police didn't detain her and simply left her with a verbal warning, which was as useless as a knife without a blade.

Strangely though, a rumor had spread around the school. It was said that Li Zhong seduced Hua Xiu and they had a sexual relationship. After the teachers found out about it, Li Zhong was fired and that was why he wasn't the school nurse anymore.

Shen Ru could bet a thousand yuan that Jun Zixin was the one that started the rumor. However, while he was happy that Hua Xiu got her just deserts, he was uneasy with the knowledge that Jun Zixin had done many things for him.

Jun Zixin didn't report his act of stalking Hua Xiu, tutored him so that he can improve his grades, helped him complete his first and second mission, and now he was retaliating against people that have wronged him. Shen Ru couldn't lie and say that it was just his imagination. That would be too cruel for him.

In the end, he'll have to reject him. It was just a matter of finding the right time to confront him.

"Boss Shen, you seem to be down today. Did something happen?" Gu Haoyu asked.

Shen Ru smiled and shook his head. "Nothing, I just slept on the wrong side of the bed today."

"Boss Shen, did you hear about what happened to Li Zhong? I don't think it's true, honestly," Jia Hao said.

"Because Li Zhong isn't handsome?" Shen Ru guessed.

Jia Hao laughed. "How did you know what I was thinking, boss?"

"It's pretty obvious honestly, everyone can see how much she salivates over Jun xuezhang," Gu Haoyu added.

Upon the mention of Jun Zixin, Shen Ru's lips twitched but he resisted the frown from forming on his face. It was just now that he realized that he didn't like the idea of Hue Xiu being interested in Jun Zixin. Of course, it was normal to not want your nemesis getting together with your friend. Because of this, he didn't think much of it before. Now, though, knowing that Jun Zixin's feelings for him, Shen Ru couldn't help but think that maybe this feeling was called possessiveness.

Shen Ru immediately cut this line of thought, knowing that even if he liked Jun Zixin back, he would still reject him.

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During the lunch break, Shen Ru didn't eat with Jun Zixin like usual and went along with Gu Haoyu and Jia Hao to Gu Haoyu's apartment. His apartment was just within walking distance away so it was convenient to go there for lunch.

While they were eating, Gu Haoyu's phone suddenly rang. His face darkened upon seeing the number on the phone. Shen Ru frowned and asked, "Is it your parents?"

Gu Haoyu sighed as he rejected the call. "Yup. After they found that I rented an apartment, they've been badgering me, saying the money I spent for the apartment was stolen from them."

"Aish, they're too shameless. They really think that you can't earn enough money to rent an apartment," Jia Hao said.

"If they keep pestering you, you should file a restraining order against them," Shen Ru suggested.

"I've thought about that too. The problem is that I don't have enough money to pay for a lawyer—" Gu Haoyu pointedly gave Jia Hao a glance. "—and I don't want to depend on you two too much for my expenses. I can just ignore their calls. It's not like I stole their money anyway, and they don't even have evidence to prosecute me with it."

Jia Hao was still concerned. "Yu Yu, just tell us if they're becoming too much, alright? I can definitely punch an elder or two."

Shen Ru chuckled. "Sure, your scrawny arms can."

"Boss Shen!"

The three of them laughed as they bantered. At one point, Jia Hao suddenly mentioned, "You know, Boss Shen, you've changed these past few months."

Shen Ru raised an eyebrow as if confused. "What do you mean?"

"Before, you were like a big boss. Now, you're still bossing over us…but I can't help but feel that your orders made us change for the better good."

Gu Haoyu added enthusiastically, "I noticed that too! Before, you were ordering us to bully some enemies. Now, you're ordering us to study hard for calculus. I didn't expect this turn of events."

Shen Ru laughed and shrugged. "It was your own choice to follow my example. In fact, you don't need to call me 'Boss Shen' anymore. You two are not my lackeys, but my friends."

"Boss Shen, you're making me cry…" Jia Hao was teary-eyed.

"We'll still call you 'Boss Shen', boss. We've already gotten used to it," Gu Haoyu said seriously but he had a wide smile on his face.

Shen Ru didn't know whether to laugh or cry as he patted them on the head. "Fine, fine, let's see if you'll still call me 'Boss Shen' in front of your future girlfriends."

Jia Hao perked up at the mention of that. "Speaking of girlfriends, boss, is there anyone that you like? Although you've gotten even more love letters lately, I've never seen you accept one!"

"No, I'm not interested in anyone."

Jia Hao couldn't believe it. "Really, no one?"

Gu Haoyu thought otherwise. "Honestly, I believe Boss Shen. I've never seen him spend time with anyone other than us and Jun xuezhang."

Shen Ru sighed internally. Jun Zixin again. It seemed that he can't completely get away from that person even in the comfort of his friends.

"Come to think of it, you and Jun xuezhang are always together. I didn't expect that the two of you can get along consider his personality," Gu Haoyu continued.

This time, Shen Ru was interested. "What do you mean by his personality?"

"Well, this is an unpopular opinion but I just think that Jun xuezhang is a bit…lonely. Sure, he has many friends and knows many people but I've never seen him spend much of his time with anyone except you. Well, there's the student council members too but they're usually busy with doing their work."

"I didn't notice that," Jia Hao said. "I've always thought that Jun xuezhang was very friendly to everyone."

"You two are quite observant," Shen Ru remarked. "Honestly, Jun xuezhang is a good friend to me. It's a bit unexpected for us to become friends but maybe opposites attract?"

"That could be it," Gu Haoyu said.

The trio talked for some more until they regretfully left when it was nearing their next class. Before class started, Shen Ru got a message from Old Hao. During the course of the lunch break, the private investigator had already placed some small cameras near Hua Xiu's desk. At the same time, the private investigator will follow her when she goes back to her home after class.

Shen Ru was satisfied with this. Although he was still planning to observe for any peculiarities, that doesn't mean he could do this during class. It would be too weird and creepy for him to perpetually watch a young girl like Hua Xiu, especially since the original Shen Ru had bullied her before.

After class, as usual, the trio met up with Jun Zixin to head to Tango Café for tutoring. As they were leaving, however, they were interrupted by Hua Xiu running up to Jun Zixin. "Jun xuezhang…!"

Jun Zixin's eyes darkened but he gave her a polite smile. "What is it?"

"Are you free tomorrow afternoon? I…We can go to a café if you'd like."

Shen Ru frowned. Even after being an accomplice to the almost murder of her grandmother, Hua Xiu had gotten more shameless. He much preferred her previous cowardice to the mess she was right now.

"I'm afraid I'm not free tomorrow. I have to tutor some students after class," Jun Zixin replied.

Hua Xiu still insisted, "Then, how about the day after tomorrow?"

"I tutor these students every weekday, and I'm not free on the weekends too. I have student council work to do."

"But—"

Shen Ru had enough of this embarrassment of a situation and voiced out his annoyance, "Can't you see that Jun xuezhang doesn't want to go on a date with you? Please stop being shameless, it's giving me secondhand embarrassment."

Of course, the death-seeking protagonist just had to retaliate. "Why are you speaking up for Jun xuezhang? It's up to him if he agrees with me. You're just a disgusting homo trying to seduce Jun xuezhang who doesn't know his place!"

When Hua Xiu first approached them, most of the class was already perking up their ears to listen to the conversation. Now that Hua Xiu started shouting, everyone's eyes were now on them.

Shen Ru stared at Hua Xiu, at a loss for words. He was speechless not because he had no argument against her, but at her sheer stupidity.

When she saw that he didn't respond to her, Hua Xiu smiled proudly. "See, you're just a disgusting homo—"

Jun Zixin interrupted her before she can incriminate herself further, "Hua Xiu, come with me to the guidance counselor. I'll have to report you for discriminatory behavior."

Hua Xiu had a confused expression on her face as if she had done nothing wrong. "Huh?"

"Just come with me, or else I'll have to call a teacher on you."

Hua Xiu's panic right now somewhat resembled her Hua Zhi during the day. Instinctively, the two of them would want to bright others down with them once they receive their punishment. Shen Ru just didn't expect that she would be too shameless.

"Ha, I bet you're a disgusting homo too, Jun xuezhang! That's why you're defending this fake school grass!" she started shouting.

Jun Zixin and Shen Ru shared a look before Jun Zixin moved to escort Hua Xiu out of the room.

Once the ruckus was finished, Jia Hao remarked, "Wow, that was unexpected."

"I don't understand why she mistook you for being gay, though. What is she in on?" Gu Haoyu was still confused from the shock.

Shen Ru frowned, wondering if someone had fed Hua Xiu some information. While she was shameless, accusing him of being gay must've come from someone. He couldn't imagine that she had enough brain cells to infer something from his interactions with Jun Zixin.

"Since we don't have anything to do right now, we should go to the guidance counselor too," Shen Ru suggested.

Gu Haoyu nodded and added, "We can act as witnesses."

Unfortunately, before they can enter the guidance counselor's room, they were blocked by one of the student council members. The student council member said, "The three of you can't enter."

"Why?" Gu Haoyu asked.

The member shrugged. "The president's orders. I'm confused too."

Shen Ru frowned. He had a gut feeling about the reason behind this.

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When Jun Zixin was finally out of the guidance counselor's room, he wasn't surprised to see the trio waiting for him. Shen Ru raised an eyebrow at him, signaling him to explain what had happened.

"Hua Xiu is staying inside to talk with the guidance counselor. In their circle of friends, there was a rumor that Shen Ru is gay…and you know the rest. She said that Fang Li was the one who started it, but we can't be too sure about that."

Shen Ru nodded, accepting this news calmly. In fact, he didn't really feel offended when Hua Xiu accused him of being gay. First, she was telling the truth. Second, he's already weathered enough storms after coming out of his past life. An insult from a young girl like her was nothing.

The others thought otherwise, however.

"Aren't they friends? Why is she throwing the blame onto Fang Li?" Jia Hao wondered.

"I bet Hua Xiu was the one who started it, not Fang Li," Gu Haoyu replied.

Shen Ru couldn't help but feel that there was some merit in their suspicions. If Hua Xiu was the one who started the rumor though, wouldn't that mean that he had attracted her attention? However, other than that one bullying incident, he didn't really have much interaction with her. It was impossible for her to know about his involvement in the Hua Zhi incident too, as Jun Zixin had long bribed the police's silence. Could it be that she knows of his plans to expose her thievery?

He sighed as his thoughts filled his mind. "Let's not talk about this anymore. It's already done and she's gotten her punishment." Then, he said, "Jun Zixin, I think we need to talk."

Gu Haoyu and Jia Hao exchanged confused looks but gave them some space by using excuses that there was an emergency in their homes.

Shen Ru couldn't help but laugh once they were gone. "They're really obvious."

Jun Zixin wasn't amused, however. Despite his attempts to keep himself calm, the expression on his face revealed his anxiety. "What is it you're going to talk about?"

Shen Ru stared at him for a moment and finally said, "I know that you like me."

"What are you going to do with that information?" Jun Zixin hurriedly followed up with a question.

Shen Ru opened his mouth but hesitated to say anything. In fact, the turn of events just now made him realize…that he liked Jun Zixin a bit too. When Hua Xiu kept trying to insist Jun Zixin go on a date with her, he was filled with a sense of possessiveness. He didn't want her around Jun Zixin, the person that he liked.

Even if a stranger replaced her position, he still would do the same. It was highly unexpected that he gave in to his emotions earlier. Logically, it would've been better to just let Jun Zixin politely reject her. What was in his mind for him to act irrationally?

Now that he stood face to face with a serious Jun Zixin, he realized his feelings.

However, as he concluded before, even if he liked Jun Zixin, he would still reject him.

…But, for some reason, he still wanted to see if there was a chance.

"I have a question," Shen Ru spoke.

"What is it?" Jun Zixin asked, his attention solely dedicated to him.

"I believe in the idea of reincarnation. If we get together and I reincarnate into someone else, would you be okay if I get together with someone else that is not an incarnation of you?" Shen Ru decided to go with a lie.

Jun Zixin smiled and said, "I didn't think you were a superstitious person. It's okay for me if you find someone else after your reincarnation because that time you'll be another person. You aren't the same person I loved before."

Shen Ru froze in place. He couldn't argue with this logic. After he enters another world, he won't be the same Shen Run that studied at X University anymore, he'll be another person with a new background and identity.

However, he still had another question, "Then, what if I still have my memories of my previous life even after I reincarnated? Would you be okay with that?"

Jun Zixin thought for a bit and answered, "I would be a bit uncomfortable with the idea, it would feel like you were cheating on me."

Shen Ru's clenched fists trembled at that answer. He already knew that it was impossible between the two of them, so why did he even have hope in the first place?

"However, even if you had your memories, it would still be virtually impossible for you to find me. What if the two of us were reincarnated into bodies that are worlds away? I don't want to be so selfish as to hope that you'll forever stay loyal to me even after death, so I can accept that."

Hearing these words, Shen Ru's eyes brightened. He hastily grabbed both of Jun Zixin's hands. "Really?"

Jun Zixin smiled and squeezed his hands. "Of course."

"Then, I'll—" Shen Ru was about to accept him as his lover on the spot before remembering a piece of love advice he had heard in his past life. "I mean, you can court me before I accept you. At least 3 months minimum!"

Jun Zixin was filled with great relief as he brought him to his embrace. He whispered in a low voice to his air, his breath causing Shen Ru's ears to turn red a bit, "I like you, Ah Ru."

Shen Ru humphed and said, "Finally, you said it."

"I like you, Ah Ru."

"Didn't you already say that?"

"I just like hearing it coming from my mouth."

Shen Ru rolled his eyes but his smile still remained.