Forced into a romantic relationship

Chapter 259 Prelude
"Zhong Ling, it's the weekend today, are you going to stay in your dorm all day again?"

In the girls' dormitory, a girl is sitting in her seat carefully applying makeup, looking at the girl holding a book behind her through the reflection in the mirror.

The latter turned a page of the book and nodded slightly.

"So there's nothing important?" the girl asked tentatively.

Zhong Ling nodded again.

Looking at the other person's looks and skin that she could never achieve no matter how much makeup she wore, Wu Fang felt envious and said, "Since you're not busy, why don't you come with me for a walk this afternoon? Honghong and Xiaofei have both gone home, and I'm a little bored by myself."

Zhong Ling paused, tilted her head to look at the other person, and looked somewhat confused.

She doesn't like going out much and usually stays in her dorm room except for classes. Her roommates know this, and they usually don't invite her out unless it's for a dorm dinner. In the past, her two roommates would usually go home on weekends, but Wu Fang never asked her to go out with them. Is there something special about today?
She took out her phone and sent Wu Fang a message in front of her: "Are you in a bad mood?"

Wu Fang's phone was on the table, within easy reach. She replied, "No, I'm fine. I'm planning to go to the playground to look at the handsome guys, but I feel a little awkward going alone, so I'd like to find someone to go with."

"handsome guy?"

Although she didn't speak, Zhong Ling looked confused and clearly needed further explanation.

"Haven't you heard?"

Wu Fang was taken aback for a moment, then quickly understood. "That's true... You don't care about things other than studying, so it's normal that you don't know. There's a social event on the playground this afternoon. I heard that every class has handsome guys and beautiful girls participating, and there are lots of games and prizes. It's going to be very lively. You must be quite bored staying in your dorm all day, right? Why don't you come with me to check it out?"

Zhong Ling wasn't interested in this kind of activity and didn't really like crowded places, but since it was her roommate's invitation, she was willing to go with her, so she nodded.

Wu Fang's face lit up with joy: "That's great! We'll head out in a bit. Do you want to change your clothes?"

Zhong Ling shook her head. She wasn't going to an event. She texted, "I'll wear this, but isn't the social event starting in the afternoon?"

"It's starting in the afternoon, but the venue is already being set up and there are probably quite a few people gathered. Let's go grab a spot and register."

"Sign up?"

Zhong Ling didn't speak, but her puzzled expression clearly revealed her confusion.

"Yes, you have to register to participate in the games on site. It's okay, if you don't like it, I can register by myself. I heard there are still spots available, and you might not be able to register if you go late."

Wu Fang offered an explanation, then sighed and muttered, "If you ask me, the person in charge of this social event is not very competent. Our class clearly has a great beauty like you, yet they didn't directly invite us to the event. Surely there aren't any prettier girls than you in the other classes that are participating?"

Although she had a little resentment in her voice, she was telling the truth. Zhong Ling was one of the prettiest girls she had ever seen. Only Wang Lengqiu, a senior student in the whole school, could rival her. She heard that Wang Lengqiu's class had all gone to the social event, so why couldn't their class?

"There must be many."

Zhong Ling sent a message earnestly. She didn't have a clear understanding of her own beauty because her older sister was very beautiful, and Gu Zheng and Yi Xia, whom she met later, were also very beautiful. She felt that she was just an ordinary pretty girl, not particularly beautiful.

“Being too modest is just being arrogant,” Wu Fang joked, then said regretfully, “If I could look like you, I definitely wouldn’t stay in the dorm all day. Instead, I would go out every day and sell the love letters I receive as scrap paper.”

"That's so disrespectful to others."

"I know, I know, just kidding. Besides, I'm not like you, where you can't even get love letters if you want to. I did receive a love letter in junior high, and it's still in my drawer. I wonder if my mom has ever found it..."

After Wu Fang finished her makeup, she was about to put away her cosmetics when she suddenly seemed to remember something, and her tone became somewhat expectant.

"Oh, right, bells."

"Ok?"

Have you ever tried wearing makeup?

Zhong Ling shook her head. Her sister had cosmetics in her room. She had secretly used them before, but they weren't anything special and were quite complicated to use, so she hadn't worn makeup since.

"Would you like to give it a try?"

Zhong Ling hesitated for a moment, then shook her head again.

"It's no trouble at all, just put on some lipstick. You're already so beautiful without dressing up. If you did, people would probably drool over you just by walking around."

……

Will people spit on me if I go out wearing makeup?

Wang Lengqiu sat blankly on the bed and suddenly asked a strange question, catching her roommates off guard.

Fortunately, they were used to it. This roommate hardly ever talked to them, and would occasionally say things that were hard to understand.

However, since everyone knew about the girl's past experiences, they were quite tolerant of her. Whenever she asked a question, they would try to answer even if they didn't quite understand the meaning of the question.

One of my roommates laughed and said, "How could that be? Nobody would be that rude. You probably meant drooling, right?"

"Drooling?"

"We definitely can't do it, but you're different. You're so beautiful, even with just a little makeup you can charm a lot of people... you're very attractive."

She specifically explained the meaning of "charming," not because Wang Lengqiu didn't understand, but because this girl was always daydreaming and often absent-minded when talking to people, either saying "thank you" or explaining nouns.

Wang Lengqiu was silent for a while. Just when her roommate thought she wouldn't say anything more, she suddenly asked, "...Will that attract stick figures?"

My roommate paused for a moment, then smiled wryly, "I don't know that. I don't even know what you mean by stick figure..."

This wasn't the first time she'd heard the word "stick figure" from Wang Lengqiu, but she'd never understood its meaning.

Wang Lengqiu clearly had no intention of explaining. After a pause, she asked, "If you agree with someone not to bother each other, would it be considered breaking the agreement if you put on makeup to attract their attention and start a conversation?"

The moment the question was posed, not only the roommate who had just answered it, but the other two roommates were also stunned, and the same thought simultaneously popped into their minds—

Has the sun risen in the west? This guy actually wants to wear makeup to attract attention?
They didn't know Wang Lengqiu very well, but they knew she wasn't someone who would joke around. That's why when she said those incomprehensible things in a serious tone, she seemed more like a lunatic.

"You mean... you made such an agreement with someone?" the roommate who had just answered the question asked.

“Yes, and I can’t break this agreement for the time being,” Wang Lengqiu replied.

"So that's why you want him to break the agreement on his own initiative?"

“No.” Wang Lengqiu shook her head. “I just want to talk to him more.”

The roommates were completely shocked and looked at each other in bewilderment. Wasn't Wang Lengqiu supposed to dislike communicating with people? How come there were people who wanted to talk to her?
Who?
"A fellow patient?" "Um...could you tell me who that person is?" another roommate with curly hair asked curiously.

"inconvenient."

Wang Lengqiu's answer was straightforward and to the point, without any pretense or euphemism, instantly dispelling her gossipy thoughts.

"Okay, forget it."

However, she didn't mind and smiled, "If you want to do your makeup, I can help you. I worked part-time in the wedding industry during the summer and learned makeup. I can definitely make you look as beautiful as a bride, but you'll need a little patience."

The bride...

Wang Lengqiu shook her head slightly: "Thank you, but there's no need to put on so much makeup. It's not time to get married yet."

The curly-haired girl who had just spoken was drinking water when she heard this and suddenly spat it out, choking and coughing incessantly.

Before she could speak, another short-haired roommate quietly leaned over and whispered, "Have you noticed that Wang Lengqiu has been talking a lot today? She's actually been able to chat with us for so long."

"Oh, I found out, so I wanted to take this opportunity to find out some gossip. What's up?" The curly-haired girl finally calmed down and put down her water glass to ask.

"What day is it today?" my short-haired roommate hinted mysteriously.

"Sunday."

"anything else?"

"Anything else?" The curly-haired girl looked bewildered. "The day before the Double Ninth Festival?"

"You're so stupid! There's a social event today, and Wang Lengqiu is going too!" The short-haired girl rolled her eyes, grabbed the other's ear, and whispered, "So the person she's talking about might be at the event. You'll see her when you get there!"

The curly-haired girl was taken aback for a moment, then her eyes lit up and she exclaimed excitedly, "Should we go and take a look?"

She wasn't interested in the social event and hadn't planned to attend in the first place, but she was quite keen on gossip. Upon hearing this, she immediately changed her mind and wanted to see who was the person Wang Lengqiu was "longing for".

This is no ordinary gossip. As one of the six most famous people on campus, Wang Lengqiu hopes to attract someone through makeup and even plans to marry that person. This is quite explosive news and not to be missed.

"Of course I want to go."

The short-haired girl brushed her hair aside and said with a serious expression, "Wang Lengqiu is not quite normal. His way of thinking is beyond our comprehension. He is difficult to communicate with, but sometimes he is easier to fool than a normal person. We need to find out more about him."

"There's no need to make it sound so high and mighty. I know the guy you like is also going to the social event. You seemed to have been preparing for it last night. What's there to be embarrassed about?"

"You're talking nonsense! I didn't do that!"

……

"Don't talk nonsense. I really just went to take a look. It was the counselor's requirement to participate in the social event, you all know that."

The guzheng was specially decorated today.

Her face was lightly made up, making her cute face look a bit more mature. Her lips were red, obviously with lipstick on, which made her look radiant. Her bright eyes held an undisguised anticipation and joy, and even the end of her voice had a noticeable upward inflection.

She wore a brand-new pale yellow dress that revealed her arms and rather plump calves. The cinched waist accentuated her perfect figure, and a blue dolphin pendant hung from her long neck, resting perfectly on her collarbone.

She sat in front of the mirror, looking at herself today, and felt fairly satisfied. Just as she was wondering whether she should try on a pair of earrings, she heard her roommates teasing her.

These people love to talk nonsense. Everyone else is clearly dressing up carefully, but they insist that she is going to see her lover today. In fact, if it weren't for these guys' encouragement, she wouldn't have gotten up early to put on makeup.

Besides, she didn't even put on makeup properly, okay?
Several roommates crowded around her like old ladies at a market seeing something amazing, marveling at the stunning girl in the mirror and teasing, "You probably didn't need to change into new clothes and shoes just for a casual look, did you?"

"There's no need to practice the duet several times every day," the other person added seriously.

"There's no need for me to stand on the balcony and grin like an idiot every time I come back these past few days."

"There was no need for last night..."

Gu Zheng blushed slightly upon hearing this and quickly interrupted, "I changed into new clothes and shoes because the package just arrived and I wanted to try them on to see how they looked. I practice partner dances every day because I'm already in the dance club, and mastering more dances helps with my practice. As for my silly grin every time, it's because... Nonsense, I wasn't grinning like that! Anyway, don't talk nonsense."

"Yes, yes, we won't talk nonsense."

Her roommates didn't call her out on it, but instead asked with knowing smiles, "So when are you planning to go to the playground?"

"Around three o'clock, my counselor said I have to show up, but I don't need to go too early," Guzheng replied.

Han Zhou won't go until 3 o'clock; she'll be bored if she goes too early by herself.

"You're going at 3 PM? What are you planning to do with the rest of the time?"

"Stay in your dorm and study."

"Reading? You dress up all nicely just to stay in the dorm and read?"

"I didn't say I was going to stay in the dorm the whole time. Aren't I going out this afternoon?"

"That's true... but today is supposed to be a social day, can't you just relax a bit?" my roommate said with a wry smile.

After spending time together, they discovered that Guzheng is truly the queen of all zither players. She puts in a lot of effort in both her studies and club activities. It's amazing how she can stretch her ligaments while reading, as if she doesn't need to rest.

They might have shown the same momentum in high school, but now they are all college students. Although they shouldn't slack off, they should at least enjoy themselves. However, Guzheng doesn't seem to have thought that way. Although she plays when she should, she spends most of her time in the library or dance studio.

That's not a big deal, but having such a fussy roommate can make everyone feel a strange sense of guilt, like, "Sorry, I'm such a lazy, unambitious paramecium."

"I don't care about social events."

Gu Zheng didn't take it seriously. If Han Zhou hadn't insisted on humbly inviting her to dance, she wouldn't have been interested in the social event at all.

She thought for a moment, then took out an earring from the box and tried it on. She'd had her ears pierced for so long, she should wear some accessories occasionally.

My roommates are right next to me, so I can let them see which pair of earrings would be more suitable.

I wonder what Han Zhou is doing right now...

Will you prepare well in advance like her, filled with anticipation and nervousness for tonight's ball?
(End of this chapter)