Forced into a romantic relationship

Chapter 280: Shameless
"Yisha."

"Ok?"

"Have you ever done anything in your life that you feel guilty about?"

"Did it."

"for example?"

"For example, while I'm in the bathroom, I'll call that girl named Guzheng and tell her, 'I'm playing a fun game of holding hands with you right now.'"

"what!"

Han Zhou was startled and turned his head sharply to look at the girl beside him, with an expression of disbelief.

"I lied to you."

Mo Yixia glanced at him indifferently and said slowly, "I'm just helping you recall the things you've done that you feel guilty about."

Han Zhou felt a little embarrassed, breathed a slight sigh of relief, and chuckled awkwardly, "I knew you wouldn't hurt me..."

"you misunderstood."

Mo Yixia pulled her mask down a little, took a small sip of juice through the straw, and said in a matter-of-fact tone, "What I mean is, even if I expose you, I won't feel guilty about it."

She didn't continue the topic, but looked at Zhong Ling, who was learning about the rules of the event not far ahead, and said, "Since the senior has asked you for help, you must do your best to help her win the last round."

"Why?" Han Zhou asked, puzzled.

Gu Zheng and Mo Yixia seem to share the same tacit understanding in their willingness to help Zhong Ling without reservation.

"The school teacher just sent a message in the group, asking us to gather and leave in half an hour."

"so early?"

"Well, so I probably won't have time to participate in any interesting activities with you from now on. You should work hard and just pretend that I'm the one accompanying you to these activities."

"Is that all?" Han Zhou felt that this reason was not sufficient.

"Of course it's more than that."

Mo Yixia glanced at him. "Senior is also my friend, isn't she?"

Han Zhou was taken aback for a moment, then smiled and said, "It's good that you think that way."

In the past, Mo Yixia wouldn't easily consider others as friends. This is a sign that she is gradually opening her heart, which he sees as a good thing.

As the two were talking, Zhong Ling walked over from not far away, a faint smile on her face, and said softly, "Junior, the competition is about to start, let's go over."

Han Zhou nodded and looked at Mo Yixia, saying, "Then I'll go."

"Go."

Mo Yixia nodded and naturally took the drink bottle from his hand. "Keep it up."

Han Zhou sighed inwardly and smiled, "I think this is the first time I've heard you cheer me on."

"Is that so?" Mo Yixia tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and said with a half-smile, "You'll hear about it often in the future... if necessary."

Is your use of "cheer up" normal...?

Han Zhou's lips twitched, and he and Zhong Ling walked towards the activity area.

Halfway there, as if suddenly remembering something, Zhong Ling tugged at her small cloth bag, then nervously offered her hand, whispering, "That..."

"Do we need to hold hands now?" Han Zhou understood what she meant.

"Um……"

As soon as Zhong Ling nodded, she felt her right hand being covered by a large hand. She stole a glance and, perhaps because the junior's expression was too calm, her slightly nervous heart relaxed.

After hesitating for a moment, she felt she should say something, so she mimicked Mo Yixia's tone and said, "Um... good luck, junior!"

“It’s about us cheering each other on,” Han Zhou corrected earnestly.

"Let's cheer each other on!"

"Well, let's do our best together."

As a well-known beauty at Linda University, Zhong Ling has always attracted a lot of attention. So much so that after hearing the news, many people came to participate in this knowledge competition specifically for her, hoping to team up with her in the final round.

As everyone knows, there are very few opportunities to get in touch with Zhong Ling on a regular basis. Apart from attending classes, this "mute bride" basically stays in her dormitory and never goes out. Occasionally, when you meet her in places like the cafeteria, she never pays attention to people trying to talk to her. In some ways, she is even more difficult to approach than Wang Lengqiu, who is not quite right in the head.

At least Wang Lengqiu would occasionally respond with a few words that were incomprehensible, while Zhong Ling truly lived up to her "mute" principle, never giving anyone a chance to speak.

Therefore, when they learned that they had the opportunity to hold hands with this "mute bride," a large number of boys flocked to her—whether they held hands or not was not important; what mattered was that they wanted to experience the charm of the knowledge quiz.

Chen Long and Chen Zheng naturally wouldn't let such a golden opportunity slip by. Of course, they weren't just envious of holding hands with Zhong Ling. As two people who considered themselves to know the inside story, they knew very well that there was only one guy who was closest to Zhong Ling, and that was Han Zhou.

Therefore, their goal is not Zhong Ling, but the opportunity to hold hands with other girls. I don't know which genius came up with this activity, it's just tailor-made for people like them who want to find a partner!

With immense excitement, Chen Long collapsed in tears at the second challenge.

As an entertainment-oriented activity, this quiz was naturally not too serious, so the questions prepared were varied. To answer them all correctly required a considerable amount of knowledge or luck. Zhong Ling had both, which is why she was able to pass. Chen Zheng, on the other hand, relied more on luck. Therefore, when he saw Jackie Chan's envious and jealous expression, he couldn't help but feel happy and pushed up his glasses with a smug look.

"Don't worry, I'll hold the hands you can't hold."

Chen Long, who was stopped at the second level, was furious and pounded his chest, shouting, "Why? Why are you so lucky!"

He was certain that although Chen Zheng had said he was going to take the postgraduate entrance exam as soon as the semester started, he hadn't been working very hard lately. The two of them slept together and were late together, the only difference being that he was used to playing games when he got back to the dorm, while this guy preferred to go online and follow gossip.

They're both just salted fish, so why is this guy better than him?
Chen Zheng smiled faintly: "Luck is also a kind of strength. Also, I've told you a long time ago to spend more time online, but you just wouldn't listen. Alright, I'm going to participate in the final round now."

"Tch, go ahead and go ahead."

Chen Long sneered, as if he had remembered something. He suddenly became animated, crossed his arms, and said, "Even if I gave you the chance to hold hands, would you have the guts to do it?"

Chen Zheng's smile froze.

He didn't have the courage to invite girls to team up, nor could he find a girl he knew outside the competition to help him. In front of everyone, if he couldn't even find someone to team up with, he would undoubtedly be ridiculed by everyone.

Seeing his roommate's hesitant expression, Chen Long thought he couldn't continue to discourage him. He said with exasperation, "Look at you, it's just inviting a girl, how hard is that? If I stood still, girls would invite me."

"Then you come?"

"I'd like to join, but there's no opportunity," Chen Long sighed, pointing to a girl and saying, "Why don't you go ask that girl? I've seen her standing there for so long without teaming up with anyone. Maybe she's waiting for someone to invite her."

He was genuinely trying to offer advice to his useless roommate. "I..."

"What are you hesitating for? The other person is good-looking too. If you don't make a move now, you'll miss your chance!"

"I can not……"

After a moment of silence, Chen Zheng gritted his teeth and shook his head, daring not to take a step even though he had to admit his shortcomings.

Many people couldn't understand his mindset, but for him, it was already difficult enough to strike up a conversation with a strange girl, let alone to ask her to hold his hand. It was really too difficult for him, even more difficult than getting into the university.

"You guy..."

Chen Long frowned. He couldn't do anything about how cowardly this guy was. He said, "Why don't you go ask the girls in your class? The class monitor and vice monitor are here, and I just saw Xiao Xiao's dorm..."

He stopped before he could finish speaking, because Chen Zheng's dejected expression spoke volumes; he didn't even have the courage to invite the girls in his class.

"Hey, hey, hey, I'm at a loss with you. I can't exactly change my personality and team up with you, can I..."

Chen Long felt a headache coming on. Just as he was about to say something more, he turned his head and saw Zhong Ling passing by, holding hands with a boy wearing a woolen hat and a mask. The boy was looking at the two of them with a strange look in his eyes.

He was taken aback at first, but quickly recognized the clothes on the other person's body. He thought to himself, "Isn't this Han Zhou? He really is hooking up with Zhong Ling."

He wasn't surprised, because he had already guessed it. He had even chuckled when he heard the boys excitedly discussing how to invite Zhong Ling to join their team, but he couldn't laugh now.

At least those guys can hold hands with other girls, but he can't hold hands with anyone...

"What's going on with you?"

Seeing that his two roommates seemed to be in a bad mood, Han Zhou stopped and greeted them. Zhong Ling stopped as well and stood beside him with her head down.

She felt a little uncomfortable with so many eyes on her.

“Some people are devoted to the Tao but have nothing, while others have the opportunity to follow the Tao but do not cherish it… that’s the situation.” Chen Long sighed and explained the situation in a low voice.

Chen Zheng looked ashamed.

Han Zhou listened silently, then shook his head and smiled, "It's okay, Chen Zheng. It's normal to be nervous. Actually, I don't dare to take the initiative to invite girls to team up either."

"Is that so?" Chen Zheng stared at him with his mouth agape.

"Of course." Han Zhou nodded.

After all, Yixia was watching from below... he silently added in his mind.

The thought that even someone as handsome as Han Zhou would face the same predicament as him made Chen Zheng feel a little better. He forced a smile and looked at Zhong Ling beside him, asking, "And who is this...?"

He certainly knew who Zhong Ling was and that she was close to Han Zhou, but he didn't know exactly how close they were.

"Oh, it was my senior who invited me." Han Zhou gave a friendly smile.

Chen Zheng's smile froze again.

No wonder you don't take the initiative to invite other girls. You're just waiting for girls to invite you, aren't you?

Han Zhou and Zhong Ling left together.

He was willing but unable to help Chen Zheng. He had to take the initiative. He couldn't possibly ask a girl he knew to help him team up with her, could he?
Just then, a soft, sweet voice suddenly rang out beside him.

"Junior, if you need me in the future, you can come and invite me."

"Why?" Han Zhou was taken aback.

"Aren't you afraid to invite girls?" Zhong Ling comforted her softly. "I'm willing to accept your invitation, so you don't need to worry."

She clearly took what Han Zhou had just said seriously.

Han Zhou chuckled: "Thank you, I understand."

This senior student is just too kind.

Upon arriving at the event venue, a considerable number of people were already gathered. The final round required ten teams, and the competition would only begin once all ten teams were present. Currently, including Han Zhou and Zhong Ling, there were only nine teams in total. In the corner stood a girl with her head down, looking very nervous.

Now all Chen Zheng needs to do is muster up the courage to invite this girl to join his team...

Han Zhou understood and winked at Chen Zheng in the distance, but the latter was distracted. It was only after Chen Long saw this and gave him a hard shove, whispering something in his ear, that he hesitated and walked over.

Han Zhou was surprised and wondered what Chen Long had said that could have given Chen Zheng the courage to do so. He only understood when Chen Zheng passed by.

He heard the other person muttering something—

"She is Chen Long, she is Chen Long, she is Chen Long..."

Han Zhou: "..."

He glanced silently at the girl in the distance with her head down. He had heard that she hadn't done anything wrong, so why was she humiliating her like this?

Fortunately, although the process was difficult, the result was good. When Chen Zheng gritted his teeth and invited the girl, she happily agreed and continued to lower her head.

Seeing that the last team had gathered, the somewhat impatient host finally showed a satisfied smile and shouted at the top of his lungs, "Everyone get ready, the final round of the competition is about to begin!"

After saying that, he picked up the cardboard box on the table and shook it quickly.

He had already explained the rules before, and Han Zhou had also learned about them from Zhong Ling. The final challenge was not a fixed event, but rather something that needed to be randomly selected, including but not limited to physical activities that required two people to cooperate, such as three-legged races and fancy rope skipping.

Han Zhou has amazing physical strength now and is quite confident in these challenges. However, because he needs to take care of Zhong Ling, he cannot guarantee that he will win.

Zhong Ling was a little nervous, but feeling the warmth in her palm, she felt as if she was filled with strength. She could see her roommate Wu Fang cheering her on in the crowd, and she returned a slight smile.

"Holy crap, Zhong Ling smiled at me!"

"Stop talking nonsense, he's clearly smiling at me!"

"Her eyes were fixed on me the whole time, and she was definitely smiling at me!"

The boy in the crowd started dreaming.

At the same time, the host finally stopped shaking the box, took out a crumpled piece of paper, unfolded it, and a jubilant smile appeared on his face.

"Everyone, we are about to enter the final challenge—"

"I am utterly ashamed!"

(End of this chapter)