Forced into a romantic relationship

Chapter 377 Another one?
Seeing Han Zhou's increasingly awkward expression, as if he had encountered something difficult to talk about, Gu Zheng couldn't help but feel a little annoyed.

Sleeping without clothes isn't strange at all, and I, a girl, don't even care. But Han Zhou's expression was so strange, as if I had taken advantage of him. It was completely baffling.

She didn't believe this guy was that thin-skinned.

Either he's deliberately acting like this to annoy her, or there's definitely something hidden under the covers.

Gu Zheng felt suspicious, then suddenly her mind jolted, and she realized that she had fallen into Han Zhou's trap—his real purpose was to distract her and make her forget about the slippers!
She completely forgot that she was the one who brought up the topic.

"Explain the slippers first," Gu Zheng said with a stern face. "These slippers by the bed are clearly girls' slippers. Why are they in your room? They're your own slippers."

"You said this."

Han Zhou knew he absolutely couldn't answer "I don't know" right now, otherwise it would be too suspicious. How could someone not notice if they wore the wrong slippers? So he smiled and said, "These are actually Teacher Ouyang's slippers. She took mine."

After much thought, he felt that it was most appropriate for Ouyang Lianyu to take the blame.

Of all the people involved, making Mo Yixia take the blame is definitely not an option; it would make Gu Zheng very unhappy. Zhong Ling has already taken the wrong phone; if she also wears the wrong slippers, it would be a bit unreasonable. As for Zhong Yin, the other party already has reservations about his scumbag behavior, so even if she cooperates, he won't give her a friendly look.

Xiao Xiaoxiao's slippers were the smallest among everyone, and it was immediately obvious that they were different from the pair on the ground. She was not suitable to take the blame. Wang Lengqiu might be willing to help her, but in the end, she was not as reliable as Teacher Ouyang. After all, the two did not have much interaction and lacked the corresponding tacit understanding.

Of course, most importantly, Guzheng still respects her teacher Ouyang Lianyu quite a bit and is aware of her careless nature. She is unlikely to ask Ouyang Lianyu to confirm after learning that Guzheng wore the wrong slippers, which is relatively safe.

Therefore, Ouyang Lianyu is the best candidate to take the blame.

However, Han Zhou understood that although Gu Zheng might not necessarily ask Ouyang Lianyu for confirmation, she would definitely ask him for clarification, so he had to come up with a reasonable excuse.

As expected, Guzheng suddenly looked puzzled and asked, "Why did Teacher Ouyang take your slippers?"

Han Zhou lied through his teeth, saying helplessly, "You know, I took a shower in that room with a bathroom. There was a table in that room. Teacher Ouyang worked there for a while, I think it was some kind of questionnaire. After I finished showering and left the bathroom, she even made me fill it out."

"The table was placed next to the bed. We were both sitting on the bed at the time. She was thinking about work when she left and didn't even notice that she had taken my slippers. By the time I realized it, she had already gone back to her room."

Gu Zheng suddenly realized that forgetting some unimportant details because of being focused on work was indeed something Teacher Ouyang was capable of, but she still found it a bit strange: "Then why didn't you go to Teacher Ouyang to change your slippers back?"

"It's too cold tonight, so I went to blow-dry my hair first. I was originally going to go back to my room and text Teacher Ouyang to ask her to return my slippers, but my phone was taken by my senior, and it was already very late, so I thought I'd just talk about it tomorrow morning." Han Zhou sighed.

"You really do like to put everything off until tomorrow..." Guzheng muttered.

Although she looked disdainful, she clearly believed Han Zhou's story.

Han Zhou breathed a slight sigh of relief and decided to communicate with Teacher Ouyang as soon as possible the next morning to ensure everything went smoothly.

Just then, footsteps suddenly sounded outside the door. The sound grew louder as it approached, then disappeared completely, as if someone had just stopped outside the door.

No, are you coming?

Han Zhou's heart skipped a beat, and Gu Zheng's face also looked flustered. She was a shy person, and she was already embarrassed to run into Han Zhou's room late at night. It wouldn't be good if others saw her.

"Han Zhou, are you asleep?"

A soft gasp and a light knock came from outside the door. She deliberately kept her voice down, as if worried about disturbing others.

Teacher Ouyang?

Han Zhou and Gu Zheng exchanged a glance, both seeing the confusion in each other's eyes, wondering why Ouyang Lianyu had come looking for them at this time.

"Did they come to ask you to change their slippers?" Gu Zheng asked in a low voice.

"Maybe... "

Han Zhou felt nervous. Of course, Ouyang Lianyu couldn't have come to ask him for slippers, since he had made up those things just now. But if that wasn't the reason, then what was Ouyang Lianyu's purpose in coming to see him in the middle of the night?
Gu Zheng hesitated for a moment, then asked tentatively, "Should we open the door?"

To her, Ouyang Lianyu, as a teacher, was equivalent to an elder, and being seen by an elder in a boy's room in the middle of the night in her pajamas was undoubtedly a rather embarrassing thing.

"No need to turn it on," Han Zhou replied in a low voice.

He absolutely cannot let Guzheng and Ouyang Lianyu meet now, otherwise if Guzheng discovers that Ouyang Lianyu is wearing a pair of comfortable slippers, his lie will be exposed immediately, which would cause a lot of trouble.

Indeed, one lie requires countless more to cover it up.

He was a little tired.

"But what if Teacher Ouyang needs to talk to you about something important?" Gu Zheng asked worriedly.

"In that case, she should have called me in advance."

“But isn’t your phone with your senior?” Gu Zheng said seriously. “Maybe Teacher Ouyang has called you several times already, and only came here personally because you didn’t answer.”

Han Zhou was taken aback. What Gu Zheng said was indeed not impossible. After all, the fact that his phone had been taken by mistake was not a lie, but a real event. Perhaps Ouyang Lianyu really had called him several times.

Gu Zheng felt more and more that Ouyang Lianyu had something important to do, so she didn't care about thinking about it too much and got up to say, "I'll go open the door."

Han Zhou's heart skipped a beat. He quickly pulled her down to sit and said cautiously, "No need. You should find a place to hide first, so as not to embarrass Teacher Ouyang. I'll go open the door."

He absolutely could not allow Ouyang Lianyu to meet Guzheng at this time, at least not let Guzheng see what kind of slippers Ouyang Lianyu was wearing.

“But you’re not wearing any clothes, are you?” Gu Zheng was a little unhappy; she felt she didn’t need to hide.

"Can't I put it on before opening the door?" Han Zhou said irritably. "Alright, you should go find a place to hide and come out after Teacher Ouyang leaves."

"Oh……"

Gu Zheng reluctantly got up and was about to walk towards the cabinet when the doorknob suddenly started turning, and Ouyang outside seemed to be planning to push the door open and enter!

Han Zhou was shocked, and Gu Zheng was also flustered. It was obviously too late to hide in the closet at this time. She looked around and her eyes suddenly fell on Han Zhou's bed. She thought that she could not care about anything else. She gritted her teeth, immediately turned over and got into bed, and quickly crawled into Han Zhou's bed.

She moved extremely quickly. As soon as she got into bed, she planned to roll over and move from in front of Han Zhou to behind him, using his body to conceal herself so that Teacher Ouyang would not be able to find her.

Unexpectedly, before she could even finish turning over, she was forcefully pulled back by a pair of large hands. Then, she was firmly held in those hands and pulled into Han Zhou's arms, her back pressed against his hot chest.

The moment Han Zhou embraced her, Gu Zheng's mind went blank, and even her breathing paused for a moment. Especially when she realized that he was really not wearing any clothes, her face instantly turned bright red, looking incredibly beautiful.

"It's too late." Han Zhou's deep voice sounded from above. Gu Zheng softly hummed in response, shifted her body uncomfortably, then stopped resisting and quietly nestled in his arms, pressing her hand to her chest. She found that her heartbeat had accelerated to an unprecedented level.

Outside, the wind and rain raged relentlessly, but inside, it was unusually peaceful, with warmth filling the air and the only sound the hum of the air conditioner.

Beneath the scorching hot blankets, a shy young girl was held tightly in the arms of her beloved.

Even if it's out of necessity, it's still something that's incredibly appealing.

This is too intimate... she thought, blushing.

Han Zhou certainly didn't want to be so intimate, especially with Mo Yixia watching him. But if he hadn't pulled Gu Zheng into his arms and let her roll behind him, he would have bumped right into Mo Yixia.

The reason he held the guzheng so tightly was to prevent her from moving around and touching any of Mo Yixia's limbs.

Not only was he moved by the guzheng, but his heart was also racing at an unprecedented pace, because at this moment, the only barrier between the two girls was himself.

It can be said that Guzheng could discover Mo Yixia at any time.

He was extremely grateful that Mo Yixia had just helped him take off his clothes; otherwise, even if the current crisis was averted, he would have to explain the issue of being dressed again later.

However, it must be said that holding a girl tightly in one's arms while naked is a rather ambiguous thing. Gu Zheng's body is quite soft, as if if he exerts a little more force, the other person will completely melt in his arms.

Han Zhou was lost in thought when he suddenly felt a pain in his back. Mo Yixia was deliberately writing words on his back with her fingernails.

"Don't get too carried away."

Clearly, Mo Yixia was very dissatisfied with his actions at this moment.

Just then, the door was opened, and Ouyang Lianyu staggered into the room, looking somewhat surprised, as if she didn't understand why Han Zhou didn't lock the door when he slept.

With the dim light of the bedside lamp, she saw Han Zhou lying on the bed with his eyes closed. After hesitating for a moment, she didn't turn on the light, but instead tiptoed to the bedside and rummaged through the bedside table for something.

What is she looking for?

The same question arose in the minds of Han Zhou and the other two.

They knew perfectly well that Ouyang Lianyu hadn't come to steal anything late at night, but they couldn't figure out what she was looking for.

Seemingly having searched in vain, the sound from the bedside table quickly ceased. Han Zhou noticed a hand gently tugging at the corner of the blanket, as if trying to pull it off.

It's worth it!

Han Zhou was startled. Why did all these guys want to lift the covers and take a look? If they only saw Gu Zheng or Mo Yixia, that would be fine. But he was afraid that they might set the whole villa on fire.

He could no longer pretend to be asleep. He quickly opened his eyes, grabbed Ouyang Lianyu's wrist, and said irritably, "Teacher Ouyang, what are you trying to do in the middle of the night?"

Ouyang Lianyu was startled by his sudden movement and asked tremblingly, "Aren't you asleep yet?"

She didn't think she had woken Han Zhou up, because he woke up way too quickly.

"I can't sleep now anyway."

Han Zhou, somewhat exasperated, cut straight to the point, "Teacher Ouyang, what are you doing in my room?"

He just wanted to get rid of the other party as soon as possible to avoid any further complications.

Ouyang Lianyu knew her behavior was inappropriate, so she patiently explained, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean it. I called you several times, but you didn't answer, so I came to your room to find you. I didn't know you didn't have the habit of locking the door, and I didn't expect the lock to open so easily."

She looked apologetic and embarrassed.

Han Zhou was taken aback for a moment, then said, "It's nothing, I just wanted to know what you need me for at this time?"

“It’s a small matter,” Ouyang Lianyu replied softly.

Little?

The guzheng under the quilt was a little concerned, wondering what this had to do with Xiaoxiao, so she quickly pricked up her ears to listen carefully.

Seeing Han Zhou's puzzled expression, Ouyang Lianyu explained, "Xiaoxiao said her sleeping pills are with you, and asked me to get them for her."

Sleeping pills?
Han Zhou frowned slightly. Hadn't he given Xiao Xiaoxiao sleeping pills just two days ago? Even if she took two pills a day, she shouldn't have finished them so quickly. Besides, she shouldn't have taken two pills, otherwise she would have been asleep for a long time.

Gu Zheng, who was under the covers, was also puzzled. She knew that Xiao Xiaoxiao had insomnia, but she didn't understand why the other party would leave sleeping pills with Han Zhou.

Seeing that Han Zhou's expression was a little strange, Ouyang Lianyu asked in confusion, "What's wrong, Han Zhou? Is there a problem?"

"nothing."

Han Zhou shook his head. It was better to ask Xiao Xiaoxiao herself directly about this. After thinking for a moment, he asked, "Did Xiaoxiao say anything else?"

"No, she only asked me to get the sleeping pills."

"Oh, I see... Teacher, please wait a moment."

Han Zhou placed his hand under the pillow and took out a bottle of sleeping pills from his inventory. The small white bottle immediately appeared in his palm. He was about to hand it to Ouyang Lianyu when he noticed that she didn't take it and instead stared at the ground with a puzzled look on her face.

Han Zhou's heart skipped a beat, and he suddenly understood something.

At the same time, Ouyang Lianyu indeed asked the question he had been thinking of—

"Why are there two pairs of slippers in your room? And they're both so..."

Gu Zheng hadn't thought about hiding her slippers when she got into bed, so naturally, both her slippers and Mo Yixia's slippers were left by the bedside.

Han Zhou knew that Ouyang Lianyu had probably already noticed that the two pairs of slippers were the wrong size. He realized that he couldn't let her continue, otherwise Guzheng would definitely hear that he had just lied, so he quickly interrupted her.

"Teacher Ouyang, that's exactly what I wanted to tell you!"

(End of this chapter)