Forced into a romantic relationship

Chapter 92 A tacit understanding
Zhong Yin was clearly furious about being deceived. Fortunately, Zhong Ling pleaded for her, and she sneered and compromised, saying that she could delay Han Zhou's death, before hanging up the phone.

Han Zhou and his sister left the milk tea shop with their unfinished cola. As they left, Zhong Ling kept comforting Han Zhou, saying that his sister was just being sarcastic and wasn't actually that angry with him.

Han Zhou was well aware of this. If Zhong Yin was really angry, then given her personality, she probably wouldn't say things like "You're dead" to him. Instead, she would simply tell Zhong Ling to leave, and the two sisters would never have anything to do with him again.

From this perspective, the relationship between the two has improved; at least they are no longer strangers who can sever ties at any time. Since that guy likes to settle accounts so easily, he probably hasn't forgotten that he owes me a favor.

Thinking of this, Han Zhou felt a little relieved. It was better to admit his mistake sooner rather than later. Lying to these two sisters who depended on each other for survival still made him feel quite guilty, especially Zhong Ling. Looking into those pure eyes, it would be hard for anyone to have the thought of deceiving her.

"Senior."

He suddenly looked at the girl next to him who was holding two cups of cola and looking worried.

"What's wrong?" Zhong Ling turned her head to look at him, thought for a moment, and handed him a glass of cola, blinking as she asked, "Are you thirsty?"

Han Zhou was both amused and exasperated: "I just finished two cups of cola, how could I be thirsty?"

Although he said that, he still took the Coke and chuckled, "I'll hold it for you first, but senior, your appetite is too small. You can't even finish a cup of Coke."

After spending half a day at the bubble tea shop, Zhong Ling had only drunk about half of her first Coke.

Zhong Ling was a little embarrassed and explained, "It's mainly because I ate a lot at noon."

"You eat a lot?" Han Zhou asked curiously. "Last time I saw you at home, you didn't seem to eat much. Senior, you probably don't have a big appetite, right?"

"Well, I usually don't eat much, but the food for lunch was leftovers from last night. If I didn't finish it, it would have to be thrown away, and I didn't want to waste it, so I tried my best to finish it..."

Han Zhou's expression was strange. No wonder he noticed the other person clutching their stomach from time to time; he assumed they weren't feeling well. But then he noticed the other person could drink iced cola, which didn't seem like what he thought, so he didn't ask any further. He never expected the reason to be that they had eaten too much...

Summer food really can't be kept for long, he shook his head and laughed, "If you really can't finish it, just leave it. There's no need to force yourself. It's not a waste."

"No problem, I can finish it. I'm just a little full, but it's okay." Zhong Ling shook her head to indicate that it wasn't a problem, then asked疑惑地问道, "By the way, did you call me just now to say something?"

"nothing."

"really?"

"real."

"You've lied to me about something else?" Zhong Ling guessed.

"No."

Han Zhou quickly denied it. He only remembered Zhong Yin's instructions. He originally wanted to ask Zhong Ling what she wanted to eat, since there were plenty of food and drinks on this street. But judging from the current situation, she probably couldn't eat anything, so he didn't ask.

The two followed the map to the mobile phone store.

Not long ago, Lin Anyu sent a message saying that he had already made arrangements. He just needed to find a quiet time when no one was around and tell the people in the store, "Brother Yu asked me to come." If they replied, "You two are a perfect match," it would mean the rendezvous was successful.

Han Zhou's lips twitched. Lin Anyu was such a grown man, yet he was still so childish, making buying a cell phone look like a spy rendezvous. However, he felt that the other party mainly wanted him to say "Brother Yu asked me to come," so as to satisfy his own perverse sense of humor.

As for the comment "You two are a perfect match," it goes without saying. Now, whenever Lin Anyu learns that Han Zhou is with someone, he immediately assumes that the other person is a girl. Although Han Zhou wants to refute it, it seems to be true. Apart from Lin Anyu, almost all the people he associates with now are of the opposite sex...

"This is the status bar's fault, it has nothing to do with me."

Han Zhou silently comforted himself, and soon arrived at the mobile phone store with Zhong Ling.

There weren't many customers in the store. The display cases were filled with all kinds of mobile phones. Near the door, several little boys were squatting with their phones in their hands. Judging from their fierce expressions, they were probably playing games. The fact that they were squatting by someone's door on such a hot day meant that they were probably there to mooch off the Wi-Fi.

A tired-looking man sat in the shop, leaning back in his chair listlessly. Loud crashing noises and tearful conversations came from the computer in front of him, as if a TV drama was playing.

Upon seeing Han Zhou and his companion enter, the man lazily stood up, yawning as he said, "Welcome."

This perfunctory attitude towards customers doesn't seem like something a shop assistant would do...

Han Zhou was suspicious. Seeing the man looking him up and down, he hesitated for a moment, then leaned closer and whispered, "Hello, Brother Yu asked me to come."

The man's eyes lit up upon hearing this. He looked at him intently for a moment, then took out his phone, turned on the recording function, and said in a low voice, "Excuse me, could you please say it again?"

Han Zhou: "..."

He was silent for a moment, then said helplessly, "Did Lin Anyu tell you to do this?"

"No, no, no, I just didn't hear you clearly," the man said with a smile.

Han Zhou would be a fool to believe that. He rubbed his forehead and said, "I knew that guy was planning this. It's so naive."

"No, no, it was just a joke." The man chuckled as he put away his phone, then cleared his throat and said loudly, "Haha, you two are a perfect match!"

Zhong Ling, who was behind her, was stunned for a moment. She only saw Han Zhou walk over and whisper something to the shop assistant. Then she heard the shop assistant shout out this sentence. There were only two customers in the store, Han Zhou and her, so this "perfect match" was obviously referring to them.

"Are we a good match?" she asked instinctively, tugging at her small cloth bag.

However, the man obviously couldn't hear what she was saying, so Han Zhou had to come over and explain, "Don't mind him, he was just talking nonsense. It was a joke that another friend of mine made on me."

Zhong Ling hesitated for a moment, then asked doubtfully, "Do you think we're not a good match?"

Han Zhou was taken aback. How should he respond? Zhong Ling's "perfect match" must mean they were destined to be together, so should he reply that they were a good match?
Fortunately, the man came over in time to defuse the situation, and said with a smile, "I'm sorry, what I said just now was really a joke. Please forgive me if I offended you in any way."

He looked Han Zhou and Zhong Ling up and down for a moment, his smile becoming ambiguous. "But to be fair, I think you two are quite a good match. How should I put it, you have that feeling of a cool student and a cute junior from a campus idol drama."

Han Zhou paused for a moment, then reminded her, "Um, I'm actually a bit younger; she's my senior."

Zhong Ling has a cute, youthful appearance, so it's understandable that she's considered to be young.

"Hahaha!"

The man laughed a few times to cover his embarrassment, "Sorry, but it doesn't matter. The pairing of a cute senior and a cool junior is also quite good. Have you guys seen that popular drama 'The Domineering Junior Falls in Love with Me' lately?"

A domineering... domineering junior?
Han Zhou's expression froze. This weird name sounded like something out of an old-school online novel... Come to think of it, he hadn't researched the online novel market in this world. He did have some impressions of the wildly popular online novels from his previous life, and he wondered if it was too late to become a plagiarist now...

He shook his head and said, "No, I don't watch TV much."

Zhong Ling didn't have as many inner thoughts as Han Zhou, but she didn't like the domineering junior. The domineering senior sounded more impressive, so she just shook her head slightly.

The man sighed with some regret, "Young people these days really don't watch TV much anymore. My sister doesn't like watching either, so I have no one to share it with. But I highly recommend this TV series; it's really good."

"I'll definitely go see it if I have the chance."

Han Zhou smiled and gave a perfunctory reply. He had just seen the scene on the computer screen: two men and a woman soaked to the bone in the rain, which inexplicably reminded him of the famous scene from his past life, "Stop fighting!" To be honest, he really couldn't get interested in this kind of TV series.

The man's name was Zhang Chengfan. He looked older than his age, but he was actually only in his early twenties. He was a rich second-generation like Lin Anyu. He wasn't a shop assistant; he just happened to be nearby today. His biggest hobbies were watching idol dramas and shipping couples.

It has to be said that this hobby is quite a breath of fresh air among contemporary youth...

Zhang Chengfan kept praising "The Domineering Junior Falls in Love with Me," but fortunately, he didn't forget that Han Zhou and his companion were there to buy phones. He temporarily forgot about the TV series and asked, "By the way, what kind of phone are you looking to buy, and what's your budget? Don't worry, I'll give you the absolute lowest price." He patted his chest to make a guarantee.

"I'll probably buy one around two thousand yuan, as long as it's practical. What about you, senior?"

Han Zhou stated his requirements, then looked at Zhong Ling, nodded slightly, and continued, "My friend's requirements are the same as mine."

Zhang Chengfan looked at him in surprise and asked in confusion, "Did your friend just say something?"

"I did tell her," Han Zhou explained, "but her voice is rather soft, so you might not be able to hear her clearly."

"Really?" Zhang Chengfan asked, puzzled. "I can't just not hear clearly, I didn't hear your friend say anything at all."

This guy must be a natural at making friends, otherwise he wouldn't have kept asking such questions. He asked curiously, "Is it telepathy?"

"No, it's just that I have good hearing, so I can hear your voice."

Zhang Chengfan's eyes lit up, and he asked excitedly, "Could you demonstrate?"

Han Zhou raised an eyebrow, and then heard the other person continue, "Don't misunderstand, it's not that I don't trust you, it's just that I suddenly remembered that the nearby shopping mall is holding a Qixi Festival event, a couples game called 'Telepathy,' and the winner can get a prize of 10,400 yuan. You might want to give it a try."

"Ten thousand four hundred yuan?" Zhong Ling's eyes widened.

"A couples' game?" Han Zhou muttered to himself.

No wonder there are so many couples around here, they must be holding a Qixi Festival event...

"So, are you two interested?"

Zhang Chengfan encouraged, "Our store is also a sponsor of this event. If you win, I can give each of you a free phone. Do you want to give it a try?"

"Such a good thing?" Han Zhou was taken aback, as if he had thought of something, and asked doubtfully, "Could it be that Lin Anyu asked you to find an excuse to give me a free gift?"

He and Lin Anyu were two completely different types of people with different family backgrounds and personalities, but they were actually very close. That guy usually took good care of him and knew that his family situation was not good, so he might actually do such a thing.

Zhang Chengfan was taken aback for a moment, then chuckled and said, "Of course not. There really is a Qixi Festival event, and it's been going on for several days now. However, it's very difficult to win. No one has succeeded yet. Ten thousand yuan isn't something you can just take easily."

Han Zhou wasn't interested in such activities; they were mostly time-consuming and laborious, and he probably wouldn't win, let alone get the prize money. He planned to buy a phone and leave, but when he turned around, he saw Zhong Ling's eyes shining.

"Senior?"

"Ten thousand four hundred yuan!"

Zhong Ling looked at him expectantly, her clear eyes seemingly sparkling with a golden light.

Han Zhou was taken aback: "You're interested in this activity?"

"Each of us can get 5,200 yuan!"

"But this is a game for couples, and we might not be able to win."

"You can even get a free phone!"

Han Zhou smiled wryly, "You'll only get that if you win..."

"I want to participate. Shall we go check it out now?"

Well, it seems this guy won't listen to anything anymore...

Han Zhou was both amused and exasperated. He hadn't expected this senior to be such a money-grubber. Without a word, she grabbed him and tried to pull him outside. He couldn't help but smile wryly and ask, "Do you even know where this is?"

Zhong Ling then came to her senses and shook her head blankly.

Han Zhou was reluctant to go, and tried to persuade her gently, "Senior, that's a couples' game. What if there's a part that requires physical contact..."

Zhong Ling opened her eyes wide, seemingly hesitant, but then Zhang Chengfan laughed and said, "Don't worry, there won't be any of those kinds of activities. The Qixi Festival activities are mainly designed to attract young people. If the target is limited to couples, there won't be much benefit. Therefore, any man and woman can participate, and there won't be any of those clichéd physical contact activities."

His smile grew even brighter. "Our goal is to help young people who are in a state of ambiguity to become couples, that is, to build a bridge between lovers, so that everyone can feel the beauty of love. Speaking of which, I put in a lot of effort for this event."

This is just your own goal, isn't it...?

Han Zhou thought to himself, he even suspected that this event was something this guy had come up with just to ship couples.

However, the prize money of more than 10,000 yuan was indeed very tempting. If it was split equally, each person would get more than 5,000 yuan. Since Zhong Ling didn't mind, he had nothing to worry about.

He's currently in a state of near-death and resignation, which should be enough for him to handle most challenges, and it seems like he still has a chance to win the prize money...

Han Zhou thought it was feasible more and more, but he didn't know if he could participate in the game repeatedly. If he succeeded this time, he would bring Guzheng and come again next time. Then it would be Mo Yixia's turn, and Zhong Yin could also try. Hmm, since only one boy and one girl were needed, he should be able to participate with Lin Youya, right?

He's already started daydreaming.

Thinking of this, Han Zhou and Zhong Ling exchanged a glance, both seeing the light in each other's eyes, and then nodded in unison.

go try it!
Zhang Chengfan, standing to the side, nodded in satisfaction, a maternal smile spreading across his face. These two really are a good match; they even seem to have great chemistry. I'll swear by them first…

Han Zhou felt a chill run down his spine for no apparent reason, and looked at him, asking, "Can you tell us where that shopping mall is?"

Zhang Chengfan smiled and said, "I'll take you there directly."

"Wouldn't that mean there's no one left in the shop?"

"It's okay, I'll just call the staff back."

Zhang Chengfan made a phone call, and then led Han Zhou and the other man out the door. When they passed by the door and saw several children squatting by the door playing games, he shook his head and showed a heartbroken expression.

"A bunch of kids who only know how to play video games and don't know how to find girls to play with. Childhood sweethearts should be cultivated from a young age, otherwise you'll regret it later."

Han Zhou chuckled and asked, "You seem to yearn for love. Do you have a girlfriend?"

Zhang Chengfan was startled. He had kept his voice very low, but he hadn't expected the other party to be able to hear him. This made him somewhat believe what Han Zhou had said earlier.

He shook his head and solemnly said, "No, as the saying goes, a doctor cannot heal himself. A qualified CP leader cannot be burdened by love, otherwise he will be blinded by his own involvement."

Han Zhou chuckled dryly; he thought this guy was pretty clueless right now.

Led by Zhang Chengfan, the three of them soon arrived at the mall, which was filled with many young men and women, mostly in pairs, making the mall look quite lively.

Putting everything else aside, at least the goal of attracting customers for this Qixi Festival event has been achieved.

Han Zhou looked around curiously, but his expression quickly turned strange.

Because he actually spotted a familiar figure in the crowd.

(End of this chapter)