Chapter 21 – An Zijin: Then She Must Be a Fox Spirit, Right…?

“So when are we getting married?”

When such earth-shattering words suddenly came from An Zijin’s mouth without any warning, Su Ming froze completely.

“Huh?”

A simple single word perfectly expressed Su Ming’s current state of shock and bewilderment.

Su Ming stared at An Zijin in shock, feeling his head buzzing.

But An Zijin acted as if she had said something completely normal, speaking with her bright eyes sparkling.

“Didn’t Su Ming gege say long ago that I belong to Su Ming gege?”

An Zijin’s implication was obvious – she was telling Su Ming that this was the same as a marriage proposal.

“No, that’s not…”

Su Ming panicked completely, his eyebrows twitching constantly as he felt utterly confused.

There was no helping it.

It was… quite sudden!

How did their conversation suddenly turn to marriage?

Am I the one who’s not right? Or is this girl next door not right?

“What’s wrong?” An Zijin stared at Su Ming’s face, watching his flustered appearance as mist suddenly welled up in her beautiful eyes. “Could it be that Su Ming gege still dislikes me?”

Seeing An Zijin looking like she was about to cry, Su Ming shook his head frantically.

“I’m not! I didn’t! Don’t talk nonsense!”

A classic triple denial, but it completely failed to calm An Zijin’s sadness.

“Then Su Ming gege doesn’t like me?”

An Zijin looked at Su Ming with tears in the corners of her eyes, looking like she might cry her heart out.

“I never said that either, did I?”

Su Ming didn’t know what to say anymore, feeling his scalp tingling.

But what made Su Ming’s scalp tingle even more was yet to come.

“Since Su Ming gege doesn’t dislike me and doesn’t hate me, then why do you look so unwilling to marry me?”

As An Zijin said this, she seemed to think of something, and the mist and tears in her eyes completely disappeared.

“I understand now. It’s that Xu Qianqian, isn’t it?” An Zijin murmured. “Many people say Xu Qianqian is very beautiful and pretty. She also came to find Su Ming gege yesterday, so Su Ming gege likes that Xu Qianqian…?”

When she said this, An Zijin’s tone became inexplicably terrifying for some reason.

That emotionless tone made Su Ming’s heart almost stop beating for a moment.

This wasn’t even the worst part.

Most terrifyingly, An Zijin’s pitiful pretty face also became expressionless, her originally lively eyes completely lost their luster, as if she had become a lifeless doll, while she muttered under her breath.

“Xu Qianqian… Xu Qianqian… She really is someone who needs attention…”

“If I had known… I should have come to find Su Ming gege earlier… not given her a chance to get close…”

“How could she do this?”

“I was clearly here first. Su Ming gege and I made a lifelong promise when we were children. Now she’s appearing to interfere – is she planning to destroy the relationship between Su Ming gege and me…?”

“Then she must be a Fox Spirit…? Right…?”

An Zijin kept muttering like this, combined with her lightless eyes and expressionless face, giving the impression that she was chanting some kind of cursing incantation, which was extraordinarily terrifying.

Su Ming couldn’t help but take a step back, his face full of panic.

This girl next door’s way of opening up… seemed somehow wrong?

Su Ming unconsciously swallowed and, as if trying to prevent some terrifying existence from being released, tremblingly placed his hands on An Zijin’s shoulders.

“Little Jin? What’s wrong with you? Wake up! Your character setting is about to collapse!”

Su Ming shook An Zijin.

“Su Ming gege?”

An Zijin seemed to hear Su Ming’s voice. After being shaken by Su Ming for a while, she came to her senses and looked at Su Ming, her lightless eyes regaining their brightness.

“Is something wrong, Su Ming gege?”

An Zijin looked at Su Ming somewhat strangely, as if nothing had just happened, tilting her head in her usual cute manner.

“No… nothing…”

Seeing An Zijin return to normal, Su Ming felt no joy whatsoever, instead swallowing again.

“Strange Su Ming gege.”

An Zijin seemed to really find Su Ming strange and peculiar, smiling with curved eyes.

Unfortunately, no matter how cute that smile was, it could no longer eliminate the strange feeling in Su Ming’s heart.

Now, Su Ming had only one thought in his mind.

(What on earth has this child experienced during these ten years…!?)

How did she become so terrifying?

This girl next door’s way of opening up was definitely wrong!

Immediately, Su Ming quickly changed the subject.

“Um, Little Jin, why don’t you go back to the Dormitory first.”

Su Ming hurriedly made this suggestion.

“Why?” An Zijin was first stunned, then mist welled up in her eyes again. “We just reunited, and you’re already driving me away?”

“It’s not like that.” Su Ming’s mouth twitched as he patiently explained, “It’s just that I need to hide from the people in the Academy. It wouldn’t be convenient for me to run away if you’re with me.”

“Oh, is that so?” Only then did An Zijin’s expression clear up like the sky after rain, and she said, “It’s okay, I’ll explain this matter properly to everyone. Su Ming gege doesn’t need to worry.”

Su Ming: “……”

Don’t you understand that when you say that, it’s what worries me the most?

Su Ming really wanted to say this, but he held it back in time.

He had already realized that this childhood neighbor who used to be incredibly well-behaved might have grown up a bit crooked, no longer the little cotton-padded jacket he could speak freely with, but a little troublemaker who could drag him into a ditch at any moment.

Her threat to him might even be greater than Xu Qianqian’s.

At least Xu Qianqian would only cause Su Ming trouble, not bring him mortal danger. This girl next door was different – just in this brief reunion, she had already made Su Ming discover countless potential threats to his life safety.

These two so-called Academy Beauties were both complete traps.

One was a naive female vampire.

One was a hidden menace ready to explode at any moment.

Zhang Wuji’s mother was absolutely right – the more beautiful a woman is, the less you can trust her!

Having realized this, Su Ming could only exhaust his eloquence, trying to persuade An Zijin to return to the Dormitory while desperately begging her not to keep saying “I belong to Su Ming gege” when others asked about this matter.

For no other reason than his own life safety.

Although An Zijin was somewhat reluctant, Su Ming’s words seemed quite effective with this girl next door.

So, under Su Ming’s silver tongue persuasion, An Zijin could only obediently agree to everything, exchange contact information with Su Ming, and promise to keep in touch frequently before reluctantly turning to leave with frequent backward glances.

Su Ming watched An Zijin leave, holding his phone with a smile on his face, though that smile looked forced no matter how you looked at it.

When An Zijin’s figure completely disappeared from Su Ming’s sight, he turned his head and ran toward the Academy’s exit without hesitation.

Life wasn’t worth it – he shouldn’t continue staying here.

Su Ming sneakily left the Academy while calling his advisor to request his first leave of the year.

“There goes my perfect attendance.”

Su Ming stood at the Academy gate, looking at the still bustling Academy, speechless for a long time.

Who could have imagined that what broke his perfect attendance would be such an absurd situation?

“I hope when I come back, those guys will have calmed down.”

Otherwise, Su Ming would have to consider sleeping on the streets.

……

Meanwhile.

After parting with Su Ming, An Zijin didn’t immediately return to the Dormitory or appear in public. Instead, she continued hiding in a corner, looking at Su Ming’s contact information she had just saved on her phone, her incredibly cute face showing a dazed expression.

After several seconds, An Zijin smiled.

She smiled foolishly.

“Finally… I can be with Su Ming gege again!”

“And… I got Su Ming gege’s contact information!”

“Hehe… hehehe…”

As An Zijin smiled, she unconsciously began drooling.

If those who admired An Zijin saw her like this, their worldviews would absolutely shatter and their eyeballs would pop out.

Fortunately, only one person saw An Zijin in this state.

“You are…?”

Accompanied by a clear voice full of surprise, An Zijin jolted and suddenly stood up.

Only then did An Zijin realize that someone had appeared in front of her at some point.

The other person was tall and graceful, with snow-white skin and an ethereal temperament, like a wealthy Young Miss in disguise, displaying nobility and elegance that even made An Zijin feel momentarily dazzled.

But soon, An Zijin also recognized who this person was.

“You’re third-year Xu Qianqian senpai?”

An Zijin’s eyes showed a change.

Yes.

The person who appeared here was indeed Xu Qianqian.

And Xu Qianqian naturally also recognized the recently prominent An Zijin.

“You’re An Zijin from the Sorcerer Department, right?”

Xu Qianqian directed her gaze toward An Zijin.

“That’s me.”

An Zijin nodded, acknowledging it.

However, An Zijin’s attitude was somewhat cold, even carrying obvious hostility.

This was quite surprising.

Usually, An Zijin was polite and well-behaved toward everyone, making countless upperclassmen develop irrepressible affection for her.

But facing Xu Qianqian, An Zijin not only changed her usual demeanor but became full of aggression.

“Why would senpai be here?”

An Zijin asked in a low voice.

“Nothing much.” Xu Qianqian perhaps sensed something and looked deeply at An Zijin. “For some reason, the Academy seems overly agitated, and I’ve recently been targeted by some small fries. Naturally, I don’t want to get involved in inexplicable commotion and give others an opportunity.”

Xu Qianqian was avoiding crowds and moving through hidden corners and paths to prevent being ambushed by those with ulterior motives.

Meeting An Zijin here was purely coincidental.

However, An Zijin didn’t think so.

“Senpai came specifically for Su Ming gege, didn’t you?”

An Zijin actually said such words.

“Su Ming?”

Xu Qianqian furrowed her brows.

(End of Chapter)