Volume 1 Chapter 32: The Café

In a college dorm, the time with the highest “parent-insult content” was always when the whole room gathered to play co-op games.

It didn’t matter if someone was usually refined and never swore, or shy and quiet—once they were gaming together, swearing and “sweet nothings” full of mom jokes came pouring out.

Zhang Shaoqing was the worst in terms of manners. Wang Jie, usually a shut-in, turned into a chatterbox mid-game. Even Wen Yang, who almost never cursed, would occasionally spit out a few crude words.

Only Ning Chu was the odd one out—staring blankly at his black-and-white “game over” screen, never knowing what to say, completely out of place.

Two hours later, the little boat of friendship had completely capsized.

“F*** this! I’m done!” Zhang Shaoqing threw his mouse down. “Alright then, after two whole hours without a single win—whose fault do you think that is?”

“You’re done? Good. I’ll go take a nap then,” Wang Jie yawned, turning off his monitor and stretching. “We’ll get our revenge next time.”

Wen Yang glanced at the clock—it was only 1 PM. His mind began to wander to other plans.

But just as some less-than-innocent thoughts started forming, his gaze instinctively drifted toward Ning Chu.

Surely he couldn’t still come up with some airtight excuse to keep him trapped in the dorm, right?

Wen Yang really didn’t understand what Ning Chu’s deal was.

Ning Chu was exhausted. As a newbie, he had been dragged along in the game with no fun at all. He slumped onto the desk, eyelids growing heavy.

He had been hoping to spend the whole afternoon gaming—keeping Wen Yang safely in the dorm.

Rubbing the corner of his eyes, he fought off the drowsiness, still clinging to his mission: make sure Wen Yang stays a pure, untouched virgin!

“Wen Yang, are you going to take a nap?”

If Wen Yang slept through the afternoon, the danger would be over!

“I’m heading out,” Wen Yang said. “You sleep if you want. I’m going to the café off campus. The cafe owner has been inviting me on weekends to try new menu items, but I’ve never had time.”

Try new menu items? More like try the owner herself, right?

This scene wasn’t even in the original novel—but Ning Chu still didn’t feel at ease. Wen Yang’s protagonist aura was too strong. Most women wanted a piece of him, so even events outside the plot could still lead to him giving himself away for free.

“It’s raining this hard…”

“I’ll just use an umbrella.”

“Then… I’ll come too? I like coffee as well.”

Unable to think of a better excuse, Ning Chu went with Plan B—tag along.

Wen Yang didn’t mind, nodding and bending down to put on his shoes.

“You kept sticking to him like glue~ Why don’t you two just ‘fuse’ into one already?” Zhang Shaoqing teased.

“Shut up!”

Grabbing the folding umbrella, Ning Chu gave Zhang Shaoqing’s chair a hard kick, then darted out of the dorm behind Wen Yang amid a stream of curses.

Outside, the rain was pouring like a waterfall, lightning occasionally flickering through the dark clouds.

“This is insane… even with an umbrella, we’ll get soaked,” Ning Chu frowned at the curtain of rain. “We’re still going now?”

“Can’t keep flaking forever. Besides, we’ve got nothing better to do this afternoon,” Wen Yang said, stepping into the downpour with the umbrella. “It’s just a few new coffees and desserts. Once we get back, you probably won’t be able to nap.”

He really does think he’s just going to try coffee, huh?

Ning Chu stayed silent, following along.

In truth, he also wanted to test his theory: Aside from the female supporting characters in the novel who had “war buddy” relationships with Wen Yang, would other women—ones the novel never mentioned—also be drawn in by his protagonist aura and do things like offer themselves, seduce him, or outright push him down?

Like the shy girl who delivered sour plum soup that morning. Or the café owner. Both were never mentioned in the story at all.

In the heavy rain, water inevitably found its way under the umbrella.

With nothing else to do on the walk, Wen Yang stepped closer and asked, “So, what kind of girls do you like?”

“Huh?” Ning Chu instinctively replied, “Good figure. Pretty.”

“You don’t care about personality at all?”

Wen Yang’s tone made it sound like Ning Chu was as shallow as they came.

And honestly? Ning Chu was perfectly fine with that. He was about to nod hard in agreement—but then realized he couldn’t pass on the wrong values to Wen Yang.

So, after thinking for a moment, he seized the chance to “re-educate” him:

“Of course I do. Personality’s even more important. If I’m really dating a girl I like, it’s gotta be with marriage in mind. I mean, things like being gentle and caring are nice, but what matters most is loyalty! She and I both have to be the same—no fooling around, no hookups, no cheating…”

As he spoke, he kept a close eye on Wen Yang’s expression, afraid his words might put him off.

Wen Yang nodded in agreement. “Makes sense.”

Yeah, once you’ve had a taste, I doubt you’ll still think that way, Ning Chu muttered in his head.

Still, at least for now Wen Yang was a pure, timid virgin who held a sweet, innocent view of romance.

“The rain’s really coming down harder,” Wen Yang remarked.

“Mm, I’m already getting wet…”

Wen Yang glanced at Ning Chu’s half-soaked side and handed him his umbrella. “Here, switch with me—mine’s bigger.”

“Huh? What about you?” Ning Chu was caught off guard.

“I’m healthy. A bit of rain won’t hurt me.”

“Don’t…”

Ning Chu’s lips twitched, his eyes instantly turning wary as he stared at Wen Yang with suspicion.

Could it be… he’d been too nice to Wen Yang, and now Wen Yang couldn’t wait for the plot to reach the part where he turns into a girl?

“I’m healthy too.” He quickly shook his head and put two steps of distance between them, looking like a stray kitten on high alert.

Having his goodwill refused, Wen Yang’s gaze flickered. He lowered his eyes to Ning Chu’s chest. “But you got wet—you’re poking through. It’s pretty obvious.”

“…”

His T-shirt had a big, colorful pattern on the front that normally did a good job of hiding the noticeable “little red beans.”

But after getting damp, the fabric clung to his skin, and the pattern’s cover-up effect was… less effective.

“It’s just a bit of chill from the rain,” Ning Chu muttered defensively.

Instinctively, he folded one arm across his chest to block Wen Yang’s side view, while resting the elbow of his umbrella-holding arm against it as if nothing were wrong.

“It’s not my fault that you insisted on going out in the rain,” he grumbled.

“I didn’t tell you to come…”

The shame and awkwardness inevitably went to his head, coloring his cheeks pink. He deliberately slowed his pace, letting himself fall one step behind Wen Yang.

Thankfully, the café was just outside the school gates. Across the street, its storefront came into view.

From a distance, through the glass, Ning Chu could just make out a figure in a black-and-white maid outfit.

Well, well—a maid café! No wonder Wen Yang braved the storm to come here!