The pretty little follower gets targeted by the crazy guys at the elite academy

This girl...

He was far more powerful and insightful than Fu Chenzhou had imagined.

It's the kind of insightful understanding that sees through everything but pretends to be confused; it's the kind of powerful strength that's terrified but eats it all with a smile.

It was the kind of powerful and insightful feeling that made him, a man who had lived for over a hundred years, feel for the first time that he had been seen through.

At first, he just wanted a perfect collection, something that would make his collection room shine.

But now... he looked at the girl in the white dress opposite him.

Looking at her pale face, her red eyes, the small wound on the corner of her mouth, and how she clearly saw through everything, yet still cooperated with him to finish the play.

He suddenly realized that what he wanted had changed; it was no longer about collecting things, but rather...

He doesn't know exactly what has changed; at least he hasn't figured it out yet.

But he knew he didn't want her to leave. At least, he didn't want her to leave so soon.

"Li Ruo".

His voice was a few decibels lower than before: "In a hurry to leave?"

"Um."

Li Ruo nodded: "I am determined to get first place, and I can't miss the exam."

"First place?"

"Um."

"You care a lot about grades?"

"care."

Li Ruo looked him straight in the eye: "This is my only chance to prove myself in Saint Lia."

Fu Chenzhou paused for a second, then said:

"You're just going to abandon your six friends?"

Li Ruo paused for a moment, then returned his smile:

"Mr. Fu, have you ever seen a lunatic with friends?"

Fu Chenzhou: "..."

[Hahaha!! Is this some kind of mutual endorsement between lunatics?!]

[If Zhou Si and the others heard this, they'd probably be furious, hahaha!]

[But she's right, those six are indeed insane! And Li Ruo is even more insane than them! She's a madwoman forged by the hardships of surviving in the slums!]

Looking at her smile, Fu Chenzhou suddenly felt his heart skip a beat.

That smile was so bright.

The brightness was so intense that it made him, someone who had lived in darkness for over a hundred years, feel somewhat uncomfortable.

But I couldn't take my eyes off it.

Li Ruo stood up, her white skirt swaying gently in the morning light, like a newly blooming flower.

She walked around the dining table toward the door, her high heels clicking crisply on the marble floor.

Fu Chenzhou stared intently at her retreating figure.

As she reached the door, she stopped, and then she heard a sound behind her.

"girl."

Fu Chenzhou's voice carried a hint of tension that even he himself didn't realize:

Before leaving...

"...Can you kiss me?"

What did Fu Chenzhou say?! He told Li Ruo to kiss him?!

[Am I hearing things?! This lunatic let Li Ruo kiss him?! Has this ancient iron tree blossomed?!]

[Look at the butler's expression! He's terrified! The maid fainted again! This time she knocked herself unconscious!]

Li Ruo stopped in her tracks. She stood at the doorway, her back to him.

The morning light streamed in from outside, outlining a golden silhouette on her.

She just stood there without turning around.

The restaurant was deathly silent.

The butler's mouth gaped open in an "O" shape, his eyes were as wide as saucers, and his hands were trembling so badly that he almost dropped the tray.

He lived to be fifty years old and served at the Rose Manor for thirty years.

He had seen Fu Chenzhou with countless expressions: indifferent, calm, sinister, and insane.

But he had never seen Fu Chenzhou with his ears red.

Yes.

Mr. Fu's ears turned red!

Starting from the earlobe, it gradually spreads to the auricle and then to the neck.

That touch of red was particularly noticeable on his pale face.

His gray eyes no longer held their usual coldness and calmness, but rather a tension tinged with a hidden expectation, and even a cautious fear of rejection.

[What did I just see?! Fu Chenzhou's ears turned red?! This madman can actually be shy?!]

He let Li Ruo kiss him! And he was even shy! What an incredible contrast!

[The butler's expression was hilarious! He was probably thinking: "My master, whom I've served for thirty years, is actually a pure, innocent virgin?!"]

The maid woke up again! She pinched her philtrum and cried out, "I bumped my head!"

Li Ruo stood there with her back to him, silent, in a long silence.

So long that Fu Chenzhou's ears went from red to hot, and from hot to burning hot, and so long that his heart was pounding so fast it felt like it was going to jump out of his chest.

So long that he began to regret saying those words.

Fu Chenzhou, who has lived for over a hundred years, is the king who controls the entire underground world of the capital, a madman who strikes fear into the hearts of countless people.

At this moment, because of a kiss, because of a request that might not be rejected, I'm as nervous as a teenager experiencing first love.

He wanted to take back what he said.

But he couldn't bring himself to say it.

Because he was waiting, waiting for her answer.

at last!

As everyone expected, Li Ruo turned around and looked at Fu Chenzhou.

The morning light streamed in from behind her, enveloping her in a hazy glow.

The face was indistinct in the backlight; only a blurry outline could be seen.

But those eyes shone like stars.

She looked at him, at his reddened ears, at his slightly bobbing Adam's apple, and at the unprecedented tension in his gray eyes.

Then she smiled gently, her voice sweet and soft:

"Mr. Fu, are you begging me?"

Fu Chenzhou's Adam's apple bobbed again. He wanted to stubbornly refuse to admit it, but the words came out of his mouth faster than the resistance in his mind:

"……yes."

His voice was very low, almost inaudible.

But Li Ruo heard it.

The butler heard it too.

The maids heard it too.

[Holy crap, he said it! He admitted it! Fu Chenzhou is begging Li Ruo to kiss him! This world has gone mad!]

[Li Ruo, please say yes! This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!]

[No! Li Ruo, don't agree too quickly! Let him beg a little longer!]

The butler is pinching his own philtrum! He's about to faint too!

Li Ruo stared at him for a long time, then she started walking towards him.

The sound of her high heels, crisp and firm, stopped her in front of him.

The distance between the two was less than half a meter.

She tilted her head slightly and looked at him.

He lowered his head slightly and looked at her.

Eyes facing each other.

Sunlight shone on them, forming a golden beam between them.

"Mr. Fu."

Li Ruo asked softly, "Do you know what a kiss means?"

Fu Chenzhou frowned slightly, as if puzzled: "What do you mean?"

"It means..."

Li Ruo tried to tiptoe to reach him, to get close to his ear, her warm breath brushing against his earlobe:

"From now on, you'll be in charge."

Fu Chenzhou's body stiffened slightly.

Her breath was too close, her voice too soft, and the words she spoke were too heavy.

responsible?

He lived for over a hundred years, and no one had ever dared to say those two words to him.

But now, she's said it.

And he... didn't want to refuse.

"Responsible?" His voice was a little hoarse. "Responsible for what?"

Li Ruo took a half step back and looked into his eyes, which brightened slightly, clearly expecting something.

"burden……"

She slightly curled the corners of her lips: "It's my responsibility to be your support, my responsibility to be your backing."

"The responsibility to shelter me when I...sometimes want to hide away."

"Mr. Fu, are you willing?"

Fu Chenzhou was stunned.

He thought she would say, "I'll take responsibility for being your girlfriend."

He thought she would say, "I'll take responsibility and marry you."

He thought she would make all sorts of demands between men and women.

But she didn't have that. What she wanted was a protector? A support system? A place where she could hide away?

She doesn't want his love, she wants his...protection?

Fu Chenzhou looked into her eyes, which were so clear that you could see right through them.

His shadow was reflected inside, and there was only his shadow.

There was no love, no attachment, only a clear-headed sense of transaction.

She knew what she was saying and what she wanted. She wasn't infatuated with him; she was... using him.

Use his power, his strength, and his protection.

Fu Chenzhou should be angry; he hates being used.

But when he looked into her eyes, he couldn't get angry, because she was so honest, so honest that it was impossible to refuse her.

"it is good."

He heard himself say, without any temper, "I promise you."

Li Ruo's eyes curved into a smile: "Then... Mr. Fu, close your eyes."

Fu Chenzhou was slightly taken aback: "Why?"

"Because..." Li Ruo tiptoed closer, "the first kiss feels better when you close your eyes."

Fu Chenzhou's ears turned even redder.

But he really closed his eyes, his long eyelashes drooping down and casting a faint shadow on his eyelids.

That unrealistically perfect face appeared softer now that its eyes were closed.

He closed his eyes! He really closed his eyes! Li Ruo is going to kiss him! I'm going to die!

[The butler pinched his philtrum and shouted, "The century-old iron tree will bloom!"]

The maids all fainted! This time it was for real!

I declare! I could watch this scene for a million years!!!

Li Ruo quietly watched him wait with his eyes closed, his eyelashes trembling slightly, and his thin lips pressed tightly together.

She slowly moved closer, close enough to feel his breath, close enough to count his eyelashes.

then……

Her lips gently touched his forehead, very lightly and softly.

The warm, soft kiss landed, and Fu Chenzhou's body trembled violently.

He opened his eyes, his gray pupils filled with shock: "You..."

"Mr. Fu."

Li Ruo took a half step back and looked at him, a sly smile on her lips:

"This is my answer."

A kiss on the forehead means... thank you.

"Thank you for letting me know that even a crazy person like you has a gentle side."

Fu Chenzhou looked at the sly smile that appeared on her face.

Looking into her earnest eyes and at her small, peach-shaped lips, he suddenly felt his heart beating incredibly fast.

"So..." his voice was a little hoarse, "not a kiss?"

Li Ruo laughed out loud; her laughter was light and crisp, and sounded especially pleasant in the quiet restaurant.

"Mr. Fu," she said with a smile in her eyes, "kissing on the first date is too fast."

"Let's... take it slow."

Looking at her smiling face, Fu Chenzhou smiled too. That smile was more genuine than any of his previous smiles.

"it is good."

He wanted to be under a spell and obediently comply: "Take your time."

Anyway... we have plenty of time.

Li Ruo looked at his genuine smile and at his ears, which were so red they looked like they were about to bleed.

She suddenly realized that this madman wasn't so scary after all.

"Then I'm leaving."

She turned and walked towards the door.

"Li Ruo." Fu Chenzhou called out to her again.

She turned around, and the sunlight shone on her, making her glow.

Good luck with your exam tomorrow. First place is yours!

Li Ruo paused for a moment, then smiled brighter than the sun.

"Thank you, Mr. Fu."

After saying that, she turned around and walked out of the restaurant.

Fu Chenzhou stood there, looking in the direction she disappeared, for a very long time.

Then he looked down at his hand, the hand that had just wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth, the hand still warm from her touch.

He raised his fingertips and gently placed them on his forehead, where he could still feel the touch of her kiss—light and soft.

This kiss allowed him, a man who had lived for over a hundred years, to truly experience for the first time what it felt like to be treated gently.

It's just... a real shame...

Why wasn't the kiss on the lips?

Why go to such a far-off location?

The child was clearly much shorter than him, so how did he manage to reach this spot by touching his toes?

Next time, he will definitely prepare a pair of flat shoes for her.

Don't give her even the slightest chance to kiss the wrong person.

If she doesn't kiss his lips, he... will bite her lips until they break.

He followed Li Ruo's departing figure to the window. In the distance, the rose garden was in full bloom under the sunlight, and the black petals shimmered with an eerie light.

"Li Ruo," he said softly, looking at the flowers.

"Next time we meet... I won't let you leave again."

"must."

-

It was almost noon.

In a classroom in the St. Lia's teaching building.

As soon as the bell rang, Xia Qinghe closed her textbook, intending to make plans to have lunch with her deskmate, Gu Yan.

Just as she was thinking of what to say and preparing to speak, her phone rang.

She picked up her phone and her expression instantly turned serious when she saw the text message from the unaddressed number.

My fingertips paused for a moment.

Click to open.

It was sent by the butler of Rose Manor:

[Ms. Xia, your transaction with Rose Manor is 99% complete. Mr. Fu will soon send a gift as compensation for your loss.]

Xia Qinghe stared at the line of text.

Ninety-nine?

That one percent...

Which one is it?

She closed her eyes and quickly went through all the names, all the faces, and all the endings in her mind.

She should personally send each and every one of them into the abyss.

But this number... this damn one percent that's still standing, what does it mean?

Does this mean that a madman escaped her meticulous plan?

Did they escape her meticulous plan?

Did they escape the grave she had meticulously designed for everyone?

Who is that lunatic?

Where is he now?

Does he... know that she did it?

The phone screen went dark, but Xia Qinghe's fingertip remained on it.

The sunlight outside the window was blinding, but she felt a chill down her back.

"cousin."

That voice...it's Li Ruo?!

She's not dead?

She actually survived and came out of Rose Manor alive?!

So...were those six lunatics also...?