Chapter Twenty-Two
Before long, Gu Ran stood at the door of the advanced class. His white puffer jacket was slightly unzipped, revealing the white dress shirt underneath.
His black pants and white shoes paired perfectly together, giving off a neat and clean vibe.
With his hands in his pockets, he leaned lazily against the doorframe. His slightly long bangs were parted just enough to reveal a smooth, clear forehead.
Unlike yesterday's cute-puppy handsome look, today he appeared a bit more laid-back, exuding an aura of effortless cool.
"Ye Zhenzhen, are you still not ready?"
As soon as his words fell, the students in the classroom paused for a moment before erupting into teasing cheers.
Having the nerve to openly wait for a girl at her classroom door, especially during their senior year, was ridiculously bold.
Was he not afraid of being caught by the dean of students?
Everyone assumed they were secretly dating, including Pei Susu.
Right now, she was excitedly shaking Ye Zhenzhen's arm, her eyes shining as she squealed, "Gu Ran, Gu Ran! Zhenzhen, your Gu Ran is here for you again!!!"
Even with Gu Ran showing up at her classroom door, Ye Zhenzhen didn't think it was a big deal. Her delicate face maintained a calm expression.
However, upon hearing Pei Susu's dramatic squealing, her composure instantly shattered. She quickly and nervously glanced toward the door, then immediately clamped a hand over her desk-mate's big mouth.
"Shut up! Do you have a death wish? If you spout any more nonsense, I'll rip your mouth off!!!"
Ye Zhenzhen couldn't even believe those words had just come out of her own mouth. It completely ruined her image!
But she was genuinely panicked. If Gu Ran heard something like "your Gu Ran," she would want to jump straight off the building. It was too embarrassing!
While tightly covering Pei Susu's mouth, she gracefully used her other hand to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear.
She offered an apologetic smile to Gu Ran at the door, then gestured with her chin to indicate that she still needed to move her desk and chair.
Her intention was to signal that she would be a while and he should go ahead, but instead, Gu Ran walked right in and stood in front of her desk.
"Where to?"
He asked with a helpless tone while starting to pack up the items on her desk, not treating himself like an outsider in the slightest.
"Uh..."
Ye Zhenzhen was a bit dazed, but Pei Susu, whose mouth was still covered, was definitely not. Her eyes gleamed with a wicked light as she mumbled, trying to break free from Ye Zhenzhen's grip.
Seeing this, Ye Zhenzhen didn't dare space out anymore. She used both hands to firmly clamp down on her desk-mate's mouth before restoring her calm expression and saying softly, "Sorry for the trouble. Just move it over by the wall."
In front of her loudmouth best friend, she didn't dare tease Gu Ran and completely avoided using the word "little brother."
But Gu Ran had no idea what she was worried about. He first cast a weirded-out glance at the muffled, struggling Pei Susu, and then looked at Ye Zhenzhen with a smile.
Seeing Gu Ran's smiling face, her heart skipped a beat as a bad premonition bubbled up inside her.
"No worries. I'm helping out my older sister, it's no trouble at all."
Sure enough, Gu Ran flashed a grin and said the exact words she was most afraid of her desk-mate hearing.
Having said that, Gu Ran picked up the desk and walked toward the wall.
Meanwhile, Ye Zhenzhen's cheeks flushed slightly, and she lowered her head in embarrassment.
The overly excited Pei Susu finally managed to break free. She grabbed Ye Zhenzhen's arm, her face full of gossip, and asked, "What sister? A romantic sister?!"
Ye Zhenzhen: "..."
The flustered girl froze. She reached out to cover her friend's mouth once again, her cool eyes filled with a murderous glare as she warned in a severe tone, "Pei Susu, if you don't want to be silenced permanently, shut your mouth!"
Hearing this, Pei Susu nodded repeatedly and mimed zipping her lips.
Only then did Ye Zhenzhen let her go. After all, Gu Ran was helping her move her seat, and she couldn't just sit there doing nothing.
But the moment she let go, Pei Susu leaned in and whispered in her ear:
"You still haven't told me, what exactly is the relationship between you two? And what's with that 'sister' thing? Could it be... oh~ you guys are into some kinky roleplay, hehe..."
By the end, imagining who knows what, she couldn't help but let out a few devious snickers.
Ye Zhenzhen rolled her eyes, completely losing any desire to explain. She had given up all hope on this girl whose head was filled with dirty thoughts.
Because no matter what you said, she would only hear and believe what she wanted to. Wasting breath on her was pointless.
Taking a few deep breaths to calm her emotions, she put her aloof expression back on.
After she and Gu Ran finished moving the seat and were just about to leave the classroom, Pei Susu sidled over, staring at Gu Ran with the flames of gossip burning in her almond-shaped eyes.
"You must be hungry, hurry home and eat."
Before Pei Susu could speak, Ye Zhenzhen said softly. She wore a gentle smile on her face, but her cool eyes were brimming with a deadly warning.
It wasn't that she and Gu Ran had some illicit relationship, but rather that if this girl got involved, something unpredictable was bound to happen.
After all, she had no idea what kind of crazy words would come out of this wretched girl's mouth next!
"Oh my, don't be so fierce. I just came to thank your..."
"Ahem!"
Pei Susu said in a sickly sweet voice. Just as she was about to casually say "your Gu Ran," Ye Zhenzhen quickly coughed twice, full of threat.
She immediately changed her tune, continuing in her sweet voice: "Thank you, little brother Gu Ran..."
Before she could finish, she received another death glare from a certain someone. Cursing her for being stingy in her heart, she then said, "Thank you, classmate Gu Ran, for helping me move the desk. I'll treat you to bubble tea some other day."
With that, not waiting for Gu Ran's reply, she slung on her backpack, shot Ye Zhenzhen a suggestive look, and strode out of the classroom.
"She... um... you guys..."
"We weren't talking bad about you!" Ye Zhenzhen blurted out, telling on herself.
Gu Ran looked utterly bewildered. Watching the bizarre Pei Susu leave the classroom, he didn't quite know what to say.
But the flustered girl in front of him taking the initiative to prove her innocence only made him feel it was even weirder.
As soon as the words left her mouth, realizing she had acted too guilty, Ye Zhenzhen's pretty face instantly turned beet red.
Staring at the aloof-looking girl in front of him for a few seconds, Gu Ran slowly spoke up: "That's not what I was going to say... Were you guys talking bad about me? Also, how does your desk-mate know my name?"
His face was full of suspicion, leaving Ye Zhenzhen momentarily speechless.
Raising her hand to tuck her hair back, she took a few breaths to try and calm herself down. Just in this one morning, her composure had been shattered far too many times, leaving her physically and mentally exhausted.
Then, looking up at Gu Ran, she said in a flat tone, "Uncle Gu must have been waiting for a long time. Let's hurry up and go."
With that, she walked briskly out of the classroom.
"Uh... wait, you still haven't..."
Seeing her change the subject, Gu Ran blinked. Looking at the slender figure in the hallway, he was absolutely certain this girl had been talking behind his back. Otherwise, why would she be so guilty?
He followed after her, just about to press the question, when Ye Zhenzhen suddenly stopped in her tracks. She spun around, her face flushed with embarrassment and annoyance, and snapped exasperatedly, "Shut up!"

g Yu was preparing for retirement when her organization decided to eliminate her. She transmigrated to a zombie apocalypse world. However, a tiny unexpected situation occurred: She somehow transformed into an adorable little girl?!

ap a wealthy young lady? Or else I'll be eliminated by the system? Ye Feng, who awakened the Kidnapper System, originally wanted to live a peaceful life but never imagined he would become a kidnapper of young women. However, after some time, he discovered that all the girls the system ordered him to kidnap were far from ordinary. "Big brother Ye Feng~ You've kidnapped my heart, and now you're not allowed to leave me ever again~" "Ye Feng~ You kidnapped me back then, now it's my turn to capture you♡" "Little Feng, you're mine! You can only be mine!" "Ye Feng, none of them deserve you. Only I love you the most♡" ... This is madness, they've all gone mad! Wait, what? Why are all the girls I kidnapped yanderes?!

young master of the Shen family—a figure of immense power and wealth beyond measure—and awakened the "Destined Ultimate Villain System"! His starting scenario? Running into his icy fiancée who shows up with a mountain-descending divine doctor to break off their engagement. The divine doctor arrogantly taunts: "What does your Shen family have besides a bit of stinking money? You're not even worthy of tying Qingxue's shoelaces!" Shen Fei just smiled. He completely defied the usual script: "Fine, I agree to break off the engagement. Also, notify the finance department to withdraw all investments from the Su family." Minutes later, with its capital chain severed, the Su Group teetered on the brink of bankruptcy! The once aloof and proud ice queen CEO was thrown into utter panic. That very night, she went to Shen Fei's villa, casting aside all dignity to beg and plead desperately... From then on, in this world teeming with Sons of Destiny, Shen Fei embarked on a path of extreme dimensional suppression! A mountain-descending divine doctor? Peerless medical skills? Shen Fei: "Reporting you for practicing medicine without a license! I'll gladly take your ancient medicinal cauldron and twin sister assassins." The Crooked-Smiling Dragon King? Commanding a hundred thousand soldiers with a single order? Shen Fei: "Illegal assembly and suspected treason! Let a fleet of attack helicopters sanitize the area and teach you what the state apparatus really means!" A reborn tycoon? Knows all the golden opportunities of the next decade? Shen Fei: "A trillion in capital to reverse and pump the stock market, making you blow your margin and jump on the very first day of your rebirth!" What Chosen Ones? What bearers of Heavenly Fortune? In Shen Fei's eyes, they're all just chives (i.e., suckers/marks) waiting to be harvested! Shen Fei: "Sorry, but as the Destined Ultimate Villain, I don't play by the rules of honor. I only play the game of dimensional suppression."

] [Lone Wolf, No Male Gaze] [Protagonist is pursued early on; extreme protagonist-stans, stay away!] The "Carnival Paradise" descends and slowly devours the real world in the form of a game. By chance, Zhu Yan awakens the talent [Roleplay], becoming one of the first beta players. He thought he could develop safely, but after clearing the first instance, he is branded by humanity as the chief culprit behind the game's spread—a traitorous villain. A villain? Who would ever... become one! He'll be the villain! From then on, Zhu Yan is not only a player but also a lackey for the Carnival Paradise. Between the straight path and the crooked path, he chooses the con. With his left hand, he dons the villain's mantle, staging scenes within instances, infuriating players who decry him as a despicable traitor, all while the game happily promotes him. With his right hand, he joins the non-human organization "Fangcun Mountain," which opposes the Carnival Paradise, transforming into a mysterious player who slaughters game bosses, earning cheers of "Long live the expert!" from fellow players. Gradually, Zhu Yan rises to become an S-rank human player in Fangcun Mountain's archives, while also being the Carnival Paradise's certified top game Boss. But when the final war erupts and both major factions place their hopes in him— Players tag his various aliases: "Experts, this offensive depends on you." The Carnival Paradise's supreme Boss throws an arm around his neck: "Bro, you're the iron, I'm the steel; you can't let me down again!"