In a Dilemma

Lin Yu shot Qing Mo a fierce glare, but there was no time left to investigate what exactly she had done.

"Are you also at the main gate of S University right now?"

"I don't see you either."

As he spoke, Lin Yu stood on tiptoe, looking around.

Soon, Lin Yu spotted Xia Muzhu in the crowd. She was wearing a beige dress, with a brown woven straw hat adorned with a bow on her head.

It was an outfit that really made her stand out.

But Lin Yu was in no mood to appreciate it.

He quickly walked over, reaching her side before she could notice the situation there.

"Sister Muzhu, why did you come today?"

Xia Muzhu's eyes curved into crescents, her smile carrying a hint of playfulness, a departure from her usual gentle image, as she said sweetly:

"It was Little Shan's idea."

"He said if I came tomorrow, sitting on a plane all morning would be exhausting, and I wouldn't have any energy to have fun in the afternoon."

"It would be better to come a day early. That way, I'd have plenty of time to rest and could spend more time with you on your birthday tomorrow."

"I thought what he said made a lot of sense."

"So I came today."

The corners of Lin Yu's mouth twitched stiffly, finally contorting into a forced smile that looked a bit strange.

You again!

You little brat!

Just you wait till I get back and deal with you!

"Then why didn't you tell me in advance?"

Lin Yu scratched his head with an awkward smile. To keep the statement from raising suspicion, he specifically added:

"I could have gone to the airport to pick you up."

"I wanted to surprise you~"

Xia Muzhu giggled, her smile charmingly naive, but in her heart, she remembered Xia Yueshan's advice before she left...

"Sis, remember!"

"This time, you absolutely must not let the cat out of the bag about going early!"

"A surprise inspection!"

"Catch him off guard."

"See if he's been fooling around or misbehaving at university..."

Xia Yueshan's words seemed to still echo in her ears. To mask her guilt, the smile on Xia Muzhu's face grew even brighter.

Lin Yu's heart sank, feeling utterly hopeless.

At this point, there wasn't much Lin Yu could do.

Actually, if Lin Yu wanted to, he could still easily resolve this "crisis."

For example, using some excuse to send Xia Muzhu away. That itself wasn't difficult; the hard part was getting past his own conscience.

In Lin Yu's mind, he didn't think there was anything wrong with his behavior.

He had never confirmed a relationship with Tang Manman, nor had there been any particularly ambiguous gestures. After establishing his romantic relationship with Xia Muzhu, he had already been distancing himself from Tang Manman, no longer being physically close or entangled with her.

As for why he had hidden the fact that he had a girlfriend from Tang Manman...

Where did I hide it?

She never asked!

More importantly, Lin Yu was somewhat afraid to tell her, afraid to face her reaction once she knew all this.

So, Lin Yu could only leave this thorny matter to time, hoping time would smooth everything over, allowing both parties to fade each other's importance in their hearts, achieving a silent farewell.

But now they've all run into each other...

If Lin Yu were to prevent their meeting now, deliberately concealing Xia Muzhu's identity, then it wouldn't be a matter of whether Tang Manman asked or not!

It would be Lin Yu intentionally hiding it, wanting to have his cake and eat it too!

Such behavior was absolutely unacceptable in Lin Yu's moral code.

If Lin Yu did nothing, and Tang Manman didn't know Xia Muzhu's identity, Lin Yu could still deceive himself into saying it wasn't his fault, that Tang Manman simply didn't know.

But if Lin Yu were to prevent their meeting now, all the responsibility would fall on him!

Having reached this point, Lin Yu had no choice but to come clean.

Even if Tang Manman would be heartbroken to find out, even if things might become very troublesome afterwards...

So be it.

He couldn't possibly hide his girlfriend's identity in front of others, could he?

What kind of person would that make him?

Wouldn't that make him the same as those scumbags?

Having made up his mind, Lin Yu let out an almost imperceptible sigh, then pulled himself together, forced a smile, took Xia Muzhu's hand, and said softly:

"Come on, Sister Muzhu, let's go eat."

"I'll also introduce you to a few of my friends."

Lin Yu was determined to introduce Xia Muzhu to everyone as his girlfriend.

This was the most basic respect for one's partner!

"I won't go. I need to get my phone fixed."

Xia Muzhu suddenly withdrew her hand, took out her phone from her pretty blue bag, and waved the cracked screen side at Lin Yu, saying:

"The screen shattered when I got off the plane."

Xia Muzhu's sudden refusal stunned Lin Yu.

Fix the phone?

Now?

Lin Yu's head was instantly filled with question marks.

Do you have some urgent matter that needs to be handled on your phone?

Wait!

You just called me earlier.

Your phone is perfectly functional, right?

Then why do you need to fix it right now, at the very moment I'm about to introduce you to my friends?

You could totally wait.

Wait until I introduce you to my friends, wait until after we eat, then we can go to the phone shop together!

Why are you...

At this thought, Lin Yu's train of thought was abruptly interrupted by another, much more domineering possibility.

He stared blankly at Xia Muzhu. She blinked at him, then subtly gestured with her eyes towards behind him.

Lin Yu turned his head in confusion and saw the gazes of those three women fixed firmly on them.

He turned back just as bewildered, facing Xia Muzhu's gentle smile, unable to utter a single word to ask her to stay.

"Remember to call me when you're done."

Xia Muzhu raised her hand to her ear, mimicking a phone call gesture, then gave a gentle smile and turned to leave.

Once again, it was a scene straight out of a novel, a plot straight from a movie.

The experiences of those fictional characters all told Lin Yu what the best course of action was right now.

It was to take Xia Muzhu's hand, lead her firmly over to those people, and proudly tell them, "She is my girlfriend."

Lin Yu had the perfect answer in his mind, but his body couldn't take that step towards the "exam hall." He couldn't even open his mouth, could only watch Xia Muzhu's back as she walked away, watching her blend into the sea of people...

...

She had sensed his dilemma.

She trusted him.

She didn't want to put him in a difficult position.