Magical Encounter

"Is it really that exaggerated?" Liu Yuanyuan asked, a strange look crossing her face.

To be honest, seeing the Senior's face full of admiration and longing when he talked about Su Bai left Liu Yuanyuan deeply confused.

She knew that Su Bai had a pretty good reputation among the wealthy guys and girls.

After all, how should she put it? From his personality to his actual abilities, the guy really had a lot going for him. Plus, he was very approachable. One shouldn't underestimate approachability; it was actually quite rare. Even students from privileged backgrounds didn't necessarily have it—it was mostly an innate trait.

But it shouldn't warrant this level of worship, right? Liu Yuanyuan almost suspected that this Senior had some unique fetishes. If she hadn't known that he actually had an ex-girlfriend, she really would have started getting other ideas.

Speaking of which, the Senior's ex-girlfriend didn't seem like an easy person to deal with either.

She was a classic nightclub party animal. Every time the Senior asked her to study or work on a project together, the ex-girlfriend always had various weird social gatherings to attend. Over time, conflicts naturally arose between them.

And conflicts made sense. People have different ambitions, and only those with similar goals are suited for each other. In the past, Liu Yuanyuan was obsessed with eating, drinking, and having fun, which was why she fell for Xue Tao, who was willing to spend money to take her out. But now, she desired to improve herself, making Xue Tao seem less suitable. This was what you called personal growth...

"You can't stop her from running toward someone better, right?"

While brainwashing herself, this phrase inexplicably popped into Liu Yuanyuan's head. To be fair, saying something like this now sounded like a complete troll, but Liu Yuanyuan's sheer shamelessness still provided her with ample positive justification.

The Senior was right!

"Senior, do you really want to collaborate with Su Bai? I have a, uh, friend who is Su Bai's roommate. Maybe I can help you ask around."

"Really?" Hearing this, the Senior's eyes lit up, and the leg he used to drive even started trembling with excitement.

"Of course! Oh, come on, we're both members of the Career Development Association. It's only natural for us to help each other and exchange resources!"

Liu Yuanyuan spoke enthusiastically, a sweet smile blooming on her face, but she didn't try too hard to be seductive. The Senior had just gotten out of a failed relationship, and the type he hated most right now were those flirtatious, cheap women. So, she needed to act mature, well-read, and reasonable.

Sure enough, throughout their conversation on the way, Liu Yuanyuan's proper demeanor left the Senior highly satisfied. It also made Liu Yuanyuan feel that their relationship had progressed significantly.

Upon arriving at the restaurant, Liu Yuanyuan even asked about the price of the set meal, pretending she wanted to split the bill. Naturally, she was stopped by the Senior.

"Sigh, I'm taking my junior out for a meal; how could I let you go Dutch? Besides, you already said you'd help me contact Su Bai. That's a huge favor. How could I possibly have the nerve to let you pay..."

"Hmm, alright then, I guess it would be impolite of me to refuse."

However, not long after they sat down, Liu Yuanyuan suddenly saw a man and a woman walk into the restaurant. She instantly lost her composure and instinctively looked for something to cover her face.

But the other party happened to look in her direction as well. He froze abruptly, and then a look of anger surfaced on his face.

The newcomer was none other than Xue Tao!

Wait a minute, girl, weren't you supposed to be studying today? How did your studying bring you to an American BBQ restaurant?

And sitting across from her was a guy dressed incredibly flashily.

The local boy was instantly furious!

Damn it! I knew Liu Yuanyuan was a restless woman. She rejected my advances time and time again, and now she's out having dinner with another man?!

Just as Xue Tao was about to explode, the girl next to him looked confused and asked in a sweet, whiny voice, "Brother, what's wrong? Are you suddenly feeling unwell?"

"...It's nothing."

Xue Tao suddenly realized something and immediately cooled down. He led the girl to their pre-booked table and sat down.

Because he suddenly realized, hey! I'm out messing around with another woman too. Well, never mind then.

To be honest, Xue Tao felt he hadn't gained much from the recent programming competition itself. He had teamed up with two high school classmates, and in the end, they couldn't write any proper code. They somehow muddled through and got a participation award, which held absolutely no value.

Pure background NPC behavior, if you asked him.

However, his biggest harvest was hooking up with a girl.

That's right, she was one of the three girls from the neighboring Normal University who had formed a team to compete.

Xue Tao had mustered all his courage but still didn't dare to approach them. But for some reason, one day when Xue Tao and his teammates were discussing things on the street in the entrepreneurship park, one of the Normal University girls took the initiative to approach him and added his WeChat.

This made Xue Tao ecstatic.

After all, how should he put it? These three girls were all youthful and pretty. In Xue Tao's eyes, they were no worse than Liu Yuanyuan, but their attitudes were much more energetic and lively than hers.

He could only say that the girls at Jiangcheng University... well, those who know, know.

Every single one of them had their eyes fixed on the top, with egos larger than the sky. They felt that because they were highly educated girls from a prestigious university, they deserved nothing but the best.

Anyway, Xue Tao had been tortured miserably by Liu Yuanyuan.

Furthermore, influenced by his family's values, Xue Tao naturally had a beautiful filter for girls studying at a Normal University—or in other words, girls who would become teachers in the future.

Coupled with the fact that the girl was genuinely enthusiastic, constantly asking him questions about this and that, it really made Xue Tao feel like he was walking on air. With a grand wave of his hand, he brought her to eat at an American steakhouse.

Jiangcheng actually had quite a few restaurants jumping on the bandwagon to do this kind of American BBQ.

The prices were never cheap.

After all, they were packaged in a concept that seemed somewhat high-end, and in terms of ingredients, they used large chunks of premium meat. A trendy internet-famous concept plus expensive ingredients meant it was impossible to create budget-friendly dining; the prices had to be high.

But that wasn't a big problem. As long as the food was good, being a bit expensive was fine. It was perfectly suited for taking a girl out to eat.

The girl was naturally thrilled as well. On the way there, she even took photos to post on her WeChat Moments. When taking the pictures from the passenger seat of the Cayenne, she made sure to include the steering wheel and the car's interior. She also deliberately leaned her body toward Xue Tao. That elegant, perfumed vibe—tsk, tsk—it completely captivated Xue Tao's mind.

Sure enough, as a local, I still have good stats! The reason I usually end up eating dirt is entirely because I'm overshadowed by Su Bai's brilliance. As long as I don't compete on the same stage as Su Bai and avoid his sharp edges, I, Xue Tao, am still the Brother Cayenne that girls flock to!

People really do grow.

In the past, no matter who Xue Tao ran into, he wanted to clash head-on. Me, avoid your sharp edges?

Now... you have to avoid them, bro. Who would dare to clash with Su Bai?

Su Bai was the sun of Jiangcheng University's wealthy circle, shining so brightly that even a local like me, with four relocation apartments, couldn't open my eyes!

Xue Tao was feeling immensely proud of himself, but the moment he stepped into the American BBQ restaurant, he saw Liu Yuanyuan on a date with a mysterious man. Unhappy as he was, considering he was doing the exact same thing, he couldn't exactly throw a fit.

It was just very subtle... Honestly speaking, was this also a kind of perfect match in some sense...