Why else? To guard against a pervert like you, of course. Pei Yisheng’s slap failed to land; instead, his wrist was firmly gripped by Qin Zhou and pinned behind his back. The move forced him even closer to the other man so close that Pei Yisheng could feel the vibration of Qin Zhou’s chest.
“What exactly do you want? What I wear has nothing to do with you! Mind your own business!”
This was the first time Pei Yisheng had ever been pinned so tightly to another person. It completely violated the “social safety distance” of modern society, leaving him somewhat incoherent. Fortunately, he still had his spirit; the glare he directed at Qin Zhou was absolute and unwavering.
Looking into those dark, shimmering eyes, Qin Zhou felt a surge of heat in his heart. How could someone exist who fit his aesthetic so perfectly? He was so cute he wanted to squeeze him.
And so, he did. With one hand locking Pei Yisheng’s arms behind his back, Qin Zhou used his free hand to audaciously pinch Pei Yisheng’s cheek. Though the baby fat had long since faded, the skin was still rich in collagen, leaving his features delicate and soft so much so that there was no sense of “wrongness” when he dressed as a girl.
The tender texture against his fingertips reminded him of a small infant: fragile and utterly lacking the ability to protect itself. With just a light touch, a flush of red bloomed on the cheek, more fragrant and intense than the roses blooming in a summer flowerbed.
Pei Yisheng’s expression was one of undeniable shame and indignation. Even as he strained his neck back, he couldn’t escape Qin Zhou’s “evil clutches.” With his cheek pinched, his speech became muffled and slurred. “Qin Zhou, let go! It hurts!”
He hated the way Qin Zhou handled him like a toy. “You pervert, can’t you talk? Are you a mute!”
When a person is truly angry, they lose all sense of fear. Pei Yisheng fired off a rapid-fire stream of threats: “Let me go right now! I’m going to call the police! I’m moving out of the dorm! I’m going to expose you on the school forum!”
Qin Zhou chuckled and let go. It wasn’t because of the threats; it was because he saw that the cheek under his hand had indeed turned red. He thought to himself how delicate the boy was. “Fine, go ahead and expose me. I’d love nothing more.”
Pei Yisheng’s threats were essentially a useless template; they held zero deterrent power over Qin Zhou.
Fortunately, Qin Zhou knew better than to push him over the edge all at once. He took a small step back but remained standing directly in front of Pei Yisheng. “Seriously, do you know why I was looking for that long-haired girl?”
What was Pei Yisheng supposed to say? He obviously knew what Qin Zhou meant, but it would be immodest to say it out loud. Besides, who knew if Qin Zhou actually liked “her”?
Pei Yisheng cast a subtle glance at his own chest. For the sake of realism, the school stage play had been very meticulous with costumes. If you hid the face and didn’t lift the skirt, the gender really was blurred.
“What’s wrong, little mute? Is it your turn to be quiet?” Qin Zhou stared at him, eyes brimming with amusement.
Pei Yisheng rolled his eyes at him. “Don’t know. Don’t understand. Not possible.”
I don’t know why you’re looking for a long-haired girl. I don’t understand why you’re cornering me. It’s impossible for there to be anything between us, so stop dreaming!
Qin Zhou didn’t care what he said; just watching those beautiful lips moving was enough of a treat. He was a dominant person by nature he was even capable of “digging at someone else’s wall” (stealing someone’s partner). Simply having a thick skin to pursue someone was nothing to him.
He liked Pei Yisheng. His subconscious had recognized Pei Yisheng even before his mind did, and there was no way he was going to let him go.
“It doesn’t matter if you don’t know. I’ll tell you: I like you, Pei Yisheng. I’m going to pursue you.”
Qin Zhou took Pei Yisheng’s hand and kissed the back of it. “I’ll prove to you that I am your best choice.”
Pei Yisheng yanked his hand back instantly, rubbing it against his back in a very obvious display of disgust. Qin Zhou only smiled, not feeling angry in the slightest.
“Does you liking me even matter? I’m not going to like you back. Your ‘liking’ and your ‘pursuit’ will only cause me trouble. Besides, the first time you saw me, you called me ‘weak.’ You don’t actually like me; you’re probably just curious because of the novelty and want to see me in women’s clothes. At the end of the day, you’re still a pervert.”
Pei Yisheng wasn’t about to be swayed by a few words.
“And you didn’t even recognize me! Otherwise, why would you still be looking for a ‘long-haired girl’? You just like long-haired girls. Stop struggling and go find the right person!”
Qin Zhou efficiently filtered through Pei Yisheng’s long paragraph, only receiving the bits he wanted
liking matters… like you, truly like… want to wear women’s clothes… pervert…”
So cute, he thought. He had actually guessed about seventy or eighty percent of Qin Zhou’s inner thoughts.
Qin Zhou nodded solemnly. “I’m not struggling. I’m going to pursue you seriously. Can you give me some ‘study tips’ (pointers), baby?”
Pei Yisheng instantly bristled. “Who are you calling baby!”
“I’m calling you baby, Baby.”
“I am not your baby! Why are you so pushy? Can’t you understand what I’m saying!” Pei Yisheng had a headache. This was like a scholar meeting a soldier there was no reasoning with him. Qin Zhou wasn’t even on the same wavelength in their conversation. Since that was the case, there was no point in continuing. Angrily, Pei Yisheng shoved Qin Zhou’s shoulder, bumping him back just a tiny bit, and ran into the bathroom to hide.
He hadn’t changed his clothes yet; running outside would be even more troublesome.
But staying in the bathroom forever wasn’t an option either his pajamas and everything else were still outside.
After being isolated in the dorm room, Qin Zhou actually took a rare moment to reflect. He rubbed his nose, feeling a bit sheepish, thinking that Pei Yisheng was simply too cute; he couldn’t help but tease him.
He stood there for a moment to calm his racing heart, then tried to make amends by acting like a decent gentleman. He brought the pajamas and a bath towel to the bathroom door.
“Baby, should I leave the clothes at the door?”
Pei Yisheng shouted back from inside, “Stop calling me baby!” Then, he added weakly, “Just leave them at the door.”
Listening closely until the footsteps moved away, Pei Yisheng cracked the door open, snatched the clothes inside in a flash, and successfully began his shower.
Qin Zhou’s brow smoothed out, the curve of his lips never fading.
He would have been even happier if his phone wasn’t being bombarded with messages. Having decided to sleep in the dorm tonight, he didn’t want anyone to disturb him and Pei Yisheng. He glanced at the bathroom, estimated that Pei Yisheng would be washing for a while, and walked to the balcony to answer the call.
“You finally know how to answer the phone! Do you even know what day it is? Look at your friends—is there any one of them like you? Leaving the moment a family banquet starts and running as far as possible! Do you even want to inherit the family business!” The roaring baritone voice was practically a scream. Even holding the phone a full arm’s length away, Qin Zhou could hear it clearly.
He gave a lazy chuckle, which only further enraged the other party. “Don’t take that attitude with your father! I think the family has spoiled you too much, making you this lawless!”
“Dad, if you’re going to scold me, scold me. Just don’t scold yourself in the process.”
Qin Father was choked up by this sentence for a long time. When he finally spoke again, his tone wasn’t as frantic. A crisp, capable female voice could be heard faintly in the background: “Don’t talk to Xiao Zhou like that. Even a child with no temper would get irritated by you. If he doesn’t want to stay at the banquet, he doesn’t have to. It’s not a big deal. Everyone in City A knows him anyway. Instead of lecturing him every time, you should mind your own business and let him live a carefree life.”
“Zhouzhou, it’s Mom. Where are you? You left without eating dinner tonight. I’ll have someone send you something to eat.”
Qin Zhou knew his mother was subtly asking if he had gone out to do something wild. “I’m at the dorm. I’m going to sleep in a bit. If I’m hungry, I’ll eat. Don’t worry about me.”
“Why did you go back to the dorm?” Now she was truly curious. She heard that it was indeed quiet on his end, so he probably hadn’t gone looking for trouble.
“I just wandered over to the school and felt too lazy to go back.”
“Alright, as you wish. Get some rest. Come home tomorrow if you have time. Your father isn’t truly angry with you.”
“Got it.”
After hanging up, Qin Xiaohai complained to Zhou Yiran, “You… be careful, ‘a doting mother ruins the son.’ When Zhouzhou was little, he was such an obedient and sensible child. Why is it that the older he gets, the less close he is to us?”
Qin Xiaohai couldn’t understand it. When he was a little, fair-skinned ball of a child, he used to sit on his shoulders to see the view from high up. Now that the boy stood taller than him, he was less helpful than when he was a toddler.
Zhou Yiran didn’t have many demands for Qin Zhou, nor did she argue against the “doting mother ruins the son” comment. In her view, as long as there was no danger to his life, what was wrong with Qin Zhou doing whatever he wanted? Didn’t they work hard as parents precisely to give their child a more relaxed future?
“Stop saying things like that. There’s the good of childhood and the good of growing up. It’s wrong for you to constantly compare and belittle him. Zhouzhou’s trust fund is already enough for him to live carefree for eight lifetimes. What are you worried about? When we’re both gone one day, do you want the child’s only memories of us to be bad ones?”
“Look at you… I didn’t mean that. I just… alright, I admit it. I saw Old Wen and that Song guy’s kids were both at home, and I felt unbalanced,” Qin Xiaohai said huffily.
They hosted a banquet together, and other people’s children stayed by their side while his own didn’t even bother to keep him company. He was allowed to have a temper about it.
“His father’s connections don’t represent his own. Sooner or later, he’ll regret it.”
Zhou Yiran couldn’t be bothered to argue with him. It was late; she needed to do her skincare and go to bed.
When Qin Zhou hung up the phone, Pei Yisheng still hadn’t come out. He sat at the desk playing games while waiting. With the two of them in the dorm, they were both seemingly cut off from the outside world they had no idea that after the New Year’s Eve gala ended, Pei Yisheng’s female look was being frantically sought after on the school’s “Confession Wall.”
Not only that, but some “kind-hearted” person had recorded a video and posted it online, tagging the school’s location. The popularity was snowballing, and by the time Meng Zihua saw it, it already had over a hundred thousand likes.
Half of the comments below were saying that the most beautiful person in the middle looked a lot like a cosplayer who had recently become popular.
Meng Zihua: “…”
The thing she feared most had happened.
She immediately sent the link to Pei Yisheng, letting him decide how to handle it either admit it directly or keep quiet.
But after waiting for a long time, Pei Yisheng didn’t reply. Meng Zihua was as anxious as an ant on a hot griddle.
Forget it, she’d hire some “water army” (fake accounts) first. Anyway, Pei Yisheng’s cosplay makeup was always heavy, and the video was blurry. If people didn’t look closely, they shouldn’t be able to tell.
If Pei Yisheng were willing to admit it, it would be simple he could just do a live stream.