Chapter 55: He Might As Well Have "Scumbag" Written Across His Face

"That damned man actually dared to kiss me. How could he possibly have the nerve..."

Yao Yanyan clutched her pillow, rolling back and forth on the bed, occasionally gnashing her teeth as she let out frustrated murmurs. Every action betrayed the turbulence within her heart.

And understandably so. After all, she had originally sought out Qin洛 today purely to provoke Xu Ke; she certainly hadn't intended to deliver herself straight into Qin洛's mouth.

Precisely for that reason, she had let out a massive sigh of relief when Xu Ke arrived just in time.

Yet never in her wildest dreams could she have expected that after delivering his "passionate declaration" to Xu Ke, Qin洛 would turn right around and kiss her.

Such an explosive, brazen maneuver was definitely a path Yao Yanyan had never envisioned.

When all the pillows had been kicked off onto the floor and Yao Yanyan failed to fish them back after a couple of tries, she simply sprawled out in a starfish shape on the mattress, staring blankly up at the ceiling.

The scene that had unfolded in the classroom not long ago resurfaced in her mind. Yao Yanyan involuntarily touched her lips, as if she could suddenly feel the sensation of that kiss all over again.

Moist, warm... That unprecedented tactile sensation, the flutter of excitement that had bloomed in her heart at that exact moment—it all lingered in Yao Yanyan's mind, refusing to dissipate even now.

To Yao Yanyan, that feeling was completely foreign and entirely unprecedented. Yet even so, she understood the reason behind the tremor in her heart.

She simply refused to admit it.

And the reason was very simple—

"I will no longer try to pluck the moon; I only want the moon that rushes toward me."

"Courtesy demands reciprocity. Consider this my return gift."

As those soft words echoed in her ears once more, Yao Yanyan couldn't help a faint chuckle. "He's got a pretty way with words, calling it a return gift... Hmph, a scumbag through and through, just as expected."

She let her hands drop to her sides, desperately trying to erase the brand Qin洛 had left upon her heart. Yet the harder she tried, the clearer his figure became in her mind.

The sequence of events from the classroom flashed before her eyes once more. Yao Yanyan rested one arm across her forehead, her gaze toward the ceiling gradually turning hollow and unfocused, her lips moving in a soundless murmur.

"You'd better be a scumbag..."

...

"Phew..."

Making her way all the way back to the dorm, Qin洛 pushed open the door, sank into a chair, and let out a long sigh of relief.

It was just after the first class of the morning, and his three unruly roommates still had a second class to attend, so the dormitory was completely empty.

With no one around to shoot the breeze with, Qin洛 had to entertain himself. First, he sent messages to the guys asking them to cover for him during roll call, then he booted up his computer to enter the Summoner's Rift. After typing "GG" in three consecutive matches, he collapsed onto his bed to slack off.

The dormitory was deathly quiet. Qin洛 stared blankly at the ceiling, the scenes from the classroom replaying endlessly in his mind, his chaotic thoughts refusing to settle.

At first, he thought it was because of Xu Ke. But as he kept thinking, an alluring face vaguely materialized before his eyes.

Thus, he found himself instinctively touching his lips, which seemed to still retain the warmth belonging to Yao Yanyan.

He didn't know if this kiss would leave a deep impression on Yao Yanyan, but Yao Yanyan's figure had already firmly etched itself into his own mind.

"This isn't right. This is hardly the mindset a proper scumbag should have..."

Qin洛 smacked his lips, forcefully banishing Yao Yanyan's image from his head, and instead pulled out his phone to browse the campus forum. He wanted to see what nonsense his fellow slackers were speaving about lately to clear his head.

And sure enough, this browsing session actually yielded something interesting.

Someone had snapped a picture of Chu Liunian, dressed in a full JK outfit, furiously chewing out three gas-tank-sized senior female students. Since it wasn't a video, there was no way of knowing exactly what Chu Liunian had said.

However, judging solely by her hands-on-hips, imposing stance and the unsightly expressions on the faces of the three gas tanks, the outcome was abundantly clear.

"Pretty badass."

Qin洛 gave a smiling appraisal, then backed out of the page and kept scrolling down.

Not long after, he ran into Chu Liunian again, though this time there were a few others with her.

In the photo, Chu Shijin walked in front, while Tang Yu and Chu Liunian supported Xu Ke on either side. Xu Ke's eyes were vacant and her expression blank, making her look like a sleepwalker, while Yao Yanyan was nowhere to be seen.

Qin洛's gaze swept past Xu Ke without his expression flickering in the slightest. He didn't even feel the slightest ripple deep within his heart.

His entanglements with her felt as though they had truly been severed completely the moment Qin洛 walked out of that classroom.

With a tranquil mindset, Qin洛 closed the forum and switched over to short videos.

Food, horse hoof trimming, wilderness survival, forging competitions, pretty girls, black silk, white silk, lace, fishnets...

The first four were discovered by Qin洛 himself, while the latter bunch came courtesy of his three devoted "sons."

I spit upon the lot of you—Qin洛 sent them a message with an indignant expression, before proceeding to meticulously appreciate every single video they had sent.

Scrolling down to the trending videos, Qin洛's eyes lit up.

"You can't use brute force when pursuing women. Being tough is certainly fine, but technique is equally important. Today, we're going to share a few little tricks for chasing women."

"If you want to pursue a female scumbag, you must maintain absolute clarity and rationality. Female scumbags treat emotions like a game; interacting with one is a chess match, and whoever gets serious first loses. Remember: a true female scumbag never writes the words 'scumbag' across her face..."

"If you want to pursue a clever person, you must find ways to manufacture misunderstandings, letting her outsmart herself, guiding her to feel a sense of guilt toward you, and making it hard for her to refuse your requests..."

"If you want to pursue a hardcore ACG fan... Genshin Impact! Launch!"

Qin洛 watched while smacking his lips, his face full of disdain, yet his fingers clicked "like" and "favorite" without a moment's hesitation. In the end, he even remembered to share it with his three roommates.

Five seconds later, his three roommates replied in perfect unison—We spit upon you!

...

That night, Xu Ke struggled to sleep, Yao Yanyan didn't return at all, and Qin洛, digesting a brain full of fresh moves, slept with absolute serenity.

And upon waking up the next morning, the very first thing he did was give himself a thorough makeover.

"What on earth are you doing at the crack of dawn..."

"We don't have a first-class this morning..."

"Old Qin, what fresh scheme are you cooking up now..."

His three roommates were jolted awake by the commotion of him getting up. They rubbed their sleepy eyes as they looked toward Qin洛, but their eyes gradually widened, and their expressions grew rather peculiar.

At that moment, Qin洛 sported a clean, refreshing crop of short black hair. His heroic brows and deep-set eyes combined to form an exquisite face, and from a profile view, his facial bone structure looked even more pronounced, resembling a statue meticulously polished by a master artist with not a single flaw to be found.

Standing well over six feet tall, his well-proportioned physique was draped in a white casual shirt and black casual trousers. The top two buttons of his collar were undone, and his sleeves were rolled up to his elbows.

Such a minimalist outfit, yet draped over him, it exuded an extraordinary aesthetic. His entire aura was brimming with unbridled charm, making him look like a dashing, carefree wanderer.

The title of Room 404's resident heartthrob had always been a matter of debate, but at this exact moment, Qin洛's three roommates had to concede that Qin洛 had temporarily surpassed them.

Only one thing puzzled them: usually, Qin洛 was handsome enough, but overall he tended to be rather restrained. He was nothing like this, radiating that damn charm unreservedly—even the few slightly upturned strands of hair looked exceptionally bewitching!

You dog, dressing up so coquettishly, who are you trying to seduce!

The three beast-like men couldn't help cursing inwardly.

Right then, Qin洛 turned his head to look at them, asking with a cheerful grin, "Do I look like a scumbag?"

The three of them twitched their lips in half-smiles and replied with tacit synchronization, "You're just missing the word 'scumbag' tattooed on your face."

Whereupon Qin洛 nodded in satisfaction and sauntered triumphantly out the door.