Chapter 40: Harassment?

“By your logic, does that mean you were always getting close to me because you were chasing me?”^[1]To Chase/ Chasing means to pursue in order to catch or catch up with.

“……”

After saying these words, both of them froze, stopping in their tracks.

On the school’s sycamore-lined path, they stood facing each other.

The cicadas, which had been buzzing, suddenly fell silent.

Jiang Mingyue was completely stunned. It wasn’t that she didn’t know what to say, but it felt as though her mind, like a ball of mush, suddenly exploded.

She struggled to think if her actions could be considered as chasing after Qi Ze.

She wanted to refute Qi Ze’s words, but when she thought about it, it seemed as though they only confirmed his question.

At the start, she had gotten close to Qi Ze in order to win him over, to be friends with him, to treat him well.

She would chat with him, eat with him, give him gifts, take pictures, raise a dog…

Wait!

What she had done was indeed quite similar to Li Ge’s actions, and Li Ge had said at the time that he wanted to be friends with Qi Ze.

Then, if in her eyes Li Ge was chasing after Qi Ze, what about her own actions?

Would others think she was chasing after Qi Ze too?

Then… according to Qi Ze’s standards, were her actions also… harassment?

No, no, no. Jiang Mingyue felt her mind becoming chaotic, and her heart was in turmoil.

She seemed to hear the sound of her heart pounding loudly.

On the other side, Qi Ze’s mind was also unusually disordered.

Qi Ze had said those words on a whim, and after speaking, he suddenly didn’t know what to do.

Although everyone could see that Jiang Mingyue was chasing after him, she had never actually said that she liked him.

Wasn’t it too rash of him to say such things? Would it hurt her pride?

And besides, the time and place weren’t right for such a conversation.

However, in the blink of an eye, his thoughts shifted.

Since the words had already been said, Qi Ze decided to just break through that last layer of glass.

Anyway, since Jiang Mingyue had provoked him, she would have to take responsibility for him—it was just a matter of time.

With that thought, his gaze, once uncertain, slowly became deeper, shifting from rippling water to dark, raging waves.

Jiang Mingyue was still frozen, completely unaware.

Qi Ze bent his finger and tapped her forehead. His tone remained the same, but his gaze grew more focused. “So, what do you have to say?”

Jiang Mingyue seemed to snap out of her stupor suddenly. She blinked, covering her forehead, and looked at Qi Ze’s dark, intense eyes.

“I, I… you… don’t you think I’m, I’m… harassing you?”

She spoke in a flustered, disjointed manner, then shifted her gaze away.

Qi Ze chuckled lightly. “You are harassing me.”

“Huh? Then… then…”

“So, you have to take responsibility for me!”

“Huh? How do I take responsibility?”

“…Figure it out yourself.”

Qi Ze suddenly tapped her forehead again, harder this time.

Jiang Mingyue’s head was still a mess. What was she even supposed to think about?

Her eyes darted around, and suddenly, they landed on Qi Ze’s ears, which had turned completely red.

Jiang Mingyue couldn’t help but let out a soft giggle.

The way his ears were red while he tried to look all serious was a little cute.

Qi Ze furrowed his brows, his eyes darkening even further. “What’s so funny? Do you not want to take responsibility?”

At that moment, the system’s notification sound rang out.

【Ding——Corruption value -2%, current corruption value 68%】

【Ding——Corruption value +1%, current corruption value 69%】

【Ding——Corruption value -3%, current corruption value 66%】

【Ding——Corruption value +1%, current corruption value 67%】

【Ding——Corruption value -2%, current corruption value 65%】

“……”

The corruption value fluctuated up and down, and Qi Ze’s inner turmoil must have been just as unsettled.

Jiang Mingyue suppressed her laughter, and her thoughts slowly became clearer.

From when they first met until now, Qi Ze had changed a lot, especially in his attitude toward her.

She had to admit, Qi Ze was treating her very well now.

If Qi Ze thought she was harassing him—no, chasing after him—then did this series of changes mean that he… had developed feelings for her?!

And if she needed to take responsibility for him, did that mean… they were supposed to be together?

In that moment of realization, Jiang Mingyue’s heart started racing faster.

Her first thought wasn’t to clarify things with Qi Ze, but that once she completed the task, she’d have to leave.

What would happen to Qi Ze then?

118【Dear Host, you don’t have to go back if you don’t want to. As long as you’re willing, you can stay here after the task ends.】

The system quickly intervened, solving her dilemma.

“Not going back… I don’t have to go back, then…” Jiang Mingyue muttered: “Then why not secure such a great guy while I still can?”

Suddenly, she took a step forward and hugged Qi Ze, her dark eyes gazing at him. “Then… is this kind of responsibility okay?”

【Ding——Corruption value -5%, current corruption value 55%】

With the final notification sound, the boy’s still slender back trembled lightly, and the red on his ears had spread all the way down to his neck.

“How… how is this ‘kind of’ responsibility?” Qi Ze was fixated on hearing a definite answer.

Jiang Mingyue gently rubbed her cheek against his neck, thinking for a moment before saying: “Qi Ze, let’s be together after we graduate from high school.”

Qi Ze continued to press: “Why after graduation?”

“Because…” Jiang Mingyue attempted to pull away from his embrace.

But Qi Ze raised his hand and pulled her back, acting childishly. “Say it, and if I’m not satisfied, I won’t let go.”

Jiang Mingyue huffed, her rebellious side kicking in. She pushed Qi Ze away with some force, raised an eyebrow, and said: “Because you haven’t said you like me yet.”

Qi Ze pulled her hand back and held it in his, focusing intently on her eyes. “I…”

“Wait.” Jiang Mingyue interrupted him: “We can’t say it now.”

“Why?”

“This… this is a bit too casual, don’t you think?”

It seemed that she had just realized the atmosphere had changed. Jiang Mingyue continued: “Weren’t we just chatting? How did it suddenly turn into this? It feels a bit unreal. No, we can’t say it now. We need to find the right time, the right place, and the right situation to say it.”

Qi Ze seemed to agree that it was a bit rushed. He nodded and smiled lightly. “True, let’s not say it for now.”

The situation had developed in a way Jiang Mingyue hadn’t expected, and even when they returned to the classroom and got scolded by the teacher in the office, her mind was still a bit fuzzy.

She couldn’t figure out how she had ended up in an embrace?

As she thought about it, Jiang Mingyue couldn’t help but smile to herself.

“Jiang Mingyue, still grinning like that, what’s so funny? Tomorrow is the exam, have you even reviewed or are you skipping class again?”

Her homeroom teacher’s scolding interrupted her thoughts, and she quickly wiped the smile off her face.

She sincerely apologized: “Teacher, it’s our fault. We acted impulsively and skipped class. We know we were wrong, and we won’t do it again.”

The homeroom teacher retorted: “You’re saying there’s going to be a next time?”

Jiang Mingyue: “No, no, there won’t be a next time. Don’t worry, we’ll definitely do well on the exam tomorrow. Although we might not get a great score, we’ll definitely improve from last time. Please don’t be angry.”

“Stop painting me a picture.” the homeroom teacher wasn’t buying it. “You’re both at the bottom of the class. How much worse can you get if you don’t improve? Studying isn’t for me, it’s for you.”

Hmm?

The homeroom teacher started lecturing them again, and Jiang Mingyue was puzzled.

She was second to last in the class, but how was Qi Ze last? Wasn’t he good at studying?

Jiang Mingyue glanced over at Qi Ze, who was also looking at her in confusion, silently asking her what was wrong.

Jiang Mingyue shook her head.