Chapter 19: The Drunken Girl Joins the Bookmark Voting

The two sat in a barbecue restaurant, happily eating.

Tang Xiao skewered a piece of meat on a stick and said, “Did you strike it rich? Treating me to a meal, that’s rare.”

Gu Xiaoxi grumbled, “Nonsense. You’re making me sound cheap. Who doesn’t know that I, Gu Xiaoxi, am always generous and righteous!”

“Heh, okay, okay.”

At that moment, Gu Xiaoxi turned to shout, “Boss, bring me a half dozen beers!”

Tang Xiao stopped her, “Wait, why are you drinking now?”

Tang Xiao didn’t drink much, and neither did Gu Xiaoxi, so he didn’t know what would happen if they drank.

But how could Tang Xiao stop her?

Gu Xiaoxi confidently replied, “It’s fine! Something good happened today, of course, I should have a drink.”

“What happened?”

Without answering, Gu Xiaoxi popped open a bottle and gulped it down before he could stop her.

“Ahh, that’s refreshing!” Gu Xiaoxi wiped her mouth boldly.

She proudly said, “I successfully did a good deed today, and I’ll get an extra 20 points on my college entrance exam, haha, I’m really a genius!”

It turned out that today, Gu Xiaoxi had encountered a knife-wielding robber on the street and had immediately stepped in to subdue him.

The police confirmed that she had acted heroically, and as a result, she would receive bonus points on her college exam.

This made Gu Xiaoxi incredibly happy.

“A knife-wielding robber?”

“Yeah.”

Gu Xiaoxi downplayed the situation, but Tang Xiao could imagine the danger of it.

Gu Xiaoxi was indeed impressive, but Tang Xiao couldn’t help feeling a little scared for her.

This girl was truly bold, going to any lengths for the exam bonus points, and those points would be added.

“You’re insane. He was holding a knife—what if you got hurt?”

“When you helped me before, you didn’t hesitate. How could I hesitate now? Besides, we martial artists are supposed to step in when we see injustice. What’s the problem with that?”

Gu Xiaoxi boasted, “I was so cool at that moment, really. If you had been there, you would have definitely sworn me in as your righteous father.”

“Please, put down the phone.”

“You! You should drink too!” Gu Xiaoxi urged Tang Xiao to join her.

Tang Xiao knew Gu Xiaoxi was happy, so he drank a little to accompany her.

At first, it was just a little drink, but soon Gu Xiaoxi began to get increasingly tipsy, struggling to speak clearly.

A few times, she almost fell asleep, and Tang Xiao had to shake her shoulders to keep her awake.

“Hey, hey, hey, you said it was fine, but you’re getting drunk?”

“You… don’t underestimate me…” Gu Xiaoxi mumbled, talking nonsense.

“Alright, let’s go home. Boss, bring the bill,” Tang Xiao said. It seemed better to head home with Gu Xiaoxi in this state.

---

Later, on the street at night.

Gu Xiaoxi wrapped her arm around Tang Xiao’s neck, and Tang Xiao helped steady her.

The night had deepened, and the street was empty, with only the two of them walking.

Gu Xiaoxi’s steps were erratic, and they couldn’t walk fast at all.

“If you couldn’t handle it, why drink in the first place? Trying to impress others?” Tang Xiao grumbled.

This was the first time they were so close to each other.

Gu Xiaoxi’s body felt very warm, even slightly hot.

Tang Xiao’s heart raced.

“Let’s get home, we don’t want Grandpa Gu to worry…” Tang Xiao mumbled.

“I won’t! I don’t want to go back!”

Suddenly, Gu Xiaoxi started to struggle, waving her arms around.

Tang Xiao lost his balance, and the two of them fell into the grass of the street’s greenbelt.

Gu Xiaoxi ended up lying completely on top of Tang Xiao.

Her face was pressed close to his.

Her hair brushed against his face, a little ticklish.

Tang Xiao could feel the soft sensation of her body against his.

They were so close that the scent of alcohol mixed with a faint fragrance reached his nose.

Chapter 19: The Drunken Girl Joins the Bookmark Voting

The fragrance was subtle, a unique, fresh scent belonging to the girl.

Tang Xiao’s eyes widened, his heart racing so fast it felt like it would leap out of his chest.

“You… wake up.”

Tang Xiao quickly pushed Gu Xiaoxi off him.

Gu Xiaoxi lay sprawled out in a ‘big character’ pose on the grass, and Tang Xiao adjusted her skirt to cover her.

“You’re already this old, and you’re still causing trouble.” Tang Xiao shook his head helplessly.

After much effort, Tang Xiao finally managed to get Gu Xiaoxi home.

Her Grandfather tossed Gu Xiaoxi onto the bed.

Tang Xiao explained to Gu Weiguo how Gu Xiaoxi had gotten drunk.

Gu Weiguo was both angry and amused: “This girl is really unreliable, but at least you were there.”

“It’s no big deal, Grandpa. You should rest early. I’ll head home now.”

“Alright, Xiao Xiao, you should also get some rest.”

Back at his place, Tang Xiao lay on his bed.

Gu Xiaoxi’s touch and scent lingered in his mind.

Tang Xiao sighed and shook his head. “My master is really unreliable. But hey, getting extra points is a good thing.”

While the extra points were indeed a good thing, Tang Xiao couldn’t help but feel happy for Gu Xiaoxi.

The next day, Tang Xiao arrived at school.

Xia Yuxi was already there, working on problems at her desk.

Tang Xiao greeted her, “Good morning.”

“Y-yeah, good morning,” Xia Yuxi stuttered, her voice stiff.

Though they had grown closer, Xia Yuxi was still shy.

Tang Xiao didn’t mind, knowing it was just her personality.

Liu Zihao came over and grabbed Tang Xiao’s arm, “Tang Xiao, is that female hero your neighbor?”

Tang Xiao was confused, “Which hero?”

Liu Zihao was surprised, acting overly dramatic: “Ah, you know, the one who skipped class with you last time.”

Tang Xiao suddenly remembered, “Oh, you mean Gu Xiaoxi? What’s up?”

Tang Xiao wasn’t used to the title “female hero” and hadn’t connected it right away.

Liu Zihao looked at him with admiration: “So it’s Gu the Hero! She’s amazing!”

“Is she?”

Tang Xiao still remembered how Gu Xiaoxi had been drunkenly staggering around yesterday, looking anything but heroic.

“She took down a knife-wielding criminal in a one-on-one fight, how cool is that?”

“How do you know?” Tang Xiao asked, puzzled.

“Didn’t you see the video? It’s online.”

“Video?”

“You’re such a nerd, not on the internet.”

Liu Zihao took out his phone and showed Tang Xiao the video.

The video was filmed on a busy street.

A burly man with a knife was holding a young girl hostage.

The thug swung the knife wildly, shouting, “Anyone who dares to come near, I’ll kill them!”

The little girl in his arms wanted to cry but held it in, terrified.

Passersby screamed and ran in all directions.

At that moment, a girl in a white short-sleeved shirt and a gray pleated skirt stepped forward to stop the thug.

It was Gu Xiaoxi!

“Let go of that girl!”

“I’ll cut you down!” The thug snarled, raising his knife to strike.

Gu Xiaoxi dodged swiftly, grabbing the thug’s knife-wielding arm and twisting it behind his back.

The thug screamed in pain, about to react, but Gu Xiaoxi quickly spun around and delivered a high whip kick to his face, seizing the opportunity to snatch the little girl away from him.

The thug was knocked to the ground, and Gu Xiaoxi threw the knife far away before delivering several powerful kicks to his stomach.

The thug collapsed, knocked out cold.

The crowd cheered.

The girl’s parents rushed to comfort her.

The police arrived just then, and Gu Xiaoxi immediately went to speak with them…

The video ended. It had over ten million likes, and it was all over the internet.

Gu Xiaoxi’s movements were smooth and precise, very graceful and beautiful.

Tang Xiao looked at the comments, all praising how awesome she was.

Neither of them noticed, but Xia Yuxi had been eavesdropping, her little ears perked up as she subtly glanced over at them.

Liu Zihao was absolutely thrilled: “Gu the Hero is so cool! What a role model! The courage, the moves, and those legs—so beautiful!!”

Not just Liu Zihao, several people from Class 7 had recognized Gu Xiaoxi and surrounded Tang Xiao.

“Tang Xiao, you know the hero in the video? That’s amazing.”

“How did you two meet? Can you tell me?”

“What kind of martial arts does she practice? Can I learn it?”

…

Gu Xiaoxi had become a ‘celebrity,’ and Tang Xiao didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

Who would have thought that Gu Xiaoxi had acted heroically just to get some bonus points for her college entrance exam?

Hearing all the praise, Xia Yuxi’s heart fluttered a bit.