Chapter 24: We Absolutely Can't Lose

  Hao Ren saw that there was no one else around her, as if she had come alone. He hesitated for a moment before jogging over to her and asking, "You... how did you end up here?"

  "Come and see you running." Xie Yujia tilted her head and smiled.

  Her black hair generally covered her bright forehead, and the long braid on her back added a touch of freshness to her.

  The cool night breeze blew against her body, bringing a fragrance with Hao Ren. Her tender white skin, refreshing hair, and flowing dress all undoubtedly proved that she had just taken a bath.

  Hao Ren has always thought that the class monitor Xie Yu Jia is very beautiful, and it's not just him who thinks so, all the boys in the class think the same way. It's just that she rarely participates in school activities, so this "class flower" becomes Hao Ren's private property for this class or department, and hasn't been made into a so-called "school flower".

  In fact, Hao Ren thought that Xie Yu Jia was no less beautiful than the school flower Lin Li. Even this kind of fresh and elegant temperament made people feel more comfortable.

  "How did you know I was running here?" Hao Ren asked.

  Just now he was running and didn't sweat much, but now facing Xie Yu Jia, suddenly he's sweating profusely.

  "I'm the class monitor, what don't you know?" Xie Yu Jia still smiled and looked at Hao Ren, confidently saying, "You've been coming here every night at 9 o'clock to practice running for the past few days, haven't I?"

  Hao Ren knew that the information transmission between girls was very developed, but he didn't expect Xie Yu Jia to pay attention to him, a small figure. Aren't all the girls discussing how some big handsome guy in school is doing today and tomorrow?

  "You look handsome when you run." Xie Yu Jia continued to say.

  Hao Ren lowered his head in embarrassment, "It's an honor to receive such praise from a beauty like the class monitor."

  Xie Yu Jia smiled sweetly again, "I'm the class monitor after all, for the sake of the collective honor, giving you some encouragement is also necessary."

  "It was just encouragement, not true." Hao Ren looked disappointed.

  "It's encouraging you, and it's the truth. Your serious running posture is indeed very attractive." Xie Yu Jia immediately added, seeing Hao Ren's disappointed expression.

  As soon as the words came out, Xie Yu Jia suddenly felt a bit uneasy, and could only lower her head to smile, then when she lifted it again, she had restored her usual confident expression as class president. "Actually, as long as you've tried your best, even if you're last place, I'll still be very happy."

  "Thanks for the encouragement from our class monitor!" Hao Ren pulled out his phone from his pocket, "It's 9:40, if we don't head back to the dormitory now, the door will be closed."

  "It's Friday today, and it won't close until midnight," Xie Yu Jia reminded.

  "Oh, you didn't mention it and I almost forgot." Hao Ren thought for a moment, "But it's also very late now, and I've finished my practice too. Shall I send you back?"

  "Aren't you hungry?" Xie Yu Jia suddenly asked him.

  Hao Ren's eyes lit up, "There's instant noodles in the dorm..."

  Xie Yu Jia looked at Hao Ren's silly expression and smiled, "I'll treat you to a midnight snack. You brought honor to our class with your hard training, consider it my reward for you."

  "That's okay." Hao Ren nodded. He really hadn't expected Xie Yu Jia to invite him out for a midnight snack, in his opinion, it was already surprising enough that Xie Yu Jia had come over so late at night just to watch him train.

  "Wait for me!" Hao Ren let Xie Yu Jia stay where she was, and he himself sprinted across half the playground at a speed of 100 meters per second, picked up his jacket that he had put on the grass, and then sprinted back to Xie Yu Jia's side at the same speed.

  Xie Yujia wore a simple and elegant long dress, standing on the steps, against the background of black night and lights, she looked even more beautiful.

  "Let's go!" Hao Ren called out to Xie Yu Jia.

  "Uh-huh." Xie Yu Jia nodded and followed Hao Ren out of the playground fence.

  Huu... As they walked out of the playground, they were met with a strong gust of wind blowing straight at them. Hao Ren didn't think twice and immediately put his jacket over Xie Yu Jia's shoulders, shielding her from the front as he led her away from this cold and bitter place.

  "How come I never thought you were so gentlemanly before?" Xie Yu Jia said, returning the coat to Hao Ren as they walked back onto the quiet campus road.

  "Am I also becoming lewd from being with Zhou Liren for too long?" Hao Ren joked.

  "Zhao Jiaxin and them, sometimes they are a bit over the top. But I feel like you're a bit different from them." Xie Yuqia said as she walked.

  In this campus approaching midnight, it is quiet and almost invisible to see other people. The road lights on both sides of the road are scattered with a faint yellow light, making this not far or near road, a bit ambiguous, a bit romantic.

  "What's different? I'm not much better myself." Hao Ren said with a self-deprecating smile.

  "It feels like you're taking things more seriously than they are. At least you know to practice a few days in advance for the competition." Xie Yu Jia couldn't help but defend Hao Ren.

  Hao Ren smiled and said, "I have a thin face, I'm afraid of losing."

  Xie Yu Jia didn't say anything else, and followed Hao Ren shoulder to shoulder towards the back door of the school. She walked quietly, seemingly savoring Hao Ren's words, seemingly thinking about other things.

  Hao Ren never thought he could walk shoulder to shoulder with the class beauty in school, especially on such a quiet night. If anyone saw them now, they would think they were a couple.

  "What do you want to eat?" Xie Yu Jia suddenly asked Hao Ren as they walked towards the back door of the school.

  "Hmm... Spicy Hot Pot?" Hao Ren asked tentatively.

  The cheapest food he could think of was malatang. After all, it would be embarrassing for him to let a girl treat him to dinner.

  "Alright!" Xie Yu Jia agreed readily.

  Because the dormitory closes at 12 pm on Friday night, there are still many students who come out to eat midnight snacks. Hao Ren decided to eat spicy hot pot and then regretted it a bit, fearing that those guys playing cards in the dorm would suddenly come out to eat midnight snacks too, and if they bumped into each other, the rumor would spread like wildfire and it would be impossible to explain.

  Xie Yu Jia seemed to have no such worries, happily walking towards the mala hot pot stall on the square, turning her head to ask Hao Ren, "What do you want to eat? Help yourself!"

  Seeing her so quick and efficient, Hao Ren didn't feel like hesitating anymore, so he casually picked up a few strings of meat and vegetables, put them in the basket, and handed it over to her.

  "After running for so long, you must be hungry. Let me add a few more strings!" Xie Yu Jia took the initiative and put several more strings of meatballs into Hao Ren's basket.

  Then she picked out some more for herself and handed them over to the boss to pay together.

  They sat at the outdoor table, eagerly waiting for the steaming hot and spicy malatang to be served.

  Those guys, don't show up... Hao Ren waited anxiously, silently praying in his heart.

  "What's with the tense look?" Xie Yu Jia looked at Hao Ren and asked.

  "Ah, no." Hao Ren looked at the pretty class monitor, "First time having a midnight snack with the class monitor, can't help but feel a bit nervous."

  "Is this the first time you've gone out for a midnight snack with a girl?" Xie Yu Jia asked, staring at Hao Ren with her bright eyes.

  "Who said that... I had a girlfriend in middle school..." Hao Ren defended stubbornly.

  Looking at Hao Ren's stiff expression, Xie Yu Jia burst out laughing, "I don't believe it."

  Hao Ren awkwardly curled his lips and asked her back, "The class monitor is so beautiful, did she have a boyfriend before?"

  Xie Yu Jia shook her head, the ponytail behind her swaying with it, reflecting a shiny black luster under the light of the stall.

  "You're no better than me." Hao Ren said casually.

  Xie Yu Jia smiled, neither confirming nor denying. At this time, Hao Ren suddenly realized that it wasn't a matter of being equally matched: Xie Yu Jia was so beautiful, there must have been many boys who pursued her before, but she was too focused on studying to bother with them. As for him, he was ordinary and unremarkable, probably not liked by any girls either.

  "Two Spicy Hot Pots!" The boss lady brought the hot pots to Hao Ren and Xie Yu Jia, probably because she couldn't help but take a few extra glances at Xie Yu Jia's elegant appearance.

  It's not just the boss who is secretly glancing at Xie Yu Jia, but also the boys around her.

  A beauty is a beauty, no matter how low-key she is, she can't escape the eyes of boys.

  "Dig in!" Xie Yujia said, handing a pair of chopsticks to Hao Ren as she slurped down the spicy hot pot.

  This casual gesture was misunderstood by those unfamiliar boys as an intimate move, and they couldn't help but reveal a jealous expression.

  This guy looks ordinary and doesn't seem to be rich, how can he win the favor of such a beauty... Those boys who were drinking spicy hot pot with their feet up and sneaking glances at Xie Yu Jia were secretly scornful.

  "Head of the class didn't come home this week?" Hao Ren asked her while opening his chopsticks.

  "Just to see you run." Xie Yu Jia replied without thinking. She saw Hao Ren look a bit surprised, and smiled again, "No, the student council needs to sort out some things, so I'm staying behind to help."

  "Does inviting me to dinner count as part of your plan?" Hao Ren asked.

  "Let me think for a moment..." Xie Yu Jia lowered her head and bit into a bun, "Hmmm... I originally just came to watch you run, but seeing how hard you're running, so I thought of treating you to dinner as a reward."

  Hao Ren didn't want to pursue the truth behind those words, he just felt that it was already not easy for Xie Yu Jia to personally come over in the middle of the night to watch him train.

  "What happened when Su Han called you to her office that day?" Xie Yu Jia suddenly asked again.

  "She just saw me speaking in class, so she dragged me to her office for a lecture." Hao Ren replied.

  Xie Yu Jia's eyes showed her disbelief, but she didn't refute it either. Instead, she asked again, "What about the little girl who came to find you last time?"

  "It was a little girl I tutored who came over to cause trouble." Hao Ren had already thought of an excuse for these things and replied without hesitation.

  He looked at Xie Yu Jia, "The class monitor seems to be interested in me lately?"

  "What's been happening to you lately has piqued my interest." Xie Yu Jia retorted.

  Hao Ren smiled and started eating the noodles in his bowl with a loud "slurp". The boys who were secretly watching them couldn't help but feel infuriated by Hao Ren's rough demeanor, wishing they could go up to him and strangle him: He was having a midnight snack with a beauty, yet he still didn't care about appearances, it was simply blatant showing off!

  Hao Ren was actually secretly excited, he and Xie Yu Jia had been classmates for over a year but hadn't really interacted much. The class structure in university is quite loose, with professional courses being taken together by several classes, while public courses can be mixed and matched with other colleges, plus Hao Ren's major has very few girls, the few that exist all stick together, leaving Hao Ren little opportunity to interact with Xie Yu Jia.

  "Was what Cao Ronghua and them said last time just a joke?" Xie Yu Jia asked.

  "Huh?" Hao Ren raised his head, his face already flushed red from the spicy hot pot.

  "It's just running over to tell you that I like your thing." Xie Yu Jia bit her lip and spat out a sentence.

  Her big eyes with long eyelashes are especially beautiful even in the messy night market.

  Hao Ren's face turned even redder, "No... they were just talking nonsense, joking..."

  "Oh... I just casually asked. It seems like the three of them are quite fond of joking around." Xie Yu Jia revealed a bright and cheerful smile, seemingly not minding this matter at all.

  "Those seniors haven't been bothering you, have they?" Xie Yu Jia suddenly asked again after a while.

  "Why ask this?" Hao Ren suddenly became vigilant and asked.

  "I also heard it from the student union, those high-grade male students in school who are more prominent, are not very satisfied with your show-off for these two weeks. They said they want to give you a lesson." Xie Yu Jia stared at Hao Ren, saying with some concern.

  "It's just a cut, no big deal." Hao Ren didn't take it to heart and continued eating his spicy hot pot.

  "I know a few of them, otherwise I can help you make an introduction and clear up the misunderstanding?" Xie Yu Jia asked for Hao Ren's opinion.

  "It's nothing serious, no need for you to take the lead." Hao Ren waved his hand.

  He didn't believe those people could really bring him any trouble, and even less did he want Xie Yu Jia to come and help him solve the problem.

  "Hmm, they probably just wanted to give you a warning. In the future, it's better for you to keep a low profile at school." Xie Yu Jia advised kindly.

  It wasn't me who caused it. Hao Ren thought so in his heart, but didn't say it out loud.

  After finishing the hot pot, it was almost 11 o'clock. The temperature outside was getting lower and lower. Hao Ren saw Xie Yu Jia wearing a thin skirt and worried that she would catch a cold, so he suggested going back to the dormitory to rest early. Xie Yu Jia did not object.

  No matter what, their relationship is still that of classmates, and they can't be like real student couples, strolling hand in hand until midnight.

  Hao Ren walked with Xie Yu Jia through the quiet campus and sent her off at the dormitory building.

  "Come on, do your best at the sports meet!" Xie Yu Jia said with a smile as she stood at the door and looked at Hao Ren.

  "Uh-huh, got it. Class Monitor, you get some rest." Hao Ren waved at her. He didn't know why, but he was more used to calling her "Class Monitor" than her actual name.

  He turned around and left, walking towards his bedroom, suddenly wondering if this counted as a date.

  If you don't count it, how does it feel like your relationship has gotten much closer than before?

  The beautiful class monitor is more encouraging of my performance at the sports meet.

  Hao Ren shook his head, dispelling this strange guess, and returned to the dormitory to take a bath and sleep.

  Ding ding ding......

  The next day, which was Saturday, a noisy mobile phone ringtone woke up Hao Ren's sleep early in the morning.

  "Ah Ren! What the hell are you doing!" Zhao Jiayun, who was sleeping on the lower bunk and woke up first, threw off his quilt and rushed to the desk, tossing his phone to Hao Ren on the upper bunk.

  A strange phone number appeared on Hao Ren's mobile phone.

  "Who is it?! Calling so early!" Hao Ren answered his phone with a hint of discontent.

  "I'm Zhao Guang, our car is downstairs your building." A very calm voice came from the phone.

  (A 4000-word long chapter, please give me some votes after finishing reading!)