Chapter 70

Chapter 70

"What the hell, a bunch of dumbasses?" As soon as they stepped out of the restaurant, Fan Tao couldn't help but curse.

Luo Jin and the other girl also had icy expressions.

Fan Tao called a car on her phone, and Ji Mian trailed behind them, staying silent the whole time.

"Han Ji is such a fucking idiot!"

"I thought he’d at most invite his roommates or classmates... otherwise I wouldn’t have agreed to come," Luo Jin chimed in.

"Damn it, he’s always bragging in the group chat about how much he’s done, as if we haven’t been working? Didn’t we help set up those code frameworks? Didn’t we pull our weight in the group assignments?" While waiting for the car at the intersection, Fan Tao continued to vent.

Ji Mian couldn’t help but want to laugh.

Luo Jin turned her head and noticed the faint smile on his lips, her face flushing slightly.

Half out of gratitude, and half because of a long-standing fondness.

But it was just that—fondness. She knew very well: they were from different worlds.

Falling for someone out of your league is bound to bring heartache.

"Stop smiling in front of girls, your face is too charming and might attract unwanted attention."

Ji Mian quickly wiped the expression off his face. He said, "The final presentation is next week, it’s almost over."

Fan Tao: "Yeah, let it end soon, I can’t take it anymore! Every time I see him post in the group chat, I feel like puking!"

"By the way, thanks, Class Heartthrob!" She made a heart gesture at Ji Mian.

Ji Mian was puzzled for a moment: What kind of nickname is "Class Heartthrob"?

Fan Tao had a wide social circle, and sometimes the phrases she used were a bit odd, but they were kind of cute.

Fan Tao’s emotions were all over the place. One second she was making a heart gesture at Ji Mian, the next she completely lost her bravado, her face falling with fear: "Wuwu..."

She dared to curse now, but back in the restaurant, with those burly guys sitting across from her, she had been genuinely scared.

The car they called arrived at that moment.

Luo Jin was the last to get in the car, a bit worried about Ji Mian: "Will you be okay staying with them?"

"I’m a guy, what could possibly happen?" Ji Mian said, "Send me a message when you get back to school."

Luo Jin responded, "Okay."

Watching the car drive away, Ji Mian slowly let out a sigh of relief.

He pulled out his phone and glanced at it. As soon as he opened it, there were several unread message notifications.

He was startled and quickly opened the chat with Xie Hang.

"Xie Hang": Where are you?

"Xie Hang": That Hunan restaurant in Dongfu, right?

"Xie Hang": I’m coming to find you.

Checking the time log again, the last entry was eight minutes ago.

Since there were classes on Friday, Han Ji picked a spot not too far away. Dongfu is just four or five kilometers from A University, a quick ten-minute drive.

Has he already left?

Ji Mian shot back a reply:

"No need to come! Fan Tao and the others already left. It’s all good now."

"Lu Zhou."

The moment Ji Mian hit send, Han Ji’s voice called out from behind him.

He walked closer, smelling strongly of booze, and called again, "Lu Zhou."

Ji Mian turned around and half-heartedly asked, "What?"

Han Ji brushed off his indifference, "It’s my birthday, and you just sent them packing like that."

Ji Mian had considered staying to save Han Ji some face, but his careless tone pissed him off.

He rarely lost his temper, but this time he snapped, "Are you out of your damn mind? They came here to celebrate your birthday, not to hang out with a bunch of lowlifes."

Han Ji was stunned, staring at Ji Mian’s furious expression, then chuckled, "Chill, it’s just a little booze. Why are you freaking out?"

"Just a bit of alcohol? Han Ji, are you stupid or just plain clueless?"

Han Ji shrugged, casual as ever, "I didn’t expect that many people to show up, but you’re a tough one to get out."

Ji Mian frowned, picking up on something odd, "What are you getting at?"

"I can tell we’re the same." Han Ji leaned in suddenly, reaching out to touch Ji Mian’s left earring in a way that felt too intimate.

"You’re into guys too, aren’t you?"

Ji Mian recoiled at the touch on his ear, jerking his face away and stepping back.

"..." He was completely at a loss for words.

He finally realized why he’d always felt uneasy around Han Ji.

On the court, the look Han Ji gave him after losing wasn’t about the game. Back at the shop, those guys weren’t just giving him weird looks...

Ji Mian didn’t know what Han Ji had told his so-called ‘friends,’ but it clearly wasn’t respectful—otherwise they wouldn’t have been eyeing him like he was for sale.

The raw hunger in Han Ji’s eyes was unnerving, "I want you, Lu Zhou."

"I’m gonna puke." Ji Mian covered his eyes with his hand.

Han Ji’s mouth twitched, and he continued, "You know how it is—finding someone who’s got the looks and the body isn’t easy. I’m not a bad catch, right?"

Ji Mian: "I’m not joking, I really am going to throw up."

"..."

"Or is there someone else?" Han Ji smirked, "At A University, in our scene, there’s hardly anyone better than me."

"...Bro," Ji Mian said, his voice dripping with disdain, "You’re way out of your league. You’re not even close to him."

"Wait, there’s actually someone?" Han Ji furrowed his brows. "Who do you like? That buzz-cut guy from your dorm?"

Ji Mian took a couple of seconds to realize he was referring to Xie Hang.

"If it’s him, you should just give up now. He doesn’t strike me as the type who’d be into guys."

Ji Mian was about to respond when his eyes caught something behind Han Ji, and they lit up, the irritation on his face disappearing in an instant.

Han Ji stared at Ji Mian’s face, red with anger, and those suddenly bright eyes, his throat feeling parched.

"I’ve never seen you this mad before."

"There’s a lot you haven’t seen."

A deep, cool voice cut in from behind.

Han Ji froze as a commanding figure brushed past him, without even looking at him, and headed straight for Ji Mian.

Ji Mian smiled at the newcomer, "I said you didn’t have to come. Did you get my text?"

Xie Hang nodded, "I saw it, but I was already on my way."

Good thing I showed up, he thought.

Otherwise, he’d have been stuck with that moron forever.

Ji Mian, on the other hand, thought: It’s great being tall. Just having Xie Heng here makes me feel safe.

Physically, he was no match for Han Ji, but since there was more than one person on the other side, he didn’t want to provoke Han Ji.

But with Xie Heng here, he felt braver.

"You..."

Han Ji looked at them, wanting to say something.

But Xie Heng didn’t give him a chance to speak, ignoring his voice and asking Ji Mian, "Ready to head back?"

"Yes."

They talked like no one else existed, leaving Han Ji feeling invisible.

Han Ji: ...

Ji Mian just left with Xie Heng.

As soon as they were out of earshot, Ji Mian started rambling. He went on and on, from the store to when they dropped off Fan Tao and the others.

As for what Han Ji had said to him, Ji Mian didn’t mention it, even though that was the juiciest part. Xie Heng already had issues with homosexuality, and he worried bringing it up would make Xie Heng even more uncomfortable.

Ji Mian didn’t expect that while he was deliberately avoiding the topic, Xie Heng would bring it up instead: "He was saying something strange earlier."

Xie Heng recalled for a couple of seconds, "Something like, 'give up early,' 'that guy isn’t the type who’d be into guys.'"

"..."

"And he said he’s never seen you angry before." Xie Heng frowned, looking at him, "That sounded off." And gross.

Ji Mian was momentarily at a loss for words, while Xie Heng’s gaze remained fixed on him, waiting for his answer.

"Alright," Ji Mian sighed, trying to sum up the situation in one sentence: "He's trying to hit on me and thought I was into you."

Xie Hang suddenly stopped in his tracks.

Ji Mian stopped too, glancing over, waiting for Xie Hang's response.

But after a long pause, Xie Hang still didn't say anything.

He quickly added, "Uh, don't freak out, I just..."

"Yeah, I know," Xie Hang cut him off, "We talked for a while earlier, why didn't you bring this up?"

"I thought it might make you uncomfortable."

Xie Hang paused for a moment, then said, "I told you before, it doesn't bother me."

"Really?" Ji Mian immediately relaxed, "Let me tell you, that guy has no shame."

He perfectly mimicked Han Ji's line, "In the entire circle of A University, few can match up to me."

He nailed the imitation so well that Xie Hang's lips twitched into a faint smile, but his eyes remained cold.

Was it because he couldn't stand men hitting on men? Ji Mian's imitation of that guy's words somehow got under his skin.

"He even touched my earring! I feel sick..." Ji Mian rubbed his ear.

This time, Xie Hang couldn't even keep up the fake smile on his face.

He looked down at Ji Mian's slightly reddened left ear, his tone flat, "He touched you?"

"Yeah! And he even touched my hair that morning!" Ji Mian rattled off like a tattling kid, not noticing the growing chill in Xie Hang's expression.

Xie Hang listened silently.

"Before next week's presentation, I still have to deal with him, it's gross," Ji Mian muttered, hugging himself.

"Drop it," Xie Hang suddenly said, "Come work with me."

"Huh?" Ji Mian looked over, confused.

Sensing his hesitation, Xie Hang added, "I've finished the system and the PPT, you just need to show up, no need to worry about anything else. As for the teacher, I'm in his project group, I'll handle it."

Ji Mian was taken aback.

Now, whenever he thought of Han Ji, he felt like a piece of meat. He really didn't want to stick around in the group anymore.

He had done his part, and he didn't owe the group anything. It was just that directly riding on Xie Hang's coattails made him feel a bit awkward.

"...Really?" Ji Mian asked, his eyes lighting up.

"Yeah."

Ji Mian looked at him for a few seconds, then said, "Brother Heng, let me latch onto you."

Xie Hang's anger hadn't faded yet, but hearing this, he couldn't help but chuckle.

"Go ahead, latch on."