60: Chapter 60 Was it secretly photographed?

An Ran was the first to head out, full of energy.

Two and a half minutes later, Leng Qingxuan was also ready and prepared to leave.

Her movements were slightly unnatural as she changed her shoes at the entryway.

Huang Mao was standing in the living room, and their gazes met briefly in the air.

A flush of red quickly crossed Leng Qingxuan's cheeks, though she immediately returned to her usual aloofness, her eyes darting away.

"I... I'm leaving too."

She murmured, then hurriedly pulled the door open and left, as if fleeing.

Huang Mao watched her go and smiled helplessly.

Well, that was that; only he and Su Muxue were left in the house now.

The atmosphere instantly turned somewhat subtle.

"Master."

Su Muxue's voice came from behind, as soft as a feather brushing against his heart.

She walked to Huang Mao's side and tilted her head slightly to look up at him.

Her beautiful eyes held a hint of indescribable anticipation and inquiry.

"Before you leave, would you like a little... morning service before your departure?"

Morning service?

Huang Mao's brain stalled for half a second at those words.

The phrase sounded... why did it feel so wrong?

Was it the kind of thing he was thinking of? Or did it just mean simply helping him tidy his clothes or handing him his briefcase?

Looking at Su Muxue's pure, flawless face, which also carried a hint of seduction, Huang Mao really couldn't be sure for a moment.

Seeming to sense Huang Mao's hesitation, Su Muxue shook her head gently, a soft, gentle smile appearing on her face.

"It's nothing; I'm just overthinking it."

She took a half-step back and bowed slightly.

"Then, I shall be off, Master."

She picked up her small handbag and walked to the door to change her shoes.

Before opening the door, she suddenly turned back and gave Huang Mao a sweet smile.

"I think... we should be able to see each other again very soon."

With that, she pulled the door open and walked out elegantly, leaving behind a suspenseful silhouette.

Huang Mao stood there, pondering her final words.

See each other again soon?

At school, they were in different majors and different classes; besides lunch breaks or after school, how could they possibly "see each other soon"? During breaks when they had no classes?

Or could it be that she intended to run over to his classroom after every single period?

If it were Su Muxue, she was certainly capable of doing something like that...

Forget it, I can't figure it out.

...

On his way to school, Huang Mao just happened to catch a bus that went straight to the school gate. Although it took a detour, the travel time was about the same, so he hopped on.

Sitting by the bus window and watching the street scenery speed by, his mind was still replaying Su Muxue's words.

"Morning service..."

He repeated it in a whisper.

With the slight swaying of the bus, an image uncontrollably surfaced in his mind.

Morning sunlight streaming through the curtains, him sitting on the edge of the bed, while Su Muxue, dressed in a lace maid outfit, knelt on the carpet with her head bowed, changing his shoes with a near-devout posture...

Then, even though she had finished changing his shoes, she didn't stand up immediately, but instead maintained that kneeling posture and leaned even closer...

Hiss.

Huang Mao gasped, quickly shaking his head to shake off the dangerous thought.

Damn, that image was way too intense, wasn't it?

If he thought about it for a few more seconds, he felt that certain things that had just calmed down might start stirring again.

Calm down, calm down.

He suddenly realized a more serious problem.

That "staggered commute" battle plan from earlier seemed... to have a loophole!

Letting An Ran leave first was fine.

Letting Leng Qingxuan leave second was also fine.

But leaving Su Muxue, the most unstable factor, to leave second-to-last...

Didn't that just create an opportunity for him to be alone with her?

That decision was truly rash!

Looking back now, it was like taking a lit match and tossing it right next to a gasoline drum.

He'd have to see if he could find a suitable time to adjust the order later.

...

When he walked into the classroom, Huang Mao keenly sensed that the atmosphere today was a bit different from usual.

How to put it? It was just... an unusually thick air of gossip.

Several girls were gathered around Leng Qingxuan's seat in the front row, chattering away about something.

Leng Qingxuan herself remained as aloof as ever, sitting upright as if everything around her had nothing to do with her.

But Huang Mao could still detect a hint of discomfort from her slightly stiff posture and tightly pressed lips.

What kind of abstract situation was this? Maybe someone had come to confess publicly or deliver a love letter again?

Anyway, it shouldn't have anything to do with him.

He lightened his steps and slipped in through the back door, preparing to return to his seat.

As he passed by the group of girls, he happened to hear one of the short-haired girls lower her voice and say excitedly:

"But come to think of it, I never really noticed before. Even though Student Huang Mao doesn't have much presence, now that I think about it, he's actually quite handsome, and his build isn't bad either..."

Before she could finish, a long-haired girl next to her jabbed her hard in the ribs with her elbow, while frantically signaling toward the back door with her eyes.

The short-haired girl turned around and locked eyes with Huang Mao.

Her face flushed bright red instantly. Like a startled rabbit, she whipped around, turning her back to him.

Huang Mao: "..."

Before he could figure out what was going on, a few more girls noticed him. Their eyes lit up, and they immediately abandoned Leng Qingxuan, turning to crowd around him instead.

Good grief, there really are a lot of girls in the Department of Literature; their enthusiasm for gossip is just too high.

"Student Huang Mao, you're here!"

A girl wearing glasses said with a grin, her tone full of undisguised teasing.

"Come on, come on, let the person involved explain. Is what's being said on the campus forum true?"

Huang Mao looked blank.

"??? What forum?"

He was busy dealing with the three extraordinary women at home; where would he have time to browse any campus forum?

"Oh my, you don't know yet?"

Another girl deftly pulled out her phone, opened a page, and shoved it right in front of Huang Mao.

"See for yourself, it's already the number one trending topic!"

Huang Mao looked closely. On the phone screen was a post title, written in bold red font:

"Breaking! Iceberg Campus Belle Leng Qingxuan suspected of being in a relationship; the partner is actually that ordinary guy in her class?!"

Below the title was a candid photo with decent clarity.

In the photo, he and Leng Qingxuan were sitting side by side in an empty classroom. Sunlight spilled in from the window, and the image actually looked quite aesthetic.

It must have been taken the afternoon before last, when Leng Qingxuan called him to that empty classroom she had found.

The angle of the shot looked like it was taken from the back door of the classroom.

Huang Mao's heart sank instantly.

Sure enough... what was bound to happen, happened.

He knew that this kind of thing couldn't be kept hidden.

He subconsciously raised his head and looked toward Leng Qingxuan again.

She still maintained her aloof posture, but Huang Mao could sense that the tips of her ears had already quietly turned red.

This girl, who was ice on the outside but a marshmallow on the inside, must be panicking inside right now.

Although she likely had plenty of experience dealing with rumors or various confessions, this was different—it was real.

It was like being caught red-handed in a secret puppy love relationship by the dean... no, it was even more serious than that.

Faced with the curious questions from the girls around her, she just repeated "none of your business" over and over again.

In this situation, such a weak defense only made it seem like an admission, making it even more believable.

Huang Mao withdrew his gaze and sighed inwardly as he looked at the photo on the phone.

Then, he looked up and put on a calm smile.

"This? You can tell at a glance that it's Photoshopped."

He said in a matter-of-fact tone, "With how advanced AI technology is nowadays, creating an image like this wouldn't take more than a few minutes, right?"

Not far away, Leng Qingxuan's tense shoulders seemed to relax instantly upon hearing his words.

She quietly breathed a sigh of relief, thinking, 'He's here. Now that he's here, he should have a way to resolve this.'

At the very least, he could help draw some of the fire away from her.

Seriously, how could anyone have been there to take a candid photo in that dump of a place?

It felt wrong no matter how she thought about it!

However...

For some reason, while she felt relieved, a subtle sense of loss inexplicably surged in her heart.

He... had denied it so readily.

"Photoshopped?"

The girls surrounding Huang Mao clearly didn't believe him, each giving him an expression that said, "Do you take us for fools?"

One of the girls teased, "Even if it is Photoshopped, why pick you and Student Leng Qingxuan specifically? Isn't that too much of a coincidence?"

"Maybe... they have a grudge against me."

Huang Mao started spouting nonsense without batting an eye.

"Think about it. Using our school's most famous Iceberg Campus Belle to spread rumors about me—isn't that clearly trying to make me the public enemy of every boy in school? That's a pretty ruthless move."

"Huh? Now that you mention it, that actually seems possible!"

Several of the girls were actually swayed by him and began to analyze the situation along his train of thought.

"After all, that's Student Leng Qingxuan. Daring to spread such rumors would indeed cause you massive trouble."

"So, Student Huang Mao, think carefully—have you offended anyone recently?"

Seeing this, Huang Mao sighed, already mentally ranting like crazy.

What was going on? Why did it feel like a press interview?

And you lot—usually, you all keep your heads down during class, with your minds entirely on your phones, like you've got autism.

How is it that whenever it comes to gossip, you all become so talkative? You're all basically social terrorists!

Huang Mao was just about to make up some excuse to brush off these curious cats and then figure out how to handle it, perhaps by contacting some insiders for help.

However, before he could speak, a voice filled with obvious hostility and questioning suddenly rang out from behind him.

"Huang Mao, I think you owe us a proper explanation as to what is going on."