I Helped My Best Friend with Her Romance—and Fell for the Enemy’s Strategist - Chapter 1

September in Lancheng was still unbearably muggy, despite the rain that had fallen the night before.

But it seemed to have made little difference.

The air remained thick and humid, and C University had started its new semester in this sweltering weather.

“What’s with that silly grin? You look like you’ve lost your mind. It can’t be that bad, can it?”

“Yeah, yeah, who’s more important, your crush or us?”

“We’ve been roommates for a whole year, and we’ve never seen you this happy before?”

Lin Ruocheng had just returned from the convenience store with a small bag of ice pops when she saw several people in the dorm gathered around her best friend, Song Wanqing. Hearing the noise at the door, they quickly swarmed around her.

“Thanks, dorm leader! You’re the best!”

Their university had four-person dorms, regardless of gender.

Every dorm even came equipped with air conditioning.

Lin Ruocheng took out a blueberry-flavored ice pop and handed it over. Even when the ice pop accidentally brushed against Song Wanqing’s arm, she didn’t react at all, as if she were in a trance.

“What’s wrong with her?” Lin Ruocheng asked.

A roommate laughed and replied, “She said she ran into her crush today and finally managed to get her WeChat. Now she’s just staring at her friend’s moments. I think she’s totally fallen for her.”

Everyone in the dorm knew.

Song Wanqing had a crush… to be precise, she’d been infatuated with this person since the very first day of university.

Upon learning that her crush was in the student union,

she even worked hard to join it herself. But she was too timid.

To put it bluntly, she was all talk. She’d had her eye on this person since freshman year, though it couldn’t really be called pursuing.

After a whole year of watching from afar, it wasn’t until sophomore year that they finally exchanged WeChat contacts.

And then… nothing else happened.

“Have an ice pop before you burn a hole through your phone from staring,” Lin Ruocheng said, placing the ice pop in her hand again.

She sat down in a chair,

enjoying the cool breeze from the air conditioner.

Before she could even unwrap her own ice pop, Song Wanqing leaned in close.

“What? If you have something to say, just say it. Why are you getting so close?”

Lin Ruocheng had captivating peach-blossom eyes, a curvaceous figure, and a red teardrop mole at the corner of her eye.

Standing at around 1.7 meters tall, she was widely regarded as the campus goddess at C University.

She was a frequent feature on the campus confession wall.

“Help me chase her, okay? Please? My strategist?” Song Wanqing peeled off the wrapper of the ice pop but didn’t eat it herself. Instead, she held it out with both hands.

Lin Ruocheng pointed at herself.

“You want me to be your strategist? I’ve never even been in a relationship, you know?”

She was a complete novice when it came to love.

Asking a love novice to be a strategist? Had Song Wanqing lost her mind?

“But didn’t you help Chen Bailu and her boyfriend get together? And what about Gu Yu from the next dorm…” Song Wanqing began listing off Lin Ruocheng’s past accomplishments.

Put that way, it did seem like she had unintentionally helped facilitate several relationships.

“So?”

“As my best friend, could you please help me out? I’ll give you this ice pop.”

“I’ll… do my best. But if it doesn’t work out, there’s nothing I can do.”

Lin Ruocheng would rather play matchmaker for others than for her own best friend. It wasn’t because of any deep-seated grudge between them.

It was simply because Song Wanqing had absolutely no talent for romance. Even getting the WeChat contact had been the other person’s initiative. If the crush hadn’t made the first move, they might not have exchanged a single word until graduation.

I’ve known Song Wanqing since we were kids.

Our families were neighbors, so we grew up together and knew each other’s little secrets.

If possible, I’d like to find a partner for Song Wanqing.

That way she wouldn’t always be holed up in the dorm as a homebody.

“She sent a message. How should I reply?”

“What?”

Lin Ruocheng didn’t hesitate and took a bite of her ice pop.

The taste of childhood was truly delicious.

Most importantly, it was still affordable.

The same price, the same flavor.

Song Wanqing handed over her phone.

The contact name she had for the other person was still their full name.

Yu Qiuli.

Well, simple.

Very much like Song Wanqing’s personality.

What the other person sent was a PPT.

The title read: “Breakdown of Waltz Steps for Elective Course.”

That was the only message.

“Seriously, sis, since you’ve added her on WeChat, can’t you change the contact name? Something like ‘Little Fish Baby’ or ‘Autumn Sweetheart’? It could help close the distance. But this? Her WeChat name isn’t even this, right?”

“It’s not, but I think this feels better,” the roommate from the upper bunk poked her head out and laughed. “Do you know what she has you saved as? The same… just your full name. It feels even more distant than a stranger.”

Song Wanqing quickly explained, “That’s just so I can tell you all apart…”

Lin Ruocheng had long known this was her personality and wasn’t particularly surprised.

Back when they were kids, this girl had her saved as “Elementary School Classmate,” and that was it.

By then, they had already been best friends for three or four years.

This was just her habit. It seemed like she was used to it, but really, there was no changing it.

Lin Ruocheng spent a while sifting through Song Wanqing’s collection of silly stickers and finally found one of a puppy nodding.

She sent it over.

【Okay, I’ll make sure to complete the task!】

(Puppy wagging its tail JPG)

【To thank you for working so hard on the PPT for me, I’d like to treat you to lunch in the cafeteria. I hope you’ll come? For this afternoon’s rehearsal, I’ll be counting on your guidance (happy)】

Lin Ruocheng sent it straight away.

Beside her, Song Wanqing stared in disbelief.

Just like that? Sent?

Shouldn’t it be after a few days of practice, or maybe halfway through, before inviting her to a meal?

Isn’t this a bit too soon?

“Chengzi, isn’t this a little too forward? I just added her… and now I’m asking her out for a meal? Isn’t that a bit much? Besides, what would I even say when we meet? I… I’m a little nervous. Maybe we should just forget it. Let me get used to it first.”

Song Wanqing was the classic “grows on you” type.

A college girl with a bit of baby fat on her face, soft and round.

“Taking initiative is how stories start, okay? What’s there to be nervous about? Is she going to eat you? Besides, don’t you like her?”

“You’ve been eyeing her for over a year and didn’t even dare to add her on WeChat. It was only when she reached out first that you added her. If she hadn’t made the move, I bet you two would’ve been done for. Forget dating, don’t come crying to me later.”

The roommate suggested, “How about this, Chengzi? You help her out with some remote control. Give her a Bluetooth earpiece and guide her through a call, and we’ll help her pick out an outfit. How’s that?”

“I think it’s quite promising. With your skills, you could win her over in less than half a month, your track record speaks for itself! If you were a strategist in the late Qing dynasty and managed to win over her heartthrob sister, the entire school would worship you.”

“And didn’t you also sign up for the waltz class? Has your dance partner messaged you yet?”

The mention of this made Lin Ruocheng fume.

Who on earth invented the course selection system? It’s impossible to get into the classes you actually want.

What else could she do when she could only enroll in courses she had no interest in?

For the sake of her best friend’s happiness, she had managed to snag a spot in the waltz class just two days ago.

Truly, she was risking life and limb for a worthy cause.