Sweet Temptation: After Rebirth, The Campus Heartthrob Can’t Hide His Feelings Anymore - Chapter 16

In the dead of night, a snowstorm raged outside.

Zhou Xuci and Lu Huaibei were locked in an intense back-and-forth,

Lu Huaibei rubbed his throbbing temples in despair. “Zhou Xuci, have you lost your damn mind?”

Zhou Xuci replied calmly, “No.”

“What then?” Lu Huaibei lit a cigarette, biting it between his lips before delivering a sharp remark. “Could it be… spring fever?”

“Yeah,” Zhou Xuci admitted.

“Holy shit!” Lu Huaibei was stunned. Just then, Secretary Su walked in, and he immediately blurted, “Xiao Su, quick, get me the best psychiatric hospital in the world, right now!”

He’d rather believe Zhou Xuci had lost his mind than accept that he was lovestruck!

Secretary Su: “???”

Zhou Xuci: “…………”

Lu Huaibei instantly switched to a concerned tone. “A-Ci, don’t scare me like this. Is it the stress from studying? Have you cracked under the pressure?”

“…”

“I’ve told you before, our family has more than enough money. You don’t need to push yourself so hard in school. Stop staying up all night writing code. That stuff drains your energy, and it literally makes you go bald.”

“…”

“Have you been drinking the walnut and black sesame paste I bought you? Wait… you’re not even balding yet, and you’re already going crazy?”

Zhou Xuci couldn’t take it anymore and rolled his eyes. “Lu Huaibei, thanks for your concern.”

Lu Huaibei smacked his forehead, suddenly sobering up. His expression turned serious. “Zhou Xuci, are you for real?”

Zhou Xuci stepped out of the lab building, walking through the biting wind as he spoke. “Dead serious.”

“You’re into that girl from the blind date?” Lu Huaibei pressed.

Zhou Xuci looked up at the snowflakes drifting down and answered softly, “Mm.”

“Since when?” Lu Huaibei asked.

Zhou Xuci chuckled but didn’t reply.

“So that’s why you suddenly had a change of heart and agreed to go on that blind date for me, you had ulterior motives!” Lu Huaibei perked up instantly. “Spill it. What’s the situation? How far have you two gotten?”

Before Zhou Xuci could answer, Lu Huaibei eagerly added, “Do you need me to propose on your behalf? If the Lu family is taking a bride, of course, the betrothal gifts would-”

“Bro.” Zhou Xuci cut off his wild fantasies. “Don’t mess this up.”

He exhaled lightly, his voice laced with amusement. “She’s skittish. You’d scare her off.”

Xu Zhizhi had a thorn in her heart, one that would take time to heal, even if plucked out.

The wounds left by loving someone so deeply in the past wouldn’t just vanish overnight.

Lu Huaibei clicked his tongue. “She said she’s satisfied with you. So, what’s your plan?”

The “satisfaction” was real, that part came from the Shen family’s response.

As for the engagement? That was pure nonsense Lu Huaibei had exaggerated in his fury.

Zhou Xuci fell silent for a moment before smirking smugly. “No plans. Got any suggestions?”

Lu Huaibei huffed. “Zhou Xuci, if you like her, go after her.”

Zhou Xuci lowered his gaze, a tender smile in his eyes. “Already am.”

Hearing the warmth in his voice, Lu Huaibei couldn’t resist teasing. “Zhou Xuci, stop grinning like an idiot. Have some self-respect.”

Zhou Xuci’s smile didn’t fade. “Not a chance.”

After hanging up the phone, Lu Huaibei took a moment to calm down before immediately summoning the unfortunate Secretary Su again,

“Find me all the information on that girl, and do it overnight.”

Secretary Su, with his annual salary of five million, looked utterly miserable. “Understood, President Lu.”

Meanwhile, at three in the morning, Xu Zhizhi received a barrage of frantic calls from Hu Chen.

Her roommates were already asleep, but the ringing phone jolted Xu Zhizhi awake.

She had always been a light sleeper, and once disturbed, it was hard for her to drift off again.

Wrapping herself in a thick coat, she stepped out into the hallway and finally answered Hu Chen’s call.

“Xu Zhizhi, Brother Yu is drunk and causing a scene. Come to the police station and talk some sense into him,” Hu Chen said urgently.

On this bitterly cold, snowy night, the freezing wind howled, its icy bite reddening Xu Zhizhi’s cheeks.

The wind cut like a knife, lashing at her face.

“He got into a misunderstanding with some idiots at the next table, and they ended up fighting. It’s a mess. You need to get here now,” Hu Chen pressed.

“Hu Chen, do you know what time it is?” Xu Zhizhi’s voice was frosty.

“3:18 in the morning,” Hu Chen snapped, never one to hide his disdain for Xu Zhizhi. With Shen Yu causing chaos, his patience was already thin. “Just get over here. Stop dragging your feet, it’s annoying.”

Xu Zhizhi looked up at the endless dark sky. The dim yellow hallway light cast a glow on her wind-chilled face, her long lashes fluttering like butterfly wings as she refused,

“The police will handle the fight fairly.”

“Me being there won’t change anything.”

“Besides, people who disturb others’ sleep during rest hours are truly despicable.”

With a decisive click, she hung up.

In her past life, she had rushed to the police station on a night just like this, snow swirling, cold biting, only to be met with Shen Yu’s scorn. He’d mocked her for meddling, called her a pitiful, groveling fool…

Back then, she had worshipped Shen Yu as if he were the sky and the earth, while she was nothing but dirt beneath his feet.

This time, she wanted to live with dignity.

If no one else would love her, she would love herself a little more each day.

Xu Zhizhi didn’t sleep a wink that night, leaving her groggy the next day.

In the early morning, as she was clearing away the withered roses, she received a call from Shen Yaoxin.

“Good morning, Uncle Shen,” she greeted politely.

“Zhizhi,” Shen Yaoxin exchanged a few pleasantries before steering the conversation toward Shen Yu. “Has that brat Shen Yu upset you lately?”

Xu Zhizhi said no.

Shen Yaoxin pressed on, “I heard you’ve been ignoring him recently. I thought maybe-”

Xu Zhizhi plucked a dead rose from the windowsill, her expression unchanging. “Who told you that, Uncle Shen?”

Shen Yaoxin chuckled. “As long as you two are fine.”

“That brat’s in the hospital. Did you know, Zhizhi?” Shen Yaoxin cut straight to the point.

Xu Zhizhi’s fingers paused around the rose stem. Softly, she replied, “Mm.”

“I’ve been swamped with work lately and can’t fly over to keep an eye on him,” Shen Yaoxin said, his tone as gentle and amiable as ever. “If your studies aren’t too busy, could you help me look after Shen Yu for a bit?”

Xu Zhizhi didn’t know how to respond.

Shen Yaoxin rubbed his temples with a hint of frustration. “That brat has a terrible temper. If Zhizhi finds it inconvenient, just forget it. I’ll make other arrangements…”

“Uncle Shen, I understand,” Xu Zhizhi replied softly, still the obedient girl who couldn’t bear to refuse his request. “I’ll look after him.”

Uncle Shen had raised her, she owed him that much.

She truly lacked the courage to say no.

Without Uncle Shen, she would have long perished in that merciless orphanage.

Yet life was a paradox of extremes.

Without Uncle Shen, perhaps her father wouldn’t have lost his life.

Xu Zhizhi cleared away the lifeless roses from the vase, leaving only the empty vessel on the windowsill.

The once-blooming roses had become an irretrievable past.

Since the past could not be reclaimed, she would move forward bravely.

…