90: Chapter 90 Escape and Covetousness

The first two periods of the afternoon were core major courses for the Department of Literature.

The lecture hall was unusually quiet; the only sounds remaining in the air were the 'clack-clack' of chalk hitting the blackboard and the 'rustle-rustle' of dozens of pen tips rubbing against paper.

On the podium stood an elderly female professor famous for her severity, privately dubbed 'Abbess Miejue' by the students.

She was currently pushing up the reading glasses on the bridge of her nose, her gaze scanning the room from time to time like a hawk.

Huang Mao sat in a corner by the window in the back row of the classroom.

He wasn't lying face down to catch up on sleep like he usually did during easy elective classes, nor was he looking down to slack off on his phone.

His back was straight, and the gel pen in his hand was quickly recording the notes from the blackboard into his notebook.

He was an easygoing person who took things as they came, but he never went looking for unnecessary trouble.

Participation points accounted for a very high percentage of the grade in this course, and the old lady had a wicked habit of walking down from the podium at any time to spot-check notes.

To be safe, Huang Mao chose to be a law-abiding, good student.

"Buzz—"

A very faint vibration suddenly came from the phone in his pocket.

Huang Mao's note-taking didn't stop. His left hand slid naturally into the desk drawer, unlocked the phone with his fingerprint, and opened a social media app with one hand.

Sender: Su Muxue.

Huang Mao glanced out of the corner of his eye.

Su Muxue was sitting just to his left, separated by an aisle.

She sat upright, her soft long hair falling over her shoulders. Her profile was gentle and quiet, her eyes focused intently on the blackboard—the very picture of a perfect, top-tier student.

However, the line of text that popped up on the phone screen carried a secret ambiguity that made one's heart race.

[Master, in such a high-pressure classroom environment, would you have any thoughts of seeking a little bit of excitement?]

[If so, I can go sit over by you during the next period; that would be more convenient.]

The corner of Huang Mao's eye twitched violently.

If he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, who could possibly associate these words with the pure-looking lady of a prestigious family sitting next to him?

He typed with one hand, expressionless, replying extremely quickly: [No. Right now I just want to listen to the lecture seriously and not get called on.]

[Besides, this is "Abbess Miejue's" class. If we get caught, it's over.]

[I can't do that at all. Don't mess around.]

The message had just been sent when the other side replied almost instantly.

[If you have a need, please tell me at any time.]

[With just a single look from you, I will immediately share your burdens.]

[If you feel the classroom is inconvenient, I can go ahead and wait for you in the restroom after class, or in the equipment room on the top floor.]

Huang Mao took a deep breath.

This woman, after that stunt she pulled in the corner of the sports field this morning, had definitely flipped some kind of incredible switch.

That fanatical devotion in her bones was expanding at a rate visible to the naked eye...

Steady. I can't let things get messy.

Things at home are messy enough already; I can't add fuel to the fire.

Thinking of this, he glanced at the social media app again.

An Ran's chat box lay there quietly. From noon until now, there hadn't been a single new message.

He had sent her a message at noon, but it was still 'read but no reply' even now.

No.

It wasn't even 'read' yet.

Huang Mao set his pen down for half a second, then picked it up and continued writing.

On the surface, he was copying the blackboard notes, but in his mind, he was already calculating how to handle the situation with An Ran later.

...

Meanwhile, on a tree-lined path on the other side of the campus.

An Ran, who happened to have no classes scheduled for the first two periods of the afternoon, was wandering aimlessly by herself.

Sunlight pierced through the broad leaves of the sycamore trees, cutting fragmented spots of light onto the asphalt road.

As the breeze blew, the light spots swayed, yet they could not shine into the gloom deep within An Ran's eyes.

She walked very slowly, her legs heavy as if filled with lead; her whole being was like a string puppet that had lost its soul.

In her mind, the scene from the corner of the equipment room this morning was like a lingering nightmare, playing on a frantic loop.

In the dim blind spot, Huang Mao leaned against the wall while Su Muxue knelt in front of him.

And there was that smile Su Muxue gave when she noticed the movement and looked up—three parts satiated, seven parts provocative—and that fair finger held up to her lips.

"Shh."

That silent gesture was like a heavy hammer, violently shattering the emotional worldview An Ran had built over nineteen years.

An Ran stopped abruptly, her hands clenched tightly into fists.

Her neatly trimmed nails sank deep into her palms. The stinging sensation that followed was not even a ten-thousandth of the twitching pain in her heart.

It hurt. It hurt so much.

"Bastard..."

She bit her lower lip, her voice trembling.

She hated Huang Mao.

Huang Mao, who had grown up with her, who always gently tolerated her little temper, who cared for her like a 'man-mom' and cooked for her—how could he be so promiscuous?

How could he... do such a shameless thing with another woman in broad daylight!

Even if he was the passive party, it was still wrong!

She hated Su Muxue even more.

That maid who seemed so gentle on the surface, calling her 'Sister' with every breath, was actually so bold and wanton to her core!

An Ran felt nauseous.

The pure feelings she had always cherished, thinking they would naturally bear fruit as long as she nodded her head, had been brutally torn apart and thrown on the ground to be trampled into the mud.

An unprecedented sense of shame crawled up her spine, strangling her until she could barely breathe.

But what made her feel most desperate and pained was herself.

"I'm just a piece of trash." An Ran's eyes were red, and tears welled up within them.

Just the day before yesterday, she had sworn in her heart to face the new enemy, Su Muxue, like a warrior and to take on the whole world by herself.

But this morning, when she actually faced that unsightly scene, what did she do?

She didn't rush forward to slap Huang Mao, nor did she point at Su Muxue's nose and curse her out.

She froze on the spot, her brain crashed, and then, like a frightened quail, she turned tail and fled.

It was too pathetic.

It was too embarrassing.

Even at lunchtime, when she received a message from Huang Mao while hiding in a corner on the third floor of the second cafeteria eating a 'sad little burger,' she didn't dare to reply.

An Ran sniffled and tilted her head back, forcing herself not to let the tears fall.

Amidst her chaotic thoughts, a cold and beautiful face suddenly flashed through her mind.

Leng Qingxuan.

When that incident happened this morning, Leng Qingxuan was sitting by the basketball court.

Does she know?

If she found out, how would she react?

An Ran suddenly shuddered.

Leng Qingxuan was always so composed in the 'shuraba,' high and mighty as if everything was under her control.

If she encountered the same situation as herself, would she break down?

Or rather...

A terrifying thought emerged: Could Leng Qingxuan have actually known all along? Perhaps she and Huang Mao had already...

An Ran didn't dare think any further.

The fear of the unknown was like a giant black net, trapping her tightly.

Without realizing it, she stopped walking.

Looking up, she saw a familiar red-brick building in front of her—Female Dormitory Building No. 3.

She had subconsciously walked back here.

In the past, if she encountered such heaven-shattering grievances, she would have rushed up to the fifth floor in one breath, crawled into her bed, covered her head with the quilt, and slept soundly to escape all reality.

But now, she couldn't do it.

In that dormitory, there were only three 'god-tier' roommates who ganged up to exclude her.

Besides, she had already moved out.

"I've moved out..." An Ran murmured to herself, her eyes hollow.

"Speaking of which..."

Where should she go tonight?

Back to Huang Mao's two-story little villa?

Back to that 'home' where two core members had just done such a disgusting thing?

To face Huang Mao, to face Su Muxue, and even to face Leng Qingxuan, who might know everything?

An Ran shook her head vigorously.

No, she couldn't do it.

Now, as soon as she thought of Huang Mao's face, she felt a wave of suffocation.

Run away, just keep escaping.

Find a small hotel and lock herself away.

An Ran pulled out her phone, opened the social media app, and checked her wallet balance.

A cold number was displayed on the screen: 1145.20.

This was all the living expenses she had left for the month.

If she went to an express hotel outside the school, it would cost at least over a hundred yuan a day.

With this little money, even if she didn't eat or drink, she could only last a week at most.

What about after a week? Where could she go? Ask her parents for money?

But her parents already knew she had moved into Huang Mao's house. If she did that, wouldn't it be obvious that she and Huang Mao had a falling out?

Her parents would definitely call Huang Mao immediately... That wouldn't work.

The feeling of helplessness from having no one to rely on instantly pierced through An Ran's final psychological defense line.

She stood in the shadow of the dormitory building, her shoulders trembling slightly like a stray cat soaked through by a rainstorm, unable to find even an eave to take shelter under.

Just as An Ran was falling into the brink of despair, a flippant and somewhat greasy voice abruptly rang out behind her.

"Yo, isn't this student An Ran? Why are you standing here staring blankly all by yourself?"

An Ran's whole body stiffened, and she whipped her head around.

A few steps away stood a young man wearing flamboyant designer clothes, his hair styled to a greasy shine.

He was also casually twirling a car key in his hand.

It was that scumbag.

The rich second-generation boyfriend of her former roommate.

Her former roommate used to bring him back to the dorm publicly as if to show him off.

Back when she moved out, this guy had stared at her with that nauseating look at the bottom of the dorm building and even said lewd things about her behind her back to her roommate.

"I'm here to find Xiao Li."

The scumbag took a step forward, a smile he thought was handsome hanging on the corner of his mouth, while his eyes unabashedly scanned An Ran up and down.

His gaze held a sticky greed that made one feel extremely uncomfortable.

An Ran's stomach churned.

Her emotions were currently on the verge of collapse; she didn't want to talk to anyone at all, let alone this kind of nauseating trash.

"Get lost," An Ran spat out coldly, turning to leave, her pace much faster than before.

She just wanted to quickly escape this place, escape those disgusting eyes.

The scumbag didn't chase her.

He stood in place and stopped the car key he was twirling.

"Tsk, tsk."

Watching An Ran's slightly stumbling and panicked figure as she walked away, he stroked his chin, the smile on his face deepening instead.