Chapter 34: I Will Show You the True Power of a First Love

Lin Bai frowned after reading the message. After a moment of hesitation, he tucked his phone away and ignored it.

Looking back now, everything Lin Bai had done for Chen Shuya could be summed up in one word: stupid. A woman like Chen Shuya was not worth his affection, and Lin Bai had no desire to dwell on it; he simply wanted to draw a clear line and have no further contact with her.

Returning to the hotel room, Qin Ruowei was still asleep, truly exhausted from the night before. Lin Bai placed the rice noodles on the table, walked to the bedside, and gently patted her bottom, drawing a soft, sleepy moan.

"Wake up, sleepyhead. The sun is hitting your butt."

Qin Ruowei opened her beautiful eyes. As their gazes met, she quickly covered her head with the quilt, her voice muffled from beneath it. "Don't look, turn around."

Lin Bai couldn't help but find it amusing. "I've seen everything there is to see last night; what else is there to hide?"

Even so, knowing how thin-skinned she was, he didn't push it and placed the clothes he had bought on the bed. "I've left your clothes here."

He walked over to the window and pulled back the curtains. The room was in disarray, a testament to their wild night together. A hand reached out from under the quilt to retrieve the lingerie he had bought, and she began to dress herself. Watching her adorable movements, Lin Bai felt a surge of desire again and whipped the quilt away.

"Ah!" Qin Ruowei was mortified, covering her face and curling into a ball. "What are you doing..."

Lin Bai curled his lips into a smile, unbuckled his belt, and pounced like a hungry tiger.

...

It was nearly three in the afternoon. After countless reminder calls from the hotel, the two finally got ready and checked out. Qin Ruowei walked with an awkward gait, her steps slightly unsteady, and she cast playful, reproachful glances at Lin Bai from time to time.

In the car, Lin Bai started the engine and headed toward the school. They hadn't gone far when his phone rang. Since it was connected to the car's Bluetooth, Qin Ruowei’s eyes landed on the display screen, where she saw the name "Chen Shuya."

Lin Bai frowned and tossed the phone to her. "Help me block her."

Qin Ruowei held the phone, stunned. "Huh? R-really? You want to block her?"

Lin Bai looked at her with a smile. "Otherwise? Aren't you afraid we might reignite our old flame?"

"You wouldn't dare! Hmph! Fine, I'll block her. Block and delete, hehehe..."

As Qin Ruowei performed the action, another text message arrived from Chen Shuya. Out of curiosity, she tapped it open.

After reading the content, Qin Ruowei was speechless and showed the screen to Lin Bai. "Look, she's threatening you."

Lin Bai glanced over and saw the message: *Lin Bai, you will regret this!*

Lin Bai shook his head. "I have to report to the National Flag Guard this afternoon. Your car is at the school gate; I'll drop you off there so you can drive."

"Mm, sounds good." As she spoke, she skillfully blocked and deleted Chen Shuya’s number.

Back at school, Lin Bai drove straight to the National Flag Guard to begin his registration. After parking, Qin Ruowei returned to her dormitory, wanting nothing more than to rest. On the way back, she couldn't help but recall the events of the previous night. Her cheeks burned, and she touched her face, whispering, "Beast! Hmph!"

Even now, she couldn't believe she had just given herself to Lin Bai. In her original plan, it would have taken at least half a year to reach this stage, but... she didn't regret it at all. The appearance of Li Ruonan had made her feel threatened; as a woman, there was no more effective way to secure a man than to give him her body. Since Lin Bai was also inexperienced, she would at least be his first woman—a distinct advantage.

Lost in thought, she returned to the dorm. Zhou Min was eating watermelon, Wang Xiaoli was lying on her bed browsing her phone under a fan, and Chen Shuya... she was fiddling with something on her laptop. When Qin Ruowei entered, Chen Shuya hurriedly closed it.

Qin Ruowei didn't pay much attention, gave a casual glance, and went to her bed to take off her shoes.

"Oh, Ruowei's back! How was it with Lin Bai?" Zhou Min teased.

"It was great. Lin Bai is so good to me. He took me for French steak last night." Qin Ruowei spoke with a touch of pride, intending for Chen Shuya to hear.

"Tsk tsk tsk, the stench of love..."

Qin Ruowei ignored Zhou Min's sarcasm and prepared to climb into bed.

"Sss—"

As she climbed the ladder, she accidentally pulled a sore spot and froze, her brows knitting together. The other three noticed. After a moment of shock, Zhou Min walked over with a piece of watermelon to steady her, looking at her with a strange expression.

"Ruowei, don't tell me you two..."

Chen Shuya and Wang Xiaoli knew what she meant and stared at her. Chen Shuya, in particular, looked inexplicably panicked, her expression betraying her.

Under their intense gaze, Qin Ruowei bit her lip, gave a slight nod, and endured the pain to climb into bed.

"You're foolish, Ruowei! You're so foolish!"

"Yeah, Ruowei, how could you give it to him so easily? Men are creatures who don't cherish what they get too easily."

Chen Shuya’s face turned pale. After a moment of heavy breathing, she walked quickly to Qin Ruowei's bed. "You're lying! Lin Bai wouldn't do that!"

Her sudden, erratic behavior caught the others off guard. Zhou Min rolled her eyes. "I'm saying, Xiaoya, you already broke up with him, right? Why are you so anxious?"

"Yeah, Xiaoya, Li Yu is a great guy. Are you trying to play both sides?"

Faced with the combined pressure from Zhou Min and Wang Xiaoli, Chen Shuya knew she was in the wrong, but she looked miserable. After hesitating for a long time, she glared at Qin Ruowei and spat, "Qin Ruowei, you don't know Lin Bai at all. I spent three years with him in high school; I'll show you the power of a first love!"

With that, she turned around bitterly, returned to her seat, and went back to fiddling with her laptop.

Qin Ruowei couldn't be bothered. "Whatever you say." She drew the curtain, lay down, and took out her phone to message Lin Bai.

Elsewhere, Lin Bai had just finished his registration and received his uniform—the kind without rank insignia. The National Flag Guard’s duties included the school’s weekly Monday morning flag-raising ceremony and various official events; it was quite complicated.

Returning to his dorm with the uniform, ignoring the curious questions of his roommates, he climbed onto his bed, drew the curtain, and rested his head on his hands, lost in thought. With the main task involving Qin Ruowei complete, only Li Ruonan remained. But if he went through with it, apart from hurting Qin Ruowei, he wouldn't be able to live with himself.

After much deliberation, he decided to negotiate with the system.

"Hey, Cheat-bro, can we swap out that Li Ruonan task?"

[Beep! No.]

The system's refusal was blunt. Lin Bai felt a headache coming on. "If I don't complete the task, will I really die?"

[Beep! Yes.]