Chapter 411 - 306: Do You Know She Likes You?

Gu Muxue thought the girl’s voice just now sounded vaguely like Lin Ruoxi, but she had never heard Lin Ruoxi speak in a dialect before, so she couldn’t be certain.

However, there were more important matters at hand. She looked seriously into Xue Rui’s eyes. "Xiaorui, you have something to say, don’t you? We’re done eating now, so you can finally say it, right?"

Gu Muxue turned to face Xue Rui, but because there was no gap between the lecture hall seats, they had been chatting while turned sideways, and her neck was starting to ache.

Without a word, Xue Rui placed her legs across his lap, making her face turn as red as a ripe tomato. She frantically looked around to see if anyone was watching, her paranoia far worse than his had been earlier.

Xue Rui grasped Gu Muxue’s hand tightly. "Muxue, I believe there shouldn’t be any secrets between a couple. When I do something wrong, I should be the one to admit it."

’This position is perfect,’ he thought. ’Her hands and feet are both under my control. Even if she gets angry, it won’t be easy for her to run away...’

He began slowly, "Muxue, do you remember when we arrived at Chang’an? That group of students who tried to swarm us, and that person who was begging..."

He felt he hadn’t laid enough groundwork, so he recounted the bad things Gu Muxue had been through to foster sympathy for the pitiful image he was about to paint of the other girl.

Gu Muxue’s expression grew increasingly grim. "Xiaorui, get to the point."

"Lin Ruoxi went through all of that, too," Xue Rui said with a helpless sigh.

"Huh?" Gu Muxue’s eyes flew wide. Lin Ruoxi was exceptionally beautiful, and she was attending the university alone. It would be completely normal for upperclassmen to be tripping over themselves to carry her luggage.

Students were one thing, but people from off-campus... they would try to take advantage...

"Was she... harassed?" A pang of anxiety shot through Gu Muxue’s heart.

She had her parents, a private driver to run her errands, and Xue Rui by her side to protect her.

Lin Ruoxi had none of that. She was all alone, attending school in a city far from home...

’A commoner is guiltless, but possessing a treasure is a crime.’ Beauty could be a curse, always attracting disaster when least expected...

Xue Rui didn’t answer her question, only letting out a deep sigh.

’The girl sticks to me like glue,’ he mused. ’And when I’m not around, she’s a total homebody who won’t even step outside her door. Who could possibly harass her?’

However, from Gu Muxue’s perspective, that sigh was as good as a confession.

"Is that the mistake you were talking about?"

"You’re her boss, didn’t you think to help her out? She’s your high school classmate, after all," Gu Muxue said. "I’m free tonight. Let’s go check on her now."

’Lin Ruoxi is hurt. My fight with Xue Rui... that can wait for now,’ she thought.

Xue Rui spoke up. "Muxue, that’s not the mistake I was talking about. Have you seen our school’s section on the app? I’m the one who made that happen, on purpose."

"You’re saying... that post about you and Lin Ruoxi... you did that on purpose?"

Gu Muxue’s eyes narrowed. She had planned to address this *after* she comforted Lin Ruoxi.

Xue Rui had the highest access rights on the All-Purpose Campus app; he could delete any post he wanted. Yet he had intentionally left that trending post on the main page. He wasn’t exactly hiding it from her, which was the only reason she had managed to suppress her feelings until now.

"Mm. Go on," Gu Muxue said coldly.

"Lin Ruoxi needs someone to protect her, and it’s more convenient if that person has some kind of official standing. It’s a shame her last name isn’t Xue, otherwise I’d just say she’s my sister..."

"So, that post was meant for other people to see. Sometimes seeing isn’t believing."

Xue Rui’s words were essentially a confession. He was telling Gu Muxue outright that Lin Ruoxi had assumed the identity of his girlfriend, and he knew Gu Muxue would understand his implications.

’Getting Lin Ruoxi to accept him having two girlfriends would be simple. In her heart, he was her entire world. He could just cook up some excuse to fool her, and she would probably even save some of her candied haws for Gu Muxue...’

But Gu Muxue was different. She came from a happy family, was flawless in her social conduct, and her mind was far sharper. Most importantly, she had immense self-respect and would never accept him dating two women at once.

So, he chose to use the "fake girlfriend" ploy to slowly chip away at Gu Muxue’s boundaries.

’There was no other way. Who was to blame but himself for developing genuine feelings for both of them?’

Gu Muxue gritted her teeth. "I asked you to look after her, and this is how you do it?"

"A fake girlfriend? You mean... you’re pretending to be a couple?" Gu Muxue’s hands trembled slightly, and her eyes grew misty.

Xue Rui gripped her hands tightly. Her reaction was far too strong.

"Xiaorui, don’t you have any idea that Lin Ruoxi likes you?!"

Gu Muxue’s voice trembled.