Chapter 42

After dinner, Jia Xiaoyu and the others first returned to the dormitory, and Zhen Bao went for a stroll around campus with Fu Mingshi.

"Weren't you worried at all when you saw the gossip?"

Passing under a street lamp, Fu Mingshi stopped and pulled Zhen Bao against the lamppost. At 1.65 meters tall, Zhen Bao looked especially petite in Fu Mingshi's eyes. Sitting down, he liked to pull Zhen Bao onto his lap. Standing up, Fu Mingshi really enjoyed their current position, using his arms and chest to completely surround her.

And so Zhen Bao's eyes were filled only with him. Inhaling Fu Mingshi's crisp, warm scent, Zhen Bao shook her head slightly. Dating Fu Mingshi, she had only ever worried that their vastly different spending habits would cause disagreements. She had never doubted that Fu Mingshi would get entangled with other women. She didn't know why, she just believed in him.

Seeing his fiancée was so easy to coax, Fu Mingshi wanted to laugh. He teased her, "Believing me so much, what if someday I really..."

Zhen Bao thought about it very seriously, lowering her head to say, "I wouldn't do anything. We'd break up, you'd go your way, I'd go mine." She should cry, cry it out, then move on and find another suitable boyfriend in the future.

Fu Mingshi was only joking around. Hearing her say the words "break up", his gaze instantly darkened. He tightened his hold around her waist, looking into her eyes, "There won't be anyone else. I'm only dating you, only kissing you, only marrying you, only...sleeping with you. Even if you fall for someone else and want to cheat, I won't give you the chance."

With several repetitions of "only", Zhen Bao was initially very moved. But when Fu Mingshi mentioned sleeping together, her heart panicked and she evasively argued, "I wasn't thinking of cheating." What kind of person did he take her for? If the feeling was gone, it was fine to fall out of love, break up. Cheating was a character flaw.

Right now Fu Mingshi didn't feel like talking. He tipped up her chin, watching as she closed her eyes, before slowly kissing down from her forehead. Occasionally someone would walk by and he paid them no mind, wholly focused on kissing her, kissing her flushed cheeks, kissing her sweet lips. Pressing his body tightly to hers, he wanted to merge them into one.

Unfortunately under the cold street lamp it wasn't very realistic to do that.

Reluctantly releasing her lips, stealing a few more tastes, Fu Mingshi finally remembered the main issue. Still pressed to her forehead he asked, "You aren't worried I would cheat, so when you saw gossip linking me to someone else, you didn't have any other feelings?" As he spoke, his dark eyes locked onto Zhen Bao's watery big eyes.

Zhen Bao's long lashes fluttered continuously. She pursed her lips, lowering her eyes.

Fu Mingshi's mood suddenly improved tremendously. He kissed her eyes, "You were jealous?" Feeling jealous meant she cared.

Zhen Bao couldn't deny it.

Fu Mingshi liked when she was jealous, yet also couldn't bear her feeling jealous. Stroking the corners of her lips he said, "Don't worry, watch for yourself tomorrow."

During classes the next day, Zhen Bao couldn't resist constantly checking her phone, anxious to know what Fu Mingshi would say to clarify things.

"What are you looking at?" Jia Xiaoyu was surprised to see the model student playing on her phone during class and curiously asked.

Zhen Bao immediately stopped and concentrated on the lecture.

After lunch when they returned to the dorm to rest, Zhen Bao was still preoccupied with the clarification issue, but didn't want her roommates to catch on. She went over to her bed early on and settled in with her laptop. After futilely refreshing Weibo several times, she got engrossed in a 10+ minute animated video clip. The little yellow bird inside was simply adorable and Zhen Bao became completely absorbed.

"Zhen Bao, come down quick!"

Jia Xiaoyu suddenly shrieked, her voice piercing through Zhen Bao's headphones into her ears. Zhen Bao gave a startled jump. Looking over, she saw Jia Xiaoyu standing under her bunk, speaking excitedly in a low voice for her to come down. "Come down, your Fu is trending on Weibo again, so handsome!"

Zhen Bao blinked blankly, putting on an expression of complete ignorance as she climbed down from her bunk towards where Jia Xiaoyu and the others were crowded around Jia Xiaoyu's computer. Jia Xiaoyu moved her mouse over to the trending topics column, giggling as she read, "Fu Mingshi Denies Romance Rumors". She clicked open the title to play an interview video.

In the video, Fu Mingshi was dressed in a suit, just exiting an office building while several reporters swarmed him, vying to ask about his relationship with Xia Ying. "Boss Fu, we heard Elder Fu is severely ill and you'll soon announce wedding plans. Is it true? Will Xia Ying be the bride?"

Jia Xiaoyu suddenly paused the video here and turned to ask Zhen Bao, "Are you getting married?"

"No, they're just fabricating things." At the critical moment, Zhen Bao instinctively pressed down on her roommate's shoulder, wanting to hear what would follow.

Jia Xiaoyu sighed regretfully then hit play again.

Fu Mingshi's expression was detached as he addressed the outstretched recorders, "The elder is recovering well. I'm also not dating anyone, reports of illness and wedding plans are just rumors."

"So Boss Fu and Xia Ying aren't in a romantic relationship?"

Fu Mingshi nodded. "Actually Xia Ying and I aren't close. That day I went to the hotel to meet Director Lin, us appearing in the same frame was purely coincidence."

The reporters were somewhat disappointed, but quickly someone else asked, "What kind of girl does Boss Fu like? Someone glamorous like Xia Ying, or..." Fu Mingshi faintly smiled, "Can't say exactly, but I won't look for a girlfriend in business or entertainment circles. So any future sightings linking me with female celebrities can definitely be considered false, no need to take them seriously."

"Why don't you like female celebrities, does Boss Fu have prejudice against them?"

Sensing someone was trying to bait him, Fu Mingshi declined to answer further. When his car arrived, he swiftly got in and left, ending the video.

Jia Xiaoyu, who had now seen it twice, still wasn't satisfied. She played it again, mooning over it. "Zhen Bao, take a close up shot of Boss Fu in a suit for me someday. I want to make it my wallpaper. He really is a CEO straight out of romance novels, much more handsome than ones on TV."

"Zhen Bao only takes photos to ogle over herself, she'd have to be an idiot to give them to you," Qian Lele rapped her on the head.

So Jia Xiaoyu glared at Zhen Bao, "You get the real thing, give me the photos to ogle!"

Ogle...

A thought suddenly popped into Zhen Bao's mind, of the time Fu Mingshi had taken her to a hot spring last year. Other than the areas covered by her swimsuit, Fu Mingshi had practically "ogled" every inch of her body. Zhen Bao's face instantly flushed crimson. Her roommates assumed she was imagining ogling Fu Mingshi and they all giggled knowingly.

Zhen Bao ignored them and wanted to go back to her bunk and watch the video through her headphones a couple more times.

"Wait, your Fu dared to say he doesn't have a girlfriend and you're not mad?" Qian Lele grabbed Zhen Bao, half jokingly ribbing her.

Before Zhen Bao could explain, Jia Xiaoyu chimed in sagely, "You just don't understand. Boss Fu is considerate, since Zhen Bao doesn't want to announce it publicly, the obedient Fu Mingshi doesn't dare act on his own. Plus he can't admit to having a girlfriend either. If he did but didn't reveal who she was, paparazzi would definitely stalk him constantly. How would Boss Fu have any time to sneak away and play kissy face with Zhen Bao posing as a college student?"

Qian Lele continuously nodded her head, "That makes sense."

Since they were happily imagining things, Zhen Bao didn't bother clarifying.

Actually, according to the agreement with Elder Fu before coming to the capital, she wasn't formally Fu Mingshi's girlfriend yet...

She was his fiancée. When teasing her, Fu Mingshi always referred to himself as her fiancé.

Feng Yue also saw Fu Mingshi's clarification Weibo post, but what caught her attention wasn't the content of his clarification, but rather Fu Mingshi's voice. Looks may be similar, but his voice was so alike too. Feng Yue refused to believe Fu Mingshi and Shi Ming weren't the same person.

Feng Yue was too excited to sleep.

Fu Mingshi was so wealthy. If she could become close friends with him, really ironclad bestie-type friends, in the future if she ever needed help Fu Mingshi could easily take care of things with a lift of his finger. Even if she never asked Fu Mingshi for anything, just maintaining a sisterly bond with Zhen Bao and frequently visiting Fu Mingshi's villa to play, it would broaden her horizons.

Day by day, when Feng Yue thought about it at night, she surprisingly dreamed about Fu Ming Shi. In the dream, she and Zhen Bao went to Fu Ming Shi's home together, but Zhen Bao somehow disappeared. Fu Ming Shi walked towards her step by step with a gentle and affectionate look, even more charming than the way he looked at Zhen Bao.

The dream was so beautiful that Feng Yue didn't want to wake up. After waking up, she couldn't help but relish the dream again and again.

When washing her face and looking at herself in the mirror, Feng Yue suddenly felt that she didn't look bad either. She didn't have Zhen Bao's natural beauty, but with some dressing up, she wouldn't necessarily look worse than Zhen Bao. What if...what if her beautiful dream could come true? Zhen Bao had stolen Meng Jining's heart, so why couldn't she...

After coming out of the bathroom, Feng Yue went online to search for makeup tutorials, and also bought a set of cosmetics to practice with.

For most students, the only difference between university and high school was that the courses were less tight without the pressure of the college entrance exam. Only a small portion had the excitement described in novels or TV shows. Animal medicine majors had more courses and their lives were even more dull, still focused on studying.

In terms of dress style, freshman were generally a little more unsophisticated compared to higher grades.

Among the dozen or so girls in Zhen Bao's class, only two wore makeup at the beginning of the year. So when Feng Yue also started dressing up, she immediately attracted the attention of other girls. Girls love gossip. As soon as one person noticed, they would chat with their friends, and the matter spread.

That day, Feng Yue came to borrow notes from Zhen Bao, and Jia Xiaoyu couldn't help but size her up a few more times. Jia Xiaoyu disliked Feng Yue the most, but she had to admit that makeup really could change a person. Feng Yue was not ugly to begin with, rather above average in looks. Now with her brows and eyes made up, she had become a beauty.

This discovery made Jia Xiaoyu very unhappy. After Feng Yue left, she complained sullenly to her roommate, "They all say there's no ugly woman, only lazy women. Now I finally believe it."

Fan Xuan laughed at her, "Jealous? What's there to be jealous about? I can teach you too, guarantee I'll make you look better than her."

Jia Xiaoyu immediately cheered up and went further to point at Zhen Bao and ask, "Can you make me look prettier than Zhen Bao?"

Zhen Bao smiled helplessly.

Fan Xuan replied earnestly, "I can, but my makeup skills aren't good enough yet. You'll have to find a top Hollywood makeup artist."

Qian Lele laughed so hard she choked on water, and Jia Xiaoyu rushed over to hit her.

Joking aside, when a woman gets excited, she does whatever she wants. With no classes in the afternoon, Fan Xuan took her roommates shopping at the cosmetics counters. Zhen Bao's wealth was reflected in her boyfriend Fu Ming Shi, but she had always been restrained in spending money. Fan Xuan was a true rich girl, swiping her card without any hesitation, and bought a pile of bottles and jars.

Back in the dorm, Fan Xuan first made up Jia Xiaoyu, who was most looking forward to it. Jia Xiaoyu had a pure and cute look. After the makeup she looked even more innocent, or in Qian Lele's words, very much like the pure innocent girl who strays in Japanese idol drama/action films. Though this comment unintentionally exposed her extensive viewing history.

Qian Lele had sensitive skin so she passed.

Fan Xuan called Zhen Bao over.

Zhen Bao glanced at Jia Xiaoyu still admiring herself in the mirror, unable to restrain her feminine love for beauty. She excitedly sat down. Fan Xuan crossed her arms like a master sculptor about to begin carving. After a while she started doing Zhen Bao's makeup, while Jia Xiaoyu and Qian Lele crowded around to watch.

Fan Xuan gave Zhen Bao a glamorous look. The only flaw that couldn't be saved was Zhen Bao's eyes, as clear as natural spring water in mineral water ads, unable to take on a bewitching look. But this was just short of reaching the essence of a sly old fox. The made-up Zhen Bao was a hundred times more charming, like a rookie fox spirit just debuting, with the most alluring beauty yet most innocent eyes, even more attractive to men.

Zhen Bao saw the shock in her roommates' eyes, but the three girls snatched her phone, not allowing her to look in the mirror.

By the time Zhen Bao was finally able to see herself in the mirror, her roommates had huddled together to plot mischief. "Today's Wednesday, not Zhen Bao's date night. What do you think the probability is that President Fu will show up tonight if I send him this photo?"

"I bet one Grandpa Mao he'll come for sure!" Qian Lele placed the first bet.

Level-headed Fan Xuan asked Zhen Bao first, "Your President Fu is in Beijing right? As long as he's in Beijing, he'll definitely come. I bet two Grandpa Maos."

"Then I bet three!" Jia Xiaoyu concluded.

Zhen Bao was so embarrassed she didn't even dare look in the mirror, glaring at Jia Xiaoyu, "If you dare send it to him, don't expect me to bring you meals anymore."

Jia Xiaoyu grinned evilly at her, waving her phone, "I won't send it. I'll send him one with mosaic first. If he wants to see the original he can make an offer. If the price satisfies me I'll send it." Saying so, she clambered onto the bed monkey-like, "Lele, help me keep guard!"

Qian Lele and Fan Xuan then stood like two mountain gods blocking the way. As soon as Zhen Bao came over they grabbed her.

"Xiaoyu!" Zhen Bao was really anxious now, ashamed. She had just looked in the mirror, appearing too...as if deliberately trying to seduce Fu Ming Shi. She didn't want Fu Ming Shi to see this.

Jia Xiaoyu poked her head out and smiled at her, clutching her phone and directly sending Fu Ming Shi a high-def photo.

Fu Ming Shi was in his office looking over documents when he heard the message ringtone. Picking up his phone, he saw it was from Jia Xiaoyu. Fu Ming Shi's brows furrowed slightly. He had taken the initiative to add Jia Xiaoyu's contact so he could reach her if anything happened to Zhen Bao at school. Over half a year had passed and Jia Xiaoyu had never contacted him before. Could something have happened to Zhen Bao?

Opening WeChat, a photo popped into view, the backdrop a girls' dorm.

Fu Ming Shi stared at the photo, almost not daring to recognize it.

He zoomed in for a closer look, confirming it was his fiancée. Fu Ming Shi suddenly felt a bit restless, wanting to rush over immediately to see her up close with makeup for the first time.

In the girls' dorm, Jia Xiaoyu was still on the bed waiting for Fu Ming Shi's reply.

Zhen Bao knew she had really sent it, not angry, just embarrassed, wanting to wash her face but blocked by Fan Xuan who wouldn't let her ruin her hard work.

"He replied!"

With a "ding", even without Jia Xiaoyu saying so, the three below the bed also knew Fu Ming Shi had replied.

"What did he say?" Qian Lele asked, craning her neck.

Jia Xiaoyu smiled and lowered her phone for them to see.

Zhen Bao didn't look, lowering her head in the chair.

Qian Lele took the phone and held it in front of her. Zhen Bao secretly glanced - two words: Thank you.

Now Zhen Bao's neck turned red along with her face.

Right after reading Fu Ming Shi's reply to Jia Xiaoyu, her phone rang. It was a call, from Fu Ming Shi.

Zhen Bao went out to the balcony to answer, explaining first, "They sent it randomly."

Fu Ming Shi hmm-ed, "I'll come pick you up tonight."

Zhen Bao covered her face with one hand, "Don't, they bet you'd come over tonight. Don't let them guess right."

Fu Ming Shi laughed, "How much did they bet?"

Zhen Bao, "Anyway you don't come."

Fu Ming Shi was silent a few seconds. "Okay."

If he wasn't going, Shi Ming was.