A husband raised for him since childhood?
The phrase had been spinning around his head all day, and he still couldn't make sense of it.
He'd clearly transmigrated into a story about a real heir and a fake heir. How had it suddenly become a gay romance?
While leading Gu Qingbai through the classroom building in search of their class, he couldn't resist asking again. “Qin... your mom really said I was your husband?”
Gu Qingbai tilted his head in thought, then nodded with absolute seriousness. “Yes!”
“Auntie Wang and the other women in the village all said so.”
Gu Zai'an fell silent.
He wondered whether some peculiar master of folk logic had educated Gu Qingbai in the countryside.
He opened his mouth to ask more, but Gu Qingbai had already caught his sleeve and was running toward the club recruitment booths.
The Joint Academy's first day was club recruitment day. Brightly colored tents filled the sports field, speakers blasted tacky party music, and some clubs had even brought inflatable figures to bounce beside the walkway in their fight for new members.
Wrapped in Lin Qinyan's black leather jacket, Gu Zai'an was sweating all over. He'd wanted to find somewhere cool to hide, but Gu Qingbai clutched the hem of his clothes like a puppy following its owner.
“Brother, Brother, what's that club?” Gu Qingbai pointed at a tent bearing a Wilderness Survival Club sign.
“Camping in the mountains, starting fires, catching fish. That sort of thing, I guess.”
“I'm good at that! I lived in the mountains for eighteen years!”
Looking down into Gu Qingbai's shining eyes, Gu Zai'an suddenly realized something.
Gu Qingbai had grown up in the mountains. This was his first time in the city. Everything was new to him.
Much of his discomfort at being inexplicably called someone's husband faded. He patted Gu Qingbai's head. “Okay. Sign up. I'll go with you.”
Gu Qingbai immediately smiled until his eyes curved, then pulled Gu Zai'an into the tent.
The student in charge was tall and thin, with round-framed glasses. Seeing visitors, he promptly stood to welcome them. “Interested in joining? We organize regular wilderness survival activities, with complete equipment and professional instructors...”
He stopped halfway through as his gaze landed on Gu Qingbai's face.
Gu Qingbai had risen onto his toes to reach a compass displayed on the table. Sunlight fell through a gap in the tent onto his profile, his lashes casting a small shadow.
A clear female voice suddenly came from outside. “Excuse me, is this the Wilderness Survival Club? I'm here to collect soil samples for Jing University's laboratory.”
Gu Zai'an turned.
A young woman in a white lab coat stood at the entrance, her long hair loosely gathered in a claw clip, a silver equipment case in her hand.
Her features were striking, her brows slightly angled upward, her lips pressed into a straight line. Everything about her suggested brisk efficiency and cool detachment.
Shen Qiongzu.
Gu Zai'an's mind buzzed.
The system's notification sounded almost simultaneously.
[Female lead Shen Qiongzu detected nearby. Host must ensure the female lead and male lead meet for the first time and develop mutual attraction. Time remaining: 72 hours.]
Gu Zai'an swallowed nervously and instinctively moved half a step aside, bringing Gu Qingbai into view.
He had to get them talking.
In the original plot, Shen Qiongzu was supposed to fall for Gu Qingbai at first sight. Gu Qingbai, in turn, would develop feelings for her after she saved him.
Once they fell for each other, his mission would be complete.
Shen Qiongzu entered the tent, glanced over those present, and focused on the boy with round glasses. “You're the club president?”
“Ah, yes, yes. You're from Jing University?”
“Yes. Collecting samples. Won't take long. Three minutes.”
She crouched and opened her case, her movements crisp and efficient.
Gu Zai'an seized the opportunity to nudge Gu Qingbai's back. “Stand a little farther over. Don't get in her way,” he whispered.
Confused, Gu Qingbai took a step forward, ending up right beside Shen Qiongzu.
He looked down at the test tubes and labels in her hands and asked curiously, “Miss, what are you doing?”
Shen Qiongzu glanced up at him.
Just once.
Then her gaze drifted past him to Gu Zai'an behind him.
Gu Zai'an was watching the pair nervously, looking as solemn as an exam proctor.
Shen Qiongzu studied him for two seconds. Suddenly, the corner of her mouth lifted.
Gu Qingbai's face immediately darkened.
[Warning! Warning! Male lead's grievance level rising! Current value: 32%! Clear upward trend!]
Before Gu Zai'an could react, Shen Qiongzu had stood and approached him with her equipment case.
Half a head shorter, she looked up at him, her tone languid. “Are you a member?”
“Huh? No, no. I'm just here with someone.”
“What's your major, then?”
“Joint Academy... first year.”
“Joint Academy?” Shen Qiongzu raised an eyebrow and looked him up and down. “What was your score?”
The question stumped Gu Zai'an. The original owner's memories of his college entrance exam results were vague. He could only brace himself and make something up. “Just above the cutoff. Nothing worth mentioning.”
“Just above the cutoff.” She repeated it, then gave a sudden laugh. “Interesting. Joint Academy students dress trendier than ours at Jing University.”
Gu Zai'an glanced down at Lin Qinyan's black leather jacket and wished he could disappear on the spot.
He was about to explain that it wasn't his when Gu Qingbai stepped directly in front of him, completely blocking Shen Qiongzu's view.
“Miss,” Gu Qingbai said, his voice still soft and sweet, though his tone held unmistakable distance, “my brother has a boyfriend.”
Gu Zai'an: “???”
Shen Qiongzu narrowed her eyes at the young man blocking him so thoroughly. “Your brother?”
“Yes. He's my husband.” Gu Qingbai reached back to seize Gu Zai'an's wrist, lacing their fingers tightly together. “We're legally married.”
Silence filled the tent for three seconds.
The registration form slipped from the boy with round glasses and fell to the ground.
Gu Zai'an wanted to die.
Immediately.
He now understood perfectly why the original owner had met such a miserable end. Nobody in this world thought before speaking.
Shen Qiongzu tilted her head and looked over Gu Qingbai's shoulder at Gu Zai'an. Her gaze was deeply meaningful.
She didn't argue, merely smiled. “Interesting. I'll be off, then. I'll come back for samples another time.”
As she turned away, the wind lifted one corner of her white coat.
Gu Zai'an saw her take out her phone and tap it a few times after leaving the tent. A system notification abruptly appeared.
[Female lead Shen Qiongzu's affection for the second protagonist: 25%. First meeting between female and male leads: complete. Mutual attraction between female and male leads: failed. Female lead has developed no romantic attraction to male lead. Mission assessment: partial failure.]
[Penalty will be applied in 24 hours. Host, prepare accordingly.]
The words “partial failure” brought a film of cold sweat to Gu Zai'an's back.
He turned toward Gu Qingbai, who was staring in the direction Shen Qiongzu had gone, his profile taut, his grip on Gu Zai'an's wrist painfully tight.
“Qingbai, loosen up. You're hurting my hand.”
Gu Qingbai didn't let go.
He turned to Gu Zai'an, his eyes rimmed red, a fine tremor in his voice. “Brother, is she pretty?”