Chapter 9: The Chicken Drumstick Incident and an Unbuttoned Truth

‘A genius! Why couldn’t I have thought of a method like this?’

They have meatballs, and I have chicken drumsticks; how could such a coincidence exist in this world?

To be honest, a hint of hesitation still lingered in Mo Qiu’s heart. The only meat in the rice porridge she had prepared was a small number of chicken drumsticks.

She had eaten a few yesterday, and the vast majority of the remainder had been given to Bai Chen.

Now, the chicken drumstick before her was the sole piece of meat left in her lunchbox.

The mere thought of handing it over to Bai Chen, who clearly wouldn’t appreciate its value, made Mo Qiu’s hand, clutching the spoon, tremble uncontrollably.

‘Calm down, Mo Qiu. Think clearly; this is all for your plan.’

After repeatedly reassuring herself, she finally steeled her resolve, convinced that this was a necessary sacrifice to successfully capture Bai Chen’s heart.

Completely oblivious to the silent complaints brewing within the girl beside him, Bai Chen was currently locked in a fierce battle with the impossibly salty chicken drumstick rice porridge.

‘Could I have misunderstood something? Is all rice porridge in this world supposed to taste like this?’

As he continued to eat, Bai Chen suddenly realized he seemed to be adapting to the pungent flavor.

‘It’s over; my tongue has gone numb.’

After being repeatedly assaulted by the exceedingly salty rice porridge, his tongue had valiantly sacrificed itself.

‘Did I waste too much food in my past life, causing the Old Master to make me suffer like this in this life?’

Considering how enthusiastically Mo Qiu was eating, Bai Chen could only grit his teeth and continue to eat alongside her.

“Bai Chen.”

Hearing the girl’s call, Bai Chen turned his head and saw her pick up her chopsticks.

“This chicken drumstick is for you.”

“Huh?”

Bai Chen froze for a moment, thinking, ‘I just managed to eat; are you giving me another one?’

The chopsticks plunged into the yellowish-brown rice porridge, stirring through it like mud in search of the chicken drumstick.

Having been soaked for too long, the drumstick’s exterior had already taken on the strange color of the porridge.

The skin and meat were barely connected, dangling precariously as if ready to fall at any moment.

The yellowish-brown broth dripping from the drumstick rippled through Bai Chen’s mind, much like a drop into still water.

It wasn’t that Bai Chen had never eaten a poorly cooked chicken drumstick before, but the one in this rice porridge utterly redefined his understanding of meat.

The softened meat lacked any of the chewiness proper chicken should possess, and its overpowering aroma completely masked any hint of freshness, making it impossible to tell if the drumstick was even edible.

“I don’t think that’s necessary; you should keep it for yourself.”

“No, Bai Chen is a boy, and you have gym class this afternoon.”

“That shouldn’t matter, right? I won’t be so hungry I can’t run just from skipping one drumstick.”

“You will.”

“Why?”

“Just a hunch.”

Bai Chen was on the verge of rolling his eyes, realizing that communicating with her was almost impossible.

As Mo Qiu extended the drumstick, Bai Chen, fearing the broth would drip onto his desk, leaned forward, opening his mouth to accept the girl’s offering.

Just as the drumstick was about to touch Bai Chen’s lips, Mo Qiu’s fingers subtly twitched.

The drumstick naturally slipped from between the chopsticks, bounced off Bai Chen’s chest, and fell beneath the desk.

“My apologies, it’s dirty now,” Mo Qiu immediately stated.

“It’s fine; I’ll be changing for gym class anyway.”

Bai Chen felt a wave of relief at having narrowly escaped, and hearing her say it was too dirty to eat, he was grateful she hadn’t gone so far as to make him eat a soiled drumstick.

While Mo Qiu picked up her empty lunchbox and lowered her head, Bai Chen quickly pulled out his thermos from his bag and gulped down a large mouthful of water.

Washing away the taste of the rice porridge, he felt his taste buds spring back to life.

The porridge was mostly gone, and he was finally spared from further torment.

Just then, his desk was suddenly nudged by something, causing the lunchbox on top to tremble.

Bai Chen leaned down curiously, and instantly his eyes widened in shock.

“What are you doing?”

He nearly shouted, but fortunately, he quickly noticed there were other people in the classroom.

“I’m picking up the chicken drumstick that fell on the floor.”

“Then why are you over here, by my desk?”

Having crawled under the desk, Mo Qiu was on all fours, her body slightly tilted forward, resembling some adorable small animal.

She remained poised there, directly in front of Bai Chen’s legs, her deep-sea eyes utterly devoid of any ripple.

Bai Chen’s face, on the other hand, had long since flushed crimson.

Due to the angle, Bai Chen’s gaze could even reach inside the collar of her school uniform, where a plain, fitted bra tightly cupped her breasts, and he thought he glimpsed a hint of cherry red.

“I accidentally kicked the drumstick to your side just now.”

Mo Qiu reached out, pointing beneath Bai Chen’s chair.

“How did you kick it with your leg?”

Bai Chen was torn between laughter and tears as Mo Qiu continued to crawl towards his spot.

Her slender arm reached between his legs, picked up the dust-covered drumstick, and dropped it into the empty lunchbox.

‘Surely this is over now, right?’

Just as Bai Chen was exhaling a sigh of relief, she unexpectedly placed both hands between his thighs and pushed herself up with force.

“W-w-what else do you intend to do?”

“I want to get up.”

“Can’t you just move backwards?”

“I can’t see the way.”

“Your neck isn’t broken…” Bai Chen truly couldn’t comprehend how she managed to utter such absurdities with a straight face.

Because of Mo Qiu’s actions, Bai Chen’s legs were forced apart, and the girl, having shifted her posture, was now kneeling before him.

It was becoming increasingly suggestive.

Bai Chen tried his best to lean further back, silently praying that Mo Qiu wouldn’t lower her head, wouldn’t turn into what he was imagining.

Fortunately, Mo Qiu did not touch his trousers; instead, she lightly grasped his waist and continued to climb upwards.

Bai Chen, with his eyes closed, suddenly caught a peculiar fragrance, and curiosity compelled him to open them.

Mo Qiu emerged from under the desk, her slender waist almost pressed against his body.

Her doll-like, exquisite face was so close that he involuntarily held his breath, examining her intently.

Her eyes, devoid of highlights, resembled a deep sea from afar and an abyss up close, threatening to swallow his very soul.

No matter how many times he looked, they remained a pair of beautiful eyes.

Mo Qiu’s palm rested on his shoulder, seemingly inviting him to do something together.

Mo Qiu remained silent, and Bai Chen found himself unable to speak.

All the blood in his body seemed to rush downwards, and despite being in a classroom, his ‘little Bai Chen’ (TL Note: A euphemism for male genitalia) stubbornly rose.

Even more alarmingly, his ‘little Bai Chen’ (TL Note: A euphemism for male genitalia) bumped into something soft and warm.

At that precise moment, a voice simultaneously interrupted both of them.

“Found you, Bai Chen! Teacher Zheng wants you to go to the security office…”

A classmate approached, and upon seeing the two in such close proximity, their words caught in their throat mid-sentence.

‘Teacher Zheng, security office? The investigation must have made progress.’

Mo Qiu turned her head, her deep eyes fixed intently on the classmate, sending a chill down their spine. The classmate managed to stammer, “My apologies for the interruption, but remember to go to the security office to find Teacher Zheng.”

“Ah, I’m going right now!” Bai Chen seized the opportunity, quickly rising from his seat and leaving the girl, who was still looking down.

‘Annoying meddler.’

‘Just when I had such a huge advantage,’ Mo Qiu thought, ‘Bai Chen was almost unable to hold back his ‘gun’ (TL Note: A euphemism for male genitalia). Although the sensation of being pressed against was somewhat repulsive, she could still endure it.’

‘Next time, I definitely will…’

“Mo Qiu.” Bai Chen suddenly stopped, turning to look at her. “Could you come with me for a moment?”

After a brief pause, the girl took a step, falling into pace behind him.

On the way to the security office, Mo Qiu pondered more than once what Bai Chen intended to do.

‘Could my little tricks have been discovered? Impossible. Even if they checked every surveillance camera in the school, they couldn’t possibly know it was me.’

She had manipulated those students in a blind spot of the cameras, and after the hypnosis was lifted, there would be no abnormalities whatsoever.

As they walked, Mo Qiu noticed Bai Chen turn into a secluded corner of the teaching building, a place rarely frequented even during lunch break.

‘Could it be for some other reason?’

“Mo Qiu, what I want to talk to you about is what happened last Friday.”

Bai Chen had no intention of dragging it out any longer; he was determined to uncover the full truth of last Friday.

Was it a mere coincidence, or had she meticulously planned it?

The cheers and laughter from the playground seemed to come from a distant land, and in this dim, secluded corner, the temperature felt noticeably cooler.

Bai Chen took a deep breath, turning as he spoke. “Mo Qiu, what exactly did you…”

The scene that met his eyes caused him to stare wide-eyed, and he immediately raised a hand to cover them.

“What are you doing?!”

“Didn’t you say you wanted to discuss what happened last Friday?”

Mo Qiu looked bewildered, halting her movement of undressing.

She had already completely unbuttoned her top, revealing her fair, tender shoulders.

“Were you truly listening to me?”

“Yes,” Mo Qiu replied, her upper body completely bare, her left hand grasping her right arm. “You’re finally willing to accept my thanks.”

“What thanks?”

No sooner had the words left Bai Chen’s mouth than he remembered her previous statement about wanting to take care of him for life, or something similar.

“That’s not what I meant.”

“Is that so?” Mo Qiu’s tone noticeably fell, tinged with disappointment.

“Put your clothes on quickly; this is a school.”

“Oh,” Mo Qiu murmured, draping her top over herself. “It’s on.”

‘That fast?’

Bai Chen lowered his hand, only to be met with another sight that sent his blood rushing.

She had merely draped her top over her shoulders, exposing her pale stomach, while the color and style of her bra were entirely visible.

The alluring figure, usually hidden beneath her uniform, was now fully revealed before Bai Chen.

Never in his life had Bai Chen experienced such a jolt; for a moment, his brain seemed to seize up.

Seeing his lack of reaction, Mo Qiu took a few steps closer to him, pointing to her proudly displayed “big white rabbits” (TL Note: A slang term for breasts).

“Want to touch?”

“…Are you serious?” Bai Chen raised an eyebrow.

“It’s fine. Because you helped me, Bai Chen, I don’t care.”

“I only helped you once. What if I were a bad person and took advantage of the situation to harm you?”

“It doesn’t matter,” Mo Qiu said, her eyes unwavering.

‘Pain is something I’ve long grown accustomed to. Whether it’s from a stick or a knife, the discomfort only lasts for an instant; after that, I can endure it simply by diverting my attention.’

Bai Chen let out a heavy sigh, giving up on trying to communicate with her.

‘What exactly had she endured to develop such an eccentric personality? Her complete disregard for herself was utterly unlike the mindset of a normal person.’

“Listen carefully,” he instructed. “From now on, you are not allowed to say things like that in front of me.

I don’t need anyone to take care of me.

If you absolutely must take care of someone, then take care of yourself.”

As Bai Chen spoke, he slowly buttoned her top for her.

His fingers occasionally brushed against her soft “big white rabbits” (TL Note: A slang term for breasts), causing his movements to become somewhat flustered.

‘Take care of myself?’ Mo Qiu watched him with a cold gaze.

‘I’ve always been very good at that; I don’t need your hypocritical concern.’

Bai Chen’s attention was entirely focused on the buttons.

Because her “big white rabbits” (TL Note: A slang term for breasts) were so generously proportioned, the top few buttons were proving a little difficult to fasten properly.

“Mo Qiu, could you help me hold the shirt?”

“Oh.”

Just as Bai Chen felt a sense of relief, footsteps suddenly echoed from outside.

“Who’s there?”

‘Oh no, is it the dean who catches couples? No, that voice…’

The teacher who walked in saw the two of them and immediately froze. “Mo Qiu and… Bai Chen? Didn’t I tell you to come find me at the security office? Why are you having a secret rendezvous here?”

“Teacher Zheng, please let me explain.”

“Things are progressing quite quickly, aren’t they? You’ve already started taking off her clothes.”

“No, Mo Qiu, please help me explain.”

“Alright,” the girl, entrusted with the task, nodded and looked at their homeroom teacher. “Teacher, Bai Chen was handling my clothes, but he hasn’t touched my body.”

‘Oh no, this is impossible to explain now.’