Chapter 2

The sky had a hole in it, and torrential rain poured down. Battling against the storm, the journey from the port to the guesthouse, which wasn’t far, felt incredibly long.

Qin Yao held an umbrella, while the young man next to her carried a backpack on his left shoulder and a suitcase in his right hand, striding forward through the wind and rain. Qin Yao gripped the umbrella handle tightly, grateful that she was "heavy enough" not to be blown away by the wind.

The wind was strong, and the umbrella was practically useless, but it was better than nothing, managing to shield only their heads.

Her chest and back were soaked, and her two braids were drenched, appearing darker and more lustrous. Stray strands of hair fell onto her fair cheeks, making her face look even more delicate and small, with an exotic beauty.

Qin Yao took small, quick steps forward, panting slightly, tilting the umbrella towards Gu Cheng.

The young man was nearly twenty centimeters taller than her, making it incredibly difficult to hold the umbrella for him. He was helping her with her luggage, after all; she couldn’t just ignore that.

Thank goodness she’d grabbed a capable guy; otherwise, how could she have gotten back to the guesthouse in this rain?

After walking for a while, the wind lessened as they were shielded by rows of buildings. Qin Yao continued to hold the umbrella mechanically, keeping her head down and silent.

Several times she thought about speaking, but then remembered that the young man beside her had a "0" favorability rating towards her. That thought made her feel stifled.

What did a favorability rating of zero mean? It meant he had no goodwill towards her at all.

It was like offering a warm face to a cold backside, a humiliating experience.

Even without thinking about romantic notions, having a stranger hold no goodwill towards you wasn’t a pleasant feeling.

Qin Yao couldn’t help but wonder if she was unlikable. Was it because of her slightly fuller figure?

If he thought she was fat, then he had no taste.

Qin Yao pressed her lips together. If his favorability rating was at least "10," she might have felt more comfortable talking to him. But as it stood, they were just doing business. Once they reached the guesthouse, she’d thank him and then part ways. She had her pride, after all.

"Bye-bye, kid."

"Take care of yourself," Gu Cheng noticed Qin Yao holding the umbrella tilted towards him, most of his body exposed to the rain, and felt compelled to remind her.

Qin Yao glanced at him but said nothing.

Inwardly, she scoffed: Don’t be so self-absorbed. I’m not shielding you; I’m protecting my luggage.

Qin Yao’s suitcase and backpack had some waterproofing, but they were filled with the original owner’s hamster snack stash. If they got soaked, it would be a disaster.

Gu Cheng kept his eyes forward. To him, this storm was nothing. The umbrella over his head was more of a nuisance than the rain. Qin Yao was struggling to hold the umbrella, and he was getting hit by the handle and the umbrella’s surface, forced to bend down for a long time.

How had things turned out like this? Perhaps from the start, he shouldn’t have thrown that extra chalk.

Gu Cheng glanced sideways, inexplicably noticing the young woman beside him. The fierce wind whipped around them, heavy rain pouring down. She was focused on holding the umbrella, her skin smooth and pale, her cheeks flushed and glistening with moisture, like a ripe peach, full and enticing.

She had been chatty before, but now she was silent.

Her legs were short, so she had to take quick, small steps to keep up with him.

"Hey hey hey!" Qin Yao couldn’t help but cry out as a strong gust of wind threatened to flip her umbrella inside out. The handle wobbled and almost slipped from her grasp.

Gu Cheng, with his hands full, used his cheek to block the umbrella handle, then clamped it with his neck and shoulder.

Qin Yao reached up on her tiptoes to take the umbrella back, and by then, they had reached the eaves of the guesthouse.

She breathed a sigh of relief and glanced sideways at Gu Cheng. The young man was tilting his head back, water droplets—whether rain or sweat—hanging on his cheeks, trickling down his jawline, leaving a clear watermark.

Only then did Qin Yao notice that his jawline was flawless, his facial features smooth and impeccable. His nose was especially beautiful, tall and straight. From the side, you could see that the tip of his nose tilted slightly upwards. It was truly perfect.

Qin Yao pinched her wrist: "..."

She should have thanked him and said goodbye by now, but she was reluctant. She wanted to look at his handsome face a little longer. Gu Cheng’s appearance hit all her favorite points.

Both of their clothes were soaked. Qin Yao’s dark-colored clothes weren’t too noticeable, but Gu Cheng’s white shirt clung to his body when wet, crumpled and revealing the color of his skin and the outline of his muscles.

At that moment, Qin Yao realized that this guy wasn’t just well-built; he was really something.

No wonder he had carried her luggage all this way without showing any signs of exhaustion.

"Thank you," Qin Yao said.

"It’s nothing. I’ll just—" Gu Cheng began, but before he could finish, the girl beside him swiftly stuffed a peeled Big White Rabbit candy into his mouth.

Her movements were quick and unexpected. Qin Yao pulled her hand back, having briefly touched the young man’s lips. They were soft, and she was surprised at her own boldness.

—It was probably to avoid wasting the candy.

What surprised her even more was that the young man’s cheeks had flushed slightly.

Well, well, how innocent.

Since he was so pure-hearted, she shouldn’t feel ashamed of her thick skin. Qin Yao quickly said, "My room is on the third floor. Could you help me take my things up? They’re really heavy, and I can’t carry them."

With that, she squatted down, hugging her suitcase, her back turned to Gu Cheng, looking pitifully forlorn.

Gu Cheng: "..."

With a piece of candy in his mouth, he was left in a dilemma—neither able to swallow it nor spit it out.

Where Qin Yao couldn’t see, Gu Cheng’s posture changed. He stood straight and tall, like a watchtower on a harbor, his eyes narrowing slightly with contained anger. His handsome face no longer showed any trace of gentle compliance.

This was his true face, not the one he pretended to be.

Gu Cheng had never been an easy person to get along with. He clenched his fists, barely holding back his temper, resisting the urge to kick this pretentious girl into the rain.

Kick or not kick?

He wasn’t in uniform at the moment. Kicking her into the rain could serve as a lesson to not push her luck too far. The world was full of malicious intentions.

Or should he continue playing the timid role?

Gu Cheng pressed his lips together, a faint sweetness spreading between his tongue and palate. A vivid image of the girl struggling to hold an umbrella over him, speeding up her steps to keep up with him, flashed before his eyes.

The next second, he closed his eyes briefly, then relaxed his body, slightly bent over, and said with lowered eyes, “Hold the umbrella.”

Qin Yao nimbly jumped up and happily followed him into the guesthouse with the umbrella.

Her face was stunningly beautiful, but because of her full figure, her smile lacked any coquettish charm and instead revealed a touch of innocence.

Gu Cheng's lips twitched slightly upwards.

A nimble chubby girl.

*

After settling their luggage in the guesthouse room, Qin Yao quickly wiped her face with a towel, preparing to see Gu Cheng off.

The guesthouse room, though small, had all the necessary amenities. The bed and sofa were wooden, and next to the bathroom, a red mandarin duck enamel basin sat on the washstand, exuding a strong sense of the era.

Propaganda posters from the time covered the walls of the room and the corridor. Outside, the rain poured down relentlessly. Qin Yao rhythmically descended the stairs, her mood light and joyful.

She thought she was making a light, dainty sound, but it was actually a heavy thud.

Though she claimed not to be fat, her 140-pound frame was quite substantial.

Gu Cheng, striding down the stairs with his long legs, wore a subtly shocked expression at the thudding sounds she made.

“Are you lighter than me?” Qin Yao asked expressionlessly.

Gu Cheng, curious, asked, “How much do you weigh?”

“Secret.” Qin Yao felt embarrassed to admit she weighed 154 pounds. This body was indeed a bit too plump, and she needed to lose weight, which would take time. She believed she could slim down eventually.

She intended to treat Gu Cheng to a meal, but a fierce craving for food surged within her. Qin Yao felt a sense of foreboding.

Her soul was her own, but the appetite of this body was ingrained in her stomach.

She would need to endure hunger, exercise, and persist to shed the weight.

Thinking of the hardships ahead, Qin Yao felt downcast.

Her concerns were written all over her face, and Gu Cheng, noticing this, comforted her, “You’re not fat.”

Qin Yao lazily thought in her heart: Of course you think I’m not fat since you don’t have any feelings for me.

Ah, men.

Being overweight had its perks; it was hard for people to develop romantic feelings.

But perhaps that wasn’t such a bad thing.

As they reached the first floor, the screams of a child pierced through the sound of the torrential rain outside. Unfortunately, they ran into the troublemaking kid from earlier, who had been eating chalk. A fierce middle-aged woman stood next to him, cursing, “Who bullied you? Who dares to bully my son…?”

“It’s him, it’s him! He threw chalk at me.” The boy, Congcong, pointed at the tall Gu Cheng and then at Qin Yao. “She didn’t give me candy.”

The woman stormed up to Qin Yao and Gu Cheng, scolding them, “You two are a pair of dogs, bullying a child. What kind of adults are you? Shameless…”

“I’m going to report you two for behaving like hooligans in public and bullying a child!”

Troublemakers certainly had even more troublesome parents.

“Your son pushed me first—” Qin Yao suppressed her anger, then clutched her chest, gasping for air like a fish out of water. Her breaths grew heavier, her face as white as paper. Her legs gave out, and she collapsed into Gu Cheng’s arms. He quickly supported her.

“Perfect timing. You can accompany me to the hospital for a check-up.” Qin Yao reached out for the woman’s hand.

“Not my problem.” The middle-aged woman, seeing Qin Yao’s pale face, was frightened out of her wits and hurriedly pulled her child upstairs, afraid of being dragged to the hospital and asked for compensation.

Once outside the guesthouse, Qin Yao, who had been leaning on Gu Cheng, immediately straightened up. She looked up, blinked, and gave him a mischievous smile.

The rain had lessened, carried by the wind. Only a few pedestrians in black raincoats hurried by. Water from the eaves gathered and trickled down the roof corners.

The girl’s hair was still wet, clinging to her cheeks. Unlike her earlier pallor, her smile now made her lips rosy, and her entire face came alive.

The colors around them seemed to brighten under the rain’s wash.

“You’re not sick?”

Qin Yao replied irritably, “You’re the one who’s sick.”

Gu Cheng: “……”

He had genuinely thought the girl was having a sudden episode.

“My big sister Yao is a healthy fat person.”

Gu Cheng couldn’t help but laugh out loud. He wasn’t someone who usually laughed much, and at twenty-eight, there were no laugh lines at the corners of his eyes. But now, his eyes crinkled, and the corners reddened.

If his former comrades saw him like this, they definitely wouldn’t recognize him.

Soldiers often carried traces of their training, visible in their posture and way of sitting. Gu Cheng had excelled in past camouflage exercises, leaving no trace of his military background.

He had thought highly of his acting skills, but encountering this nimble chubby girl made him realize what it truly meant to be a completely different person, with perfect acting.

"You—" Catching sight of the smile on Gu Cheng's face, Qin Yao felt slightly annoyed. She realized she was still standing very close to Gu Cheng, and she could gauge his current favorability towards her.

And she chose to refuse.

There seemed to be a natural comedic effect about Fatty, even though she had truly been the elegant flower of the literature department in the past.