Thanks to putting in the work last night, all the homework was finished in a single morning.

"Got any plans for the afternoon?"

Shen Yuan asked.

Li Zhi leaned back in her chair. "What else is there to do? Rest, read, scroll through my phone, or maybe play some games. Got any good recommendations?"

Shen Yuan and Li Zhi were gaming buddies.

They had beaten games like *It Takes Two*, for example, twice.

Generally speaking, though, Li Zhi didn’t play games for very long.

Just *It Takes Two* alone had taken them a very long time to get through.

"*We Once Explored Here*? I saw a new one in the series came out."

Li Zhi shook her head. "I don’t want to play anything that requires complex controls. Got any puzzle games?"

"*Lost Island*? I remember a new one came out, but I never had the time to play it."

Li Zhi’s eyes lit up. "Perfect! Let’s get started right after lunch!"

Lunchtime passed quickly.

After lunch, Li Zhi came over to Shen Yuan’s house.

"I’ll go get the tablet."

’For puzzle games on a phone, a bigger screen is a must. Otherwise, the two of them would end up fighting over it.’

Shen Yuan had already downloaded the game.

Shen Yuan shifted over, and the two of them sat side-by-side at the desk, their eyes fixed on the tablet before them.

"Let’s go! We’re aiming to finish the first playthrough in two hours!"

The puzzle game *Lost Island* wasn’t particularly difficult. As long as you were a little careful, you could breeze right through it.

With these point-and-click puzzle games, sometimes you could even trigger the solution just by clicking randomly.

Throughout the entire puzzle-solving process, Shen Yuan’s role was basically to be her hype man.

"Whoa, girl, how’d you figure that out?"

"Seriously, how did you make sense of all that so quickly?"

"You’re incredible, seriously. I feel like I paid for this game just to watch you play."

Of course, Li Zhi wasn’t going to get conceited over a few compliments from Shen Yuan. When it came to gaming, he had played far more than she had.

While puzzle games weren’t his forte, he certainly wasn’t so hopeless that he couldn’t solve a single one.

In fact, the reason Li Zhi had gotten into gaming in the first place was because of Shen Yuan’s constant praise.

With all his praise, Shen Yuan had managed to acquire himself a gaming buddy.

The beautiful girl stared at the screen with intense concentration, switching between scenes to solve the puzzle.

As for Shen Yuan, besides watching Li Zhi solve the puzzles, he occasionally took the chance to admire the beautiful girl’s profile.

Li Zhi wasn’t wearing a ponytail today; her hair was hanging down naturally.

On the side facing him, Li Zhi had tucked her long hair behind her ear, revealing her delicate profile and leaving Shen Yuan completely mesmerized.

In the middle of a puzzle, Li Zhi suddenly noticed Shen Yuan’s gaze.

The beautiful girl said with annoyance, "We’re solving a puzzle here. What exactly are *you* trying to figure out?"

Being caught didn’t fluster Shen Yuan at all; in fact, he grew even bolder.

"Well, there’s something much better to look at than this puzzle."

The beautiful girl rolled her eyes at him. "If you keep that up, I’m going home."

Just as Shen Yuan was about to say something, his phone rang.

After glancing at the caller ID, Shen Yuan said to Li Zhi, "Probably a package delivery."

He answered the phone, and sure enough, it was the delivery driver.

In their residential complex, food deliveries could be brought right to the door, since the elevator could be controlled with an app.

The problem was, package deliveries weren’t brought up; they were left directly in the lockers downstairs.

The call was to tell him it was in the locker, not at his front door.

As soon as Shen Yuan hung up, Li Zhi quickly warned him, "Let me tell you, the scores aren’t out yet! Don’t you get any funny ideas."

"I know, I know. But I still think you’re guaranteed to lose."

Seeing his confident expression, Li Zhi snorted. "Don’t forget, there are two conditions! Besides scoring over 620, you also have to score higher than that Tong guy!"

Shen Yuan frowned.

’I almost forgot about that part.’

But Shen Yuan wasn’t worried. He gave a dismissive wave. "It’s a guaranteed win for me."

"I’ll be waiting to see that, then."

Seeing the beautiful girl’s look of smug certainty, Shen Yuan suddenly asked, "Hey, want to see what the dress looks like?"

Li Zhi’s puzzle-solving train of thought ground to a halt. Suddenly, she had no desire to continue playing the game.

’Damn you, Shen Yuan! You’re ruining my focus!’

Li Zhi shot Shen Yuan a vicious glare. "You pervert! I bet you bought some tacky, ridiculous dress."

"Hey! Where did you get that idea?"

Shen Yuan quickly pulled up the order and shoved his phone in her face. "You call this tacky and ridiculous? Huh? You call this tacky? Look me in the eye! Answer me!"

Li Zhi’s attention was captured by the dress almost instantly.

But then, she saw the price.

"Over 400?! Why would you buy something so expensive?"

Shen Yuan put his phone away, his expression turning serious. "You don’t need to worry about the price. Just tell me—is *this* what you call ’tacky’?"

Li Zhi froze.

The beautiful girl opened and closed her mouth, then said haltingly, "I... I take back what I said. The dress you bought is beautiful. I love it."

Hearing her words, a look of deep satisfaction spread across Shen Yuan’s face.

’This is more satisfying than chugging an ice-cold Coke in the middle of a heatwave.’

"Oh, right! I also bought a pair of shoes."

With that, Shen Yuan proceeded to give Li Zhi another demonstration of his excellent taste.

’What shoes would go with a dress like that?’

’High heels, of course.’

A pair of black, strappy high heels immediately caught Li Zhi’s eye.

"You...?"

The beautiful girl was stunned.

This combo from Shen Yuan was beyond anything she had imagined.

"Wait a minute, buddy. What’s your game here?"

For a moment, Li Zhi couldn’t quite figure out what this guy Shen Yuan was up to.

’If he wins the bet, he just... ends up giving me a beautiful dress and shoes.’

’Could it be... this guy wants to be my simp?’

Before Li Zhi could dwell on it, Shen Yuan’s voice sounded right next to her ear.

"You’re going to wear them for me."

Li Zhi immediately grew wary. ’I knew it was too good to be true!’

"If you scroll down, is there a pair of black stockings in that cart too?"

"Am I really that vulgar in your eyes?"

Shen Yuan pointed at Li Zhi indignantly. "That does it! I’m ordering them right now! Two pairs!"

Li Zhi quickly grabbed his arm. "Whoa, whoa, my bad, my bad! You don’t have to buy them, I have some myself."

"Huh?!!"

Shen Yuan looked at Li Zhi in disbelief.

’Wait, Li Zhi? You, with your innocent, goody-two-shoes face, actually have *that* kind of stuff in your closet?’

Seeing the look in his eyes, Li Zhi knew that idiot had gotten the wrong idea.

The beautiful girl smacked him on the head.

"What are you thinking! They’re just an article of clothing, it’s perfectly normal to own a pair! Besides, I wear them for sun protection!"

Shen Yuan, having been struck, blinked with a look of pure, unadulterated innocence.

After three or four seconds, Shen Yuan suddenly sat up straight.

"Wait a second. How come I’ve never seen you wear them?"

Li Zhi immediately kicked Shen Yuan in the shin. "And why should I show you?! What makes you think I’d wear them for you to see!"

Li Zhi kicked twice.

With the first kick, her slipper was still on her foot. By the second, it had flown off.

It just went to show how hard the beautiful girl had kicked.

Shen Yuan was wearing knee-length shorts that day.

Staring at the foot—clad in a white ankle sock—resting on his calf and feeling its touch, Shen Yuan swallowed hard.

The next second, however, Li Zhi pulled her foot back and questioned him sternly.

"Did you just gulp?"

"No!" Shen Yuan denied it instantly.

"I saw it!"

"I really didn’t! If you don’t believe me, kick me again!"

Li Zhi started to lift her foot for another kick, but suddenly stopped.

"Pervert!"

A flicker of regret crossed Shen Yuan’s face.

’If Li Zhi had kicked him just then, he would have grabbed her foot and started tickling her.’

’Tsk. He’d never understood the joy Zhang Wuji felt before, but now... now he got it completely.’

’This was dangerously fun.’