Chapter 51: Striking Directly at the Command Post

At this moment.

Su Meng's expression was terrifyingly dark, her entire face flushed bright red due to a guilty conscience.

Chu Tiantian, meanwhile, pursed her lips shut and snuck a peek at Su Meng's complexion.

Although she was completely unaware of this, she was, after all, on the same team as Su Meng.

If she were to distance herself now, losing the game would be a minor matter, but gaining the reputation of backstabbing a friend would be bad.

Fu Hai widened his eyes in disbelief, hesitated for a moment, and then spoke tentatively: "Su Meng, is there really some trick to these chopsticks?"

Seeing that her little ruse had been exposed by Shen Huai.

Su Meng stopped pretending and simply laid her cards on the table, opening her left hand to reveal the controller in her palm: "I didn't expect your eyes to be so sharp."

"That's right, these chopsticks were a prop I prepared in advance, but so what?"

Su Meng was in the wrong but acted very bold, putting her hands on her hips and retorting: "My purpose in doing this wasn't also to vet Chu Tiantian and properly examine the person she likes?"

"……This……"

This counter-question from Su Meng was like a zero-frame start, directly leaving Fu Hai dumbfounded.

"The person Tian Tian likes……?"

Su Meng had said so much, and Fu Hai had listened in a daze the entire time.

He had only caught the last few keywords: 【The person she likes】.

"Tian Tian, does your best friend mean…… that you like me too?"

Fu Hai ignored Su Meng's sophistry entirely, his gaze fixed straight on Chu Tiantian, the love in his eyes almost overflowing.

"Actually, I've wanted to say this for a long time; I really like you, I like you so, so much."

"If you like me too, should we…… give it a try?"

"?"

Su Meng hadn't expected Fu Hai to deviate from the script like this.

He had actually bypassed the command post and struck directly at the headquarters base.

Chu Tiantian was clearly also caught off guard by Fu Hai's sudden confession.

She forcibly suppressed the urge to scream with excitement, her right hand frantically tugging at Su Meng's clothes under the table.

She nearly tore the corner of Su Meng's garment.

Su Meng wore an expression of utter exasperation.

If she was this excited just from a confession, then once they were together, wouldn't she be completely submissive?

Su Meng was just about to open her mouth to reclaim lost ground.

Unexpectedly, Chu Tiantian was already love-struck, nodding shyly: "Okay, okay, then you have to keep treating me as well as you do now."

Hearing Chu Tiantian agree, Fu Hai almost thought he had misheard.

He gripped Shen Huai's arm tightly and shook it frantically: "Shen Huai, look, Tian Tian agreed to me! She agreed to me!"

"I have a girlfriend!"

Fu Hai shouted excitedly, causing the people eating nearby to look over one after another.

Shen Huai looked at his elbow, which had been pulled red by Fu Hai.

He pretended to offer congratulations as he pulled his arm from Fu Hai's grip and sighed helplessly.

These two.

Why do they both like to grab others when they get excited? Truly a talented man and a beautiful woman, a match made in heaven.

Watching Fu Hai and Chu Tiantian, who had finally broken through the paper of their relationship and ascended to the status of a couple.

Shen Huai breathed a sigh of relief.

This duel of the Military Advisor had, in the end, been won.

At this moment.

Su Meng's mood was not so beautiful.

After preparing so meticulously for so long, she had ended up being overtaken on a curve by this kid Fu Hai, who had intercepted the prize.

Not only did this leave her, the Military Advisor and best friend, with no sense of accomplishment, but it even gave rise to a bit of frustration.

Su Meng shifted her gaze to Shen Huai, her eyes narrowing.

If Fu Hai had come alone, he definitely would have been played in circles by her.

It was a pity.

A "spoiler" like Shen Huai had appeared halfway through.

Su Meng looked at the pink bubbles of love rising from Chu Tiantian, her expression even more speechless.

Internal trouble and external aggression; being love-struck is truly undesirable.

"Since things have reached this point, there shouldn't be any need to continue playing this game, right?"

Shen Huai smiled as he returned the chopsticks to Su Meng.

Since Fu Hai had already successfully harvested a girlfriend, he could now rightfully retire with merit.

Su Meng took the chopsticks with a cold face and silently put them back into her bag.

Chu Tiantian, having just confirmed their romantic relationship, couldn't wait to get closer to Fu Hai.

She leaned over to Su Meng's side, her eyes shining with anticipation: "Meng Meng, shall we switch seats? I want to sit next to Fu Hai."

"……" Su Meng glared at this friend who prioritized romance over friendship.

Reluctantly, she got up and swapped seats with Chu Tiantian.

In this way, Fu Hai and Chu Tiantian were openly and honestly together.

And Su Meng moved from across from Shen Huai to sit by his side.

Watching Fu Hai and Chu Tiantian being so lovey-dovey, Shen Huai could not help but smile at the corners of his mouth.

Couples who have just fallen into a passionate love always seem to have an inexplicable barrier around them.

It can automatically isolate everyone around them except the two of them, allowing them to focus intently on immersing themselves in their own two-person world.

Just like this.

As soon as Chu Tiantian sat down, she began chatting with Fu Hai in high spirits.

They had completely forgotten about the existence of their Military Advisor.

"This game was prepared from the very beginning, wasn't it?" Shen Huai leaned closer to Su Meng and spoke in a low voice.

"Of course, this was meant to be a Hongmen Banquet set up specifically for him. Do you have an objection?" Su Meng did not deny it either, simply laying her cards on the table.

"How could I have any objection? I just find it a bit interesting."

Perhaps infected by the fervent romantic atmosphere between the young couple,

Shen Huai turned his head back, the corners of his eyes curving as he gave Su Meng a faint smile.

In an instant.

Su Meng's heart skipped a beat.

Her throat moved with a dry, tight sensation.

She awkwardly lowered her eyes, feigning composure to ignore Shen Huai's smile, poured herself a glass of wine, and downed it in one gulp.

Immediately after, she poured a second glass.

And a third...

Su Meng's heart was pounding wildly; she downed glass after glass, yet felt her inner agitation growing.

What is going on?

Why does she get thirstier the more she drinks? Watching Su Meng sitting there alone drinking her sorrows away, Shen Huai raised his eyebrows slightly and poured himself a glass as well.

Just as Su Meng tilted her head back, he grabbed her arm.

Shen Huai raised his glass and tapped it lightly against the rim of Su Meng's wine glass—

"Cheers."

Su Meng's eyes widened abruptly.

Her gaze was fixed unblinkingly on Shen Huai's face.

From Shen Huai's lips, dampened by the wine, she looked up to his sharp, well-defined jawline.

As Shen Huai's Adam's apple bobbed, Su Meng could not help but swallow a mouthful of saliva herself.

The steam from the hot pot made Shen Huai's forehead break out in a light sweat.

A few stray hairs were stuck to his forehead because of the sweat.

A drop of sweat slid slowly from Shen Huai's temple, down his cheek, and finally slipped into his clothes.

Shen Huai didn't mind, using one hand to sweep his hair back.

He grabbed his collar with his hand and fanned himself naturally.

Just this one movement.

It made Su Meng almost lose her focus.

Unrestrained, youthful, wild, and unruly.

Whether it was because she had been busy drinking and hadn't eaten much, or because the weather today was truly too hot.

Su Meng felt for the first time that Shen Huai was handsome enough to stir up such wild thoughts.

She still remembered when they had just graduated from high school.

She felt that although Shen Huai did look quite decent, when he faced her, he still carried an air of shabbiness and the awkwardness of someone who had never seen the world.

But looking at him now.

In every gesture Shen Huai made, there was an unexpected, nameless air of nobility.

The next moment.

Su Meng was immediately amused by her own thought.

It must be the swirling mist making her eyes play tricks on her.

How could a "left-behind child" of such an advanced age like Shen Huai have any air of nobility?

"What are you looking at?"

Shen Huai noticed that Su Meng's gaze was a bit off, blinked his eyes, and asked softly.

"... Ah, I wasn't looking at you, don't be so conceited!"

Su Meng turned her head back in shame and annoyance, tilting her head to drain her glass of wine in one go.

Watching Su Meng's awkward and stubborn appearance, Shen Huai quietly raised the corners of his mouth into an arc.

(End of this chapter)