Chapter 300: I Like You—Will You Be My Girlfriend?

"Ahem!"

After Li Luo spread out the homemade Monopoly board on the coffee table, Xu Youyu cleared her throat, stood right in front of the coffee table, and announced, "Now then, let me explain the rules of the game."

Ying Chanxi and the others curiously examined the board, their expressions all a bit strange; Xu Yinghuan was so interested she couldn't help but laugh.

Xu Youyu went on, "The rules are very simple: spend credits to buy up territory, and once you own a spot, anyone who lands on it has to pay you credits."

"Anyone whose credits drop to zero will be expelled from Affiliated High School No. 1."

"And in the end, whoever holds the most credits will become Affiliated High School No. 1's true, undisputed top student! And the final winner of this game!"

Listening to Xu Youyu's grand introduction, Li Luo couldn't help but twitch the corner of his mouth, then pointed at one of the spots on the board and couldn't resist complaining, "You can buy the boys' bathroom with credits?"

"Of course." Xu Youyu nodded as if it were the most natural thing in the world, and pointed at the icon for the girls' bathroom across from it. "If someone owns both the boys' bathroom and this girls' bathroom, then the toll is doubled."

Everyone: "..."

The living room went quiet for a moment.

There was a complaint stuck in everyone's throat, and no one knew whether to spit it out or swallow it for the sake of the Birthday Person's face.

"Then what does this 'exam' mean?" Li Luo tapped the corner that would normally be set as Jail in a regular Monopoly game and asked.

"It means you go take an exam." Xu Youyu waved her hand. "You're forced to stay for two turns, take a school exam, and based on your score, you get a corresponding credit reward."

Li Luo was completely baffled: "... What do you mean 'based on the exam score'? Don't tell me we have to do a whole test paper in two turns?!"

"Of course not." Xu Youyu said with a grin. "We just go straight by our midterm exam scores."

"First in the grade gets 50 credits, top ten gets 40, top fifty gets 30, top hundred gets 20, top three hundred gets 10..."

"Um... what about after three hundredth place?" Xu Yinghuan, listening, felt her heart grow colder and colder, and couldn't help but ask softly.

"You're already past three hundredth place, and you still want a reward?" Xu Youyu's face turned solemn as she said righteously, "Past three hundred there's no credit reward; not getting scolded by your parents would already be good enough."

Xu Yinghuan: "..."

This is bullying! This is straight-up bullying, right?!

At the very least it counts as discrimination!

"Are there any other ways to earn credits?" Xu Yinghuan bit her lip, not daring to defy the Birthday Person's rules, and could only keep asking.

"Of course there are, plenty." Xu Youyu pointed at the starting spot on the board. "This is the school gate; every time you pass the school gate, you get 20 credits."

"Now look here—this is Morning Self-Study. Stay one turn voluntarily, and after you finish morning self-study here, you get 10 credits."

"Then here's Lunch Break—forced to stay one turn, and when you leave you get 5 credits."

"Besides using credits to buy territory and collect tolls, these spots also give you credits."

"As for the rest, well... there are also these two."

Xu Youyu took two decks of cards out of the box and placed them on the boxes on the board that would normally be 【Chance】 and 【Community Chest】.

The backs of the cards clearly read 【Event】 and 【Accident】.

Xu Youyu drew one from the 【Event】 deck and showed it to everyone: "You actively participated in math class and answered a very difficult question from the teacher. Reward: 10 credits."

Li Luo glanced at the card in her hand, and out of curiosity drew one from the 【Accident】 pile. He looked down at it, and his face immediately darkened.

Yan Zhusheng beside him curiously leaned over and read aloud in all seriousness: "You were cornered and beaten up in the boys' bathroom. Lose 10 credits. If the boys' bathroom is already owned by someone, the 10 credits go to the owner of the boys' bathroom. Note: if the owner also owns the girls' bathroom, the loss is doubled."

Qiao Xinyan, hearing the note at the end, couldn't help but snort with laughter: "Senior... this... is really quite rigorous of you."

"How is that rigorous?" Li Luo couldn't help but complain. "I got cornered in the boys' bathroom—shouldn't that be the other person's fault? It should be them losing credits."

"How do you know the other person didn't lose credits?" Xu Youyu rolled her eyes. "When we report it to the school, we just call it a mutual fight—fifty-fifty blame."

"Then why does this thing double just because there's a girls' bathroom? I didn't get cornered in the girls' bathroom."

"Can't you have scared the girls' bathroom students while you were fighting?" Xu Youyu waved her hand impatiently. "Stop asking so many questions, let's start playing! Ask the rest as we go!"

"Fine."

After the board was spread out, the 【Event】 and 【Accident】 decks were placed, and the paper pieces representing each territory were set down in their corresponding spots.

Zhao Rongjun watched Xu Youyu enthusiastically start handing out credits, then looked at the five girls present besides Li Luo, instinctively sensing some kind of danger, and couldn't help but ask softly:

"Senior, can I be the bank? I'll just hand out credits to you all."

"How could that work?" Xu Youyu frowned. "You're an important player. Without you, the game wouldn't even be fun."

Hearing this, Zhao Rongjun's eye immediately twitched, his heart instinctively clenched, and he felt even more uneasy.

But Li Luo beside him, hearing Xu Youyu say that, immediately grabbed Zhao Rongjun and wouldn't let him escape: "You're already here! And you want to back out at the last minute?"

"Today's the senior's birthday—look at this board, these cards, they're all her hard work!"

"Have you got the nerve not to play?"

Zhao Rongjun, being choked around the neck and unable to breathe, could only reluctantly agree: "I'll play, I'll play, let go."

"That's more like it!" Li Luo patted Zhao Rongjun's shoulder. "The two of us brothers work together and aim to become the final top student!"

Zhao Rongjun twitched the corner of his mouth and muttered softly, "I feel like whoever wins in the end won't be a top student, but more like a school bully..."

The others didn't care about that.

Although Xu Youyu's Affiliated High School No. 1 version of Monopoly was a bit abstract, after hearing the basic rules, Xu Yinghuan and the others were actually eager to try it and felt it was quite interesting.

In the old Monopoly, the territories were all Tokyo, Paris, London, New York or whatever—sounded impressive, but not down-to-earth enough.

Now with an Affiliated High School No. 1 version of Monopoly, Qiao Xinyan and the others all thought it was pretty fun and busily helped Xu Youyu start handing out credits.

After each person's starting 500 credits were distributed, Xu Youyu coughed twice, then drew a 100-credit note from the credit management department designated as the Academic Affairs Office and stuffed it into her own hand: "The Birthday Person gets an extra 100 credits—you guys shouldn't have any objections, right?"

Li Luo watched her little trick and immediately laughed, saying: "Senior, to win you're really willing to do anything."

"Don't talk so much." Xu Youyu snorted, then pulled out seven thumb-sized things like coins from the box, each with a person's big-head photo stuck on it. "One each, don't mix them up."

"Where did you get these photos?" Li Luo saw that the piece representing him had an ugly photo of him laughing heartily printed on it, and his face immediately darkened. "Couldn't you have cropped a nicer one?"

"They're all photos taken when we played before; I just cropped them on a whim." Xu Youyu waved her hand, then placed her own piece, with her pretty photo on it, at the school gate on the board.

Li Luo glanced at the other people's pieces. Ying Chanxi's face turned red, and she hurriedly covered her own piece to keep it from being seen, but in the end Li Luo still saw it.

"Haha~ Xixi, when was this photo taken? Why are you laughing like that?" Qiao Xinyan had already seen Ying Chanxi's photo—it was from back then when Ying Chanxi's face had been smeared with cream—and immediately burst out laughing.

"Senior!" Ying Chanxi, blushing, complained to Xu Youyu, "You didn't do that on purpose, did you?"

"How could I?" Xu Youyu said without a hint of embarrassment, "I just grabbed them at random. You'll get used to it."

Li Luo glanced at the others' pieces—none were much better—and felt a little more at ease.

"Alright, let's begin," Xu Youyu said, telling everyone to place their pieces at the school gate, then picked up the dice and grinned, "Starting with the Birthday Person, clockwise—any objections?"

Of course, everyone deferred to the Birthday Person on such a small matter.

Xu Youyu rolled the dice—three and five—eight steps total.

She picked up her piece, counted eight spaces forward, and landed on 【Little Grove Pavilion】.

"Bought it!" Xu Youyu pulled out thirty academic credits, waved her hand, and claimed 【Little Grove Pavilion】.

Li Luo glanced at it, then pointed to 【Grade 1 Class 8 Classroom】 just in front of the pavilion: "Why is our classroom cheaper than the pavilion? The ones behind us—Class 1 and Class 3—are way pricier."

"Just a parallel class, don't get too cocky," Xu Youyu waved her hand. "Class 3 is at least a key class, so 35 credits is fair. Class 1 is packed with top students—40 credits is actually cheap."

"Then why is your Gao Er Class 16 priced at 50 academic credits?" Li Luo narrowed his eyes and demanded.

"What's wrong with being expensive if you're in the Birthday Person's class?" Xu Youyu huffed. "You talk too much. Xinyan, your turn."

"Oh, okay." Qiao Xinyan took the dice, rolled an 11, landed directly on 【Grade 1 Class 1 Classroom】, and immediately pulled out 40 academic credits to claim it.

"Huh?" Ying Chanxi watched as Qiao Xinyan took her own classroom, pouted, "I was hoping to get that classroom."

"You could buy Class 8's classroom instead," Qiao Xinyan teased.

"That's true." Ying Chanxi's eyes lit up, her interest returning instantly.

Li Luo spoke up: "That's unfair—you're snatching the classroom too? Go for Class 3 instead; it's more expensive."

"Don't call me that," Zhao Rongjun's face darkened. "I'm waiting to buy Class 3."

As he spoke, Ying Chanxi rolled her dice—it spun once, then showed a 5.

Ying Chanxi moved her piece five spaces—and immediately blushed.

"Hahahaha~" Xu Youyu burst out laughing. "Xixi, you just walked into the boys' restroom!"

Hearing that, Ying Chanxi's face turned even redder, but she still pulled out fifty academic credits and muttered, "I bought it."

"What?! You bought the boys' restroom?" Li Luo exclaimed. "So now I have to pay you a toll just to use the toilet?"

"Perfect," Xu Youyu suddenly clapped her hands, eyes gleaming. "From now on, anyone who needs the restroom—boys pay 1 academic credit to the owner of the boys' restroom, girls pay 1 to the owner of the girls' restroom. Deal?"

"What if one person owns both restrooms?" Li Luo smirked. "So everyone has to pay 2 credits just to pee?"

Xu Youyu snapped her fingers and nodded approvingly. "Smart kid."

One or two academic credits were trivial. Everyone found it amusing and agreed.

After Ying Chanxi bought the boys' restroom, it was Li Luo's turn to roll.

He picked up the dice, focused his Qi, pointed one finger at 【Grade 1 Class 8 Classroom】, gripped the dice in his other hand, and muttered under his breath: "Seven, seven, seven…"

The two dice flew onto the coffee table, rolled, then settled on two sixes.

"Oh well," Li Luo raised an eyebrow, picking up his piece to count spaces. "Can I roll again with double sixes?"

"You think this is flying chess?" Xu Youyu rolled her eyes. "Teaching building rooftop—45 academic credits. Buy it or not?"

"Fine, fine, rooftop it is," Li Luo nodded, pulled out 45 academic credits, and grinned. "When you all crash your stock portfolios and want to jump, you'll have to pay me a toll first."

"You talk too much," Xu Youyu picked up the dice and handed them to Yan Zhusheng. "Zhusheng, your turn."

"Oh." Yan Zhusheng took the dice, tossed them casually—rolled a 7—and landed on 【Grade 1 Class 8 Classroom】. He pulled out 25 academic credits and claimed it.

"Nice job, Zhusheng," Li Luo patted his shoulder. "You protected our classroom!"

Ying Chanxi glanced at Li Luo's hand and let out a silent huff.

After Yan Zhusheng came Xu Yinghuan.

As Yan Zhusheng paid his credits, Xu Yinghuan had already snatched the dice off the table and rolled—landed on 5, right behind Ying Chanxi, stepping into the boys' restroom.

"Ahh!" Xu Yinghuan screamed.

Xu Youyu burst into laughter. "Xixi, how much is the toll for passing through the boys' restroom again?"

"Let me check," Ying Chanxi picked up the boys' restroom card and looked. "Five credits per pass."

"Ugh…" Xu Yinghuan groaned, reluctantly handing over five academic credits. "I'm so unlucky… Can't girls just avoid the boys' restroom?"

"Not necessarily," Li Luo wagged a finger. "At crowded tourist spots, plenty of girls sneak into the boys' restroom to grab a stall."

"Class monitor, you talk too much," Xu Yinghuan puffed out her cheeks in annoyance.

After Xu Yinghuan paid the toll, it was Zhao Rongjun's turn.

He silently picked up the dice from the table and tossed them lightly—two twos, four steps total.

He moved his piece four spaces—and landed on 【Event】.

"Okay, draw an Event card," Xu Youyu urged.

Zhao Rongjun quickly reached into the 【Event】 deck and pulled out a card.

Xu Yinghuan leaned over and read aloud in a formal tone: "The class bell rings. Immediately return to your classroom and prepare for class. Perform excellently in class. Reward: 5 academic credits. Note: If you pass through the school gate, gain an additional 20 academic credits."

"Wow~ Lucky," Xu Youyu placed Zhao Rongjun's piece on 【Grade 1 Class 3 Classroom】, handed him five academic credits, then asked, "Your class's classroom hasn't been bought yet. Want to claim it?"

"Yes!" Zhao Rongjun nodded vigorously.

After successfully buying his classroom, Zhao Rongjun's mood improved considerably.

Looking over the first round's progress, he suddenly thought this game didn't seem so dangerous after all.

After he bought his classroom, it was again the Birthday Person's turn—Xu Youyu.

She rolled an 11, landed on 【Literature Club Activity Room】, waved her hand, and spent seventy academic credits to claim it.

Qiao Xinyan unexpectedly rolled two ones, landing on 【Accident】.

Seeing she had landed on 【Accident】, Qiao Xinyan's heart sank.

She still remembered how Li Luo had been beaten up inside the boys' restroom earlier.

If I were the one trapped in the men's restroom, it would be way too embarrassing.

Thinking this, she tremblingly extended her hand under Xu Youyu's expectant gaze, drawing a card from the 【Accident】 deck.

Ying Chanxi leaned in curiously and read it aloud for her: "From the moment you enrolled, your gaze was deeply drawn to one figure. Finally, one day, you could no longer suppress your emotions—you secretly found them and bravely said, 'I like you.'"

"Choose one opposite-sex person present and confess to them. If they accept, you temporarily become a couple in this round and may borrow credits from each other."

"If they refuse, you will be overwhelmed with shame and sorrow, remain stationary for one turn, and suffer a loss of 5 credits due to exam failure."

After reading the card's content, Qiao Xinyan's face instantly flushed red.

Ying Chanxi also looked astonished.

Li Luo and the others all showed expressions of shock.

Only Xu Youyu burst into loud laughter, stood up with hands on hips, and grinned triumphantly: "Yes! Exactly like this! Xinyan! It's just a game—pick now! Li Luo or Zhao Rongjun?"

Hearing Xu Youyu say that, Qiao Xinyan grew even more flustered, but since it was just a game, she didn't mind too much. Her eyes flicked toward Li Luo—and immediately sensed Ying Chanxi's hidden hostility.

So Qiao Xinyan quickly shifted her gaze to Zhao Rongjun across from her and said shyly, "Um… um… Zhao Rongjun, is it okay?"

Zhao Rongjun froze completely, finally realizing belatedly what his senior meant when she'd said earlier, "Without you, the game wouldn't be fun."

So this Monopoly game actually had a dating system?!

If Zhao Rongjun were gone, Li Luo would be the only opposite-sex player left—of course the game wouldn't work.

But faced with Qiao Xinyan's confession, Zhao Rongjun's face flushed crimson, and he looked even more awkward than she did, stammering without uttering a single word.

Seeing Zhao Rongjun's reaction, Qiao Xinyan burst into a soft laugh and comforted him gently: "It's fine, really—it's just a game. If you say yes, we can borrow credits from each other. It's not bad at all. I really don't want to stay put for a turn."

When a girl says something like that, refusing would be terribly rude.

So Zhao Rongjun said nothing—only nodded silently, accepting the "confession."

"Great!" Xu Youyu, enjoying the spectacle, chuckled and pulled two heart badges from the box, handing them to Qiao Xinyan and Zhao Rongjun. "Take these—they're both blue, meaning you two are officially a couple now."

Li Luo watched Xu Youyu's endless tricks and couldn't help twitching his eyebrow: "How many more weird things did you sneak into this game?"

"What's weird about that?" Xu Youyu replied indignantly. "High school—there are always kids sneaking crushes. Don't be so narrow-minded."

"Exactly," Ying Chanxi, now holding the dice, nodded vigorously. "Someone in our class is secretly dating. Xinyan knows, right?"

"Mm." Qiao Xinyan nodded. "But we can't say anything—it wouldn't look good if it got out."

"Mm-hmm." Ying Chanxi immediately fell silent, then fixed her gaze on the map's 【Accident】 space, counting carefully.

Eight steps away from me…

She took a deep breath, flicked her two dice skillfully, watched them tumble across the coffee table, and silently prayed.

Perhaps the Dice God truly favored her.

When the dice stopped, one showed 2, the other 6—exactly eight steps.

Seeing this, Ying Chanxi nearly jumped for joy—but she immediately suppressed her excitement, feigning calmness as she placed her piece directly on the 【Accident】 space.

"Huh?" Li Luo frowned. "You calculated that fast? Didn't even count the spaces?"

"Umm… why do you care so much?" Ying Chanxi blushed, slightly guilty, then grew eager again, silently praying as she drew a card from the 【Accident】 deck.

Li Luo leaned over curiously, glanced at the card's content, and immediately grinned, reading it aloud for her: "Snitch Card."

"When you discover a classmate secretly dating, you may use this card to report them to a teacher for early romance."

"If you do so, the couple will be forced to break up due to the teacher's inquiry, immediately ending their relationship and losing 20 credits."

"This card is of the optional-release type—it may be kept long-term but may only be used during your own turn."

After reading it, Li Luo's expression turned peculiar. He grinned and glanced at Qiao Xinyan and Zhao Rongjun, then egged them on with relish: "Use it! Use it now! Twenty credits lost!"

"Hey!" Qiao Xinyan protested at once. "We just started dating—now you want to report us? That's heartless! It's twenty credits!"

Zhao Rongjun glanced at Qiao Xinyan's determined face, bit his lip, and said nothing.

Qiao Xinyan clung to Ying Chanxi's arm, seeing her look eager, and whispered urgently into her ear.

After listening, Ying Chanxi fell into deep thought, glancing unconsciously toward Yan Zhusheng and Xu Youyu, then quietly tucked the card away: "I choose to keep it—for now."

"What a fool, Xixi!" Li Luo groaned, slapping his thigh in disappointment. "I was hoping to watch the drama!"

But Ying Chanxi merely huffed: "Don't talk so much. It's your turn."

"Fine." Li Luo clicked his tongue, picked up the dice from the table, and tossed them carelessly.

The result? Just like Qiao Xinyan's earlier roll—two 1s.

Li Luo picked up his piece, moved it two steps from the school building rooftop, and stopped at…

"Uh…" Li Luo blinked. "Girls' dormitory?"

"Looks like you've got a pervert's talent," Xu Youyu chuckled. "Even managed to land on the girls' dorm."

"Ying Chanxi got into the men's restroom—why can't I land in the girls' dorm?" Li Luo replied matter-of-factly. "Fifty credits. I'll take it."

"Friendly reminder," Xu Youyu smiled. "If you ever land on the boys' dorm too, the toll doubles—just like the restrooms."

"You're something else…" Li Luo smirked, handing the dice to Yan Zhusheng.

When it was Yan Zhusheng's turn, she tossed the dice casually—and rolled a 6.

She counted six steps forward, slightly surprised, and placed her piece beside Ying Chanxi and Qiao Xinyan—also landing on the 【Accident】 space.

"Ohhh," Xu Youyu raised an eyebrow, grinning. "Zhusheng, draw a card."

"Oh." Yan Zhusheng nodded obediently and drew a card from the 【Accident】 deck.

Xu Yinghuan, beside her, leaned over eagerly, read the card's content, and immediately announced excitedly:

"Due to your outstanding beauty and figure, you received countless admirers the moment you enrolled."

"One day, an opposite-sex classmate could no longer suppress their heart's flutter—they finally gathered the courage to confess their feelings to you."

"Choose one opposite-sex person present and designate them to confess to you. You alone decide whether to accept or refuse."

"If you accept, you become a couple and may borrow credits from each other."

"If you refuse, the confessor, heartbroken by rejection, remains stationary for one turn and loses 5 credits due to exam failure."

As soon as he finished speaking, Yan Zhusheng's gaze fixed directly on Li Luo, sitting beside him—the meaning was crystal clear.

"Li Luo," Yan Zhusheng said, holding the card out before him, "it says here you have to confess to me."

"It didn't say you have to say it out loud," Li Luo muttered under his breath. "Just pick 'accept' or 'reject'—that's enough."

"Oh come on, a little more immersion won't hurt," Xu Youyu urged from beside him. "Hurry up—this is perfect practice for Zhao Rongjun. He'll be too shy later."

"Exactly, exactly," Xu Yinghuan chimed in, egging them on. "It's a game—fun matters most. It's not real anyway."

Cornered by the pressure, Li Luo sighed, turned to Yan Zhusheng, and said, "I like you. Will you be my girlfriend?"

The moment he spoke those words.

On the other side, Ying Chanxi clenched her card tightly, yet secretly relieved—thank goodness she'd listened to Xin Yan.

But her card could only be used when it was her turn.

So Ying Chanxi could only watch helplessly as Yan Zhusheng beamed and nodded, accepting Li Luo's confession.

Xu Youyu then produced two red heart badges, symbolizing Li Luo and Yan Zhusheng's new couple status.

Seeing this, Ying Chanxi bit her lip so hard she nearly broke the skin.