The second Xu Ye laid eyes on Ma Wenhao, it seemed to click why Wang Manning had told him something had happened.

Xu Ye looked Ma Wenhao up and down, then turned to Wang Manning.

Wang Manning was quick on her feet.

She saw Ma Wenhao, that piece of gum on her shoe, heading her way. Right away she hooked her arm through Xu Ye's and leaned against him, all cozy. "I already told you, I'm not the least bit interested in you. Stop following me around."

All three roommates knew she was using her cousin as a shield, so they saw right through it and kept their mouths shut.

As for Xu Ye, he just quietly watched her put on her show.

With something like this, it was best if she could handle it herself.

From the day Wang Manning showed up at school to register, Ma Wenhao, who'd been volunteering on campus, had his eye on her. During military training he hadn't had much chance to get near her. But once it was over, harassing her with messages every day wasn't enough for the guy. Sometimes he'd stake out her dorm building, too.

Wang Manning was no meek good girl who'd just put up with it. She'd found a chance a while back and turned Ma Wenhao down in the iciest voice she had. But Ma Wenhao still hadn't given up. Whether she answered or not, every morning he sent her "good morning," and every night he sent her "good night." The school only had one cafeteria, so they ran into each other there all the time. What Wang Manning couldn't stand most was that whenever she sat down to eat, this obnoxious guy would plop down next to her without asking.

It was the first time she'd run into anyone this hard to shake. That was why she'd messaged Xu Ye, hoping he'd come get rid of the problem for her.

Watching the two of them all cozy together, Ma Wenhao practically fell apart. "Wang Manning!" he shouted at her. "Didn't you tell me before you don't…