Why is the system taking my request to photograph a cosplayer seriously?

After leaving Haidilao, everyone said goodbye, and Ding Heng and Zhao Yanxi returned to their car.

Zhao Yanxi, who was in the passenger seat, seemed to still be immersed in the ambiguity of the moment. Suddenly, she turned to Ding Heng, put her arm around his arm naturally, gently hugged him, rested her chin on his shoulder, and called out softly.

"Brother Ding Heng~"

"Um?"

"It's still early, how about spending some more time with your little lucky star?"

Zhao Yanxi leaned closer: "Besides, Xiaojing is probably with her sister right now. If you go back too early and run into them, both of them are shy, and it will definitely be awkward."

Before Ding Heng could answer, Zhao Yanxi continued talking to herself, her tone wistful.

"Besides, I have to go back to Zhuzhou by the day after tomorrow at the latest. There's a ton of stuff to do before school starts, and I haven't passed my driving test yet, so I need to practice more. My family is also urging me to get back to driving school..."

The girl lowered her eyelashes slightly, her flamboyant and cool demeanor from the hot pot restaurant had subsided considerably, and she looked rather soft and gentle.

Ding Heng reached out and pulled the seatbelt next to Zhao Yanxi, fastening it for her with a "click".

"Where do you want to go?"

Zhao Yanxi smiled and leaned back in her seat.

"Come with me to the school to check it out beforehand, so I don't feel like a headless fly when school starts."

"OK."

The car drove smoothly toward the university town.

On a late summer night, the heat subsides slightly.

The streetlights cast long shadows of the sycamore trees onto the clean road surface.

Groups of students, some carrying books and others riding bicycles, weaved through the crowd, filling the air with the unique atmosphere of youth.

Zhao Yanxi and Ding Heng walked side by side on the tree-lined path, initially just chatting casually about the layout of the campus.

Suddenly, Zhao Yanxi stopped and looked up at the brightly lit library not far away, sighing softly.

"Brother Ding Heng, from now on you and Jingjing will both be at Hubei University, and I'll be separated from you by thousands of miles."

Ding Heng stopped and turned to face Zhao Yanxi.

"Look at what you're saying, 'thousands of miles'? It's only a few kilometers away. Meeting up is easy enough!"

"A few kilometers...that's quite far."

Zhao Yanxi kicked a small pebble at her feet, her tone elusive.

"What if... I mean, what if, the two of you are doing this behind my back..."

Ding Heng stood with his hands in his pockets, looking completely at ease.

"If you don't trust me, how could you not trust Wenjing? Do you think she can hide her thoughts from you, Zhao Yanxi? If anything happens, she'll probably be the first one to report to you."

"That's true..."

Zhao Yanxi's lips curled up slightly.

She understands her best friend.

Timid, unable to keep secrets, and even less able to lie.

But it was precisely this understanding that made her feelings even more complicated at this moment.

The two walked silently for a while and came to a relatively secluded garden, where the chirping of insects rose and fell in the summer night.

Zhao Yanxi spoke again, her tone casual, but her eyes secretly glanced at Ding Heng's profile.

"Brother Ding Heng, what do you mean... if, I mean if, there are two things you both really like, but it seems like you can't have them at the same time, or having them at the same time would be a bit troublesome, what would you choose?"

Which one do you choose that's more obedient and less troublesome?

Should we choose the one that's...maybe more complicated, but also more unique and more to your liking?

She tried to ask subtly, wanting to know what kind of importance she and Wenjing held in Ding Heng's heart.

But as soon as she said it, she regretted it.

Asking such a question is absolutely stupid!

She's just like those immature girls who force men to make choices.

Moreover, Ding Heng isn't stupid; he'll definitely be able to guess her true thoughts behind the question.

"My words..."

Just as Ding Heng was about to answer, Zhao Yanxi abruptly changed the subject, pointing to a brightly lit building not far away.

"Hey, Ding Heng, isn't that a stadium? It looks pretty impressive."

Ding Heng was fully aware of the girl's little scheme, but he didn't expose it, and his tone remained normal.

"Yes, I think so. I've heard your school has pretty good sports facilities."

Having received no answer, Zhao Yanxi breathed a sigh of relief, yet also felt a strange sense of loss.

She shook her head, shaking off that affectation, and put on a relaxed tone, nudging Ding Heng with her elbow.

"Hey, let's get serious. Xiaojing is timid and can't say no to people. You're not allowed to bully her when I'm not in Xingcheng."

Ding Heng raised an eyebrow, a half-smile playing on his lips: "Do you think I would bully Wenjing while you're not around?"

"Who knows what you're up to?"

Zhao Yanxi rolled her eyes at him and teased him, half-jokingly, "If I hadn't come to Xingcheng with Xiaojing to 'supervise' her, she might have been devoured by you long ago, bones and all."

Ding Heng turned to face her, leaning slightly closer to her: "If I really wanted to take advantage of Wenjing, would it have helped if you came along?"

Zhao Yanxi's breath hitched.

Indeed, if Ding Heng really wanted to do something to Wen Jing, given Wen Jing's almost zero defense, she probably wouldn't refuse at all.

At most, she might struggle and resist symbolically, but in the end, she would only become a supplement to increase the speed of a man's attack.

And how much real help can this so-called "best friend" actually provide?

Perhaps... in the end, not only will he fail to protect Wenjing, but he will also lose himself.