Chapter 163: Masquerade (Part Two)

As these words fell, Jiang Muwen's heart could not help but flutter slightly. "What do you mean?"

"I mean exactly what it sounds like." As Wen Yichen spoke, the corners of his lips curved upward into an affectionate and pampering smile. Her coming here was, to him, the best gift of all.

"Huh?" Jiang Muwen blinked her eyes as she looked at Wen Yichen. So, was this considered a disguised confession?

The girl looked at the boy, feeling both overwhelmed by this unexpected favor and harboring a trace of astonishment in her gaze. Seeing Jiang Muwen looking like this, Wen Yichen could not help letting out a soft laugh. Once he had packed all the decorative items into the cardboard box, he walked back to Jiang Muwen's side. Saying nothing, he simply raised his hand and gently ruffled her hair with tender affection.

"There's a masquerade ball at school the week after next. Are you going?" Wen Yichen strolled casually over to the desk and changed the subject.

"How do you know about that?" Jiang Muwen looked at Wen Yichen in surprise. With the school holding such an event, how come she hadn't heard a thing about it?

"I went to the teachers' office last time and heard them talking about it."

The masquerade ball was an event the school held only once every three years, running from six-thirty in the evening until midnight. It was not a mandatory event; any student who wanted to have fun could join in.

When Wen Yichen had visited the teachers' office last time, he overheard the homeroom teachers of the senior year discussing whether they should announce this event to the students. After all, with senior year academics being so intense, some teachers were still worried it might distract the students from their studies.

"Then are you going?" Jiang Muwen countered with a question of her own. As she spoke, her body unconsciously leaned forward slightly, wearing an expression eager to hear the answer.

To Jiang Muwen, the temptation of a regular ball wasn't all that great. By comparison, she wanted to attend a masquerade ball that featured Wen Yichen.

"Maybe."

Unexpectedly, on the very second day after Jiang Muwen learned about the masquerade ball, the news spread throughout the entire grade. Seeing that everyone already knew, the homeroom teacher went ahead and officially announced the event to the class.

Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, the day of the masquerade ball arrived. For this dance, everyone showed up in bizarre and wonderful costumes, having carefully dressed up for the occasion, and many students even prepared masks to wear on their faces.

The school did not provide a special changing room, so many students had to change into their clothes in the restrooms. At that moment, inside the boys' restroom, Wen Yichen and a few other boys were changing into identical vampire costumes. For these boys who hated shopping, the simplest and most brutal method was to buy a few identical outfits in a group purchase. After all, it was just going through the motions anyway.

"Brother Chen, your mask." With those words, Yin Lüze tossed a half-mask toward Wen Yichen.

Wen Yichen caught the mask hurled through the air with one hand. The mask was black, featuring some hollowed-out carved patterns. The boy looked at the half-mask, appearing somewhat reluctant. "Do I really have to wear this?"

"It would be a waste not to wear it!" Bai Xu said as he put the half-mask he was holding onto his own face. "We already spent money on it anyway."

Hearing Bai Xu put it that way, it actually sounded somewhat reasonable.

After hesitating for a moment, Wen Yichen finally put the half-mask onto his face. The black mask concealed the upper half of his face, leaving only his high-bridged nose and that handsome, well-defined thin lip exposed to the air. The next second, Wen Yichen took out a pair of vampire fangs and slipped them into his mouth.

The boy's reflection was cast in the mirror beside him. His tall and slender figure was draped in a black cloak, and the contours of his cheeks seemed even more distinct at that moment. The pristine white fangs were bared to the air, and as he cast a stern, unsmiling glance at his reflection, that appearance was so striking that calling him Your Highness wouldn't be an exaggeration at all.

"Oh my god, Brother Chen, we're both vampires, so why do you look so much more atmospheric?" Bai Xu's envious voice came from behind him.

Wen Yichen instinctively turned around. He looked at Bai Xu, who was currently helping Gu Chen put on his mask and straightening his clothes, a trace of confusion flashing in his eyes. However, he didn't say anything, only tilting his head slightly.

"Really, if you walk out looking like that, you're bound to have another bunch of little fan girls throwing themselves at you!" Finished speaking, Bai Xu slowly walked up to Wen Yichen. He looked the boy up and down from head to toe, and then clicked his tongue twice. "What a heartbreaking beauty you are."

"..." Wen Yichen gave no reply. He frowned slightly, then took off the vampire fangs he had just put in, his gaze fixed straight on Bai Xu. "I've noticed you talk an awful lot today."

"Do I?" Bai Xu retorted with a question. The next second, he turned Wen Yichen's face toward the mirror at the side. "Take a look at yourself. Aren't you even more handsome like this?"

"..." Wen Yichen looked at himself in the mirror, feeling genuinely unaccustomed to it for a moment. With him wearing a mask like this, what would happen if that blockhead failed to recognize him?

With that thought, Wen Yichen raised his hand, preparing to untie the string holding the mask over his face.

Seeing that Wen Yichen intended to undo the knot behind the mask, Bai Xu immediately raised a hand to stop him. "Don't, Brother Chen! Look how great you look!"

Seeing that Wen Yichen still didn't speak, Bai Xu began to chatter away again. "With you looking this good wearing this mask, other little girls—"

"I'm not interested in other girls." Before Bai Xu could finish, Wen Yichen interrupted him. Normally, he was already so plagued by unwanted romantic attention that he felt like hitting people; he truly didn't want to go out of his way to attract more bees and butterflies.

"Besides, since I'm wearing this mask, won't other people fail to recognize me?" Wen Yichen asked smoothly.

As soon as Wen Yichen finished asking, Bai Xu immediately chimed in, "That's precisely the effect we want!"

"..." Wen Yichen remained silent. His gaze pierced through the mirror as he looked suspiciously at Bai Xu, wondering what crooked scheme this guy was plotting in his head now.

"This way, you can take advantage of this opportunity to secretly go and kiss—" Bai Xu's voice drew closer and closer, growing increasingly ambiguous. His warm breath slowly drifted against Wen Yichen's cheek, causing Wen Yichen to involuntarily shudder slightly.

Before the three words "Jiang Muwen" could tumble out of Bai Xu's mouth, Wen Yichen stopped him. His large hand came up smoothly and pressed against Bai Xu's face as it slowly leaned in closer. In the next instant, a burst of force pushed Bai Xu's face away. "What kind of inappropriate nonsense is all filled in your head?"

Wen Yichen asked with an expression of disgust, then placed the vampire fangs back into his mouth.

"I'm just considering your lifelong happiness, aren't I?" Bai Xu muttered with a grievance he kept to himself.

"Then should I—" Before the words "thank you" could leave his mouth, Wen Yichen suddenly stopped. Wearing these fangs was not only uncomfortable, but it also made speaking clumsy.

The muffled yet cute words tumbled out from the lips of this seemingly cold and aloof boy, carrying an indescribable, contrasting cuteness. The next second, the tips of Wen Yichen's ears turned hot all on their own. "I'm heading out first."