The Sunny Wolfdog and the Scheming Scholar

As a dating game catering perfectly to market demands, [Heartbeat Dating Simulator] successfully checked every box for its diverse cast of male leads!

Beyond the aloof, brooding, and scheming Lin Moshu, and the melancholic, silent, handsome youth Jiang Zhe, there was also Gong Qiu—a sunny, robust ‘little wolfdog’ who captured the hearts of countless older and younger sisters.

Among these captivated fans was Jiang Zhe’s niece, a seasoned gamer herself. Though she adored all five male leads, who could possibly resist a handsome ‘little wolfdog’?

Jiang Zhe had grown accustomed to his niece’s constant chatter about the Heartbeat game. This familiarity allowed him to immediately deduce the identity of the red-mole-faced youth.

Yet, he still voiced the question, “You’re Gong Qiu?”

“You know me!”

Gong Qiu’s eyes widened upon hearing his name, his smile broadening even further. He shifted from standing to a squat, his long legs bent, looking down at Jiang Zhe with an expression of keen interest.

His wolf-tail haircut was swept back, revealing a handsome face tinged with a hint of roguishness. His movements were casual, showing no concern for his image.

This made Jiang Zhe want to sigh. ‘Having just transmigrated into the game, he’d met Lin Moshu, and now, the very next day, another one appeared. Was this good luck or bad luck?’

“We met once before.”

Despite his inner frustration, Jiang Zhe maintained a composed exterior. Compared to the calculating Lin Moshu, Gong Qiu was, in fact, much more straightforward.

Among the five male leads in the dating game, only Jiang Zhe hailed from a common background; the others possessed impressive family histories. Gong Qiu, for instance, was born into a prestigious medical family, whose ancestors had served as revered imperial physicians, their legacy passed down through generations without interruption.

In modern times, the Gong family owned large chain hospitals both domestically and internationally, wielding considerable influence within the country.

While the Gong family wasn’t prolific in offspring, every one of its descendants was an elite. Gong Qiu’s elder brother had inherited the family business at a young age and was now taking over the Gong family hospitals.

Besides his accomplished brother, he also had a brilliant elder sister who had established her own private laboratory. She was currently making significant strides in developing a cure for incurable diseases.

Perhaps because his older siblings were so exceptional, the youngest, Gong Qiu, seemed rather ordinary by comparison. He possessed no talent whatsoever in medicine, and his academic performance consistently landed him at the bottom of his class. Instead, he had a natural inclination for fighting and boasted a robust physique.

His life’s creed was simple: there was no problem a fight couldn’t solve. If one fight wasn’t enough, then another.

In Jiang Zhe’s words, he was in the advanced stages of ‘chunibyo.’

However, as the most beloved youngest son of the family, Gong Qiu wasn’t burdened with inheriting the family business, leaving him free from pressure and allowing him to grow wild and uninhibited.

Consequently, his personality was unreserved and his thoughts straightforward.

He was far easier to deal with than Lin Moshu.

Especially now, with no female lead yet to cast her net and reel in the fish, Jiang Zhe felt even less worried. He simply didn’t want Gong Qiu to get in his way.

He already had two urgent tasks to resolve. Even if Gong Qiu wanted to interject, he would have to patiently wait his turn.

“Too bad I don’t remember you. But I just saw you fight that gorilla, and you were pretty good. Wanna spar with me?”

Gong Qiu couldn’t grasp Jiang Zhe’s inner vexation. As he spoke of fighting, his phoenix eyes gleamed with even greater intensity.

He looked eager for a challenge, as if he couldn’t wait to start immediately.

Jiang Zhe, however, decisively extended a hand to firmly refuse, stopping Gong Qiu’s restless anticipation. “I have important matters to attend to. If you wish to fight me, you’ll need to wait a while.”

“Ah! I have to wait? Just fight me now!”

Though rejected by Jiang Zhe, Gong Qiu wasn’t particularly angry, merely a little persistent.

If it had been anyone else, Gong Qiu would have already made his move. It was unthinkable for him to simply chat. However, he had just witnessed Jiang Zhe hold his own against Wang Yi, clearly possessing genuine skill.

Gong Qiu always showed great patience toward those who were good at fighting.

Previously, upon meeting the burly new teacher, Wang Yi, Gong Qiu’s heart had yearned for a challenge, and he had sparred with Wang Yi that very day.

However, despite having fought since childhood and possessing decent combat skills, Gong Qiu’s style was unrefined, relying on brute force without professional training. Against Wang Yi, a former special forces soldier, he was but a minor magician before a grand sorcerer, quickly defeated.

This defeat only fueled Gong Qiu’s determination. Every so often, he would seek out Wang Yi for another match, always hoping to defeat him, only to suffer crushing losses.

His presence here now was also to challenge Wang Yi, but he hadn’t anticipated such an unexpected turn of events.

Someone was actually able to fight Wang Yi to a draw!

Gong Qiu managed to suppress the surging excitement in his heart. He decided he could temporarily forgo challenging Wang Yi and instead spar with this new guy. After all, constantly being beaten down by Wang Yi was a blow to Gong Qiu’s pride.

Even without an audience, consistent losses had chipped away at his confidence.

“The sports teacher and I have a bet…”

Seeing Gong Qiu’s determined stance, Jiang Zhe immediately deployed his trump card. Upon hearing this, Gong Qiu’s expression instantly shifted, eventually settling into one of gossipy curiosity.

There was no helping it; Wang Yi was someone Gong Qiu hadn’t been able to ‘conquer’ for a long time, so he paid close attention to him.

Now, the unconquered Wang Yi had a bet with someone else. This perfectly piqued Gong Qiu’s curiosity, making him itch to know the full story.

“However, the sports teacher and I agreed not to reveal the details. But a winner will be decided by the end of this month, and I’ll tell you then! For now, let’s add each other on WeChat for easy contact later.”

Having successfully reeled in a big fish named Gong Qiu, Jiang Zhe’s smile was earnest. His words, though displeasing to Gong Qiu, weren’t rejected. The desire to know the outcome and to fight spurred him to quickly pull out his phone and scan the WeChat QR code.

Once they successfully became friends, Jiang Zhe spoke again, “My name is Jiang Zhe, from Class 19 of Senior High Two. We can chat more when I have time.”

“No problem, I’ll come find you to play.”

Afterward, Gong Qiu, like an adorable large dog, stood atop the wall and waved at Jiang Zhe. Jiang Zhe, playing along, waved back, then swiftly departed.

The original host of the game had few WeChat friends. Yesterday, when Jiang Zhe checked his phone, he had deleted all remaining contacts, unwilling to leave any trace of the original owner.

Thus, Gong Qiu became his very first WeChat friend.

Jiang Zhe looked down at his phone screen, a faint smile playing on his lips. ‘Gong Qiu, if utilized well, could be a significant asset. Perhaps he could even be leveraged to turn the tables on the female lead and other male leads, making them suffer a setback.’

‘Unfortunately, Gong Qiu was the only one with the potential for such a reversal; the other male leads weren’t so easily fooled.’

‘This meant that besides Lin Moshu, there were two other difficult adversaries, and he wondered when he would encounter them.’

Lost in these thoughts, Jiang Zhe continued attending classes until noon dismissal. During his lunch break, he went to the craft room. After informing the teacher on duty, he immediately set about creating a lottery box with a hidden mechanism.

With classes scheduled all day, club activities could only begin after the fourth period in the afternoon. Jiang Zhe placed the box in a storage locker on the first floor of the teaching building, spending a pleasant afternoon with a smile in his eyes, which drew frequent glances from the female students around him, and even the female teachers couldn’t help but steal a few looks.

Jiang Zhe, unconcerned by the attention, swiftly left the classroom the moment the dismissal bell rang. He then retrieved the lottery box, cradling it in his arms, and headed towards the Fencing Club!