Chapter 373: Whoever Touches Her, Pays the Price

After seeing all those details on Gu Yurou, Wang Haoran felt a wave of frustration wash over him. Compared to the previous female lead from a romance novel, Li Ruoxi, this Gu Yurou was… a lot more normal, both in personality and behavior.

And it was precisely because she felt normal that he’d gotten a little fired up. He wanted to treat her like a female lead from a male-centric novel and take her down like the others.

But after understanding her full profile, it felt like someone dumped a bucket of ice water over his head, dousing all that heat in an instant.

Thinking he could treat a female lead from a woman’s novel like one from a male novel—wasn’t that just a pipe dream?

In a way, Gu Yurou’s protagonist’s halo was even more unreasonable than Yan Yuntian’s. At least with Yan Yuntian, he could still pull some underhanded moves to bring the guy down.

But Gu Yurou? Even trying to mess with her meant walking straight into a disaster. And pushing her down? That was even more of a death sentence.

If he did something like that, it would force his identity as the villain to flip—he’d get demoted to a male lead simp under the Fatal Bonding Halo. That would be a nightmare. Couldn’t hurt her, couldn’t conquer her, then what the hell was the point in keeping her around?

“Bye.” Wang Haoran waved her off and turned to leave, putting as much distance between them as possible.

This woman was straight-up toxic. Whoever gets close to her would be the one suffering.

Gu Yurou had no idea what was going through his head. She blinked, confused when he suddenly tossed out a casual “bye.”

“Hey! I’m Gu Yurou. What’s your name?” she called out after his retreating figure.

Wang Haoran didn’t look back. He didn’t even slow down. In fact, his pace quickened.

Gu Yurou pouted and stomped lightly in place, clearly upset by being ignored for no reason. She hadn’t done anything wrong, had she?

Wang Haoran finally stepped out of Qingling University’s main gate and slipped into his Lambo Aventador, letting out a long sigh of relief once the door closed behind him.

Female leads from romance novels might not have high combat power, but their halo effects? Those were damn near unbeatable. It was pure nonsense. He made a silent vow to himself—he was going to steer clear of romance-novel female leads from now on.

Dealing with them was like walking on a minefield, and he wasn’t trying to get blown up.

Gu Yurou? Anyone else who wanted to touch her could go right ahead. He was not getting involved. Because if you did, you’d end up paying the price.

Wait a second…

Wang Haoran’s eyes narrowed. That thought gave him pause. He knew how dangerous Gu Yurou was… but the others didn’t.

A dangerous idea began to bloom inside his mind.

—

In the family estate, Yan Yuntian was visibly agitated. The moment he heard Yun Xuan had just returned, he summoned her immediately.

“I told you to look into people close to Wang Haoran. What’ve you found so far?” he asked impatiently.

Yun Xuan hadn’t actually done much. She wandered around to put on a show, but obviously, she hadn’t dug up anything useful.

So she replied vaguely, “I just started looking this morning. So far, Wang Haoran has just been going to classes. The only people he interacts with are his classmates and teachers. There’s no one in particular he’s close to.”

“That’s not good enough,” Yan Yuntian snapped. “Keep digging. I want a full report by the end of the day.”

Yun Xuan nodded, still pretending to take it seriously. But the moment she stepped out of the estate, she dialed Wang Haoran’s number and relayed everything that had just happened.

“He’s getting desperate,” Wang Haoran chuckled with a mocking edge in his voice.

“Master, Yan Yuntian’s patience is clearly running thin. What do you want me to do next?” Yun Xuan asked.

“If he wants you to investigate me, then go ahead and investigate me,” Wang Haoran replied with a smile that hinted at mischief.

“Wait, are you serious?” Yun Xuan blinked in surprise.

Instead of answering, Wang Haoran simply told her where he was.

After hanging up, he stepped out of the Lambo again and walked toward the literature academy building on campus. He asked a few students and quickly found out which class Gu Yurou was in.

Entering the classroom, he scanned the students until he spotted her. Without hesitation, he walked over and sat down beside her.

“Wang Haoran,” he introduced himself, answering the question she asked earlier.

“Hi… hello.” Gu Yurou looked puzzled.

He just walked off without a word earlier, and now here he was, sitting next to her like nothing had happened. Still, she greeted him politely.

Wang Haoran spent the entire afternoon in her class. Throughout the lecture, he went out of his way to be friendly toward her. And although Gu Yurou had a halo that practically screamed danger, her demeanor was surprisingly normal—just like an ordinary girl.

She smiled when spoken to, responded naturally, and even chatted with him now and then. It was… almost pleasant.

That said, Wang Haoran wasn’t so easily fooled. This girl felt like a walking central heating system. Always warm, always pleasant—probably the same with every good-looking guy.

Friendly, sure, but she kept a distance, never letting things get too close. That kind of subtle push-pull, this air of mystery—it was textbook female-lead behavior. Classic.

Compared to her, the female leads from male-oriented novels were way more straightforward. Much easier to deal with.

Still, the afternoon passed quickly. When class ended, Wang Haoran suggested she show him around campus a bit.

Gu Yurou seemed a little hesitant at first, but eventually agreed. They wandered across the campus together, touring its scenic spots as dusk began to fall. Eventually, he politely said his goodbyes and left her behind.

At the same time, Yun Xuan returned to the estate.

“I found something,” she reported to Yan Yuntian excitedly.

“Oh? Speak,” he urged.

“This afternoon, Wang Haoran skipped class and went to Qingling University. He met up with a girl. Judging by how they were acting together, I think they might be dating,” she said, pulling out her phone and showing him a photo she’d snapped.

The photo captured a young couple strolling through campus. The guy was clearly Wang Haoran.

“This guy’s got taste,” Yan Yuntian smirked. “She’s a beauty.”

Yun Xuan, who had already heard from her bestie Yu Ning that something was off about Yan Yuntian, decided to poke the bear a little.

She said, “So what’s the plan? You gonna go for revenge and… take her from him?” Her sentence trailed off, loaded with suggestion.

Yan Yuntian flinched, as if her words had stabbed him straight in the gut.

【Ding! Host has successfully manipulated the protagonist Yan Yuntian’s emotions. Protagonist’s mindset damaged. Gained 1000 Villain Points. Yan Yuntian’s Protagonist Halo -50. Host’s Villain Halo +50!】

Truth was, that was exactly the kind of plan he’d been thinking about. There was no faster way to destroy a man than to snatch away his woman. But deep down, he knew he didn’t have the strength to do it. Not right now.

He stared at the photo for a long while, memorizing the girl’s face. Then, without a word, he walked away.

As soon as he was gone, Yun Xuan immediately reported everything to Wang Haoran.