Chapter Twenty-One: Su Ziqin, You Are Truly Remarkable!

Meanwhile, at Xu Ruowei’s home.

She had been picking out outfits since the crack of dawn, determined to become the most beautiful woman at Jiangzhou University—no, the entire world—today. But a phone call she had just received made her so furious she could barely breathe.

So, Xu Ye, that dog-like thing, really wants to pick a fight with her, does he? Fine. You chose this yourself, so don’t you dare regret it!

She picked up her phone and dialed Pei An’s number directly.

"Hey, Pei An, let's go to the amusement park first today, and then we can catch a movie at a private cinema in the afternoon."

"Yeah, the dinner party isn't until tonight, so it won't be an issue."

"I just want to make him mad. It’ll be great if I can drive him crazy!"

"Mmhmm, then it's a deal. Wait for me; I’ll be there in two hours."

After hanging up, she opened Douyin out of habit, tossed her phone aside, and went back to selecting her outfit. From the short videos playing on her phone came the familiar, droning voice of a girl complaining: "Besties, I’ve run into another clueless, self-important guy again."

***

Only during these two days of student registration could boys use the excuse of helping out to enter the girls' dormitory. The dorm manager was already at her post, and seeing Xu Ye, she let him pass without any obstruction.

"You're a day late; you should have come yesterday," Xu Ye noted. "Since you're only arriving today, I doubt there are any good beds left for you to choose from."

Su Zijin smiled. "It's fine. I didn't really care about that anyway."

"That's because you don't understand," Xu Ye said, shaking his head. "As your senior, I must warn you: dormitory beds are first-come, first-served. If you end up with a bed near the door, then no matter if it's spring, summer, autumn, or winter, you'll be the one stuck handling the lights and the door every single time."

Wait, though—she isn't short on money, is she? And if the worst comes to the worst... I’ll just have to trick her into moving home early, and then she won't have to worry about these problems at all, right?

As this thought crossed his mind, the corners of Xu Ye’s mouth curled up uncontrollably.

"What are you smiling at?" Su Zijin was alert, noticing it almost instantly.

"Oh, no... nothing, really."

Su Zijin looked at him with a calm gaze for a long moment before letting out a cold huff. "You’d better not be."

Xu Ye immediately cleared his throat twice.

Soon, they arrived at her dormitory: Room 306, on the third floor. Upon entering, they found it completely empty. There were no signs of any beds having been made. All four beds were waiting for someone to claim them.

Xu Ye was stunned. She was a full day late; how could she be this lucky?

"It seems my luck isn't too bad," Su Zijin said nonchalantly, choosing the bed furthest from the door.

Xu Ye scratched his head, but didn't dwell on it. He took her to collect her military training uniform and daily necessities. In a southern city at the end of August, the temperature was stifling. By the time they made the trip back and forth, both were drenched in sweat.

"Do you know how to make a bed?" Xu Ye asked softly, not stopping to rest.

Su Zijin pulled a bottle of water from her bag and handed it to him, shaking her head with a sweet, obedient look.

"Then let me do it for you."

Xu Ye unscrewed the cap, handed the bottle back to her, and began to make the bed. While he worked, he spoke without looking back. "Moving all the way from Shangjing to Jiangzhou for school—that's a long way. And since you're by yourself, aren't your family worried?"

Su Zijin watched his busy back, a faint smile touching her lips. "My family follows a 'free-range' strategy when it comes to me." She handed him another bottle of water and watched as he chugged most of it down.

"Your family treats you very well, then," he said, hoping to use the casual chat to learn more about her.

Su Zijin gave a soft huff. "Envious? Isn't someone else’s family even more lenient? They even allowed dating back in high school."

Xu Ye’s movements froze instantly. "Hey now, buddy, do we really have to bring up the past?"

"Who’s your buddy?"

"Then... bestie?"

"Fine, why don't you head over to Thailand first?"

Xu Ye: "..."

Seeing him speechless, Su Zijin laughed.

"Jiangzhou University is actually pretty average. Why did you decide to apply here?" When he asked this, his heart began to race uncontrollably.

Su Zijin seemed even more nervous than him. She quickly took a sip of water, averted her gaze from his back, and cleared her throat. "I felt like it. Is that not allowed?"

Xu Ye finished smoothing out the sheets and turned to look at her. "It wouldn't be because of me, would it?"

"I’d move all the way from Shangjing to go to school because of you? Haha, aren't you a bit too narcissistic? Seriously, do you think that's even possible? That’s just so speechless, hahahaha, hilarious! You really are full of yourself!"

Her flustered, rapid-fire response made Xu Ye laugh. He never would have expected that this girl, who was famous in his past life as the cold and aloof campus beauty of Jiangzhou University, could have such a cute side.

"You... what are you laughing at again? And I already regret coming here!"

Regret? I don't see that at all. All I see is a proud, spoiled young lady desperately making up lame excuses for her own panic.

Xu Ye smiled, looking at her with gentle eyes. "What's wrong?"

Su Zijin felt the heat of his gaze and quickly turned her head away, though a faint blush was already spreading across her neck and ears.

"...It's hot."

Xu Ye slapped his forehead and began rummaging through the room. He finally found the remote in a drawer and pointed it at the air conditioner with a beep. "Thank goodness it's powered on." He had been so excited that he had forgotten something as important as turning on the AC.

Su Zijin walked toward the unit and stood silently in the airflow. But why was she still so hot? The temperature wasn't dropping at all!

Xu Ye, unaware of her inner turmoil, smiled and decided to do a thorough job, using a towel to wipe down the desks, chairs, and cabinets. Watching him, Su Zijin placed her right hand over her heart. She had imagined their first meeting countless times, but never in her wildest dreams had she pictured this: him making her bed, wiping down her furniture... he seemed like a husband... so warm... so much like a dream.

She couldn't help but take a deep breath, patted her head, and whispered to herself with a smile, "Su Zijin, you're amazing."

"What was that?" Xu Ye asked, standing up straight.

"Oh, no... nothing..."

Su Zijin looked like a thief caught in the act, her face turning bright red. Just as she was about to change the subject, a wave of exclamations and chatter erupted from the hallway.

"Did you hear? Jiang Yang actually rented out the entire amusement park for the school beauty, Xu?"

"That's nothing! Did you see the bouquet of roses in her arms? Those are Diana roses flown in from abroad! Isn't that even more romantic than renting out a whole amusement park?"

"And they rode the carousel together! Oh my god, I’m going to die from all this sweetness!"

"Ahhh, I’m so envious! I’m honestly dying of jealousy for her!"