Chapter 114: Seems to Have Let Go

Returning after an absence of more than twenty days, one could clearly see that the asphalt path leading from the pedestrian bridge to the dormitory building, once carpeted in greenery, had quietly changed. The leaves, once lush and vibrant with life, now seemed to have lost their vitality, turning dull and lusterless as they drifted down in disarray under the biting autumn wind.

As winter's footsteps gradually drew near, the globe amaranth flowers on campus withered quietly like a beauty in her twilight years; the sound of cicadas still lingered in the ears, yet it was like a dying gasp, so faint it was almost inaudible.

Those girls who used to show off their beautiful legs on campus were also becoming increasingly rare. Of course, those who truly loved beauty would not easily cover up their legs; girls who didn't fear the cold still wore pleated skirts, wandering the walkways, while those who did fear the cold put on over-the-knee socks or long skirts, weaving together warm poems that were equally pleasing to the eye.

Returning to the dormitory, he saw Lin Yang lying on his bed like a dead fish, looking utterly listless; noticing someone had entered, he hurriedly turned his back.

Shen Yan wanted to test Lin Yang's attitude, so he said, "Lao Lin, aren't you going to welcome me back?"

Lin Yang's ears twitched, and he replied in a lifeless tone that he wasn't in the mood and that Shen Yan should just do as he pleased.

Ha! It seemed he didn't hold a grudge against me.

Tang Song patted his big backside and said with a smile, "Come on, let's go out for a smoke and talk; it's miserable to bottle it all up alone."

Lin Yang didn't want to be bothered, but he couldn't resist Tang Song's pestering and was dragged up by force.

The three of them arrived at the stone bench outside the dormitory building. Tang Song seemed to have a special fondness for Nanjing cigarettes; he had never been seen smoking anything else. He handed one to Lin Yang and Shen Yan, then skillfully lit them for both with his lighter.

Having lived two lives, Shen Yan had almost never smoked; he only knew the general method. He held the cigarette between his index and middle fingers, placed it in his mouth, took a light puff, let the smoke linger in his mouth for a moment, and then slowly exhaled.

His way of smoking barely touched his lungs; he was just testing the waters, stopping after a shallow taste.

Lin Yang was in a sorry state; he had only taken one puff before he began to cough violently, clearly a complete novice. Tang Song was an experienced "old smoker," and he leisurely blew out ring after ring of smoke, looking exactly like a veteran who had been through many battles.

After a moment of silence, Shen Yan took the initiative to say, "Lao Lin, you should know that there's nothing between Wu Yueer and me. We were just teammates hugging to celebrate a victory; your reaction was a bit excessive."

Lin Yang exhaled deeply and said, "I know there's nothing between you two. It's just that lately, Yue'er has been growing more and more distant from me and even wants to draw a clear line between us. I just couldn't control my emotions for a moment."

"Wu Yueer talked to us just now, and the gist was that she has no interest in dating and wants you to give up sooner rather than later," Tang Song said in a low voice.

Lin Yang gave a bitter smile. In truth, Wu Yueer's attitude had been very clear all along—she only saw him as a friend. It was just that he had fallen too deep, and he didn't want to give up as long as there was even a shred of hope.

Perhaps the entanglement had been too deep and had become annoying, so today, it was finally time to make a clean break.

"Lao Shen, do you think I should give up?"

Hearing this, Shen Yan stared blankly ahead, took a deep drag of his cigarette, and said, "Give up. There are plenty of fish in the sea; give up on one small tree, and there's a whole forest waiting for you outside."

Tang Song revealed a mischievous grin, "Lao Shen, you can't lead people astray. The forest is too vast; I'm afraid Lao Lin wouldn't be able to handle it."

"Lao Lin is fair-skinned and clean-cut, and he's from Shanghai; he'd be more than capable of being a playboy," Shen Yan added.

"Go on, go on, who wants to be a playboy? I'm very devoted, alright?"

Being teased by the two of them in tandem, the gloom in Lin Yang's heart dissipated quite a bit.

It was just that he still felt a bit of unwillingness deep down; Wu Yueer was the most unique girl he had ever met—frank and courageous, and most importantly, she was born with a beautiful face.

Shen Yan said, "You just have too little experience. The world is so big, and with China's 1.4 billion people, there are definitely no shortage of girls like Wu Yueer."

Tang Song chimed in, "It's useless to find a girlfriend who is too pretty. If you find one who is delicate and charming, who sticks to you every day, wants hugs and kisses, and calls you 'honey' or 'baby,' I bet you wouldn't even remember who Wu Yueer is."

"Holy crap! Lao Tang, are you and Yuan Mingqing into such fancy stuff?"

Lin Yang was dumbfounded, but once he imagined that scene, he couldn't help but feel an itch he couldn't scratch.

Given Wu Yueer's personality, she would probably die before she could ever do something like that.

Shen Yan looked at Tang Song with an incredibly strange gaze, as if to say, I never expected you to be this kind of Tang Song.

Tang Song's old face flushed red, and he said, "I was just using it as an analogy. I've imagined that kind of scene before, and besides, Xiao Qing and I haven't reached that stage yet."

Shen Yan wore a smile that every man understood; that kind of girlfriend was something no man could resist. Tang Song chuckled, everything understood without a word.

After being told this, Lin Yang suddenly felt that Wu Yueer wasn't quite as appealing anymore. How great would it be to find a clingy girlfriend who wanted hugs and kisses every day? Even if he died of sweetness in a bed of gentleness, it would be worth it.

"Fine! This brother won't pine after her, Wu Yueer, anymore. What's so great about her anyway?"

Tang Song patted his shoulder with satisfaction; this was more like a proper man—knowing when to hold on and when to let go.

After the idle chatter, the cigarette was almost finished. The three of them returned to the dormitory together. Shen Yan grabbed some miscellaneous items and found a small bag of lollipops in the drawer, which he packed up to take with him.

Lin Yang cheered up and sat back down in his newly bought computer chair. Seeing that Shen Yan was about to leave, he hurriedly said, "Lao Shen, stay in the dorm tonight. Let's play cards and chat together."

"Next time. There's a victory banquet for the Law School tonight."

In the following days, Lin Yang truly stopped pestering Wu Yueer. When they met, it was nothing more than a nod of acknowledgment or a faint smile; it seemed he had truly let go of this obsession.

Wu Yueer was naturally overjoyed, no longer maintaining her previous cold-as-ice attitude, and occasionally dragged Shen Yan and Lin Yang to play games together, just like at the start of the semester.

Meanwhile, the rift between Lin Yang and Zhu Baoping was gradually widening. Living under the same roof, they were like strangers, with almost no communication in their daily lives.

No matter how Tang Song tried to persuade them, neither of them showed any intention of backing down, looking very much like they would never speak to each other again. Eventually, Tang Song felt a bit disheartened and simply stopped caring.

Let them do whatever they want!

Fortunately, the incident where the two fought didn't blow up, nor did it cause any serious consequences. The department just made them both write a self-criticism, and that was the end of it.

University life was destined not to have so many troublesome things. Students followed a routine almost every day: classroom, dormitory, cafeteria. The boys occasionally sweated on the sports field, the girls went shopping together, and most of their spare time was spent in the study room or the library.

In university, there was no one behind you to supervise or push you; learning was entirely up to one's own self-discipline.

Clearly, Wu Yueer and Lin Yang did not have that kind of awareness. After the dry and boring study period at the start of the semester, the two changed their old "decadent" notions—university was a place of freedom, and immersing oneself in a sea of books was far too dull.

Not failing their courses had become their most basic requirement; everything else was left to fate.

As a result, Shen Yan, who sat in the back row, suffered. He was constantly harassed, especially by Wu Yueer, who would constantly borrow his phone, obsessed with *Candy Crush* and *Angry Birds*, unable to extricate herself.

Shen Yan couldn't help but complain, "I bought this phone for thousands of yuan, why should I let you play with it for free?"

Wu Yueer responded shamelessly, "I don't have money, I only have this body. You can touch whatever you like, just give me the phone to play with."

"Damn it!"

Shen Yan had absolutely no way to deal with this Huniu.