Chapter 88: Everyone

The school’s south gate.

Song Yao still looked beautiful—in a gray hoodie, paired with a white short skirt, white shoes and white socks; just standing there, she was a sight to behold.

Xu Qingzhou suddenly remembered how this person had warned him yesterday to wear more clothes.

Seeing Xu Qingzhou wearing the clothes he’d bought, Song Yao nodded in satisfaction. “Let’s go.”

Outside the school gate, Song Yao recalled last night and hesitated: “You last night—”

“What happened last night?” Xu Qingzhou asked, puzzled. He’d stayed up until 2 a.m. finally solving that prime number problem and planned to rest a bit before studying the Cramér conjecture.

“Nothing. Walk faster.”

Song Yao had wanted to ask what he meant by saying he loved her too much, but felt it would sound awkward, so she simply dropped the topic.

Shuxiang Square.

Read! {

“Fatty, I’m glad you finally understand your own worth,” Xu Qingzhou said, patting Guo Zi’s shoulder.

According to his past life’s trajectory, Xu Qingzhou and Song Yao had never contacted each other; Guo Zi and Ding Jiahui, though at the same school, had no interaction at all—everything now seemed different.

!.

Of course, there had been a pause—Zhou Bingyi had a new boyfriend again.

Xu Qingzhou and Guo Zi, the two boys, were also chatting behind them about what they’d seen and heard, though mostly Guo Zi was talking.

It was truly stunning—about 0.8 times as beautiful as Song Yao.

Xu Qingzhou cursed under his breath and turned; sure enough, Song Yao had furrowed her brow.

Some girls had already begun to imagine themselves in her place, casting disdainful glances.

Guo Zi thought for a moment and said, “Anyway, it’s good. I heard a film crew came here to shoot recently, and she even joined the filming. Just like in high school, lots of guys chased her, but none succeeded.”

Around sophomore year, Zhou Bingyi broke up with her boyfriend, and Guo Zi began his long, miserable pursuit.

Ding Jiahui and Song Yao walked ahead, hand in hand, whispering about something.

From far away, Xu Qingzhou spotted two people already waiting.

Xu Qingzhou’s gaze sharpened—yes, it was her. Guo Zi had once been ruined by her, ending up drunk every day, barely human.

Guo Zi spoke, opened his phone, and showed Xu Qingzhou a dozen photos.

“You’ve fallen for her?” Xu Qingzhou thought this love had come too suddenly.

“What’s wrong with boys these days?”

Xu Qingzhou’s face darkened—he’d somehow become the villain again, for no reason.

He asked, “With so many photos, you’re not thinking of chasing her, are you?”

“I’m wrong! I’m wrong!”

The worldline had diverged—had everyone’s fate changed this much?

“Pfft, jerk!”

It was hot at noon. After eating, Ding Jiahui returned to her dorm to put away her clothes; Song Yao followed her, leaving Xu Qingzhou and Guo Zi waiting below the dorm building.

The four hadn’t seen each other in nearly a month, and there was plenty to talk about—classmates, clubs, the bizarre things from military training. “Yao Yao, last time I saw the photo you posted in the group, how’s that skinny little cat doing?”

“Her name is Er Miao. She’s one month old, abandoned by her mother. I took her to the cat shelter two days ago.”

“Er Miao is so pitiful.”

Guo Zi swatted away Xu Qingzhou’s hand. “Get lost.”

Ding Jiahui stopped and turned to look at the two boys. “What are you two whispering about behind our backs?”

Xu Qingzhou rolled his eyes and avoided the topic. “Nothing. Just chatting.” He smiled lightly.

Xu Qingzhou nodded slightly—sure enough, everyone’s life paths had already changed. Zhang Yuxin had only started trying for small roles in her junior year.

“Art comes from reality,” Ding Jiahui scoffed. “It’s because reality is full of weird stuff.”

Ding Jiahui looked at Guo Zi.

Ding Jiahui’s mouth fired like a machine gun, defending her friend: “Xu Qingzhou, why are you asking about Zhang Yuxin? Still got a crush on her? You’re eating from one bowl while eyeing another.”

In scale and heritage, Xia’s universities naturally couldn’t compare to Jingda or Shuimu, but each had its own character.

In the end, Guo Zi sighed: “Zhouzi, there’s a girl in our major who’s incredibly beautiful.”

As they talked, they walked toward campus.

Compared to a month ago, Guo Zi had grown noticeably darker; Ding Jiahui was better off, but still tanned a few shades.

“Enough, Jiahui. You’re all high school classmates—getting to know each other’s situation is normal,” Song Yao scolded Xu Qingzhou, sensing this wasn’t the place to discuss it and cut in.

Guo Zi, seeing Ding Jiahui staring at him, immediately cracked: “Zhouzi was just asking about Zhang Yuxin.”

So everyone didn’t find it boring.

“It’s just… after spending this time together, I think Jiahui’s personality is really good—funny, carefree, sometimes very thoughtful. She even brought me sunscreen during military training.”

“I don’t have any ideas. I just want to know how she’s doing now.”

“No,” Guo Zi scratched his head, surprisingly clear-headed. “She’s not for me. Besides, she has a boyfriend.”

“Probably… not bad,” Xu Qingzhou thought, then nodded. It was a good thing—it might help Guo Zi forget about Zhou Bingyi, and he felt these two were quite compatible.

But Xu Qingzhou noticed the guy’s eyes kept glancing toward Ding Jiahui ahead.

“Just… have feelings,” Guo Zi said shyly, then paused. “What do you think… how does she feel about me?”

Xu Qingzhou let go of him and asked irritably, “Alright, tell me—what’s going on between you and Ding Jiahui?”

To confirm his suspicion, Xu Qingzhou asked again: “What about Zhang Yuxin?” “Zhang Yuxin? She’s our campus beauty, a hot topic,” Guo Zi said, glancing again at the two girls ahead and lowering his voice. “Still got feelings for her?”

“This…” Xu Qingzhou was surprised—he now remembered that in his past life, after the semester started, Guo Zi had constantly raved about how beautiful and gentle Zhou Bingyi was, how destined they were, how they’d both joined the Wailian Force.

Suddenly, Xu Qingzhou became the center of attention; everyone’s eyes turned toward him.

As soon as the two girls left, Xu Qingzhou narrowed his eyes and pinched Guo Zi’s shoulder. “Fatty, we need to talk about this morning.”

They took the subway, rode for about thirty minutes, got off at Shaoyaoju Station, and finally arrived at the University of International Business and Economics where Guo Zi and Ding Jiahui studied.

He couldn’t help but be stunned—could it be that Guo Zi’s attention had shifted from Zhou Bingyi because of Ding Jiahui?

Damn traitor!

“Zhou Bingyi.”

“Ding Jiahui, seriously, don’t read all that weird stuff—it’s all conspiracy theories.”

In the morning, they toured the campus; at noon, Xu Qingzhou and the others ate on campus.

Guo Zi’s face turned red, and he said sheepishly.

Xu Qingzhou thought of something and asked casually: “Oh, what’s her name?”

“So there’s hope?” Guo Zi was excited.

Xu Qingzhou warned: “But don’t rush this. Suppress that little spark of excitement inside you—don’t let it show.”

“Huh? Why?”

“With the emotional foundation you two have right now, to a lifelong otaku like you, I’m sure she’d firmly choose a 2D girl over you.”

(End of Chapter)