Chapter 608

The new semester began, and boarding students arrived one by one.

Three o'clock in the afternoon.

A black sedan pulled up at the north gate; Chen Yunyun and Wang Yuhe got out from the back seat and turned to the trunk to retrieve their luggage.

With a thud, Chen's father got out and asked softly.

"Yunyun, want to have dinner together later? We could invite that guy, Jiang Nian, too?"

At this, Chen Yunyun's face instantly flushed red.

"Dad, what are you talking about!"

She shoved him back into the car, then grabbed her suitcase and walked toward Wang Yuhe, smiling with a slight lip purse.

"Let's go."

"Sure," Wang Yuhe said, walking through the dim alley, then turned back. "Want to go to the little house later?"

The little house referred to the storage room in the teachers' apartment building.

"Hmm..." Chen Yunyun thought for a moment. "We'll have to ask Jiang Nian if he's free—he has the key."

"I'll do it! I'll ask!" Wang Yuhe volunteered eagerly.

"Fine."

After a while, Wang Yuhe frowned again.

"He says he's not at school."

They went upstairs; the girls' dormitory hadn't changed much from last semester. The balcony was dry, clean, and clearly tidy.

When they pushed open the dorm door, both girls froze.

In the lower bunk, someone had buried themselves under the sheets, frantically trying to fit them on but failing.

Dazed and slightly embarrassed, they scratched their head.

"You're here?"

Chen Yunyun and Wang Yuhe exchanged glances, each seeing surprise in the other's eyes.

"What are you doing?"

"Trying to put on the duvet cover, but I failed," Chai Muying said. "No one else showed up—I'm all alone."

"I'll help you," Chen Yunyun said, setting down her suitcase.

"Thank you so much!! Ming ming ming!" Chai Muying wiped her tears. "This is so touching, Yunyun."

Wang Yuhe couldn't get involved, so she just watched.

"I can do it myself."

A sound came from the door; Yu Zhiyi peeked in curiously, greeted them, then stomped off quickly.

"What was that about?"

"Come take a look—she got here really early," Chai Muying said. "She arrived a week ago."

Hearing this, Chen Yunyun looked up.

"A week ago?"

Elsewhere.

Jiang Nian picked up his package at noon and met his patron, Xu Shuang, to deliver it.

Before the New Year, she had asked Jiang Nian to help secure a limited-edition pair of shoes as a birthday gift for Xu Yuanshan.

During the holiday, he kept an eye on it.

Winning the draw was just a casual thing.

They sipped tea and chatted at Gulanju; he considered selling some succulents, but couldn't find buyers for the high-end ones (fools).

Xu Shuang listened, set down her teacup, and thought for a moment. She had planned to take them—effectively giving Jiang Nian a chance to earn money.

Halfway through, Jiang Nian waved his hand to interrupt.

"Oh, let's not talk about that yet..."

He wasn't in a hurry to sell, hadn't even withdrawn them yet, and didn't want to sell them to Xu Shuang—not because he was refusing free money.

But because he shouldn't earn so little.

Just a few succulents—selling them at sky-high prices would damage their relationship.

Jiang Nian planned to nurture Xu Shuang as a money tree further, waiting until it bloomed and bore fruit before reasonably profiting.

A buzz sounded as his phone on the table rang.

He glanced at it and saw it was from the official class group. Teacher Liu, as group admin, had @ed everyone.

"Evening self-study starts at 6:20. Cai Xiaoqing will take attendance."

Below, a row of replies appeared, all confirming receipt. Some @ed Teacher Liu to request leave.

Liu Yang: "Teacher, I twisted my ankle."

Teacher Liu: "Send me the medical record."

"Teacher, I twisted it back!" Liu Yang instantly became obedient. "I'm fine—definitely attending evening self-study."

Jiang Nian scrolled down, replied "Received," judged the time sufficient, and stood up.

"Well, I'm heading back."

"Mm, I'll walk you," Xu Shuang said, glancing at the shoes beside her—her faith in Jiang Nian's abilities deepened further.

Six o'clock in the afternoon.

Jiang Nian entered the classroom and slipped an envelope and a women's watch into Baby Zhizhi's and the class monitor's desks respectively.

The envelope held no cash—only a small gold leaf. The watch was the same model as the one on his own wrist.

With time tight, he hadn't chosen the gifts carefully.

"Holy crap, you're here this early?" Li Hua walked into the classroom carrying a badminton racket. "Still going to grind, huh?"

Jiang Nian raised his middle finger, his gaze once again involuntarily falling on another object.

"What's this?"

"A badminton racket, my new-semester persona." Li Hua swung the racket. "Athletic guy, what do you think?"

"Hmm..." Jiang Nian glanced at him. "Your vibe doesn't scream athletic type—more like douchebag type."

"Eat shit, eat shit!!!"

Ma Guojun walked in with a black backpack and immediately grinned. "Li Hua, what time did you get back from the internet cafe last night?"

"A little past three in the morning."

"That's pathetic—three hours and you didn't even pull an all-nighter."

"Eat shit."

After a while, Chen Yunyun and her companions came in together. She waved at Jiang Nian from afar, and once he came over,

she asked,

"Busy?"

"Not really. Here for the keys, right?"

Jiang Nian handed the keys to the two girls, passing out two, but one was returned to him. He looked up in confusion.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing, you keep one," Chen Yunyun said. "In case someday you forget your keys, you can still get a spare from me."

"After all, the classroom is close to that place—no need to go back to the dorm."

Mhm, very solid reasoning.

Jiang Nian nodded, feeling a little touched inside. But that was that, and he had no intention of clearing things up.

A few days ago, he had accidentally kicked down two bundles of clothes in the storage room.

Fundamentally, they were all just clothes—no need to rank them. Were undergarments somehow more noble?

Would seamless underwear really make a difference?

"Fine, I usually toss my keys in my bag." He began stacking buffs. "From now on, even if I'm free, I won't go there."

"Mm." Chen Yunyun nodded.

At that moment, Wang Yuhe sneakily glanced at him. Seeing Jiang Nian's gaze turn her way, she immediately muttered under her breath.

"Look at me, I'm a turtle, look at me, I'm a turtle."

"So dumb it's written all over your face," Jiang Nian said.

"You're the one!" Wang Yuhe widened her eyes, but those grape-like eyes really had no menace. "You're as stupid as a pig!"

Damn, elementary schoolers really do hold grudges.

"You didn't even come to my place—why did you say you would and then not show up?" She glared at Jiang Nian. "I even bought a bunch of snacks."

"I was busy the whole time... Where's my share of the snacks?"

He asked, "Did you bring them?"

Wang Yuhe looked up. "Only Yunyun came, you didn't, so of course I sadly ate them all."

Jiang Nian: "Sadly?"

"Of course, I was super sad while eating them." Wang Yuhe nodded. "Unlike you, ungrateful wretch."

Jiang Nian couldn't hold it in anymore—that idiom really wasn't used like that.

Ah, whatever.

Evening self-study.

"Hello hello!" Zhang Ningzhi bounced into the classroom full of energy, greeting the group. "Good evening!"

"Hello," Jiang Nian waved back.

"Zhizhi," Huang Fang said.

Zhang Ningzhi went to her seat, sat down, and glanced at Jiang Nian.

"Want some grape juice?"

"The blended kind?"

"No way, it has real fruit pulp." Zhang Ningzhi retorted, handing the grape juice to him. "Hmph."

"Da, dada." Jiang Nian grinned, once again turning into a copycat. "Zhizhi, are you a machine gun too?"

"Take this!!"

Zhang Ningzhi puffed up with anger, all the pink bubbles accumulated from last night's fireworks display completely shattered.

This guy really is... annoyingly cheeky.

She turned her head and met Li Hua's longing gaze.

"Group leader, you have some too." Zhang Ningzhi dug out cookies from her bag and handed them to Li Hua. "Here you go."

"Thanks." Li Hua was overwhelmed by the favor.

"Fangfang, yours." The little rich girl began bestowing blessings upon the masses again.

They were respectively liqueur-filled chocolate, wafer cookies, and a cookie with chocolate sauce, with English printed on top.

Huang Fang froze—she had never eaten any of these before.

"Thank you."

Li Hua squinted his eyes at it for a long time, completely unable to read it.

"Whatever, I'll just eat it first."

"Forget it, I'll eat first."

As for Ma Guojun, he had long since received his butterfly cookies.

"Happy New Year! I wasn't around during the holiday, so I'm making up for it with some snacks," Zhang Nianzhi said.

"What about the snacks for the start of school?" Jiang Nian spotted the loophole and asked boldly, "When are you making those up?"

"Don't talk!" Zhang Nianzhi pointed at him.

"So touching," Li Hua exclaimed dramatically, "When my dad retires, I'll steal his pension to repay you."

Zhang Nianzhi sweatdropped. "No need, duck."

Ceng You also received snacks. He tucked his earphone cord into his sleeve, eating while listening to music with his earphones on.

After listening for a while, he suddenly sighed.

"Modern songs really suck now—they're getting worse and worse."

Li Hua agreed. "You could listen to Jay Chou."

Jiang Nian, upon hearing this, said seriously.

"Who says otherwise? Ever since Li Hua started middle school, Mandopop has been dead—so Li Hua is entirely to blame."

"Chishi!"

Zhang Nianzhi laughed at the banter, and as she reached to tidy her desk, her hand brushed against something.

"Hm?"

She froze for a moment, then pulled out an envelope.

"What's this?"

Zhang Nianzhi opened the envelope and saw golden leaves inside. She blinked, then turned with delight and asked,

"Did you give this to me?"

"Yeah."

"Oh, thank you!" Zhang Nianzhi's expression turned sweet as she clasped her hands together. "Happy New Year!"

"That's it?" Jiang Nian asked.

Zhang Nianzhi pursed her lips and rubbed his hand against her thigh.

"There. Done."

Jiang Nian snorted. What's this got to do with Zhu Bajie eating ginseng fruit? He didn't even taste the thigh.

As evening self-study neared, the classroom filled with more people.

After the holiday, the members of Group Six hadn't changed much—for example, Huang Fang still wore her uniform with a sweater.

Get dressed.

Li Hua couldn't sit still on his seat; after finishing his biscuit, he went off to brag to kids from other groups.

The fat boy sweated profusely, copying homework while glancing left and right.

"Hey, Jiang Nian!"

"Hm?"

"Have you finished your test paper?" Ma Guojun winked. "If you're done, let me copy yours—we have to hand it in soon."

Jiang Nian glanced at the fat boy's round, Doraemon-like hands and raised an eyebrow.

"Fine."

That guy Ceng You's test paper was completely blank. He wasn't in the least worried—he was still leisurely listening to music and scrolling on his phone.

"The test paper's due soon—aren't you going to write it?" Huang Fang reminded him.

"I'm not handing it in," Ceng You said shamelessly.

As evening self-study approached,

Li Qingrong entered the classroom and walked to her seat. She glanced at Jiang Nian and nodded—enough of a greeting.

"Class monitor, class monitor, hehe!" Nie Qiqi perked up her ears and rushed over. "You're here?"

"Mm." Li Qingrong nodded.

Cai Xiaoqing was reading, head down, and with one hand yanked Nie Qiqi back, saying casually,

"It's just the start of school—don't act crazy."

Nie Qiqi resented it but had no recourse—Cai Xiaoqing was a being superior to her in both power and authority.

She was a timid smiling tiger—once she grew up, she'd be terrifying.

"You wait!"

"Cai Cai, thirty years in Hebei, thirty years in Henan—don't bully the poor little girl!"

"Oh, really?" Cai Xiaoqing shot her a look, then seized Nie Qiqi's neck with one hand and violently silenced her.

Since Nie Qiqi was shorter, even seated, her torso was proportionally shorter.

Thus, Cai Xiaoqing could easily pinch her neck with one hand, as effortlessly as squeezing a chick.

"Of course, everything you've done to me today—I've written it all down. One day, I'll repay it a hundredfold!"

"Aaaah!!! It hurts! It hurts!"

Li Qingrong ignored the commotion in the back row, hung her bag on the chair, and reached to pull out her test paper.

During the winter break self-study, she'd already finished all her papers—she hadn't taken them home; they'd been left in her desk drawer.

She reached inside and felt a hard box.

Li Qingrong: "???"

She looked down—it was a square gift box. Opening it, she found a watch, its design oddly familiar.

Li Qingrong looked up and glanced at Jiang Nian.

She silently put on the watch.

Evening self-study was noisy, and almost everyone was wearing new clothes. Some people still looked the same as before, while others had made changes.

Sun Zhicheng had changed his hairstyle and put on a pair of half-frame glasses.

He was wearing new clothes and had even put on hair gel.

At this moment, he sat upright at his seat, working on problems.

In truth, his mind was elsewhere; his peripheral vision kept observing the surroundings. He had long since finished his test paper and was merely putting on a show.

Yet, no one paid him any attention.

Liu Yang had just left his seat to chat with Lin Dong, talking about the experience in elementary school of kneeling to someone over a packet of instant noodle seasoning.

Ever since he started dating, his (pretentious) airs had lessened a great deal. He was completely a fun-seeker, and didn't care about self-deprecation either.

"Sigh, I never thought the old me was so spineless."

Lin Dong chimed in, "It's much better now."

Hearing this, Liu Yang nodded and said.

"Indeed, without a packet of Hehua brand noodles, I wouldn't kneel."

Lin Dong was speechless, then curiously asked, "Come to think of it, when did you learn to smoke? Did you start running with the wrong crowd in middle school?"

"Pretty much, but it wasn't running with the wrong crowd." Liu Yang scratched his head and said, "To be precise, blame my dad."

"When I was little, during New Year we were lighting firecrackers, and he couldn't find a lighter, so he just handed me the cigarette from his mouth."

"Ahem." Sun Zhicheng couldn't stand the cold violence any longer, coughed to make a sound, and said, "Brother Dong, lend me a pen."

"Oh, oh." Lin Dong turned his head and was stunned. "Ah Cheng, why do you... seem a bit darker?"

Hearing this, Sun Zhicheng immediately couldn't hold it in anymore.

"Take a good look, is there anything else different?"

"I know." Liu Yang picked up the thread, "After the New Year, Brother Cheng has obviously matured a lot."

"Look at this world-weary face.....

,

Sun Zhicheng immediately turned red with anger, his face flushed crimson from holding it in.

"World-weary my ass!"

While the few were chatting, Old Liu jogged from outside the classroom door up onto the podium.

This absurd scene left the people of Class Three completely at a loss.