Chapter 612: Acceptance

Hearing this, Jiang Nian was at a loss for words.

"I don't eat chocolate."

"Why can't these weird holidays just be standardized? Like Chinese New Year—just give red envelopes outright."

Lin Yuxi had planned to mimic a drama scene—shout her line and then run off cutely—but upon hearing this, she froze solid.

"No."

"Senior, you're such a buzzkill," she said, her chest heaving, "Forget it, I'm going upstairs."

She stormed off, too angry to even bother pretending to be cute.

Jiang Nian held the bag of chocolate, not feeling he'd gone too far—this was his unvarnished inner thought.

Not being lazy is what makes a true friend.

But how Lin Yuxi felt about it? He didn't care.

Back from the cafeteria.

Jiang Nian went up to the Gao San floor, restless. So he simply dragged a chair from the podium and went to the corridor to solve problems.

He also casually took the clipboard from his desk mate, the little rich girl.

At noon, slanting sunlight warmed the skin. Stay too long and you couldn't stand up immediately—you'd get slightly dizzy.

He clearly didn't care; he just kept his head down, basking.

After a while, Chen Yunyun and the others came over. Monday was their hair-washing day, but they'd washed the day before arriving at school.

So now, hair-washing day became Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday.

Next week...

Jiang Nian didn't bother thinking about it—they had fixed hair-washing days, yet still decided whether to wash based on last-minute circumstances.

Girls were a pain in the ass.

"There you are," Chen Yunyun greeted him. Today she wore a light green knit sweater with jeans.

It made her look pale and slender, yet also slightly lively.

"Sunbathing?"

"Yeah."

Jiang Nian looked up at her, saw her hands were empty, then asked, "Where'd you eat lunch?"

"Outside the west gate," Chen Yunyun replied.

Her expression was as usual—she hadn't done anything out of the ordinary just because today was Valentine's Day.

Hmm, looks like I'm not the only one who doesn't celebrate foreign holidays.

"By the way," Jiang Nian remembered something and looked up, "Did you bring any food from home?"

Chen Yunyun's mother was a good cook—not only could she make excellent meals, she also made all kinds of snacks.

If you wanted to compare horizontally, you'd have to bring in Xu Qianqian, or else Ms. Li Hongmei's cooking would be at the bottom.

"I did bring some," Chen Yunyun hesitated, "Um... but my roommate split them all yesterday."

"I ate the most," Wang Yuhe chimed in.

"You..." Jiang Nian nearly spat blood.

"Sorry."

Chen Yunyun looked embarrassed, "I saw you ate little that day, so I thought you didn't like them."

"So I forgot to ask you."

Jiang Nian: "..."

If Wang Yuhe, that little kid, weren't here, he'd have rolled on the floor to save face.

Damn it, lost a delicious meal.

"Alright, never mind," Jiang Nian said casually, then froze, "Wait—what's that in your hand?"

Wang Yuhe said, "Duck feet."

"How much?"

"No cost—brought from home."

"Oh oh, I've got a box of drinks on my desk," Jiang Nian said. "Unopened. Perfect with duck feet."

"You're giving it to me?"

"Yeah, go get it," Jiang Nian added. "I'll hold it for you—coming and going's a hassle."

"Alright," Wang Yuhe thought for a moment, then handed him several bags of duck feet. "I'll treat you to one later."

"Mm-hmm."

As soon as Wang Yuhe left, Jiang Nian immediately opened all five bags of duck feet. He took a bite from each, making Chen Yunyun blush.

"You..."

"Heh, whether she treats me or not, it's still mine."

Chen Yunyun:

She turned into the midday breeze, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

"She's going to cry from anger soon."

After a while, Wang Yuhe ran out, beaming. She saw Jiang Nian in the sun, slowly chewing duck feet.

She stared, watching him spit out bones.

"You you you!!! You're the most untrustworthy person in the world! Give back my duck feet! Give them back!"

"What trust?" Jiang Nian said. "I never promised you anything. The drink's yours."

Wang Yuhe, helpless, stomped off in a huff.

"You're terrible!"

"You didn't leave any for her?" Chen Yunyun asked.

"No," Jiang Nian said. "Want some?"

Chen Yunyun glanced at him again, saw him holding out an opened bag of duck feet, thought for a moment, then took it.

"I went to find her."

Jiang Nian froze—he was joking. He'd actually kept another pack, but knew Chen Yunyun didn't eat this.

So he decided to tease her.

She took it?

Chen Yunyun picked at the other side of the duck feet, bit into it. Her expression didn't change; she walked away calmly.

Afternoon.

Ding Qiulan, former member of Tao Ran's group, switched seats with Huang Cailang because she wasn't used to sitting in the middle.

She was tall and liked observing the two of them.

"What is love, in this world? It drives people to life and death," Yang Qiming said. "What should we eat this afternoon?"

"Bro, there's a roast rabbit shop outside the north gate."

Hearing this, Ding Qiulan couldn't hold back.

"How can you eat rabbits?"

"It's fine—rabbits breed fast," Huang Cailang grinned foolishly. "Eating one or two won't make a difference."

Ding Qiulan: "???"

"Is that the point?"

Yang Qiming sized up Ding Qiulan. He hadn't noticed before, but now he realized her long legs were quite elegant.

"Indeed, quantity isn't the point."

He chuckled warmly, eagerly.

"Don't worry—if you come, there'll be plenty. Not just that—I guarantee the taste is unmatched."

Ding Qiulan: "

The neighboring group's Sun Zhicheng turned away his gaze. "Heh."

He propped his elbows on the desk, fingers interlaced. He thought these two were total gluttons—but then noticed something else.

Ding Qiulan's Bluetooth earbuds were the same model as his.

Could this be fate?

The afternoon class was physics and chemistry. Only the teacher's voice and scattered murmurs of agreement filled the classroom.

Li Hua yawned, tears nearly spilling from his eyes.

"So sleepy~"

After finishing, he glanced at Jiang Nian out of the corner of his eye. Seeing no reaction, he asked curiously.

"Did anyone give you chocolate?"

"You're nuts."

Jiang Nian shot him a look, acting indifferent. That bag of chocolate at noon had already been tossed into his locker.

"Watch less anime—you're getting brainwashed."

"Oh, okay," Li Hua nodded.

The afternoon passed in a flash. Just five minutes into the small self-study session, Jiang Nian stood up and spoke to Cai Xiaoqing.

"I'm going out."

"Mm."

Amid several pairs of eyes, he walked out of the classroom calmly. He didn't go to the bathroom—turned a corner and went downstairs to eat.

After school, he timed it again, contacted Xu Qianqian and the others, and bought her a chocolate.

Xu Qianqian and Song Xiyun, at the noodle shop, handed him a chocolate on the spot—considering the exchange complete.

"Your chocolate's so ugly," she complained.

Jiang Nian gave her a dead-eyed stare. "As long as it's chocolate."

"Mine cost more!" Xu Qianqian retorted, glaring at him. "That proves you didn't even try."

Jiang Nian frowned. "I don't get it—it's all just giving chocolate."

"Why does whoever spends more always end up suffering more? The money you save isn't just for treating us to late-night snacks?"

Just hearing this, one might truly think Jiang Nian was a good person.

Xu Qianqian was speechless. "Pfft. Too lazy to talk to you."

. 」

Jiang Nian left the noodle shop but didn't return to school right away. He stopped by a bookstore and bought a set of practice tests.

He returned to the classroom again during evening self-study.

As soon as he sat down, Zhang Nenzhi complained.

"You went to the bathroom for two full hours?"

"Yeah," Jiang Nian said, holding up a bag of QQ candies, glancing at his desk mate. "Got lost on the way back."

Zhang Nenzhi gave him a look of utter disdain. "Liar!"

He remained indifferent, glanced down at his desk drawer. Found no gift inside. "Want some candy?"

"I'm not eating it," Zhang Nenzhi pouted. After a moment, she changed her mind. "Fine, give it to me."

Jiang Nian was about to ask the monitor if she wanted any.

"Alright then."

Zhang Ningzhi sensed his intention, took the QQ candies, and couldn't help but get annoyed, swallowing half the pack in one go.

After the first evening self-study session, the classroom began to stir.

"Hey, some people have already started giving each other chocolate." Dong Que looked excited, her eyes sparkling.

Actually, it wasn't all chocolate. Some gave small snacks too—overall, it was kind of fun.

"Don't be so nosy." Tao Ran looked unimpressed. "By the way, did you book the counseling room?"

"I booked tomorrow's slot—today it's closed." Dong Que looked unimpressed; their group leader really killed the mood.

"By the way, group leader, look over there."

Tao Ran nodded, yet again looked unimpressed.

"What's there to look at?"

"Watching the drama," Dong Que said. "People who seemed unrelated suddenly gave each other chocolate."

"Hehe, just imagining it is already so satisfying."

Suddenly, a group member said, "But those brave enough to give chocolate are usually outgoing people."

"Truly introverted people, even if they muster the courage to buy chocolate, will keep hesitating, over and over, in their palm."

Until the warmth of their palm melts the chocolate."

Zhou Yuting listened to their chatter, quietly slipped the chocolate in her palm into her pocket, and felt unimpressed.

She wasn't introverted—she just wanted to return it.

Forget it, I won't return it.

Too easy to be misunderstood.

Jiang Nian finished self-study and headed downstairs, planning to grab a late-night snack at the cafeteria—lunch had been too early.

He'd slipped out fine, but he was just a bit hungry.

At 7:30 p. m., the cafeteria was brightly lit. He got a pile of fish balls, and had just sat down when someone approached him.

"For you."

Chen Yunyun handed him a can of cucumber-flavored chips. "I wanted to give you fruit, but I was afraid of picking something not sweet."

"Chips are—"

"They won't be bad—every single chip tastes good."

Wang Yuhe blinked. She'd just asked Yunyun: for couples, give chocolate; for friends, give snacks.

"My turn! My turn!"

Pata—a bag of Little Chick snacks landed in front of him.

"I picked this—it's the best."

Jiang Nian awkwardly patted his pockets—he hadn't bought anything.

At lunch, he'd thought Chen Yunyun hadn't intended to give anything, assuming she didn't care about foreign holidays, and spent the afternoon avoiding her.

"Hey, how about some fish balls?"

Chen Yunyun: "???"

In the end, the three of them sat together eating a late-night snack, only returning to the classroom five minutes after the second evening self-study began.

He glanced around—everything seemed normal.

Li Hua and Ceng You were arguing over how to survive a post-apocalyptic flood, unable to agree.

Zhang Ningzhi was doing homework, hunched over a pile of books.

As for Sun Ye, he turned to look at Li Qingrong. She was reading Youth Digest, her demeanor cool and detached.

A women's watch on her left wrist, a red cord hanging from her right hand.

Hmm. First day of school.

Very safe.

Jiang Nian exhaled in relief, silently repeating it again in his mind.

"Chinese people don't celebrate foreign holidays."

He was about to start his homework, relaxed back in his chair—when his backpack suddenly made a ripping sound.

It was the sound of something being squeezed inside.

What's in the bag?

Jiang Nian froze. Just then, Zhang Ningzhi looked up. Their furtive glances accidentally met.

"Huh?"

He panicked slightly, opened his backpack—and saw an assortment of chocolates, filling nearly a third of it.

"Uh... I didn't prepare anything."

Zhang Ningzhi pursed her lips, but said nothing upon hearing this.

"Hmph."

After a while, a sticky note appeared.

"I'll make it up next time."

After the second evening self-study ended.

The sixth group had mostly cleared out; Jiang Nian was about to leave his seat.

Li Qingrong tapped his shoulder and handed him a small brocade pouch.

"For you."

He frowned, opened it—and found a jade pendant.

"Huh?"

Li Qingrong lowered her eyes and glanced at the red string on her hand.

"I bought it on a whim when I went out."

"It's not suitable." Jiang Nian had intended to return it, but under Li Qingrong's gaze, he muttered, "I... it's very nice, thank you."

The entire evening self-study passed in silence; Jiang Nian felt sweat nearly dripping down.

Isn't it bad? Isn't this some foreign holiday?

But he hadn't prepared anything anyway, so he just gave up and endured it. He held out until evening self-study ended, then finally relaxed.

"It's over."

Li Hua tilted his head and murmured to himself.

"I waited all day and didn't get any chocolate. But the good news is, hardly anyone here celebrates this holiday."

Without a word, he tossed the chocolate he'd bought to Jiang Nian.

"Here, damn it."

Jiang Nian said seriously.

"Hua, who else but a fool celebrates Valentine's Day? It's a foreign holiday imported from the West—I find it disgusting just hearing about it."

"True." Li Hua nodded, then asked, "Do you celebrate it?"

Jiang Nian shook his head. "I don't celebrate."

To be honest, he really didn't celebrate either. Though he'd received chocolate, he hadn't given any to anyone—not even Xu Qianqian counted.

"Ugh, this stupid holiday." Li Hua sighed. "Don't say you don't—it really does seem kind of pathetic."

"Who says otherwise?"

After school.

Jiang Nian grabbed his bag, left the classroom, and exited the school gate early. Feeling the weight inside his bag, he felt awkward.

"Who's this for?"

Far off, Xu Qianqian and the others arrived.

The three chatted all the way, mentioning a few things about the upcoming entrance exam, but no one bothered preparing for it specifically.

They entered the alley and went upstairs.

Jiang Nian was about to head straight home when Xu Qianqian, who was closing her door, glanced at him and quickly blinked.

He silently said "Oh," understanding Xu Qianqian's hint—it meant he should come back later.

Jiang Nian returned home, changed his jacket, and went to the apartment across the hall.

In the bathroom, Cheng Xiuyun was showering.

Xu Qianqian opened the door for him, shushed him, signaled him to be quiet, and pulled him inside the room.

"You must not make a sound."