Chapter 35: Late at night, the Yujie calls me to his room

Night fell, the barbecue ingredients were almost thawed.

All the students gathered again beside the barbecue stove; each person had a stove in front with bamboo skewers and a basin, self-service barbecue requires you to skewer yourself.

"I'm starving to death!"

"If I had known, I would have eaten something at the cafeteria before coming!"

"Who told me to save my stomach for the barbecue when I came? Come out, I won't hit you!"

"Can we skewer and grill while eating?"

Everyone sighed and complained.

Su Peng, Jiang Cheng and their dorm mates sat together, plus Su Manyao, making five people total, gathered around a stove also skewering barbecue.

"Old Jiang, I now realize you really had foresight—you went to the cafeteria and filled your stomach before coming!" Su Peng said with a resentful face: "Why didn't you call me to go together then? Now I'm starving."

Su Manyao, sitting nearby, made a graceful Orchid Finger with her fingers, gently pinching a chicken tip, threading a bamboo skewer, and curiously glanced at Jiang Cheng.

Liu Tao and Deng Qi sat beside them, not daring to lift their heads; the aloof goddess was so close they could even smell a faint perfume from her, their hearts pounding, they didn't dare glance more than once.

Jiang Cheng glanced at Su Manyao and said: "What are you looking at? Aren't you hungry?"

Su Manyao propped her elbows on her knees, legs crossed, looked at Jiang Cheng and said: "Many times, I don't eat at night."

Jiang Cheng didn't expect the Yujie to answer so seriously, as if using the question to tell him: "I have a great figure."

Sitting opposite, Su Peng, upon hearing Jiang Cheng's words, felt something off; this tone should be something only close friends would say, right?

But seeing the sister's response, he thought they weren't that unfamiliar either—they'd interacted when borrowing a car to go out together, and just now Jiang Cheng had been accompanying Su Manyao, so by rights they were acquaintances; I overthought it?

Finally at eight o'clock, the barbecue ingredients were ready, and all the stoves were loaded with already-burning charcoal.

The atmosphere on site also became lively, some cheered, others fetched cardboard from boxes and fanned the barbecue pit.

The already faint-from-hunger Su Peng grabbed a piece of cardboard and aimed at the stove, also blowing out a huff-huff-huff.

The flames in the bathhouse made a woo-woo sound from being fanned.

The firelight fell on Su Manyao's face, alternating bright and dark, mottled, making this woman, beautiful beyond bounds, gain an additional elusive charm at this moment.

She smiled at the corners of her mouth, her eyes reflecting the firelight.

Obviously she also liked the current atmosphere.

Jiang Cheng thought, fortunately the aloof Yujie only appeared cold due to excessive self-esteem and extremely high standards of herself, thus seeming superficially aloof, not naturally cold-hearted.

Otherwise, being long-term with a woman as cold as ice, anyone would find it unbearable—pah! Where did that thought come from? Don't think wildly; whoever gets serious first becomes passive! At that moment, the aloof Yujie suddenly lifted her eyes, locking gazes with Jiang Cheng.

Su Manyao glared at Jiang Cheng, then gave him a silk-like seductive glance, her gaze flicking to the side.

It's over!

I've fallen, feeling like I want to die in her hands.

"What are you spacing out for? You've eaten, it's your turn to fan; I can't hold back—I want to start grilling and eating."

Su Peng interrupted Jiang Cheng's thoughts, shoved the cardboard into his hand, and pushed him to fan.

Su Manyao indeed, as she said, can often go without eating at night.

Just like today, the barbecue aroma filled the air; Jiang Cheng, who had eaten his fill before coming, was grilling and eating, and it smelled incredibly good.

But Su Manyao merely tasted lightly, eating three skewers of chicken tips she herself skewered. Three skewers of chicken tips total six pieces, all bone, no meat—how could that fill a stomach?

Jiang Cheng looked at Su Mengyao's figure; she didn't look very thin, lacked a bony feel, and he wondered what weight she'd be if he held her.

After the evening bonfire activity, rooms were assigned according to dormitory arrangements; Su Manyao, as an Associate Professor, was given a single room, but she insisted on paying for it herself.

The temperature at the barbecue site was high; Su Manyao sweated profusely, returned to her room, quickly showered, changed into the thin sleepwear she'd brought in her bag, and lay on the sofa playing with her phone.

At that moment she noticed a message from her best friend Si Ling:

"What are you doing? You haven't replied for so long—I'm asking, how's it going with your little boyfriend?"

There were many previous messages, all basically the same question.

Su Manyao thought, then sent a message: "This afternoon at the barbecue, I have a question for you."

Si Ling instantly replied: "You finally deigned to speak—quickly say, are you barbecuing with your little boyfriend?"

Su Manyao said: "It's a school team-building activity."

In her phone chats, even with her best friend she was terse, cherishing each word.

Si Ling, already accustomed, pressed on: "So that means your little boyfriend also went, right? Or are you still not barbecuing with your little boyfriend?"

She already knew Su Manyao's previous dating target was also a student at Modu Daxue.

Su Manyao didn't answer, which counted as tacit agreement, and continued: "Let's not gossip, I have a question for you."

"Go ahead, if you're asking what protective gear works well, just buy 0.1 and it's fine!"

Su Manyao: "Get lost, I'm asking how feelings between couples develop!"

Si Ling immediately replied: "The best development's first step is certainly to feel desire upon seeing beauty!"

Su Manyao: "Don't talk nonsense, I'm asking seriously."

Si Ling replied with a speechless expression, then said: "I'm certainly telling the truth, my aloof Yujie, you're like someone who doesn't eat fireworks—you don't get this. The best progression of feelings between men and women is to first feel desire upon seeing beauty, then get to know and become familiar with what's suitable, then quickly move to the main point, and feelings grow with time."

Su Manyao seriously read the message, then asked: "Then how do you judge that he's felt desire?"

Si Ling's extremely simple reply was two words: "Want to eat!"

Su Manyao thought for a moment, her gaze flicking to her own pair of feet resting on the sofa.

She couldn't help but recall that during the daytime on the lawn, Jiang Cheng would from time to time sneak a peek at her feet inside her high heels.

At that time, seeing Jiang Cheng's appearance, she still thought Jiang Cheng was hungry—"Alright, I get it."

"What do you understand?" Si Ling immediately replied: "I haven't finished yet—do you understand what 'feelings grow with time' means? Do you know what that is?"

"Don't tell me!"

Su Manyao replied with a past remark, then sent a head-knocking emoji.

She just hasn't dated before, and she's not stupid.

You haven't even seen a pig run? She exited the chat with her best friend, opened Jiang Cheng's avatar, and tap-tap-typed a message to send.

"My eyebrow pencil fell under the sofa; the sofa is too heavy to move, come over."

(End of chapter)