☆ Chapter Seventeen
The second semester of freshman year began again, plain and ordinary. However, Mu Rou finally found an available dormitory room with the help of a teacher by the end of April and moved out. Originally, the dormitory rooms were already assigned, and if Mu Rou wanted to switch with someone, she would need their agreement. But no one wanted to switch with her… However, by the end of April, many fourth-year students had basically moved out of the school, so Mu Rou moved into the fourth-year dormitory and lived with graduate students. Mu Rou’s attitude was that even living with fourth-year students, she would absolutely not mix with them… Now, only three people remained in the dormitory, and these three were quite happy about it… For nearly a year, Mu Rou had barely spoken to them, so their emotional connection wasn’t deep, and there was no need to feel sad about her leaving… Her empty spot could at least be used to store things! Then, Ye Ling’s birthday arrived. On this day, An Qi gave her the gift she had long prepared and warmly said “Happy Birthday”; Dai Xue, true to her character, gave Ye Ling a book – a collector’s edition of a classic. Ye Ling opened An Qi’s gift and found a very cute hairclip. It was shaped like a small sunflower that would shine brightly in the sunlight… Very cute… But An Qi clearly wanted her to clip back her bangs… This made her hesitate and stare blankly for a while, and she put the hairclip in the drawer. Sighing softly, whenever she lost the protection of her bangs and made direct eye contact with others, her heart would race as if it might jump out, and her whole body would tremble. She wasn’t psychologically prepared, so… she would have to disappoint An Qi’s gift for now! Ye Ling thought this and picked up the book Dai Xue had given her to read.
One day, though it wasn’t yet dawn, a torrential rain had started outside, with deep water accumulated around the dormitory building, making it difficult to walk. Dai Xue looked at the rain outside, her mood complex… She had a full day of classes… This was truly troublesome… “Oh my…” Ye Ling, who had come up behind Dai Xue and glanced out the window, suddenly exclaimed and quickly ran out. For no other reason than the four potted flowering plants she had left in the open greenhouse yesterday, and she wondered if they were still okay. Dai Xue shrugged and began looking for her rain boots. “Dai Xue Xue…” A very soft moan from An Qi’s bed made Dai Xue shudder. “I think I have a fever… Could you help me ask for leave from the afternoon elective course…” With such a fragile voice… Dai Xue lightly climbed onto An Qi’s bed, noticing her face was unusually red, and touched her forehead, which was indeed hot. “An Qi, let’s go to the infirmary together.” She was definitely running a fever; Dai Xue gently tucked her blanket. “It’s raining so hard outside… I don’t want to go out… Dai Xue Xue…” When people are sick, they naturally become weak, and the sick An Qi had become especially clingy. Moreover, rainy days were always An Qi’s least favorite weather… She was fine staying home “watching the big rain and the sea”, as long as she didn’t go out and get “ravaged” by the rain… “…Just lie down, I’ll fill your thermos with hot water. Drink more.” Dai Xue planned to find Yan Qing at noon. In this situation, Yan Qing would definitely be able to persuade the unwilling An Qi to go out… Then she would obediently go to the infirmary, right?! In Dai Xue’s mind, Yan Qing, with her explosive combat power, was definitely the first choice to control the “An Qi” creature! “Okay… Thanks, Dai Xue Xue…” An Qi responded softly. “Mm.” She responded softly… Dai Xue nimbly jumped down from the bed and carefully locked the dormitory door. However, plans can’t keep up with changes. By the second class in the morning, a black-faced Yan Qing appeared at the classroom door, holding an umbrella. The class advisor’s lecture was interrupted, looking somewhat unhappy, “Student, is there something?” “It’s like this… Teacher, could I speak with you privately?” Yan Qing, who was in a black mood just a moment ago, now showed a standard “good student” smile. After hearing a few words from him, the class advisor became all smiles and waved to Dai Xue, “Dai Xue, go with Yan Qing!” “…Okay.” She was really curious about what he had said… Dai Xue hesitated, and walked out under the curious and ambiguous gazes of her classmates.
Out of the classroom, Dai Xue’s hand holding the book tightened slightly. Yan Qing’s footsteps were quite fast, and she found it somewhat difficult to keep up. “Department Head Yan Qing.” Dai Xue couldn’t help but call out. “Oh, sorry…” Yan Qing slowed down his steps, waiting until Dai Xue was on the same line as him before continuing to walk. The corners of his mouth were turned down, obviously in a bad mood. He continued, “An Xi would send me a text message every morning, but today… there was none. So I called her phone… but it was turned off. I’m a bit worried, so I hope you can help me open the dormitory door.” “Well… An Xi… has a fever, and her phone is probably out of battery.” Dai Xue lowered her eyes, thinking this might be the first time the aloof Department Head Yan Qing had spoken so many words to her. Suddenly remembering something, Dai Xue added, “I was actually planning to look for you at noon.” “Thank you.” He slightly raised the corners of his mouth and smiled friendly. He had always felt that he needed to get along well with An Xi’s roommates… at least, when he wasn’t by An Xi’s side, they were closest to her and would help her. “…Mm.” Looking at this smile, Dai Xue was momentarily stunned. Department Head Yan Qing… was quite good-looking. An Xi, the little girl, had good taste and was quick to act… she hoped she could also be so decisive in finding someone she liked and who was suitable for her. Arriving at the bottom of the teaching building, Dai Xue suddenly realized she had left her umbrella in the classroom in her hurry. Looking at the slightly anxious Yan Qing, she still didn’t say anything. “Dai Xue, don’t you have an umbrella?” Yan Qing noticed she was only holding books, and after a brief thought, he opened his umbrella, “Let’s go together.” “Then I’ll trouble you.” Dai Xue politely nodded and walked alongside Yan Qing, entering the rain.
