Wang Zhihong smiled politely at Xia Qingqing and the others: "Hello, I've heard Xiao Qiu talk about her roommates before. I'm finally meeting you today. I'm Xiao Qiu's boyfriend, Wang Zhihong."

"We've heard so much about you! We've often heard Sister Qiu mention you. You're just as outstanding as Sister Qiu says," Liu Huimin said with a hint of teasing.

Xia Qingqing and Chen Xiu also greeted Wang Zhihong and, taking the opportunity of Liu Huimin's words, praised him.

Wang Zhihong rubbed his hands together shyly before saying with a smile, "It's getting late, let's hurry up and head to the state-run restaurant."

Xiang Qiu also realized what was going on and agreed, saying, "Yes, let's go to the state-run restaurant first and talk slowly. If it gets crowded later, we might have to wait for a table."

Xia Qingqing parked her bicycle in the school's parking shed. There were five of them, and it wouldn't be right for her to ride her bicycle alone while the others walked, so she simply walked with them.

Wang Zhihong was quite talkative along the way, and the atmosphere was not awkward. The group chatted and laughed for a short while before arriving at the state-run restaurant.

They found an empty table and sat down. Wang Zhihong told the girls to order: "Order whatever you like, don't be shy with me."

Seeing that Xia Qingqing and Chen Xiu did not make a move, Liu Huimin said with a smile, "They are both shy, so I'll do it."

Even so, she was too embarrassed to order more, and only ordered a braised fish and an eggplant and green bean dish.

Seeing that she had stopped, Wang Zhihong turned his gaze to Xiang Qiu: "Xiao Qiu, there are five of us eating, two dishes are definitely not enough, why don't you order a few more?"

Xiang Qiu had eaten with Wang Zhihong a few times before and knew he wasn't stingy, so she readily added three more dishes: stewed beef with potatoes, dried tofu with green peppers, and shredded pork with garlic sauce.

"That's enough, it'll definitely be enough. Any more would be a waste."

Wang Zhihong nodded, and instead of trying to impress his girlfriend's roommates by showing off, he went to the window to order and pay for his food by himself.

Seeing that the person had left, Liu Huimin quickly leaned close to Xiang Qiu's ear and teased, "Sister Qiu, your boyfriend seems pretty good so far. He's handsome and has a great presence, and he's also very generous."

Xiang Qiu smiled upon hearing this: "It's not easy to receive your praise; it's his honor."

"Hehe, but we still need to investigate further," Liu Huimin said, but then she caught a glimpse of Wang Zhihong coming over and quickly shut her mouth.

After Wang Zhihong sat down again, he noticed that the others were quiet. He joked, "Why are they all so quiet as soon as I arrived? Were they talking badly about me just now?"

Xiang Qiu glared at him, feigning anger: "What nonsense are you talking about? Huimin was just praising you, but it seems it was all for nothing."

Seeing this, Wang Zhihong quickly cupped his hands in apology: "It was my fault. I was just trying to joke with you. But speaking of which, what did Comrade Liu just praise me for? As the person involved, can I hear it? Let me be happy too."

Liu Huimin said quickly, "I say, Comrade Wang, you are good-looking and generous. You and Sister Qiu are a perfect match."

Wang Zhihong blushed slightly at the last sentence, and his voice even became a beat lower: "Xiao Qiu is very good, I will continue to work hard."

Upon hearing this, Liu Huimin revealed a mischievous smile: "Keep trying? Do you want to keep trying to marry our Sister Qiu?"

Before she could finish speaking, Xiang Qiu gently pinched her arm and gave her a wink: Don't talk nonsense.

"Hmm," Wang Zhihong responded softly, his eyes fixed on Xiang Qiu, wanting to see her reaction.

He and Xiang Qiu had known each other for more than two months, and after spending time together, he gradually grew to like this independent and self-reliant girl.

To be honest, Xiang Qiu's appearance is not the most beautiful type, but she is definitely not bad-looking either. She has thick eyebrows, big eyes, and three-dimensional features. Her short hair that reaches her ears makes her look clean and neat.

Wang Zhihong is no longer a naive teenager. He knows what marriage means. When choosing a partner to spend his life with, he will never just look at appearance. He wants a partner who can grow with him, like Xiang Qiu.

Due to his own limited circumstances, the blind dates that Wang Zhihong was introduced to by relatives and friends before meeting Xiang Qiu were not ideal.

Or perhaps she has a large family waiting for her future son-in-law to help them, and even before they're married, she expects him to give half of his salary to his family after he starts working.

Or she's unrealistic and ends up an old maid, picking on Wang Zhihong's conditions after meeting him, but then saying she doesn't mind and is willing to try dating him.

Wang Zhihong was speechless. Even if he never got married, he would never force himself to marry this kind of woman. What he needed was a marriage where one plus one was greater than two.

Liu Huimin coughed lightly, interrupting Wang Zhihong's thoughts: "Comrade Wang, it's not that simple for you to marry our Sister Qiu. Our Sister Qiu is a college student. If you want to marry her, you can't do without the 'three turns and one sound' that are popular nowadays."

Her words were somewhat realistic, but she also wanted to gauge Wang Zhihong's attitude. If he wanted to marry Xiang Qiu without putting in any effort, then he was dreaming.

"What nonsense is she spouting? Zhihong, don't listen to her nonsense. She's always been outspoken," Xiang Qiu said, pretending to scold Liu Huimin, and then looked apologetically at Wang Zhihong.

Wang Zhihong shook his head to indicate that he didn't mind, and solemnly said, "Comrade Liu, I know you mean well. I will work hard to save money, and I promise that Xiao Qiu will have everything that other girls have when they get married."

It's more accurate to say that Wang Zhihong was speaking to Xiang Qiu rather than Liu Huimin. He was a little embarrassed to say these things to Xiang Qiu in private, but he finally revealed his true feelings while chatting with Liu Huimin.

Wang Zhihong knew he wasn't good enough. His parents had already said they wouldn't prepare anything for him except 100 yuan for his wedding. But he couldn't use that as an excuse to wrong Xiang Qiu. Other girls received three turns and one ring as a bride price, and Xiao Qiu had to have one too.

Fortunately, he didn't do nothing in the countryside during those years. While other educated youth were complaining about the poor environment and unpalatable food at the educated youth settlement, Wang Zhihong earned enough work points to support himself and receive a sum of money at the end of the year.

In addition, he would occasionally go to the mountains to catch wild rabbits and pheasants to sell on the black market. Over the years, he had saved up quite a bit of money. However, because the money was ill-gotten, he could not tell anyone, not even his parents.

This could be considered Wang Zhihong's little scheme. He knew from a young age that he wasn't as favored as his older or younger brothers at home. If his parents found out that he had money, it was obvious who would end up with it.