Light snow fell from the sky. Zhang Guoqing looked up at the sky, wondering if his wife had returned home yet or if his son had eaten yet.

"Everyone, come in for the meeting."

About ten people gathered together, talking to each other.

Zhang Guoqing smiled and remained silent, occasionally agreeing when asked questions.

It was time for dinner and we finally had a break.

Yi Jiefang held Zhang Guoqing in his arms as they walked away from the crowd, saying dissatisfiedly, "What is that kid showing off about? He acts like only his father is awesome. What a piece of shit!"

Zhang Guoqing glared at him.

"Okay, I'll just say this in front of you."

Zhang Guoqing stopped, frowned, and said, "Don't even say that in front of me from now on. Dayi, I have two words for you... Be careful with your words!"

Yi Jiefang smiled and dragged him forward, "I see. You see through it but don't say it out loud."

Zhang Guoqing sighed inwardly. These new students, arriving in waves, were all capable of significant or minor roles. He truly didn't want his good friend to have a conflict with them.

Wan Dayong looked back and saw the two men were behind him again. "Hurry up."

The strong north wind blew over the empty campus, making people shiver several times with cold. Several people holding enamel bowls walked towards the cafeteria with their necks hunched.

"It's so cold during the day, it will definitely be even colder at night. How about we all sleep together tonight?"

"It's too crowded to sleep."

"Where's Xiaowu?"

Zhang Guoqing shook his head. If nothing happened tomorrow, he planned to go back home that night and hug his wife even if he froze to death.

Unfortunately, this wish was not fulfilled, as two uninvited guests arrived at night.

"Xiao Wu, my buddy almost died in the wild, but I finally see you."

Zhang Guoqing looked at Li Qinglin and Zhang Yuntao in shock. "How did you two, one from the south and one from the north, get together?"

"How long has it been since we three last met? Do you remember? I came here from the Northeast and waited at the train station for a whole afternoon before I saw Lin Zi. I originally thought your school must be not far away..."

Zhang Guoqing laughed out loud…It’s not far, it’s both in Beijing.

"I told him to stay there for one night, but he insisted and refused to let me." Li Qinglin gave Zhang Yuntao a reproachful look.

Zhang Guoqing quickly pulled the two of them into the house, "Go inside first. Luckily you guys are here now, I was just about to go home. Why don't you go home first? It's inconvenient to come here."

"It's more than inconvenient. I even suspected I was in the wrong place and asked several people."

"Let's eat first, then we'll go back to the city. The conditions here are just like this, so let's make do with it for now."

Entering the dormitory upstairs, Zhang Yuntao looked around for a while and said, "Just you and your wife living here? It's much better than my school."

Zhang Guoqing quickly poured hot water, opened the stove, and busied himself with preparing some steamed buns for them to fill their stomachs.

Li Qinglin drank a few sips of hot tea, finally recovering from the pain, and then asked him, "Where's Jiaojiao? Why are you alone?"

"We're on vacation now, and she's going back home to be with her son today. What made you want to come here? If you want to go out, you have to wait until summer vacation. It's so cold, it's hard to go anywhere."

Li Qinglin pointed at Zhang Yuntao.

Zhang Guoqing looked at him and said, "Taozi, this is not like you. When I wrote to you before, you said you were very busy." After saying that, he looked at him suspiciously.

"You...what's with that look in your eyes? I just missed you guys, what's wrong?"

Zhang Guoqing and Li Qinglin exchanged a smile. This guy was still being stubborn. They winked at each other and decided to eat first and then extract a confession that night.

"Don't go back tonight. It's quiet here, just right for a chat."

Zhang Yuntao had no objection. He was also extremely annoyed and was about to ask his two brothers for advice.

The three of them ate to fill their stomachs, washed up briefly, and did not go downstairs to find Yi Jiefang and the others. They went to bed early.

Zhang Guoqing patted Zhang Yuntao on the shoulder and said, "Tell me. Are you in trouble? Is someone giving you a hard time or something?"

Li Qinglin followed up by saying, "Don't be afraid, we are here."

"What? Am I easy to bully?"

Zhang Yuntao rested his head on his hands, his expression changing constantly. After being stared at for a long time, his face gradually turned red.

Zhang Guoqing suddenly had an idea and asked, "Why didn't Zhao Yuanyuan come with you to see Jiaojiao?"

“You…you…”

"I guessed it right, didn't I? You and Zhao Yuanyuan are together? Great, you kept it a secret. No, is there something wrong between the two of you?"

Li Qinglin was confused and looked at the two of them. "Taozi, what's going on? You didn't say anything in the letter. Your mother has always wanted you to marry that fat girl. Isn't she against you two?"

Zhang Yuntao's face flushed, and he immediately shook his head, hesitating for a long time without being able to say anything.

Zhang Guoqing shook his head at Li Qinglin. He was an experienced person and knew it was related to Zhao Yuanyuan. With her face flushed like this, what else could be so embarrassing for him to talk about?

"Linzi, how are you doing in school? How's that girl I mentioned last time?"

Li Qinglin sighed and stood up. "Is there any wine? I can't say it without drinking some wine."

"Yes, we must drink. I have two bottles of special liquor in my bag."

Zhang Guoqing was scratching his head, a bit confused. Was he an expert in relationships?

Well, it seems I won't be able to sleep tonight. I stood up, dragged a wooden box out from under the bed, and poured out all the dried meat and peanuts inside.

"You two are living a really comfortable life."

Zhang Guoqing glanced at Zhang Yuntao and said, "You're not doing any worse than me."

"Hey, let's listen to Lin Zi's sister first, and then tell me my story."

Zhang Guoqing didn't want to say much, so he opened the bottle, filled it for them, and poured himself a small bowl. He was really afraid that he would get drunk and pull these two buddies to call him "baby".

After a few drinks, Li Qinglin hadn't even started to tell his story, but Zhang Yuntao couldn't stand it anymore.

"Xiao Wu, can anyone outside hear what's happening in the room?"

Zhang Guoqing shook his head. The neighbors and upstairs had already run away as soon as the holiday started. If it weren't for his son, he wouldn't have let his wife go. What a great opportunity.

Zhang Yuntao picked up a bowl of wine and drank it in one gulp. "I never thought there was anything between me and Zhao Yuanyuan before. We were just like buddies. She was pretty and kind, so when she started college, a lot of people were attracted to her. She was so carefree that she couldn't tell what those men meant by her at all."

Li Qinglin snorted, "Why don't I think she's beautiful? I haven't thought about it yet. You're also a fool. Seeing those animals getting ready to make a move, you're getting impatient, right?"

"Linzi, I swear, before this summer, I really hadn't thought about it. Among the five of us, the three of us are brothers, Jiaojiao is the younger sister, and I have always treated Yuanyuan as my younger sister."

Zhang Guoqing poured him a glass of wine and nudged Li Qinglin. "Having come this far, and still interrupting?" Something big must have happened to send this guy running to the capital.

Zhang Yuntao didn't wait for anyone to urge him to drink, but took a sip and drank it all. After a while, he rubbed his face with his hands and said dejectedly, "You guys weren't home during the summer vacation, and the two Zhao Hongbing brothers were in the provincial capital and didn't come home either. So, in the county, we were the only two people we could talk to. One day, Yuanyuan said it was too hot, so she asked me to take her for a walk in the mountains."

Zhang Guoqing knew that something must have happened between the lonely man and the single woman on the mountain. He didn't interrupt, but instead thought that the two of them were quite a good match. Ever since they were admitted to the same university and were in the same class, he and Zhou Jiao had felt that this pair was quite a good match.

"We didn't dare go to Daqing Mountain, so we went to the mountain near the reservoir. It was dry in the summer, and the mountain was scorching hot. We walked for three hours, and by noon we finally found a shady little valley. There was a village not far away, so we planned to play there until dark and stay overnight there..."