Chapter 35

The next morning at eight o'clock.

All the students in dormitory 506 went to the opening ceremony of the School of Arts on an empty stomach.

At first glance, the auditorium was filled with girls, and the boys were like weeds, scattered here and there.

Lin Jiu and her classmates were in Chinese Class 1, which had only three boys. Zhou Jingmeng sighed quietly, "There are more girls than boys. In college, boys are actually the most sought-after."

Tang Yazhi glanced at her and said, "What's wrong? Are you feeling amorous? I have a lot of friends, I can introduce a few to you."

Zhou Jingmeng leaned over to her and asked, "Are you from our school?"

Tang Yazhi touched her chin and thought carefully for a few seconds: "There are people from our school. I will invite you to join us when we have a party later."

"Okay, it's a deal."

Zhou Jingmeng stretched out his little finger and made a pinky promise with Tang Yazhi to reach an agreement.

Lin Jiu leaned close to Zhou Jingmeng's ear and whispered, "This kind of party is similar to a blind date. Don't have too high expectations. It's better to just hope to meet a handsome young man on campus."

Zhou Jingmeng glanced at Lin Jiu, not knowing what he was thinking.

She looked at Lin Jiu's right hand on her leg, and touched the back of her hand with her left hand. "Let me borrow your luck."

Lin Jiu was caught off guard by having her hand touched. She felt like a decent woman being taken advantage of by a man. She almost couldn't help but throw Zhou Jingmeng's hand away, "...You didn't even tell me in advance. You scared me to death."

After touching her long enough, Zhou Jingmeng moved his claws away contentedly, "Hehe, it was just a spur-of-the-moment decision...but your hands are really smooth, white and tender, and quite nice to touch."

"......" Tang Yazhi and Liu Qing both covered their foreheads with their hands.

Lin Jiu withdrew his right hand from his leg, clasped his hands in front of his chest, and moved slightly to the left, as if moving away from Zhou Jingmeng.

-

After the opening ceremony.

Lin Jiucai officially started his university life.

Lin Jiu and Chen Miao both had a lot of classes, and their shared leisure time was very limited. However, no matter how busy they were, they would always make time to see each other regularly within three days.

They met in the cafeteria for meals, walked on the playground, and interacted normally like other couples.

However, they rarely touched each other physically, and did not look like a couple in the honeymoon period at all.

It seems like there's always something missing!

Although things were a little dull when the two of them were together, they had basically no complaints about it.

It was like returning to the way they used to get along in high school. Just walking together and seeing each other seemed to be enough for them.

Now, the biggest difference from high school is that we now have the status of boyfriend and girlfriend.

The relationship hasn't fully heated up yet.

-

One Wednesday night.

After Lin Jiu and Zhou Jingmeng finished their meal, they went to the express delivery point near the third canteen to pick up six parcels.

Among them, Lin Jiu had one, Zhou Jingmeng had two, and the other three were for Liu Qing and Tang Yazhi respectively.

Liu Qing had an appointment, but it wasn't clear who it was with. As for Tang Yazhi, she was out for dinner again.

When the two were riding shared bicycles and approaching the dormitory building, they saw a circle of people gathered in the corner in front of the dormitory building, three layers inside and three layers outside, flashing the flashlights on their mobile phones, and occasionally there were cheers.

This scene is like a confession.

Lin Jiu and Zhou Jingmeng are both people who are keen on watching the fun.

Especially this kind of big excitement of confession.

The two of them parked the shared bicycles tacitly, and without picking up the express delivery in the box in front, they ran over to watch.

After great effort, Lin Jiu and Zhou Jingmeng squeezed to the innermost layer and saw the male and female protagonists inside.

When he saw the heroine, Lin Jiu widened his eyes slightly and couldn't help but look at Zhou Jingmeng next to him.

At the same time, Zhou Jingmeng looked at her with his mouth slightly open.

They just happened to look each other in the eye.

Both of them had shocked eyes and a sense of confusion, as if they were eating melons that turned out to be from their own family.

The heroine in the circle of heart-shaped candles was Liu Qing, who already had a date.

She was wearing a light green plaid dress, with her hair down and her hands slung over her shoulders.

The male protagonist opposite her looked half a head taller than her, probably around 170cm tall. He was quite handsome, had a buzz cut, and was wearing a white shirt and light-colored jeans.

After their eyes met for a few seconds, Lin Jiu and Zhou Jingmeng turned their heads and immediately paid attention to the two people in the circle.

After listening for a few seconds, Lin Jiu realized that the confession seemed to be coming to an end.

The second before the male protagonist blurted out "I like you", she immediately took out her mobile phone from her pocket, turned on the camera mode, and started recording a short video -

The male protagonist approached Liu Qing and presented her with a large bouquet of pink roses. Liu Qing nodded slightly and took the flowers. The male protagonist was very excited and immediately hugged her tightly in his arms.

The video recording ends here.

There were quite a few boys around, probably there to cheer for the male lead. After seeing them hug, one boy shouted: "Give me a kiss."

Someone in the crowd immediately responded loudly.

Just like that, the sound waves grew louder and louder like a surging tide.

The male protagonist took a half step back, and in full view of everyone, took advantage of the momentum to kiss her.

Liu Qing didn't push away.

Zhou Jingmeng next to her suddenly grabbed her exposed arm with both hands, seeming a little excited, immersed in this beautiful campus confession.

Lin Jiu did not pull his arm away because Zhou Jingmeng was not very strong.

Looking at the two people kissing, Lin Jiu frowned and immediately looked down at the bow on his black and white sneakers.

After they broke their kiss and the crowd gradually dispersed, she raised her head.

At this time, Zhou Jingmeng had already let go of her, approached her and whispered, "Do you want to say hello?"

Lin Jiu slowly shook his head, "Let's go upstairs first."

The two of them probably need to stay for a while longer, so she and Zhou Jingmeng should not disturb them.

After saying that, Lin Jiu walked ahead, and Zhou Jingmeng followed her with big strides.

"Hey, where are you going?" Zhou Jingmeng watched Lin Jiu passing by the gate, and stopped without reacting.

It wasn't until Lin Jiu took the express delivery out of the shared bicycle that she realized she still had the express delivery.

I've been watching so much fun that my brain is a little blurry.

She immediately ran over, picked up her express delivery, and went into the dormitory building with Lin Jiu.

"I really didn't expect that Liu Qing would get a boyfriend so soon!" Zhou Jingmeng was quite emotional.

Lin Jiu stepped sideways on the steps and passed by a girl. "Indeed, I thought you would have a boyfriend first. After all, you seem more positive."

Zhou Jingmeng frowned, "Really? I've been shouting about looking for him every day, but there's not even a trace of him!"

"Didn't you go to a party with Tang Yazhi yesterday? No one was suitable?"

Lin Jiu spent some time in the library last night, then immediately showered and went to bed after returning to the dormitory. She had originally wanted to wait for Zhou Jingmeng to come back and ask what happened, but the class was too exhausting and she fell asleep from exhaustion.

When they were having dinner together in the evening, Zhou Jingmeng looked listless, so she didn't ask and didn't understand the situation.

Zhou Jingmeng took two steps at a time, crossed the two steps, and stood on the same level as Lin Jiu.

She sighed, then said, "Don't mention it. It's hard to explain. I had too high expectations. I didn't expect all the boys in the School of Economics to be as handsome as Chen Miao, but I'd accept above-average looks. But... they turned out to be a bunch of misfits, and they were incredibly confident. Throughout the meal, they were bragging to the heavens. If Tang Yazhi hadn't held me back, I would have left early."

Lin Jiu had not expected this to happen at all, and frowned in thought.

Although she knew that Tang Yazhi was keen on dinner parties, liked to play a little, and was a little restless, she could generally feel that she was not a bad person.

Logically speaking, she wouldn't introduce such a person to Zhou Jingmeng.

After a few seconds, she asked, "Did Tang Yazhi say anything to you when she came back?"

Zhou Jingmeng lifted her leg slightly to cushion the package that was about to fall from her right hand, then grabbed another handful with her hand before answering, "When she came back, she told me that all the boys she knew from our school were like this, and that boys from other schools she knew were like this too. She also said that this dinner was a lesson for me, telling me not to have too high expectations of boys."

Lin Jiu listened quietly.

Zhou Jingmeng seemed to have encountered some kind of problem, mumbling to herself in confusion, as if asking Lin Jiu, but also as if asking herself, "...It's really strange. If she knew, then why did she still have dinner with those boys? Actually, I can see that she doesn't like those guys either. It seems that Chunchun seems to be playing with them on the surface, but in reality, she doesn't take them seriously and occasionally ignores them."

Lin Jiu had no answer for Zhou Jingmeng's doubts. Tang Yazhi was a bit mysterious. Apart from being in the dormitory more often during military training, she seemed to be out all the time.

Looking up at the sign for the fifth floor, Lin Jiu thought that she had finally arrived. Her arms were a little sore.

Her left hand was light, carrying her package: five pairs of socks. Her right hand was heavy: a pair of shoes, the packaging box large and difficult to lift. There was also a heavy, chunky object, similar in weight to clothing.

When he reached the dormitory door, Lin Jiu let go of the two express packages and let them fall to the ground.

He took the key out of his pocket, opened the door, and moved to the side to make way for Zhou Jingmeng behind him. After she passed, he moved the package on the ground to Tang Yazhi's desk.

She first went to the sink at the door to fill her hands with water, then walked to the cabinet and raised her hands to move her stiff arms.

Suddenly, as if remembering something, she looked at Zhou Jingmeng and asked, "Didn't you notice someone was pursuing Liu Qing? Didn't she even tell you?"

Zhou Jingmeng cut open the bag with a craft knife and said as she unpacked the package, "It's not like we were together every day... Now that I think about it, she was chatting on her phone a little more often during the day. As for her boyfriend, she hasn't mentioned him to me. I guess she's still in the pursuit stage and is too embarrassed to tell me."

"That's probably the case. We'll question her when she comes back later." Lin Jiu said.

Zhou Jingmeng was thinking the same thing. After hearing what Lin Jiu said, he felt inexplicably impatient. "We really need to ask her. She's hiding it too deeply. We can't let her go."

-

After the lights were turned off, the four people in the dormitory lay on their beds.

Zhou Jingmeng lay flat on the bed, breaking the silence in the dormitory, "Oh, why did someone bring flowers and a teddy bear back today?" Her tone was casual, as if she mentioned it casually.

Liu Qing was originally lying on the bed, the dim light from her phone shining on her face, and she smiled sweetly. Hearing this, she said a little shyly, "Today, a senior confessed to me, and I accepted."

"Confession?" Upon hearing this sensitive word, Tang Yazhi immediately put down her phone and joined the group chat.

Zhou Jingmeng leaned over to explain, "When I returned to the dormitory today, there was a huge scene downstairs. I looked closer and saw that I had eaten the melon from my own dormitory."

Liu Qing was totally surprised and asked in surprise: "Ah? You saw it?"

Zhou Jingmeng turned sideways and looked at the bed opposite him, "It's not just me, Lin Jiu saw it too."

After hearing this, Tang Yazhi sat up in disbelief and pointed at herself: "I'm the last one to know?!"

Seeing her excitement, Zhou Jingmeng complained directly: "Why are you so surprised? Isn't it normal for you to be out of touch with information when you come back so late every day?"

"Okay, that's true." Tang Yazhi calmed down and asked, "So what's going on?"

Zhou Jingmeng: "I'll hand the microphone over to Liu Qing."

Lin Jiu: "I second." She was originally lying flat on her back, but in order to listen more conveniently, she immediately turned over, slightly propped up her upper body with her elbows, and looked at Liu Qing, who was less than ten centimeters away.

Faced with the gossiping trio, Liu Qing surrendered and spilled the beans: "My boyfriend's name is Tan Tian, ​​a sophomore in the School of Materials Science and Engineering. On the night of the opening ceremony, I was walking past the basketball court with a package when he hit me. Afterwards, we added each other on WeChat. He kept chatting with me, and he often invited me out for milk tea and barbecue in the evenings. Today, I thought we were just going to have a simple meal, but he confessed his love to me."

No wonder Liu Qing rarely returned to the dormitory after dinner. So that was the reason. It was so hard to hide it from her! However, Zhou Jingmeng discovered a blind spot. In the dark, she counted on her fingers and said, "You've only known each other for less than ten days. It's too fast!"

Tang Yazhi glanced at Zhou Jingmeng and said, "As long as one's character is good, time is definitely not a problem."

Lin Jiu asked: "In such a short time, are you sure you like him?"

After a few seconds of silence, Liu Qing slowly spoke: "I do like him a little bit. He has a cheerful personality and a good temper. More importantly, I think he treats me well, so I agreed to be his girlfriend."

Lin Jiu changed his position and lay down, resting his chin on the pillow. "Just think it through."

Zhou Jingmeng suddenly remembered the kissing scene downstairs and gossiped, "Hey, what did you feel when you were kissing downstairs? I was so excited watching it, and it felt so magical at the same time."

"Oh, how can I say this!" Liu Qing embarrassedly pulled up the quilt beside him to cover his head.

Tang Yazhi slowly moved towards Zhou Jingmeng and asked quietly, "Didn't you just confess your love? Why are you kissing now?"

Zhou Jingmeng: "It was all that group of people who started the fun, which led to the rapid progress. They were all just there to join in the fun."

"Liu Qing, please don't mind my directness," Tang Yazhi said, looking at the cricket pupa lying in the quilt. "You're really moving too fast in your relationship. It's not common to kiss right after confessing. Don't tell me he's a scumbag. You better be careful."

After hearing this, Liu Qing slowly emerged from the quilt and quietly argued, "That shouldn't be the case. I think he's a nice guy. Besides, we only kissed once, and after that we just held hands."

Tang Yazhi shook her head, thinking that Liu Qing was simply naive: "...Silly girl, how can you be so naive."

Zhou Jingmeng remembered how Tang Yazhi had treated him like a child yesterday, and immediately became furious. "Tang Yazhi, come on, you're the only one who's smart, and we're all idiots." After a pause, he sneered, "You've never been in a relationship, so how can you have a say?"

Tang Yazhi had no way to refute: "..." She was good at theory but had zero practical experience.

The room was silent for a few seconds.

Liu Qing suddenly adjusted his posture, straightening his neck in a strange way, and looked at Lin Jiu, who hadn't spoken in a long time and was the only one who was no longer single. "Am I really progressing too fast in my relationship?"

Zhou Jingmeng: "Yes, yes, yes, I almost forgot that Lin Jiu has a boyfriend. Tell me about it."

Tang Yazhi also looked at Lin Jiu and waited quietly for her answer.

Lin Jiu held the hammer and felt a surge of pressure. "My feelings may not be accurate, and I'm not responsible for them."

Liu Qing: "...It's okay, go ahead."

When people lack confidence, they always make all kinds of small movements and the pre-swing is very long.

Lin Jiu sat up slowly, reached out to tuck the hair on his face behind his ear, swallowed, and said carefully: "I think it's a bit fast, but..."

Before she finished speaking, Tang Yazhi immediately interrupted, very proudly: "I'll tell you."

Zhou Jingmeng scolded him slightly: "Do you understand something? Don't interrupt me."

Tang Yazhi snorted and said nothing.

Lin Jiu continued, "...Every couple has different personalities and different ways of interacting with each other. There are no set standards in this world that dictate when couples should do what. The speed of a relationship's progress is relative."

She then tactfully expressed her true feelings: "I'm a bit slow to warm up... In my opinion, since you two have only known each other for a short time and have just confirmed your relationship and you're already kissing, I think Tan Tian is a bit frivolous. Also, if he just goes along with someone else's instigation, he either has no opinion or is doing it on purpose. He has no respect for you at all."

These words were harsh; no one would be happy to hear someone say that about their boyfriend. However, Lin Jiu felt she needed to express her thoughts and give Liu Qing a heads-up. Then, she suddenly wanted to say something to avoid Liu Qing alienating her or holding a grudge against her in the future.

After a few seconds' pause, she continued, "However, Liu Qing, you are an adult and you are in a relationship. Everything should be based on your feelings. After all, I don't know Tan Tian, ​​so the above is purely speculation and too subjective. Since you are already in a relationship, my advice to you is to be more careful and protect yourself."

As soon as he finished speaking, Zhou Jingmeng and Tang Yazhi applauded. Lin Jiu's words meant that none of their opinions were wrong.

After a moment, Liu Qing looked at Lin Jiu sincerely and said, "Thank you. I'll remember that."

In an instant, Lin Jiu had a new understanding of Liu Qing. She had such a good temper that she was not angry at all.

Lin Jiu touched her hair and felt a little guilty. She was confused in her own relationship and had no right to give advice.

Liu Qing and Tan Tian's relationship progressed very quickly, but her relationship with Chen Miao progressed very slowly. It's really extreme.

So far, the most intimate physical contact Chen Miao has had with her is pulling her wrist.

They haven't even held hands yet...

Lin Jiu reflected seriously and realized that she was too slow, but for some reason Chen Miao just went along with her.

It's time for her to take the initiative to push the progress forward.