Hot meat buns
As dawn broke, Jiang Yichun stood in the queue at the cafeteria, yawning as he waited for his steamed meat buns to come out of the steamer.
It's another dizzying Monday, another sleepy 8 AM session.
"Xiaochun, what's wrong? Didn't you sleep well last night?" Zhang Xingxing stood in front of her, turned around, and saw dark circles under her eyes.
Jiang Yichun nodded vigorously. Ever since she got drunk that night, she had spent almost all her time in the library these past few days.
She not only had to review materials for graduate school entrance exams, but also complete group assignments for her courses. She completely immersed herself in the ocean of knowledge, only able to truly relax for a short while during mealtimes.
She rubbed her head, looking at the steaming basket, her thoughts gradually drifting away.
She recalled the shameful moments from that night, and her ears burned.
Speaking of which... I haven't seen He Yinxin for three or four days.
And then there's Sister Xixi. We haven't been in touch since we said goodnight to each other that day.
The excitement and complex emotions gradually subsided with the temporary disconnection, and Jiang Yichun returned to her comfort zone.
Although this comfort zone always made her feel a little bitter.
"Koharu?"
A deep voice sounded in her ear.
A familiar scent of kapok blossoms lingered around her nose.
Jiang Yichun shuddered and turned around.
He Yinxin happened to be standing right behind her.
He was wearing a long coat, his hair still neatly styled and hanging down his forehead. He wasn't wearing glasses today, and his almond-shaped eyes were clear and bright.
He wasn't wearing a scarf around his neck; instead, he wore a light gray turtleneck sweater.
Her heart was pounding, but she asked the question she was most curious about:
"Old He? I haven't seen you go for your LASIK surgery these past few days?"
"..."
He Yinxin's Adam's apple bobbed.
"I... my nearsightedness wasn't that bad to begin with, I just forgot to bring my glasses when I went out this morning."
He gently slid his index finger across the bridge of his nose.
Jiang Yichun frowned and gave a dry laugh: "Oh, oh, I see."
"So, Lao He, what are you going to do? Are you also going to get up at 8 a.m.?"
He Yinxin shook her head: "Something came up. My advisor asked me to go and do some work for him."
It turned out he was just like him, a fellow "ox or horse." Jiang Yichun raised his hand, intending to pat him on the shoulder.
Before her hand landed on him, she remembered something, then turned her hand away and smoothed the ends of her hair.
"Oh, I see. I also have to work 8 AM. We're in the same boat."
He Yinxin gave a soft "hmm".
His gaze shifted from Jiang Yichun to the steaming bamboo steamer on the side.
"Xiaochun, what did you have for breakfast?"
Jiang Yichun waved her hand, getting excited at the mention of food: "Of course, it's the big meat bun! The meat buns in the cafeteria are so delicious, soft skin, lots of meat, and only two yuan!"
He Yinxin turned back around: "Really? I... I've had them before, the meat buns are indeed quite delicious."
“Then how about…” Jiang Yichun’s eyes lit up, “I’ll choose this place for my first job this week? We can work together, together…”
She turned around, her voice trailing off: "Let's eat meat buns together. My roommate's here too, so maybe..."
"It's okay, you guys eat." Zhang Xingxing turned around and smiled at the two of them. "Xiaochun, I need to go to the classroom to copy the PPT first, and I'll save you a seat while I'm at it."
Jiang Yichun turned his head away, and Zhang Xingxing smiled at them, then strode away carrying a bag of soy milk and two shumai.
"Hey, Xingxing!" Jiang Yichun tried to call out to her, but Zhang Xingxing had already strode away and disappeared at the cafeteria entrance.
The queue had already reached the window.
Jiang Yichun gritted his teeth and had no choice but to start buying breakfast: "Auntie, I want a meat bun and a cup of soy milk."
The cafeteria worker quickly put a meat bun in a plastic bag, then grabbed a bag of soy milk from the side, swiped her campus card, and with a series of smooth movements, Jiang Yichun already had a bun and soy milk in her hand.
"Next."
He Yinxin stepped forward and said, "Auntie, I'd like a meat bun, a boiled egg, and some soy milk."
"Oh, it's just one more egg than the girl in front." The aunt was taken aback for a moment, then nodded.
"Uh, um, that's right." He Yinxin smiled and coughed lightly.
Jiang Yichun's fingers, which were gripping the plastic bag, trembled slightly.
Her mind went blank again until He Yinxin walked up to her.
"Xiaochun, shall we eat in the cafeteria or eat on the go?" He lowered his eyes, standing beside her, always keeping a distance between them.
Jiang Yichun looked down at his phone: "It's still early before class, Lao He, if you're not in a hurry, let's eat in the cafeteria."
He Yinxin smiled slightly and nodded in acknowledgment.
The two sat down facing each other at a table in the cafeteria.
As soon as Jiang Yichun sat down, he began to gnaw on the steaming hot meat bun.
The meat buns are large with thin skin, and a layer of oil seeps out from the clean white bun skin.
She took a big bite, and the fluffy dough encasing the juicy meat filling burst onto her tongue in an instant.
Jiang Yichun squinted, all the fatigue and anxiety of the past few days vanishing the moment he took a bite of the hot bun.
She looked up and met He Yinxin's gaze.
His clear eyes were fixed on him, and a smile played on his lips.
"Huh?" Jiang Yichun's hand trembled, and he quickly looked away. "Old He, these buns are delicious. You, you should eat them."
As she spoke, her gaze remained fixed on him.
He also had two bright dark circles under his eyes.
He Yinxin curled her hand holding the steamed bun, then lowered her head and took a bite.
The soft texture, the slightly sweet meat filling, and the piping hot meat juices burst on his tongue, dispelling the gloomy and oppressive feeling he had been experiencing for the past few days.
And that damned "calorie data" that had been swirling around him for days had long been forgotten by the aroma of meat.
The gloom on his face gradually dissipated, revealing a smile: "Yes. I ate it, it was delicious."
Jiang Yichun almost spat out the soy milk he was drinking.
He...he smiled?
She could almost hear the words from the theater: "Young Master hasn't laughed like that in a long time."
"Pfft." Jiang Yichun covered his mouth and laughed out loud.
"Hahaha……"
When He Yinxin saw the girl laughing so hard she could hardly breathe, his ears burned, and he quickly suppressed his smile: "What's wrong, Xiaochun... is it funny that I'm eating steamed buns?"
Jiang Yichun shook his head, because the relaxed atmosphere made him start rambling again: "No, it's just that I understand why you can't see the calories when you eat with me."
"I feel like you're a special friend to me too."
As soon as she finished speaking, she saw He Yinxin's smile freeze on his face, and his cheeks turned bright red.
That statement seems a bit odd!
Jiang Yichun finally came to her senses. She buried her head and ate a few bites of steamed buns, then gulped down a mouthful of soy milk, and finally could only let out a long sigh.
That sip of soy milk made her body feel hot all over again.
"Really? That's good." He Yixin's calm voice sounded in her ear. "By the way, Xiaochun, how have you been these past few days? Have you been resting well?"
Jiang Yichun rubbed his slightly rough skin, recalling the past few days of studying in the library day and night, and how he had intentionally or unintentionally lost contact with him because of his drunkenness, and shook his head.
"Are you... busy with your studies?"
"Yeah, I'm exhausted. My skin looks terrible, and I've got dark circles and pimples." Jiang Yichun got more and more excited as he spoke. "I still have to prepare a presentation PPT today, it's really..."
"The class at 8 a.m. today... is about international banking investment, right?" He Yinxin looked at her.
"Huh? Old He, how did you know?"
He Yinxin looked away and picked up a boiled egg to peel: "Oh, I glanced at it when we were going over the schedules earlier. The teachers for your courses must have pretty high standards."
“Yes, yes, he’s very strict. We’ve revised the PPT and the presentation several times, and we still have no idea what to expect. This presentation is a big part of the overall score.” Jiang Yichun sighed. “I have to go up on stage to give the presentation in a bit, this is so worrying.”
He Yinxin's gentle voice sounded beside her: "It's okay, you're so outstanding, Professor Lin will give you a good grade."
"Keep it up, Xiaochun."
Jiang Yichun stared at his face and almost choked on the soy milk again.
No, is this He Yinxin?
Who is this gentle-voiced, bright-smiling guy, He Yinxin?
I haven't seen him for three or four days. Could he have been abducted by aliens for experiments, with their brains modified or something altered? Or maybe he's been replaced by a completely different person?
Or did they replace the CPU on his machine? Did they choose a more humane mode?
Although she was mentally ranting, she still spoke politely: "Yes, thank you, Lao He, I will try my best."
"Okay, okay, that's all for today's work. I need to go... to class. It's already 7:40, I need to get ready a bit more."
Unable to contain her racing heart, with her apple-like face flushed, she stood up, slung her bag over her shoulder, tossed it at him, and strode toward the cafeteria entrance.
He Yinxin's smile gradually faded. He nodded and waved to her, "Okay, go ahead."
"all the best."
He watched her still-swaying ponytail, swallowed the last bite of egg, reached out, and gently grasped her retreating figure in his palm.
The guilt I felt from being deceived seemed to be cracked open like an eggshell.
He Yinxin took out her phone and opened the memo titled "Small Things Related to Jiang Yichun".
Xiaochun doesn't like men getting too close to her; a proper distance should be maintained, but she shouldn't lack care.
Xiaochun will have breakfast at the second cafeteria around 7:00 AM.
[After observing her for several days, it was determined that she likes to eat meat buns with soy milk.]
The meat buns at the second canteen are really good.
He smiled and added a few words to his memo: "[Verified today: The 'Gentle' plan is executing well.]"
Seeing her definitely put me in a better mood than usual. Therefore, the contract is bound to have a positive outcome. Regardless of how our relationship develops in the future, I will definitely help Xiaochun successfully gain admission to A University for graduate studies.
[We only need to handle the uncontrollable variable of "Xi Xi" with care.]
He stared at the name "Xi Xi," and the smile on his face froze again.
The girl in his memo was walking briskly towards the classroom.
Jiang Yichun patted his burning cheeks as he walked.
He Yinxin is acting so strange today! Isn't he an AI?! Why is he being so gentle...?
But something doesn't seem right with me. Why did I tell him he was my special friend?
Moreover, I even told him about my academic pressure, something I usually only dared to tell my sister Xixi.
This new version of Lao He does look somewhat similar to Sister Xi Xi.
Jiang Yichun clutched her chest, feeling her heart pounding, and her legs went weak.
His clear almond-shaped eyes kept darting in front of her.
How could someone as meticulous as He Yinxin forget to wear his glasses?
He won't...
Impossible! AI only imitates humans; how could it have human emotions?
"Jiang Yichun, what are you standing here for?" A familiar voice rang in her ears.
Jiang Yichun was pulled back to reality by the barbed voice, and she found herself standing at the classroom door.
"What's wrong? Did dating a graduate student make you lose your mind?"
Jiang Yichun turned around and saw Qiao Maizi with her chin tilted back and a mocking smile on her lips.
"Jiang Yichun, move aside, you're blocking my way."
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