Chapter 65
After staying in the rented room for two days, Han Shuo and Meng Yuxiu went to school to register.
This was Han Shuo's second time attending university. He had already experienced the excitement and anticipation of other students back in the 21st century, so going to school to register was no different from any other ordinary day for him.
But Meng Yuxiu was different. Before going to bed that night, he packed the things he would take to school the next day and carefully checked them for Han Shuo.
Then I got up very early the next morning.
Han Shuo was so sleepy that he opened his drowsy eyes and saw Meng Yuxiu quietly putting on his shirt.
"What time is it?"
Meng Yuxiu said, "It's 5:30."
Han Shuo lifted his head from the pillow and glanced out the window, only to see that the sky outside was still a grayish-blue color.
"Why get up so early? It only takes fifteen minutes to ride a bike to school."
While Han Shuo was speaking, Meng Yuxiu had already gotten out of bed and put on his shoes. He leaned down and kissed Han Shuo on the cheek, then whispered, "I'm going to buy breakfast. You can sleep a little longer. I'll wake you up when I'm back."
Han Shuo gave a muffled "hmm," pulled the blanket over himself, closed his eyes, and continued to sleep.
Meng Yuxiu took two yuan from his bag, along with a teacup and a lunchbox, and quietly closed the door.
At 5:30, just as a city is awakening, the once bustling alleyways are now quiet, except for the occasional clear bicycle bell.
However, the breakfast stall at the alley entrance was packed with people. When Meng Yuxiu went there, he couldn't even get into the stall. He could only stand outside and tell the owner that he wanted six steamed buns and two servings of soy milk.
The breakfast stall owner was busy but organized. He tore off a long strip of dough with both hands, spun it twice, and then put it into the oil pan in front of him. He then shouted to his wife, "Six meat buns and two bowls of soy milk!"
Upon hearing this, the proprietress immediately lifted the wooden lid of the steamer, fanned away the billowing steam, and quickly took out six meat buns from the steamer.
Meng Yuxiu handed over the lunchbox in his hand, asking the proprietress to put it inside.
After pouring the soy milk into the teacup, he closed the lid, then carried the teacup in one hand and the lunchbox in the other back to his rented room in the alley.
"Han Shuo, get up."
Han Shuo wanted to continue sleeping, but the room wasn't soundproof. When Meng Yuxiu returned to the room, the sounds of doors opening in the neighboring rooms, the corridor, and the hotel downstairs made it hard for him to sleep.
So he lazily yawned, picked up his washbasin, and went downstairs to wash up.
The two finished breakfast in the room and then prepared to leave for school.
When they came to Hecheng, besides their bankbook and a little over a hundred yuan, their most valuable possession was their bicycle. Meng Yuxiu didn't feel comfortable leaving the bicycle in the alley, so he carried it to the corridor.
When they were about to leave, he carried them down again.
Today was the registration day for all schools, so as the two of them rode their bikes, not only were there cars coming and going on the main streets, but the roadside was also full of students and parents carrying large and small bags.
All the universities in Hecheng are located in the east of the city. Han Shuo and Meng Yuxiu's schools are not far apart; they are just two intersections away and a ten-minute walk away.
Meng Yuxiu rode his bicycle and dropped Han Shuo off at the entrance of Hecheng University.
Han Shuo was only separated for a short time, but Meng Yuxiu was busy like a mother hen.
At this time, the school gate was bustling with people, so he had to raise his voice slightly to talk to Han Shuo. He stopped the car, put down the footrest, handed the water bottle to Han Shuo first, and then took out five yuan from his bag.
Han Shuo asked, "Why are you giving me money?"
Meng Yuxiu: "I don't know when I'll be able to go back today. If I have to stay at school for lunch, take this money and exchange it for food coupons."
Meng Yuxiu and Han Shuo brought their own rice and vegetables from home when they were in high school. Neither of them had attended university in that era, so they were unaware of the specific operations in university cafeterias.
They had asked Meng's father earlier, but he hadn't gone to university either, so he told them uncertainly that it seemed to be something like exchanging for food coupons.
Just in case, Meng Yuxiu told Han Shuo to carry five yuan with him.
Han Shuo praised Meng Yuxiu, "You're so thoughtful! Alright, go to school then. Oh, and don't forget to exchange your food tickets for dinner tonight."
"I know."
Meng Yuxiu did not leave immediately, but watched Han Shuo put the banknotes into his schoolbag.
After Han Shuo finished putting the money away, he rummaged through his backpack again.
Meng Yuxiu said, "The tuition fee is also in there, so don't lose it."
Han Shuo looked at Meng Yuxiu and laughed, "You kid, do you think I'm a child? Don't worry, even if I lose myself, I won't lose my tuition. You go ahead."
"good."
The two were talking at the school gate when a senior student who was welcoming new students saw them and came over to say he would take Han Shuo to register.
With someone leading the way, Meng Yuxiu didn't linger any longer. He watched Han Shuo walk into the school gate before getting on his bicycle.
The senior student led Han Shuo to the registration area and then left, leaving Han Shuo to wait in line.
This era is backward; all procedures are handled manually, which is extremely time-consuming.
Han Shuo's belly wasn't particularly noticeable yet, but his back still ached terribly after standing for a while. Especially as the sun grew stronger, he had to put one hand on his hip and fan himself frantically with the other.
Just as he was fanning himself, someone called his name.
"Han Shuo!"
Han Shuo turned his head and looked.
He spotted a tall, energetic student standing in the line next to him. Upon closer inspection, he exclaimed, "Holy crap! Gao Ze?!"
After exchanging a few words with the middle-aged man next to him, Gao Ze happily stood next to Han Shuo.
Han Shuo was surprised: "You're also from Hecheng University?"
Gao Ze: "Didn't I tell you when you got married? I said I was going to Hecheng University too."
"Really?" Han Shuo laughed. "My memory isn't very good these days, I might have forgotten."
Gao Ze looked around Han Shuo and asked, "Are you alone?"
"Yes, Meng Yuxiu has reported to Jinhua."
"I know," Gao Ze said. "I'm asking if you came to register alone? Where's your brother? Didn't he come with you? And where's your luggage?"
Han Shuo told Gao Ze that he and Meng Yuxiu were currently renting a place to live. Upon hearing this, Gao Ze was filled with envy. Gao Ze had come with his father, who was helping him queue, so he chatted with Han Shuo while waiting in line.
It was only during this conversation that Han Shuo realized that Gao Ze was actually in the same major as him.
Gao Ze was overjoyed to run into an old friend from high school in a foreign land, and kept pulling Han Shuo along, saying he wanted to visit their rented apartment during the holidays.
"Alright, alright, we'll wait for you. Meng Yu and I will prepare a delicious meal to treat you."
The two chatted while queuing. After completing the formalities, Han Shuo was too lazy to explore the campus alone, so he simply accompanied Gao Ze to the dormitory.
After Gao Ze's father helped him make his bed and pack his things, he left. So Han Shuo and Gao Ze went to familiarize themselves with the school environment.
Students can exchange money for food tickets and meal tickets in the cafeteria. If they think the cafeteria meal tickets are too expensive, they can bring their own rice and hand it over to the school cafeteria's grain warehouse. The cafeteria will then exchange the rice for meal tickets based on the weight of the rice.
Han Shuo exchanged three yuan worth of food coupons. As for meal coupons, he planned to have Meng Yuxiu buy a bag of rice when he got back, and then exchange them at the canteen the next day.
After leaving the cafeteria, the two had nothing to do. Han Shuo figured Meng Yuxiu should be arriving soon, so he decided to wait for him at the school gate.
"Why go back so early?" Gao Ze grabbed Han Shuo's arm. "Come on, come on, I brought a basketball. Let's go play. We haven't played basketball together in a long time since we graduated from high school."
Han Shuo is now so out of breath that he can barely walk a few steps on campus, let alone play basketball. He brushed Gao Ze's hand away and said dismissively, "Next time, we'll play next time."
Gao Ze was about to say something, but his gaze wandered aimlessly, sweeping across Han Shuo's shirt. He paused, then looked closer.
"Han Shuo".
"what?"
Gao Ze frowned slightly and hissed, "How come you have a beer belly?"
Aside from his family, Han Shuo, a grown man, wouldn't deliberately tell others that he was pregnant. Besides, he was quite embarrassed about getting pregnant while in college.
When he was at home, Han Hong heard from somewhere that he should relax and that many college students get pregnant and bring their babies to school, so there was nothing special about it.
But when Han Shuo arrived today, he didn't see a single pregnant woman, let alone a man with a big belly. All he could see were vibrant, youthful students.
So he was too embarrassed to tell Gao Ze.
Let's wait until my belly is big enough to be clearly visible before we talk about it.
Han Shuo vaguely changed the subject, saying to Gao Ze, "Hey, men get beer bellies after marriage, it's normal."
Gao Ze's eyes widened slightly. "Really? That's terrifying! Could it be that Meng Yuxiu has grown that size too?"
Han Shuo gave a stiff, dry laugh and said, "He doesn't. He takes good care of himself."
However, the next day, the whole school found out that he was pregnant and going to school.
Because the freshmen have started military training.
The next day, Meng Yuxiu took Han Shuo to school and helped him take the rice he bought the day before to the cafeteria to exchange for meal tickets. Before leaving, he reminded him to report to the school.
From last night until this morning, Meng Yuxiu kept reminding him not to participate in military training, and Han Shuo was so tired of hearing it that his ears were calloused.
"I understand, I understand," Han Shuo reassured him. "I will report it to the authorities."
"No military training."
"Don't worry." Han Shuo couldn't stand it anymore. "I know what's important. I'm still waiting to give birth and complete my mission."
Meng Yuxiu relaxed slightly after hearing this.
Han Shuo would never joke about his own health. In fact, even without Meng Yuxiu's reminder, he would have reported it on his own.
The school's loudspeakers blared rousing music as the freshmen lined up in rows on the playground.
Gao Ze stood in the queue, craning his neck and looking around, wondering why he couldn't see Han Shuo.
After he and the other freshmen had stood at attention for half an hour, he saw Han Shuo walk past from the other end of the playground.
The instructor noticed a student peeking out of the line, walked over, grabbed a megaphone, and gave Gao Ze a good scolding.
"Stand still! What are you looking at!"
Gao Ze immediately looked away, but he couldn't resist his curiosity and asked, "Why don't my classmates have military training?"
Han Shuo's report has been communicated to the instructors.
The instructor spoke into the loudspeaker in a clear and resonant voice: "If you're pregnant, you don't have to do military training!"
In an instant, the freshmen on the playground chuckled quietly.
"Oh." Gao Ze nodded blankly, thinking to himself, what the hell is this? Why is she talking about pregnancy with someone who's the top?
However, just as he was about to continue standing at attention, he suddenly realized something and was so shocked that his mouth dropped open.
Han Shuo happened to hear this sentence when he walked to the school gate.
He muttered a frustrated curse under his breath.
Even if a man can get pregnant, doesn't he have any pride as a man?! Han Shuo cursed as he walked out of the school gate, planning to come back another day and file a complaint. What kind of quality is this? Third-rate university produces third-rate instructors, it's truly outrageous!
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