Kong Liu smiled and said to his mother, "Alright, you guys go have fun."
"Jealous? Who told you not to come!" His mother said with a hint of smugness. "I told you long ago to ask your advisor for a long leave and join us for a round-the-world trip, but you stubbornly refused."
Hearing this, Kong Liu gave a wry smile and said, "I have to put my studies first, don't I? Besides, you can go traveling anytime."
His mother retorted, "You're about to study yourself into a bookworm, and you're still talking about studying!"
"Alright, alright, the boy has a point. He can travel after he graduates." His father, who had been silent until now, interrupted them. "Our son has had great grades since he was little, so we don't need to worry about him. Why are you picking a fight?"
"Exactly," Kong Liu chimed in, backing up his father. "Besides, you two are an old married couple on your honeymoon. It wouldn't be appropriate for me to tag along."
"Go on, go on! What old married couple? Your mother is still as young as ever!"
His mother pointed at Kong Liu and said, "Don't tell me you came home today just to pack those two ragged shirts to take back to school?"
"What's ragged about them? Aren't they all fine?"
With that, Kong Liu unfolded the shirt he had just finished folding and showed it to his mother.
His mother curled her lips in disgust, patted his father's arm, and said, "Old Kong, look at your son. Every day he wears this cheap street-market junk, looking like a beggar. Aren't you going to say anything to him?"
"Pfft..."
Being called a beggar by his own mother, Kong Liu felt a sudden urge to spit blood internally.
His old father gave a helpless, wry smile and said, "The money I transfer to his bank account is enough for him to open a clothing factory. He insists on dressing like this himself—what can I do? You can't control him, and you expect me to?"
Unwilling to continue this debate with his parents, Kong Liu said, "Dad, Mom, have a good time. I'm heading back to school once I finish packing."
"Alright," his mother nodded and said. "Hurry up and throw away those ragged clothes, and go buy a few decent ones. Dressing like a beggar, you deserve not to have a girlfriend."
"Cough, cough..."
Blushing, Kong Liu nodded in agreement with his mother.
"Oh, right." Just as she was about to hang up, his mother suddenly remembered something and said, "We mailed you some local specialties from here. They were sent to your school, so remember to go pick them up."
"Huh? Local specialties? What kind?"
Before Kong Liu could finish asking, his mother had already hung up the phone.
Kong Liu gave a wry smile and went back to packing his clothes.
Just as he finished packing, his phone chimed with a message notification.
It was from Gu Chenxi. The girl had probably just finished eating, which meant she had time to come bother him.
"Babe, what are you doing? Have you eaten?"
"Babe, I'm at home. I just finished packing my clothes, and I haven't eaten yet. I'm heading back to school now, and later I'm having a get-together with my roommates."
Ever since he found out that Gu Chenxi was actually his online girlfriend, every time Kong Liu sent the word "babe" to Xixi, it felt a little weird.
"Going back to JiaoDa?"
Kong Liu replied, "Yeah."
"Then after your gathering later, let's carve out some time to meet up."
[Shy kitten]
Looking at the message from Gu Chenxi, Kong Liu gave a wry smile internally. This girl was dead set on meeting him in real life.
Seeing that Kong Liu didn't reply, Gu Chenxi sent another message: "Are you unwilling to meet me because you're worried I'm an ugly monster? Rest assured, I am very pretty. Having a great beauty like me as your girlfriend will definitely bring you face!"
Kong Liu couldn't help laughing as he looked at the message, thinking to himself: "Someone as aloof and cold as Campus Belle Gu turns out to be quite a low-key romantic in private."
He replied, "Let's forget it, then. I'm super ugly and don't match up to you at all."
"Why are you saying things like that? I don't like you for your looks!"
[Pink little pig]
"Babe, even if you looked like that, I still wouldn't mind you at all!"
Kong Liu looked at the sticker, thought about it for two seconds, and replied: "What if... what if I happen to look a lot like that guy you hate?"
The other side replied almost instantly: "No way!"
Seeing the instant reply, Kong Liu thought to himself: "Just how much does Gu Chenxi hate me to be able to reply without a second's hesitation?"
Kong Liu replied, "Didn't you say you wouldn't mind whatever I looked like?"
"Well... although the guy I hate is somewhat passable-looking, you simply cannot look like him because he talked bad about me, and I hate him!"
"Holding a grudge over a single bad remark until now—this little girl sure knows how to hold a grudge. And what does 'somewhat passable-looking' even mean?"
Kong Liu muttered to himself, turned his head to glance at the full-length mirror in the room. Although his clothes were a bit plain, his looks were definitely top-tier.
The Business School was full of handsome guys and beauties, and even though Gu Chenxi was the campus belle, Kong Liu was certainly considered a top-tier figure among the guys.
Normally, Kong Liu had quite a few little fan girls. Back when the semester had just started, his figure frequently popped up on the school's confession wall.
Kong Liu pondered for a moment and replied: "Babe, let's hold off on meeting up for a bit."
[Angry kitten]
"I'm ignoring you, humph!"
Kong Liu gave a wry smile at Gu Chenxi's message, sat down on the bed, and coaxed her for a long time.
Gu Chenxi wanted him to play video games with her. Realizing it was getting late, Kong Liu told her he had to catch a ride back to school and would play games with her a bit later.
She obediently replied with a cat sticker saying [Waiting for hubby to come home]. She really loved sending kitten stickers.
Yet who would have thought that the person sending such adorable stickers was an aloof, noble, and stunning beauty?
(End of chapter)
Chapter 4: A Coincidental Encounter
The butler offered to drive Kong Liu to school, but Kong Liu refused.
Kong Liu hailed a ride-sharing car, and the butler immediately helped him carry the bag containing his winter clothes into the vehicle, respectfully opening the back door for him.
Watching until Kong Liu's car pulled away, the butler turned and walked back inside.
In the car, Kong Liu was being bombarded with urging messages from his roommates. Tonight was the gathering for the four guys in the dorm, but Kong Liu still hadn't returned, and his roommates were all waiting at school.
...
An hour later, at a food stall on the school's back street, the four roommates of Kong Liu's dorm finally gathered.
"Old Liu, you brat, drink one as a forfeit!"
Wang Qi, the dorm leader, poured a glass of alcohol for Kong Liu as he spoke. Wang Qi was a northerner, forthright and loyal, and acted as the big brother of the dorm.
"Sorry to keep you all waiting for so long." Kong Liu smiled, picked up his glass, and downed it in one go.
Beside him, a guy with a flashy 3-7 parting nudged Kong Liu with his elbow and said, "I bet you brat stayed at Campus Belle Gu's place and couldn't bear to leave, didn't you?"
His name was Du Hongyuan, a native of Zhonghai who grew up running around the old alleyways. His greatest strength was being exceptionally good at fighting, and his weakness was even more obvious—womanizing.
In his own words, his ancestor was Du Yuesheng, so he was naturally destined to be the boss of Zhonghai. Wine, women, wealth, and power were the essential attributes a boss must possess.
"Cut it out, she didn't give me a pleasant look at all."
Kong Liu rolled his eyes at Du Hongyuan and said, "You bear half the responsibility for my feud with her!"
Back on the night of the freshman welcome party, it was this guy who sat next to Kong Liu and gossiped about Gu Chenxi's appearance, which led to all the events that followed.
"Cough, cough..."
Du Hongyuan raised his glass and took a drink to express his apology.
After taking a sip, Du Hongyuan's gaze fell upon the chubby guy sitting quietly to the side drinking cola, and he said, "Little Chen, stop drinking soda, come try this stuff. It packs a much bigger punch than cola."
The chubby guy was named Chen Zhirui. He was the youngest in the dorm, didn't smoke or drink, and was honest and reticent by nature, yet kind-hearted. He was often bullied by others, and every time, Du Hongyuan and the others would step in to settle the score for him.
Chen Zhirui gave a wry smile and said, "Brother Yuan, stop making fun of me. I really can't drink this stuff."
"Always picking on Little Chen—I'll drink with you." Wang Qi raised his glass, clinked it with Du Hongyuan's, and then downed it in one go.
Du Hongyuan wasn't about to back down. He filled his glass to the brim and gulped down another cup of alcohol.
These two heavy drinkers competed for victory the moment they touched alcohol. Although Kong Liu knew how to drink, he didn't particularly care for it. Most of the time, he would just hang out with Chen Zhirui, eating the dishes and chatting.
Chen Zhirui asked Kong Liu, "Brother Kong, are you really strapped for cash lately?"
"Huh? No, I'm not."
Kong Liu raised his eyes to look at Chen Zhirui and asked, "Who did you hear that from?"
"Well, just a feeling," Chen Zhirui said, sipping his cola. "If you're not strapped for cash, why would you go tutor Gu Chenxi's younger sister?"
"Just bored."
As for being short on money, Kong Liu certainly wasn't. As a young master who went to great lengths to hide his identity as a wealthy second-generation heir, how could he ever be short on cash? Tutoring was purely a way to kill time.
Funny enough, wealthy young masters his age either went out in groups to drink, hit clubs, drag race, bungee jump, or traveled the world and played the field. Yet he happened to have zero interest in any of that. Aside from reading and studying, his only real hobby was playing video games.
Kong Liu picked up a peanut from his bowl with his chopsticks and said, "There aren't many classes this semester, and I've already passed all the certifications I needed to get. Staying in the dorm playing games every day gets boring, so when I happened to see a tutoring post on the campus wall, I just gave it a shot out of boredom. Who would have guessed the person who posted it was Gu Chenxi?"
What Kong Liu never expected was that this trip would end up uncovering the identity of his online girlfriend.
"Isn't having no classes a good thing? I wish every semester was like that." Chen Zhirui stared at Kong Liu and said, "You had free time and yet you went looking for trouble. Brother Kong, sometimes I really admire you!"
"Cut it out, don't listen to his nonsense!"
With a flushed face, Du Hongyuan leaned in close to the two of them. He was the type whose face turned red the moment he touched alcohol, and he said sneakily, "This brat Kong Liu definitely knew beforehand that the tutoring post was put up by Campus Belle Gu, which is why he applied—just to seize the opportunity to get close to her."
"Only you would overthink things this much!"
Kong Liu grabbed a peanut, shoved it into Du Hongyuan's mouth, rolled his eyes, and said, "With all the drama in your head, it's a crime you aren't writing novels."
"Heh, don't have the writing chops for it."
Du Hongyuan chewed the peanut in his mouth, picked up another one from the plate, popped it in, and chewed as he said, "Speaking of which, tomorrow seems to be Campus Belle Gu's birthday."
Wang Qi widened his eyes, looked at Du Hongyuan, and said, "Holy crap, you even remember that? You've really done your homework on the campus belle!"
"Don't get me wrong. Although Gu Chenxi is indeed very pretty, she's not quite pretty enough to make this lord here deliberately memorize her birthday."
Du Hongyuan waved his hand and said, "I just happened to hear today that someone plans to take advantage of Gu Chenxi's birthday tomorrow to confess their love to her right here on campus."
Back when the first semester of freshman year had just started, quite a few upperclassmen and wealthy peers who thought rather too highly of themselves had pursued Gu Chenxi. Later on, once everyone learned of Gu Chenxi's cold and haughty personality, very few dared to try again.
Chen Zhirui asked with curiosity, "Who thinks so highly of themselves? They actually dare to confess on her birthday?"
Du Hongyuan shrugged and said, "I don't know. I just overheard a bit of it today when I went downstairs to do laundry. I'm not too clear on the details."
Ignoring the heated discussion among the three of them, Kong Liu directly interrupted, "Hold on, are you three ever going to stop? Can't we talk about something else when we're out for a gathering? Do we have to keep circling around Gu Chenxi? I don't even think she's all that special!"
"Cough, cough, cough..."
Just as Kong Liu finished speaking, a few soft coughs came from not far down the street.
The four of them turned their heads in unison. Two exquisitely dressed young women were staring straight at Kong Liu.
The four froze slightly. Du Hongyuan's mouth opened slightly as three words slipped from his throat: "Gu Chenxi!"
Right there by the street were Gu Chenxi and her friend. The two of them had just finished shopping, and judging by the looks of it, they were probably heading into the school through the back gate. Of all times, the one single time Kong Liu spoke ill of her all evening, she had to overhear it.
Just like at the welcome party, Gu Chenxi glared coldly at Kong Liu, then lifted her chin and marched toward the school gate without looking back.
"Old Liu, I have a very unfortunate piece of news for you..."
Du Hongyuan patted Kong Liu's shoulder and gloated, "Now Campus Belle Gu hates you even more! Hahaha!"
Kong Liu gave a wry smile, picked up his glass, and silently took a sip.
Before long, he received a message from [Xixi]:
"Babe, that annoying guy who came to my house today to tutor my sister was just bad-mouthing me in front of his friends tonight!"
[ aggrieved kitten ]
"Babe, go beat him up for me!"
[ crying kitten ]
Looking at these humble words, Kong Liu smiled bitterly inside—that wasn't the attitude she had when she was standing right in front of him!
Kong Liu tried his best to comfort her using his usual methods of coaxing [Xixi], even promising that he would definitely find a chance to beat the guy up fiercely, and promising to play games with her after the gathering ended. Anyway, after quite a bit of coaxing, he finally managed to cheer her up.
Only, some promises were destined to be impossible to fulfill.
After all, Kong Liu couldn't exactly beat himself up, could he?
(End of chapter)
Chapter 5: A Grand Scene
There were no classes the next morning, and Kong Liu originally planned to sleep in, but a phone call rudely interrupted his pleasant dream.
"Hello?"
With his eyes closed, Kong Liu felt around for the phone by his pillow and pressed the answer button through sheer muscle memory.
A humble voice came from the other end of the line: "Is this Mr. Kong Liu? We are International Express, and we have a valuable item for you that requires in-person inspection and sign-off. Do you have time right now?"
"Huh? International express?"
Hearing what the other person said, Kong Liu's previously closed eyes snapped open. He was a bit puzzled—he hadn't bought anything online recently, so where did this express delivery come from?
"Yes." Amidst his confusion, the voice continued, "The package was shipped from Clock Country, and the sender's name is Kong Cheng."
Kong Cheng was his father's name. Hearing this, Kong Liu suddenly realized. They had just video-called him yesterday afternoon, mentioning they were mailing some "local specialties" to him from Clock Country, but he hadn't expected them to arrive today.
The voice on the phone sounded again: "Are you free to come pick up the package now?"
"Have you already arrived at JiaoDa?"
"Yes, right at the entrance of the express delivery station."
"Alright, give me ten minutes." Kong Liu rubbed his eyes as he spoke, sat up from the bed, and quickly washed up, put on some clothes, pulled a cap down to flatten his messy hair, slipped on his flip-flops, and headed downstairs.
Before long, Kong Liu received the package. It was a square delivery box, quite large, though he had no idea what was inside.
Originally, Kong Liu wanted to grab it and leave, but the deliveryman suggested that Kong Liu open the package on the spot to inspect the goods. After all, cross-border logistics meant any unexpected issues would make after-sales processing quite troublesome, not to mention that this particular package was insured for over ten thousand.
Kong Liu waved his hand dismissively and said casually, "It's fine, I'll open it when I get back."
Since the customer didn't want an on-site inspection, the deliveryman couldn't say anything more.
Hugging the delivery box, Kong Liu turned and walked back toward the dormitory building, when he happened to run into little fatty Chen Zhirui, who was just returning from the library.
Inspired by Kong Liu the previous night, this kid had decided he wanted to become a self-disciplined person too and pass the CET-4 this semester, which was why he had run off to the library to study bright and early this morning.
"Brother Kong!"
Even though Kong Liu was wearing a baseball cap, Chen Zhirui spotted him in the crowd at a glance and called out.
Kong Liu waved back at him, holding the delivery box in place as he waited for him to walk over so they could head back to the dorm together.
Kong Liu asked him, "Weren't you going to study in the library? Why are you back so early?"
Chen Zhirui told Kong Liu, "Brother Du called me back."
"Du Hongyuan?" Kong Liu tilted his head and glanced at Chen Zhirui, asking, "Why did he call you back?"
"No idea." Chen Zhirui shrugged and said, "He just told me to come back, saying there was a good show to watch downstairs at the girls' dorm."
"Oh? A good show?"
Chen Zhirui's words instantly piqued Kong Liu's interest.
As it happened, Wang Qi and Du Hongyuan had just stepped out of the boys' dormitory as well.
Du Hongyuan walked over and said to Kong Liu, "You brat, I just saw you lying in bed a second ago, and now you're nowhere to be found."
Kong Liu pointed to the box in his arms and said, "Just went downstairs to pick up a package. What did you mean when you told Little Chen there was a good show?"
Du Hongyuan waved a hand and said, "Don't ask so many questions, just follow me!"
Kong Liu glanced at the other two. They only smiled back at him, clearly as clueless as he was about what Du Hongyuan was up to.
The boys' dormitory and girls' dormitory at JiaoDa were separated by only a single street. The three of them followed Du Hongyuan toward the girls' dorm, and from quite a distance away, they could see a crowd gathered downstairs watching the commotion.
As they drew closer, they realized that standing in the center of the crowd was a tall, handsome man holding a guitar, with a microphone set up in front of him. He was soulfully strumming and singing a love song, while behind him stood two lackeys—one holding a sound system and the other carrying an ultra-luxurious cake and a bouquet of fresh flowers.
Kong Liu recognized the man. His name was Qin Zizhuo, a classmate from the same class. His family had a bit of money, and he was unusually high-profile around school. He had liked Gu Chenxi for a long time, something almost everyone in their class knew.
Chen Zhirui said speechlessly, "Brother Yuan, you dragged me all the way over here just to watch Qin Zizhuo confess his love to Campus Belle Gu?"
"Yup!" Du Hongyuan wore the expression of someone eager for a spectacle and said, "I only just found out today that the idiot planning to take advantage of Gu Chenxi's birthday to confess to her on campus is none other than this jerk Qin Zizhuo."
"Uh..."
Kong Liu glanced at Du Hongyuan and said somewhat dumbfoundedly, "The guy is just confessing his love, and yet you're calling him a jerk. That's a bit impolite, isn't it?"
"You don't understand..."