Liu Yiyi had originally planned to deliver the jacket to Wang Peng's dorm in person, but when she saw where his room was located, she froze—it was the exact same dorm as her younger brother's, so she gave up on the idea.
She thought Wang Peng was a pretty decent guy. Even though he called her "wife" with every breath online, he was completely different in person. The more she thought about it, the more amused she became. A brilliant, radiant smile blossomed across her face, rippling outward as the corners of her mouth ticked slightly upward.
"Yangyang, Yingying, look, Yiyi is smiling."
Liu Yiyi quickly forced down her smile and drew the curtains shut.
The three of them exchanged knowing looks.
"Yiyi is lovesick. After two years, Yiyi finally has a boy in her life."
......
"Wang Peng, how on earth do you manage to deal a mere 20 damage points to an enemy with a full magazine?"
"You guys are just trash, okay? Can you really blame me?"
"Just look at my username—I'm the master of human contour tracing."
As soon as Wang Peng finished speaking, three pillows came flying straight at his head.
......
September 4th.
"At ease! Attention! Military posture for twenty minutes. Starting the timer now. If I catch even a single person moving, we add ten minutes, no upper limit."
Everyone groaned in misery.
The eyes of Wang Peng and his three roommates were barely open. Because it was their first day of college, all four of them had suffered from collective insomnia last night, chatting about everything from the Earth to the universe, from the Qin dynasty to modern times, and from humanity to aliens.
The four of them didn't fall asleep until three or four in the morning. Wang Peng felt like he could fall asleep standing up.
All morning long, Wang Peng's platoon stood at attention, punctuated by frequent bouts of deep squats.
It completely exhausted the four of them.
When lunchtime arrived, the four decided to skip lunch entirely and go straight to a nap.
They returned to their dorm.
"We can't keep going like this, it's going to kill us. Is there any way we can find a way out of this?" Wang Dong asked the other three.
"I can put on a performance for you—the legendary instant-faint technique. Let your little master show you how it's done this afternoon."
After discussing the details, the four of them went to sleep.
......
In the afternoon, at the Xinzhou University sports ground, 4:00 PM.
Wang Dong gave the other three a signal and collapsed straight to the ground.
"Report, Instructor! A student has passed out here and needs to be taken to the infirmary!" Wang Peng shouted hurriedly.
At the instructor's signal, Wang Peng and the other two carried Wang Dong toward the infirmary.
Using the pretext of being Wang Dong's roommates who understood his condition, the three of them seized the opportunity and slipped away.
Ye Chen said happily, "Wang Dong, great acting. You can wake up now—skipping out once gets us out of this."
Seeing that Wang Dong still didn't react, he hurriedly shouted, "Wang Dong! Wang Dong!"
When the three of them still got no response from Wang Dong, Liu Qing patted him hard on the face. "Wang Dong, we're already out, you can wake up now."
"Holy shit, did he actually pass out for real? Quick, to the infirmary!"
The three of them hoisted Wang Dong up and bolted toward the infirmary, a sight that couldn't possibly have been more comical.
When they reached the infirmary, it turned out to be a false alarm. He was simply too exhausted and had fallen fast asleep.
Wang Peng looked at Wang Dong lying on the bed, feeling a mix of amusement and exasperation.
"Damn it, I didn't even push myself this hard running a thousand meters."
Liu Qing glared at Wang Dong, cursing as he rained heavy punches down on him.
......
In the evening.
Wang Peng was lying on his bed when he received a WeChat message from Liu Yiyi.
[Half a Roast Duck]: "Junior, are you busy? If not, come downstairs, I've got your jacket."
Wang Peng got out of bed and looked out the window, spotting a girl dressed entirely in white standing by the dormitory entrance.
[Claimed the Half Duck]: "I'm coming down right now, Senior."
Wang Peng went over to Liu Yiyi and took the clothes from her.
"Have you eaten yet, Senior?"
"Not yet. Junior, is this an invitation to dinner?"
"Is that okay, Senior?"
"How could it not be? Your senior is very magnanimous, you know. So, which cafeteria are we heading to?"
Xinzhou University had a total of four cafeterias, named the Plum, Orchid, Bamboo, and Chrysanthemum gardens, situated at the four corners of the campus."Senior, let's go to the cafeteria in Zhuyuan."
Wang Peng had a little scheme in mind. No matter which direction they took to get to the Zhuyuan cafeteria, they would have to pass through a vast sea of hibiscus flowers, with Chinese hibiscus planted all along both sides of the path.
Liu Yiyi looked at Wang Peng with a peculiar gaze, as if she had caught a whiff of something.
Wang Peng looked back at her, their eyes locking for a fleeting moment. In that instant, the surrounding clamor vanished from Wang Peng's ears, and he could hear only the beating of his own heart. Just as quickly, Liu Yiyi averted her gaze, a blush creeping up her cheeks that made her look as vibrant and dazzling as blooming flowers.
After meeting yesterday, Wang Peng knew he liked Liu Yiyi—an ineffable, indescribable kind of liking. He just didn't know if she liked him back.
When Wang Peng was going through the lowest point of his life, it was the senior who had encouraged him to keep going, helping him achieve what he had today and making him the pride of other parents.
Walking shoulder to shoulder on the campus path, the two of them headed toward the cafeteria, chatting as they went.
Gradually, they arrived at the sea of hibiscus. Looking at the sea of blossoms and breathing in the fragrance carried by the breeze, Wang Peng felt as though his heart had completely opened up.
He began chatting with her about everyday family matters.
"My parents divorced when I was very young. Every day they were busy with their own careers, each wanting the other to give up work and take charge of everything at home, but neither was willing to let go. In the end, they divorced."
"Senior, I like you. Will you be my girlfriend?"
"They left me in the care of my grandparents. After the divorce, it was as if they had been untied from any bonds, and they threw themselves entirely into their careers. Year after year, I'd only see them during Chinese New Year, when they'd stay home for three or five days before leaving again."
"Senior, do you know what it was like during the darkest time of my life?" Before Wang Peng could finish, Liu Yiyi said,
"Okay."
"What did you say, Senior?" Wang Peng couldn't believe his ears.
"If someone didn't hear it, forget it. What a pity, though."
"I heard it, Senior."
Wang Peng swept Liu Yiyi up into his arms, spinning her around in circles on the ground as he laughed out loud.
"Put me down quickly, everyone around is looking!" Liu Yiyi cried out, swatting at Wang Peng with her hands.
Other students nearby captured the scene on camera and posted it on the campus confession wall.
Wang Peng set Liu Yiyi back down.
"I'm sorry, Senior."
"Junior, the reason I agreed to be your girlfriend isn't because you confessed to me, but because I witnessed you fight your way through thorns and thistles from the darkest moment of your life all the way to where you are now. You have to treat me well, you know."
"I will treat you well, Senior."
*I will treat you well for the rest of my life.* This was a sentence Wang Peng kept to himself, silently speaking it in his heart.
Wang Peng felt a quiet sense of relief at his own boldness. Thank goodness she had said yes; otherwise, he truly wouldn't have known what to do.
Wang Peng inched closer to Liu Yiyi. Seeing that she didn't pull away, he cautiously reached out, hooked one or two fingers around her hand, slowly slid them toward the center of her palm, and then firmly grasped her small hand.
*I finally got to hold it! I'm so excited, her hand is so soft, just like a kitten's paw,* Wang Peng thought to himself.
At that moment, Liu Yiyi's face was flushed a deep, bright red, and she didn't dare raise her head.
Though she had dated a few boyfriends in the past, those relationships had been nipped in the bud by Liu Qing before they could truly begin.
Otherwise, had she raised her head, she would have seen Wang Peng grinning foolishly, the corners of his mouth upturned in a smile impossible to suppress.