Dazzling

Around ten o'clock, their gathering came to an end. Unfortunately, the weather was unpredictable—as soon as they stepped out of the KTV, heavy rain began pouring down. They had to rush back before the dormitory closed at eleven, which made things rather awkward.

Qu Xing suggested, "How about this: I'll dash out to hail a taxi, and then you all can get in."

Qu Bing immediately made a pained face. "Even if we take a taxi, we'll still get drenched walking from the drop-off point to the dorm."

Meanwhile, Xing Wu had already turned back and strode into the KTV. After some negotiation, he paid a deposit and borrowed three umbrellas.

Two were given to the girls, while the three guys kept one. Qing Ye and the others' taxi arrived at the school gate first. Qu Bing quickly paid the fare, opened an umbrella, and went to fetch Sun Wanjing. Qing Ye opened the other umbrella. Qu Bing kept urging them, "Hurry back."

But Qing Ye lingered at the back, glancing over her shoulder repeatedly. Finally, she saw another taxi pull up. Qu Xing and the other two guys had only one umbrella among them, which wasn't enough. He shouted to the other two, "Squeeze in together! We'll take a shower when we get back."

As soon as he finished speaking, he reached out to grab Xing Wu. Unaccustomed to being pressed close to two other guys, Xing Wu awkwardly dodged. "You two take it."

With that, he walked into the heavy rain. Qing Ye glanced back at Qu Bing and Sun Wanjing, who were already far ahead, bit her lip, turned around, and rushed toward Xing Wu.

From a distance, Qu Xing saw Qing Ye splashing through the puddles toward them and called out in surprise, "Why did you come back?"

Hearing Qu Xing's voice, Xing Wu lifted his head, his hair soaked. The wind lifted Qing Ye's short T-shirt, water splashed around her, and raindrops dampened her eyelashes. She ran toward him against the wind and rain, making the two rows of streetlights pale in comparison. He stopped in his tracks, his gaze fixed intently on her figure.

She ran up to him in one breath, stood on her toes, and held the umbrella over his head. Raindrops streamed down the edges of the umbrella, forming a hazy curtain that enveloped the two of them.

When she looked up at him, he had taken off his glasses. His dark eyes held the brightest stars of the night. Her body trembled slightly as he took the umbrella from her hand.

Qu Xing turned back and shouted to her, "Thanks, senior! I’ll treat you to a meal another time. We’re heading back first."

With that, he and Zhuang Sixian huddled under the umbrella and jogged back to the dormitory. Qing Ye watched their retreating figures and heard Xing Wu say to her, "Let me take you back first."

They walked toward Building 36. Strangely enough, Qing Ye had a bellyful of questions for him. If they hadn’t gone out for dinner tonight, she would most likely have called to confront him. She never expected fate to play such a big joke on her—he turned out to be the junior Qu Bing had been talking about for days. What was going on? Why hadn’t he told her? And why had he ended up in Class Y?

It all felt like the most baffling mystery of the year. But now that they were walking alone together, she found herself inexplicably nervous, her heart racing uncontrollably. It felt as if the aura radiating from the person on her left was surging toward her like waves of heat. Even with a fist's distance between them, she couldn't help shivering, so she shifted slightly away.

Every time she moved aside, Xing Wu edged closer to her. She moved again, and he glanced sideways at her, his voice drifting faintly through the rainy night: "In the game, you stuck to me so tightly. Why not now?"

Qing Ye crossed her arms, feeling irritated. "Xing Wu, what do you mean by that?"He walked slowly on his long legs, moving the umbrella further toward her: "Aren't your waist cold?"

"...None of your business?"

"It looks cold to me."

After saying this, he directly reached out trying to pull her T-shirt downward. Qing Ye immediately slapped his hand hard and exclaimed: "What are you doing?"

"You wear like this every day at university?"

Qing Ye was so angered by him that she laughed, letting out an extremely displeased "Hah": "Who are you to me? You're overstepping!"

Xing Wu immediately stopped walking, his face devoid of any warmth. Qing Ye completely ignored him, striding boldly into the rain. He could only hurriedly catch up with her steps, and soon the large umbrella was sheltering her head again.

As they approached the dormitory building, Qing Ye said irritably: "Take care, I won't see you out."

As she was about to enter, Xing Wu grabbed her arm and pulled her under the awning, removing the umbrella. Qing Ye was already soaked through, rainwater trickling from her hair onto her eyelashes, then with a slight blink falling onto her lips. Under the dim yellow light, Xing Wu's white shirt was completely drenched, the alluring lines of his body so clearly visible. He looked down at her lips like this, his sexy Adam's apple moving slightly as he spoke in a husky, electrifying voice: "Single? If I remember correctly, someone told me I'm not allowed to say breakup."

Qing Ye felt overwhelmed by the intense masculine hormones enveloping her. Her body seemed to shrink smaller and smaller. Those pitch-black eyes made her heart race uncontrollably, completely unable to suppress the palpitations after their long separation. Yet she stubbornly grasped at a shred of dignity from her muddled emotions: "Yeah, I did say you're not allowed to break up with me. I never said I can't break up with you."

Xing Wu curled the corner of his mouth, lowering his gaze slightly: "You mean you want to break up with me?"

Qing Ye straightened up and pushed his arm away, but her strength was practically negligible against Xing Wu. He pulled her back in front of him, promptly capturing her delicate chin and lifting it slightly. Suddenly leaning close, he hovered before her and asked again: "Answer me."

His breath pressed tightly against her, his broad shoulders completely enveloping her within his embrace. The distance between their lips was so close they almost touched. Qing Ye admitted she was intimidated, her breathing thrown into chaos, nearly to the point where she could barely stand steady. With a slightly trembling voice, she just said: "I won't be able to get in in five minutes."

Xing Wu didn't move, gave her a deep look, then curled his lips and raised his arm to let her go.

Only then did Qing Ye finally catch her breath again. She strode quickly into the building. Xing Wu remained standing in the dark rainy night, holding the umbrella and watching her, his eyes bright and intense. Before Qing Ye entered, she suddenly turned back and provocatively gave him a thumbs-down gesture: "Beijing girls aren't that easy to chase.""

Xing Wu immediately laughed, that captivating smile rippling through the night, warming the chill of the rain.

When Qing Ye ran upstairs, Qu Bing and Sun Wanjing had just finished showering. Xie Qianqian had also returned and was already lying on her bed with a Pad, drawing design sketches. This girl had many peculiar hobbies, and drawing landscape architecture plans was one of them.

Qing Ye was completely drenched. When she came out after showering, Qu Bing happened to be talking about Xing Wu with Sun Wanjing. While drying her hair, Qing Ye overheard her saying: "It's different from us. The educational resources there are backward. Who knows how much hardship he endured studying diligently for over ten years."Qing Ye frowned and said casually, "How do you know he endured ten years of hardship studying? Maybe he was fooling around back in his hometown."

As she spoke, she put down her towel. Qu Bing and Sun Wanjing both looked at her simultaneously. The atmosphere in the dormitory suddenly grew quiet. It wasn't until Qing Ye returned to her bunk that Qu Bing finally couldn't resist asking, "Qing Ye, do you have some issue with Xing Wu?"

Qing Ye looked somewhat surprised and said, "No, why would I have any issue with him?"

"Don't you think... you've been subtly mocking him all night?" Qing Ye asked with exaggerated disbelief, "I was mocking him?"

At this point, even Sun Wanjing silently nodded in agreement.

Qing Ye was completely speechless. She stood up from her bunk again and said, "I just think you're viewing him too simplistically. Does wearing glasses and a white shirt automatically make someone an honest boy? And just because he says he doesn't smoke, you assume he definitely doesn't? If you keep thinking like this, you'll get deceived by men in the future."

Qu Bing looked confused and countered, "So you're saying Xing Wu is the kind of scumbag who appears honest on the surface?"

"I never said that! When did I call him a scumbag? I just meant you've only met him once or twice - how can you be so sure he endured ten years of diligent study? Have you been watching too many news reports? Thinking that anyone from a poor area who gets into top universities must be a bookworm who buries their head in studies and ignores everything else? Maybe he just has some natural talent in certain areas."

Sun Wanjing couldn't listen anymore and chimed in, "Xing Wu's hometown county might have produced only one top university student in many years. Given the learning environment there, if he were really the type to fool around, he wouldn't have been able to get into our school."

"...I just think you're judging people too superficially. You need to see beyond the surface to understand someone's true nature."

Qu Bing immediately responded, "Then let's talk about the surface facts. When I went to pay for the karaoke tonight, I found out Xing Wu had secretly paid for the room and drinks. I treated you all to the buffet - the group coupon was 198 per person, costing me just over a thousand. But he felt embarrassed and treated us to karaoke that cost over two thousand. Knowing his family situation, I felt embarrassed letting him pay. Doesn't that speak volumes about his character?"

"That's why I asked if you have some issue with Xing Wu. It's your first meeting, and he didn't do anything inappropriate. Didn't you realize you seemed to be targeting him all night?"

"......"

After holding back for a long time, Qing Ye finally asked, "Was I really?"

Xie Qianqian, who had been leaning on the diagonal upper bunk drawing the whole time, suddenly turned her head to look at her: "A bit."

Qu Bing clapped her hands: "See? I wasn't mistaken. Even Qianqian as an outsider noticed it."

"......"

Thus, the previously harmonious Room 319 that had maintained peace for a whole year found Qing Ye being ganged up on tonight because of Xing Wu. Everyone unanimously believed Qing Ye held deep prejudice against Xing Wu, or perhaps their energies just didn't align. Qu Bing and Sun Wanjing even spent another ten minutes discussing how sometimes people's energies just don't match, with Qu Bing sharing stories about people she used to know.

Qing Ye climbed into bed feeling wronged. She didn't dare say that not only did she have prejudice - she actually had a preference for him! Damn it!

Therefore, when Xing Wu sent her two messages right before bed, the first one read: "Dry your hair before sleeping." The second: "Which cafeteria are you going to tomorrow at noon?"She turned off her phone without replying and had no desire to see the culprit for the time being.

The next morning, Qing Ye stood blankly in front of her wardrobe for a while. Didn't someone dislike her current dressing style? Well, today she deliberately wore a high-waisted, body-hugging light green ruffled skirt that clearly showed off her beautiful legs. The tight T-shirt accentuated her well-proportioned and full bust. Even Xie Qianqian stared at her a few extra times that morning and suddenly said, "Qing Ye."

"???"

"You have such a great figure."

"..." Thanks a lot.

It's worth mentioning that Q University has over ten cafeterias, each with its own specialties. However, Qing Ye and her friends usually only go to the fifth cafeteria in the northeast corner. There's no particular reason—they can get all kinds of dishes there, and they're just used to it.

The next day, classes officially began. All four roommates quickly got into study mode. After a busy morning, they decided to go to the fifth cafeteria for Northeastern cuisine. Although Q University has many cafeterias, every one of them gets packed during mealtimes. Fortunately, they arrived early and managed to snag a table.

Shortly after sitting down, Qing Ye saw Qu Bing raise her hand and call out, "Over here!"

She turned around and saw Qu Xing walking over with a grin, carrying a backpack. The key point was that he was followed by someone else—that "honest boy" who had caused her to be interrogated by her roommates last night.

Qing Ye instantly lost her appetite out of anger. She turned back and asked, "Why are they here?"

Qu Bing smiled, trying to smooth things over. "My brother said he wanted to have lunch with me. Just act normal today—we're all friends here."

"..." Hah, since when were they friends?

No sooner had she spoken than a figure casually settled beside her. That someone had changed into a solid-colored T-shirt today, layered with a light blue striped shirt and white sneakers, looking every bit the innocent, inexperienced boy. The sight alone made Qing Ye furious.

Unfortunately, there happened to be an empty seat right next to Qing Ye. After they approached, Xing Wu naturally took the seat beside her. His move caused the other three senior sisters to fall into a silent stare.

Clearly, he had no idea that Room 319 had engaged in quite a debate about him the night before. So everyone knew Qing Ye held a grudge against him, yet here he was, completely unaware, sitting right next to her. The other three secretly worried for him.

Sure enough, the moment he sat down, Qing Ye began wolfing down her food. Xing Wu glanced sideways at her and remarked lightly, "Order more if it's not enough. Eat slowly."

Qing Ye looked up at his faintly amused expression hidden behind his glasses and chewed her food aggressively, venting her frustration. Xing Wu pulled out a tissue and handed it to her. When she didn't take it, he directly reached out and wiped the corner of her mouth. The people across the table gasped in unison. Qing Ye had always been somewhat aloof by nature and highly wary of guys who showed unsolicited attentiveness. They thought, "This is it—Qing Ye is probably going to explode."

But strangely, though her eyes were practically shooting flames, she didn't move a muscle. She just sat there obediently, letting Xing Wu wipe her mouth. It was this dissonance—her actions completely contradicting her expression—that left the others across the table, including a confused Qu Xing, utterly baffled. The atmosphere felt inexplicably weird, though no one could quite pinpoint why.

Xing Wu stood up and said he was going to buy drinks, asking everyone what they wanted. The weather was too hot, so everyone opted for something cold. Qing Ye also requested an iced beverage. Qu Xing, worried he might have trouble carrying everything alone, went with him.They had just left when Qu Bing remarked, "Haven't you noticed? Yesterday I treated him to a meal, and he returned the favor by inviting us to sing. Today at lunch when we ordered dishes, he went to buy drinks. This kind of guy must have been raised with great manners."

Li Lanfang suddenly shoved her face right in front of Qing Ye's, nearly making Qing Ye choke on her food. She coughed uncontrollably. Xing Wu glanced back at her, first fetching two drinks before asking what was wrong.

Tears welled in Qing Ye's eyes from coughing. He unscrewed the bottle and handed it to her. She took a sip and snapped at him, "I asked for ice-cold, didn't I?"

Her entitled tone stunned the other three. Having known Qing Ye for over a year, they'd seen her aloof and proud at times, but she'd always been polite to those around her—never had she lost her temper with anyone.

Stranger still, Xing Wu didn't get angry. Instead, he said softly, "Drink less cold stuff during meals."

His calm voice held a trace of inexplicable tenderness, making the three wonder if they were hallucinating. Why did his tone suddenly feel so unnervingly charming?

Qing Ye lowered her head and patted her chest. Just then, the necklace at her collar slipped out. Xing Wu's gaze drifted down, settling on the tiny dandelion pendant. Behind his glasses, his eyes suddenly brightened. Noticing his stare, Qing Ye flusteredly tucked the necklace back inside her collar. Qu Xing returned with several bottles of ice water.

Soon after they finished eating, everyone got up to leave. Qing Ye walked ahead, the light green lace trim on her skirt swaying gently with her steps. Her slender, fair legs were dazzlingly pale. Whether back at Zhazha Pavilion or now on campus, her flawless complexion always stood out.

Even Qu Xing nudged Xing Wu with his elbow: "Senior's legs are something else."

Xing Wu's eyes darkened slightly. As they stepped out of the cafeteria, a breeze swept through. Suddenly, Xing Wu took off his striped shirt and walked toward Qing Ye. Just as his hand reached her waist, she turned and met his gaze. The glare on his glasses blocked her view, so she reached up to remove them. Xing Wu instinctively blocked her arm—and in that abrupt moment, the glasses crashed violently to the ground. Everyone around froze.

Qing Ye herself was stunned. She crouched to pick up the glasses—the right lens was shattered. Helplessly, she said, "This shouldn't affect you, right?"

After speaking, she perched the glasses on her own face. Peering through the intact left lens, the scene before her suddenly turned blurry. She removed the glasses and stared at Xing Wu in disbelief: "You've actually become nearsighted?"