Тhе рlаce Wu Маngmаng fоllоwed Lu Sui to was thе fаculty rеsidential аrеа оf thе univеrsity. "Arе there restaurants herе tоo?"
"Yеs, the Lu Fаmilу Rеstаurant," Lu Sui sаid, lеаding Wu Маngmang uр to the sixth flооr.
Wu Mаngmang sighed. She shоuld have guеssed eаrliеr.
Lu Sui hаd bоught bоth арartments оn thе sixth flооr аnd cоmbined thеm intо one lаrgе spаce of аbout two hundred squаrе mеters. Тhe decоr wаs in thе artistiс аnd frеsh stуlе Wu Мangmаng аdorеd, with florаl-pattеrned wаllраpеr—сlеаrly not Lu Sui's prеferred taste.
"I had this рreparеd when yоu said уоu werе coming to A University for graduate school," Lu Sui said, opening the fridge to hand Wu Mangmang a carton of milk.
This girl was raised with delicate skin, fair as a fluorescent light, and milk had played no small part in that.
Wu Mangmang lowered her head to take a sip, letting out a contented sigh in her heart.
She felt she had been spoiled by Lu Sui, her tastes becoming too refined.
Lu Sui served Wu Mangmang a bowl of fish congee and prepared a plate of blanched Chinese broccoli for her.
"I’m going on a business trip tomorrow. Should I have Annie bring you meals?" Lu Sui asked.
"Then I’m afraid the label of 'capitalist young lady' will never come off me," Wu Mangmang replied. "Don’t worry about it. I’ve been eating at the cafeteria for over half a year now, and my health is perfectly fine. My immunity has even improved."
Lu Sui pressed his lips together, holding back what he wanted to say. "Then I’ll leave the key here for you."
Wu Mangmang stayed silent for a moment before feeling too cowardly, afraid of what Lu Sui might do. She finally spoke up, "Could you not do this? We have no relationship now. What would I do with your key?"
"I thought bathing in your dorm was inconvenient. There’s a bathtub in the bathroom here. You can take a soak. The bath salts are your favorite brand, and I chose geranium essential oil for you," Lu Sui said.
Wu Mangmang hated this kind of "devil’s temptation" from Lu Sui the most—it left her utterly defenseless. While A University was great in every way, the only downside was the crowded bathrooms. The girls took their time showering, and the long queues meant Wu Mangmang wasted a lot of time every day.
After a brief struggle, Wu Mangmang extended her hand, palm open, allowing Lu Sui to place the key in it.
"If you knew all along, why didn’t you give me the key earlier?" Wu Mangmang now turned the tables.
Lu Sui tapped the tip of her nose. "If I weren’t leaving, would you have accepted the key?"
She definitely wouldn’t have.
Wu Mangmang stubbornly said, "Then you’d better stay away for a few more days."
As if her words had come true, Lu Sui ended up being away for half a month. Wu Mangmang didn’t mind much, but Zeng Ruling and Dai Tingting—both spoiled by Guo Xuefeng and Lu Sui respectively—sighed all day long about having to buy their own breakfast in the mornings.
"Mangmang, why haven’t we seen Mr. Lu lately?"
"Probably because I drove him away with my antics," Wu Mangmang said, standing up and patting Zeng Ruling’s shoulder. "Don’t worry, I’ll find you another breakfast delivery person in a few days."
"Hey, I’m being serious here," Zeng Ruling grabbed Wu Mangmang’s arm. "What are you really thinking?"
"I don’t know," Wu Mangmang genuinely didn’t know. She had always been muddled when it came to matters of the heart."Let me tell you, someone like Mr. Lu is being eyed every minute. I say you've held out long enough—why not give him a call to show some care when he's not around? I guarantee he'll come tomorrow. If you don't offer even a hint of warmth, even the warmest man of the century would freeze into an icicle around you."
Wu Mangmang laughed. "Yes, my amateur love strategist. But the issue between him and me isn't about liking or not liking—it's about whether we can get along. I'm heading to the lab. Don't wait for me for dinner; I've made plans with my senior to discuss my thesis."
Wu Mangmang's advisor was that legendary genius. For graduate students like her, thesis guidance usually came from doctoral candidates. Although Wu Mangmang's situation was slightly better—thanks to her uncle's connections—her advisor still wouldn't have much time to guide her thesis.
That evening, Wu Mangmang treated her senior, Su Xianjun, to hotpot. Halfway through the meal, she saw Lu Sui walk in from outside.
"How did you find this place?" Wu Mangmang asked, surprised, looking at Lu Sui.
"Your roommate told me," Lu Sui replied, glancing at Su Xianjun across from Wu Mangmang. "This must be Senior Su?"
Su Xianjun stood up at that moment. "That's me."
Lu Sui extended his hand. "Lu Sui. Mind if I join you?"
Su Xianjun looked at Lu Sui, then at Wu Mangmang, and chuckled. "Not at all, not at all."
A server, quick on the uptake, brought over another set of bowls and chopsticks.
Wu Mangmang shot Lu Sui a glance. This guy really got special treatment. The hotpot joints around campus were notoriously busy with poor service—you could scream at the top of your lungs for more broth, and they might still ignore you. Yet here they were, bringing utensils in a flash.
Having been with Lu Sui for so long, Wu Mangmang had never seen him eat Sichuan-style hotpot. Mr. Lu disliked its greasiness, spiciness, and how it could upset the stomach.
Back when Shen Ting was at the mala tang spot, he hadn't touched his chopsticks for the same reason—both looked down on hotpot and mala tang as lowbrow, with everyone dipping food into the same pot, which didn't align with their hygiene standards.
Wu Mangmang, however, loved the lively atmosphere of hotpot. Even alone, watching the red broth steaming in the pot made her feel warm and cozy.
With each bite, her entire body felt warmed from within.
She watched as Lu Sui rolled up his sleeves, mixed his own dipping sauce, and casually picked up a slice of spicy tender beef to swish in the pot.
The whole sequence was so smooth that Wu Mangmang wondered if she'd misunderstood Lu Sui all along.
He didn't eat much himself but cooked many slices of beef for Wu Mangmang. Su Xianjun joked beside them, "Is this how boyfriends have to pamper their girlfriends now? I should learn from Lu Sui and go home to spoil my girlfriend."
Speak of the devil—just as Su Xianjun mentioned his girlfriend, Bai Lingshi hurried into the hotpot restaurant, scanning the room as she walked. Behind her were two female classmates, their expressions oddly tense.
"Su Xianjun!" Bai Lingshi shouted as soon as she spotted him, shoving aside a server blocking her path and storming over."What did you promise me?" Bai Lingshi walked up to Su Xianjun and shouted, "Didn't you say you would absolutely never have dinner alone with her?" Only after Bai Lingshi finished yelling did she notice Lu Sui sitting with his back to her.
Su Xianjun's expression darkened. "What are you talking about? Junior Sister Wu's boyfriend is sitting right here."
Bai Lingshi's face immediately flushed with embarrassment, but she couldn't bring herself to back down, turning her head away with an angry huff.
Su Xianjun quickly walked over, wrapped an arm around Bai Lingshi's shoulders, and whispered an urgent explanation in her ear.
There is a kind of beauty so striking it leaves one friendless.
That probably describes someone like Wu Mangmang.
In short, any girl with a boyfriend likely wouldn't want him getting too close to her.
Wu Mangmang's eyes met Lu Sui's across the table, and she felt she could read this message in his gaze: "See? If it weren't for me rescuing you..."
Although Wu Mangmang refused to admit it, what she had done was indeed somewhat inappropriate. Yesterday, when she asked Su Xianjun to revise her thesis, she had casually mentioned wanting to thank him by treating him to a meal, and he had casually agreed.
To Wu Mangmang, this was an entirely normal thing to do; she hadn't considered Su Xianjun's girlfriend's feelings at all, and it truly was a thoughtless oversight on her part.
Wu Mangmang stood up and smiled at Bai Lingshi. "Senior Sister, please join us. Are these two your classmates? Everyone, have a seat. I'll ask the server to bring menus."
Since Wu Mangmang offered an olive branch and it was all a misunderstanding, Bai Lingshi and her roommates awkwardly took their seats.
Su Xianjun made a relieved expression behind Bai Lingshi's back, while Wu Mangmang smiled and sat down beside Lu Sui.
The meal proceeded with an awkward atmosphere, and Wu Mangmang chalked it up as another life lesson learned.
Throughout the dinner, Bai Lingshi's two classmates kept stealing glances at Lu Sui. Lu Sui was naturally accustomed to all kinds of attention and furtive looks, while Wu Mangmang played the role of the proud, pampered princess to perfection. From the moment she sat beside Lu Sui, she never once reached to cook the food in the hot pot—it was all done by Lu Sui.
Women seem naturally inclined to compare, though men are likely no different.
Everyone is equal in love; one shouldn't assume that just because someone is more attractive, their relationship is sweeter, right?
Bai Lingshi was an only child from a well-off family, raised with care and indulgence. She might not be a princess, but she certainly had a bit of a spoiled temper—otherwise, she wouldn't have impulsively rushed over to "catch them in the act" earlier.
Now, as Bai Lingshi observed Wu Mangmang's boyfriend—wealthy, handsome, refined, well-mannered, and so considerate that he didn't eat or drink himself while taking care of his girlfriend—she felt this wasn't just rubbing salt in the wounds of single people; it was tormenting even couples not in the honeymoon phase.
Bai Lingshi shot many cold glares at Su Xianjun, but he remained unmoved. As a northerner, he could be utterly respectful and obedient to his girlfriend in private, but he would never do anything in public that might damage his masculine pride.
As for Lu Sui, in Su Xianjun's view, it was precisely people like him who spoiled women, failing to uphold the dignity of their fellow men and causing him to endure his girlfriend's angry stares.
For Wu Mangmang, Lu Sui was the exact opposite of Su Xianjun. In private, Mr. Lu could be so controlling it left one speechless, but whenever it came to comparing boyfriends, he always emerged the clear winner.
This truly was a case of wanting both the fish and the bear's paw.After finishing the hotpot, Wu Mangmang was, as usual, stuffed. With hotpot, when a group of people sit around chatting, it’s hard to resist eating constantly. Lu Sui had already tried to stop Wu Mangmang earlier.
Unfortunately, Wu Mangmang overcorrected, resenting Lu Sui for interfering without proper authority. As soon as she stood up, she felt discomfort in her stomach and pressed a hand to her abdomen, too embarrassed to mention it to Lu Sui. Otherwise, even if he didn’t say it out loud, he’d surely be thinking she was foolish.
"Why are you stopping here?" Wu Mangmang asked as Lu Sui parked the car by the roadside.
Only when Lu Sui returned from the pharmacy across the street with a box of digestive tablets did Wu Mangmang realize that her subtle expressions could never escape his notice.
"Want to take a shower at Lychee Garden? You smell like hotpot from head to toe," Lu Sui said.
This time, Wu Mangmang didn’t stubbornly oppose Lu Sui and silently nodded.
"Don’t rush to shower right after eating. Sit for a while first," Lu Sui told Wu Mangmang, who was eager to head straight to the bathroom as soon as they entered.
Hearing this, Wu Mangmang felt an inexplicable sense of amusement, lamenting how childish she was acting, yet also wondering how Lu Sui managed to play the role of a fussy caretaker so convincingly.
"Got it," Wu Mangmang replied to Lu Sui. "I’ll go prepare my clothes first."
Since this was originally intended as their love nest, the wardrobe naturally contained clothes prepared for Wu Mangmang. During Lu Sui’s business trips, Wu Mangmang came over every day to shower and had basically familiarized herself with everything.
The wardrobe was filled with the latest seasonal collections from her favorite brands, from shoes to bags, in every color imaginable. In the two-hundred-square-meter apartment, her wardrobe alone likely occupied no less than eighty square meters.
As always, Lu Sui had considered all her needs, even stocking the essential feminine products for every month. In the first two or three months after breaking up with Lu Sui, Wu Mangmang had struggled to adjust to her current lifestyle.
It’s hard to go from luxury to simplicity.
Wu Mangmang rested her head on the arm of the sofa and lay back, letting Lu Sui blow-dry her hair. She couldn’t quite understand how she and Lu Sui had ended up together again.
Or perhaps it was only halfway together. But given the situation, Wu Mangmang didn’t have much confidence in herself.
Over the past half month, she had thought of Lu Sui every day, wondering when he would return from his business trip.
Wu Mangmang also felt useless. Lu Sui had only brought her breakfast for a few days—and it wasn’t even for her—yet she had already wavered.
Unwilling to give in without a fight, Wu Mangmang made a last-ditch effort. "Lu Sui, I really can’t handle the role of Mrs. Lu. I don’t think we should waste any more of each other’s time."
The whirring of the hairdryer likely drowned out Wu Mangmang’s voice, as Lu Sui didn’t respond for a long time, not until he turned it off.
"As far as I know, I’ve never proposed to you. Are you overthinking things?" Lu Sui said.
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