HS Chapter 7

‘Get it?’

Suddenly, a ringtone rang out behind him. Ye Wenyu snapped out of his daze, and before his brain could react, his hand had already minimized the webpage at lightning speed.

Chi Dongting was busy playing a game with both hands. He quickly answered the call, and sandwiched the phone between his ear and shoulder.

“Hello? Oh, Teacher Chen, it’s me, Chi Dongting.”

“Go to the office to verify information? Now?”

“But teacher, I’m currently… wait, are you in the office now? Otherwise, can I just send you my ID number directly? Oh, you’re not in…”

“Alright then, thank you, teacher.”

During the call, Chi Dongting barely kept up a façade of politeness, but the moment the call ended, his true colors showed.

“Ahhhh! So annoying! Why at this exact time! We’ve verified stuff like a hundred times since freshman year…what exactly are we still verifying?!”

His face scrunched up as he gloomily tried to figure out how to tell his teammates he had to bail at the last minute.

“I’ll go verify it for you.” Ye Wenyu closed his laptop.

Chi Dongting was really reluctant to leave, but he felt embarrassed about Ye Wenyu going out of his way for him, so he said hesitantly, “That’s not really appropriate, and it’s quite a walk…”

“It’s fine.” Ye Wenyu told a small lie. “I need to go out anyway.”

He really had to go out for some fresh air and cool off.

It took nearly twenty minutes to walk from the dorm to the third teaching building. When Ye Wenyu went upstairs to verify the info and came back down, roughly half an hour had passed.

Just as he was about to head back, he received a call from Chi Dongting, asking if he could help pick up something from the supermarket next to the building.

Chi Dongting: “I just remembered…my elective course teacher asked us to make a handwritten poster, remember? I checked the little shop downstairs from our dormitory when I was coming back earlier and all their sketch paper was sold out.”

Ye Wenyu understood what he meant and turned toward the supermarket. “How many sheets?”

Chi Dongting: “Two sheets! Oh right, also pencils and an eraser!”

Ye Wenyu: “Okay.”

Chi Dongting: “Hehe, thanks, Wenyu!”

Ye Wenyu said it was no problem, hung up, walked into the supermarket, and went straight to the stationery section for the sketch paper. Then he took a bit of time to find pencils and an eraser.

At this hour, the supermarket was nearly packed. Just as he was about to head back the way he came to pay, the path he came from had already been taken over by a group of chatting and laughing school girls.

He had no choice but to take a longer route around.

Laughter and noise came from behind.

Unexpectedly, after only a few steps, past the bustling crowd and at the end of a shelf packed with goods, the figure he had replayed countless times in his mind over the past few days, suddenly appeared in his field of vision without warning.

Ye Wenyu froze.

His body abruptly stopped in place.

Almost at the same time, a boy behind him hurriedly squeezed past him while muttering, “Excuse me, please let me through.”

In his daze, his elbow was bumped, and the eraser rolled out of his hand like it had a navigation chip installed, rolling straight to the feet of the person across from him.

Yan Chen had not expected this either.

He had just come out of the cafeteria, only to remember when he was at the gate of the third teaching building that everyone had already finished class. This trip had been completely pointless.

But since he hadn’t had a strong need to see him today, it didn’t feel like a huge disappointment either.

So he changed course and entered the supermarket, planning to grab a bottle of water before heading back.

Who knew he’d run into him just like this?

The boy who only existed in a photo minutes ago was now standing there, just four or five steps away and quietly looking over. His gaze was like a lake just starting to freeze over…clear and cold.

Their eyes met for no more than two seconds before he looked away, his gaze landing on the eraser lying at his feet.

Ye Wenyu’s feet were rooted to the ground, watching as the other person bent down naturally, then straightened and walked over, stopping with perfect measure just one step away.

Finally, he opened his palm to him, revealing a brand new eraser with a bunny pattern.

It was not as close as last time in the library, but it was already enough for Ye Wenyu to once again see every detail of the lips he had dreamed about day and night.

Including the subtle, vivid curve at the corners of his lips that he hadn’t noticed before.

It was like he had suddenly fallen into a sealed chamber of consciousness. He could only hear the wind outside chasing and playing as it rushed in, brushing against a string of glass wind chimes in the corner, making them jingle crisply.

And his own heart, pounding like a drum.

Until the other party saw he hadn’t responded for a while and lightly opened his mouth: “You don’t want it?”

Ye Wenyu woke as if from a dream.

He forcibly tore his gaze away as if fleeing, his lowered eyelashes blocking the emotions growing in his eyes, while he raised his hand toward him.

Yan Chen’s eyes finally saw the slender and beautiful wrist as he was hoping.

From the protruding bones on the outside, the sunken hollows, to the faint blue veins on the back of his hand, and then to the fingers and fingertips.

The pads of the boy’s fingers lightly brushed his palm, like the softest part at the base of a feather, taking the eraser and leaving behind a faint tingling.

“Sorry for the trouble.” Ye Wenyu’s departing footsteps carried a disarray only he could notice.

Yan Chen’s brows moved slightly. He looked down and examined his palm carefully.

The soft, cool sensation after the skin contact hadn’t disappeared yet. The feeling was unfamiliar yet fresh, and he couldn’t help but curl his fingers and gently rub his palm.

An unclear emotion flickered in his eyes. He closed his hand and soon turned to leave the supermarket.

–

After finishing a level ten dungeon, Chi Dongting collapsed in his seat like a salted fish. Hearing the door open, he turned his head weakly toward the returning person and drawled, “Wen~~yu~~”

“I checked the information for you. There’s no problem.”

Ye Wenyu walked over and placed the sketch paper and pencils on his desk.

When it came to the eraser, his movement paused slightly.

Chi Dongting, worn out body and soul by the dungeon, didn’t even notice Ye Wenyu’s obvious distraction.

The private message notification sounded again. He tilted his head and glanced at it, then couldn’t help but groan, “Save me! I don’t want to do another run! Stop calling me!”

Ye Wenyu’s eyelashes trembled a little. He finally put down the eraser, pressing it onto the sketch paper. “I just picked it at random. See if I got the wrong one.”

“Nope, no problem. I’m just doodling anyway, nothing fancy.”

Chi Dongting picked up his phone and found Ye Wenyu in his WeChat list. “Thanks, Wenyu. I’ve sent you the money, remember to accept it.”

Ye Wenyu nodded and returned to his seat to open his computer.

The Q&A forum page he had opened before leaving was still up.

He clicked it from the bottom of the taskbar and found that in less than an hour, the reply from [Spicy Sad Goose] had already received nearly two hundred likes, pushed to the top of the reply list.

He held the mouse and silently read that reply over and over again until the computer went to sleep due to inactivity and the screen turned off again.

“Hey, Wenyu, have you finished pinching your character’s face?” Chi Dongting had recovered a bit and started doing his daily tasks on another game account.

There was no response.

Chi Dongting didn’t mind. “There’s actually not much to customize on male characters. Once you’re in the game, you’ll see they all look the same, no difference.”

“Oh! Or there’s an even easier way, just upload your photo and let the system auto-generate it. Anyway, you…”

“Dongting.” Ye Wenyu suddenly spoke, interrupting his babble.

“Huh?” Chi Dongting turned his head, his eyes still on the game screen.

Then he heard Ye Wenyu ask, in a confused and very serious tone, a question that almost seemed impossible to come out of his mouth:

“Do you know how to get close to someone?”

——–

“The third one.”

In dormitory 508, Dong Xi crossed his legs while scrolling through his phone, clicking his tongue in amazement. “Look at this, that’s already the third person confessing to Yan-ge on the confession wall today.”

Yang Liang was pouring water. “Confession wall? What’s that?”

Dong Xi: “Just a public QQ account for the campus. It accepts anonymous submissions from students and teachers and posts them on its feed. Anyone who added it can see. It’s kind of like a mini news outlet.”

“Oh.” Yang Liang half understood.

Dong Xi switched legs and leaned back against the table, looking relaxed. “Hey, should I also make a submission? Do a good deed and give those love-struck girls a heads-up?”

Yang Liang: “A heads-up on what?”

“What else?” Dong Xi raised an eyebrow. “Of course to tell them that this handsome Yan-ge has a serious physical contact phobia. He can’t accept any physical contact with others. That includes but is not limited to holding hands and hugging. As for kissing…don’t even think about it.”

“Oh…” Yang Liang’s eyes lit up. “I know this one! Isn’t this what they call a Platonic relationship?”

Dong Xi: “You mean the misunderstood version of spiritual love?”

Yang Liang: “Huh?”

Dong Xi: “After all, the original meaning of Plato’s idea referred to love between men, not what people now think…just dating without sleeping together.”

Yang Liang: “…”

He was confused again. “I’ll just drink my water.”

Dong Xi was once again amused by his single-track mind. Just then Yan Chen returned, and he asked with a laugh, “Yan-ge, are you done with everything now?”

Yan Chen responded, placed the half-drunk bottle of water on the table, and went to the balcony to take a call.

The dormitory doors chosen by the school had good sound insulation. Once closed, neither side could hear the other.

Yan Chen stood on the balcony, and all he could hear was the low chatter from downstairs and his father’s steady, middle-aged voice through the receiver.

Yan Zhan: “If you have time next weekend, come to the company. There’s a new project and we are about to sign the contract. Follow along and learn.”

Yan Chen leaned on the railing with his arms, squinting at the people coming and going downstairs. “With who?”

Yan Zhan: “Manager Lin, or your cousin. It’s up to you.”

Yan Chen: “Got it.”

Yan Zhan: “Also, your mother went abroad last week to attend an academic architecture seminar. She won’t be back anytime soon.”

Yan Chen responded lightly, “Mm.”

When Yan Zhan talked to his son, his tone and wording were no different from when giving orders to subordinates. He hung up without pause after finishing the business.

Yan Chen was already used to it, so carried his phone back to the dorm without a care, pulled out a chair, and sat down. Just then, he heard Yang Liang ask, “Ye Wenyu? Who’s that?”

Yan Chen lifted his eyelids.

Dong Xi thought for a moment. “Let me put it another way. Fair-skinned and bright. Can you remember now?”

Yang Liang got it. “Yeah, now I remember!”

Dong Xi stared at his phone. “His name pops up on the confession wall pretty often too. What’s interesting is, all the comments underneath are quite mysterious, saying that the people shouting about chasing him must be from the newly relocated branch campus.”

Yang Liang: “Huh? Why?”

Dong Xi raised an eyebrow. “He’s the treasured flower of the Foreign Languages Department, but unfortunately, a flower on a high mountain with a cold personality and not easy to approach. It’s common knowledge at the main campus so only the newcomers would talk such nonsense.”

“Oh…” Yang Liang’s voice dragged out as he half-understood. “But maybe it’s not nonsense. What if they really like him even though they know that?”

Dong Xi: “We can’t rule out that possibility. Some people are born to hang from a single tree, but the chances are slim…”

Yan Chen: “Dong Xi.”

Dong Xi was still scrolling the confession wall for fun. Hearing the call, he looked up. “Hm? What is it?”

Yan Chen: “That junior you mentioned last time, is he from the Foreign Languages Department?”

Dong Xi: “Yes, he’s a sophomore in Foreign Languages. Why?”

“Nothing.” Yan Chen twirled his phone, speaking vaguely, “I just have a small matter I want to ask him for help with.”

Chapter 8

Chi Dongting: “Wenyu, how’s it going?”

Ye Wenyu turned his head. “How’s what going?”

Chi Dongting draped an arm over the back of his chair and clicked his tongue. “Didn’t you ask me a couple of days ago how your cousin could chase someone? How’s the situation now?”

Ye Wenyu: “…”

That day, in a moment of confusion, he impulsively asked Chi Dongting how to get close to someone….and instantly regretted it.

But once the words were out, there was no taking them back. Faced with Chi Dongting’s eyes trembling in shock, he panicked and lied that he was asking on behalf of his cousin.

Chi Dongting believed him, but automatically interpreted that the “cousin” was pursuing someone. Ye Wenyu couldn’t deny it, fearing it would drag out some convoluted explanation, so he had to go along with it.

He thought Chi Dongting would forget soon, but he clearly underestimated how enthusiastic Chi Dongting could be.

Ye Wenyu: “…No progress.”

“It’s been two days! How can there be no progress?!”

Chi Dongting was more anxious than him. “You can’t be too reserved in matters of love, or you’ll just stay stuck!”

Ye Wenyu: “…”

“But don’t worry, I already asked my sister for help.” Chi Dongting looked confident. “My sister’s an expert at this stuff. Just follow her method, you won’t go wrong!”

Ye Wenyu: “What method?”

Chi Dongting: “Step one is definitely getting the contact information. After all, feelings come from interaction. In the early stages, even if there’s nothing to say, you have to find something to talk about and keep in touch.”

In fact, Ye Wenyu had thought of many ways over the past two days, including this one.

But whether or not he could get the contact information was one thing. Even if he got it, what could two strangers with no overlap in study or life possibly say to each other?

Finding something to talk about when there’s nothing…that was way too hard for him.

“My cousin’s not good at chatting.” Ye Wenyu decided to be honest. “This method might backfire.”

“It’s not a big deal, there’s a simplified version.”

Chi Dongting said, “My sister said if you’re no good at one-on-one communication, then just expand the scope a bit and switch from targeting the individual to targeting the group.”

Ye Wenyu didn’t quite get it. “What?”

Chi Dongting: “Basically, skip the individual communication and get familiar with a small group around the target. Basically, saving the country by taking a detour.”

Ye Wenyu was uncertain. “So… approach the people around him first?”

Chi Dongting: “Something like that. Humans are social animals. If they’re social, there’s bound to be small groups. As long as your cousin gets into one of those, he can keep track of his sweetheart’s movements and create chances for himself.”

Chi Dongting: “The enemy is out in the open, while we hide in the dark. He can do a covert operation when the time comes, if he’s lucky, he might even gain one or two wingmen. Twice the result for half the effort!”

There was some logic to the method.

But again, starting from scratch in social interaction was too hard for Ye Wenyu.

Besides, this indirect approach felt a bit like using people and was very inappropriate…

A WeChat notification interrupted Ye Wenyu’s thoughts.

Class representative Chang Sicheng privately sent him a list of names…it was students who made it through the first round of the small language dubbing competition.

Ye Wenyu checked the list and found no issues, then asked Chang Sicheng: [When exactly is the final selection?]

Chang Sicheng: [Not sure. It should be Thursday or Friday this week, depending on everyone’s schedule. If there’s no conflict, the sooner the better.]

Ye Wenyu: [Alright, let’s go with that.]

Not two minutes after Ye Wenyu gave the confirmed reply, An Xue, the class academic representative, posted the list in the group chat.

But after matching schedules roughly, a problem quickly emerged.

An Xue: [Image]

An Xue: [I went through everyone’s schedules. Since we all have different electives, it’s a bit hard to align the screening and later practice sessions.]