TL: Hua
Extra 9: Campus Life 3
Qin Chaoyan regretfully gave up the idea. As he left the private room, he couldn’t help but ask, “Are you still coming back home this weekend?”
Ye Rongxu deliberately tilted his head, put on his headphones, and pretended not to hear. The next second, his body, which had just reached the doorway, was pulled back into a slightly warm embrace.
Qin Chaoyan took off one of his headphones, pinched his fair earlobe, and whispered near his ear, “Don’t pretend you can’t hear.”
The slightly warm breath tickled his earlobe, making half his body feel numb. Ye Rongxu quickly covered his ears and softly hummed, “Got it.”
A smile appeared in Qin Chaoyan’s eyes. He hugged him tighter and kissed him again.
—
Ye Rongxu returned to his dorm with his packed lunch. His only roommate was holding a drawing board, lost in thought.
Ye Rongxu had been delayed in the car for a while. Seeing his roommate, Xiao Pang, looking listless, he thought he was hungry and quickly said, “Sorry, you must be hungry.”
Xiao Pang’s eyes lit up when he saw the takeout boxes. “Wow, is this from the five-star restaurant next to our school?”
Then he remembered to be polite and quickly said, embarrassed, “No, no, I didn’t wait long.”
Ye Rongxu placed the boxes on his desk. “It’s fine; eat quickly while it’s hot.”
Then he took off his jacket and went to the sink to clean up.
Xiao Pang quickly thanked him and didn’t keep on being polite. He opened the packaging box and chatted with him while eating. When he turned around, he saw him washing his face, touching his lips with his fingertips while looking in the mirror. He couldn’t help but take another look and subconsciously said, “Hey, Rongxu, your lips seem a little swollen?”
Ye Rongxu froze, pressing his lips together guiltily. “Are they?”
He couldn’t help but secretly curse Qin Chaoyan.
Xiao Pang took another look. “It seems a little bit, but actually it’s not…” It should be rosy.
Ye Rongxu’s skin was fair, so his red lips were especially noticeable. And at that moment, because he had just washed his face and they were wet, they were almost a vibrant red.
However, Xiao Pang, having been single since birth, didn’t think much of it and quickly added, “Was the food spicy?”
Ye Rongxu coughed twice and quickly nodded. “Ah, yes.”
No, it wasn’t spicy at all. He couldn’t eat spicy food, but the kiss was spicy.
His earlobes felt warm, and he quickly darted into the bathroom. After a quick wash, he grabbed two books and climbed into bed.
Qin Chaoyan messaged him on WeChat, asking if he had arrived at the dorm. He replied instantly and then righteously added: I’m starting to study now.
There was a moment of silence from the other side, then came a flexing cat emoji.
Ye Rongxu: “…”
He rubbed his face to calm himself down and began to study.
He and Xiao Pang both had no classes that afternoon, and Xiao Pang was a homebody, so they spent a quiet afternoon together in the dorm.
Dinner, as usual, was with Qin Chaoyan. On the way back, he brought Xiao Pang some late-night snacks.
After three consecutive free, lavish meals, Xiao Pang couldn’t resist showing off in the dorm group chat.
The other two roommates, who were interning elsewhere, expressed their envy and then regret, saying they wouldn’t have gone to intern so early if they had known Ye Rongxu was returning to the dorm.
Ye Rongxu saw the messages and replied sporadically.
As they chatted, Wang Zhuo, the dorm leader, suddenly suggested, “Hey, I’m actually back at school this weekend. Our dorm hasn’t been together in a long time. How about we all have a meal together then?”
He then @ another intern roommate: “Old Two, what do you say? Are you coming back this weekend?”
Tang Ying, who was called “Old Two,” immediately replied: “Yes, of course, I’m coming back.”
Then he @ Xiao Pang: “Xiao Pang, what about you?”
Xiao Pang instantly replied, “I’m in the dorm every day, with nothing to do.” Finally, all three simultaneously @ Ye Rongxu.
Ye Rongxu was stunned, remembering he had just promised Qin Chaoyan he would go back this weekend. He hesitated and asked, “What’s the exact time?”
Xiao Pang immediately helped him ask in the group, and the three quickly began discussing enthusiastically.
Ye Rongxu hesitated for a moment and simultaneously messaged Qin Chaoyan.
Xuxu Rusheng: I might be going out to eat with my roommates this weekend.
Clingy Guy: ?
Xuxu Rusheng: It’s a dorm gathering. We haven’t met in a long time, and we might not have time to meet in the future; it might even be a farewell meal.
Clingy Guy: …
Xuxu Rusheng: Anyway, I’ll definitely have time to come back in the evening.
Clingy Guy: crying cat head.jpg
Ye Rongxu slightly broke a sweat. He really couldn’t connect the Qin Chaoyan who sent emojis with the usually refined and aloof Qin Chaoyan.
After “notifying” Qin Chaoyan, the dorm group also finished their discussion, and the time was set for Saturday afternoon.
Qin Chaoyan had a contract to sign on Saturday afternoon, so he replied: I’ll pick you up then.
Ye Rongxu replied, “Okay,” and sent him the address.
The next two days passed with classes as usual. Qin Chaoyan was busy with company matters and didn’t act as “Teacher Qin” again.
On Saturday morning, Wang Zhuo and Tang Ying, who were interning, returned to the dorm and greeted Ye Rongxu and Xiao Pang enthusiastically.
“It’s so comfortable being back in the dorm; it feels like home.”
“It’s a bit sad to think that we’ll be completely separated in a few months.”
“Haha, you’re sad; I’m not.”
The few of them laughed and joked, then Wang Zhuo and Tang Ying started talking about their internships.
Ye Rongxu and Xiao Pang couldn’t really interject. At noon, the four of them took a taxi to the gathering place.
The restaurant was chosen by Tang Ying. Considering the financial affordability of the other roommates, Ye Rongxu didn’t express much opinion.
However, when they arrived, he was still a little surprised; it was too high-end.
Of course, for Ye Rongxu, such a restaurant was ordinary, but for his three roommates, it probably wasn’t somewhere they could easily afford.
Xiao Pang also gasped, lowering his voice: “Old Two, we… can’t afford to split the bill here, can we?”
Tang Ying, however, said, “Don’t worry, the son of my internship company’s boss and I get along really well. He’s also a student at our school. Yesterday, when he heard I was inviting my roommates to dinner, he specifically lent me his membership card for this restaurant. It’s super cheap.”
Hearing him say that, Xiao Pang and Wang Zhuo finally relaxed.
The four of them were led into the restaurant by a waiter and chose a window seat. Just as they were about to sit down, someone called out from afar, “Tang Ying!”
Tang Ying turned around and saw the person, his face immediately lighting up with surprise: “Brother Chao, you’re here too?”
The person called “Brother Chao” was wearing a black jacket, with a granny-gray perm, and an unlit cigarette in his mouth. He strode over and said, “Came with your roommates? Aren’t you going to introduce us?”
As he spoke, his gaze swept over the other three people present, and when it landed on Ye Rongxu, his expression suddenly froze for a moment, and a flash of astonishment flickered in his eyes.
“Brother Chao, these are my roommates: Wang Zhuo, Liu Xiaohui, and Ye Rongxu.” Tang Ying enthusiastically introduced them.
Then he said to Ye Rongxu and the other two, “This is Brother Chao, who I told you about, the son of our company’s boss, Lin Chao. He takes really good care of me.”
When Xiao Pang and the dorm leader heard this, they quickly and enthusiastically greeted Lin Chao; after all, this person was also Tang Ying’s superior.
Ye Rongxu simply nodded in greeting, feeling a bit uncomfortable with the man constantly looking at him. However, the other party’s gaze wasn’t overly intrusive, so it was still tolerable.
Lin Chao was still in a daze. After Tang Ying called him twice, he finally snapped back to reality and quickly cleared his throat to cover his embarrassment. “Oh, oh, well… your roommates are all so distinguished, haha. It’s so inconvenient to dine in the public area, with people coming and going and all the noise. How about I upgrade you to a private room?”
Tang Ying and the other two were surprised and pleased but still felt awkward. “Oh, that’s too much trouble; let’s not.”
Lin Chao quickly said, “No trouble at all, no trouble…”
His gaze involuntarily drifted back to Ye Rongxu.
Ye Rongxu frowned and directly said, “Let’s stay here. Private rooms are stuffy. This spot by the window is quite nice.”
Xiao Pang and the other two knew that Ye Rongxu wasn’t in the best health, especially with his breathing issues. Hearing this, they immediately dropped their hesitation and agreed, “Then we’ll stay here.”
Tang Ying also said to Lin Chao, “We’re really sorry, Brother Chao; we won’t trouble you.”
Lin Chao, who seemed rather open-minded, seeing their stance, simply said, “Alright then, but since we rarely meet, may I boldly ask to join your table?”
The dorm leader and Xiao Pang both assumed he was doing it for Tang Ying’s sake and didn’t think much of it, especially since the membership card was his, so it was hard to refuse.
Tang Ying thought even less of it, as Lin Chao had been quite helpful to him at the company, and he even greeted him warmly.
Only Ye Rongxu realized what was going on, but he didn’t want to dampen his roommates’ spirits, so he said nothing. He just sent a WeChat message to Qin Chaoyan, asking him to pick him up early.
–
In a meeting room at the Rongchao Group’s branch office in Jing City.
Qin Chaoyan and Xie Yi sat opposite each other at the conference table, both signing documents.
Just as he was about to sign, Xie Yi suddenly spoke, “Wait, aren’t you going to reconsider?”
Qin Chaoyan’s pen paused slightly, then he signed without hesitation.
Xie Yi sighed, “Once you sign this, you’ll have no more connection with Xie Group.”
Qin Chaoyan said calmly, “I’m just selling the shares to you; I still get the money.”
However, he had already decided to use all that money to establish a foundation for charity.
Xie Yi shook his head, then curiously asked, “By the way, when are you and Xuxu getting married?”
Two years ago, Xie Yunming committed suicide when he was briefly lucid in the mental hospital. After that, Qin Chaoyan’s relationship with the Xie family seemed to ease up a bit.
Of course, it was mainly Xie Yunhua who occasionally contacted him, making it seem like their relationship had improved significantly.
Xie Yunhua had always cared about her sister’s only son but didn’t want to bother Qin Chaoyan too much, so she often mentioned Qin Chaoyan’s recent situation at home.
What she talked about most was, “I wonder when he and Xuxu will get married; he said he’d invite me before.”
Xie Yi heard it often and also became curious. When he met Qin Chaoyan this time, he couldn’t help but ask.
Qin Chaoyan was silent for two seconds, then looked at him and said, “I thought she might have some reservations about me because of Xie Yunming’s matter.”
Xie Yunhua was different from him after all. No matter how unreasonable Xie Yunming was, in her eyes, he was still her older brother.
Although he only confined Xie Yunming to a mental hospital and didn’t truly have him tortured, at most, he had him ignored and didn’t actively provide him with treatment, allowing him to live in pain. The other party committed suicide after regaining lucidity and being unable to accept reality.
Xie Yi sighed upon hearing this. “Regarding Uncle’s matter, my mother indeed…. But she knows that it was his own doing. In fact, she hopes you’ll let go of your hatred and obsession and not live such a painful life.”
He still remembered how suppressed Qin Chaoyan had been during those three years in Country E, as cold as a lifeless machine. Even now, he was unwilling to take the Xie family’s shares, perhaps because he hadn’t truly let go.
Qin Chaoyan, however, said, “I let go a long time ago.”
He then checked the time and added, “Sorry, I need to pick someone up, so I can’t stay longer.”
Xie Yi had originally wanted to invite him for a casual meal but couldn’t bring himself to do so after hearing that. He stood up and said, “Alright, I should head back too.”
Qin Chaoyan nodded and quickly went downstairs. As soon as he took out his phone, he saw a message from Ye Rongxu and couldn’t help but smile.
—
Inside the restaurant, Ye Rongxu’s meal went smoothly enough.
Although Lin Chao clearly had an interest in him, he only asked about his grade and major and didn’t overstep his bounds too much.
Hearing about Ye Rongxu’s minor, he quickly and enthusiastically tried to connect with him. “What a coincidence, I’m also in that major, and I’m a senior too. How come I’ve never seen you before?”
After saying that, he felt a wave of regret and wanted to slap himself. Of course, he hadn’t seen him because he rarely went to class. What if Student Ye guessed it? Wouldn’t that affect his image?
Ye Rongxu did guess some things, but he simply said calmly, “Perhaps the courses for a minor in this major aren’t entirely the same as for a major in this field.”
“Yes, yes, yes, that’s probably it,” Lin Chao quickly played it off and then was about to say something else.
Ye Rongxu suddenly took out his phone to check it, then smiled slightly and said, “Excuse me, my boyfriend is here to pick me up, so I’ll be leaving now.”
By now, Xiao Pang and the other two had more or less sensed that something was amiss, and they all quickly said, “Then you should go quickly.”
“Don’t worry about us; we’ll be eating for a while longer.”
So, before Lin Chao could even speak, Ye Rongxu had already said goodbye to the three of them.
“Student Ye,” Lin Chao saw Ye Rongxu about to leave and quickly spoke, wanting his contact information.
Qin Chaoyan happened to walk into the restaurant at that moment. He was still wearing the custom suit he had worn to sign the contract at the company, which accentuated his tall, long-legged, and upright figure, giving him an exceptionally distinguished aura.
Seeing Ye Rongxu, he quickly smiled and strode over, “Xuxu.”
Ye Rongxu visibly relaxed slightly upon seeing him and quickly went over, specifically showing intimacy, “Why did you come up?”
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