Xu Yijing tucked away the Cohabitation Agreement.
Once it was signed, Shen An beamed with delight, his curiosity piqued.
“By the way, what’s your major?”
Xu Yijing slowly stowed the agreement and said softly, “Art Department.”
“Oh~ Art Department, huh~”
Shen An narrowed his eyes slightly, lost in thought.
From what he knew of Zhao Li’s background, if she had no other children, Xu Yijing was clearly an only daughter.
Shouldn’t she be studying something like business management?
Art Department? It seemed Xu Yijing had considerable freedom in her choices.
At the very least, her family hadn’t stood in the way of her pursuit of “art.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Xu Yijing picked up on the implication in his words and asked.
“Nothing. I’ve heard the Art Department is full of pretty girls.”
Shen An rubbed his hands together a bit shyly before fixing his gaze on Xu Yijing’s face. “But I think I’ve already met the prettiest girl in the Art Department.”
Xu Yijing smiled faintly. “I’m nothing special. If you get the chance, I can take you to the university’s Art Troupe to see for yourself.”
“Art Troupe? Is that like the Student Union?”
“The Art Troupe falls under the Student Union’s oversight—it’s one of their departments, but on a larger scale with a lot of independence. They usually handle all the school’s evening galas and performances.”
Xu Yijing turned her head toward the LCD TV in front of them. “That’s where you’ll find all the girls. Guaranteed to leave you dazzled.”
“I’ll look forward to it, then.”
Shen An smiled too. It was just polite chatter.
“And what about you? What’s your major?” Xu Yijing returned the question courteously.
“Me? English Department.”
Shen An sounded a little downcast.
English Department?
Xu Yijing’s eyes, fixed on the TV, flickered subtly.
“By the way, have you thought about joining any clubs or organizations?”
Xu Yijing asked.
“Uh, not really.” Shen An stayed in character, speaking softly. “I don’t think I’ll have much time for that anyway.”
“Don’t be so glum.”
Xu Yijing encouraged him. “University is different from high school—it’s a much freer time in your life.
“Studying is important, of course, but so is building some social connections.
“Even if club or organization activities don’t lead to any real gains, interacting with people will boost your overall polish.
“And on the practical side, you can cover your own living expenses while you’re with me.”
“Oh, so Senior Sister, you’re a member too? Which department are you in?”
“Me? I joined the Student Union.”
Xu Yijing said gently.
“Student Union, huh~” Shen An’s mind began to form a clearer picture.
Xu Yijing didn’t seem anything like what Zhao Li had described—at least, she had no trouble conversing.
Her temperament was quite pleasant, too.
He zoned out for a moment, and Xu Yijing turned to look at him. “Do you want to join the Student Union?”
“Uh, I was thinking, since you’re in the Student Union, Senior Sister, if I joined too, maybe you’d have my back.”
“That’s a bit narrow-minded.”
Xu Yijing said softly. “The school has plenty of great seniors. No matter which organization you join, you’ll run into helpful people.”
“Of course, some aren’t so helpful.”
She paused, then suggested, “That said, I wouldn’t recommend joining one of the Student Union’s core departments.”
“Core departments?”
“Yeah, like the Organization Department or Publicity Department. Those report directly to the Student Union and are always swamped—they handle student org work for the whole college.
“You might not have the time for that, and dealing with people there can be tricky.”
“So which department are you in specifically, Senior Sister?” Shen An asked again.
Xu Yijing smiled. “It doesn’t matter what department I’m in—what counts is your interests.
“No rush, though. You’ve only just arrived at school.”
With that, Xu Yijing stood up and grabbed a piece of clothing from nearby. “I’m going to take a nap.”
“Got it.”
Shen An stood as well, sensibly heading back to his own room for some rest.
“Oh, right—have you done your registration yet?”
Xu Yijing paused at the door, as if the thought had just struck her, and turned back with a curious look.
“Uh… I don’t think so.”
“Make sure you do. It’s a great chance to meet your major’s seniors.”
Xu Yijing’s lips curved up slightly. “Friendly tip: the ones greeting you are usually senior sisters.
“From what I hear, the girls in the English Department are all pretty. If you’re lucky, you might even meet the hottest senior sister in your major.”
“Uh~”
Shen An nodded. “Fair enough. I haven’t explored the campus yet—this is a good excuse to wander around.”
“Watch out for the sun. The weather’s nice today, but there’s an umbrella in the bottom cabinet by the door.”
Xu Yijing thoughtfully pointed it out.
“Thanks.”
“No problem.” With that, she closed the door and returned to her room.
Shen An didn’t leave right away.
Once Xu Yijing was back in her room, he returned to the sofa and sat down slowly.
If he had to score it, Xu Yijing’s performance on their first meeting was a perfect ten.
He doubted any girl could have done better.
Shen An leaned back, resting his head on the sofa cushion.
He was growing more and more suspicious that Zhao Li had ulterior motives.
But he wasn’t letting his guard down around Xu Yijing.
Not for any other reason—she was just too perfect.
He replayed everything from the moment he’d walked in: her every gesture and response.
Conclusion: Impeccable.
But the more impeccable it was, the more it felt faintly contrived.
No hard evidence—just Shen An’s gut feeling.
And he always trusted his instincts.
Still, he didn’t dwell on it.
He didn’t care if Xu Yijing was putting on a flawless act or if this was just who she was.
As long as she didn’t cause him trouble and let him coast through this period smoothly, his goal was achieved.
While Shen An reflected, Xu Yijing sat on her bed.
She pulled the Cohabitation Agreement from her pocket, a trace of contempt curling her lips as she tossed it casually into a drawer.
Then, from the bottom of the drawer, she retrieved a thick notebook.
She picked up a pen and wrote “Shen An” on a blank page.
Like Zhao Li, it was her habit to mark a big question mark next to the name she wrote.
Then came “English Department.”
Staring at what she’d jotted down, Xu Yijing furrowed her brow, deep in thought.
Suddenly, a crisp slam echoed from the hallway.
He’d left.
The furrow in Xu Yijing’s brow smoothed out. Her slender fingers gripped the pen tightly.
On the other side of the paper, the nib elegantly inscribed another character.
“Zhao.”
Satisfied, she drew a line connecting “Zhao,” “Shen An,” and “English Department.”
Then she closed the notebook, stowed it back at the bottom of the drawer, pulled up the covers, and settled in for her nap.
In the afternoon, the sunlight turned scorching.
Shen An, in his white dress shirt, stood out oddly—everyone else was in short sleeves.
He looked like he’d time-traveled from fall.
As he walked along the long campus path, one gaze after another sneaked his way, brimming with curiosity, confusion, and surprise!
They thought he didn’t notice, deliberately turning back for a peek only after passing him.
But Shen An’s senses had sharpened considerably.
One, two… three…
Countless!
Shen An was puzzled.
He knew he was handsome and dressed out of season, but did every passerby really need to stare?
There had to be another reason!
He narrowed his eyes and instinctively glanced up at the umbrella in his hand.
It was light blue, adorned with unique patterns and stripes.
And it was Xu Yijing’s umbrella.
He’d vaguely realized it was eye-catching—the color and designs were so distinctive, like a crane among chickens, drawing attention instantly.
But he had no choice; it was the only one in the cabinet, and the sun was brutal. He hated sweating.
Was this Xu Yijing’s personal umbrella?
The only one like it on campus?
Given her beauty, Shen An doubted she faded into the background at school.
She wasn’t a shut-in, and she was in the Student Union.
The answer was simple.
People were staring because of the umbrella.
Because it was Xu Yijing’s!
He was holding Xu Yijing’s umbrella!
Tsk~
Shen An couldn’t help a sigh of admiration.
Xu Yijing’s reputation at East China Comprehensive University was clearly something else.
He had a premonition that things were veering off course from his original plan.
When it came to rumors and gossip, university was no different from high school—in fact, it was worse.
Information spread faster and wider here.
Parading around with her umbrella today was bound to spark misunderstandings.
But Shen An didn’t care.
The innocent had nothing to fear.
After all, he wasn’t the one at a loss.
Xu Yijing couldn’t have left behind nothing but a bad reputation, could she?
As Shen An strolled along the campus path into the Teaching District, the stares from passersby didn’t diminish—in fact, they grew more obvious.
Shen An walked on calmly, without a hint of panic or haste.
He had already traversed the campus several times in the past few days and was thoroughly familiar with every area.
New students typically registered at the Library.
When he arrived, the place was packed. The steps were crowded with figures—freshmen there to register, upperclassmen helping out, and plenty of onlookers just soaking in the excitement.
For a moment, Shen An felt a pang of nostalgia.
Freshman orientation week was always one of the liveliest times at university, a buzz that lingered right up until the end of military training.
Wait…
Did that mean he would have to go through military training too?
The corner of Shen An’s mouth twitched. That would really suck.
“Literature Department~ Media Department~ Education Department—these are all under the College of Literature.”
Shen An passed by each booth one by one until he finally spotted the Foreign Language College’s station.
“Japanese Department, Italian Language… German Department…”
At the very end was the English Department!
And it was the booth drawing the biggest crowd.
From a short distance away, Shen An peered closely and noticed that very few actual freshmen were lined up to register at the booth.
Most of the people milling around it were guys—ostensibly helping, but really just there to gawk.
Men understood men all too well, and Shen An got the picture in an instant.
Looks like his luck was pretty good today.
There had to be at least one stunningly beautiful senior sister manning the booth.
When he finally squeezed his way in…
Shen An raised an eyebrow, and his smile turned dazzling—dazzling enough that, under the scorching sun, it carried a faint chill.
Several girls sat behind the booth.
But the one in the center was the true “source” drawing all these guys to the English Department booth.
She wore a striking red outfit that looked elaborate but was actually quite revealing and cool. Not a single bead of sweat marred her fair skin, and as she shifted, the faint outline of abs appeared on her exposed midriff.
Her orange-red short hair was as eye-catching as ever, the contrast of white skin and red fabric forming the most tantalizing visual pairing imaginable!
Her aura was seductively alluring, yet her features held a pure, aloof chill.
It was the senior sister he had run into back at the apartment complex!
Talk about enemies crossing paths…
No, no, no.
This was fate.
That’s right—fate!
The fate of revenge.
Shen An glanced at her, then quickly reined in his thoughts.
