Luo Ye stretched and checked the time. He'd been in the library for two hours. His daily writing quota was done.
Exiting the library, he found a light drizzle outside. So this is southern weather? He thought. If it rains like this every day during military training, that'd be perfect.
He headed back to his dorm, umbrella in hand.
Behind him, the beautiful senior who had scanned him in also walked out.
Qin Yuwen glanced at Su Baichou, then looked outside. Somehow, the light rain seemed to be picking up.
"Zhou Zhou, maybe we should wait in the library until it stops?"
"No. There's something with the freshmen I need to see to personally."
Su Baichou looked at the fine drizzle. It seemed negligible.
"Wen Wen, watch my laptop for me."
"Hey, Zhou Zhou, you're really going?" Qin Yuwen followed to the library entrance, watching Su Baichou's retreating figure.
Meanwhile, Luo Ye, who had already left, heard movement behind him and turned.
He saw the senior walking briskly.
The initial drizzle intensified rapidly, becoming a downpour. The weather in Jiangcheng was truly unpredictable; the rain had arrived with a vengeance.
Su Baichou used her hands to shield her head, but against such a heavy rain, two hands were useless.
The water drenched her, soaking her clothes and making them cling to her body, leaving little to the imagination.
Her figure is downright unfair.
No, that's not the point.
Luo Ye hurried after her. "Senior!"
He held the umbrella over Su Baichou's head.
"Thank you." Her demeanor was aloof; she didn't even look at his face.
Suddenly.
A clap of thunder roared.
Su Baichou, who had been hurrying, froze instantly on the spot.
"Se... Senior?" Luo Ye looked at her, puzzled, noticing she wasn't moving.
So this beautiful senior is afraid of thunder.
"Sorry." Su Baichou's face was expressionless.
BOOM!
Another thunderclap.
Su Baichou froze again.
The rain fell harder. Lightning flashed and thunder rumbled across the sky. Luo Ye's umbrella wasn't large, and with the senior keeping her distance, half of his body was getting drenched.
Luo Ye looked towards the nearest academic building. "Senior, how about we take shelter over there?"
Su Baichou gave a silent nod and followed under the umbrella.
They stood in the first-floor corridor of the teaching building.
A long silence ensued.
Should I say something?
Luo Ye thought for a moment. "Senior, what year are you in?"
"Third year."
"Oh."
...
"Senior, what's your major?"
"Computer Science."
"Ah."
...
"Senior..."
"..."
"Um..." Luo Ye pointed at a large tree not far away. "That tree looks really sturdy, haha..."
An awkward atmosphere permeated the air.
Luo Ye truly wasn't good at dealing with girls. He'd lived eighteen years without a single romance to his name.
He stole a glance at the senior beside him.
Her face was cold.
Su Baichou also felt the awkwardness.
So she chose not to speak.
As for student council work or whatever, given the circumstances, she had no energy to think about that now.
I should have just stayed in the library with Qin Yuwen and waited for the rain to stop.
She was afraid of thunder, but she hadn't expected thunder this time. The forecast hadn't mentioned a thunderstorm.
Luo Ye habitually picked up his phone. He looked at the chat interface with his goddess, hesitated, then backed out and opened another chat.
"Hot Pot Lover"
This person was one of the two friends his brother, Gu Mingxuan, had invited while they were gaming once, claiming they were really good. Luo Ye later found out they were indeed skilled, so he proactively added their contact. They'd play games occasionally and chat about daily life—a proper gaming buddy.
Since Gu Mingxuan had invited them, they were probably his friend. Anyway, it was just an online friendship. Luo Ye didn't care about identity or anything; names weren't important. It was just for casual chat to pass the time. He had no plans to meet up.
Luo Ye started typing: "Dude, you won't believe it. I'm stuck sheltering from the rain with a senior who looks like a literal fairy."
The next moment.
Su Baichou's phone chimed.
She picked it up and looked.
Falling Leaf: Dude, you won't believe it. I'm stuck sheltering from the rain with a senior who looks like a literal fairy.
Su Baichou: "…"
She turned to look at Luo Ye.
Then silently switched to silent mode and replied.
Hot Pot Lover: How good-looking? Send a pic.
Ding Dong!
Luo Ye's phone chimed. He checked the message.
Falling Leaf: Isn't sneaking a picture bad?
Hot Pot Lover: Find an opportunity! Just don't let her notice.
Luo Ye didn't reply.
Su Baichou cooperatively turned her head, pretending to look at the scenery outside.
Soon.
Falling Leaf: [Picture]
Falling Leaf: So pretty, right? (Animated emoji)
Su Baichou stared at the photo, lost in thought.
Anything really is possible in this world.
The guy she often gamed with… she knew he was Professor Gu's younger brother. The professor had asked her before leaving abroad to look after his brother if possible.
But… she never imagined her first meeting with Professor Gu's brother would be under these circumstances…
She wasn't prepared for this.
Su Baichou found the situation somewhat tricky.
The rain continued.
The thunder persisted, and the sky grew darker.
A cold wind blew, making Luo Ye shiver.
Suddenly.
He seemed to realize something and turned to look at the senior.
She was still in the same position, but her body was trembling slightly.
Such a beauty, even the heavens must pity her.
Luo Ye mentally resolved to slap himself later.
Such a cold day, the senior is soaked, and I just let her stand here freezing.
Without a second thought, Luo Ye took off his jacket and draped it over the senior's shoulders.
"Thank you."
No one knew how much time passed. The thunder faded into the distance, the rain softened, leaving only a lingering drizzle outside.
The heavy rain had lasted only twenty minutes. Jiangcheng's storms arrived and departed swiftly.
A visible fine rain danced in the wind.
It wouldn't be a big deal to go out now.
Su Baichou said nothing, leaving the place with her usual calm expression.
Watching her retreating figure, Luo Ye couldn't help but be captivated.
The senior was about 1.67 meters tall, but Luo Ye was 1.78 meters. His jacket was only slightly oversized on her, fitting quite well.
The senior has a great figure, she's beautiful… just a bit cold.
A senior this pretty must already have a boyfriend.
Luo Ye sighed.
He'd never been in a relationship.
He'd had a crush on someone for three years, during which he rarely spoke to girls other than his goddess.
Recalling the senior's face, his heart stirred slightly, but he quickly shook his head.
It's just superficial attraction.
If liking someone just because of a chance encounter and their looks isn't being a flirt, then what is?
Luo Ye picked up his umbrella and walked out of the teaching building.
Back at the dorm.
He found someone had actually arrived.
A guy about 1.75 meters tall, with a crew cut, a sturdy build, and slightly dark skin, sat up immediately upon seeing someone enter the room.
"Roommate? Hi, I'm Li Haoyang, born and raised in Jiangcheng."
"Hello, I'm Luo Ye, from the capital."
"The capital? Bro, you're from the big city!"
They exchanged contacts and started chatting.
"Aren't you locals supposed to arrive tomorrow? Why are you here today?"
"Ah, my place is nearby. Had nothing to do, figured I'd move my luggage into the dorm first. Didn't expect it to rain."
Luo Ye looked at his slightly damp clothes, his expression strange.
Is 'wet look' trending around here or something…
Noticing Luo Ye's gaze, Li Haoyang laughed. "I had an umbrella! But I saw a little sister getting rained on at the school gate, so I lent it to her."
Then, Li Haoyang added, "Guess what? I thought she was a little sister—barely over 1.5 meters tall—but she actually carried her luggage into our school!"
"I even helped her carry her luggage all the way."
"Hahaha, never judge a book by its cover."
"I always thought southerners were petite. I didn't expect you to be so robust, Brother Haoyang."
Li Haoyang flexed his arm, showing off his muscles. "I work out every day."
Chatting and laughing, having company in the dorm lifted Luo Ye's mood.
Early the next morning.
A knock sounded at the door.
Luo Ye got up to open it.
"Hellooo!"
An extremely handsome guy, about as tall as Luo Ye, appeared at the door.
This person… was ridiculously good-looking, handsome on another level.
Luo Ye even had the thought that he was as handsome as himself…
An illusion, must be an illusion.
"Are you a celebrity?" Luo Ye blurted out.
The guy laughed. He was used to this reaction.
"I'm not a celebrity. I'm your roommate. Shen Qiao."
Behind Shen Qiao, a 1.7-meter-tall guy with a somewhat sleazy look followed him in.
"Hi everyone, I'm Wang Dachui."
The name sounded instantly familiar.
Luo Ye directly threw an arm around Wang Dachui's shoulders and pulled him inside.
Meanwhile, Li Haoyang was still sound asleep, one size 44 foot dangling off the edge of the bed, emitting a… distinctive aroma.
After Li Haoyang woke up, the four of them went to the store to buy trash cans, brooms, etc., then headed to the Third Cafeteria.
Jiangcheng University had three cafeterias. Cafeteria 1 was closest to the male dorms. So why go to Cafeteria 3?
Because Cafeteria 3 was closest to the female dorms. More girls. Easier on the eyes.
"Military training starts tomorrow." Wang Dachui said with a bitter face.
"Afraid of what? Isn't military training good exercise?" Li Haoyang flexed his muscles, earning unanimous silent disapproval from the other three.
The four of them sat in a corner of Cafeteria 3.