19

 After Liu Shuyao returned to the dormitory, she found that Zhao Ying still hadn’t come back.

So, she made a phone call, planning to change her clothes and pick her up at the art studio.

“Ring, ring, ring~~~”

This time, the call was answered quickly.

“Hello, Shuyao.”

Before Liu Shuyao could say anything, she heard clinking sounds on the other end, followed by a clear “tch.”

“Yingying, what are you doing? Is someone with you?” Liu Shuyao asked worriedly.

After a long pause, she finally heard Zhao Ying’s voice.

“Oh. I’m at the art studio.”

...

“Don’t move!” Another light reprimand came through.

“Shu, Shuyao, is there something you need when you called?” Zhao Ying sounded a bit off.

Liu Shuyao still heard some slapping noises, which made her think too much.

“It’s raining outside. I just wanted to ask if you brought an umbrella?”

Zhao Ying seemed unaware of the rain. After hearing her, she finally glanced outside.

“It’s raining outside?”

“Didn’t you just realize?”

Now, Liu Shuyao distinctly heard a male voice, almost causing her to drop her jaw in shock...

In a flurry, she muttered a couple of phrases and hung up the phone.

“Well... if you’re at the art studio, I can relax.”

Oh my gosh~

Yingying was actually with a guy at the art studio?

And judging by the voice, it didn’t sound like someone from their class, but she couldn’t recall who it might be from just a few words.

Could it be Qi Dong?

But why would Qi Dong be at the art studio?

She’d sensed something was off between them for a while, but Zhao Ying always dodged the topic, so they never really talked about it.

Liu Shuyao leaned on the cup, her mind racing, completely forgetting to check if her boyfriend had returned to the dormitory...

Meanwhile, on Xiang Ran’s side, they were each minding their own business.

However, when he opened the door to his dorm, he found that the fatty had actually returned before him.

“What are you doing back so early?”

“Ha!”

The fatty was taken aback by Xiang Ran’s reaction, smacking the table and starting to chatter.

“Why are you asking me how I got back?”

“Does it concern you?”

“Did you remember you had a roommate when you took the last umbrella from the lab?”

“...”

“I figured you’d manage to get back somehow.”

Xiang Ran glanced at the fatty, who was dry and clean, clearly having taken a ride back.

“Of course... don’t you see I’m...”

The fatty’s words trailed off when he noticed Xiang Ran looking disheveled.

There was a long mud streak down Xiang Ran’s back, obviously from leaning against something.

The left side of his arm was soaked, and his shirt clung to him.

His hair was also a mess from the wind.

“Weren’t you carrying an umbrella? How did you end up like this?”

“Did you get robbed on the way?”

“I dropped Liu Shuyao off.”

Xiang Ran replied nonchalantly, rummaging through the wardrobe for a short-sleeved shirt, heading off to take a shower without caring about the fatty’s shocked expression behind him.

“What?”

“Is that for real?”

“So, how far have you two gone now?”

The fatty’s curiosity was piqued, and he kept asking questions, but all he got in return was the sound of the shower running.

“Hey! Is there no follow-up?”

It was so frustrating for the fatty to have the gossip abruptly cut off.

Deciding to give up on his game, he waited for Xiang Ran to come out.

When Xiang Ran finished his shower and reached for his phone, he noticed a WeChat message.

It was from the school beauty.

【Are you back at the dorm?】

While drying his hair, he replied, completely ignoring the fatty.

“Busy, huh? Can’t even wait a moment to reply?”

“Could it be the school beauty?” the fatty casually said, not expecting a real answer from Xiang Ran.

“Yeah.”

What?

When did these two start contacting each other again?

Just because he dropped her off at the dorm, their relationship had changed so much?

But clearly, Xiang Ran wasn’t going to reveal any more. Instead, noticing the rain was getting heavier, he asked, “Where’s the dorm leader and Dong Ge?”

Hearing this, the fatty remembered he meant to ask about Dong Ge earlier.

“The dorm leader is at the student council; he brought an umbrella.”

“I was just about to call Brother Dong to ask, but then you came back, and I completely forgot.”

“I’m about to jump into this game, so why don’t you call and check?”

Xiang Ran nodded and returned to the chat interface, finding Brother Dong and initiating a voice chat.

“Hello.”

Qi Dong’s voice came through quickly.

“Did you bring an umbrella?”

“Yeah.”

“Good, stay safe on the way.”

Xiang Ran asked briefly, and after receiving confirmation, he was about to hang up.

But the fatty grabbed him, insisting on asking one more question.

“Brother Dong, which girl are you helping out this time?”

At this, Qi Dong didn’t even respond; he simply hung up.

The fatty was left holding the now darkened screen, unable to comprehend.

“Why did he hang up like that...?”

In the past, Qi Dong would have chatted a bit more, but today, it was like he flipped a switch, hanging up faster than a math lecture.

Xiang Ran sensed something was off but said nothing, pulling his phone back.

Meanwhile, on the other side, Qi Dong, after hanging up, hurriedly looked at Zhao Ying, who was sitting at the drawing board.

“You know how the fatty is; he never holds back, just babbling nonsense all the time.”

Zhao Ying adjusted colors with her brush, not even glancing up.

“He didn’t say anything wrong.”

Qi Dong visibly became anxious.

“I swear I was going to rush over to pick you up the moment it looked like it was going to rain.”

“I didn’t ask you to come.”

Though Zhao Ying said this, she seemed calm, yet the colors she was mixing looked increasingly strange.

“I know, but I thought you might have left in a hurry and forgot your umbrella!”

“Liu Shuyao would come pick me up even without an umbrella.”

“True, but the school beauty was sent back by Xiang Ran!”

It hadn’t even been a minute since he hung up, and the fatty’s message arrived.

“What? Liu Shuyao was sent back by Xiang Ran today?”

Zhao Ying, who was aware of all the truths so far, initially thought Xiang Ran would always reject Liu Shuyao.

But how did things take such a turn?

“And then?”

Zhao Ying perked up, finally turning to look at Qi Dong.

Unfortunately, Qi Dong didn’t know what happened next; he handed her his phone to show her the fatty's enthusiastic messages:

【With my great help!】

【Ran actively sent the school beauty back to the dorm!】

【They finally made up!】

【image.jpg】

“They really got back together?” Zhao Ying was somewhat surprised...

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