Chapter 81

Although summer vacation was just over a month long, Guo Xiaoqiao noticed that Zhenzhen seemed to have an endless stream of things to say. The two of them were talking about the final exams before summer break when Zhenzhen suddenly seemed to remember something. She let go of Guo Xiaoqiao’s hand and asked her to wait for a moment. Guo Xiaoqiao looked on, puzzled, as Zhenzhen turned around and ran back, then grabbed the arm of a particularly handsome boy.

The boy had seemed a little down at first, but whatever Zhenzhen said made him suddenly break into a smile. In that instant, Guo Xiaoqiao had only one thought in her head: “Wow, he’s really good-looking!”

Before Guo Xiaoqiao could snap out of her daze, Zhenzhen had already finished talking to Xi Junjie. They said their goodbyes, and Zhenzhen ran back to her side, looking a little apologetic. “Sorry for making you wait.”

“No worries.” Guo Xiaoqiao was still a bit dazed. As Zhenzhen pulled her along, she couldn’t help but glance back at the boy, who was still standing in place, watching Zhenzhen leave. She nudged Zhenzhen in the waist with a finger. “Mingzhen, he’s still looking at you.”

Hearing that, Zhenzhen turned around and smiled at Xi Junjie, waving to signal that he should go back. Xi Junjie smiled in return and only turned to head toward the boys’ dorm once he saw Zhenzhen enter her building.

Back in the dorm, Zhenzhen and Guo Xiaoqiao put their things down and grabbed brooms, mops, and cloths to thoroughly clean the room. Zhenzhen laid out her bedding and, seeing that Guo Xiaoqiao was panting from exhaustion, picked up two empty hot water bottles. “You sit and rest. I’ll go get some hot water.”

Sprawled out on the bed, Guo Xiaoqiao looked weakly at Zhenzhen. “Aren’t you tired? Take a break first.”

“I’ve got good stamina,” Zhenzhen replied cheerfully as she opened the door and left.

Zhenzhen carried the two bottles down the stairs. Just outside the dorm building, she spotted Xi Junjie standing under a tree, as if waiting for someone.

The spot he stood at was at the junction between the boys’ and girls’ dorms—a path everyone had to take to get to the water room—so Zhenzhen didn’t think much of it. As she passed by, she greeted him, “Waiting for someone?”

Xi Junjie smiled. “Yeah, I was waiting for you.”

Zhenzhen stopped in her tracks and looked at him curiously. “Something up?”

Xi Junjie picked up two bottles of hot water from a nearby stone table and handed them to her. “I figured you’d be needing hot water after just getting back, and the water room’s pretty far…” His cheeks flushed. He had seen his dormmates getting up early and lining up to fetch hot water for their girlfriends, so he wanted to give it a try too. But since it was his first time doing something like this, he was nervous and unsure if it was too forward.

Seeing his trembling lashes, Zhenzhen felt warmth blossom in her chest. Having someone go out of their way to do something nice for her like this made her genuinely happy. She smiled at him. “Thanks. I was just thinking my legs are a bit sore—I wasn’t looking forward to walking that far.”

Xi Junjie let out a huge sigh of relief and eagerly handed over the bottles. “The old dorm’s closer to the water room. It’s a long way from our side. I can help you fetch hot water every morning and evening.”

Zhenzhen placed her empty bottles on the ground and took the ones he brought. “You don’t have to go to the trouble. If you help me first, you’ll have to wait forever to get your own water.”

“No problem,” Xi Junjie replied quickly. “I get up early, and at night it doesn’t matter. It’s not a big deal.”

Zhenzhen saw the sincerity in his eyes and felt another wave of warmth. A soft smile, one even she didn’t notice, appeared on her face. “Okay then. I’ll take you up on that.”

Xi Junjie nodded enthusiastically. “It’s no trouble at all! I don’t have anything better to do—it’s just an extra trip. I can get hot water for you all the time.”

Zhenzhen couldn’t help smiling at his slightly awkward but eager expression. “Won’t you get tired fetching water four times a day?”

“Nope!” Xi Junjie flexed his arms proudly. “I’ll just treat it as a workout!”

Though Zhenzhen didn’t really think walking to the water room was much of a burden, seeing how hard Xi Junjie was trying to please her made it hard to say no. She smiled brightly. “Alright, then I’ll be counting on you for hot water from now on.”

Xi Junjie’s eyes sparkled like stars. “Mhm! No problem!”

Zhenzhen felt warm and fuzzy inside. Her cheeks flushed as she turned and walked off with the bottles. Xi Junjie watched her until she disappeared into the girls’ dorm, then gave a little hop of joy before happily jogging toward the boys’ dorm. Halfway there, he suddenly remembered he forgot to bring back Zhenzhen’s empty bottles. He hurried back, picked them up, and dashed toward the water room.

More than ten meters away, a group of French Department guys had just finished playing basketball and were heading back to their dorm. One of them pointed at Xi Junjie’s back, confused. “Is that Xi Junjie? Did he win the lottery or top the exams? Why’s he bouncing around like that?”

“No way, that can’t be him,” another chimed in, speaking in a heavy Northeastern accent. “Did you see the way he jumped? Like a fool. Even if he was ten years old, Xi Junjie wouldn’t act like that.”

“But isn’t he the only one in school who wears that tracksuit?” a third guy said, scratching his head. “He’s actually a nice guy. He answers everything you ask him—just doesn’t smile much.”

“If I looked like that, I wouldn’t smile either,” said the Northeasterner, holding a basketball. “Being too good-looking isn’t always a good thing. What’s that story again—some ancient guy who got stared to death ‘cause he was too pretty? If Xi Junjie ever smiles, who knows what kind of accidents could happen.”

“Good thing he’s handsome but still clearly manly. If he were girly, I wouldn’t dare share a dorm with him.”

They were deep in conversation when they turned the corner and came face to face with Xi Junjie, who was standing expressionlessly with two hot water bottles. The Northeastern guy jumped back three meters, clutching his ball. “Holy crap! You scared me to death! What’re you doing just standing there like a ghost?”

Xi Junjie gave them a glare. “You were shouting my name so loud—did you think I couldn’t hear?”

“Well, uh, we didn’t think it was really you,” the Northeasterner stammered. He crept back over, eyeing Xi Junjie’s still-slightly-happy expression with curiosity. “What were you bouncing around like an idiot for just now?”

Xi Junjie looked at him coolly. “Curious, are you? How about this—six o’clock tonight, one-on-one on the basketball court. If you beat me, I’ll tell you why. If you lose, you’re on water duty for a month.”

The Northeasterner was stunned. “Hey now, don’t bully me like that. We just play for fun—you’ve actually trained!”

“Oh? You scared? Think you’re not good enough?” Xi Junjie gave him a faint smile, the kind that made the guy itch with frustration.

“Who says I’m not good enough!” he growled. “Fine! Game on! But forget a month—let’s make it big. Loser fetches water for thirty-one days!”

The others had been hoping for a big bet. When they heard it was just one more day, they all booed in unison. “Lame…”

Unfazed, the Northeasterner lifted his chin. “Hey, some months have thirty days. Thirty-one is a huge commitment. Right, Junjie?”

Xi Junjie smiled faintly. “As long as you won’t regret it.”

The Northeasterner thumped his chest proudly. “A gentleman’s word is his bond!”

Early the next morning, the straightforward Northeastern guys earnestly brought back two kettles of hot water for Xi Junjie. But when he returned from the water room after washing his hair, he found that the two kettles he had just filled were gone. Towel in hand, still drying his hair, he looked around in confusion, asking, “Where’s the hot water I just fetched for Xi Junjie? Don’t let that guy come running back and accuse me of cheating.”

The other boys in the dorm looked at him sympathetically. “Xi Junjie took them.”

“He took them to wash his hair?” The Northeastern guy still had an innocent look on his face. “That can’t be right—doesn’t he shower once a day? No need to wash his hair separately.”

As they were talking, Xi Junjie came back carrying two empty water bottles. He gave the Northeastern guys a little shake of the warm water kettle in his hand and offered a faint smile. “Don’t forget about the thirty-one days!”

“You’re so shameless, using the water I fetched to impress some girl!” The Northeastern guy immediately caught on and let out a howl. “Which girl is it, exactly? I’ll deliver it to her myself, how about that?”

Xi Junjie gave him a sideways glance. “In your dreams.”
—

The students gradually returned to campus, and in the blink of an eye, it was September 1st—time for the new semester to begin. At the thought of the final exam results being released today, the students were filled with both anticipation and anxiety.

The first major class of the semester was a core course. The professor walked into the classroom and first posted a list of grades next to the bulletin board at the back. Instantly, the students in the class became restless, craning their necks and trying hard to see the list. But the distance was too great; only a few students sitting nearby could make it out, while the rest grew increasingly anxious.

The professor tapped the desk with the blackboard eraser and said, “No use staring at it—you might not even be on it.” Once everyone turned back around, he continued, “The list I just posted is for the university’s special and first, second, and third-tier scholarships. After class, go have a look. If you have any objections, let me know in time. Now I’ll distribute everyone’s individual grade reports. When you hear your name, come up to the front and collect it.”

While reading her book, Zhenzhen casually swept a glance at the blackboard with her peripheral vision—and was startled to see her name listed under the special scholarship. She was a bit surprised. She didn’t even know what the selection criteria were for the special scholarship. Aside from attending classes, she hadn’t participated in many extracurricular activities—at most, she had written a feature interview for her class’s newspaper. But compared to classmates who had actually founded their own papers, her contribution felt negligible.

Perhaps anticipating that others might share similar thoughts, the professor added a note after calling her name: “This semester, Li Mingzhen ranked first in our department. She scored full marks in both Literature and Ancient Artifact Appraisal. Her interview piece on Mr. Wangwo also received unanimous praise from both faculty and students. According to our scholarship criteria, she would typically receive a first-tier scholarship. However, she also ranked among the top in her French major under the Western Languages Department and in the Economics major. With scholarships from all three departments combined, and after discussion with university leadership, it was decided to award her the special scholarship honor.”

“Wow!” Instantly, the entire class looked at Zhenzhen with a kind of awed admiration. Earning even one scholarship was already impressive—yet Li Mingzhen had qualified for three different ones. That was truly remarkable. To be honest, the students who got into Didu University were all diligent learners. They all crammed in early reviews and late-night study sessions, many surviving on just five or six hours of sleep. But when it came to studying, in addition to hard work, talent and intelligence also played a huge role. After all, if everyone worked equally hard, those with quicker comprehension and better understanding would naturally learn more thoroughly.

Faced with someone like Li Mingzhen—who studied three majors with terrifying dedication and still had remarkable talent—her classmates in the Journalism Department could only say: it’s not that we aren’t trying, it’s just that our opponent is too monstrous!