The intertwined branches grow together, and the lotus blooms side by side.
Two hearts in harmony, two souls in sync.
In the morning, Xie Shu originally planned to take Ruan Nianxi to an amusement park or a scenic spot, but as the day went on, the weather got hotter. So, they decided to go to the mall instead.
Holding hands and hugging would be more comfortable that way.
Most importantly, Xie Shu still had two classes in the afternoon. He was worried that if they had too much fun, they might lose track of time. Plus, he didn’t want to go too far; something closer and more relaxing would be better, so they could return anytime.
After they had visited every store in the mall, it was almost noon. They had an early lunch and then returned to school.
Although the afternoon classes weren’t major courses and it didn’t matter if he attended or not, this season…
Ah, no, spring drowsiness, summer fatigue, autumn lethargy, winter hibernation—people always seem to feel sleepy. After his afternoon classes, he had more important plans, so he needed to rest a bit.
Confucius once said: “If you don’t nap in the morning, you’ll collapse in the afternoon.”
Mencius also said: “Confucius was right!”
Back at school, Xie Shu noticed that someone was already on duty at the shaded booth next to the event poster from the morning. Without a word, he pulled Ruan Nianxi over to fill out the form.
After filling in the personal information for his three roommates, he took a photo of the event group’s QR code on the table and sent it to their dorm group chat.
After sending it, he simply told them to join the group and then put his phone away.
Xie Shu and Ruan Nianxi then went to the girls’ dormitory. Under the shaded path by the trees, they hugged for a long time, reluctant to let go.
Xie Shu rested his chin on Ruan Nianxi’s head, closing his eyes contentedly, his hands lightly placed on her waist…
Ruan Nianxi’s cheek, separated by a thin layer of fabric, pressed against Xie Shu’s chest. Her face was flushed, whether from the heat or some other reason.
They had returned early, and classes were still in session, so there weren’t many people around, just a few heading to the cafeteria early. Neither of them felt embarrassed.
Ruan Nianxi’s arms rested on Xie Shu’s chest. After a while, she seemed to think of something, suddenly grabbing his shirt and burrowing her head into his chest, trying to get even closer to him.
It still didn’t feel like enough!
Holding hands and hugging weren’t enough!!
It was a strange feeling—clearly very satisfying, yet somehow not satisfying at all!
She wanted to merge into his body, to be completely and utterly together with him!
Ruan Nianxi’s sudden movement left Xie Shu at a loss. At first, he thought something was wrong, and his grip on her loosened a bit.
But seeing her just wriggling a bit in his arms and then quieting down, he ended up laughing silently.
He then lifted his hand, brushed away the hair from her forehead, and gently kissed her there before quickly pulling back.
Feeling her body stiffen in his arms, Xie Shu continued to laugh silently, saying nothing, and then quietly wrapped his arms around her waist again.
Neither of them spoke a word, but their eyes and hearts were filled with each other.
If you love, love purely, dedicating love to love itself.
Ruan Nianxi, thank you for always having me in your heart. This life belongs to our story. In the future, please take care of me.
Two hearts in harmony, two hearts in harmony, even a hundred years would still feel too short.
They reluctantly parted only when the bell rang for the end of class.
Xie Shu stroked Ruan Nianxi’s hair, telling her to take a good nap at noon, and that he would take her somewhere else to play after his afternoon classes. Then he turned and left.
On the way, he glanced at his phone and saw that their dorm group chat had over 99+ messages.
Fortunately, he had anticipated that these rascals would cause a ruckus in the group chat and had put his phone on silent, so it didn’t disturb his time with Ruan Nianxi.
All he did was ask them to join the “One-Week Couples Date” event group. Was that a reason to criticize him?
Who was he, their father, doing this for?
Xie Shu: [I’ve already signed you guys up. Remember to join. It will earn you extra points, and if you’re lucky, you might even find a girlfriend.]
Zhao Lin: [@Xie Shu, bro, when are you coming back? I’ll be waiting at the door with a knife.]
Li Da: [@Xie Shu, I watched a few episodes of a dismemberment case today. I’ll tell you the details when you get back.]
Liu Ping: [@Xie Shu, I’ve watched over 1000 episodes of Conan, mastered 2000 ways to kill, and know over 800 alibi tricks. You better show me some respect!!]
Xie Shu: [I’m on my way back. Do you guys want anything to eat?]
All three: [If you don’t mind, we’d like to call you our godfather!]
Xie Shu: [Did you join the group?]
All three: [Just joined!]
Each of them then sent a screenshot to prove they had joined.
Xie Shu: [By the way, what were you saying about me earlier? I suddenly forgot. Let me check the chat history.]
[Zhao Lin retracted a message]
[Li Da retracted a message]
[Liu Ping retracted a message]
Xie Shu couldn’t help but laugh out loud on the roadside.
When he got back to the dorm, he naturally received their respectful titles. But after dinner, someone suddenly started rebelling, shouting, “A true man should not live under others for long!”
This kind of drama often played out among them, but Xie Shu, who was in the throes of love, didn’t want to play along. After a few words, he called them single dogs and lay on his bed to chat with Ruan Nianxi on his phone.
He even sent voice messages from time to time, and occasionally Ruan Nianxi would send one back. He would shamelessly turn the volume up to the max, making sure everyone could hear.
This made the other three’s blood pressure spike, but they were helpless. In the end, they could only curse in unison, “Ugh! You shameless show-off!”
…
After last week’s experience, Xie Shu and his friends decided to go to the classroom early to get seats. If they went even a bit late, they’d have to sit in the front rows.
Before they left, Xie Shu received a message from Ruan Nianxi saying she didn’t have any classes in the afternoon and wanted to go to the classroom with him.
Xie Shu originally planned to let her do her own thing if she had something to do in the afternoon, or wait for him in the dorm if she had nothing. But since she wanted to come, he had no choice but to agree, laughing.
Leaving the task of saving seats to his roommates, Xie Shu went out to pick up Ruan Nianxi.
Although Xie Shu arrived at the classroom after his friends, it was still early overall. When he and Ruan Nianxi entered the classroom, there were still many empty seats. As soon as he walked in, his roommates in the back row called out to him.
Seeing the three members of the Single Dogs Association, Xie Shu led Ruan Nianxi to the back.
The classroom wasn’t very crowded yet, but it wasn’t empty either.
Almost everyone in the Art College knew Xie Shu, the campus hunk. When they saw him holding hands with a girl they didn’t recognize, they were all stunned.
Who had taken their campus hunk?
Wasn’t he still single just last week?