On New Year’s Day, Zhao Na and the others got up early to dress up. It wasn’t until noon that they finally headed out. Meanwhile, Yu Qian lay leisurely in bed, enjoying the rare peace and quiet of the dormitory.

Unfortunately, peaceful moments were always meant to be broken.

Seeing Jiang Zheng’s name displayed on the incoming call, Yu Qian had an overwhelming urge to hang up immediately and continue lying down.

Deceiving herself, she pulled the blanket over her head, listening to the phone vibrate continuously. Only when it rang for five full seconds did she weakly choose to answer.

“Little Fish…… let’s go out for the New Year.” Jiang Zheng’s energetic voice came through the phone.

“I really don’t feel like going out……” Yu Qian shrank further into her blanket, looking miserable. Winter was meant for staying in bed. Why go outside?

She had already planned to order takeout today and didn’t even want to change out of her pajamas.

“But I’m the only one left in my dorm, and I’m so bored.” Jiang Zheng deliberately played the pitiful card, knowing full well how Yu Qian would react.

Sure enough, the moment Yu Qian heard his pitiful tone, she hesitated. Even though she strongly suspected he was lying, hearing him say that still made her feel a tiny bit sorry for him. Just a little.

Lying in her warm bed, Yu Qian struggled to choose between her cozy blanket and her almost-official boyfriend.

“We won’t go anywhere else, just the library, okay?” Jiang Zheng pushed further.

Hearing that the destination was the warm library, Yu Qian wavered even more. Staying indoors didn’t sound so bad.

“Alright then. But I haven’t changed yet, so I might be a bit slow.” She sighed, reluctantly lifting the blanket and preparing to get dressed.

Whimper, whimper. She had truly been bewitched by beauty. In the battle between her bed and a man, she actually chose the man.

────ρя


Seeing his goal achieved, Jiang Zheng flashed a triumphant grin. He grabbed the gift on his desk and prepared to head out.

Wu Qi noticed him getting up and quickly asked, “Brother Jiang, you’re not playing ranked anymore?”

Jiang Zheng smugly waved the gift in his hand. “Unlike you guys, who can only keep company with video games, I actually have a date. If you don’t want to go out, just wait for Daddy to bring you food tonight.”

His roommates glared at him for showing off, but under the temptation of food, they begrudgingly acknowledged his superiority.

“Brother Jiang, bring me jianbing guozi^[1]deep-fried dough sticks rolled in a thin pancake.”

“I want fried noodles!”

“Daddy, I don’t want anything else, just get me a chicken hot pot!”

Jiang Zheng waved a hand behind him and swaggered out of the dorm.

────ρя


Yu Qian and Jiang Zheng’s dorms were a bit far from each other. Not wanting to make him take a detour to pick her up, Yu Qian told him to meet with her at the library entrance.

As soon as she stepped outside, Yu Qian pulled on her hat, tugged her scarf higher, and left only her eyes exposed to see the road.

Looking at the snow that reached her ankles, Yu Qian scoffed. She was no longer the clueless little Southerner from last year. This amount of snow no longer amazed her.

With her hands tucked into her pockets, she still shivered despite her thick layers of clothes, but she dared not walk too fast. Falling on ice hurt.

By the time Yu Qian reached the library, she spotted Jiang Zheng from a distance. He was dressed in a gray winter coat, waiting at the entrance.

Seeing her, Jiang Zheng smiled and walked over.

“Why aren’t you wearing a hat? What if you catch a cold?” Yu Qian’s voice was muffled through her scarf. “You should’ve just waited inside the library. Why are you standing outside like an idiot?”

“I forgot, but it’s not that cold anyway.”

Looking at Yu Qian all bundled up, Jiang Zheng found her unbearably cute.

They quickly stepped into the library, and Yu Qian stood on the entry mat, stomping her feet to shake off the cold.

“Pfft.” Seeing her movement, Jiang Zheng suddenly thought of a puppy kicking its paws. He couldn’t hold back a chuckle.

Yu Qian shot him an exasperated glare.

Since it was New Year’s Day, most people had either gone home or were out at parties, so the library was nearly empty.

Jiang Zheng led Yu Qian past rows of bookshelves and found a quiet corner with no one around.

“What made you want to meet at the library today?”

The heating in the library was strong. Yu Qian unzipped her coat slightly to cool down.

Jiang Zheng grinned. “If I hadn’t suggested the library, would you have come out?”

Yu Qian: “……” Uh, probably not.

Jiang Zheng looked at Yu Qian’s rosy cheeks and resisted the urge to poke them. Instead, he scooted closer and lowered his voice, “Since it’s New Year’s Day, I got you a gift.”

Yu Qian glanced at him curiously but didn’t see any gift.

Then Jiang Zheng suddenly smirked mischievously. “I put it in my coat. If you want it, you’ll have to reach in and take it yourself.”

He even threw her a flirty wink.

Yu Qian: “……”

“I suddenly don’t want it anymore.” She turned her head away, refusing to acknowledge this peacock of a man.

Seeing that his trick didn’t work, Jiang Zheng sighed in disappointment and reluctantly pulled out the gift himself.

Yu Qian was stunned as he actually retrieved something from inside his coat. She had foolishly thought he was just teasing her!

Under her complicated gaze, Jiang Zheng fished out a small red velvet box from his inner pocket. With an air of mystery, he said, “I spent a long time picking this out. I guarantee you’ll love it.”

Yu Qian had little faith in a guy’s sense of aesthetics, but seeing how proud he looked, she couldn’t help feeling a bit curious about what was inside.

Jiang Zheng took her hand, placed the box in her palm, and said confidently, “Open it.”

Yu Qian carefully placed the box on the table, untied the ribbon, and opened it. Then……

Lipsticks?

There were three of them, lined up neatly in the box.

Okay, not exactly surprising, but…… did three mean something special?

Yu Qian stared at the lipsticks, deep in thought.

“So? Surprised?” Jiang Zheng beamed like a child waiting for praise. “Hurry and try them out. The colors are beautiful.”

As he spoke, he eagerly grabbed the middle one and opened it. “Try this one first.”

Yu Qian’s eyes landed on the bold shade.

Oh. It was from that fancy brand Fang Yan always raved about. But…… what was up with this color?

It wasn’t a horrifying Barbie pink, but this hot fuchsia wasn’t much better!

She took a deep breath. “Did the sales assistant recommend this to you?”

She highly suspected that, seeing a clueless guy buying lipsticks, the saleswoman had tricked him into getting the unpopular shades.

“No, I picked this one myself. It even has a beautiful name— ‘Thinking of You.'” Jiang Zheng held the lipstick up, looking like he wanted to apply it on her himself.

Thinking of You? More like Thinking of Punching You!

This kind of color— who could even pull it off?!

Yu Qian expressionlessly retracted the lipstick and capped it. Then, she picked up another one. Seeing her dislike for his personally chosen shade, Jiang Zheng’s excitement visibly deflated.