Chapter 03

“Aaahhh!” Zuo Xingwei shouted as he burst through the dormitory door, yelling at his three roommates, two of whom were bewildered, and one who looked completely calm: “I’m not single anymore! I’m in a relationship!”

Zuo Xingwei had been pursuing a girl for some time now, and everyone in the dormitory was aware of it. Now that he had finally succeeded, Bai Zining was genuinely happy for him.

Although they were not in the same major, Bai Zining still had a good impression of him. Despite Zuo Xingwei’s talkative and carefree exterior, he was surprisingly meticulous when it came to taking care of others.

One day during the first semester of freshman year, Bai Zining, having neglected to check the weather forecast, dressed too lightly. By Thursday, he already felt something was wrong, but he thought a good sleep would fix it. However, by Friday noon, after finishing his classes, he came down with a high fever.

At the time, Cai Yu had been called away to attend a club activity, leaving the dormitory empty. Bai Zining lay in bed alone, his head heavy, his feet weak, and his body drenched in cold sweat. He wanted to call a classmate to ask for help buying medicine, but he didn’t even have the strength to pick up his phone.

He had no idea how long he had been lying in bed in a daze when the dormitory lights came on and someone entered. Summoning the last bit of strength he had, Bai Zining knocked on the steel railing beside his bed and croaked in a hoarse voice, “Water…”

At that moment, someone approached, and he felt a cold, large hand press gently against his forehead. The cool touch brought him comfort, and he couldn’t help but nuzzle against it.

“Bai Zining, you have a fever. I’m taking you to the infirmary right now.” In his hazy state, he heard the person say this.

“No need… just medicine,” Bai Zining said haltingly, his voice broken due to his sore throat.

What followed was a series of actions—taking his temperature, wiping away his sweat, feeding him medicine and water—all of which left only a blurry impression in Bai Zining’s mind.

Because his sweat-soaked clothes had long been drenched, the other person thoughtfully took a fresh set of pajamas from his wardrobe and helped him change into them.

Bai Zining was too weak to move, and with two grown men squeezed onto one bed, the process of changing clothes took quite a long time.

The person first helped him remove his old cotton pajamas, then gently wiped the sweat off his body with a warm, damp towel before dressing him in the clean, dry pajamas.

As the person lifted his arm or supported his shoulder, Bai Zining tried his best to open his eyes and see who this kind-hearted individual was. However, having been feverish for too long, his vision was blurry, as though everything was veiled in a layer of mist.

Finally, he heard the person say, “Just sleep for a while. If the fever doesn’t go down later, we’ll have to go to the infirmary.” With these reassuring words, Bai Zining soon drifted off into a peaceful sleep.

When he woke up, Bai Zining felt much better. He was dressed in fresh, clean pajamas, and the sticky discomfort on his body had completely disappeared. Although his head still felt slightly unwell, the dizziness had significantly subsided. He sat up and looked down from his bed, finding that the only person in the dormitory was Zuo Xingwei, who was sitting at his desk playing on his phone.

Was it Zuo Xingwei who had been taking care of him the whole time? Bai Zining’s impression of him instantly improved. Thoughtful, meticulous, and always willing to help. Truly, a model roommate in modern China.

Bai Zining’s voice was still a bit hoarse. “Buddy, thanks a lot.”

“Xiao Bai, you’re awake. Feeling any better?” Zuo Xingwei asked with concern.

“Much better, really, thank you. If it weren’t for…” As he spoke, Bai Zining began coughing again. Seeing this, Zuo Xingwei quickly ran over, grabbed the glass of warm water from Bai Zining’s desk, and handed it to him. “Stop talking and just rest for now. Whatever it is, wait until Brother Zhou comes back.”

Why wait for Zhu Shizhou? Bai Zining didn’t understand, but he didn’t have the energy to think about it either. After drinking the water, he lay back down.

A while later, the dormitory door opened, and Zhu Shizhou walked in carrying two bowls of congee.

He opened the lid of the congee, stirred it a few times, and walked over to Bai Zining’s bedside. Seeing Bai Zining’s wide-open eyes, he spoke in a gentle tone, “Awake? Can you sit up to have some congee?”

“I can.” Bai Zining propped himself up on the bed, sat upright, and took the bowl of congee, casually asking, “Did Zuo Xingwei ask you to get this for me?”

Otherwise, it was hard for him to explain why Zhu Shizhou had bought him congee or why he was speaking to him in such a gentle tone. It must have been Zuo Xingwei who told him about his illness.

But to his surprise, Zhu Shizhou didn’t respond for a long time. Bai Zining blew on the congee a few times and took his first sip. Glancing at the person beside him, he noticed that Zhu Shizhou’s expression had suddenly turned strange, it was a mix of anger and helplessness. Bai Zining had no idea what was going on.

The moment their eyes met, Zhu Shizhou quickly looked away and returned to his seat.

“If you can eat congee, it means you’re getting better. Hurry up and recover so you don’t trouble others to keep taking care of you.” His tone was so cold that it seemed to lower the temperature of the entire dormitory.

Does this guy switch moods faster than flipping a page? Bai Zining sipped his congee slowly, recalling Zhu Shizhou’s previously indifferent attitude and targeted behavior toward him. The more he thought about it, the angrier he became. Unable to hold back, he retorted, “Did I trouble you? Oh, right, thanks for the congee. I’ll transfer the money to you right now. Besides, it was Zuo Xingwei who took care of me earlier, not you—”

Before he could finish, Zuo Xingwei interrupted him. “No, Xiao Bai, tonight it was—ah!” His tone suddenly changed, as though he had accidentally bumped into something. After a few seconds, he continued awkwardly, “What I mean is, we’re all in the same dormitory. No need to be so formal, it’s just a small thing, really, just a small thing.”

Later, Bai Zining treated Zuo Xingwei to a meal and invited Cai Yu to join them. During the meal, the conversation went smoothly, but every time Bai Zining brought up how grateful he was for Zuo Xingwei taking care of him while he was sick, Zuo Xingwei would get a look of hesitation, as if he wanted to say something but stopped himself. In the end, he just sighed deeply and clinked glasses with Bai Zining.

After Zuo Xingwei announced the good news about his relationship, both Cai Yu and Bai Zining enthusiastically expressed their surprise and support. Cai Yu asked, “By the way, which department did you say your girlfriend is from?”

Zuo Xingwei got excited and pulled out his phone to show them photos of his girlfriend, enthusiastically giving a detailed introduction. Caught up in the moment, he turned to Cai Yu and asked if he liked anyone. Cai Yu froze for a moment, then stammered out a hesitant “yes.”

Zuo Xingwei chuckled a few times and stopped teasing the now-blushing Cai Yu. Shifting his gaze to Zhu Shizhou, who was sitting in his chair looking disinterested in the conversation, he asked, “Hey, Brother Zhou, what kind of girls do you like?”

Zhu Shizhou turned his head slightly, his brows furrowing as his fingers tapped absentmindedly on the edge of the chair, as if deep in thought.

Just as Zuo Xingwei assumed he wasn’t going to answer, Zhu Shizhou suddenly spoke: “Fair-skinned, and have slim, straight legs.”

What? Bai Zining frowned this time. Was that even a type? It was as good as saying nothing.

He inwardly scoffed at how boring the answer was and withdrew his gaze.