On the first day of university, Liu Miqing had to stay in Hecheng for work and couldn’t send her off.

Lu Boyuan, as always, insisted on maintaining his unreliable father persona. He dumped Lu Yixin and her luggage right at the university gate, then hurriedly drove off while talking on the phone, leaving her only the car’s rear end to wave goodbye to.

Lu Yixin held her suitcase and took a deep breath facing the university gate.

Her family had only been excited for two days after she got into university.

Coming from a family of intellectuals, the fact that she hadn’t gotten into a 985 university¹A “985 university” (985高校) refers to one of China’s top-tier research universities that were part of the “Project 985”—a national initiative launched in May 1998 (hence the name 985) by the Chinese government to develop world-class universities. Initially 9 universities were included (Peking University, Tsinghua University, Fudan University, etc.), later expanded to 39 universities nationwide. and had barely squeezed into a 211²A “211 university” (211高校) refers to a university included in China’s “Project 211”, another government initiative that predates Project 985. “211” stands for “21st century, 100 universities” (21世纪,100所大学) — the project aimed to raise the research standards of about 100 universities in the 21st century. wasn’t exactly something worth boasting about.

But…

Lu Yixin took another deep breath.

From this moment on, she was a university student.

From this moment on, she was a real adult, responsible for her own future, her path, and her happiness.

With a strong sense of ceremony, she took a photo of one foot stepping into the campus gate.

She first sent it privately to Fang Yongnian, and only afterward posted it to her Moments.

Fang Yongnian didn’t reply, but her Moments instantly became lively.

Especially her father—completely forgetting that he was the one who had just dumped her at the school gate—he gave her photo both a like and a comment, posting motivational lines like “You’ve grown up, work hard,” and “Today is the most important day of your life,” one after another.

Lu Yixin pursed her lips, lowered her head to look at her phone, and dragged her suitcase along.

Just as she finally found the freshman reception booth for Atmospheric Sciences, her phone vibrated.

It was from Fang Yongnian.

“Congratulations.” he said. Just three characters, including punctuation.

“I was in a meeting just now.” he quickly added, again ending with a period.

But Lu Yixin instantly broke into a smile, revealing two little tiger teeth as she beamed at the senior receiving her.

“Hello! I’m here to register!” she said happily, her eyes and brows dancing with joy.

The senior receiving her was a very fair-skinned boy, quite tall, dressed simply in a T-shirt and jeans. He said his surname was Yan, and he was a third-year student.

The first thing he asked her was, “Who in your family works at the Meteorological Bureau?”

“My mom…” Lu Yixin was a bit dazed. She found her name on the freshman registration form, signed it, and received her student ID and enrollment guide.

“Oh.” Senior Yan nodded. “Most people studying our major are second-generation meteorologists.”

“Why?” Lu Yixin found it strange.

“Because our major isn’t really suitable for humans to study.” Senior Yan said solemnly. “You’ll understand once you see the class schedule.”

Lu Yixin: “…”

“The male-to-female ratio in our major is one to one. People say there are more handsome guys in Atmospheric Sciences, but after you go through military training, you’ll realize it’s all an illusion.” Senior Yan continued to pour cold water. “The coursework is heavy, complex, and tiring. People generally stop looking human.”

Lu Yixin: “…”

“So normally, no one would willingly apply.” Senior Yan became even more serious.

“Then why do our parents still trick us into majoring in Atmospheric Sciences?” Senior Yan pretended to stroke an invisible beard as he looked at Lu Yixin.

Lu Yixin silently took one step back.

So scary, he was even more neurotic than she was.

“Because it’s easier to get married,” Senior Yan said without any intention of keeping it a mystery.

“For girls, this major makes it easiest to find a husband. The future work environment is simple and pure; you can go on to study for a master’s degree or find a good job after graduation. No need for overtime, quite relaxed, and you can still take care of your family. There are plenty of second-generation officials and meteorologists in the workplace. Overall, if you work hard, the future is bright.” Senior Yan waved his hand. “So in the long run, it’s a good major.”

Lu Yixin: “…Oh.”

“Why are you not excited at all?” Senior Yan was displeased.

Lu Yixin gave an awkward laugh.

She just realized, she couldn’t really enjoy the advantages of this major.

She already had a boyfriend!

She didn’t care about second-generation meteorologists or officials. Just like this senior standing in front of her. Strictly speaking, he was good-looking, but somehow… he lacked something.

He barely had any beard.

His eyes were too clear, looking a bit silly.

No charm, he couldn’t just stand there and make it seem like a beautiful scene.

“You need to get your dorm key from the dorm supervisor,” Senior Yan said with a huff when he didn’t get the response he wanted. “The dorm assignments were made beforehand. For the sake of unity, the school mixed up departments, so your roommates might not all be from our major.”

He looked around, then leaned closer to Lu Yixin.

“If one of your roommates is a girl from the English Department named Li Xiao’an, then please remember—I’m the Senior Yan who guided you one-on-one through the freshman registration process. Remember my kindness.” He became serious again. “That’s something to be repaid.”

Lu Yixin: “…”

What should she do? She really couldn’t handle this childish slick talk at all.

Her sense of aesthetics had truly been warped by Fang Yongnian, he had to take responsibility for this!

୨୧ ⏔⏔⏔⏔♡⏔⏔⏔⏔ ୨୧ 

The freshman registration process wasn’t complicated.

After getting the enrollment materials, joining the class WeChat group, and making a round at the academic office, it was basically done.

But because the very talkative Senior Yan had accompanied her the whole way, Lu Yixin finally gained some preliminary understanding of her major.

The coursework was heavy.

They needed to code, and since it was a science major, mathematics, physics, and chemistry were fundamental.

There weren’t any shocking pieces of gossip within the department; most people had easygoing personalities, and many were day students.

Like every other major, there was academic pressure, job pressure, and pressure from postgraduate exams.

Essentially, university was just high school wrapped in a university skin.

Even the dorm supervisor auntie didn’t seem particularly friendly.

“Lights out and doors locked at 11:30 p.m. On weekends, you get an extra half hour. If you come back later than that, you’ll register your name and class with me.” The dorm supervisor, a plump woman, said. “I’m not a morning person, so you’d better all come back on time.”

Lu Yixin held her key timidly.

“No men allowed in the girls’ dormitory. Not even your father, got it?” The dorm supervisor underlined and bolded the accommodation rules in the freshman guide. “Those boys who sing songs or send flowers downstairs and block traffic, I scold them every single time I see it.”

Lu Yixin: “…”

Ew…

Nothing about this was nice.

But Fang Yongnian probably wouldn’t ever come to her dorm building to sing and send flowers.

If anything, she was more likely to go to his place to sing and send flowers.

“There are four people assigned to your dorm,” the dorm supervisor said, “but one student from your department is processing a withdrawal, so there’ll probably be only three of you this year. You can discuss among yourselves how to divide the beds.” She handed Lu Yixin a form. “Get along well, don’t fight.”

“Okay!” Lu Yixin answered loudly and clearly.

She almost wanted to salute.

This brand-new life, so completely different from the past, filled her young heart with a sudden rush of hormones.

So after entering the dorm, she took another photo—this time of the room itself.

Inside, there were already two freshmen. Each had claimed a lower bunk. When they saw Lu Yixin come in, one of them—a sturdy girl with a simple outfit—hesitated. “Why don’t we draw lots?”

“Why draw lots?” The other girl, tall with a striking figure, glanced at Lu Yixin. “Beds are first come, first served.”

Standing in the doorway with her suitcase, Lu Yixin felt a little awkward.

She didn’t really care whether she got the upper or lower bunk, but right now, she decided—she definitely wasn’t going to sleep on the upper bunk above that beauty.

“Hi, I’m Wu Qi, from Geology,” said the sturdy girl, smiling shyly at Lu Yixin.

“Lu Yixin, Atmospheric Sciences,” Lu Yixin introduced herself, pulling her suitcase inside.

“Li Xiao’an, English Department.” The beauty gave Lu Yixin a once-over before finally speaking.

Lu Yixin froze for a moment.

Li Xiao’an—ah!

That was the very same Li Xiao’an the senior had mentioned earlier, the one he told her to remember his “kindness” about!

Her features were all perfectly defined—nose like a nose, eyes like eyes, waist like a waist, legs like legs.

“Hello,” Lu Yixin said with a cheerful smile to both of her roommates.

Her mom had told her she’d need to learn to live collectively.

But looking at things now, that might be a little hard.

The beautiful girl clearly wasn’t easy to get along with. As for Wu Qi—though she seemed friendly—Lu Yixin couldn’t help but feel that her suggestion about drawing lots had been deliberate.

The timing was just too perfect.

Right when Lu Yixin stepped into the room, she had put on a troubled expression and said something that was bound to be contradicted.

And clearly, Wu Qi herself wanted the lower bunk.

It was… quite clever.

Two birds with one stone, but easy to see through.

With a smile, Lu Yixin quietly set down her luggage, smiled again as she chose the upper bunk above Wu Qi’s, then lay down on her bed and sent a photo of the dorm to Fang Yongnian.

“Fang Yongnian, I’m very nervous.” She sent the picture and then started typing rapidly.

“I don’t think my roommates are like Zheng Ranran.” She tilted her head. “What if we don’t get along?”

WeChat didn’t reply for a long time.

Lu Yixin glanced at the time—just after ten in the morning; he was probably still in a meeting.

She bit her fingernails and began typing again.

“The senior who led me through the freshman registration just now said that many people in our major are second-generation meteorologists, the coursework is heavy, and it’s not really suitable for humans to study.”

“What do I do? Math and science aren’t my strengths!”

Still no reply from Fang Yongnian.

Lu Yixin hesitated for a moment.

“Um… it seems like there are a lot of handsome guys in the department.” She squinted. “They’re all quite tall and seem to know how to dress.”

Fang Yongnian… still no reply.

Lu Yixin threw her phone aside and sighed.

She began fiddling with the enrollment guide and the class schedule she’d just received. The WeChat group was already posting elective course codes, so she took another photo of the schedule and sent it to Fang Yongnian again.

“I don’t want to go to university anymore!” The freshman enrollment experience was nothing like the hot-blooded, beautiful version she’d imagined, and Lu Yixin began to howl in WeChat.

“You all lied to me! What do you mean study hard in high school and university will be easy!”

“Is this the kind of ‘easy’ you were talking about!!”

Half a minute later, Fang Yongnian’s WeChat finally showed “typing.”

The first thing he sent was a link titled: Territorial behavior in animals.

Lu Yixin: ??

Fang Yongnian: Animals are born with territorial instincts. It’s normal to probe each other’s strength when first meeting; not getting along is normal.

Lu Yixin: ???

Fang Yongnian: Undergraduate first-year major courses aren’t that many; they’re mostly foundational, you should be able to handle them.

Fang Yongnian: However, it’s not that you’re bad at math and science, it’s that you’re bad at most things.

Lu Yixin: ????

Fang Yongnian: What are you going to do if you don’t go to university? Open a bakery? I will beat you to death.

Fang Yongnian: Also, as far as I know, no one ever told you that university would be easy. Your parents worked day and night on projects when they were at university, and so did I.

Lu Yixin: ………

He rarely replied to her with so many messages on WeChat.

He had answered nearly every one of her questions, patiently.

Lu Yixin: What about the message about the handsome guys? Why didn’t you reply to that one?

Fang Yongnian: I’m in a meeting.

Lu Yixin rolled over on her bed with her phone in hand.

She couldn’t help it, she rolled over again.

“Ahhh you’re so cute!” she laughed so hard that her eyes turned into crescents.

After that, Fang Yongnian never replied again.

Only the freshman Lu Yixin was left, clutching her phone on the upper bunk, secretly giggling like a fool.

Footnotes

• 1
  A “985 university” (985高校) refers to one of China’s top-tier research universities that were part of the “Project 985”—a national initiative launched in May 1998 (hence the name 985) by the Chinese government to develop world-class universities. Initially 9 universities were included (Peking University, Tsinghua University, Fudan University, etc.), later expanded to 39 universities nationwide.
• 2
  A “211 university” (211高校) refers to a university included in China’s “Project 211”, another government initiative that predates Project 985. “211” stands for “21st century, 100 universities” (21世纪,100所大学) — the project aimed to raise the research standards of about 100 universities in the 21st century.