Chapter 42

“Jiao Jiao’s back.”

“Mm, back.”

“Li Xia, you just got back too.”

“Yeah, just arrived.”

“Hi~ Jiao Jiao.”

“Hi~”

“……..”

The dorm is on the fourth floor.

Li Jiao drags two suitcases into the elevator, surrounded by familiar faces, mostly classmates from the same class or department.

It makes sense, though, since this building mostly houses students from the Fine Arts department.

When she opens the door to room 417, Su Linlin and Zhang Yue are already standing by their beds, packing their things.

When they hear the door open, they turn around.

They both smile and say, “Jiao Jiao.”

“Linlin, Boss, you guys are up so early?”

As Li Jiao drags her suitcases into the room, she says this.

Su Linlin sees her struggling and comes over to help, saying,“It’s fine, we just didn’t want to get caught in the peak return-to-school crowds, so we bought earlier tickets.”

“Yeah,” Zhang Yue, holding a large jar of unknown local specialty, lifts her head and adds, “Jiao Jiao, you don’t know, the airport was packed with people today, all returning students like us.”

“I actually carpooled with a few girls from the English department next door.”

She opens the jar and hands it to them, enthusiastically saying,

“Here, here, my mom’s homemade beef jerky, she asked me to bring it back, it’s so good.”

“Thanks.”

“Thanks, Boss.”

The two take a piece of beef jerky, sit down among the piles of suitcases, clothes, and local products, and both sigh in unison.

“Ugh~”

“There’s so much stuff~”

Tang Yuran hasn’t come back yet, but the three of them have almost filled the whole room with their luggage.

Li Jiao has two large suitcases, Su Linlin has two large suitcases, and Zhang Yue has two large suitcases plus two big bags.

On top of that, everyone brought a ton of food.

The room is overflowing, chaotic, and messy, with all sorts of things covering the floor.

The three girls sit in the dorm that looks like a wreck, each holding a piece of beef jerky, their expressions filled with melancholy.

Li Jiao: “Once we’re back, we’ll have to go to class.”

Su Linlin: “Yeah, I heard there’s a welcome party and a winter sports meet later.”

Zhang Yue: “Don’t even mention it, time is so tight, and there are so many activities. We’re in the Fine Arts department, not a dance school.”

The welcome party is scheduled for next week.

It was initially planned during military training, but after night drills and everyone being too exhausted, it kept getting delayed.

Now, it’s tentatively decided that the welcome party will be next Wednesday.

Su Linlin takes a bite of the beef jerky, then shakes her head in disbelief.

“The welcome party, our class has to put on a performance. At least two, huh?”

As she says this, she turns to Li Jiao.

“Jiao Jiao, you’re the entertainment committee chair; you’ll need to step up.”

Li Jiao nods, “Okay.”

Two performances shouldn’t be too difficult.

However, she glances at the other two.

Zhang Yue and Su Linlin are still chatting, complaining about the activities.

Should she tell them about her relationship?

Before, when Su Linlin and Zhang Yue knew she liked the instructor, they specifically went to inquire about him with other classes.

When they saw her unhappy, they kept comforting her.

Now that she’s with the instructor, should she tell them?

Li Jiao puts down the beef jerky and clears her throat.

Su Linlin and Zhang Yue both turn to look at her.

Li Jiao glances at them, lowers her voice, and pretends to be mysterious.

“I have a secret. Do you want to hear it?”

Su Linlin jokes, “Did you learn the transformation spell of Little Mo Xian?”

“What secret? Are you actually Little Mo Xian?”

Zhang Yue laughs along.

Li Jiao watches their expressions, smiles slightly, and says,

“Actually, I’m in a relationship.”

“Oh, so you’re in a relationship,” Su Linlin repeats foolishly, not reacting immediately.

Then, her eyes widen in shock.

“Jiao Jiao, you’re in a relationship?!”

Zhang Yue’s voice immediately shoots up, “What?!!”

“You little cabbage, already been pushed by a pig?!!!”

Su Linlin quickly asks, “Jiao Jiao, who are you dating???”

Wait, wasn’t she still into the instructor before?

She was so sad when he left, practically heartbroken.

How did she suddenly get with someone else?

Su Linlin looks at Li Jiao, who is smiling widely and seems really happy.

Wait a minute, her boyfriend can’t be…?

“Jiao Jiao… your boyfriend can’t be…”

Li Jiao smiles and nods, “Yeah, it’s the instructor.”

“…………”

After a brief silence, there’s an outburst of shouting in room 417.

“What!!!!!!!!!”

Zhang Yue urgently asks, “What? Who are you with, Jiao Jiao?”

“The instructor?”

“Which instructor?”

Compared to them, Su Linlin is calmer, looking at Li Jiao as she asks,

“Jiao Jiao, you really are with the instructor from before?”

“Mm.”

Li Jiao nods with a smile.

The news is so mind-blowing that Su Linlin and Zhang Yue are totally stunned!

After confirming it, they both sit down for a long time, still recovering.

Then, with an extremely excited attitude, they demand that Li Jiao call Zhang Jiuling in front of them.

Otherwise, they’ll threaten to lock her on the balcony.

To ensure she can sleep peacefully in the dorm tonight, Li Jiao silently chooses to give in.

“Quick, call him, call him.”

“Hurry, I’m ready.”

The two of them sit there, in full gossip mode, holding snacks and looking at Li Jiao expectantly.

—

Li Jiao gave a helpless smile and took out her phone.

She unlocked the screen and found the number.

Speaking of which, ever since she saved Zhang Jiuling’s number, this was only the second time she was calling him.

Usually, the two of them communicated through messages.

The last time they had a phone call was just before the National Day holiday, when Zhang Jiuling called her.

Just now, downstairs at the dormitory, she even hugged him.

She was too shy and just ran away after the hug, not daring to look at his reaction.

Now, calling him again, Li Jiao felt a little awkward.

He should be home by now, right?

Taking a deep breath, Li Jiao felt inexplicably nervous, with a faint blush on her cheeks.

She pressed the button, and after three rings, the call was answered.

A familiar voice came through the phone, clear and warm.

“Hello.”

Li Jiao’s heart skipped a beat, and she forced a natural smile, trying to make her voice sound normal.

“Hello.”

Ah—you’re already a couple, why are you still so shy, Li Jiao?!

It was just a hug, what’s there to be embarrassed about? You hugged your boyfriend, what’s wrong with that?

Thinking of this, Li Jiao suddenly felt confident and smiled casually.

“Uh, have you gotten home?”

As she said this, Su Linlin and Zhang Yue leaned closer, eavesdropping like little reporters trying to steal a scoop.

The car slowed down and stopped at a red light at the intersection.

In front, more than ten people walked across the crosswalk.

Zhang Jiuling slightly tilted his head and glanced at the phone on the stand by the steering wheel.

The caller ID displayed the two characters—Jiao Jiao.

Unconsciously, he remembered what had just happened downstairs at the Nanjing University dorm. The little girl hugged him, then ran away quickly like a little rabbit, not looking back.

A hint of warmth appeared in his dark, cool eyes.

He turned back to look at the red light ahead, which still had fifty seconds left.

His voice was calm, deep.

“Not yet, I need to go to the club for a while.”

Su Linlin and Zhang Yue, who were listening in on the phone, exchanged excited glances and gripped each other’s hands, their eyes clearly full of excitement and joy.

Mom, it’s really the instructor!!

Hearing his response, Li Jiao tightened her grip on the phone.

“Then drive slowly, be careful, watch the traffic lights, don’t run any red lights. When you’re done, come back and rest early.”

“Okay.”

Zhang Jiuling answered lightly, then teased.

“Do you think I’m such an impulsive person, would I run a red light?”

His teasing made Li Jiao relax a little.

She walked to the balcony while holding the phone and said casually.

“No, no, I just want you to rest early.”

“You’ve been busy the past few days, right?”

Because of Li Jiao, Zhang Jiuling, who was supposed to return to Beijing due to family pressure, had changed his mind and decided to stay in South City for good.

He even urgently submitted an application to his superiors and was now preparing to take up a position in South City.

Because of his previous experience in a special forces unit, the South City Police Department had invited him to teach and be a combat instructor.

In addition, his family business in Beijing also required him to handle some matters in South City.

During the National Day holiday, Zhang Jiuling had been dealing with these issues.

Speaking of which, he had neglected the little girl.

But she was very understanding, never complained, and even reminded him to rest well.

Zhang Jiuling’s heart softened, and he couldn’t help but smile faintly.

“I’ll be careful.”

After a pause, he added.

“Don’t worry, I’ll definitely be there to see you tomorrow.”

His voice lowered slightly, soft and almost a whisper, with a teasing undertone.

Li Jiao’s face immediately turned red, and she stammered.

“I—I didn’t mean that.”

The red light at the intersection changed, and the yellow light flashed three times before turning green.

Zhang Jiuling slowly started the car, his long fingers on the steering wheel, turning it 40 degrees to change direction.

On the other end of the phone, the little girl was probably blushing, nervously explaining herself.

Before, she had been bold enough to hug him.

Why was she so shy now?

Like a little ostrich, when faced with something, she would bury her head in the sand, awkward and unsure.

So cute.

“I—I didn’t mean that.”

The voice of Zhang Jiuling came through again, low and hoarse, with an unspoken charm, each word leaving his thin lips and carrying a sense of comfort and tenderness.

“Jiao Jiao.”

“Sorry, I’ve been a bit busy these days. I’ll spend more time with you later.”

“…………”

After hanging up the phone, the smile on Li Jiao’s face didn’t fade, and her two small dimples appeared, soft and sweet.

She walked back into the dorm from the balcony and opened the door.

Zhang Yue and Su Linlin, each holding a large piece of beef jerky, had expressionless faces.

They looked at her as she entered, silently taking a bite.

Shaking their heads, they sighed.

“Well, the girl’s love story has begun, the world is returning to spring.”

Zhang Yue angrily chewed a large piece of beef jerky.

“Little cabbage, you just entered university, and you’re already snatched up by a pig, no, the instructor took you away.”

…………

After the National Day holiday, students returned to school, and classes resumed on October 8th.

For the freshmen of the 19th class, this marked the first day of their true university life.

On the first day of class, there was a theoretical course at 8:30 AM.

Li Jiao set her alarm for 7:30 AM to prepare.

Early in the morning, the campus was enveloped in a white mist, ethereal and swirling.

The dormitory buildings nearby became blurry, vaguely visible.

Golden sunlight broke through the clouds in several rays, casting through the mist in a faint, gentle glow.

Perhaps due to the habit of waking up early from military training, Li Jiao woke up naturally at 7 AM.

She quietly got out of bed and walked to the balcony to freshen up.

She wasn’t the only one up early; many other dormitories around her also had the sound of water running as faucets were turned on.

While brushing her teeth, Li Jiao absentmindedly glanced around.

She caught sight of a black car parked downstairs, and it looked very much like Zhang Jiuling’s car.

Li Jiao took a closer look, but because of the mist, she couldn’t see it clearly. All she could tell was that it was a black car, and its model looked like Zhang Jiuling’s.

Yesterday, she seemed to have told Zhang Jiuling, “I want to see you tomorrow.”

Now, seeing a car so similar downstairs, it was hard for Li Jiao not to think about it.

He wouldn’t have come so early, would he?

Just as she was wondering, the car door opened, and a person stepped out. About 1.8 meters tall, wearing a black jacket, standing straight, with an elegant and handsome demeanor.

The familiar figure made Li Jiao’s eyes widen in surprise.

It was him!

He really came, and so early?

Li Jiao quickly finished freshening up, took out her phone from the dorm, walked to the balcony, and dialed the number.

The phone was quickly answered.

“Jiao Jiao.”

“Yeah, you’re here?”

Li Jiao’s voice was filled with excitement and happiness.

“Yeah,” Zhang Jiuling replied, “Did you wake up?”

“I’m up. Look up at the balcony.”

Hearing this, Zhang Jiuling looked up and saw her jumping excitedly on the fourth-floor balcony, waving at him.

Zhang Jiuling smiled slightly. “I see you.”

“Then wait for me, I’ll come down right away.”

“Okay.”