Chapter 95: Feels Like You Two Secretly Like Each Other
In front of him, Lin Yuejiu changed her phone case, staring at the four words engraved on the back. The more she looked, the more she liked it. The smile at the corner of her lips couldn’t be hidden.
“Thank you, Teacher Xu, I really like it.”
That night, before going to bed, Lin Yimo called her.
Lin Yuejiu had never changed her number. Seeing his name appear, she hesitated for a moment, then picked up.
The other side spoke first, “Hello, Jiujiu?”
“…Mm.”
“I heard from her that you’re going abroad as an exchange student?”
“Mm.”
Lin Yimo paused, “Take care of yourself while you’re abroad.”
“Thank you.”
“…” He sighed softly. “Be kinder to yourself.”
“Okay.”
“I hope you succeed in your studies.”
“Thank you.”
“Goodnight.”
“Goodnight.”
After hanging up, Lin Yimo looked out the window. Outside was pitch black, and all he could see was his own reflection in the glass.
—
On the day of departure, Chen Qianxi came to see her off at the airport. Xu’s parents were also there. Lin Yuejiu never mentioned asking Xu Nianshen to come, and he, too, tacitly refrained. He knew that if he came, it would make parting even harder. Coincidentally, she felt the same—if he really appeared, she feared she wouldn’t be able to leave.
Before boarding, Lin Yuejiu sent him a message.
Lin Student: [Teacher Xu, wait for me to make a lot of money and support you (heart gesture)]
Teacher Xu: [Okay (heart gesture)]
—
After arriving in England, the teacher who picked her up brought her to the association, introduced the place, and led her to meet the classmates in her group.
“Since you’re an exchange student, it means you’ll take the place of someone who went to your country. You can just sit in their seat. I know your grades are very good, so don’t worry. The curriculum here is the same as in your home country. When you return, you can still take the college entrance exams. After all, it’s only one year—not a permanent stay.”
“Understood.”
“Right, my surname is Wu. Just call me Teacher Wu.”
“Okay, Teacher Wu.”
“Good. I have to handle some matters now, so I’ll ask someone else to take you to the dorm.”
“Alright.”
Teacher Wu found a student responsible for this task. She was a local from England but had studied Chinese, so she could communicate well. When she first saw Lin Yuejiu, a flash of surprise appeared in her eyes, and she complimented her beauty.
Lin Yuejiu smiled politely. “Hello.”
The girl thought to herself: She’s even prettier when she smiles.
She led Yuejiu to the dorms. All dorms here were two-person rooms. After giving a quick explanation of the facilities, Yuejiu thanked her and knocked on the door.
The one who opened was a blonde foreign girl. At the sight of her, her eyes lit up.
“You’re my new roommate?”
Her Chinese was fluent.
Lin Yuejiu nodded. “Hello, I’m the exchange student Lin Yuejiu. From now on, we’ll be roommates. Please take care of me.”
The foreign girl immediately introduced herself excitedly.
“My Chinese name is Ling Jing. Just call me Jingjing, no need to use my English name.”
“Alright.”
Ling Jing suddenly rushed forward, kissed her on the cheek, and pulled her inside.
Lin Yuejiu froze for a moment, then quickly reminded herself: Foreign customs, foreign customs…
Ling Jing was very enthusiastic. She gave detailed introductions, helped her connect to the internet, showed her how to stay in touch with her friends, and explained everything about the association. Worried that she might get lost, she even dragged her out to walk around. Soon, the whole association knew that a very beautiful Chinese girl had come as an exchange student.
The associations here were much larger than those back home, jointly organized by the school and the music society. Students could both study and practice piano at the same time.
After settling in, Lin Yuejiu returned to the dorm. Ling Jing had originally planned to stay with her, but halfway through she got a call from her boyfriend and went out, apologizing to Lin Yuejiu on the way. Yuejiu just smiled and said it was fine—truthfully, she was glad her roommate could go see her boyfriend.
Since Ling Jing had already helped her set up the internet, Yuejiu opened her laptop, searched for Xu Nianshen, and clicked on the video call.
Soon his face appeared on the screen, and Yuejiu grinned cheekily.
“Teacher Xu, did you miss me?”
“Have you gotten used to everything already?”
“Yeah! I even met a super enthusiastic roommate—she introduced me to so many things.”
“That’s good.”
“Teacher Xu, it’s only been a short while since you last saw your girlfriend. Do you feel secure?”
Xu Nianshen chuckled. “Very secure. Thank you, girlfriend.”
“You’re welcome!”
—
Since this was an exchange program, naturally someone else came to Lin Yuejiu’s school in her place.
That day, the homeroom teacher stood at the podium introducing the new student.
“This is our foreign exchange student, Fan Ke. Let’s welcome her with a round of applause.”
The class clapped, and whispers spread around the room.
“She really looks like a foreigner.”
“But wow, she’s pretty—blonde hair, big eyes.”
Fan Ke introduced herself in fluent, if slightly accented, Chinese.
“Hello everyone, my Chinese name is Fan Ke. I’m here as an exchange student, and I’ll be spending the next year with you all. Please take care of me!” She bowed politely.
The class responded warmly:
“Welcome, welcome!”
“Of course, we’ll all take care of each other.”
“Alright, Fan Ke, you can take the empty seat in the first row for now. We’ll adjust seats again during exams.”
“Okay, thank you, teacher.”
When Chen Qianxi saw Fan Ke sit down in Lin Yuejiu’s seat, she felt a bit annoyed. Why did she have to take Yuejiu’s spot?
Xu Nianshen, on the other hand, showed no visible reaction and remained calm as usual.
From the first glance, Fan Ke thought her new deskmate seemed hard to approach, and as the days went by, her hunch was confirmed. At school she only saw him in the classroom—once the final bell rang, he would disappear right away. They hardly exchanged a single word.
One afternoon after class, Xu Nianshen was working on a problem beside her. Fan Ke, who had just rested her head on the desk for a short nap, sat up and noticed the red string bracelet on his wrist. Curious, she asked:
“Who gave you that bracelet? It looks really nice.”
Xu Nianshen almost answered directly, but remembering that their relationship wasn’t public yet, he instead wrote on his notebook: My girlfriend gave it to me.
Fan Ke’s eyes widened. She almost blurted out “girlfriend,” but quickly stopped, glanced around at the few students nearby, and lowered her voice.
“Girlfriend?!”
Xu Nianshen nodded.
“You have a girlfriend? Is she pretty? Can I see a photo?”
After thinking for a moment, he showed her some pictures on his phone—photos that Lin Yuejiu had taken herself using his camera.
“Wow! Your girlfriend is gorgeous!”
Xu Nianshen smiled. “Thank you.”
It was the first time Fan Ke had seen her deskmate smile, and she became excited.
“I think you two are perfect together! You even look like a couple. She’s not here, is she?”
“She’s an exchange student,” he replied.
Fan Ke suddenly understood, pointing at her own seat.
“So… she’s the one who used to sit here?”
Xu Nianshen nodded.
“Wow!” Fan Ke grew even more animated. “What kind of fate is this? You two are even deskmates! And this bracelet—she must have woven it herself for you, right?”
Xu Nianshen nodded again.
“I can really tell you both like each other a lot!”
