CFL 26

The bell rang, and Lu Xuesong ran over to sit next to Tao Peng, the little couple sticking together affectionately.

The dormitory group chat began to fire the first shot in the摸fish campaign.

[Lu Xuesong: Zhou Yan is treating us to dinner tonight and wants us to help him canvass for votes. Are you in? @Wen Ci.]

[Tao Peng: In, in, in.]

[Wen Ci: Lying on the ground like a loser.jpg]

Lu Xuesong nudged Tao Peng with his elbow and, taking advantage of the teacher’s turned back, whispered, “Do you want to canvass for votes too and run for the Youth League branch secretary? It’ll make writing application letters easier in the future.”

Tao Peng scoffed, “Troublesome. Do I need to?”

Lu Xuesong: “You do.”

[Lu Xuesong: Wen Ci, don’t you want to run for a class committee position? It adds credits.]

[Wen Ci: Lying on the ground like a loser.jpg]

[Lu Xuesong: ?]

[Lu Xuesong: Which club are you planning to sign up for? Tao Peng is definitely going for the basketball club. I’m not interested. Wen Ci, say something.]

[Wen Ci: Lying on the ground like a loser.jpg]

[Lu Xuesong: Just pick randomly? I don’t mind, as long as I’m with you (heart), by the way, are you joining the Student Union?]

[Wen Ci: Lying on the ground, shot like a loser.gif]

[Lu Xuesong: Baby, say something (shaking shoulders and shaking head frantically.jpg)]

Jiang Yufeng arrived fashionably late, and as he sat down, a cool breeze seemed to emanate from his body. Wen Ci’s head was tilted to the other side, petrified, do not disturb.

Jiang Yufeng took out his phone and turned off the detailed notification display.

Lu Xuesong stealthily glanced back at Wen Ci, who was slumped in his chair like a jelly person, as if he had lost his soul.

“……”

What on earth, Wen Ci seemed like he was dead.

[Jiang Yufeng: Add me to the group.]

[Lu Xuesong: ? What group?]

[Jiang Yufeng: The dormitory group.]

Almost forgot, Jiang Yufeng was also a member of their Room 504.

Without asking further, Lu Xuesong, with a subtle mood, added him to the group.

Back to the normal topic.

[Lu Xuesong: Wen Ci, are you going or not? Tonight’s feast by Zhou Yan @Wen Ci]

[Jiang Yufeng: @Wen Ci, are you going?]

Wen Ci shuddered, not daring to look to the right.

[Wen Ci: Bitterly smiling and kneeling on the ground.jpg]

[Wen Ci: No.]

[Lu Xuesong: @Jiang Yufeng, how about you?]

Lu Xuesong privately thought that Jiang Yufeng joined for Zhou Yan’s feast.

[Jiang Yufeng: My family is here, it’s not convenient.]

[Lu Xuesong: Oh, alright, next time then.]

Seeing this reply, Wen Ci suddenly perked up.

What if.

There might just be someone in this world with the same nickname, the same avatar, and sending messages to Jiang Yufeng at the same time.

What if!

Wen Ci was now stuck in a quagmire, struggling harder and sinking deeper. If he stopped struggling, he might be safer.

The class ended, and Wen Ci was the first to rush out. The first step was to get away from Jiang Yufeng.

Jiang Yufeng was right; he had warned himself from the beginning. It was Wen Ci’s fault, all Wen Ci’s fault.

Wen Ci slowly meandered down the corridor, contemplating whether to go to the appointment.

Reality: The senior is 99.999999% Jiang Yufeng.

Ideal: The senior is someone else.

Wen Ci, carrying his small school bag and dragging the straps with his fingers, looked down at his pale white sneakers and kicked them fiercely.

Should he go and take a look?

What if…

Wen Ci opened his electronic diary and wrote down his dilemma.

To go or not.

If it’s Jiang Yufeng, what should he do?

If it’s an odd number, he’ll go; if it’s an even number, he’ll head back to the dormitory.

Wen Ci switched to WeChat and threw the dice.

First time: 5

Wen Ci: “…”

That doesn’t count; this is a test.

Second time: 3

Wen Ci decided to go. He closed his electronic diary and slunk off to the appointment.

[Yf: (Picture)]

It was a seat in a café.

Upon opening it, he saw the initials he had previously noted as “senior,” but later changed back when he realized it might be Yu Bin.

Now, seeing these two letters.

Yf.

Yufeng?

Jiang Yufeng?

No, it could be Yufeng, Yufeng, Yufeng, Yufeng… In short, it might not necessarily be Yufeng.

[Yf: You should be done with class by now.]

[W: Yeah.]

[Yf: Hurry up.]

[W: Okay.]

Wen Ci quickly ran across to the café on the opposite side of the road, where various buildings stood in the distance.

Jiang Yufeng was seated by the window, seemingly in different clothes—a thin, dark green sweater that revealed his prominent collarbones, deep-set eyes, and a demeanor made more refined and indifferent by the surrounding greenery. He was quite charming.

His attire was a bit more gentle, but who knew the thick arms beneath the sweater, the protruding veins, and the well-defined muscles, not to mention the pants, the crotch…

Seeing it with his own eyes, Wen Ci was disheartened.

He quickly took out his phone.

Judging by the time he got out of class, he hadn’t kept Jiang Yufeng waiting for too long. There was still hope.

[W: Senior, something came up here, I can’t make it. You should head home.]

[Yf: When should we meet next?]

[W: Let’s not meet. I realized I don’t like you that much.]

[Yf: How can you know without meeting?]

Wen Ci gritted his teeth.

[W: Actually… (I’ll make something up on the spot)]

[W: I got back together with my ex-boyfriend, so… I’m really sorry, Senior, I’m truly sorry!!]

[Yf: ?]

[W: I’m really sorry. Let’s just cut ties.]

After sending the message, Wen Ci deleted and blocked the contact in one go and turned to leave.

Not long after Wen Ci left, looking disheveled, he realized he had taken the wrong exit and was now surrounded by unfamiliar and desolate buildings.

He had never been to this area and seemed to be lost.

Wen Ci couldn’t walk anymore. He squatted in a corner, reflecting on what had happened and thinking about how to remedy the situation.

Covering his ears with both hands, he suddenly thought of something.

Could the boyfriend Jiang Yufeng mentioned in class be him?

Wen Ci’s face turned ashen, and he squatted there, banging his head against the wall.

He felt sour and bitter inside, wanting to cry out loud, but more than sadness, he was terrified of being discovered by Jiang Yufeng, who had said he didn’t like him.

He had limited interactions with Jiang Yufeng, and each time ended in a big misunderstanding. It seemed like Jiang Yufeng really disliked him. Wen Ci felt both sad and scared.

If discovered, if Jiang Yufeng found out that the person he had been chatting with online was him, Wen Ci would be devastated.

Wen Ci squatted there, clutching his head in agony, like Tom from Tom and Jerry after being hit on the head.

How could it be Jiang Yufeng? It was so painful. He would rather it had been Yu Bin.

If it had been last month, he would have been delighted.

But if it weren’t for Jiang Yufeng not liking him, he wouldn’t have sought someone online, and then…

Help, help!

Wen Ci lowered his eyes, his long eyelashes casting a shallow, fan-shaped shadow on his cheeks, trembling slightly, looking very pitiful.

Yes, he was pitiful.

He just couldn’t accept that the senior was Jiang Yufeng.

It felt like his heart had been tightly grabbed, causing great discomfort.

Wen Ci banged his head against the wall again, seeing stars from the pain.

Forget it, forget it. Fortunately, he and Jiang Yufeng hadn’t been chatting online for long, and no deep feelings had been established…

Jiang Yufeng had just lost a cyber relationship, while he had lost…

Wen Ci counted carefully. He had dressed in women’s clothing to seduce Jiang Yufeng, wearing clothes that were extremely revealing, showing everything.

Wen Ci wailed inwardly; he had lost half his dignity!

Now wasn’t the time to be emo. He needed to think about how to deal with the current situation.

Wen Ci wiped away the tears from the corners of his eyes with his sleeve. Once he knew it was Jiang Yufeng on the other end, all his fluttering emotions disappeared completely, even more resolute than when facing the tutor.

But this determination was immediately defeated by being lost. How to get back to the West Gate, oh my goodness.

Fortunately, he stumbled upon the canteen of Building One. Wen Ci had never eaten here before because it was far from the dormitory.

He couldn’t eat, so he ordered fried sauce noodles. Just as he was holding the plate and looking for a place to sit, he turned his head and saw Du Chengyan and Yu Bin.

Seeing them now, Wen Ci felt an inexplicable sense of familiarity.

The three of them had an eerie yet harmonious meal together. Last time Yu Bin suggested they have a meal together, Wen Ci thought it was impossible, but now… nothing is impossible in this world.

After all, he had encountered the low-probability event of his online lover being Jiang Yufeng. Nothing is impossible anymore. 🙂

Zhao Shuran bit her straw, and when she laughed, revealing her white teeth, she looked like a youthful and beautiful girl.

“Your son is also studying at University A. What a coincidence! Mine is too. We really have a connection.”

Xin Jingqi’s face lit up when she talked about Wen Ci, even though she often shouted at him at home.

“No wonder you suggested meeting here, to check on your son as well,” Xin Jingqi said, understanding because she planned to surprise Wen Ci tomorrow, giving him a big scare, and she even brought his favorite sugarcane oranges.

Xin Jingqi couldn’t help but say, “My son is super, super, super, super cute. He’s just a bit silly. I can’t help but tease him. It’s too much fun.”

When Wen Ci was two or three years old, his cheeks were chubby, like a big round face in a cartoon. Xin Jingqi loved to touch his face, but Wen Ci didn’t like it. He would turn his head away and cry after a couple of touches.

Xin Jingqi would touch him three times, wait until Wen Ci cried loudly, then comfort him, and after that, continue touching him, in a never-ending cycle.

Zhao Shuran was extremely envious, compared to the poker-faced Jiang Yufeng: “I also want to play. I want a soft little baby.”

Xin Jingqi smiled, “Won’t you have plenty of chances in the future?”

Zhao Shuran said, “But he has to… tonight.”

Zhao Shuran took out her phone, “I’ll ask if he’s done. Let’s have dinner together with the four of us.”

Yun Anhe couldn’t get a word in. The two of them had just met, but they hit it off immediately, skipping pleasantries and hugging right away, with no awkwardness at all, as if they had been close friends for years.

The only one feeling awkward was him.

When Jiang Yufeng sent another message, a red exclamation mark popped up, indicating that he had been deleted.

Unable to pass the application verification meant he had been blocked.

The waiter was about to come over to pour water when he saw Jiang Yufeng’s face darken and the air pressure around him drop.

He was a regular customer here and was familiar with the owner, but this was the first time he had shown such an expression.

The waiter approached cautiously with the kettle, and Jiang Yufeng, snapping back to reality, smiled politely at him.

Why was he smiling if he was angry?

The waiter’s hand trembled, spilling a bit of water, and he quickly said, “Sorry! I’ll clean it up right away.”

“No rush,” Jiang Yufeng stood up, his tall stature creating a strong sense of压迫感, but his voice was soft, “Take your time.”

The coffee room’s doorbell rang, and as Jiang Yufeng walked out, he happened to receive a call from Zhao Shuran, asking if he wanted to have dinner together.

“No need.”

Zhao Shuran paused, “You sound a bit off.”

“Where?”

“Pitiful.”

“?”

Zhao Shuran decided to stay another night, “Don’t leave tonight. Let’s have a late-night snack together.”

The coffee room was very close to the apartment Jiang Yufeng rented, just two streets away. He had a light meal there and stayed in his room the whole time until Zhao Shuran called him downstairs at around nine.

Yun Anhe wasn’t there; he had gone back to school. Although he was a junior with fewer classes, he couldn’t afford to skip.

They went to the barbecue place next to the coffee room. The shops here were brightly lit, struggling to create a neon glow under the cover of night.

This area was part of the university town, where college students had refined tastes. Although most of them hadn’t experienced the harshness of society, they knew how to enjoy good food.

After a tiring class, they would eat to replenish their energy.

After finishing homework, they would reward themselves with a meal.

On holidays, they would relax and eat.

A restaurant that didn’t serve good food wouldn’t survive here.

The barbecue place was packed. Jiang Yufeng had reserved a table in advance, skipping the long queue and going straight in. The seat was by the window, with a view of the alley that led to the West Gate of University A.

Zhao Shuran originally didn’t plan to share the joy of meeting an online friend, but when Jiang Yufeng asked how it went, the floodgates opened, and she couldn’t stop talking.

After sharing her exciting experience, she took a big gulp of her sugar-free, ice-cold drink, finally feeling relieved in her throat. She chewed on a fragrant beef skewer and asked, “Didn’t you meet your online friend today? Not satisfied?”

In Zhao Shuran’s memory, few people got along well with Jiang Yufeng.

“Didn’t meet,” Jiang Yufeng opened a can of ice beer, the cool liquid slightly swallowing as it went down his throat, “She ran away.”

Zhao Shuran: “?”

“Did you die before even seeing the light?”

Zhao Shuran remembered how he used to stare at his phone all day when he was on vacation at home. Could it be… the one who ran away was her future daughter-in-law!

“Condolences.”

“?”

But seeing that Jiang Yufeng didn’t look sad at all, she was puzzled. Suddenly, she remembered something and got excited, “How about I introduce you to Sister Qi’s son? I’ve seen his photos. He’s super cute and well-behaved. I really like him.”

Zhao Shuran strongly recommended, “He’s also a student at University A, very easy to get along with, and fun.”

“No interest.”

“So what are you planning to do?”

Jiang Yufeng looked out the window at the opposite road, the direction Wen Ci had left: “It’s not hard to catch him.”

After not eating for long, they went upstairs to rest. Jiang Yufeng sat in front of the desk, thought for a moment, and decided not to use his private account to avoid being deleted and blocked together.

That little rascal Wen Ci…

Jiang Yufeng opened his contact list, found the phone number Wen Ci had given him before, and dialed. A mechanical female voice slowly flowed into his ears.

Impressive, even the phone number has been blocked.