Qi Weichen was still clutching a box of walnut cookies when he returned to the dormitory. As soon as he turned on the lights after entering the room, he noticed a suitcase in what had previously been his single-occupancy room.
He stared silently at the suitcase for a while, then unhurriedly returned to his desk. He placed the walnut cookies neatly on the desk and sat down, his gaze never leaving the cookies. His rigid posture made him look like a meticulously carved sculpture.
It wasn't until late at night that the "sculpture" prepared to wash up. Just as he grabbed his towel, the sound of a key turning in the lock suddenly came from the dormitory door. Qi Muyang, who had just dyed his hair, pushed open the door and unexpectedly made eye contact with Qi Weichen.
"Damn... you live here?" Qi Muyang looked at him as if he'd seen a ghost.
Qi Weichen glanced at his newly dyed black hair: "This looks much better."
Qi Muyang: "...Who needs your opinion on how it looks? I'm asking you, do you live here?"
"Yes."
After a moment of stunned silence, Qi Muyang suddenly became agitated: "I used to have a single room, and this year I'm suddenly assigned to a double. That's one thing, but out of all the seniors, we two end up living together. I don't believe this is a coincidence!"
"It's not a coincidence," Qi Weichen calmly replied.
Of course it's not a coincidence! It must be Dad... Qi Muyang jolted, suddenly catching the key point in Qi Weichen's words: "You know it's not a coincidence, so you know about our relationship?!"
Hearing him voluntarily bring up their relationship, Qi Weichen's typically calm eyes finally showed some emotion: "Judging from your previous behavior, I was always worried that your intelligence might be low. Now it seems I was overthinking."
"...I'm trying to have a civil conversation with you, and you're calling me stupid?" Qi Muyang, as always, grasped the main point.
Qi Weichen paused for a moment: "You should speak to me with respect."
"Hah, I refuse. What are you going to do about it?" Ever since he saw the balance on Qi Weichen's ID card that afternoon, Qi Muyang had been in a foul mood. Now, hearing him speak like an elder, he became even more impatient and very much wanted to pick a fight and punch him.
Thinking this, he began to crack his knuckles eagerly. However, as soon as he met Qi Weichen's cold eyes, he instantly deflated.
...Damn, even his eyes are so similar to Dad's. Hitting him would be like hitting a younger version of Dad. Who could bring themselves to do that? Unable to vent his frustrations, Qi Muyang paced around the room like an agitated cat.
His impatience, resistance, and even disgust were accurately conveyed to Qi Weichen. Qi Weichen watched him silently, his fingertips unconsciously tensing.
Tired of pacing, Qi Muyang plopped down on his chair. Seeing Qi Weichen still staring at him, he immediately snapped, "What are you looking at?"
"You're so resistant to me," Qi Weichen looked at him, "Is it because I haven't done well enough in the past years?"
"What nonsense are you talking about? I didn't even know you existed before, how would I know if you did well or not?" Qi Muyang looked at him as if he were insane.
Qi Weichen's fingers twitched, and when he spoke again, his usually calm voice revealed a hint of tension: "Why didn't you know? Could it be..."
"You're just an illegitimate child who can't see the light of day. Why should I know about you?" Qi Muyang irritably interrupted him.
Qi Weichen had intended to ask if they had divorced, but he didn't expect Qi Muyang to suddenly say something like this. He immediately fell silent.
After a long while, he reverted to his usual impassiveness: "Whose illegitimate child am I?"
"What are you pretending for? Your father even gave you the exact same name as his. You still don't know whose son you are?" Due to his unbalanced state of mind, Qi Muyang was extremely harsh, just wanting to gain the upper hand.
This time, Qi Weichen fell into an even longer silence. He remained motionless even as Qi Muyang made his bed, lounged on it, and played with his phone for a long time. Qi Muyang was somewhat distracted, his peripheral vision constantly glancing towards Qi Weichen. Seeing him standing still for so long, he suddenly wondered if he had gone too far earlier and if he should take the initiative to ease the atmosphere.
After all, one's birth circumstances were not something Qi Weichen could choose.
The more Qi Muyang thought about it, the more conflicted he felt. He didn't notice that Qi Weichen had moved until he was right in front of him, placing a box of walnut cookies beside his hand.
Qi Muyang's eyelid twitched, and he looked at Qi Weichen with a strange expression.
"Eat," Qi Weichen said, his eyes full of emotions that Qi Muyang couldn't comprehend.
Qi Muyang: "..." What's wrong with this guy? A saint returning kindness for enmity?
Before he could figure it out, Qi Weichen had already gone to the bathroom. Sitting alone on his dormitory bed, Qi Muyang stared at the walnut cookies with furrowed brows. After a while, realizing he was quite hungry, he hesitated before finally opening the box.
When Qi Weichen came out after his shower, Qi Muyang still had half a cookie in his mouth, and the box was nearly empty. As their gazes met, Qi Muyang actually felt a bit embarrassed. He wished he had shown more backbone and not eaten the cookies.
"Eat more," Qi Weichen said, then went straight to bed.
Qi Muyang sat alone, feeling awkward as he crunched through the remaining cookies. As a result, he found himself unable to sleep that night.
Thanks to the walnut cookies, when Qi Muyang entered the classroom the next morning, he had slight dark circles under his eyes and looked completely listless. His desk-mate, Chu Qing, didn't seem to be in much better shape.
"Well, you really dyed it back. Looks handsome," Chu Qing smiled weakly.
It was precisely because it looked good that she couldn't understand why he had dyed his hair before. Originally, he had been a rare specimen of extreme handsomeness, but he had inexplicably decided to dye his hair in a messy fashion, making people only notice his hair at first glance, overlooking his handsome features.
Although his eyes strongly resembled Qi Weichen's, they lacked Qi Weichen's coldness. His features were also slightly softer compared to Qi Weichen's. When not angry, he actually looked quite docile. Now, with his black hair neatly styled, not only had his attractiveness skyrocketed, but his aura had also become more adorable.
Hmm, like a cat. And judging by his personality, a cat that could bristle at any moment.
Qi Muyang didn't appreciate her compliment: "Don't call me 'turkey chick' anymore."
"You sound so weak. Did you pull an all-nighter at the internet cafe?" Chu Qing glanced at him.
Qi Muyang snorted coldly, too tired to even muster anger: "I wish I had. At least I could have played games all night. That would have been better than lying awake all night."
"Then why do you look so out of it?" Chu Qing asked with a yawn.
Qi Muyang paused, casting a rather resentful glance at the back of Qi Weichen's head: "Better not to mention it. What about you? Why are you so sleepy?"
"I'd rather not say either." Being kept awake all night by a box of walnut cookies was something she'd rather process on her own.
The two desk-mates exchanged a glance and sighed in unison. Although they didn't know why the other was so tired, it didn't prevent them from sympathizing with each other.
Qi Muyang turned to his Lackey: "Keep an eye on the teacher for me. I'm going to sleep for a bit."
"No problem, leave it to me," the Lackey immediately agreed.
Qi Muyang promptly put his head down, tilting it to look at Chu Qing: "Go ahead and sleep. I'll wake you when the teacher comes." He yawned and immediately fell asleep.
Chu Qing didn't deny herself either. Using a book as cover, she quickly fell into a deep sleep amidst the sound of students reciting during the morning self-study period.
When Qi Weichen looked back, the two were sound asleep. He frowned slightly, initially intending to wake them, but then noticed the faint dark circles under their eyes. In the end, he let them continue sleeping.
After an unknown amount of time, Qi Muyang's foot was suddenly kicked. He instantly sat up, opened his book, and assumed a pensive pose in one fluid motion, not at all like someone who had just been startled awake.
However, from the corner of his eye, he noticed the teacher entering the classroom and heading straight for him. Had he not gotten up fast enough? As Qi Muyang pondered this, the teacher reached his desk. He looked up innocently, only to realize the teacher wasn't looking at him.
He paused for a moment, following the teacher's gaze, and saw Chu Qing still fast asleep.
Qi Muyang: "..." He had forgotten about her.
In the end, Chu Qing found herself standing in the hallway with her textbook. She never imagined that even after more than 20 years, schools would still use the same punishment methods. Though the early summer morning was warm, she felt cold – mainly in her heart.
It wasn't until early self-study was almost over that she was allowed to enter the classroom. The moment her foot stepped inside, all eyes in the class focused on her. Chu Qing walked in expressionlessly. When she was still a short distance from her seat, Qi Muyang had already stood up to make way for her, his face showing slight discomfort.
Chu Qing didn't spare him a single glance and ignored him even after sitting down. Qi Muyang scratched his head and coughed awkwardly, "Let's have lunch together after class, my treat."
Chu Qing treated him like air, pretending not to hear him speak.
If it were anyone else ignoring him, even if it was his fault, he would have lost his temper long ago. However, when it came to Chu Qing, he couldn't help but be a little more patient: "The soup dumplings at the third cafeteria are delicious, and the egg soup is good too. They're all freshly made and taste great. How about I take you there?"
Chu Qing glanced at him languidly. Qi Muyang's eyes lit up, but just as he was about to speak, he saw her turn her head away again.
He: "..."
Until the end of early self-study, Qi Muyang tried to strike up a conversation three times, but was rebuffed each time. In the end, he could only watch helplessly as she went to eat alone.
"Boss, are you okay?" Lackey, having witnessed his failed attempts, cautiously asked as Chu Qing walked away.
Qi Muyang shot him an impatient look: "What could be wrong with me? Hurry up and help me think of ways to make it up to her!"
Lackey: "..." Since when did his patience become so good?
"Boss, we've never had girlfriends, we don't know how to appease girls," Little Fatty chimed in.
Qi Muyang was about to say this had nothing to do with girlfriends when he saw Qi Weichen in front of him preparing to go eat. He immediately strode forward, blocking Qi Weichen's path: "Hey, Chu Qing said you two know each other, so you should understand her better than us. Do you know how to make it up to her?"
Qi Weichen looked at him thoughtfully: "Buy snacks?" When they were dating, Chu Qing rarely got angry. On the occasional times she was unhappy, she would eat a lot of snacks, and her mood would improve after eating.
Qi Muyang pondered for a moment, thinking this method feasible, and stepped aside. After Qi Weichen left, Chen Xiu carefully spoke up: "Boss, don't buy too much. It might make her feel burdened."
"Right, more isn't always better. Let's just buy a little to test the waters. If it doesn't work, we can try something else," Little Fatty analyzed.
Seeing Qi Muyang nod in agreement, Lackey immediately asked, "Boss, what snacks should we buy?"
"Walnut cookies, they taste good," Qi Muyang said after much deliberation, choosing them from countless snack options.
Sigh.
