In the end, Qian Wei finally couldn’t take it anymore. “So, Tang Lü, you two go ahead and chat! I just spotted a pretty good-looking guy over there who’s totally my type, I want to go meet him! I’ll get going!” As she spoke, Qian Wei casually pointed in some random direction. She thought to herself, I really can’t stand listening to you two discuss Bach and Mozart anymore, okay!

Tang Lü blinked, then smiled and nodded at her. His eyes were full of Liu Shiyun now, and in his heart he probably wished this human lightbulb would hurry up and leave.

Once she’d left Tang Lü and Liu Shiyun behind, Qian Wei was happy to have some peace. This mixer was using a buffet format, so Qian Wei simply walked over to the food table, grabbed a plate, and began eating heartily.

“Hi, I’m Wu Jun.”

Just as Qian Wei was eating happily, a male voice sounded behind her.

Qian Wei turned around, and only then did she see the person — a guy about 1.7 meters tall, wearing a pair of glasses as thick as the bottom of a beer bottle. The lenses hadn’t been cleaned in ages, with a faint suspicious oily sheen clinging to the edges, all hazy and blurred — Qian Wei couldn’t even make out the look in his eyes behind those lenses. Of course, the most striking thing about him was his pair of protruding ears, which were really too—

“Oh? Hi, I’m Qian Wei.”

The guy nodded rather reservedly. “Since today is a mixer, I’ll get straight to the point. I’m not one to waste time — I like efficiency in everything. Since we’re here to date, I don’t like beating around the bush either, so I’ll tell you plainly: I prefer gentle, generous girls who can do housework, and most importantly, who are filial. It wasn’t easy for my mom to raise me, so I hope you’re the caring type. Also, I like girls who have some ambition and don’t rely entirely on the man, who have their own spirit and opinions — but I don’t like girls who are too ambitious either. It’s best if a girl has a stable job like civil servant or teacher — respectable, decent income, not too much work pressure, and still able to take care of the family.”

Qian Wei was momentarily baffled. “This… um, what does this have to do with me… with me exactly?”

Wu Jun pushed up his glasses. “No need to keep pretending. I heard everything just now. I know you have feelings for me.”

Qian Wei: ???

Wu Jun tilted his mouth into what he clearly thought was a devilishly charming smile, his tone full of “you know, I know, everyone knows”: “I was just standing over there.” He pointed to a corner on the left. “There. Just now, I was the only one there.”

Qian Wei followed the direction he was pointing and nearly fainted. That was exactly the direction she’d randomly pointed to earlier while trying to get away from Tang Lü and Liu Shiyun…

Qian Wei muttered inwardly — she was sure she’d spoken very quietly just now. She glanced at his conspicuously large ears. Could it be that big ears really did mean better hearing???

“You don’t need to be shy. I’m not one for games either, and I really appreciate how straightforward you are about your feelings for me.” Wu Jun smiled, looking thoroughly satisfied with himself. “I think we’re quite compatible. We could try dating.”

Qian Wei waved her hands frantically. “No, no, you’ve got it wrong, I don’t want to date, and I don’t think we’re compatible at all. I’m an extremely unfilial person, and I’m way too career-driven — I don’t have any other hobbies, all I think about is making money. Look, even my surname hints at what my whole life is about — money, that’s all I’m after!”

Wu Jun pondered for a moment, and just as Qian Wei thought he might give up, he looked up again, wearing an expression like he was making some enormous sacrifice. “It’s fine, I trust you. As long as you have those feelings for me, you’ll be able to change for me. I’m willing to give you time to slowly become the person I like.”

Qian Wei was getting frantic now — what on earth was this guy talking about! Friend, if there’s something you like about me that needs changing, can’t I just change it??

“No, I really can’t become the person you like. Let’s just let each other go, seriously!” Qian Wei had no choice but to pull out the ultimate weapon — self-deprecation. “I have a whole list of flaws, I don’t deserve you!”

Unfortunately, Wu Jun seemed completely absorbed in his own world. He seemed to ponder this with some distress for a while before finally looking up. “I understand — facing someone you like, it’s normal to feel a bit of an inferiority complex. But you can’t keep putting yourself down forever. When it’s time to work hard, you should work hard, and who knows, you might just break through your limits.” Having said that, he pulled out his phone. “Let’s exchange numbers, then.”

Qian Wei didn’t dare linger any longer. She quickly came up with an excuse and fled as fast as her legs could carry her.

“Qian Wei! Wait for me!”

Just as Qian Wei was wandering back toward the dorm, she heard Liu Shiyun’s voice. This time Liu Shiyun had returned to normal — no longer the soft-spoken, put-on persona from before, but back to her usual loud, energetic voice.

“Why’d you come out too?” Qian Wei asked, puzzled. “Weren’t things going pretty well with you and Tang Lü?”

Liu Shiyun tossed her hair back. “Have you heard of the half-sugar principle? When a guy and girl are just starting to get ambiguous or dating, what’s the biggest taboo? Sticking together all the time! Not only does that get sickening, it also makes you lose your mystery to each other right away. That kind of relationship ends up like a tornado — comes on fast and leaves just as fast.” She winked at Qian Wei. “I told Tang Lü I had something to take care of and had to leave early. Of course, the first time you have to keep him wanting more, leave him yearning for you. Besides, haven’t you heard? Elegance comes from refusal — a woman who never turns anyone down is less attractive than one who reserves her acceptance.”

Qian Wei grinned slyly. “Liu Shiyun, quit dressing it up like that. Do you think I just met you today? You just couldn’t keep up the ladylike act any longer, right?”

Liu Shiyun let out a long sigh and patted Qian Wei’s shoulder. “Who knows me better than you, Qian Wei! I was seriously suffocating in there! The second you left, I found an excuse too and came out for some air!”

Qian Wei felt a bit sorry for her. “Why put yourself through that? Why not just show him the real you? Why keep up the act?”

Liu Shiyun shot her a look. “This just shows you don’t understand how it works. These days, guys might say they like straightforward girls, but when it comes down to actually making a decision, they both run straight toward the sweet, innocent type! Guys like that fragile, delicate look, like a willow that could topple in the wind, with such refined taste they seem above worldly concerns! Loud, boisterous types like us — they only want to be buddies with us! They’d never think about dating us! Because we’re just not goddess material!”

“That’s not necessarily true,” Qian Wei protested weakly. “I think there are still people out there with unusual tastes who’d like us.”

“Right! There will definitely be people who like us — but if they like the unusual stuff, that just means they’re unusual too!”

“…” Qian Wei thought of the protruding-eared friend from earlier and, for once, found herself unable to argue.

“Qian Wei!” Just as Liu Shiyun and Qian Wei were deep in heated discussion, Qian Chuan’s voice sounded behind them. He sounded a bit out of breath, as if he’d been running. “Finally found you.”

When he reached the two of them and got a good look at their outfits, he couldn’t help himself. “Damn, what’s with the getup… one in black, one in white. Should I be asking who you two are here to take away tonight?”

Liu Shiyun exploded. “You’re the one who’s black and white and unlucky! How does that garbage mouth of yours ever land you a girlfriend! This is a classic look, black and white, a classic! What do you even know!”

Qian Wei quickly held Liu Shiyun back, patting her on the back, then looked at Qian Chuan. “Weren’t you looking for me? What’s going on?”

Qian Chuan smacked his forehead, his face full of irritation. “I’m being stalked and harassed!”

Qian Wei looked worried. “What? Should we call the police? What did you get yourself into this time?”

“I’m such an outstanding young man with all-around excellence, how could I possibly cause trouble? It’s just that I’m too outstanding and dazzling, that’s how this whole mess started!” Qian Chuan sighed. “I don’t know why, but I’ve had terrible luck with women lately. Last time I was out for a night run on campus and happened to come across a girl who’d just had her bag snatched. Being the righteous hero I am, I chased the guy down and got it back for her — and now she’s fixated on me! It’s completely spiraled out of control! I don’t even know how she dug up my contact info and my schedule, but now she follows me around every single day, like some obsessive fan stalker. Wherever I go, she’s there. Yesterday, to dodge her, I hid in the men’s restroom for a whole hour! Nearly passed out from the smell!”

Liu Shiyun pursed her lips. “The taste of today’s female college students is really concerning. And you’ve actually got someone chasing you this hard, Qian Chuan — are you sure you’re not just bragging?”

“You wouldn’t say that if you saw what she looked like,” Qian Chuan said, his expression turning tragic. “By my estimate, she’ll be arriving on the battlefield in about ten seconds.”

Before Qian Wei could even process that, a booming voice rang out.

“Prince Charming!!!!”

Qian Wei followed the sound and finally understood Qian Chuan’s suffering and misery…

The owner of that voice was a plump girl who looked to weigh around two hundred pounds, currently charging toward Qian Chuan with all her might. Given her size, even Qian Wei found herself exhausted just watching her run.

“Prince Charming! Why were you running so fast just now, I could barely keep up.” She finally reached Qian Chuan, her face flushed pink and round. “So, um, can we have dinner together tonight?”

Qian Chuan’s face twisted into a pained expression. “Li Linlin, I really do have a girlfriend, please don’t do this.”

“It’s fine, I don’t mind. I love you, and that has nothing to do with you. You having a girlfriend is your business. And it’s fine if you don’t have time to eat with me — you can eat, and I’ll just quietly watch from the side, that would make me happy enough.”

“…” Qian Chuan looked like he was about to cry. Clearly unable to come up with any strategy, all he could do was flee. “I just remembered I have something to take care of, I’ll get going!”

The moment he finished speaking, he took off at the same sprinting speed as a hundred-meter dash and vanished from Qian Wei’s sight in an instant…

Li Linlin blinked, then took off chasing after Qian Chuan too, leaving Qian Wei and Liu Shiyun standing there, dumbfounded.