Write a letter to her boyfriend?

Ji Jiangyuan had initially just wanted to admire something beautiful. When he couldn’t resist his heart’s stirring and approached Xia Xiaolan, he hadn’t expected they would connect so well in conversation – at least she was more interesting than the young women he’d met since returning to China.

He thought their conversation was going quite well, and he could tell Xia Xiaolan was genuinely interested in what he was saying.

To abruptly announce halfway through that she needed to return to her dormitory to write to her boyfriend-classmate, isn’t that a bit too direct?

Their pleasant conversation – had it been his imagination?

Ji Jiangyuan wasn’t particularly hurt – his feelings for Xia Xiaolan hadn’t reached that level, and he wasn’t the type to become angry when rejected. He just couldn’t help but laugh, wondering if those restless beasts staying up late knew that the new campus beauty had a boyfriend.

Or was this just an excuse to reject him?

Either way, Ji Jiangyuan returned to his dormitory smiling, where his roommates’ interrogation awaited him.

Similarly, Xia Xiaolan faced questioning from her roommates, with Su Jing wearing a mischievous grin as if she’d caught her in bed with Ji Jiangyuan.

“Why didn’t you chat longer with Classmate Ji? I dragged everyone else away to create an opportunity for you!”

The roommates were curious.

Only their senior Yang Yonghong hesitated before speaking, “Starting a relationship right after entering school, isn’t that inappropriate?”

Yang Yonghong spoke out of concern, but Su Jing disagreed, “Is there a rule against dating at Huaqing? Senior, that’s old-fashioned thinking. Though Huaqing has more boys than girls, outstanding ones like Classmate Ji are rare. Don’t cut off Little Six’s chance at romance.”

Xia Xiaolan raised both hands in surrender. “Sorry to disappoint you, but I cut off this romance myself by telling Classmate Ji I needed to return to write to my boyfriend!”

“Xiaolan, you must be joking. Using that to fool Ji in front of so many people on the west campus field…”

If she didn’t like Ji Jiangyuan, there were so many other excuses available.

Su Jing couldn’t understand, and the others looked at her with bewildered expressions.

“I wasn’t fooling him. I do need to write to my boyfriend!”

Since visiting Zhou Cheng’s workplace wouldn’t look good, with previous issues still unresolved, Xia Xiaolan planned to write him a letter. She needed to ask about the aftermath of the incident, see if it could be remedied – if everything started with her sending sheep to his workplace… Xia Xiaolan couldn’t just ignore it.

The girls of Room 307 were stunned.

Xia Xiaolan had a boyfriend?!

That evening, their curiosity was fully aroused. They asked if she had started dating in high school, and Zhou Limin exclaimed: “My mom said if any boy wrote me letters, I must give them to the teacher. High school romance never works out – I should focus all my attention on studying… I was the only one from our school who got into Huaqing, so I thought my mom was right! You had a boyfriend in high school and still became my classmate at Huaqing. Xia Xiaolan, you’re abnormal!”

Xia Xiaolan felt resentment from her single roommates.

She wanted to tell them there was nothing to envy – she might not be far from joining their ranks.

Xia Xiaolan was caught in a dilemma.

President Xia, who could decisively handle hundred-million-yuan business negotiations, couldn’t handle her relationship problems.

Business negotiations drew on her accumulated experience; solving math, physics, and chemistry problems – these things she was good at because she’d learned them in her previous life. But she had never truly dated before. Marriage-focused matchmaking didn’t count as dating – that was both parties laying their conditions on the table, another form of proper business.

Business should be rational, but love is emotional.

She would feel her heart race when she saw Zhou Cheng.

Even their disagreement about marriage timing had been set aside by Xia Xiaolan.

She felt the romance was truly difficult. Two people liking each other wasn’t enough – there seemed to be so much more. How should she balance time for studies, career, and boyfriend?

Meanwhile, the Wang household was having an eventful evening.

Wang Guangping had Wang Jianhua invite the Liu family over, not just to thank Liu Shan for lending money to help the Wang family through difficulties, but also to use the opportunity to learn about university situations from Professor Liu. However, while everyone was enjoying their conversation, there was a knock at the door.

Wang Jianhua got up to open it, and Xia Ziyu followed him in.

Seeing the dishes on the table, Xia Ziyu felt particularly embarrassed. “Uncle, Auntie, I’m late and couldn’t help.”

Ran Shuyu was grinding her teeth.

Xia Ziyu put the fruit she’d brought on the table – who needed these apples and grapes?

Professor Liu broke the awkward moment, “Oh, there’s another guest. We were impolite to be seated before everyone arrived.”

Mrs. Liu smiled, “Let’s all sit together.”

Liu Shan’s expression didn’t change either.

This was unexpected for Xia Ziyu. She thought her surprise appearance would surely provoke some reaction from the Liu family. But they acted as if it was nothing, including Liu Shan – the senior student who had approached Wang Jianhua trying to take him away.

Wang Jianhua coughed, “Ziyu, this is Professor Liu and his wife, and you’ve met Senior Liu Shan. This is Xia Ziyu, also a Teachers’ College student, and my girlfriend.”

Xia Ziyu smiled and greeted everyone.

Since the others could be shameless, she wasn’t afraid of being thick-skinned.

Showing up uninvited – Wang Jianhua’s parents would surely be unhappy, but Xia Ziyu couldn’t worry about that now. She could sense how the Wang family’s attitude toward her had changed recently. Ran Shuyu hadn’t acted this way when she was sending medicine, money, and clothes to the farm. Fortunately, she could still use Wang Jianhua’s thoughts, making this move at the Wang house after suggesting it through Wang Jianhua’s mouth.

After all, Wang Jianhua had invited her to dinner, so she knew nothing, right?

This meal was eaten with many hidden thoughts.

With Xia Ziyu present, Wang Guangping couldn’t discuss important matters with Professor Liu, so both families could only make small talk. Ran Shuyu praised Liu Shan’s excellence, while Mrs. Liu sincerely complimented Wang Jianhua: “Jianhua’s ability to test back into Beijing from the countryside is more impressive than our Shanshan.”

Ran Shuyu was also proud of her son, but Wang Jianhua gave this chance to shine to Xia Ziyu:

“Back then, it was thanks to Ziyu’s study materials that I could pass the college entrance exam. When it comes to intelligence, I can’t compare it to Ziyu. Dad, Ziyu has been running a tutoring class recently for students facing middle school and college entrance exams. What do you think of her idea?”

Before Wang Guangping could speak, Professor Liu asked with surprise:

“I recently heard that some Teachers’ College students had formed an organization, offering tutoring services outside school. The scale isn’t small – they’ve taken on hundreds of students. So it was Miss Xia who started this?”

“Professor, you’re too kind. The scale isn’t that large – at its peak, we had just over two hundred students. This inspiration came from Senior Liu. When Senior Liu helped Jianhua find part-time work, I realized that since there was market demand for this, why not establish a dedicated tutoring institution? This way, it both gives Teachers’ College students teaching experience and helps students who want tutoring… The idea isn’t fully mature yet; I’m just starting to try it out.”

As Xia Ziyu spoke eloquently, Professor Liu listened intently, and Wang Guangping finally looked at her properly. With such capabilities, Xia Ziyu had earned his newfound respect.