TWSITAOCP Chapter 62

University isn’t like high school where everyone has the same schedule and attends the same classrooms. Whether you’re busy or relaxed after entering university depends entirely on your personal choices.

Yu Sui’s initial schedule only had a few classes, but after flipping through to the upperclassmen’s schedules, the number of classes suddenly increased.

By then, Yu Sui was already the president of an organization, had produced many works, won several awards, and his name was on the honor roll. Everyone in the music department knew about Yu Sui, who liked to joke about being a “slacker” but never idle. He was fair-skinned and handsome, and always wore a longevity lock on his wrist. Then one day, a string of red beans¹紅豆繩 appeared on his wrist. The girls in the department all said it meant he had a boyfriend, because it was rare for a boy to be so thoughtful as to wear red beans on his wrist.

So, the new students’ feelings, which had just begun to stir, were quickly dampened by their disappointment.

The idea of ​​the red bean string was actually given to Yu Sui by Yang Feiwen.

Perhaps it was because he had entered adulthood and entered a different world, and the school provided them with a youthful and free environment, but Yu Sui occasionally encountered boys who showed interest in him.

Yang Feiwen happened to run into one when he came to find Yu Sui.

That Valentine’s Day, Yu Sui had just returned from his music teacher’s place and was busy delivering flower petals to Yan Xiu before they got wilt, only to be blocked by someone.

Yang Feiwen, entering university, had become quite celibate and, having been single for so long, completely forgot about Valentine’s Day. But by the time he realized what was happening, he was already halfway there.

Yi Tian, who was enjoying her own company and happened to need some excuse, beckoned him to go for some barbecue, saving Yang Feiwen a wasted trip.

Just as the two were having fun, Yu Sui made a phone call.

A guy drove up, his trunk stuffed with 999 roses, blocking Yu Sui’s way.

Although they eventually got rid of the guy, barely resolving the situation, Yi Tian had witnessed it all and couldn’t help but remind Yu Sui, “As long as you’re single, this won’t stop.”

Yu Sui held up the flowers: “I have a boyfriend.”

Yi Tian’s face went blank for a moment.

Heaven knows how much of a shock Yi Tian felt when she found out about Yu Sui and Yan Xiu’s relationship. She was usually quite wild, but she’d never crossed the line before. That week, she’d carried two cases of beer back to her dorm, forcing her roommates to drink with her.

Yang Feiwen: “Hasn’t Yan-ge ever given you anything? You should carry it with you!”

Yu Sui was silent for two seconds, then slowly said, “I have. The clothes are his, the shoes and watch were bought by him, and the backpack was picked out by him.”

The problem is, others wouldn’t notice; most people wouldn’t even think of that. So Yang Feiwen suggested he choose some small, thoughtful gifts to carry with him.

Yu Sui went back and got two red bean ropes, tying one to Yan Xiu’s hand.

“What for?” Yan Xiu asked, quite disdainfully.

Yu Sui glanced at him: “To ward off unwanted romantic advances.”

Yan Xiu, however, was remarkably perceptive. The next day, he discovered that some boys were stuffing flowers into their car trunks to block the way. He kept quiet, but sent about twenty boxes of snacks to Yu Sui’s dorm room.

Yu Sui only found out when his roommate called. He rushed into the room to find Yan Xiu, asking suspiciously, “Have you been sending packages to the wrong address lately?”

“No,” Yan Xiu said, making room for him.

Yu Sui was stunned, staring at Yan Xiu’s expression, then suddenly realized what he meant, and couldn’t help but laugh and cry: “Why are you wasting this money?”

This young master, used to extravagant spending, actually used the word “waste” so casually. Yan Xiu found it quite strange. Then Yu Sui called his roommates back and said, “I’ll buy you some more. Don’t touch the ones that were sent over today.”

Yan Xiu: “???”

“I’ll get them back tomorrow.” The young master was particularly stingy.

Yan Xiu was amused: “Aren’t you going to waste it?”

“No,” Yu Sui said righteously. “It’s just to promote unity and friendship in the dormitory.”

A flower with yellow petals and red stamens blooms in the music academy.

Around the time that flower bloomed, Yu Sui took out money from several cards, plus his scholarship, and invested in a business that seemed destined to go bankrupt soon.

The following month, the business changed leadership and staff. And suddenly its business flourished, now boasting several branches around the university town.

Yu Sui, with his business acumen, had already shown his initial success here, making a fortune before abruptly withdrawing. He then used the recouped capital to invest with acquaintances in building a studio.

After the studio’s renovation was completed, Yu Sui abandoned it again, closing the door to work on his sheet music.

He seemed to have matured overnight, crawling out of his lazy, spoiled self and suddenly brimming with fighting spirit. Only when he returned to his rented room did he revert to his true nature, sitting motionless on the sofa with a spoon in his mouth, waiting to be fed by the other person in the room.

Many times when Yan Xiu returned, he would find Yu Sui lounging on the sofa, too lazy to change clothes or move. Even chewing a few bites of food seemed like a chore.

Yan Xiu knew perfectly well that this young master hadn’t matured overnight. He was simply worried about the future and had quietly begun preparations, temporarily suppressing his laziness.

Even though Yan Xiu had told him there was no rush.

Yu Sui knew the source of his anxiety. For a while, he suspected Tang Ying knew, but Tang Ying remained discreet, and he couldn’t figure it out. He’d bothered Yan Xiu, but hadn’t gotten any answers.

Later, he thought that if Tang Ying really knew, she wouldn’t be so calm. Her son wasn’t just dating. He was dating a boy, and the boy was from another prestigious family.

After this thought, another arose.

Perhaps Tang Ying wasn’t indifferent; Yan Xiu was just bearing the brunt of it all alone.

This second thought sent chills down his spine. Yu Sui thought it couldn’t be like this, yet he also felt that Yan Xiu was capable of such a thing.

But he couldn’t learn Yan Xiu’s decisiveness. He still didn’t dare tell anyone in the Yu family, “Hey, I’m dating a boy named Yan Xiu.”

So he stopped bothering Yan Xiu with questions and instead filled his schedule with plans, trying to prepare himself as quickly as possible.

Aside from these complicated matters, they lived a carefree life.

Young people often quarrel, and the two boys quarreled even more. They moved into one room, which increased the frequency of their quarrels. Sometimes, they would deliberately pick fights even when they had nothing else to do. If it wasn’t serious, they might have had a quarrel. If it got serious, it would escalate to physical violence, but nothing more serious.

The argument that erupted near the end of the semester stemmed from something incredibly trivial: a carton of eggs had been sitting in their rented apartment for two months.

They were both incredibly busy, only going back together every few days when their schedules aligned, and the carton of eggs had quietly remained untouched for two months.

Yan Xiu wanted to throw it away.

Yu Sui glanced at it, vaguely remembering the bag looked like the ones he’d bought last time he was here. It must have only been there for half a month, so it couldn’t be thrown away yet.

They chatted about the eggs’ history and inexplicably started arguing.

“It doesn’t take up any space,” Yu Sui said.

Yan Xiu’s lips twitched: “Take it to your nest and incubate it.”

And then they both got annoyed.

That day, Yan Xiu found the last usable eggs in the refrigerator, quickly fried some rice, and they started arguing about old grievances across the table while eating. After they finished arguing, they also finished eating. Yu Sui loudly cleared the dishes, but when he came out, Yan Xiu was already gone, without even saying goodbye.

Yu Sui threw away the carton of expired eggs, thinking coldly, “Whoever speaks first this time is a fool.”

He managed to hold back on the first day, but the second day was too busy, and the third day was also hesitant.

When someone’s busy, it’s rare to find both head and heart making the same decision at the same time.

Coursework was another matter. The music academy frequently arranged performances, requiring a large group of students to shoulder their instruments and head out.

And their teacher always wanted to include Yu Sui, calling him along for everything.

After a whole week of running around, Yu Sui realized that neither of them was willing to be the first to take the plunge.

There was absolutely no word from Yan Xiu.

Their cold wars usually didn’t last long. Whoever couldn’t take it anymore would reach out to the other side to call for help.

By this point, Yu Sui’s resentment was growing stronger, but he wasn’t in a hurry to go find Yan Xiu.

Yan Xiu wasn’t really a very reasonable person. He didn’t distinguish between right and wrong. He just appeased people based on his mood. If he was truly wrong, he would apologize. If not, he would come over and remind the other person to apologize.

When Yu Sui threw eggs and made up some nonsense, he didn’t think Yan Xiu would stay cold to him for long because of a box of eggs.

But now…

 

A week has passed.

A week has gone by in the blink of an eye.

Yu Sui didn’t believe a carton of eggs was worth a week.

He was always insightful. When he put his mind to something, he immediately grasped the key point from the smallest details.

While the two of them were settling accounts at the dining table, Yan Xiu blurted out a nonsensical remark: “Is your organization’s recruitment criteria based on whether someone has ulterior motives?”

Yu Sui, the president, had only participated in this one recruitment drive, and he was so angry he almost punched him.

Now, thinking about it, he remembered that the guy who put the roses in the trunk was also from the organization. But the key wasn’t that rose man; it was probably the vice president.

The vice president was theoretically his classmate, a connection through kinship. Yu Sui was more generous to him, and the vice president always reciprocated with small gifts, nothing expensive, usually pens, keycaps, tissue boxes—these odds and ends.

It was a collection of trivial, everyday, and convenient items—the kind of things Yu Sui wouldn’t refuse, things he might use later, little gadgets that could be found anywhere.

These things, though inconspicuous, reminded people of someone’s existence wherever they were placed.

Yu Sui and Yan Xiu were both too young; they’d only experienced one relationship in their lives and hadn’t learned anything from it.

One day, Yan Xiu suddenly felt uncomfortable hearing the comment about that toothpick holder that so-and-so had given him, and then it dawned on him.

Neither of them had ever seen this tactic before.

After dealing with that subtle annoyance on his own, Yan Xiu decided to be patient and let the young master see for himself, to make a deeper impression. He simply used this as an excuse to leave, to cut off all contact, not at all worried that Yu Sui could actually be seduced by some vice president.

He hadn’t overestimated Yu Sui.

Yu Sui had only just removed the vice president from his friend list these past two days.

The vice president was bisexual, lived for the moment, and truly had a vast ocean in his heart.

He’d been in the same class as Yu Sui for so long, and he never expected Yu Sui to actually have a boyfriend. He guessed it was about time, so when he sent a group “goodnight” message that night, he included Yu Sui.

Then he added: [Sent to the wrong person]

Yu Sui first sent a question mark, then blocked the vice president a second later.

He suddenly realized what was happening. Rubbing his skin, he wondered how to coax Yan Xiu when he got back.

But he didn’t expect Yan Xiu to find out even earlier than him.

While Yu Sui was thinking this, he suddenly received a call from Yu Zhen.

“Has class ended?” Yu Zhen’s voice sounded cold through the internet.

Yu Sui replied, “Soon.”

Yu Zhen paused, then spoke again, her voice as usual: “Okay, remember to come back during your vacation.”

“…” Yu Sui lowered his eyes, his fingers unconsciously clenching together before finally releasing them. He said, “Oh.”