At ten o'clock in the morning, Tan Yin was still half asleep, but when she glanced at the alarm clock, she woke up completely. She jumped up in a hurry, washed up, grabbed a coat, yawned, took her comic manuscript and Jiang Yilu's thermos cup, and went downstairs with sleepy eyes.
When she got to the dormitory building, she found that it was drizzling outside. Tan Yin forgot to bring an umbrella, but when she saw the time, she didn't bother to go upstairs to get one. Her left leg was still in a cast, and she limped towards the Zhixing Building.
Zhixing Building was built with donations from alumni who graduated from the Department of Architecture of University A. Therefore, it is used as a teaching building for the Department of Architecture. Because it has many classrooms, it is also used by the School of Law and the School of Arts.
Tan Yin walked fifteen minutes from the dormitory building to Zhixing Building, passing a road lined with sycamore trees on both sides. Originally, this road was unremarkable except for these two rows of trees, but now, on the trees along the way, which stretched for dozens of meters, there were banners hanging on both sides without interruption. The festive red color was very eye-catching, and the same content on the banners was like mental pollution.
“Warm congratulations to Tan Yin, a student of the 2017 Architecture Department, for winning the 53rd place in the department in the final exam!”
…
There were 20 banners, all with the same sentence written on them.
As the protagonist on the banner, Tan Yin walked in the middle of the bright red banner in the drizzle, but her expression was as upright as that of a revolutionary.
However, several students walking on the road were not calm.
"Look over there."
"Um?"
"Tan Yin."
"The Tan Yin on the banner? Is she the one who was chasing Chu Hang? The one who made Chu Hang so annoyed that he applied to go abroad for exchange to avoid her?"
"Yeah, that's her."
…
Tan Yin ignored the whispers and walked to the bottom of Zhixing Building with a righteous look on her face. There was also a banner hanging at the entrance of Zhixing Building, but the font and specifications were larger than the one hanging on the sycamore tree just now. The difference was that her photo was added...
Tan Yin looked up at the huge banner, and finally couldn't maintain her calm appearance. She looked at the drizzle outside, with a thousand words to say, but at this moment, there was only one sentence left in her heart:
I live such a sad life, I play Chopin in the rain.
“Ahahahahahahahahahahaha.”
As a result, such a beautiful and sentimental atmosphere was suddenly destroyed by Jiang Yilu's devilish laughter.
Jiang Yilu waved at Tan Yin in the lobby of Zhixing Building. She smiled and gloated, pointing at the banner outside: "To be honest, although this thing has been hanging for a month and it really doesn't look good, but with your photo, every time I see it, it makes me feel perfect and domineering! Tan Yin, who would have thought that someone like you would be my friend!"
Tan Yin stuffed the thermos cup to Jiang Yilu and said unhappily, "Take it, you woman who needs the same thermos cup as middle-aged and elderly people. A tough guy like me doesn't have a friend like you."
"So how long is this thing going to be hanging around for?"
Tan Yin rolled her eyes. "My dad wouldn't let me take it off. He said I had to keep it hanging for another month. I have to feel the burning shame all the time."
"What will happen if you pick it?"
"Cut off my living expenses for another six months."
Jiang Yilu showed no sympathy: "I advised you not to lie to your father in the first place."
"How did I lie to him?" Tan Yin complained, "What I said was true. I did rank 53rd in the architecture department. How could I have known that he would be so excited that he would send me a banner to celebrate."
"Because you didn't tell him that there are only 54 people in our 2017 Architecture Department!" Jiang Yilu took a sip of the wolfberry and red date tea in the thermos cup, "and last semester, Chu Hang was away for the final exam because he was studying abroad, so there were only 53 people taking the exam!"
"… "
Facts speak louder than words, Tan Yin was speechless. She didn't like architecture, and her grades had never been good since she entered university. This time, in order to cheat her father of more money to buy the new Cintiq digital display, she could only lie that she had achieved a "good grade" of 53rd in the department. Little did she know that her father was so excited that he directly customized such a banner for her. As a result, she became "famous" not only in the Department of Architecture but also in the whole school; the Dean of the Department of Architecture believed that she was so arrogant even though she ranked last in the exam, and became the focus of attention; after the truth was revealed, her father directly stopped her living expenses for half a year in retaliation, and threatened to hang the banner for another month as a punishment...
Jiang Yilu glanced at what Tan Yin was holding: "Are you really going to sell the manuscript? Are you willing to do so?"
Tan Yin said dejectedly, "What can I do if I don't want to? I used the living expenses my father gave me to buy peripherals and figurines, and my money has been suspended for half a year. Now I am out of money and can't survive without selling the manuscript."
"How much do you plan to sell this manuscript for?"
"Didn't I set up an auction on the trading page of our school forum?" Tan Yin said with shining eyes, "I originally thought that it would be good if I could sell it for one or two thousand, but someone suddenly joined the auction yesterday, looking determined to win, and drove the price up to five thousand!" She said proudly, "I didn't expect that my book "Under Ten Thousand People: The Temptation of the School Prince" would be so popular and have so many die-hard fans. I originally wanted to finish serializing this book, but now it seems that I should start a second part, no, no, let's make a trilogy..."
Tan Yin wanted to continue showing off, but was interrupted by Jiang Yilu: "You should keep a low profile recently." She lowered her voice and looked around, "The latest news, Chu Hang seems to be back. You should be careful recently. After all, the thing you serialized..."
Tan Yin was stunned for a moment, then smiled and said, "Don't worry, he will go east and I will go west in the future. Besides, it's a serial on the Internet, who knows that I'm the one hiding behind this ID." Tan Yin glanced at his watch and said, "I won't talk to you anymore. I have an appointment with the fan who took the photo of this manuscript to meet at the coffee shop outside Zhixing Building. It's almost time."
*****
"Have you checked the campus forum? I just saw someone say that he met Chu Hang. Has he returned to school?"
"Yes, he is back. I just caught a glimpse of him at the entrance of the coffee shop. But I don't know if Tan Yin will let him go this time. Wasn't he forced to flee the country by Tan Yin?"
"Yes, it is said that Tan Yin used all means to pursue him, following him every day, causing Chu Hang to suffer from nervous breakdown..."
The coffee shop had set up separate rooms to cater to the needs of students, but the partitions were crude and the voices of the girls in the next room were so loud that Chu Hang and Xu Yu could hear every word of the conversation.
Xu Yu looked gloating: "So you were forced to flee overseas?"
"Fake."
Chu Hang took a sip of coffee, his expression was cold and his tone was indifferent, but this indifference made his overly noble appearance more luxurious and intensified the sense of distance around him. His grandfather was one-quarter French, so his skin color was white, more like European and American, and his eyes were also light in color, almost as transparent as glass in the sun. He was beautiful, but a little cold.
"That Tan Yin never pursued you? Is this a rumor?"
"I did." Chu Hang was almost as frugal with words as a superior. After a long pause, he finally uttered a few more words, "She wrote me a love letter for half a year, but I ignored her. When she saw that she couldn't catch up with me, she left and didn't bother me."
"Wait..." Xu Yu thought for a moment, "Tan Yin? Is she the one on the banner just now? The one who won the 53rd place in the Department of Architecture?"
"Yes, but there are only 53 people taking the exam."
Xu Yu couldn't help but laugh: "It's a bit too good."
"… "
Before Chu Hang could say anything, the chattering sounds of the two girls in the next box came again.
"By the way, the author of "Under Ten Thousand People: The Temptation of the School Prince" said that he will release a second part."
"real?!"
"Really! The second part is tentatively titled "Forbidden Play: The Secret of the Campus Prince". By the way, did you watch the update last night?"
"I've watched it! Wasn't last night's episode too sweet?"
"Yeah, it's super sweet, I love it!"
"Yeah, especially when I put Chu Hang and the Dean of the Department of Architecture into the shoes of the prototypes of this comic, I actually think it's quite interesting?"
"That's right, isn't Chu Hang the favorite student of the dean of the Department of Architecture? They look like a perfect match? I might be poisoned!"
"In fact, there is no direct confession in the lines and plot, and it looks like a completely normal school comic. But for some reason, the atmosphere of this picture feels so ambiguous! It's completely pink and bubbly!"
"This artist is a real treasure. Although he didn't say anything explicitly, all the couples tasted great together!"
…
Xu Yu looked at the person being discussed with sympathy: "Think positively..."
Chu Hang didn't say anything, his expression was gloomy, his snow-white fingers tightly clenched the printed comic post in his hand. On those pages were the scenes described by the girl in the next box. He stared at the male protagonist in the picture who was flirting with the head of the Department of Architecture, and he wished he could burn the two words "Lin Kang" in the character's name column to ashes on the spot with his eyes.
This comic "Under Ten Thousand People: The Temptation of the School Prince" is a comic serialized in the campus forum of University A. The male protagonist is called Lin Kang, which is exactly half of the two characters in Chu Hang's name. If the similar name can be said to be an accident, then the same setting of being a student of architecture, even liking to wear black coats, liking espresso, having a grandfather with a quarter foreign blood, and even a mole on the left collarbone, these cannot be explained by accidents.
Xu Yu was quite entertaining: "By the way, I've finished reading that comic post. Actually, the drawing skills are quite good. You are quite charming in it. There are all kinds of lickers, all of whom bow down to your suit pants. Let me take stock. In addition to the unique Dean of the Department of Architecture who obviously has a special liking for you in the latest episode, there is also the captain of the school basketball team, the male professor of the Department of Literature, the president of the Student Union, both seniors and juniors, and it even directly led to the two male debaters of the debate team fighting for you and bleeding... Although if I have to say, there is nothing wrong with the plot, but it always feels weird. In short, it is really a socialist brotherhood."
As Xu Yu spoke, he flipped through the pile of printed papers: "You know what, this artist's painting is quite delicate. Look at these details, the expression of Green Tea, the lines of White Lotus, it's obvious that he did a lot of research and drew them with reason and evidence. He is a textual researcher..."
Chu Hang was naturally not pleased with the painter's research. His handsome face only became darker and darker.
“It’s just unbearable to watch.”
He took another look at the eye-catching cartoon. His good upbringing made him hold back on his swear words even in this situation. In the end, he only uttered these few words through gritted teeth.
*****
Following the buyer's information, Tan Yin limped into the coffee shop and found the door to box 108.
She pushed open the door, and the boy in the box turned around and looked at her. Although it was a coffee shop, the design of this box was very Chinese. Behind the dining table, there was even a screen with a picture of a Tang Dynasty lady.
The boy standing in front of the screen actually looks quite good, with clear eyes and a slender figure. Apart from his looks, the most important thing is that he has a unique temperament, which is elegant and gentle yet also a bit lively and cunning. If one has to describe it, it would be that he has the air of a gentleman, but also a bit lazy and playful.
When he saw Tan Yin, he was also a little surprised. He looked her up and down and asked uncertainly, "Are you... 'Wild Teddy'?"
Tan Yin nodded: "It's me, are you 'Long-legged Corgi'?"
The two people compared their network IDs like an underground gang meeting and confirmed the identities of the buyer and the seller.
The other person looked at Tan Yin again and said, "Your painting is pretty wild."
Tan Yin also said politely: "Your legs are indeed very long."
…
However, Tan Yin had planned everything, but she didn't expect the buyer to be a man. She glanced at him with a meaningful look in her eyes: "You are a boy reading this kind of comics..." She thought of something as she spoke, "But you look so familiar to me, as if I have seen you somewhere..."
Xu Yu stared at Tan Yin and felt the same way: "I also feel like I've seen you..." He said as he stretched out his hand towards Tan Yin, "So did you bring the comic manuscript? Are you sure it was drawn by you?"
"Of course I painted it." Tan Yin said proudly, "If I wasn't short of money, I wouldn't sell it!"
She took out the manuscript and was about to give it to the other party. At this moment, a flash of light suddenly flashed in Tan Yin's mind and she finally remembered who this person was.
"I remember now, your name is Xu, Xu or something?" She suddenly realized, "Aren't you Chu Hang's friend? Xu Yu, right? The one from the law school?"
Thinking of this, Tan Yin looked at the other person with a different look. She said meaningfully, "I didn't expect it. Chu Hang treated you as a friend, but you actually wanted to do that to him... No wonder you followed Chu Hang to go abroad for exchange. It turns out that you actually had such an unreasonable thought about him..."
Xu Yu was stunned for a moment, then explained: "I'm not, I didn't, don't talk nonsense..."
Tan Yin didn't listen to his three denials at all. She just patted Xu Yu's shoulder with an "I understand you" look on her face and said, "It's okay, young man. I understand. Since you like this comic so much and spent five thousand to buy my manuscript, I'll give you a favor. In the second part, I'll create a character based on you? Let you and Lin Kang have a socialist brotherhood?"
"… "
What Tan Yin didn't expect was that as soon as she took out the manuscript, the other party grabbed her hand. Just when Tan Yin wanted to say "payment and goods", the other party squinted his eyes and smiled.
For a moment, Tan Yin had a bad feeling.
The other party held Tan Yin's hand tightly, and in this position, he turned his head and said behind the screen, "Alright, Chu Hang, we have caught you red-handed, you can come out now."
"… "
At this moment, there was only one sentence in Tan Yin's mind -
It’s so exciting, I feel like I have reached the peak of my life!