On the second morning of the National Day holiday, before the sun had even risen, the school was already bustling.
Many students were preparing to leave early to catch their rides ho, and among them was Lin Zhengran.
After all, certain little troublemakers didn't like taking taxis—just like He Qing, they always preferred to take the first morning bus ho.
Maybe they shared the sa logic.
At around five in the morning, Lin Zhengran stepped out of the dormitory and made his way to the school gate.
He wasn't skipping his morning reading—his mind was preoccupied with sothing else.
Recently, he had been able to earn so cashback from those little troublemakers, but progress felt slow. He figured it was ti to be more proactive. He had grown enough now to start doing more.
Today, Han Wenwen and Jiang Xueli would be heading back to the town with him, while He Qing would be going to her hotown instead.
As he stood waiting at the gate, the dark morning sky still lingering, a soft and sweet voice called out from a distance:
"Lin Zhengran!"
Turning around, he saw He Qing running towards him, slightly out of breath.
"You're here this early? And alone? Where’s Wenwen?"
He Qing adjusted the small backpack on her shoulders and grinned, giggling at what could be interpreted as concern from him.
A girl in love just wants to show up early—because that ans seeing the person she likes sooner.
"My high-speed train is at six, so I had to get up early. Wenwen is still packing, but I ca down first to find you! I figured you’d be early, but I didn’t think this early."
Lin Zhengran raised an eyebrow. "You ca down early just to see ? What for?"
"No reason!" She shook her head.
Sotis, he just couldn't understand how her mind worked. "But why book a six o’clock train? You usually take the eight or nine o’clock one so you can sleep in."
Standing beside him, He Qing smiled.
"Oh, I just wanted to go ho earlier today. I still need to buy gifts for my mom and grandma. And…" She hesitated for a second before continuing, "I knew you guys would take the six o’clock bus, so I got a six o’clock train ticket. That way, I could see you a little longer this morning."
Lin Zhengran chuckled. "Is it really that necessary? Don’t we see each other every day?"
He Qing blinked and looked up at him. "Yeah, but just because we see each other every day doesn’t an I won’t miss you. And we won’t see each other for a whole week, so I wanted to see you before I left!"
Lin Zhengran reached out and flicked her forehead.
"Ow—" She pouted, rubbing the spot, though it didn’t actually hurt.
Glancing around, she noticed that Han Wenwen still hadn’t arrived. "Where’s Jiang Xueli?"
"Not here yet. You’re the first one here. They usually don’t show up until at least five-thirty."
Hearing this, He Qing’s ears turned red.
Maybe it was the chilly morning air—or maybe not.
"Oh… So it’s just the two of us."
She lifted her gaze toward him, her expression subtly hinting at sothing.
Lin Zhengran, curious, observed her. "What are you up to?"
She nervously fiddled with her fingers and glanced at his hands.
"Um… since they’re not here yet… are your hands cold? D-Do you want to warm them for you?"
Her voice was timid, almost hesitant.
Lin Zhengran raised an eyebrow. "Warm my hands? You look colder than I am."
He Qing quickly shook her head. "Cold? Nope! But girls' hands are usually colder than boys'."
She cupped her hands together and blew warm breath into them before offering, "Now they’re warm! Let warm your hands before the others get here! Wenwen will be here any second—hurry!"
Her urgency, along with her innocent eagerness, amused Lin Zhengran.
He extended his hand.
Seeing this, He Qing quickly took both of his hands in hers, cupping them gently and blowing warm air onto them.
She bead.
"There! Not cold anymore, right? The heat from my breath is 37 degrees Celsius, sa as body temperature! Wenwen told that guys find 37 degrees really warm!"
Thirty-seven degrees, huh?
Lin Zhengran, for so reason, felt like Han Wenwen probably didn’t an it like that.
That fox was far more mature than He Qing—who clearly only had a vague understanding of certain things.
anwhile, He Qing used the excuse of ‘warming his hands’ to inch a little closer to him.
—But what they didn’t know was that, not far away, soone else had woken up much earlier than usual.
Jiang Xueli was usually awakened by her alarm at five-thirty.
But this morning, she had woken up half an hour earlier—and after tossing and turning in bed, unable to sleep, she simply got up.
She had been preoccupied all week, so after a quick wash, she decided to head down early.
Maybe… soone else would show up early too.
However, just as she arrived near the school gate, she spotted Lin Zhengran standing there.
She had just been about to greet him when—
He Qing’s voice rang out.
For so reason, Jiang Xueli froze.
She hid behind so bushes, peeking through the leaves to observe them.
Though she was too far away to hear their conversation, she saw everything—
The way He Qing talked to him.
The way she moved closer.
And finally—
The mont Lin Zhengran held out his hand…
And He Qing took it in both of hers and breathed warm air into it.
Jiang Xueli’s eyes widened in shock, lips slightly parted.
W-What are they doing?
Are they… holding hands?!
Does this an He Qing was telling the truth before? Are they actually together?!
—And unbeknownst to both Jiang Xueli and He Qing, they weren’t the only ones watching.
Further back, Han Wenwen had also arrived.
She had rushed downstairs the mont He Qing left, knowing full well that the girl had gone straight to Lin Zhengran.
And, sure enough, she caught them in the act.
Seeing He Qing holding Lin Zhengran’s hands, Han Wenwen pursed her lips in jealousy.
However—
Before she could react, she heard a rustling sound nearby.
She turned her head and saw—
Jiang Xueli, crouched behind the bushes, secretly watching as well.
At that mont, an unspoken chain of events lined up—
Han Wenwen → Jiang Xueli → He Qing &
Lin Zhengran.
Like a perfectly arranged drama scene.
Luckily for Jiang Xueli and He Qing, He Qing was leaving soon.
And Han Wenwen had had enough.
Stepping forward, she broke the tension with a deliberately cheerful voice.
"Xiaoqing! Lin Zhengran! Why are you two in such a rush to leave the dorms so early? Especially you, Xiaoqing! You didn’t even wait for !"
At the sound of her voice, He Qing panicked, quickly releasing Lin Zhengran’s hands.
Her face turned bright red, and her hands and feet seed to not know where to go.
Jiang Xueli, hiding in the bushes, also flinched—instinctively shrinking back.
As if nothing had happened, Han Wenwen walked up, flashing a sweet yet sharp smile.
"Xiaoqing, shouldn’t you be heading to your train now? If you wait any longer, you’ll be late."
She spoke in a friendly tone.
But when she looked at Lin Zhengran—
She shot him a glare so sharp he could practically feel it.
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