You didn’t accept my confession, why are you crying because I changed my mind? Chapter 101

Chapter 101: One Love Letter, Two People from the Past

Once the decision was made to go on a business trip, the first step, of course, was to sort out a leave request.

That afternoon, since Jiang Zhou wasn’t busy, he took a stroll to the school’s administrative office.

It was always a hassle to apply for leave through his academic advisor, and approval wasn’t guaranteed.

So he decided to go directly through the admin office instead.

After all, Director Yan Weimin had already promised his full support.

But the mont Jiang Zhou walked in, the previously relaxed Yan Weimin, who had been sipping tea and humming tunes, imdiately tensed up.

“Jiang… Jiang Zhou, you brat, why are you here again? I’ve got nothing left to give you!”

Jiang Zhou looked helpless and set two bottles of liquor on the table. “I’m just here to deliver a little gift to my dear Director Yan.”

Yan Weimin stared at the bottles, swallowing nervously.

Honestly, he didn’t dare accept them.

Even when this kid didn’t bring gifts, he’d already managed to stress the principal into developing hypertension.

Now that he was bringing gifts, what kind of disaster was about to follow?

“Forget the booze. Just tell what you want!”

Jiang Zhou cleared his throat. “The Fashion Institute, the Normal College, and even Qingbei are already promoting Ganfanren.”

Yan Weimin’s eyes lit up. “That’s great! When it cos ti for the venture capital event, we’ll have more leverage.”

“Exactly, Director. I ca to report the good news.”

“That’s it? No requests for resources or support?”

“Well… not quite. I do have one small request.”

Yan Weimin’s heart skipped a beat. “Wait, seriously, I’ve got nothing left for you!”

“I’m just here to ask for a leave slip. I’m going to University of Technology.”

“Technology? To promote Ganfanren?”

“Yeah. Their office director insisted I co in person. Said staff mbers wouldn’t do. Gotta say, they’ve got quite the ego.”

Yan Weimin chuckled bitterly. “Figures. That woman found out you’re my student. Of course she’s going to make it hard for you.”

He gave a smile he clearly thought was suave — nostalgic, unyielding, bittersweet.

There were traces of tenderness, a hint of coldness, and a touch of aloofness.

Honestly, he looked like so parody of a brooding drama villain.

Wait, that woman?

Jiang Zhou was stunned.

So the director at University of Technology was a woman?

And from Yan Weimin’s tone… there is clearly a spicy backstory here.

“I didn’t know Director Chen was a woman. Why would she deliberately give a hard ti?”

Yan Weimin sighed. “Got a smoke?”

Jiang Zhou quickly handed him one. “I didn’t bring a lighter though. I didn’t know you smoked.”

Yan Weimin stuck the unlit cigarette in his mouth with mock elegance. “Back in college, I had two close female friends.”

Jiang Zhou nodded. “I’ve had a few myself.”

“Shut up and let finish.”

“Alright, go ahead.”

“They both liked , but I only chose one. The other? She’s hated ever since.”

Jiang Zhou raised a brow. “Let guess, that other one is Director Chen?”

Yan Weimin nodded solemnly. “So she’s bound to make things difficult for you. Consider it revenge. But whatever you do, don’t talk back to her.”

“I get it. n are always soft when it cos to old flas.”

“Bullshit! It was all pure and innocent. I just… feel I owe her sothing.”

Jiang Zhou clearly didn’t buy it.

If this old guy hadn’t pulled so kind of dirty trick back in the day, why would he feel guilty now?

Forget all that “love turned to hate” nonsense.

No one holds a grudge for decades unless sothing really went down.

Still, Yan Weimin didn’t seem eager to share the details.

He quickly scribbled up a few leave slips.

“Alright, your leave’s approved. Do a favor and pass along a ssage for .”

“Thanks, Director. What ssage?”

Yan Weimin pulled out a piece of paper and wrote on it for half a minute.

Then he carefully folded it and sealed it in an envelope.

“Don’t you dare peek at this!”

Jiang Zhou accepted it solemnly. “Mission accepted!”

“If you open it, we’re done!”

“If I peek, I’m a damn grandson!”

Satisfied, Yan Weimin nodded. “Good. Now leave be. I need to reminisce about the past.”

“Yes, sir.” Jiang Zhou closed the door and walked out of the building.

He looked at the letter in his hand and felt the weight of responsibility.

This was more than just a ssage.

It was a symbol of the Director’s trust.

A glimpse into an aging man’s yearning for the past.

A love letter between two people from long ago…

Wasn’t this what people ant by “a goose feather sent from a thousand miles away — a light gift, but deep sentint”?

But after a mont of hesitation, Jiang Zhou tore open the envelope and read it.

A’Fang,

Life’s been pretty good these past years.

Huixin’s been kind to . How about you?

I always thought we’d et again soday, but now old age has crept up on us.

Do you still resent ?

Back then we were young and foolish. Surely, you’ve let it go by now.

So things aren’t worth holding onto forever.

I hope we can still be friends.

Maybe even drink tea and chat soti.

Thinking of you,

—Xiao Min

“…That’s it?!

“That’s the whole letter?!

“Damn it, what the hell is this?!

“This guy managed to get two won to fall for him with emotional intelligence like this?”

Jiang Zhou was full of disdain.

Huixin was probably the Director’s wife, his “lady boss.”

And this? This wasn’t a love letter. It was a passive-aggressive jab.

Bringing up Huixin in a letter to his old fla?

Was he trying to nd things, or reopen wounds?

No way was Jiang Zhou delivering this.

If he handed it over, Director Chen would probably slap him in the face with it.

This couldn’t be sent. No way.

So Jiang Zhou headed back to Ganfanren headquarters, opened a drawer in the office desk, and tucked away the original letter.

Then, he pulled out new stationery and rewrote it himself.

Dear Fang,

You are the dream that both delights and haunts .

The one I long for in the quietest monts.

It’s been so long… are you well?

Lately, I’ve been overco with the urge to seek you out, no matter the cost.

This yearning makes feel young again.

But I, who once hurt you, no longer have the courage I once did.

So now, I ask myself a question every day: Last night, a southern breeze brushed past .

Could it have also touched you?

If so, if I breathe in the wind that’s kissed your cheek, can it be as if we’ve embraced once more?

Awaiting your reply,

With love,

—Min

Jiang Zhou marveled at his own brilliance as he admired the new letter.

Now that was a heartfelt love letter!

With this in hand, Director Chen was bound to be moved and maybe, by extension, take a liking to Jiang Zhou too.

If that happened, getting University of Technology to support Ganfanren would be a breeze.

“If I breathe in the wind that kissed you, can it be as if we embraced?”

What a line.

Even he, a modern soul who had traveled through ti, felt chills reading it.

Back in the day, that line had made waves in a hit song.

So many young lovers had cried over it.

And Director Chen?

She might cry too.

“Boss, who are you writing that love letter to?” Just then, Su Nan suddenly leaned over, her face full of curiosity.

Her eyes quickly scanned the letter, and her mouth opened slightly in surprise.

“You nosy little girl, don’t be so gossipy.” Jiang Zhou dodged her and stuffed the letter into his pocket.

Su Nan looked at him with disdain. “Tch, there you go again, flirting everywhere. And now you’re using lines like ‘I breathed the breeze you breathed’.”

“You saw that?”

Su Nan nodded. “Gotta admit, boss, you’ve got so real writing talent.”

Jiang Zhou nodded with satisfaction. “You think the recipient will be touched?”

“If it were , I’d be touched.”

“Good. Then that old lady in her fifties better be moved too!”

Su Nan was shocked. “Fifties? Boss, are you that desperate?!”

Jiang Zhou’s forehead twitched. “Hell no. I wrote it for soone else.”

“Uh-huh. Classic guilty defense.”

“Enough, get back to work. You’re coming on the business trip tomorrow.”

“Huh? Why do I have to go? You didn’t even tell ahead of ti!”

Jiang Zhou rolled his eyes and walked out the door.

When the boss says you’re going, you’re going.

Since when does a low-level employee get a say?

—

That night, when Jiang Zhou returned to the dorm, he heard a commotion before even stepping through the door.

Inside, his three idiot roommates were all dressed to the nines, posing dramatically in front of the floor mirror.

Accompanied, of course, by mutual flattery.

“What are you guys doing? A beauty pageant?”

Xu Haodong pulled his trench coat tighter. “Just bought this. Cool, right?”

Jiang Zhou dragged a chair over and sat down. “Too big. You look like a starving refugee.”

“You don’t get it. The weather’s been unpredictable lately. A big coat is practical.”

“Practical for what?”

“Aren’t we heading to that hot spring town? If it rains, I can use the coat as an umbrella and share it with a girl. Instant closeness!”

Jiang Zhou laughed. “Why not just bring an actual umbrella?”

“Because that’s boring! This is called romance. You wouldn’t understand!”

Sure. Romance.

As if the girl wouldn’t bring her own umbrella.

And who would willingly squeeze under a trench coat that reeks of cumin from your armpits?

Then Jiang Zhou looked at what Zhang Guangfa was wearing. “So he’s turning his coat into an umbrella. And you, why the rain boots?”

Zhang Guangfa grinned proudly. “I checked the route. There’s a stretch of muddy road from the highway to the hot spring town.”

“Okay… and?”

“If it rains and the road floods, I’ll be the only one with rain boots. The girls won’t be able to walk, so I’ll carry them on my back. Instant body contact!”

Jiang Zhou chuckled. “Haodong’s trying to get close. You’re straight-up going for physical contact. Not bad.”

“Obviously! I’m way ahead of that craftsman over there.”

“But what if it doesn’t rain?”

“We already checked the weather forecast. It’s supposed to rain. A lot.”

“Pfft. Weather forecasts these days are wrong nine tis out of ten. You actually believe them?”

“Well, we have a backup plan!”

Jiang Zhou sneered, “Backup plan? What, you gonna pray to the Dragon King?”

Xu Haodong looked excited, like he’d found a kindred spirit. He pulled out his phone. His wallpaper had already been changed to the Dragon King.

Jiang Zhou gave him a thumbs-up. These two really were on another level.

“What about you, Wenkai? Did you buy anything?”

Gao Wenkai looked frustrated. “My senior still hasn’t paid back, so… I don’t have money.”

Jiang Zhou suddenly rembered, pulled out his wallet, and said, “The IOU has my na on it anyway. I’ll give you the money.”

“Is that okay…?”

“Cut the crap. Your eyes are sparkling.”

Jiang Zhou handed him a wad of cash.

Gao Wenkai took the money and imdiately bolted out the door.

“It’s late. Where are you going?”

“To buy a trench coat and rain boots! I’ll have both, let’s see if those two jokers can beat !”

As soon as he finished, Xu Haodong and Zhang Guangfa spun around.

“You bastard! Stealing our ideas?! Get back here!”

But Gao Wenkai didn’t care. He flew out the door.

Now, both guys turned to Jiang Zhou. “You’re not bringing anything? Don’t co crying to us when you get left out.”

Jiang Zhou lit a cigarette. “If it really rains and the road floods…”

“No if, it will rain. So what’s your plan?”

“I’ve got a car.”

“….”

The two of them deflated instantly and climbed back into bed.

He had a car.

Forget muddy roads or romantic trench coats.

If it rained, all the girls would flock to his car.

Suddenly, their “romantic tools” felt… a lot less useful.

At that mont, Jiang Zhou pulled out his phone and called Guo Wei.

The dial tone rang several tis before Guo Wei finally answered.

“Hey, Jiang Zhou? What’s up? Didn’t expect a call from you.”

Jiang Zhou flicked his cigarette ash. “Heading to University of Technology tomorrow. Thought I’d stop by and see you.”

Guo Wei sounded thrilled. “Great! I’ll treat you to Sha County!”

Jiang Zhou snorted. “Sha County? You need to treat for that?”

“Well, what do you want? Seafood banquet?”

“Now you’re talking. Let’s go seafood.”

Guo Wei cried out in pain. “Is the campus beauty coming too?”

Jiang Zhou smacked his lips. “I’m going to University of Technology for business. What’s she tagging along for?”

“Then forget seafood. Let’s stick with Sha County.”

“…Huh?”

“If the campus beauty’s not coming, seafood isn’t worth it.”

Jiang Zhou cursed and hung up the phone.

So much for brotherhood. In the end, even a pretty face outweighed a lifelong friend.

He just couldn’t understand how Chu Yuwei had so much charm.

In a world that only cared about appearances, nothing made sense anymore.

Ding ding ding!

Right then, a QQ notification popped up.

The icon in the ssage bar was Chu Yuwei’s profile pic.

“Jiang Zhou, are you going to University of Technology?”

“When? I want to go too~”

Damn it!

Guo Wei and that big mouth!

He’d barely hung up for a minute, and Chu Yuwei already knew.

He had been planning to spend the night watching dance videos with Su Nan!

With her tagging along, how was he supposed to focus?

Jiang Zhou quickly typed. “No. You don’t want to go.”

Chu Yuwei sent a sad emoji.

“But Liang Fei’s at University of Technology too. We promised to grab lunch.”

“Who’s Liang Fei again? Don’t rember.”

“Our old class art rep, she’s amazing at dancing.”

Good at dancing, huh?

Maybe she could spar with Su Nan in a little dance-off.

Maybe… a dance showdown at the hotel?

Not a bad idea.

Jiang Zhou thought about it. “I’ll be there for two days. You sure you can co along?”

Chu Yuwei seed surprised. “Huh? That ans we’ll have to stay in a hotel…”

“Yeah. What, you planning to sleep on the streets?”

“Are we staying… together? My parents would freak out if they found out…”

“Do you have to tell them everything?”

“No, it’s just… my mom calls every night…”

“Fine. Don’t co. I’d enjoy the peace and quiet.”

“No no no, I’m coming, okay?!”