Chapter One, A Bit of Infatuation (Five)
Fang Zhu's complaints had no outlet, and the only way to relieve her loneliness was to talk on the phone every other day with her friends from middle school, Yang Xiaoguang and Lin Nuannuan
However, during the year when Fang Zhu was attending university, problems arose between this well-known couple. Tian Xi's father was to be transferred to Beijing, while Uncle Mo faced demotion due to a financial incident.
The water room is located near the boys' dormitory area close to the old dormitory building, in a rather remote position. Tian Xi only took her there once, and she has a very poor sense of direction. Later, whenever she walked there by herself, she would always go the wrong way, and she could only find her way back to the dormitory by asking for directions.
Fang Zhu had little in common with the quiet Tian Xi since childhood, but when she saw Tian Xi walking alone with slumped shoulders along the playground, she couldn't help but walk over.
Fang Zhu felt completely deflated, fully aware that after four years of university, he could no longer hope to escape the heavy burden imposed by his father, and could only surrender.
Sister Tianxi may have followed Father Fang's instructions, taking good care of Fang Zhu, leading her to meet the teachers and professors, introducing her to join the journalism club, and showing her around the cafeteria, playground, gym, library, various department classrooms, the commercial street outside the university, and the street of bizarre cuisine.
Tian Xi simply smiled without speaking
Yet the young Li Xiao understood the ways of the world, running to her side to help brush off the dust from her denim skirt
Tian Xi said: "Xiao Zhu, I am quite useless; I do not even have the courage to pursue a romantic relationship to the end. You must not follow my example."
Sister Tianxi and another neighbor brother, Mo Bei, who grew up in the military compound, are childhood sweethearts, a fact well known throughout the entire military district. Fang Zhu's understanding of the ambiguous relationship between men and women mostly stems from scenes like Mo Bei holding Tianxi's hand as they stroll along the playground of the compound, facing the setting sun.
From the very first day of university, Fang Zhu had to wake up alone, buy breakfast, attend classes, study, and sleep. Her classmates, to varying degrees, speculated about her uniqueness due to her dormitory, and their gazes towards her carried a hint of peculiarity.
Childhood sweethearts instantaneously become Romeo and Juliet, in modern society, within such family conditions
Fang Zhu said to her, "Sister Tianxi, isn't it boring to live in such a dormitory? Why should we listen to them? On the surface, it seems to bring convenience, but in reality, it will bring us another form of discrimination"
In this four-person dormitory, only two people actually reside, while the other roommate happens to be Tian Xi, an older sister who grew up in the same military compound as Fang Zhu.
Fang Zhu, with a vigorous spirit, comforted: "Sister Tianxi, in the face of true love, there are no enemies. You must bravely move forward."
She will never forget the disheveled appearance she had when she first met him
Tian Xi is two years older than Fang Zhu, and at this time, she is already in her third year. Due to her internship, she often does not stay in the dormitory. The four-person dormitory has turned into a single dormitory for Fang Zhu, while all her classmates live in the old eight-person dormitory.
After He Zhixuan brought her luggage to the dormitory, he didn't even ask her for a "thank you" before disappearing without a trace, nor did he notice the peculiarities of her dormitory
That day, after accompanying Tian Xi for a walk and sending her back to the dormitory, it was already quite dark. Fang Zhu went straight to the cafeteria to have a meal, and then went to the water room to fetch water
That day, she wandered near the boys' dormitory area again, unsure of which direction to take.
She later came to understand that this is easier said than done
Later, Fang Zhu came to realize that Tian Xi was in a situation a hundred times more helpless than her own
The Tian family does not allow Tian Xi to have any further contact with Mo Bei, and the Mo family has also ordered their son to sever ties with Tian Xi