Chapter 4

Liu Xia chuckled ambiguously twice and nudged Qi Nian's arm: "So, how is it? Have you felt the threat of three thousand rivals in love?"

As soon as the words fell, Qi Nian immediately began to "recount the details": "Keep the accounts! The details of the accounts."

"No wonder," the old professor sighed, then asked, "After the conclusion, can we arrange a dinner to introduce me to some people?"

She quietly covered her face with her somewhat cool hand, and without needing to think, one could tell that it must be as red as a monkey's bottom.

One could wait until the lecture began, yet the not-so-large venue was filled to capacity, and there was no sign of Ji Yanxin.

Qi Nian felt a sense of unease as she hung up the phone, silently picking up the wallet that had fallen to the ground from Ji Yanxin's hand. Under his scrutinizing gaze, she felt stiff, unsure of where to place her hands and feet: "Ji... Ji Teacher"

Ji Yanxin did not ask further; he simply turned around and requested two baskets of soup dumplings from the boss

Even until her eyes became sore from staring, the bottle of water placed to his left remained there, unmoving

Qi Nian bit down on the pen tip, nodding slightly, his gaze lingering on the podium, reluctant to look away: "Not just three thousand..."

After hesitating several times, a voice came from behind: "Your soup dumplings are ready"

Qi Nian was recording the number of people while keeping an eye out for whether Ji Yanxin had arrived

The boss laughed loudly and said, "Then you should hurry back, otherwise Qibao will be anxious waiting."

Liu Xia watched her walk back and teasingly raised an eyebrow: "It's just handing over a glass of water, why are you blushing?"

Liu Xia immediately recalled the term she had previously used to describe herself - a prodigal son.

Compared to somewhat sweet mineral water, Ji Yanjin prefers drinking tea. The aroma of the tea, whether sweet or bitter, is most refreshing as it goes down the throat

Liu Xia had a puzzled expression: "What did you drink?"

Since Qi Nian heard the name "Qibao" just now, she has been eager to strike up a conversation with Ji Yanxin, but he always presents an aloof demeanor that makes it necessary for her to muster a great deal of courage just to speak up

"It is inconvenient on rainy days," Ji Yanxin said as he took it over, slightly pressing his lips together. "So I came to pack it up and take it back."

Teacher Ji drank the water I handed over to him

The old professor sat back with a smile.

Liu Xia was startled by her: "What are you doing..."

Early in the morning, Qi Nian hurried to catch the school bus to the School of Biochemistry

Just as I was about to laugh at her troubled expression, I managed to hold it in and comforted her, saying: "Our Teacher Ji has never been gentle with girls, so don't take it too much to heart."

Liu Xia could not help but murmur: "Actually, I would prefer to hear Teacher Ji host, but I knew from the very beginning of the lecture series that he was only responsible for..." After a pause, she lowered her voice to provide some information: "Teacher Ji has had a lot of classes recently, and his voice is not in very good condition."

Qi Nian was holding several bottles of water in his arms and was distributing them one by one

Qi Nian dejectedly withdrew his gaze, staring blankly at the soup dumpling in his hand

What is it that you wrote? he asked

All of Qi Nian's courage was instantly shattered. She turned around to take the soup dumpling, and when she hurriedly looked back, Ji Yanxin's figure had already disappeared at the door

Qi Nian cast a resentful glance at her, still wanting to say something, when suddenly he heard the surrounding voices filled with surprise yet restrained.

Qi Nian shook his head: "It's nothing."

"Little Ji." The old professor beside Ji Yanxin leaned over and asked, "Where did this lecturer come from?"

After taking just a sip, he replaced the lid and put it back in its original place

Rigorous... What rigor!

Liu Xia shook her head, thought for a moment, and then pulled her: "Here, the water hasn't been delivered yet. Please help Brother Yue by delivering a bottle to the lecturer and the host."

After walking for a while, I realized that my entire face felt a bit hot

Liu Xia made a sound of acknowledgment and swallowed a bite of shao mai: "Teacher Ji is not only rigorous in his teaching work, but also in his daily life. He asked me and Li Yue to come early, so he surely won't be late either, you..."

Qi Nian nodded slightly and sighed: "I always feel that... Teacher Ji does not have a very good impression of me"

It was more as if he had not heard the sudden exclamations that surged forth upon his arrival, as not even a glance was directed his way, quietly gazing at the manuscript on his desk

When Qi Nian handed the mineral water to Ji Yanxin, the latter merely responded with a "hm" and slightly raised her chin to indicate that she could just place the water on the podium

He did not know when he walked in, sitting down in a corner of the podium, in a position that was not particularly noticeable. Dressed in a subdued white shirt, he stood out more than anyone else present on the stage

She looked up

Liu Xia is currently preparing the forms and does not have time to first settle the phone bill with Qi Nian. She hands the pen to her and says, "Please help me count the number of people later, I will go assist Brother Yue."

He cast his gaze down, indifferent to the matter, and continued to read the manuscript.

Qi Nian stood by the window waiting for the soup dumplings still in the steamer, watching the boss deftly hand him the xiaolongbao: "Why hasn't Qibao come yet"

When Qi Nian arrived at the venue, Li Yue and Liu Xia had already arrived first

The conversation had not yet concluded when the call was abruptly disconnected

Ji Yanxin noticed someone moving on the podium and turned his head to take a glance.

Liu Xia came over to bring water to Qi Nian. Seeing her distracted demeanor, she lightly nudged her arm and said, "Is it just because my information was incorrect that you are so downcast?"

The only thing she cared about was when he would drink water—um, the water she handed to him

Qi Nian followed his gaze and immediately fumbled to stuff the memo into his pocket

"Come, you thin one." Liu Xia turned around, pulled up a chair, and sat down: "Come, come, come, sit and listen for a while."

Qi Nian glared at her: "I have thin skin!"

She murmured to herself, her pen poking and prodding as it made dots on the form

The voice of the lecturer seemed to be distant at this moment, as she lowered her head and placed the water bottle on his left side. As she leaned over, her sleeve inevitably brushed against the fingers he had resting on the armrest.

He exclaimed, feeling so moved that he was on the verge of tears.

Hmm. Ji Yanxin squinted slightly, shifting his gaze from her somewhat flustered face to the small memo book in her hand

Liu Xia: "... ..." Crazy!

The writing is not large; in one line of text, he could only see his own name

When Ji Yanxin did not respond, as he picked up the umbrella to leave, it seemed that he only then remembered her presence. He cast a faint glance at her, nodded slightly, and turned to leave without saying a word

Qi Nian took the bottle of mineral water she handed over, opened the cap, and took a sip. Before he had swallowed the water, he mumbled, "I ran into Teacher Ji this morning"

Far away, more than ten steps away, Qi Nian's elbow slipped on the table, causing her chin to hit heavily against the hard desk, making her grimace in pain, tears welling up in her eyes

As she approached him... and especially in front of the "three thousand rivals in love," Qi Nian inexplicably felt her ears burning

Qi Nian's eyes suddenly brightened as he looked at Liu Xia, and his face was almost bursting with the words "divine assist"

Ji Yanxin also straightened his body, casually picked up the bottle of water on the table, opened the cap, and took a sip

Ji Yanxin pondered for a moment and then nodded in agreement: "What problem could there be."

Without speaking, there are no expressions, and even the movements are minimal

"He is not a professional lecturer." Ji Yanxin glanced sideways at the speaker's seat: "He is my university alumnus"

Liu Xia glared at her phone, furious: "How dare you hang up on me!"

Outside the glass door, there is a shadowy figure, tall and slender, facing away from the classroom while quietly conversing with someone at the entrance, politely bending down to accommodate the other person's height

Qi Nian was unexpectedly entrusted with an important responsibility, and before he could even offer a slight resistance, people had already begun to enter the venue one after another

Qi Nian sat down beside her, but ultimately, what was being said... she didn't pay any attention at all

Soon, those in the venue who were not there for the wine noticed his arrival

Qi Nian was buying breakfast, finishing up the key points in his memo while taking out his wallet to pay: "So, will Teacher Ji be at the venue today"

The originally quiet atmosphere in the venue became lively and warm, silently, after his arrival

Ji Yanxin retracted his hand and turned the manuscript to the second page. His hand then held onto the manuscript without letting go.

This old professor from the Institute of Biochemistry has always loved to befriend talented individuals; throughout most of his life, his temperament has remained unchanged

The deliberately lowered whispers could not conceal the excitement and agitation. The entire quiet venue was once again filled with the chaotic stir that had emerged at the beginning of the lecture. By the end, even the lecturer could not help but turn their head to look outside

Liu Xia then remembered the incident of the call being disconnected and shot her a glance: "So you hung up on me?"

What surprised Qi Nian was that this time the main speaker was not Ji Yanxin, but rather one of his friends