CHAPTER 295: CHAPTER 290: PHOENIX MAN

Ever since Ye Qiu expressed his feelings to Zhang Meng, she stopped being so cautious around him and would occasionally act coy or get a little temperamental, all with Ye Qiu’s tacit indulgence.

"Ye Qiu, are you going to eat this?" Zhang Meng held a chopstickful of stir-fried beef up to his mouth, pouting and staring at him with her round, doe-like eyes.

Ye Qiu, with no other choice, opened his mouth and ate the beef obediently: "Mengmeng, you’ve been getting heaty recently, why are you still having beef?"

"Mind your own business, can’t I just like the cilantro in it?" Zhang Meng retorted as she pushed the rest of the beef onto Ye Qiu’s plate.

"Is this for me? You’re worried that I’m not eating well, huh?" Ye Qiu raised his eyebrows at her and affectionately ruffled her hair.

Zhang Meng’s face turned a shade redder, and she protested: "Oh, it’s all your fault, messing up my hair like that."

"Yesterday, Professor Wang referred me to a part-time job, translating some foreign medical papers. The pay isn’t bad, so you don’t have to worry about me."

"Who’s worried about you," Zhang Meng muttered under her breath, "If you don’t eat, I will." She attempted to take the beef back.

"Who said I’m not eating? Why wouldn’t I eat the beef specially cooked by my girlfriend?" Ye Qiu quickly grabbed another chopstickful of beef and ate it, "Look at you, you’ve got pimples around your mouth and you’re still eating."

Upon hearing that, Zhang Meng put down her chopsticks and pouted, "Oh really, Ye Qiu. Are you saying you’re sick of me now?"

"I wouldn’t dare," Ye Qiu quickly raised his hands in surrender, placing a bowl of goji berry and pork liver soup in front of her, "Have this instead. It’s said to be beautifying and cooling."

Looking at the bowl of soup, Zhang Meng chuckled to herself. The cafeteria often offered free soups that were cheap and simple to make, such as seaweed egg soup, tomato egg soup, or kelp soup, and they were usually average in taste.

Something like goji berry and pork liver soup, which was a bit more complicated and costlier, typically came with a price. Ye Qiu’s family back home didn’t have the custom of drinking soup, and he himself didn’t often drink it either; hence, this bowl of soup was specially purchased with Zhang Meng in mind.

How could Zhang Meng not be delighted by this gesture?

The goji leaves tasted slightly bitter, but at this moment, Zhang Meng found them sweet.

"Ye Qiu, can you handle it though? The exams are in less than a month. Won’t you be stressed out? You really don’t need to push yourself so hard for me. I..."

Zhang Meng wore a worried expression, but Ye Qiu interrupted her before she could continue, "Don’t worry, I can handle it. Mengmeng, I don’t want people to say that I’m living off a woman’s charity. Also, I want to earn enough money so I can confidently tell your father I want to marry you."

Zhang Meng felt a mix of sweetness, heartache, and guilt. Was she giving Ye Qiu too much pressure? Was she once again not considering everything thoroughly?

"Don’t overthink it, okay?" Ye Qiu held her hand and chuckled, "You know my capabilities. It’s just translating a few papers, I can totally manage it."

Zhang Meng was immersed in Ye Qiu’s tenderness and thought, indeed, Ye Qiu was so capable. What could possibly stump him?

"Mengmeng, why don’t you ask your roommates if they’re free this weekend. We’ve made our relationship official; it’s only right to have a meal together, with my roommates as well."

When Ye Qiu brought up this topic, Zhang Meng’s worries drifted away. Li Xin and the others had already asked when Ye Qiu was going to treat them to a meal a couple of days ago, but she had been reluctant to bring it up, fearing that it would strain his finances, and she didn’t want to hurt his pride by offering her own money. Yet, here Ye Qiu was, raising the issue himself.

"Sure, I’ll ask them when I get back. But where should we go eat?" Zhang Meng began to ponder the restaurants around the university, considering which one was both tasty and economical.

"Let’s do Zhang Laosan Hot Pot, where we can order a ’yuan.yang’ (mandarin duck) pot. Everyone orders whatever they want; it’ll be livelier that way."

Zhang Laosan Hot Pot is an internet-famous restaurant near Medical University, loved for its unique broths and dipping sauces. Plus, it’s affordable—the average cost per person is just about a hundred yuan—which makes it a hit with the college town’s students.

Zhang Meng thought it over and felt it was a good idea, so she nodded in agreement.

"Fourth, you’re the man!" A tall, strong boy slapped Ye Qiu’s shoulder excitedly, "These are real, live girls! Third son, help me out here, what should I wear tomorrow? Whether I can break out of my single life depends on you now."

The guy called ’Third’ was a tall and thin bespectacled male student, with a pair of attractive fox-like eyes glued unswervingly to the computer screen. You’d think he was absorbed in some scholarly paper if you didn’t know any better, but upon closer inspection, he was actually watching ’Crayon Shin-chan’.

This was yet another one of the dormitory’s eccentrics, wielding a top-of-the-line MacBook, using it solely for watching cartoons—and the bizarre thing is, he never laughs while watching even the funniest of them.

"Even if you wear something, it won’t make a difference; no girl will like you," Third son said, eyes never leaving the screen, his expression unchanged.

"What do you mean by that?" The tall, strong boy squeezed Third son’s neck, his face looking fierce.

"Second, can’t you face reality?" said their ’Boss’, who, though shorter than the other three in the dorm, was indeed the oldest. Moreover, he was composed and could challenge Ye Qiu, the academic monster of their dorm, neck and neck every year in terms of grades. Most importantly, he nearly single-handedly took care of the dorm cleanliness, which naturally earned him everyone’s respect.

"All the girls are looking at Fourth, and although he’s taken now, after him, they’re all about Third. We two should just resign ourselves to our fate," declared the Boss, closing his book and heading out with the trash.

Second son released Third son’s neck, grumbling resentfully, "Life’s so unfair. The drought-stricken perish from dryness, and the flood-hit from deluge."

Ye Qiu, busy translating papers, twitched the corner of his mouth. What kind of bizarre analogy was that?

"It’s just that you’re too ugly," Third son stated this fact without a hint of emotion on his face.

But Second son wasn’t disheartened in the slightest, he stood in front of the mirror again, considering which set of sportswear to choose: "It only shows that these girls are shallow. With your personality, would you even watch sleazy kids’ shows with your girlfriend?"

"I’m good-looking, she just needs to look at me," Third son replied.

"Third, you’re really not cute at all," Second son said darkly.

"Doesn’t matter, as long as I’m handsome," Third continued to knock him down a peg.

Ye Qiu felt that if he stayed in this dorm any longer, he wouldn’t finish translating this paper even by the end of the month.

On Sunday, Zhang Laosan Hot Pot was packed to the brim, but fortunately, Ye Qiu had anticipated this and came early to queue for a number. Including the four guys from his dorm and the four girls from Zhang Meng’s dorm, Ye Qiu had reserved a private room.

The four boys from Ye Qiu’s dorm, along with Zhang Meng and Li Xin, were classmates, while the other two girls were from the nursing class. After some brief introductions, everyone sat down to order their food.

Li Xin’s eyes twinkled as she looked at Dan Bei; she had had her eye on this classmate for a while now. Though he never showed off, over the years, she discerned a bit about his background from his attire—Dan Bei was definitely a ’rich second generation’.

Too bad he never talked to girls. Even when she made a point to socialize with him, he could still ignore her existence. How could a guy be so clueless about romance?