Chapter 6
“Wow, thank you, thank you, classmate! You’re so kind!”
Jiang Yingtin was very happy—no more running around and struggling by herself. She reached into her bag to take out her phone, but just as she was halfway through the motion, the tall young man’s long hand quickly reached over and grabbed her phone. The screen showed a clear WeChat QR code, but he was pointing it toward Jiang Shangwan instead.
His Adam’s apple bobbed slightly as he subconsciously pressed down the brim of his hat with his other hand and said softly, “Add me.”
Jiang Yingtin was stunned: “…?”
She paused, looked at the young man’s clear gesture, then glanced at her slightly impatient cousin standing in the sun—and suddenly understood.
Jiang Shangwan lifted her eyelids and looked at the hand stretched out toward her. The veins on the young man’s wrist were tight, his knuckles taut, but his nails were neatly trimmed.
He seemed a bit nervous.
Jiang Shangwan smiled and said, “Sure.”
Calmly, Jiang Shangwan took out her phone, opened the WeChat scan function, and with a beep entered the add-friend page. The profile picture was pitch black—simple to the extreme—and the WeChat nickname was blank. If there was anything distinctive, it was his status message: “The desire of your soul is the prophet of your fate.”
This quote was from Holmes, a U.S. Supreme Court Justice.
She tapped “Add,” and soon received the notification, “You have added xx as a friend.” Jiang Shangwan then said, “Tingting, send me the photos.”
Skillfully, Jiang Shangwan forwarded her cousin’s messages to the black profile. The young man gave a soft “Hmm” in response, and before leaving, he turned his head and said, “Once the prints are ready, I’ll bring them to you.”
Jiang Yingtin watched the little drama unfold and clicked her tongue, resting her chin in her hand: “Sis, he really has good taste.”
Jiang Shangwan’s style and temperament hardly matched that of a student, besides, she had already celebrated her 30th birthday and was heading toward 40. It was rare for a shy freshman to gather the courage to talk to her.
She lightly pushed up her sunglasses with her fingertips, revealing a pair of bright, slender eyes. Her curled eyelashes fluttered slightly like two delicate fans.
“I feel like I’ve seen him somewhere before,” she said.
“Where? Good-looking people all look alike. Ugly people each have their own kind of ugly.”
A senior leaning on the table filling out the registration form suddenly felt like he was bleeding from a gunshot to the chest, his black pen scratched and left a long, thin ink streak.
“Maybe I remembered it wrong.”
Jiang Shangwan was on business trips for about 300 days out of the year and attended countless social events, frequently meeting many new people. Perhaps they had brushed past each other somewhere, but they definitely hadn’t had much contact.
In short, it was hard to remember clearly.
Not long after, the young man returned, beads of sweat slightly dampening his chin, as if he had jogged back quickly, seemingly rushing so they wouldn’t leave.
Once they got the photos, they could complete the entire registration process, then take their luggage to the dormitory. Usually, students settle their luggage first and then register, but since the two had assistants responsible for carrying and storing their luggage, they came straight to registration.
“The boys’ dorm and girls’ dorm are in different areas, the girls’ dorm is on the main campus, and the boys’ dorm is in the north district, which is farther from the registration point,” the senior in charge of records patiently reminded them.
Jiang Shangwan looked behind the young man and saw a huge 28-inch suitcase and a storage bag, so she raised her chin politely and said, “Since the boys’ dorm is farther away, we can help carry your luggage over, just consider it a thank you for helping you print the photos.”
The assistants quickly came over to help carry the luggage.
“Thank you,” he nodded slightly.
After handling the luggage, about an hour later, Jiang Shangwan took Jiang Yingtin to a Southeast Asian restaurant off-campus to eat, she wanted to have curry beef brisket.
Her phone vibrated, and when she lit up the screen, it was a black profile picture sending her a brief message:
—Hello. May I know your name?
Jiang Shangwan frowned. She thought the young man was a bit immature, at least he should have introduced himself first. So she swiped it away, pretending not to see it, and didn’t reply.
Soon after, another vibration — “My name is Shi Yu.”
Jiang Shangwan’s finger paused.
All the pieces suddenly connected—the somewhat familiar face, the finance department at Jiang University, Shi Yu.
It turned out to be the outstanding student she once met briefly during her inspection of Haidi High School, the top student she had singled out.
Jiang Shangwan suddenly felt a bit dazed and confused. Since when did fate arrange such strange coincidences in this world? She had just been approached by a student she personally sponsored—a kid more than ten years younger than her?
The moment she learned his identity, a strong sense of propriety immediately rose in her mind. Any fleeting, romantic thoughts stirred by the youthful flesh of the young man quickly faded. Given her status, she was definitely a senior to him, so she replied promptly.
Jiang Shangwan: So it’s you. I heard a couple of days ago that you didn’t go to Tsinghua or Peking University, but came to Jiangcheng for university. Didn’t expect to run into you like this.
Jiang Shangwan: I am Jiang Shangwan, head of the public welfare foundation sponsoring Haidi High School. Wishing you success in your studies, and thank you for helping my sister earlier.
Her reply was polite but distant.
Meanwhile, Shi Yu leaned against the bedframe in the dormitory, staring silently at the two relatively long messages that popped up on his screen.
Actually, he recognized her instantly.
Even with sunglasses, he remembered the brightness in her eyes—her stunning face and figure were hard to forget. Just seeing a corner of her skirt was enough to know it was her. He hadn’t even had time to deliver his luggage before he chased after her.
He never expected to meet her so soon here.
His roommates were also busy packing. Jiang University’s dorms were four-person rooms. They had greeted each other briefly upon arrival, getting to know a little about each other’s backgrounds.
“Shi Yu, want to grab something to eat? I’m kind of hungry,” said Xu Chuan, a local from Jiangcheng who seemed well off, carrying a single suitcase filled with colorful sneakers. He was outgoing and quick to warm up, the first to get familiar with Shi Yu. After asking about his college entrance exam scores, he was surprised.
“Damn, how did you score so high? Why come here? Didn’t the admissions offices of Tsinghua University and Peking University call you?” Xu Chuan unwrapped a chocolate bar covered with English letters, sharing pieces with the roommates before tearing open the silver foil and popping some in his mouth.
“They called, but I didn’t go,” Shi Yu answered honestly, then added, “I wanted to come to Jiangcheng, so I enrolled at Jiang University.”
Another roommate, who was making the bed and hanging the curtain, was shocked by this and turned around, incredulous: “What? You actually rejected Tsinghua University and Peking University?”
Xu Chuan laughed awkwardly: “Man, you’re amazing. If only you gave me some of those extra points, I might’ve gotten into Tsinghua’s business school.”
Shi Yu lowered his head, his expression calm. He didn’t swell with pride at his roommate’s compliments, he just took the chocolate from Xu Chuan and chewed it.
The dark chocolate’s tart bitterness exploded in his mouth, spreading across his tongue and sending a shiver through his senses. But beneath the outer layer was a smooth creamy caramel center. The sticky texture slowly spread from the inside out, balancing the original bitterness into a perfect sweetness.
Shi Yu chuckled softly, “Jiang University is pretty good.”
He thought coming to Jiangcheng was just the first step to getting closer to her—he never expected to get her contact information so quickly, or even learn her name.
Jiang Shangwan.
Earlier, he had only heard others call her “Director Jiang” through the teacher’s words.
Xu Chuan shook his head repeatedly: “Crazy, crazy. I’ve dreamed of getting into Peking University, but I’ve been stuck in Jiangcheng since I was a kid and I’m so tired of it. I wanted to leave by getting into a good school, but here I am. Jiangcheng hardly ever gets snow. I really like those fluffy, goose-feather-like big snowflakes—just thinking about it gets me excited. Traveling to experience it isn’t the same, living there year-round is what feels comfortable.”
Haishi was just like that—very similar to Beijing, equally cold and bleak, with heavy snowfalls blanketing the city in winter. When temperatures dropped below zero, the lake would freeze solid.
But Shi Yu, who actually lived there all year round, didn’t feel much about it. Obviously, people tend to romanticize paths they rarely experience while becoming accustomed to their everyday environment.
Shi Yu didn’t say this out loud to spoil Xu Chuan’s thoughts, he was a very restrained person. Everyone should have their own pursuits.
Another roommate returned from the door carrying a thermos, as if about to make instant noodles. His strong northern accent came through clearly, speaking with energy: “When are you guys planning to apply for internships? I heard that for schools like ours, you have to start internships early to build up your resume and experience, so it’s easier to get a job at the
[efn_note]“进四大” (getting into the Big Four), it means getting an internship or job at one of these major accounting or consulting firms, which is a common goal for finance, accounting, or business students.[/efn_note]
Big Four later.”
“Probably sophomore year,” Xu Chuan replied with a grimace, “That’s still early, right? We just got here. The freshman ceremony hasn’t even happened yet, and you guys are already rushing? My goodness.”
Shi Yu recalled a notice he had received before—if he remembered correctly, he could start interning at the Jiang Group right after enrollment.
—
The Jiang Group’s core headquarters was always in Jiangcheng. No matter how much it expanded elsewhere, Jiangcheng remained its unchanging center.
Jiang Shangwan sat in the café on the first floor of the headquarters, wearing a sharp light gray business suit skirt. Her jewelry had been changed to simple silver metal pieces, and around her neck hung a small, exclusive CEO badge on a blue lanyard. Although she usually liked wearing colorful gems, she kept a low profile while at the company.
“One iced Americano, plus an espresso shot, no sugar, thanks.”
Jiang Shangwan sat quietly in a nearby chair waiting for her order. Soon, someone approached and said, “Same as hers, thanks.”
Before she even looked up, the scent of a man’s cologne floated over. From the sound of his voice, she knew exactly who it was.
“Wanwan, I came to discuss something, hand over a proposal, and just happened to see you,” Fang Liangchen was as polite as ever. He glanced down at the silver watch on his wrist. His face was soft, showing no trace of hostility—hard to believe he was the one Jiang Shangwan had ruthlessly rejected when he tried to reconcile last time.
Today he wore a black shirt that looked very businesslike. He seemed to have been working out frequently recently, his chest muscles filling out the shirt more firmly than before, making his refined temperament stand out even more.
“Okay.”
Jiang Shangwan had no objections to the business partner. As long as he didn’t inexplicably put on a show of deep feelings to reconcile like last time, she could maintain a friendly and harmonious front.