Read Novel Full Chapter 161 Part 2 – Wrong Backpack (II)
Chapter 161 Part 2 – Wrong Backpack (II)
After Jiang Li found out about the incident, she couldn’t help teasing Tong Yi, “Aren’t you mad they’re saying stuff like that?”
Tong Yi replied lazily, “They’re saying I’m not good enough, that I’m lucky to get you. That’s the truth, isn’t it? Why would I be mad?”
Jiang Li laughed, “If they knew how laid-back you are about it, they’d probably start thinking you are good enough for me.”
Tong Yi leaned in a little and whispered, “Whether I’m really good enough… we’ll only know after we try. I’ve always thought I was exceptionally gifted, kind of worried you might not be able to handle it.”
Jiang Li: “…”
In the two years they’d been dating, Tong Yi often made dirty jokes, but never actually followed through. She’d long since gotten used to it, yet she still couldn’t help stepping on his white sneakers.
They parted ways after lunch, and Tong Yi returned to his own campus.
As he entered the campus gate, a new student spotted him, her eyes lighting up. Just as she was about to approach him, another girl beside her quickly pulled her back. “That’s Tong Yi—he already has a girlfriend. Don’t set yourself up for disappointment.”
The girl who wanted to approach him asked in surprise, “You know him?”
The other girl shook her head. “Someone like him? No way I know him personally. I’ve just heard people talk about him.”
The would-be admirer suddenly looked like she had figured it out. “I get it! You must’ve seen his photo on the school forum, that’s how you recognized him.”
The other girl still shook her head. “I don’t really check the forum. I recognized him by his shoes.”
“His… shoes?” The girl looked completely confused.
The other girl explained, “I’ve heard from seniors that although Tong Yi is extremely neat and always keeps himself put together, his shoes are always dirty, as if someone keeps stepping on them.”
The first girl couldn’t help but giggle. “Must be his girlfriend, right?”
“There are rumors, yeah. But his girlfriend is that goddess Jiang from the medical school next door. She’s published award-winning papers during undergrad—someone like her probably wouldn’t do something like that, right?”
“Well, you never know. That kind of contrast is actually pretty cute. The more serious someone is, the more adorable they are when they act childish. You wouldn’t understand that kind of charm.”
“Now that you mention it… that does make sense.”
…
Tong Yi had no idea two girls were gossiping about him. As soon as he got back to his dorm, Qin Zheng came to find him with a detailed business proposal, hoping to pull him in as an investor.
Tong Yi looked surprised. “Your dad won’t fund you?”
Qin Zheng’s mouth twitched. “I don’t want to rely on my family.”
“Oh, so you’re all about self-reliance, huh?”
As Tong Yi said this, he took the proposal from Qin Zheng and started reading it seriously, wanting to see if it was worth the investment.
Qin Zheng sighed. “If I take money from my family, I’ll have to follow their conditions.”
Tong Yi chuckled. “What, they want you to go on blind dates? That’s not exactly the end of the world.”
“You know about that?” Qin Zheng looked startled.
Still flipping through the proposal, Tong Yi replied, “Everyone in the circle knows. Your mom’s been racking her brain trying to find you a ‘suitable’ match. Too bad her dear son just won’t cooperate.”
Qin Zheng said helplessly, “Exactly, that’s why I’m so frustrated. I’m not in the mood for romance at all. If I go on a blind date, I’ll just end up hurting the other person.”
Seeing how troubled he looked invoked Tong Yi’s bullying nature. “There are plenty of business marriages in our circle. Just lay it all out beforehand—use each other, get by. It’s not like you’re ruining anyone’s life.”
Qin Zheng shot back, “Then why don’t you go get by with someone?”
Tong Yi looked shocked. “Why should I? I have a girlfriend! Oh right, I almost forgot—someone like you, a lonely single mutt, could never understand how wonderful mutual love really is!”
Qin Zheng: “…”
For the sake of getting that investment, he endured it!
Tong Yi carefully went over the proposal, then nodded and said, “I can do it, but we need to have a proper talk about the terms.”
Qin Zheng’s eyes lit up. He wanted to invite Tong Yi to a café for a detailed discussion, but Tong Yi shook his head. “We’ve known each other for so many years, no need to make it all formal. A casual chat will do.”
However, within the next half hour, Qin Zheng realized that Tong Yi had no intention of being casual. Despite his relaxed appearance, when it came to matters of interest, he was utterly uncompromising.
Once the terms were finalized, Qin Zheng finally breathed a sigh of relief. Looking at Tong Yi, he remarked, “If Jiang Li saw how serious you are right now, I bet she’d be pretty surprised.”
Tong Yi paused for a moment before asking, “If I recorded a video of what I just did and sent it to her, do you think she’d see me in a whole new light?”
Qin Zheng: “…”
Whether Jiang Li would see him differently, he didn’t know.
But if the students at their university saw this childish side of Tong Yi, they’d definitely be stunned and start wondering if something was wrong with their idol.
…
On Friday afternoon, as the class bell rang, Wen Wan was chatting with Jiang Li as they packed their books.
“Are you going back again this year during National Day to celebrate your uncle’s birthday?”
Feng Qi’s birthday was during the National Day holiday, which happened to be a seven-day break. In the past two years, Jiang Li had always returned to celebrate his birthday, so this year didn’t seem like it would be any different.
But Jiang Li shook her head. “Third Uncle just left the country a few days ago for a symposium. He won’t be back for another two weeks, and he told me not to fly over just to celebrate.”
Wen Wan hooked her arm through Jiang Li’s. “Then how are you going to spend the break?”
Jiang Li answered honestly, “Tong Yi and I made plans to go to the beach, just to relax.”
Wen Wan blinked mischievously and gave a meaningful smile. “I don’t think you two are going to get much relaxing done on that trip.”
Jiang Li pinched her cheek. “Little Wen Wan, please stop going off the rails in public. It makes you sound very dirty.”
Wen Wan mumbled, “I’m already an adult. It’s totally normal to talk about stuff like this.”
A few seconds later, she asked again, “So… are you and Tong Yi booking one room or two?”
Jiang Li paused for a moment and said, “Probably a suite, I guess. But that’s just my assumption—he’s in charge of booking, I’m not involved.”
Wen Wan leaned in closer, looking a bit awkward. “Then… do you think you two might… get carried away?”
Jiang Li’s cheeks flushed slightly. “We don’t even live together. How could we get carried away?”
Wen Wan was stunned. “Wait… don’t tell me you two have never…”
Jiang Li cut her off. “Why are you so curious about this stuff? You’re being weird.”
Wen Wan lowered her head. “Lin Zhao and I have been dating for over six months, but he’s never made a move in that direction. I just find it so strange.”
Jiang Li asked curiously, “Are you worried there’s something wrong with him down there?”
Wen Wan immediately shook her head. “I’m worried he’s not attracted to me.”
Jiang Li couldn’t help but laugh. “But he seems to really care about you. You don’t need to worry at all. Honestly, Tong Yi hasn’t made any moves either. I think that’s just normal.”
Whether Tong Yi had thought about it or not, she wasn’t sure. But even if he had, she wouldn’t be against it.
Wen Wan looked relieved, but then she suddenly seemed to make up her mind and whispered, “During the National Day break, Lin Zhao and I are going on a trip too. I’m going to test him a little then.”
Jiang Li asked, “How are you going to test him?”
Wen Wan blinked and gave a very shy smile. “That’s a secret for now. I’ll tell you after we get back.”
Seeing her all secretive, Jiang Li didn’t push it. Anyway, Wen Wan was terrible at keeping secrets. If she said she’d tell her after the trip, she definitely would.
…
The night before the long break, both Jiang Li and Wen Wan planned to go to bed early. However, two girls in the neighboring room started a huge argument in the middle of the night. The commotion was so intense that even the dorm supervisor couldn’t calm them down, and eventually the counselor had to come in to handle the situation.
Jiang Li, after being woken up by the noise, quickly fell back asleep. But Wen Wan’s mind became unusually alert. She counted sheep for ages and played on her phone for a while until she finally drifted off.
The next morning, when Jiang Li woke up, she noticed Wen Wan was still in bed. She immediately called out to her, remembering that Wen Wan and Lin Zhao had booked an early flight. If they didn’t hurry, they might miss it.
Wen Wan jumped up from bed. She hadn’t even had time to get dressed when Lin Zhao’s call came in—he was already waiting downstairs.
After hanging up, Wen Wan turned into a whirlwind, rushing to pack her things. Once she was ready, she grabbed the backpack on her desk and dashed out the door. But in her haste, she tripped over the chair in front of Jiang Li’s desk.
Jiang Li’s backpack, which had been on the chair, was knocked to the floor. Wen Wan’s own backpack flew from her hands, and the two bags ended up side by side. Wen Wan quickly picked up both, set one on Jiang Li’s desk, and bolted out the door with the other.
Watching her leave, Jiang Li muttered helplessly, “Grown up, but still acts like a kid.”
Wen Wan met up with Lin Zhao, made it onto the flight in time, and after arriving at their destination, the two enjoyed a joyful day together. That evening, after checking into their hotel, Wen Wan started getting ready to shower.
Before entering the bathroom, she blushed and said to Lin Zhao, “Can you… help me organize the things in my backpack? I’ll need them tomorrow morning.”
With that, she stepped into the bathroom, heart pounding.
When she came back out, Lin Zhao was watching TV. He seemed so calm, it felt a bit unnatural. But when she glanced at the makeup and toiletries neatly arranged on the cabinet, she froze.
Those items… belonged to Jiang Li.
Seeing her dazed expression, Lin Zhao pointed to the hair dryer beside her and said, “I found the hair dryer for you, and your things are all organized on the shelf. You can sort them however you like. I’m going to shower.”
Wen Wan: “…”
This trip with Lin Zhao had been a big deal for her. She had even secretly packed a contraceptive into her backpack—hoping to give Lin Zhao a surprise.
She didn’t believe that Lin Zhao could stay so composed after seeing the easily identifiable package in her backpack.
But this morning, she had gotten up too late and left in a rush. After tripping over Jiang Li’s chair, their backpacks had fallen together, and she hadn’t checked carefully before grabbing one and running out.
Now she realized she had accidentally taken Jiang Li’s bag.
Wen Wan sighed in exasperation, feeling like the universe was messing with her.
If she had known things would turn out this way, she definitely wouldn’t have bought the exact same backpack as Jiang Li!
She had taken Jiang Li’s bag… but did that mean Jiang Li had taken hers?
Probably not, right? Jiang Li wasn’t scatterbrained like her. She would’ve noticed the difference between the two bags.
But… then again, maybe not.
Should she call to make sure?
< | >
Translator’s Note:
Extra chapter on Sunday
(If you have both kofi and patreon, please subscribe using kofi. Thank you!)