Heart Flutter

Chapter 7

“Okay,” Tang Yan answered softly.

Ji Yuqing walked in carrying a delicate metal box. The ornate design on top immediately caught Tang Yan’s eye.

“This was for you.”

“For me?” Tang Yan could not believe it and froze in surprise.

“Open it and see,” Ji Yuqing said with a soft laugh.

Tang Yan carefully took the box and opened it in front of Aunt Ji. When she saw the contents, she looked puzzled and did not quite understand their purpose.

“Do you see that small embroidered pouch?” Ji Yuqing pointed at it deliberately.

Tang Yan nodded.

“If you ever ran into difficulties at school or came to a hurdle you could not get past, try opening it,” Ji Yuqing said.

Tang Yan found it interesting and smiled blankly. However, she was more intrigued by the neat stack of cards beside the pouch. She picked one up and saw a building depicted on it, along with a prominent university emblem below. Tang Yan recognized it at once; it looked exactly like the one on her acceptance letter.

She flipped through the other cards. Almost every landmark building of Huadu University had its own card. Since Huadu University was a century-old institution, many of the buildings combined Chinese and Western styles, and some even leaned toward Western architecture. The beautiful cards filled Tang Yan with excitement about her upcoming campus life.

“But… Aunt Ji, how did you get these?” Tang Yan asked innocently.

Ji Yuqing pulled out a chair and sat down so she could speak to Tang Yan properly. She rested one arm on the back of the chair, her chin propped on top, looking very warm and friendly.

“Because I also graduated from Huadu University. This is a limited-edition commemorative set. I took it out today to give to you as a present.”

Tang Yan was stunned and stammered for a while before she managed to speak. “Aunt Ji, you… you went there too…”

“Yes, indeed. And not only me—your mother was also a Huadu University student. Back then, she was my senior. Do you mean you did not know that at all?”

Tang Yan shook her head vigorously. Her mother had left college, gone back to her hometown, and had Tang Yan out of wedlock. Her grandmother considered it a disgrace, and the villagers never openly discussed it. Because of this, Tang Yan knew nothing about her mother’s university life or much about her background.

She had never even heard anyone mention her biological father—she had no clue about his name or appearance. To her, the concept of a father was just a vague idea, no more than a distant word.

“Nobody at home ever told you any of this?” Ji Yuqing asked in disbelief, finding it hard to imagine they could have hidden something so ordinary. Then, thinking about Tang Yan’s mother as a student, she became lost in memories and nostalgia.

Tang Yan continued shaking her head but was eager to learn more about her mother back then. Almost pleading, she said, “Aunt Ji, could you tell me something about my mom?”

“Your mother was quite the campus celebrity back then—she won scholarships for several years in a row and was an outstanding student in both character and academics. Many people in our department saw her as a role model,” Ji Yuqing said, her eyes lighting up at the recollection.

Seizing the moment, Tang Yan voiced another question that had been on her mind. “Mom told me she once helped you with something. What was that about?”

Hearing this, tears suddenly shimmered in Ji Yuqing’s eyes. She lifted her head, trying to compose herself, and after a while, she managed to say, “I will explain that to you another day. It is already late, and you have to report to school tomorrow. You should get some rest.”

Although Tang Yan did not get the answer she wanted, she was not in a hurry. She believed she would learn the details in time.

Early the next morning, everyone woke up. After gathering all of Tang Yan’s belongings for her dorm, Aunt Ji drove her to a local breakfast shop for a quick meal, then headed to Huadu University.

Because September 1st was the start of the school term for elementary, middle, and even some high schools, the traffic in Huadu was jam-packed. They were stuck in a sea of cars, and Tang Yan, glancing around at vehicles that stretched endlessly in every direction, felt she had never seen so many in her life.

There was nothing Aunt Ji could do except wait patiently for the traffic to clear. Tang Yan got carsick easily, so she could not do much to pass the time—not even playing on her phone. She mostly gazed out the window or occasionally stole a look at Aunt Ji, noticing how busy she was at work.

Even during this traffic jam, Aunt Ji handled several phone calls, all related to her job. The moment she switched to work mode, she became a completely different person—serious, decisive, and speaking like a leader.

After ending one call, she immediately made another. Once it connected, she asked, “Peiwen, how is the assignment I gave you coming along?”

“Sis, I moved as quickly as I could and kept urging them. They said everything would arrive by tomorrow afternoon at the latest.”

“Alright, that is not too late. That will do for now. I still need to get to the university, so I am hanging up.” She ended the call, her expression unchanged.

The traffic moved at a snail’s pace, at times inching forward only a meter before halting again. Eventually, the congestion turned into a full-on standstill near the university. It took traffic police intervention to make even slight progress.

They had left at seven in the morning for a distance of only about ten kilometers, but it still took three hours of driving. By the time they arrived, it was already ten o’clock. Tang Yan saw crowds of students coming and going outside the car window, and she felt both nervous and excited. She wondered whether she would get along with her classmates and whether they would like her. She felt anxious but also could not wait to meet her new roommates.

From her acceptance letter and the university’s official site, Tang Yan already knew which dorm she had been assigned to. All she needed to do was register with the dorm supervisor, pick up her key, and go upstairs.

She had been assigned to a four-person room. When she and Aunt Ji pushed open the door, they realized she was the first to arrive, which surprised her a bit.

Aunt Ji, relying on her own experience, advised Tang Yan to pick a spot toward the inside of the room near the balcony. It did not matter which side, but the bed near the door could be noisy and had less privacy.

Tang Yan listened and chose the bed near the balcony. After she and Aunt Ji made the bed, it was time for her to leave. Aunt Ji rolled up her sleeves, glanced at her watch, and saw it was just about the right time. She needed to hurry back to her company for a meeting that senior management considered very important. She had no way out of it, so she had to cut short her plan to accompany Tang Yan through the registration process.

“I have a meeting at the office I need to attend, so I cannot stay with you,” Aunt Ji said, then added, “If you need anything, you can call me any time. Unless I am in a meeting, I will always check my phone.”

Tang Yan suddenly felt a faint, inexplicable sadness. Even though they had only spent two days together, Aunt Ji’s considerate care made her feel she could rely on someone. Now, hearing that she would have to handle the registration on her own, Tang Yan could not help feeling a little low.

Still, she kept her expression calm, revealing no sign of her feelings.

“You have my number, right?” Aunt Ji asked suddenly, just before leaving.

Tang Yan nodded. She had stored it the day before when she got her new phone.

At that moment, Aunt Ji took out her own phone, tapped on it for a bit, and then handed it to Tang Yan, showing her a WeChat QR code.

“Sometimes I may not be able to answer your calls, but I can still check messages when I get the chance.”

Tang Yan quickly pulled out her phone and scanned the code, adding her as a friend.

“Alright, do not bother seeing me off,” Aunt Ji said. They parted ways in the dorm hallway. Tang Yan stood alone at the door, phone in hand, watching for a while until Aunt Ji disappeared around the stairwell corner.

She then hurried back into the room, walked over to the balcony, and leaned out. Just then, she saw Aunt Ji come out of the dorm building, get into her car, and drive off along the tree-lined road until she faded from view.

“Wow, someone arrived this early?” A bright, loud voice came from the doorway.

Tang Yan turned and saw a slightly chubby girl in a floral dress, pulling two suitcases behind her. She seemed a bit shy but still managed to greet Tang Yan.

“Hello.”

“Hi,” the girl said just as enthusiastically. “I am Xia Zihan. What is your name?”

“Tang Yan.”

“That is easy to remember,” she said, dragging her luggage in and picking the bed across from Tang Yan, the one by the balcony. She tossed her bag onto the desk. “How long have you been here?”

“I only just arrived,” Tang Yan replied, sounding a bit timid.

“Then you probably have not gone to register yet, right?” Xia Zihan asked.

Tang Yan shook her head.

“Let us go together then. Just let me tidy up a bit first,” the girl said, flashing a wide grin. She seemed outgoing and cheerful.

Tang Yan nodded, smiling back shyly. She pulled out her chair, sat down, and lowered her head to check her phone. Only then did she notice that Aunt Ji’s WeChat name was simply “Yuqing.” It dawned on her that the aunt’s full name was Ji Yuqing—it sounded so pleasant.

While she was lost in thought, Xia Zihan noticed the latest model iPhone in Tang Yan’s hand and moved closer in excitement.

“Is that the iPhone AX? Wow, I have been begging my dad for a month to get me one, but he keeps telling me this iPhone X is good enough.”

She waved her own iPhone X around. At that moment, Tang Yan realized they came from very different backgrounds. She simply smiled without saying much.

“Could I see it?”

Tang Yan handed the phone to her without hesitation. Xia Zihan admired it like a treasure, muttering, “I am definitely getting one when I go home this time. By the way, how many gigs is yours?”

“I think… 512?” Tang Yan was not entirely sure, having only overheard the sales details once.

“That is so fancy.”

Tang Yan shook her head in embarrassment and explained, “I am not actually well-off. My aunt gave it to me.”

“Well, your aunt must really care about you,” Xia Zihan commented.

“She did,” Tang Yan said, agreeing wholeheartedly that Aunt Ji treated her very well.

Before long, Xia Zihan finished putting away her things. Slinging her bag over her shoulder, she announced with excitement, “All set. Let’s go register.”

Tang Yan picked up her bank card, acceptance letter, and the file containing her documents, and together they left the dorm room. Xia Zihan hooked an arm around Tang Yan’s shoulders with a teasing grin.

“So, do you have a boyfriend?”

Talking about relationships was a favorite pastime among girls their age, and it was a quick way to bond.

Tang Yan blushed and shook her head honestly. “No, I do not.”

“I heard there are lots of cute guys at Huadu University. We can check them out together!” Xia Zihan said, laughing.

Tang Yan puffed out her cheeks a little and went downstairs with her. For now, she just wanted to focus on her studies, and the idea of getting a boyfriend did not interest her much yet.