The Mixed-Race Girl in the Shirt

Furun Building was the shopping center closest to the university district. Even in 2012, it counted as one of the liveliest places around, with dining, entertainment, and shopping all under one roof. It was a favorite destination for young people.

Lin Qiye waited at the building's east entrance. After a while, Jiang Dabao arrived with his girlfriend, Jiang Wanxin.

Jiang Wanxin was petite with a baby face, and she and Jiang Dabao made quite a fitting pair.

Moreover, though she was exceptionally well-behaved in front of others, she ruled Jiang Dabao with an iron fist in private.

Lin Qiye sometimes wondered whether Jiang Dabao's future romantic excesses were some kind of rebound from being repressed throughout his university years.

The two walked over, and Lin Qiye greeted them. "Wait a bit. Li Nanguang is here too, along with Wang Meijia."

Jiang Dabao and Jiang Wanxin had long known about Li Nanguang pursuing Wang Meijia. Jiang Dabao feigned surprise. "You're still chasing her? You chased her from sophomore year into junior year. If you still don't succeed, she'll graduate next year."

Lin Qiye nodded. "It'll probably be tough this time too. She's deliberately stringing him along, and she even brought a third wheel. I was thinking, maybe we brothers can give him a hand this time."

"How?"

After Lin Qiye finished explaining his idea, Jiang Dabao and Jiang Wanxin could not help laughing.

"That'll work. Let's see what excuse Wang Meijia can come up with then."

Just then, Li Nanguang appeared behind the three of them. "What are you talking about? You're laughing so happily."

"Nothing, just a joke." Lin Qiye looked toward the two girls nearby.

The one in a miniskirt and ankle boots was Wang Meijia. She had even applied bright red lipstick. Young students might have found her somewhat sexy, but Lin Qiye, who had lived two lives and seen every kind of makeup and surgically enhanced beauty, felt nothing at all.

The other wore a French lace-trimmed shirt and a high-waisted skirt. Her golden hair fell to her shoulders, and coupled with her delicate features, she gave off a sweet impression.

She was actually a foreign beauty—no, she seemed to be mixed-race.

That surprised Lin Qiye a little.

Li Nanguang took the initiative to introduce them. "Wang Meijia, the goddess in my heart. The other is her friend, Tian Nina from the Chinese Department. Don't be fooled by her appearance. Her Chinese is incredibly fluent."

The foreign beauty, Tian Nina, spoke up. "Hello, everyone. My father is Chinese, and my mother is Hungarian. I've lived in China since I was little, so there's no need to worry about communication."

Her Mandarin really was fluent. Combined with her sweet looks, she drew countless sidelong glances from passersby.

Seeing Li Nanguang signal at him, Lin Qiye said, "I'm planning to buy my mom a necklace. You girls can give me some advice later."

Tian Nina was quite interested. "I went with my mom to buy one last time—a heart-shaped angel necklace. It was pretty nice. What kind of style does your mom like?"

"Let's go over first." Lin Qiye positioned himself between Wang Meijia and Tian Nina, successfully separating Tian Nina, the third wheel.

The group arrived at the gold jewelry section on the first floor. Li Lantian and Wang Meijia formed one group, while Jiang Dabao and Jiang Wanxin formed another, wandering around separately. In the end, Tian Nina was the one giving Lin Qiye advice.

This mixed-race beauty was surprisingly easygoing. She pointed at all kinds of jewelry and explained them with great confidence.

Lin Qiye's head started to ache from listening, so he simply made a call.

"Mom, didn't I say I'd buy you some jewelry last time? What style do you want? Talk to my friend. She'll help you pick it out."

He then handed the phone to Tian Nina.

To his surprise, she got along quite well with Mom Lin. They discussed things over the phone while choosing jewelry, and after half an hour, they finally picked out an inexpensive golden wheat-ear necklace.

After paying and having the jewelry wrapped up, Tian Nina handed the phone back to Lin Qiye. "Here. Your mom says she needs to talk to you."

As soon as Lin Qiye took the phone, he heard, "Son, this girl is your girlfriend, right? Send Mom a photo so I can see her. Honestly, you kids, we're not old-fashioned. There's no need to hide having a girlfriend in college."

Lin Qiye froze and hurriedly explained, "No, you've got it wrong. She was really just helping me pick out a necklace."

"Fine, I know you're thin-skinned, so I'll let it go this time. But remember this: by the end of this semester, you have to bring a girlfriend home."

After the call ended, Lin Qiye turned to Tian Nina. "What did you say to my mom?"

"Nothing." Tian Nina looked completely bewildered. "I just talked about how I picked out a necklace with my mom before. Your mother even said I was sensible."

Lin Qiye subconsciously put on his Bluetooth earpiece, covered his mouth, and spoke in a low voice.

"Did you see that? What do you make of it?"

[Her body language was completely natural, and she showed no emotional tells. Unless she has received professional training, she should be telling the truth.]

"Right. It's not like I'm anyone important."

[It is most likely a beautiful misunderstanding. From an aesthetic standpoint, her features are well-defined and her appearance is excellent. Why not follow your mother's advice?]

Lin Qiye was speechless as he looked at Tian Nina, who was talking with Wang Meijia.

She looked even prettier from the side. No wonder he had heard before his rebirth that mixed-race children often looked better than either parent.

Why was he thinking about this nonsense? Lin Qiye shook his head, tossing away those strange thoughts.

Since he had already bought the gold necklace, he had to keep his promise.

Though there were four more people now, the buffet trip continued as planned. It could also serve as a celebration of their first victory in the stock market.

Afterward, the group headed to the Brazilian barbecue restaurant on the building's fifth floor.

This was the era when Brazilian barbecue was at the height of its popularity. Buffet restaurants bearing all kinds of Brazilian barbecue signs could be found all over the country.

The one in Furun Building had been open for over a year, and business had remained booming.

Luckily, a family had just left when they arrived, and the six of them quickly took the table.

Once they had paid the sixty-eight yuan fee per person, the buffet officially began.

The young university students happily carried their plates around, picking out the food they liked. Watching them, Lin Qiye felt hungry too.

Back then, before going to a buffet, he would deliberately skip a meal just to make sure he got his money's worth.

Now, though, it was more about enjoying himself with people his own age.

He took a plate as well, but after making one round, he was a little disappointed.

The selection was nowhere near as varied as it would be in the future. The Western dishes included spaghetti, grilled meat, roasted chicken wings, and so on. The Chinese offerings were rather limited, consisting only of a few simple snacks and stir-fried dishes.

The most distinctive items were the freshly grilled beef steaks, oysters, and char siu.

The girls were still a little reserved, but Lin Qiye, Li Nanguang, and Jiang Dabao did not care. They took turns lining up at the three stations and piled up several large plates.

Once they were half full, everyone leaned back in their chairs and began chatting.

"You'll all graduate next year. What are you planning to do?" Wang Meijia asked.

Li Nanguang was the first to answer. "Wherever you are, that's where I'll be. If you go to graduate school, I'll stay on at the university. If you find a job, I'll work somewhere near your company."

There was some meaning behind those words. Wang Meijia was a little surprised, and she smiled as she rolled her eyes at him.

With that as an opening, everyone became interested in the topic.

Jiang Dabao speared a piece of char siu, tasted it, and said, "It's a little sweet, and too fatty. I prefer late-night barbecue, but my mom wants me to take the civil service exam first. It's hard. The civil service exam is a narrow bridge, and with my brains, I have no hope at all."