Senior cooked dinner

"Keep the car keys for now, until I learn how to drive on the road," Su Baizhou said softly.

Then she turned, ready to leave the parking lot.

After a couple of steps, she suddenly looked back, her eyes fixed on Luo Ye, and added, "What are you standing there for? Aren't you going to change?"

If he didn't change, Luo Ye would have to return to campus in his Hanfu.

"At your place, Senior?"

Su Baizhou didn't answer.

Luo Ye also realized it was a pointless question. He tucked the car keys into his bag, then followed her back to Room 614, Unit Four, Building Five of the Faculty Apartments.

Back in Room 614 once again, they each went to their own room to change into casual clothes.

This time, Luo Ye finally had time to look around the room Gu Mingxuan had left for him.

Although he had visited the day before classes began, he had only come in to play a game that time and hadn't familiarized himself with the place at all.

After changing into casual clothes, Luo Ye looked around his room.

A bed took up half the space. Besides that, there was a wardrobe, a desk, a bay window, and a chair. That was all the room contained, but it had all the essentials.

Luo Ye looked up, and a satisfied expression appeared on his face when he spotted the air conditioner.

An air conditioner. Nice, very nice. The dorm doesn't even have one of those, just an electric fan that hums as it spins.

Luo Ye opened the door and found that Fairy Senior had already changed into a long dress and tied on an apron. She was busy in the kitchen.

Was she... cooking?

That made sense. The snacks and tea at the tea party had barely been enough for a bite. Senior must have been hungry too.

Luo Ye poked his head in and said in surprise, "Senior, that smells amazing."

He hadn't expected Fairy Senior to be not only beautiful and talented, but so capable around the house as well.

She was as at home in company as she was in the kitchen.

In the kitchen, Su Baizhou was stir-frying. Hearing his words, she said nothing and simply kept working.

Luo Ye left his room, walked into the kitchen, and came up beside Su Baizhou.

Looking at the food in the wok, he could tell there was clearly too much for her to finish alone.

So, obviously, she had made enough for two.

At that thought, Luo Ye volunteered, patting his chest as he said, "Senior, let me help."

Su Baizhou's hands paused. Remembering how Luo Ye had barely known how to grill pork belly when they had barbecue, she immediately swung out her spatula to stop him from coming closer.

"No need."

Su Baizhou continued stir-frying.

A moment later, she added, "This is to repay you for ordering me takeout early this morning."

Hearing that, Luo Ye could only stand beside her and watch longingly.

Soon, Su Baizhou had prepared two dishes and a soup, along with some rice.

Although the meal before him was hardly lavish, just knowing Fairy Senior had made it made Luo Ye feel that it was the finest food he had ever eaten.

And it truly was. Su Baizhou was an excellent cook. Compared with Luo Ye, who knew nothing about cooking, it was as though every cooking skill point he had been allotted in life had gone to her instead.

Under Su Baizhou's expressionless gaze, which held a faint trace of anticipation, Luo Ye took a bite of her cooking.

Luo Ye’s eyes immediately lit up, and he said with satisfaction, "Delicious!"

Having received his approval, Su Baizhou inwardly breathed a sigh of relief. A sense of fulfillment filled her heart, and she began eating too.

With Luo Ye wolfing down the food, the meal was soon polished off.

Luo Ye stood up and said cheerfully, "I'll wash the dishes!"

Before Su Baizhou could react, he began gathering the bowls and chopsticks from the table and went straight into the kitchen.

This time, it was Su Baizhou's turn to watch Luo Ye busy himself in the kitchen.

But washing the dishes didn't take long. A few minutes later, Luo Ye returned to his room, picked up his bag, and got ready to head back to the dorm.

"Bye, Senior."

Luo Ye waved, while Su Baizhou merely nodded in silence.

After Luo Ye left, Su Baizhou sat at the table, looking at the empty living room before her. A faint hint of confusion appeared in her eyes.

What was this feeling?

Why did she feel so empty the moment he left, as though something was missing from the apartment... when he had only spent a little over an hour here in total?

And lately, they seemed to be seeing each other more and more often.

At that thought, Su Baizhou shook her head.

Although... she might really have started to like this junior, she still had to be reserved... yes, reserved.

After leaving Unit Four of Building Five, Luo Ye called Gu Mingxuan.

"Hey! Bro, I wanted to ask, did you rent your apartment to Senior Su?"

Gu Mingxuan's laughter came through the phone, followed by his question. "What's wrong? Su Baizhou is my student. I'm away, so what's wrong with renting the place to her?"

"Nothing... but the dorm doesn't have air conditioning. If I don't stay in the dorm, where am I supposed to live? More importantly, the break is coming up. Seven days! Where am I supposed to stay?"

"Oh, haven't you figured it out yet? Little bro, go win Su Baizhou over. Whether you get to move in depends on whether you can make her your girlfriend."

Hearing that, Luo Ye said in a panic, "What do you mean, win her over? Fairy Senior isn't a game character."

"It's just a figure of speech. Don't tell me you don't like her. I know exactly what you're like."

Luo Ye fell silent.

"Little bro, give it your best shot. I won't be back for at least six months. Hopefully, I'll have a nephew by then."

Luo Ye's face filled with shock.

Have a nephew for you in six months?

But the call had already ended, leaving Luo Ye to sigh helplessly.

His parents were police officers. Back then, they had been so busy with work that they hadn't had him until they were thirty-two.

By then, Gu Mingxuan was already ten.

So, in a way, Gu Mingxuan had raised him, and he could almost always guess what Luo Ye was thinking in an instant.

By the time he returned to the dorm, it was already four in the afternoon.

Wang Dachui had worn himself out gaming and was lying in bed, fast asleep.

Meanwhile, Shen Qiao sat on his bed, lost in thought.

"What's wrong, Superstar?" Luo Ye asked curiously.

Shen Qiao looked at Luo Ye and gave a bitter smile. "Something going on at home."

"Every family has its troubles."

Luo Ye sighed.

Whatever had happened in Shen Qiao's family must have been serious to leave him so troubled even at school, and it probably had something to do with him.

Come to think of it, Superstar had always said he had a girlfriend. At first, they had assumed it was an excuse to turn down girls asking for his contact details, but even when his roommates asked him in the dorm, he still said he had a girlfriend.

Thinking of that, Luo Ye asked curiously, "Superstar, honestly, I'm really curious whether you actually have a girlfriend."

"I do have a girlfriend."

At the mention of his girlfriend, Shen Qiao's expression softened a little, and a smile lingered on his face. Yet the sadness in his expression seemed to deepen.

He took out his phone and showed Luo Ye his wallpaper, smiling as he said, "My girlfriend, Xiao Lei. What do you think? Pretty, isn't she?"

"She's gorgeous!"

Luo Ye exclaimed in admiration.

Just what you'd expect of Superstar's girlfriend.

"Xiao Lei and I met in our first year of high school. We've been together for three years."

Luo Ye was surprised to hear that.

No wonder Superstar usually seemed so mature. He had so much relationship experience.

In an age of instant gratification, Luo Ye couldn't even imagine how happy it would be to spend a lifetime with one person.

"Then where is she? Does she go to a school in Jiangcheng too?"

"Yeah."

An unreadable look lingered in Shen Qiao's eyes. He forced a smile and said, "At Jiangcheng Medical University..."