When Cheng Che returned to the dormitory with four breakfasts from the cafeteria, the three of them were still in bed.
He put the bag on the table, and the aroma of steamed buns, soy milk, and eggs quickly filled the entire room.
Wang Zheng was the first to wake up. He sniffled and poked his head out from under the covers.
"Godfather," his voice was hoarse but full of emotion, "You are my godfather."
Zhou Hao and Li Yuan also woke up one after another.
The three of them climbed out of bed and saw the neatly arranged breakfast on the table; their eyes almost welled up with tears.
" Brother Che, if I were a woman, I would definitely marry you." Zhou Hao picked up a steamed bun, took a bite, and said indistinctly.
"You said yesterday that you wanted to stay in shape." Li Yuan sat down and peeled an egg.
That was yesterday.
After the three finished eating, they all took out their phones and sent Cheng Che red envelopes.
Cheng Che glanced at it and transferred twenty yuan to each person.
"No need," he waved his hand.
"No way." Wang Zheng held his phone up to him. "Even between brothers, accounts must be kept clear. Following you is following you, but food expenses are food expenses. We're not the kind of people who try to gain small advantages only to suffer big losses."
Cheng Che smiled and didn't push it away again.
He ate his steamed bun while flipping through the newly bought " Music Theory Basics " book.
He found the book at the campus bookstore last night; it was a thick volume with a simple cover, and he started reading it from the beginning.
Zhou Hao finished washing up and came over. He saw the words on the book cover and paused for a moment:
" Brother Che, why are you studying music theory? Are you going to write songs?"
"Let me know." Cheng Che turned a page.
Li Yuan came out of the bathroom, wiping his face, and upon hearing this, replied:
"Didn't you see his previous song ' The Wind Rises '? I listened to it on repeat several times. Brother Che is already a great singer, so it's normal for him to learn songwriting."
Zhou Hao shook his head, his expression serious:
"Singing is singing, songwriting is songwriting, they're not the same. Songwriting requires knowledge of music theory, arrangement, and orchestration; it's not something you can do just because you have a good voice."
So, isn't this what learning is all about?
Cheng Che turned to the next page of the book, which contained musical notation and a table of note values.
Wang Zheng peeked over from the side, glanced at the cover, and then gave a very ambiguous look.
" Brother Che," he said, "Is it because of Su Miaoyin?"
Cheng Che looked up, bewildered, and asked, " Su Miaoyin? Who?"
Zhou Hao and Li Yuan looked on as if they had just realized something. They exchanged a glance and then looked at Cheng Che at the same time.
Wang Zheng's eyes widened:
"My goodness, don't you know the president of the Peking University Music Club? She's a third-year student, super popular online, her cover videos easily get hundreds of thousands of likes. Every time the club recruits, there's always a long line outside their club. And she's incredibly beautiful too."
He took out his phone, swiped a few times, and handed it to Cheng Che.
The screen displays a picture of a girl.
She has long, straight hair, wears a white dress, and sits on the grass holding a guitar.
Her features are delicate, her eyes are large and bright, and her smile carries a natural gentleness.
Cheng Che glanced at it; it was indeed very beautiful and stunning.
But he shook his head.
"I'm not doing this for anyone in particular," he said, pushing the phone back. "I just want to make myself more versatile."
The three people looked at each other in bewilderment.
Then Wang Zheng gave a thumbs up. "You're awesome."
Zhou Hao nodded in agreement. "Others learn music to chase girls, but you learn music to become more versatile. Your godfather's perspective is indeed different from ours."
"Alright, alright." Cheng Che closed the book. "It's time to go to the assembly."
The four of them packed their things, strolled out of the dormitory building, and headed towards the class meeting point.
The opening ceremony was held at the stadium.
School leaders gave speeches, instructors spoke, and student representatives took an oath.
Cheng Che stood in the queue and listened to the whole thing.
Then the military training officially began.
Standing at attention, at ease, attention, turning on the spot, and marching.
The morning sun wasn't too strong, but standing for so long was still tiring.
Cheng Che's physical strength was 73 and his endurance was 71. He stood at attention for half an hour and barely broke a sweat.
Wang Zheng, who was standing next to him, was already dying.
His legs were trembling, his back was soaked with sweat, and sweat dripped down his chin.
Zhou Hao was in a similar situation; his lips were a little pale, but he was still gritting his teeth and holding on.
Li Yuan fared slightly better, probably because he was a local and had a higher tolerance for heat than the others.
When the instructor shouted "Rest," the three of them almost simultaneously collapsed to the ground.
Wang Zheng tilted his head back and drank half a bottle of water, then glanced at Cheng Che.
Cheng Che sat cross-legged next to him, breathing steadily, with a calm expression, and only a thin layer of sweat on his forehead.
" Brother Che," Wang Zheng said, "Are you even human?"
"What's wrong?"
"We're exhausted like dogs, and you're not even out of breath. What kind of stamina do you have?"
Zhou Hao chimed in from the side, "He runs five kilometers every morning. You can't even get up for morning exercises."
"I'll start tomorrow!" Wang Zheng said. "I want to exercise too!"
"You said the same thing yesterday."
The two were undermining each other when the crowd suddenly became restless.
Some people started whispering, then started exclaiming, and then more and more people looked up towards the entrance to the playground.
Cheng Che also raised his head.
A girl is walking this way.
She was wearing a light blue dress, the hem of which fell just above her knees, revealing a pair of long, straight, white legs.
Her long hair cascaded over her shoulders, fluttering gently in the breeze.
She wore no makeup, and her clean skin shone brightly in the sunlight.
She walked at a moderate pace, her steps unhurried, like she was on a fashion show.
Wang Zheng opened his mouth, his voice trembling slightly:
"Holy crap... Su Miaoyin."
Cheng Che glanced at it; it was indeed her.
The person in the photo is even more beautiful than in the picture.
The commotion on the playground grew even greater.
Boys from other classes craned their necks, some whistling, others taking out their phones to take pictures.
Several male students passing by stopped on the side of the road, their eyes practically popping out of their sockets.
But Su Miaoyin didn't look at those people.
She walked straight toward Cheng Che's class.
The surrounding noise gradually subsided.
Everyone noticed the direction she was heading, and then all eyes followed her path, eventually landing on the boy sitting cross-legged on the ground with a calm expression.
Su Miaoyin walked up to Cheng Che and stopped.
She crouched down, bringing her line of sight to Cheng Che's.
Then she handed him the bottle of mineral water, her voice soft and gentle. "Junior, please have some water."
The playground fell silent for a moment.
Then it exploded.
Boys from other classes beat their chests in frustration, some sighed to the heavens, and others covered their faces, unable to bear the sight.
Several senior students passing by were so jealous their eyes practically popped out of their sockets; one of them even crushed his water bottle.
Cheng Che looked at the bottle of water in front of him with a strange expression.
He truly did not know this Su Miaoyin.
I first heard this name when I was in the dorm.
He was a little confused when this person brought him water.
"Thank you." He took the water. "But, senior, we don't seem to know each other."
Su Miaoyin smiled, her eyes crinkling. "It's not too late to get to know each other now. Can we add each other on WeChat?"
Cheng Che thought for a moment.
It's too impolite to refuse someone's offer of water.
He took out his phone and opened the WeChat QR code.
Su Miaoyin scanned the QR code and added the friend.
Then she stood up, waved to Cheng Che, and said, "I'll be going now, junior."
She turned and left, her skirt swaying gently.
The atmosphere on the playground changed as soon as Su Miaoyin left.
Zhou Hao was the first to rush over and hug Cheng Che's shoulders. "Godfather!"
Wang Zheng rushed forward, crying, "Godfather! Dear Godfather!"
Although Li Yuan didn't pounce, he still came over, his expression serious. " Brother Che, Su Miaoyin's roommate is also a beauty. If you get together with your sister-in-law, remember to go on a blind date."
Upon hearing this, the other students widened their eyes and gathered around.
"Godfather!"
"Godfather! I want to join a social event too!"
" Brother Che, you can't just focus on your own dorm!"
Surrounded by a group of people, Cheng Che sighed helplessly.
How come I suddenly have so many sons?
He can't afford to support them.
At noon, the four of them went to the cafeteria for lunch.
Cheng Che had just sat down when his phone rang.
He took it out and saw that it was a message from Su Miaoyin.
[ Su Miaoyin: Junior, I heard you're quite close to Yan Ruanning?]
Cheng Che raised an eyebrow as he looked at the line of text.
He recalled Su Miaoyin's actions just now.
Delivering water, adding WeChat, and then immediately inquiring about Yan Ruanning —this series of actions was too fast, too quick to seem like a spur-of-the-moment decision.
Is this girl targeting Yan Ruanning?