Chapter 10
Chapter 10
Mu Nanzhi raised his eyes.
“You can go back if you want.”
“N-no.”
Hui River quickly lay down, demonstrating with actions rather than words.
The two scares had already worn away every bit of his courage.
Even if it was all fake, he still did not want to go back and sleep alone.
“Lie down properly.”
Mu Nanzhi had him sleep on the inside, against the wall.
He muttered,
“So crowded.”
The moment two boys lay down at the same time, the bed became completely packed.
There was practically no room to move.
Mu Nanzhi turned onto his side and lay facing outward.
Staring at the clothes rack, he said softly,
“Go to sleep.”
Hui River looked at the back of his head and froze for a moment.
Could handsome people even have prettier back-of-the-heads than ordinary people?
This person's voice sounded really nice.
He rubbed his eyes.
“Mm.”
The bed was comfortable, and the pillow was soft.
As he nuzzled into it, he caught a faint scent.
It was Mu Nanzhi's scent.
Very special.
Very pleasant.
Just like its owner—gentle.
It felt as though it completely enveloped him.
An inexplicable sense of security.
His eyes slowly closed.
His consciousness drifted away.
His exhausted body gradually relaxed.
The rain had stopped.
On the damp, chilly balcony, clear droplets slid down the railing.
Thanks to the downpour, the temperature had dropped by several degrees.
A cold wind stirred the curtains and slowly drifted into the room.
A warm body pressed against his back, causing Mu Nanzhi to open his eyes.
He reached down and pulled the blanket from the foot of the bed, covering the person beside him.
“Mmn...”
The boy murmured in his sleep.
His lips moved slightly, like a greedy little beast searching for food.
Mu Nanzhi watched him for a while before lying back down.
The two of them shared one blanket.
It was an experience Mu Nanzhi had never had before.
The bed was small.
And crowded.
There was no way to sleep comfortably.
He could not understand how Hui River managed to fall asleep so quickly.
He closed his eyes.
Yet after only a few minutes, the person beside him would move again.
Mu Nanzhi deeply regretted it.
He swore he would never pity this person again.
...
...
“Boom!”
“Mmph.”
What was that sound?
Hui River turned over restlessly in his sleep.
“Whoosh—”
It felt as though something had entered the room.
He drowsily opened his eyes and immediately saw a thin bolt of lightning streak across the window.
“Boom—”
The thunder shook him so hard that he trembled twice.
The last traces of sleep vanished instantly.
It was raining again.
What kind of cursed weather was this?
He checked his phone.
It was only four in the morning.
There were still a few hours left to sleep.
After turning off the screen, he tried to gather his drowsiness again.
So cold.
Why didn't this bed have a blanket?
Hui River searched around but could not find one.
Only then did he remember that this was Mu Nanzhi's dormitory.
Curling himself into a ball, he tried to steal a bit of warmth.
He could not sleep.
“Boom!”
Wind howled and thunder roared outside.
Who knew which fellow cultivator was undergoing heavenly tribulation tonight.
Heavy rain continuously blew onto the balcony.
Mu Nanzhi's dormitory happened to be on the first floor.
Hui River was somewhat worried that the water would flood in and drown both of them.
He opened his eyes.
“Boom—”
Purple lightning tore across the sky as if it wanted to strike directly into the balcony.
The intense flash illuminated the dormitory.
And because of that—
Hui River saw a dark figure standing in the corner.
Ahhh!!!
The light vanished in an instant.
Darkness reclaimed the room.
But he could no longer erase that image from his mind.
It felt as though his throat had been seized.
He could not make a sound.
Every hair on his body stood on end.
What was that?
Not a hallucination.
Definitely not a hallucination.
His scalp tingled.
He did not dare look in that direction again.
Hui River hurriedly sat up.
His bed was right beside Mu Nanzhi's.
As soon as he sat up, he could see Mu Nanzhi's sleeping face.
Only an iron railing separated their beds.
At that moment, he no longer cared whether the other man would get angry.
The second he sat up, he immediately began climbing onto Mu Nanzhi's bed.
Creak. Creak.
Hui River's movements were too large.
Every slight movement made the metal bunk bed groan.
“Mmph.”
In his panic, he accidentally stepped on Mu Nanzhi's arm.
Sorry, sorry.
Hui River hurriedly apologized in a whisper and quickly squeezed onto Mu Nanzhi's bed.
A dormitory bed only one meter wide had extremely limited space.
There was simply no room for two young men over one meter eighty tall.
Afraid of waking Mu Nanzhi, Hui River could only hug his knees and sit in the small empty space left on the bed.
Fortunately, Mu Nanzhi had excellent sleeping posture.
His hands and feet stayed neatly in place.
Only because of that was there enough room for Hui River to fit.
What exactly was that thing?
It wouldn't come over here, would it?
Hui River was terrified.
But as long as he stayed beside Mu Nanzhi, he felt a strange sense of security.
He no longer had any desire to sleep.
So he hugged his legs and stared at the spot where the dark figure had been standing.
The sky gradually brightened.
Warm morning sunlight streamed into the room.
The golden light made the plants outside look especially beautiful.
He moved slightly and discovered that his arm was trapped beneath the person beside him.
Hui River yawned.
Pushing away the culprit, he pulled his arm free.
Mu Nanzhi was sleeping soundly.
Hui River watched him and sighed.
Even lying there expressionless, this person was still ridiculously handsome.
Rubbing his bird's-nest hair, he shifted aside to give Mu Nanzhi more room.
What time was it?
He fished his phone out from beneath the pillow.
Perhaps his movements were too rough.
The person sharing the bed with him mumbled a few times.
8:49.
Almost nine o'clock.
Hui River rubbed his flat stomach and decided to get off the bed in search of food.
Carefully avoiding Mu Nanzhi's arms and legs, he climbed back onto the neighboring bed.
Unfortunately, the movement still woke the other man.
A hoarse voice sounded.
“What are you doing now?”
Mu Nanzhi was extremely sleepy.
All he wanted was to sleep.
“You sleep. I'm going out to buy breakfast.”
Hui River explained.
The other man muttered a few words.
Unfortunately, his voice was too soft to hear clearly.
Only after Mu Nanzhi fell asleep again did Hui River climb down.
First, he checked the clothes rack.
After confirming there was nothing wrong with it, he finally felt safe enough to head to the balcony to wash up.
Since he did not have his toothbrush or towel here, he could only rinse his mouth briefly.
In less than ten minutes, he finished.
Walking to Mu Nanzhi's desk, he found the keys, pocketed his phone, and left the dormitory.
By the time he returned with breakfast, Mu Nanzhi was already awake.
Setting the food on the table, Hui River asked,
“Why didn't you sleep a little longer?”
Mu Nanzhi drank some water.
“My neck hurts from sleeping.”
He looked exhausted.
His entire body lacked energy.
“You bought this for me?”
“Of course.”
Hui River unpacked the breakfast and placed it in front of him.
“Sorry for troubling you so much last night... If you're still tired, you can sleep again after eating.”
“No.”
Mu Nanzhi broke apart a pair of disposable chopsticks.
“If I go back to sleep now, the whole day will be ruined.”
“You aren't eating?”
Seeing that Mu Nanzhi had cleared half the table for him, Hui River immediately dragged a chair over from behind.
“Of course I'm eating. What are you doing today?”
“Studying.”
Cough.
The answer nearly made him choke.
He gulped down several mouthfuls of soy milk before recovering.
“When you're this tired, it's hard to focus on studying.”
Mu Nanzhi smiled at him.
“And whose fault do you think that is?”
Unexpectedly, he did not chase Hui River away.
“...”
Hui River had nothing to say and could only lower his head and eat breakfast.
“I'm going to the library later.”
Hui River froze for a moment before realizing those words were directed at him.
“Then I'll go back to my dormitory after eating.”
Mu Nanzhi frowned.
“Don't you have homework during the holiday?”
The moment he mentioned it, Hui River remembered his interior design assignment.
“I do. I almost forgot.”
That assignment was notoriously difficult.
Just thinking about it gave him a headache.
Mu Nanzhi waited several minutes.
Finally, he heard the words he wanted to hear.
“Um... can I go to the library with you?”
Hui River had only just remembered his own dormitory.
After what happened last night, staying there alone was genuinely terrifying.
“Why?”
Mu Nanzhi did not agree immediately.
“You keep following me around. What exactly are you trying to do?”
“I'm not trying to do anything.”
Hui River looked miserable.
“If you don't want to, then forget it.”
Mu Nanzhi immediately became displeased.
“Just come with me.”
“Huh?”
“Huh what?”
“Finish eating and go back to get your books immediately.”
Mu Nanzhi's sudden change in attitude startled Hui River.
“Oh. Okay, okay, okay.”
Biting his chopsticks, he cautiously stole a glance at him.
Today's Mu Nanzhi felt different from usual.
Hui River hesitated before opening the door. “Um…”
Mu Nanzhi returned to his usual self, his tone gentle. “What is it?”
“Can you go upstairs with me?” Hui River had completely thrown caution to the wind. This wasn't because he had no shame; the dormitory bathroom had left too deep a psychological scar on him.
“...” Mu Nanzhi pressed his lips together. “Sure. Wait for me to put some things away.”
He actually agreed. Hui River was a little surprised. Although Mu Nanzhi wasn't as sharp-tongued as Hao Road, he wasn't exactly easy to talk to either. Hui River had already prepared himself to beg desperately, but it turned out unnecessary.
“Let's go. Why are you still standing there?”
“Oh.” Hui River quickly opened the door and walked out of the dorm.
Hui River led Mu Nanzhi back to his dormitory. The moment he entered, he looked toward the balcony. After waiting for a while and confirming it was safe, he finally walked inside.
It was already past ten o'clock. Power had been restored to the dormitory building. Hui River returned to his seat, changed clothes, and began packing his schoolbag.
Mu Nanzhi glanced at him. While Hui River was busy and not paying attention to him, he lifted a leg and headed straight for the bathroom on the balcony.
Click.
He gently pushed open the balcony door. The sun outside was already blazing, heating the floor until it was beginning to burn. Mu Nanzhi walked toward the bathroom. His hand paused for a moment. Taking a breath, he slowly pushed open the bathroom door.
After packing his things, Hui River realized Mu Nanzhi had disappeared. Just as he was wondering where he had gone, he saw him walking back in from the balcony.
“What were you doing just now?”
“Using the bathroom.”
“You didn't go into the shower room, did you...” Hui River took a few steps, wanting to look at the balcony.
But Mu Nanzhi grabbed him immediately.
“Don't go over there.”
“How come? Did you...” You didn't see something, did you?
“No. Stop overthinking.” Mu Nanzhi flicked him lightly on the forehead. “You've packed everything, so let's go.”
Hui River rubbed his forehead. “Oh.”
Click.
The door to Dormitory 309 closed. Hui River put away the key and turned to head downstairs. Mu Nanzhi's footsteps paused slightly. He narrowed his eyes and turned back for one last look.
“Mu Nanzhi?”
“Mm, coming.” He turned back around and quickly caught up with the boy.
Inside the library, Hui River rested his chin on his hand while reading. Occasionally he circled a few things with his pen. Time dragged on endlessly. There were so many words. He pulled out the assignment the teacher had given them, only to realize he had no idea where to start.
We haven't even covered this yet, have we? Where is it in the book?
He frantically flipped through the textbook. Another half hour passed, and he still couldn't find the relevant material. Biting the cap of his ballpoint pen, Hui River pulled out his phone and searched online.
The result was disappointing. There were no detailed answers, only references he could use for guidance. Copying them directly would definitely get him caught.
He had no clue what to do.
Hui River glanced at the time on his phone. It was already noon. Looking up, he stared at Mu Nanzhi sitting across from him.
The two of them lived in completely different worlds. Mu Nanzhi was clearly still immersed in the ocean of knowledge.
Back in the day, Hui River had been a top student too. Who would have thought he'd become such a slacker now? He attended classes regularly. How had he ended up so far behind these monsters?
Mu Nanzhi noticed his gaze and suddenly asked, “What's wrong?”
“Nothing, nothing.” Feeling guilty, Hui River covered his assignment and let his eyes wander. “It's almost lunchtime. I was just thinking about what to eat later.”
“Really...” Mu Nanzhi closed his book. “Looks like I've kept you waiting too long.”
“Not at all.” Hui River felt awkward.
Although Mu Nanzhi closed his book, he showed no intention of leaving.
“Have you finished your assignment?”
“Huh?” He lowered his head and pulled the book closer to his chest. “Not yet.”
“I see.” Mu Nanzhi glanced at his watch and generously said, “It's not even twelve yet. Finish writing it, and then we'll go eat. I can wait.”
Hui River: “...”
Mu Nanzhi urged him, “What's wrong? Start writing.”
“Oh, okay.” Hui River opened the assignment with forced determination.
Just looking at it gave him a headache. There was no way he knew how to do it. If he had known things would end up like this, he never would have fallen out with Hao Road.
Grinding his teeth, he kept flipping through the book. He knew the person across from him was watching. If he revealed that he couldn't do it, wouldn't that be too embarrassing?
But...
The moment he put pen to paper, he became lost.
“Don't know how to do it?”
“I...” Hui River gripped his pen tightly, humiliated.
Mu Nanzhi didn't laugh at him.
“It's nothing. Everyone encounters questions they can't solve. Once you learn it, you'll know how.” His gentle voice was pleasant to hear.
Hui River looked up. “That's true. Then I'll ask my roommates when I get back this afternoon.”
“Mm.” Mu Nanzhi had actually wanted to teach him personally, but remembering that they were in different majors, he abandoned the idea.
Suddenly, Hui River called out to him.
“Mu Nanzhi.”
“What is it?”
He opened his mouth several times, but in the end only one sentence came out.
“Thank you.”
Hui River knew Mu Nanzhi found him annoying, yet even while misunderstanding him, he still helped him so patiently.
That was truly rare.
Being called the campus heartthrob of the department, Mu Nanzhi deserved the title completely.