Love in the Illusion

5

Chapter 5

It was clear Zhou Jingze didn’t remember her, and a wave of disappointment washed over Xu Sui. But she quickly mustered her courage and greeted him.

Zhou Jingze was generous, taking them directly to the small restaurant on the second floor of the cafeteria for a special meal. Throughout the dinner, Hu Xixi and Sheng Nanzhou played off each other like a comedy duo, with Zhou Jingze occasionally chiming in absentmindedly.

Hu Xixi disliked celery, but Sheng Nanzhou insisted on making her eat it, even transferring all the celery from his own bowl to hers. He then asked her, "Do you know why your Husky is so ugly?"

Sheng Nanzhou, holding onto his educational principles, waited for Hu Xixi to ask why, but she ignored him. He was about to directly educate her by saying it's because it's picky. However, Hu Xixi picked out all the celery and said earnestly, "Because it looks like you."

"You—" Sheng Nanzhou was so angry he couldn't get a word out.

"Uncle, don't you think so?" Hu Xixi sought Zhou Jingze's opinion.

Zhou Jingze tilted his head, glanced at Sheng Nanzhou, and with a mischievous tone, said, "You know what, it really does look like him."

"……" Sheng Nan Zhou.

Xu Sui followed with a soft laugh. Sheng Nan Zhou couldn't be bothered with them and instead turned to Xu Sui, saying, "Little Sister Xu, I haven't introduced myself yet. My name is Sheng Nan Zhou. Xi Xi's friends are my friends. If you ever need anything, you can come to me."

"Pfft, if there's trouble, why come to you instead of Zhou Jingze for help?" Hu Xi Xi mercilessly exposed him, laughing as she looked at another person. "Uncle, don't you think so?"

Although it was said in jest, Xu Sui's heart tightened. She pretended to lower her head casually to eat, but in reality, she was waiting for Zhou Jingze's response. Just as Zhou Jingze was about to speak, his phone on the table vibrated—the caller ID showed Bai Yu Yue.

Zhou Jingze picked up his phone and held it to his ear to take the call. Xu Sui sat across from him, watching the smooth curve of his throat as he rested his left hand on the table, idly flicking the tab of a carbonated soda can, frost clinging to his slender fingertips.

Brief words like "Hmm" and "What is it?" vibrated near her ear. Whatever was said on the other end elicited a soft chuckle from Zhou Jingze.

Xu Sui sat on pins and needles, feeling nothing but torment.

"Hanging up," Zhou Jingze said.

After hanging up the phone, Sheng Nanzhou teased, "Tsk tsk, Master Zhou is just awesome. His girlfriend calls him ten times a day, and I haven't seen him call her back once."

"Speaking of which, your girlfriend is actually in the same dorm as me, but she doesn't seem to know about our relationship. You didn't tell her?" Hu Xixi said.

"Lazy," Zhou Jingze tossed out a single word.

They were eating in the cafeteria when Zhou Jingze's classmate, Big Liu, came over and joked at the well-behaved Xu Sui, "Changed girlfriends so fast? Changed your taste?"

Xu Sui was teased into a slight fluster, a scene that happened to catch Zhou Jingze's eye.

Big Liu was sitting right beside him. Zhou Jingze pressed his tongue against the inside of his left cheek and smirked, then raised his hand slightly, signaling for him to come closer.

Zhou Jingze's slender fingers rested on the pull-tab. Big Liu leaned in with a gossip-hungry expression, his other hand draped over Zhou's neck. With a "pop," the tab was pulled, and white foam gushed out, splattering all over Big Liu's face.

Big Liu immediately struggled, but Zhou Jingze leaned back in his chair and effortlessly pinned him down with his other hand. Covered in foam, Big Liu couldn't even open his eyes, his appearance utterly disheveled. Only after repeated pleas of "I was wrong" did Zhou Jingze finally release him.

The bubbles quickly evaporated into water, trickling down his face in a wet mess, leaving him utterly disheveled.

"Guess," Zhou Jingze said with a roguish grin, his face the picture of a playboy.

"Hahahahaha," the surrounding crowd burst into laughter, doubling over with mirth.

That was just like Zhou Jingze—when he spoke to you properly, he'd pull some little trick to make you realize this wasn't the way, that it was disrespectful to others.

Liu Da understood from his expression.

"You're something else." Liu Da realized his joke had gone too far. Just as he was about to apologize, Xu Sui handed him a tissue to wipe his face.

Liu Da felt even more embarrassed: "Sorry, sis, I was just joking around with this guy."

"It's okay." Xu Sui's gentle voice carried her good-natured patience.

"Alright, get lost," Zhou Jingze laughed and cursed.

After the group finished eating, Xu Sui accompanied Hu Xixi back to Zhou Jingze's dorm to fetch some things. As they passed by the Beihang sports field, a group of muscular boys in green training uniforms were spinning on fixed rollers to train their anti-turbulence ability, or jogging while shouting, "Soar through the skies, defend our territory!" to boost their stamina.

The evening sun blazed fiercely as sweat dripped down their cheeks, their resolute and powerful chants echoing across the sports field.

Hu Xixi stared at them intently until Sheng Nan * snapped his fingers in front of her face: "Still looking? You're practically drooling."

"Two perfectly good-looking guys with crew cuts right in front of you, and you'd rather strain your neck looking back," Sheng Nan Zhou remarked.

"Pfft," Hu Xi Xi brushed his hand away.

Zhou Jing Ze walked ahead with one hand in his pocket, when suddenly, he ran into an acquaintance and gave a nod. "Senior," he greeted.

"Getting used to being here for over a month now?" The senior patted his shoulder familiarly, as if the two had known each other for ages.

Zhou Jingze nodded, and the senior smiled, saying, "You made quite a splash as the student representative at the school's opening ceremony. Even our batch is talking about you, but your speech was brilliant."

"Just rambling," Zhou Jingze said indifferently, curling the corner of his lips.

After the senior left, Zhou Jingze led the two girls into the boys' dormitory but didn't let them go upstairs, making them wait downstairs instead.

Just as Zhou Jingze was about to go upstairs, the boys leaning against the railing on the second floor chatting noticed two beauties standing downstairs, especially Xu Sui, who looked fair and soft—perfect for teasing—and whistled at her.

Zhou Jingze had his hands in his pockets, glancing up at them with calm eyes that seemed to say, "That's enough."

The boys on the second floor, recognizing Zhou Jingze, all looked sheepish and stopped whistling immediately, allowing him to ascend the stairs.

Ten minutes later, Zhou Jingze tossed a gift box into Hu Xixi's arms, tilting his chin at the two of them before saying, "I'm off."

On the fifth-floor balcony, Zhou Jingze held a cigarette between his lips, his dark eyes fixed on the figures below—especially the girl in the white dress.

Sheng Nanzhou flicked open the lighter case, lighting Zhou Jingze's cigarette, and seeing his thoughtful gaze, teased, "Already got your eye on her?"

Zhou Jingze tilted his head to catch the orange flame with his cigarette, took a drag, then held it in his hand as he retorted, "You think I'd be into someone like that?"

He never messed with the goody-two-shoes type.

Zhou Jingze just thought she looked familiar.

On the way back, Xu Sui couldn't help but ask, "Xixi, how is Zhou Jingze your uncle?"

"Our families are somewhat related. He's actually my little uncle, and we all grew up together," Hu Xixi explained.

After returning to school, Hu Xixi went to pick up a package, leaving Xu Sui to head back to the dorm alone. Just as she was about to enter the dormitory building, suddenly, an orange cat darted out from the bushes, meowing at her.

The kitten padded over to Xu Sui on its round, plump paws, its amber eyes fixed on her as it tried to rub against her pants leg. Xu Sui's heart melted. She crouched down and noticed a wound on its face, the blood still fresh.

It looks like it just ran out wildly and got scratched by weeds or thorns.

Xu Sui got up, went to the dormitory convenience store to buy a bottle of mineral water and a ham sausage, then returned to the cat. She carefully cleaned its wound with the mineral water and tore open the ham sausage. The kitten nibbled at it from her palm.

After feeding it, Xu Sui patted its head and said, "I have to go now. I can't keep you."

In the evening, when her roommates hadn't returned yet, Xu Sui opened her laptop and searched online for this year's Beihang University freshman representative speech. The webpage quickly provided the answer.

Xu Sui sat in front of the computer, quietly watching Zhou Jingze in the video.

Zhou Jingze stood on the stage amidst the clamor below. He suddenly raised the microphone in front of him with his long arm, his face clearly mocking, which sent the students below into a burst of laughter.

The director, who had just finished speaking and stood only 1.6 meters tall, rubbed his temples in frustration: This batch of students is hard to handle.

After adjusting the microphone, Zhou Jingze stood before the crowd and spoke leisurely, "Classmates, I'll keep it brief, though you may well consider what I say next to be nonsense."

"Wow," someone in the audience teased.

"I believe many of you have gained a preliminary understanding of Beihang University after the military training. Whether you still hold onto your dreams or have been discouraged by the 6 AM alarm every day," Zhou Jingze's dark eyes swept across the audience, a mix of three parts roguishness and seven parts nonchalance, "the future might be even tougher—dropout rates, the disasters pilots face, being grounded, and other issues."

"I don’t want to dwell on these. I once read a line in a book, and I’d like to share it with all of you who have chosen to become pilots—"

The audience suddenly fell silent, all waiting to hear what Zhou Jingze would say next. Standing on the stage, he looked down at the crowd with a gaze full of arrogance, his voice carrying an unyielding pride.

"God remains silent, and all is decided by me."

The students in the audience fell silent once more, the hush spreading to every corner. Zhou Jingze gave a light chuckle, folded his speech into a paper airplane, and tossed it toward the crowd below.

The white paper airplane soared and circled in the air before gliding into the sea of students below. Suddenly, a wave of applause and cheers erupted from the crowd.

As if infected by these words, all the students began leaping upward in unison, vying to catch that paper airplane—it was their moment of revelry, shouting in unison:

"I'm gonna be the best damn pilot there is!"

"I'll definitely take a picture of the blue sky to show my mom."

A gust of wind blew, billowing the hem of Zhou Jingze's black T-shirt. Standing on the platform, he watched his classmates in their boisterous chaos and slowly smiled.

The youth in black, as sharp and untamed as ever, laughed with reckless abandon.

Xu Sui stared at Zhou Jingze on the screen, her heart pounding uncontrollably, emotions surging within her. There were numerous comments below the video, and she clicked through them one by one.

Someone asked, "Who is this guy? Why is he so arrogant?"

A helpful alumnus replied, "Shallow, aren't you? After the college entrance exams, he went skydiving at the Grand Canyon in the U.S. and casually got his private pilot's license for helicopters."

Suddenly, the sound of the door being pushed open came from outside, and Xu Sui hurriedly closed the webpage with her mouse.

Liang Shuang kicked the door open with her usual carefree manner, and as soon as she entered, she slung an arm around Xu Sui's shoulders and said, "Suisui, didn't you mention wanting to find a part-time job before? I happen to know a senior who's looking for a tutor. I've forwarded her contact to you."

Xu Sui nodded, "Okay, thank you."

"No need to thank me," Liang Shuang pinched her cheek again—the feel was just too good.

After adding the senior, Xu Sui introduced herself proactively. The senior was very enthusiastic and said, ["Hello, I heard from Liang Shuang that you're the bold and quick-handed clinical medicine junior who excels in anatomy. She's been praising you as a top student. My aunt is looking for a tutor to teach math and English to a sixth-grader, once a week for two hours each time. Would that fit your schedule?"]

Xu Sui asked, "About where is the address?"

The senior replied, "Amber Alley in Xinhe District. There's no direct subway, so you'd have to transfer buses a few times, totaling about over an hour."

Over an hour—that's a bit far. It would be great if there were a direct subway line. Moreover, Xu Sui gets carsick easily. Just as she was hesitating whether to go, the senior sent another message: "Many people have turned it down because of the distance... Anyway, tutoring jobs are hard to come by. Could you do me a favor and go for an interview this weekend? You might really like the kid. If it doesn't work out, you can always say no later."

With things put that way, it would be impolite to refuse. Xu Sui agreed to go for the interview.

No one expected the dorm life to become so turbulent. One day, Bai Yuyue returned and suddenly burst into tears in the room. After crying, she tried calling someone several times but couldn't get through. In a fit of anger, she smashed her phone into pieces.

Hu Qianxi comforted her, "Don't cry, what happened?"

Xu Sui silently crouched down to pick up the scattered fragments. Bai Yuyue wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes and said coldly, "It's nothing, just a fight with my boyfriend."

Within a couple of days, rumors started spreading in class that Bai Yuyue had been dumped by her boyfriend. Some even said she waited outside his dorm all night but failed to reconcile. The stories varied widely.

Liang Shuang and the others didn't believe it—couples quarreling was perfectly normal.

On Thursday afternoon, Hu Qianxi received a text message in the dorm and sat up from her bed, winking at Xu Sui: "Zhou Jingze is here for some business at our school, and he happens to be free now. Come on, let's go grab a free meal."

Hu Qianxi took Xu Sui to the East Campus cafeteria, where Sheng Nan Zhou was also present, and they even asked Xu Sui to recommend dishes. Just after ordering a clay pot rice noodle, Xu Sui puffed her cheeks and said, "What I ordered might not be to your liking."

Sheng Nan Zhou raised an eyebrow: "Now that's a bit condescending. There's nothing your big brother here wouldn't dare to eat."

Just then, the cafeteria lady at the window slid out a serving of clay pot rice noodles. Sheng NanZhou took one look—it was insanely spicy, with a layer of deep, impenetrable red oil floating on top.

Sheng NanZhou clasped his hands in a salute. "I'm out."

"Didn't expect you to be such a feisty little pepper."

"Just eat and stop talking so much," Zhou Jingze kicked him from behind. "If you're not eating, then don't block the way."

At the dinner table, the gossipy classmate Xiao Hu didn’t even unwrap his chopsticks before starting the conversation: “Uncle, what’s going on between you and Bai Yuyue? She keeps crying in the dorm. Everyone says you broke up, but Bai Yuyue says you’re just fighting.”

“We broke up,” Zhou Jingze said nonchalantly.

Xu Sui was slurping noodles with her head down when the soup in the pot sizzled loudly. Startled by Zhou Jingze’s words, she choked, the spice rushing into her throat—painful and burning. She coughed until her eyes welled up with tears.

Suddenly, a hand with distinct knuckles pushed a glass of water toward her. Xu Sui met Zhou Jingze’s gaze, and her heart fluttered in panic. His eyes were like rocks at the bottom of a river—when the water receded, they resembled black stones, silent yet gleaming.

Zhou Jingze was staring at her.