Oh no! I've only been a freshman and I've already been targeted by a mean upperclassman.

Zhao Zixuan opened a bottle of beer and poured it for himself.

"Brother Chen, how did your wife get along with your family during your stay in Beijing? Really. Not just a polite 'pretty good'."

Li Chen thought for a moment.

"My grandfather said her fish cooking was 'okay'."

Zhao Zixuan stopped pouring the wine.

"and then?"

"My grandpa sent her a red envelope containing 9999 yuan. He sent me 1.2 yuan."

The table fell silent.

Wang Qiang swallowed.

"Do you even have any standing in your own family?"

"Yes. But she's ranked after her."

Chen Mo adjusted his glasses. He looked at Li Chen's expression.

"You don't mind."

It's not a question.

"I don't mind." Li Chen picked up the last scallop. "She deserves it."

My phone vibrated again.

[Yan Xi: Did you save some osmanthus cake for Leng Qingge?]

[Li Chen: I kept it. I put it on the corner of the table. I'll deliver it tomorrow.]

[Yan Xi: You don't need to bring it. I'll pick it up myself tomorrow morning. I'll also check Wang Qiang's bedside table while I'm at it.]

Li Chen looked up and glanced at Wang Qiang.

"She said she'll come to the dorm tomorrow to pick up the osmanthus cake. She'll also check your bedside table while she's at it."

Wang Qiang's expression changed.

"She's coming to 302? Really?"

"She never fails to deliver on her promises."

Wang Qiang suddenly stood up.

"No. I have to go back and wipe it again."

Zhao Zixuan grabbed him and pressed him down. "Sit down. We'll talk after you finish eating."

"You don't understand. I don't know what your standards are—look at her, she even cares how Brother Chen hangs his insulated bag to dry—"

"You're not her boyfriend. She checked your bedside table to find out about Chen Ge's living environment." Chen Mo finished his lamb skewers. "You just need to meet the standard of 'not affecting Li Chen's quality of life'."

"What standard is considered 'no impact'?"

"Dustless".

Wang Qiang slowly sat back down. He picked up a cup of barley tea and took a sip.

"Brother Chen, I'm actually a little afraid of your wife now."

"Being afraid is the right thing to do."

Li Chen picked up a skewer of mutton and gave it to Wang Qiang.

"Check it over when you get back. If it's still not clean, I'll help you wipe it."

Wang Qiang took the mutton and looked at Li Chen's face.

"Brother Chen, you've changed."

"where?"

"You never used to wipe the table for me without my permission."

Zhao Zixuan chimed in from the side, "He wasn't wiping it for you. He was worried your sister-in-law wouldn't be happy when she came."

Li Chen did not deny it.

The phone vibrated one last time.

[Yan Xi: How many skewers did you eat? Tell me the truth.]

He counted the lots.

[Li Chen: Six skewers of lamb. Two scallops. One eggplant.]

[Yan Xi: Back to the dorm before 7:30. We'll be at the playground tomorrow at 7:00.]

He glanced at the time. 7:08.

Twenty-two minutes remaining.

"Eat quickly. We need to be back before 7:30."

Wang Qiang was about to protest when Li Chen had already called for the bill.

"I invited you. Let's go."

The three people looked at each other in bewilderment. Chen Mo was the first to stand up. He closed his notebook and tucked it under his arm.

"His time management now prioritizes Yan Xi's instructions. He'll get used to it."

Wang Qiang stuffed the last chicken wing into his mouth and mumbled something indistinctly.

"Long live my sister-in-law!"

Li Chen walked ahead. His phone was pressed against his thigh in his pocket. The last message Yan Xi sent on the screen was at 7:09.

He did the math. It was a seven-minute walk from the barbecue restaurant to Highway 302. He needed to be out of the restaurant before 7:26.

It's 7:11 now.

enough.

But he still quickened his pace.

7:23. At the entrance of 302.

Li Chen swiped his card to enter. Wang Qiang followed closely behind, rushing towards his bedside table.

"I'll wipe it again."

"This is the fifth time today." Zhao Zixuan hung his coat on the hanger.

"What's wrong with the fifth time? My sister-in-law is coming tomorrow."

Wang Qiang pulled out wet wipes from the drawer. Li Chen glanced at them as he passed by.

There's dust in the left corner.

Wang Qiang tilted his head and looked around. There was nothing there.

"Where?"

"It's too dark to see clearly. Feel it."

Wang Qiang reached out and touched the far left side of the counter. A thin layer of dust covered his fingertip.

How did you see that?

"This is the angle Yan Xi used when she checked the desktop. Dust accumulates first at the edges and corners."

Wang Qiang silently wiped that corner three times.

Li Chen sat back on his bed and turned on his phone.

[Li Chen: We've arrived. 7:23.]

[Yan Xi: Seven minutes earlier than I said. Bonus points.]

A slight smile appeared on his lips.

[Yan Xi: Are you full?]

[Li Chen: More or less. How about you?]

[Yan Xi: Qingge brought snail rice noodles. I didn't eat them. The smell was too strong.]

[Li Chen: You didn't have dinner?]

The typing prompt paused for a moment.

[Yan Xi: I ate bread.]

Li Chen sat up straight.

Bread. She doesn't usually eat bread as a main meal. She mentioned before that bread is just a "transitional food."

[Li Chen: Which kind of bread?]

[Yan Xi: Whole wheat. From a convenience store.]

Whole wheat bread from a convenience store. It contains approximately 180 to 200 calories.

She drove for five or six hours today.

I had pork rib rice for lunch, but the portion was small.

I've only eaten one loaf of bread since this afternoon.

not enough.

He stood up.

I'm going out for a bit.

Wang Qiang looked up.

"Where are you going? Didn't your sister-in-law tell you to be back by 7:30?"

"She didn't eat dinner."

Wang Qiang shut his mouth.

Li Chen put on his shoes, grabbed his coat, and went out.

Stairs. First floor. Leaving the dormitory building.

A chilly breeze swept over him. Linjiang was more humid than Beijing, and the perceived temperature was three to four degrees lower. He zipped up his jacket. His phone vibrated.

[Yan Xi: You left the dorm?]

[Li Chen: How did you know?]

[Yan Xi: Your typing speed has improved. You type about 15% faster while walking than while sitting. The interval between thumb touches has decreased from 0.4 seconds to 0.34 seconds.]

Li Chen slowed his pace by half a beat.

[Yan Xi: Where to?]

[Li Chen: I bought you some food.]

The typing prompts on the other end disappeared.

Yan Xi: No need. I've already eaten.

[Li Chen: Whole wheat bread doesn't count.]

[Yan Xi: How do you define "calculation"?]

[Li Chen: It has at least 400 calories, contains protein and carbohydrates, and is warming.]

There was no reply from the other end.

He had already reached the school gate.

The second house on the left outside the East Gate.

A porridge shop that is open 24 hours a day.

He came here.

Yan Xi has never been here.

But he knew that the pumpkin porridge at this restaurant used baby squash, not regular pumpkin.

The sweetness is natural, with no added sugar.

When Yan Xi was cutting pumpkins in the capital, she chose baby pumpkins.

"A bowl of pumpkin porridge. A steamed egg. No scallions on the egg. To go. And two small pork wontons, please."

"How long will it take to make the wontons?"

"A few minutes?"

Five minutes.

"OK."

He stood by the counter waiting. His phone vibrated.

[Yan Xi: You're at that porridge shop outside the East Gate right now.]

He looked up and glanced around. There was no one there.