Friends…
Su Qinghe carefully savored those two words in her heart. Slowly, very slowly, a genuine smile spread across her face. It was no longer the cautious, ingratiating smile from before.
“Mm!” she nodded firmly.
Seeing that she had finally smiled, the irritation in Jiang Che’s heart faded quite a bit.
That was more like it. When Su Qinghe, the campus belle, smiled, she looked far better than when she cried.
He sat with her on the bench for quite a while, until her emotions had completely calmed down.
“Let’s go.” Jiang Che stood up and naturally took hold of her wrist. “We have one last stop.”
Su Qinghe obediently placed her hand into his and let him pull her up.
“Where are we going now?” she tilted her small face upward and asked curiously.
“To buy you a phone.”
“No, no!”
The moment she heard the word “phone,” Su Qinghe shook her head like a rattle drum. Her grip on Jiang Che’s arm tightened.
“I… I can’t see. A phone is useless to me! Don’t waste the money…”
Jiang Che did not agree. He refuted her immediately, “Who says it’s useless? Let me ask you this. What if I’m not at home and you run into an emergency? How would you contact me?”
Su Qinghe was instantly speechless. She opened her mouth but could not find a reply.
“Besides, phones nowadays all have accessibility features for the visually impaired. I’ll set it up for you. You can listen to music, audiobooks, whatever you want.”
“You can’t just stay at home every day doing nothing. That would turn you into a fool.”
Though Jiang Che’s words were blunt, the reasoning was sound.
This was the era of big data and rapid information updates. New information flooded society constantly. Without a phone and internet access, Su Qinghe would quickly fall out of touch with the world.
And if her eyes could be cured someday, how would she survive on her own in society?
Scams were rampant now, with endless tricks. A simple and pure girl like her would easily be deceived.
Su Qinghe still hesitated a little. “But… I don’t know how to use those accessibility features…”
“It’s fine. I’ll figure it out and teach you.”
Jiang Che had already made up his mind to buy her a phone, so he gave her no chance to refuse.
After saying that, he pulled her toward the electronics section downstairs. “It’s very simple. With how smart the campus belle is, how could a mere tool stump you?”
Half dragged and half led by him, the tiny thought of refusal in Su Qinghe’s heart gradually dissolved under his firm insistence.
He… seemed to have thought of everything for her.
She liked this feeling of being arranged and taken care of so thoroughly. She relied on it.
She liked the feeling of being managed by Jiang Che. It made her feel as though… she really was his girlfriend.
Soon, they arrived at a branded phone store.
A young male sales assistant in a uniform immediately stepped forward with enthusiasm. “Good morning, sir and miss. What model are you looking for?”
Jiang Che briefly stated his requirements. “Pick one for her with strong performance and long battery life. Most importantly, the accessibility features must be excellent.”
The assistant understood immediately. His gaze paused briefly on Su Qinghe’s beautiful yet unfocused eyes, then he professionally recommended, “Sir, I suggest our latest flagship model. Its screen reader is very powerful, and the operating logic is clear. It’s especially suitable for visually impaired users.”
As he spoke, he took a display unit from the counter and handed it over.
Jiang Che held it and tried it out. The size and weight felt appropriate, and the processor performance was good. He then turned to Su Qinghe. “This one is pink. Do you like it?”
Although she could not see the color for now, Jiang Che still asked thoughtfully.
Girls probably liked soft pink colors, right?
“Mm, any… any color is fine,” Su Qinghe answered softly, her cheeks warming.
“Alright, we’ll take this one.” Jiang Che handed over his black card. “Swipe it.”
The moment the assistant saw the card, his hand trembled slightly. His smile grew even more sincere. “Of course, sir! I’ll process it right away!”
When he returned with the receipt, he saw Jiang Che guiding Su Qinghe as she explored the display phone. He spoke up helpfully, “Sir, I notice your girlfriend has difficulty with her eyesight. Would you like me to set up the accessibility mode in advance? That way you won’t need to figure it out yourselves later.”
The moment the words “your girlfriend” were spoken, Su Qinghe froze. Then she lowered her head shyly, her cheeks flushed pink.
She pricked up her ears nervously, waiting to hear how Jiang Che would respond.
Jiang Che had initially planned to clarify, but explaining such things to a stranger seemed unnecessary. So he simply nodded.
“Alright. Thank you.”
“No trouble at all!”
The assistant quickly unboxed the phone, powered it on, and skillfully navigated through the settings.
“Okay, the screen reader is now activated. From now on, just double-tap the screen, and it will automatically read out whatever you touch.” He handed the phone to Su Qinghe and taught her a few basic gestures.
Su Qinghe carefully held the phone in both hands. Following the instructions, she tapped the screen lightly with her finger. A clear electronic voice immediately sounded from the speaker.
“Home screen. Page one.”
Her face lit up with amazement, as if she had just received a fascinating new toy.
Jiang Che accompanied her as she tried out a few more functions. Seeing that she quickly became familiar with the operations, he smiled as if it were only natural.
“See? I told you. Someone as smart as the campus belle could never struggle with a phone.”
Being called “campus belle” in front of an outsider made Su Qinghe feel a little shy. Her face reddened as she said softly, “Mm, it’s actually quite simple.”
The assistant watched their sweet interaction, secretly enjoying the moment. Then he seemed to think of something and said with a smile, “By the way, sir, since you seem concerned about your girlfriend’s safety, I’d like to recommend an app. A lot of couples use it. It’s very useful.”
Jiang Che raised an eyebrow. “What app?”
“It’s called ‘HeartLink.’” The assistant explained, “After installing it, you can bind your accounts and see each other’s real-time location at any time.”
“It also has a one-touch emergency function. As soon as she presses it, your phone will immediately receive an alert along with her precise location. It really gives you peace of mind!”
Real-time location? One-touch emergency?
That sounded good.
Jiang Che was instantly interested.