His gaze was calm, though still gentle enough. “This is my backup phone. There’s no password. I’ve already saved my number in it and added a note.”
Gu Qingyue pressed her lips together, her emotions complicated, as she took the phone. “Thank you.”
No one had ever been this considerate toward her before.
Back when she lived with the Gu family, they had never beaten or scolded her. They simply ignored her. Because of that, she did everything cautiously, constantly afraid of doing something wrong and provoking their displeasure.
When no one loves you, you have no confidence in anything you do.
The dormitory faced the sun and was spacious and bright. The facilities were complete, even equipped with a small fully automatic washing machine.
Only three people lived in the room. It was Sunday, and both of her roommates were in the dorm.
Song Ranran, a devoted drama fan, was sitting at her desk watching a TV series on her tablet. She held a bag of potato chips, crunching noisily as she ate.
Xu Youning lay sprawled on the desk in boredom, playing on her phone. When she looked up and saw Gu Qingyue come in, then noticed her pale complexion, she hurried over, her face full of concern.
“Yueyue, why do you look so pale? Are you feeling unwell somewhere?”
Gu Qingyue forced a stiff smile and made up an excuse. “I just caught a bit of a chill. It’s nothing serious.”
Hearing that she had caught a cold, Song Ranran immediately stopped watching her show. She pulled open a drawer, took out a packet of cold medicine, and asked with concern, “I’ve got some cold meds here. Do you want to take some?”
Looking at the worry and care in her friends’ eyes, a trace of warmth finally appeared in Gu Qingyue’s cold heart. She smiled faintly. “No need. I already took some.”
Still uneasy, Xu Youning reached out to touch Gu Qingyue’s forehead, then placed her other hand on her own. When she found their temperatures about the same, she finally relaxed.
Gu Qingyue laid her suitcase flat, unzipped it, folded the clothes from her wardrobe, and placed them neatly inside one by one.
She did not have many clothes, only three or four sets at most. Ever since she learned she was not the Gu family’s biological daughter, she had taken the initiative to move her household registration out and had never spent another cent of the Gu family’s money.
After becoming the top scorer in the national college entrance examination, she received bonuses from both the school and the state. Added to the scholarships she earned after entering university, as long as she did not spend recklessly, the money would be enough to support her through graduation.
Even so, she saved whenever she could. She planned to take the postgraduate entrance exams and continue on to a doctorate. There would be even more places where money was needed.
She was pursuing a double major, so she already had many textbooks. She was also doing research under Director Jiang Yan, which left her no time to take part-time jobs.
With no source of income, if she did not have some savings on hand, she could never feel at ease.
Song Ranran watched Gu Qingyue crouched on the floor packing her suitcase and asked suspiciously, “Why are you packing your things?”
“I’m getting ready to move out.” Gu Qingyue folded her clothes and answered calmly.
Xu Youning was shocked. “Why?”
Gu Qingyue lowered her eyes and made something up on the spot. “My family bought a place nearby.”
Xu Youning sighed with envy. “I’m so jealous. Why can’t my parents buy a place next to the university?”
They did not know much about Gu Qingyue’s family background. Hearing that her family had bought a place near Jing University, they simply assumed she was wealthy but kept a low profile.
“What kind of daydream are you having?” Song Ranran poured cold water on her. “Do you have any idea how expensive housing in Beijing is? An ordinary person can struggle their whole life and still not afford even a toilet in the inner ring.”
With a single sentence, she left Xu Youning thoroughly deflated.
Xu Youning pretended to be hurt. “You really have a sharp tongue.”
Gu Qingyue pulled the suitcase upright, packed her laptop into her computer bag, stuffed all the odds and ends into her backpack, and finally took out a black handheld tool case from under the bed.
With two majors, she had a lot of books, which were hard to carry. Since she still had to come back to campus for classes, there was no need to take everything at once. She only brought the textbooks she needed for tomorrow’s classes and her important materials.
After finishing all that, she drew the bed curtain closed. She left the quilt and everything else behind. If anything unexpected happened, at least she would not end up with nowhere to go.
Seeing that she had quite a bit of luggage, the two of them came over with smiles. Song Ranran said enthusiastically, “Yueyue, we’ll help you carry it to the school gate.”
Gu Qingyue did not refuse. The corners of her lips curved slightly. “I’ll treat you to a meal tomorrow.”
Xu Youning joked, “Then I’m definitely going to fleece you hard.”
“No problem,” Gu Qingyue agreed readily.
At the gates of Jing University.
The driver’s side window of the Bentley was lowered all the way. Shang Yuze rested one arm on the window frame, a cigarette held between his pale fingers, the tip glowing red. In his other hand was his phone, and he was in the middle of a call.
“Grandpa, tonight I’ll bring your granddaughter-in-law to see you.”
On the other end of the line came the sound of someone spraying water. The next second, a booming, vigorous shout rang out. “Granddaughter-in-law! Shang Yuze, even if you don’t want to get married, you shouldn’t tell such an obvious lie just to fool me!”
Shang Yuze brought the cigarette to his lips and took a drag. White smoke slowly rose, half veiling the man’s handsome features. “I’m not lying. I’m getting ready to take her to register our marriage.”
Shang Lin wiped the water from his mouth with a tissue and warned him seriously. “Shang Yuze, marriage is not child’s play. Don’t you dare pull some contract marriage nonsense on me, and don’t just marry some random girl to appease this old man.”
Although he desperately wanted his grandson to settle down early, Shang Yuze’s happiness mattered most.
Shang Yuze stubbed out the cigarette in the ashtray and looked toward the school gate. “I’m serious. The girl’s family background is a bit lacking, but she’s outstanding in every other way.”
Shang Lin knew his grandson’s character well. Since Shang Yuze had chosen to marry the girl, he would take responsibility for his actions.
“Since you’ve decided to get married, then treat her well. Tone down that icy face of yours. Don’t scare her. It wasn’t easy for you to finally find a girl who likes you. You must cherish her…”
He went on and on, giving a whole basket of advice.
A slender figure appeared in the distance and gradually became clear in Shang Yuze’s line of sight. Gu Qingyue was pushing her suitcase, chatting with the two girls beside her.
Sunlight fell across her brows and eyes, making her glassy-colored pupils shine with a bright, dazzling light.
So this was what she was like in front of her friends.
Shang Yuze’s thin lips curved slightly. He directly cut off his grandfather’s words. “Grandpa, she’s here. I’m hanging up now.”
There was not the slightest trace of displeasure on Shang Lin’s face at being hung up on. He was completely immersed in the joy of having a granddaughter-in-law. “This kid has finally come to his senses.”
He burst out laughing. The laughter was so infectious that the servants in the Shang family’s old residence thought the old master had gone mad.
After laughing, he raised his voice again. “Old Zhou! Tell the chef to make a few more dishes! And have the driver get the car ready! We’re going to the mall to pick out gifts for my granddaughter-in-law!”
The butler, Old Zhou, replied cheerfully, “Right away!”
Shang Yuze opened the trunk and walked over to Gu Qingyue, naturally taking the suitcase from her hands.