Lu Zhiheng: “…Baby?”
He slowly lowered the bag he had just lifted back down again. The heart-shaped sticky note did not look like something the shop would attach for every customer.
Which meant Jiang Nian had specifically asked the shop to do it.
His phone vibrated.
It was a message from Jiang Nian.
[Disguised Potato: I saw that it was delivered. Eat it while it’s hot!]
Lu Zhiheng hesitated for several seconds before finally tearing the heart-shaped note off. Then he replied with a simple “thank you.”
The reply from the other side came very quickly, but this time it was not text.
It was a voice message.
Jiang Nian’s playful voice rang out from the speaker:
“You’re welcome, Baby!”
After sending the voice message, Jiang Nian herself did not even have the courage to listen to it a second time.
She screamed internally at System 999:
【Ahhhhhhh! This is my first time calling someone Baby!】
When she had been asking the shop owner to write the thoughtful little note, she had not felt much about it.
But the moment she personally called the Male Lead “Baby,” all her courage completely deflated.
Still…
They already had couple photos together, so calling him “Baby” was not too excessive, right?
Besides, it was precisely because the Male Lead would not accept this kind of boundary-crossing behavior that she needed to do it even more!
As expected, Jiang Nian heard Little Three-Nine’s notification sound.
【Male Lead Lu Zhiheng disgust value +2. Current disgust value: 27.】
System 999’s mechanical baby voice carried a hint of smug triumph.
【Hehehehe, Niannian, I knew the Male Lead wouldn’t like this kind of thing!】
Jiang Nian and System 999 watched the “typing…” indicator on the other side for a full five minutes before Lu Zhiheng finally seemed to make up his mind.
[Lu Zhiheng: I’m not Baby.]
Jiang Nian could practically picture Lu Zhiheng’s serious expression through the screen.
[Disguised Potato: But you’re at school right now, aren’t you? Couples call each other things like this all the time. You need to get used to it.]
[Disguised Potato: If your girlfriend orders food delivery for you, of course I need to show my love!]
[Disguised Potato: Besides, Baby is a pet name. It’s just like “dear” or “darling.” Isn’t it cute~]
[Disguised Potato: If you don’t like it, then should I call you Zhiheng? Ah-Heng?]
This time, Lu Zhiheng fell completely silent.
Only after Jiang Nian got off the subway did he finally send a reply.
[Lu Zhiheng: Got it.]
Jiang Nian was confused.
What did “got it” mean?
Did that mean she was allowed to call him Baby now?
But since she had not heard System 999’s notification, the Male Lead probably accepted this setting?
At the moment, however, Jiang Nian had no time to dwell on Lu Zhiheng’s thoughts.
She still had two afternoon classes to attend.
Jiang Nian hurried on her way. By the time she arrived at the classroom, Fang Tian and Xu Yuner had already saved her a seat.
Only after checking the group chat did she learn that Su Shishi had stayed up too late the previous night and had taken a nasty fall while leaving the dorm building that morning. She was currently staying in the infirmary.
Jiang Nian sat down between the two girls and quietly asked,
“Is Shishi okay?”
Fang Tian shook her head.
“It’s nothing serious. Her ankle’s a little swollen. She happened to not want to attend class anyway, so she stayed at the infirmary.”
Jiang Nian let out a relieved breath.
“Ohhh, that’s good.”
At the podium, the course instructor knocked on the desk and loudly announced,
“I have an important notice for everyone! Yun University and neighboring Qing University will soon jointly host the Qingyun Creative Vision competition, a collaborative visual communication design contest!”
“The competition is open to all design majors from both schools regardless of grade level. The theme is ‘City Impressions,’ and the format is unrestricted.”
“You can scan this QR code to check the detailed participation process and registration guidelines.”
Yun University was a first-tier university and ranked quite highly within Jing City, though it was not nationally elite like Qing University.
However, in terms of artistic cultivation, Qing University—famous mainly for science and engineering—was probably no match for Yun University.
“I hope everyone actively participates and takes this seriously, because there are major prizes involved!”
The moment the instructor finished speaking, someone immediately could not hold back.
“Teacher, what prizes?”
“Besides award certificates, third prize winners will receive the latest laptop model. Second prize winners will receive an internship opportunity at Yunmeng Studio and the chance to lead a project. As for first prize, the winning work will be submitted to the government and displayed on landmark buildings and public transportation.”
“In addition, third prize comes with a 5,000 yuan bonus, second prize with 10,000 yuan, and first prize with 50,000 yuan.”
The classroom instantly exploded into excited chatter.
With opportunities and rewards this good, who would not be tempted?
“Niannian, Yuner, are you guys signing up?” Fang Tian was already eager to try.
“Of course!” Jiang Nian was also becoming excited.
With prizes like this on the line, she absolutely wanted to fight for first place!
Xu Yuner nodded as well.
“Definitely.”
After class ended, Jiang Nian and the others went to the infirmary to pick up Su Shishi before heading back to the dorm together.
The moment Su Shishi heard the news, she nearly forgot about her injured foot and jumped up.
“I’m joining too!”
Xu Yuner laughed.
“I knew you’d want to participate too. I already sent you all the details. Once we get back, we’ll register together.”
The moment they returned to the dormitory, the four girls immediately got busy.
With such excellent prizes, the difficulty and competition would naturally be intense.
The preliminary submission deadline was this weekend, leaving them only three days to create something.
The good news was that the preliminary theme was unrestricted, and previously completed works could also be submitted.
After thinking about it, Jiang Nian still decided she wanted to find fresh inspiration herself.
Three days was actually fairly sufficient.
In the blink of an eye, Saturday arrived.
Jiang Nian woke up early that morning and first went to the hospital to visit Grandma Ji.
This time, she did not run into Lin Xiangyu. Instead, she accompanied Grandma Ji’s children while helping push Grandma Ji around the hospital courtyard for a stroll.
After returning to the dormitory, Jiang Nian and the other three girls sat together with their laptops and continued rushing their work.
By the end of the afternoon, Jiang Nian had come up with three concepts. The girls all enthusiastically offered opinions at once, and in the end they finalized one proposal.
After staring at the computer all afternoon, Jiang Nian dug out eye drops from her drawer, applied some, and closed her eyes to rest.
System 999 urged her in her mind:
【Niannian, you haven’t contacted the Male Lead for a very long time today! It’s time to start acting clingy again!】
Jiang Nian thought that made sense.
Chatting with the Male Lead would also help clear her mind.
Recalling some online conversation tactics, Jiang Nian immediately began reversing blame.
[Disguised Potato: I thought we’d always have things to talk about…]
[Disguised Potato: Turns out if I don’t message you first, you won’t contact me at all!]
[Disguised Potato: Am I really that unimportant to you?]
Jiang Nian sent over a crying cat sticker and waited for Lu Zhiheng’s response.
However, this time Lu Zhiheng did not reply for a full hour.
Even after Jiang Nian finished dinner at the cafeteria, there was still no movement.
Jiang Nian jolted upright in alarm.
What did this mean?
Had calling him “Baby” once really scared him away?
Or was his disgust value nearing thirty, causing the Male Lead to stop bothering with her altogether?
How could this be allowed!
After hesitating for a moment, Jiang Nian decided to call Lu Zhiheng directly.
She casually threw on a jacket and ran to the dorm balcony while waiting for the call to connect.
This time, she did not wait long.
After the ringtone sounded three times, Lu Zhiheng’s voice came through the receiver.
“Hello, Jiang Nian. Is something wrong?”
His voice sounded slightly distorted through the phone, strangely carrying a hoarse roughness different from usual.
Immediately afterward, there came a loud clang from his side, as though some heavy object had hit the floor. There also seemed to be faint sounds of people talking nearby.
Jiang Nian was startled and hurriedly spoke up.
“Can’t I call you even if nothing’s wrong? You hadn’t replied to my messages at all, so I got a little worried…”
“What’s that noise over there?”
She had not heard clearly earlier, so she deliberately turned the volume up two more levels and pressed the phone closer to her ear.
The noisy background seemed to fade slightly, making the faint, hurried sound of breathing particularly distinct.
Breath after breath.
It made the tips of her ears grow hot.
Lu Zhiheng deliberately suppressed the rhythm of his breathing before finally answering:
“I’m at the gym.”