“I’m coming clean,” Qiao Shutang said, quickly sliding out of bed and ducking into the bathroom, using her “Xiao Qiao” voice to act cute for Ling Heng. “I’m just a lazy bug who isn’t hardworking or studious.”
“I have no motivation to get up unless I wake up every morning to a ‘good morning’ text from my boyfriend. Are you willing to check in with me every day?”
She sniffled, pretending to be aggrieved.
“But by the time I need to wake up, it’s the middle of the night where you are, and you’re already asleep. There’s an invisible time difference between us.”
“Maybe long-distance relationships are just a mistake.”
Ling Heng hadn’t expected her train of thought to jump so wildly. His original intention for the call was to wake her up; how had the conversation drifted toward the direction of breaking up?
“You really are poor at expressing yourself, yet unrestrained in your expression,” he said, his tone somewhat indulgent.
“Checking in every day is no problem. What time do you want me to say good morning to you?”
Qiao Shutang scratched her messy hair.
This crazy crown prince—why is he so easy to fool?
Is he really just a sheltered, naive rich kid?
She decided to continue being unreasonable.
“Even if you can say good morning every day, can you also say good afternoon and good night every day?”
There was a moment of silence on the other end.
“Are you indirectly expressing a wish for me to return to the country?”
Qiao Shutang: Σ(д|||)ノノ
She gave a dry laugh. “Absolutely not.”
Ling Heng said, “I’ll be returning home for a few days next month. When that happens, I’ll be able to say good morning, good afternoon, and good night to you every day.”
Qiao Shutang wasn’t feeling “hee-hee” at all.
“Ah? Hahaha… that’s great! I’m actually looking forward to it a little.”
“Um, I’m going to be late for school. Bye-bye!”
“Bye.”
Qiao Shutang stuck out her tongue and climbed back into the top bunk, preparing to go back to sleep.
A notification popped up on her phone.
Zero—: [Transfer of 100,000 yuan.]
Zero—: [Don’t be aggrieved. Buy some things you like.]
With tears in her eyes, Qiao Shutang clicked “Reject.”
Cat-Ear Xiao Qiao: [Money isn’t everything.]
Ling Heng stood by the glass curtain wall, overlooking the London nightscape.
Including today, Xiao Qiao had rejected his transfers three times.
Increasing the amount hadn’t helped.
It seemed she didn’t think it was too little.
He thought about consulting Ji Ran, but feared that nothing good would come out of that guy’s mouth.
Forget it, he’d ask an AI.
[I am in an online relationship with a girl. At first, she accepted my transfers instantly, but recently she suddenly started rejecting them. Why is this?]
The AI took 17 seconds to think.
[Hmm, the user is asking about the change in behavior regarding transfers to a girl in an online relationship, from instant acceptance to rejection, and wants to know the reason…]
Ling Heng skipped the thinking process and went straight to the results.
[Possible reasons:]
[1. The positioning of the relationship has changed: She has begun to take this relationship seriously and doesn’t want it to become a pattern of “transfer and receipt.” The rejection is actually a sign that she wants the emotion to be purer.]
The corners of Ling Heng’s mouth curled up.
She’s also started taking this relationship seriously?
We’re quite in sync.
[2. Testing your intentions: Using “sudden rejection” to observe your reaction—whether you will feel relieved, insist on continuing the transfers, or become cold because of it. She wants to confirm if you are “buying favor with money” or if you truly like her. Cold transfer numbers are not as effective at winning a heart as a carefully prepared gift.]
This suggestion was a revelation to Ling Heng.
He had never sent Xiao Qiao a gift.
Combining this with Xiao Qiao’s statement that “money isn’t everything,” it was likely that she felt he wasn’t being attentive enough in the relationship.
He glanced briefly at the remaining points.
[3. External factors: It’s possible there is someone around her…]
Impossible.
Absolutely impossible.
Ling Heng had total confidence in his masculine charm.
Who could possibly steal his wife?
[4.]
No need to look further; it must be number 2.
Yes, a gift!
Now, what kind of gift would be best for her?
On the other side, Qiao Shutang, who wanted to go back to sleep, found she couldn’t sleep at all.
She decided to get up and head to the South Canteen for breakfast.
She even brought a portion for Liang Jiaxin.
“Meat pies!!!” Liang Jiaxin’s expression was as if she had seen a ghost.
“Sister, just how early did you get up?”
The meat pies at C University’s South Canteen were always No. 1 on the bestseller list; they were always sold out by 7:00 AM. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to call them limited-edition breakfast.
Students had once complained to the school about why they didn’t make more meat pies, to which the school replied: “The early bird catches the worm.”
“Thanks to my sister, I’ve caught a good worm, boohoo.” Liang Jiaxin took a bite of the meat pie, her eyes glistening.
Qiao Shutang patted the back of her hand. “Cherish it. Every time you eat one is one less in the world.”
“If I ever wake up at 6:00 AM again, I’ll wash my hair while standing on my head.”
Qiao Shutang drew a simple sketch of Ling Heng in her notebook and then poked it violently with the tip of her pen.
Crazy lunatic, damn foreigner, why did he call me so early?
To be safe, she had to make sure to switch back to her own WeChat account before bed.
She couldn’t let him affect her sleep quality anymore.
Liang Jiaxin finished her meat pie, looking completely satisfied.
Professor Zhou, who was lecturing on Introduction to New Media, suddenly called on her in a very “nice” manner.
“The female student in the back row who just finished her meat pie, you answer this question.”
Liang Jiaxin blinked her large eyes, then blinked again.
Professor Zhou’s smile was faint. “Didn’t hear the question? No matter, I’ll repeat it.”
“Compared to traditional broadcasting, what is the professional skill most tested for broadcasting students in the short-video track?”
While Liang Jiaxin was still scratching her head in thought, Professor Zhou had already switched targets.
“Then let the female student sitting next to her answer. I see you’ve been buried in your writing and drawing; you must be taking diligent notes, right?”
Qiao Shutang stood up, silently covering Ling Heng’s face with her hand.
Luckily, she had been reborn; this knowledge point had appeared on the exam in her previous life.
“I believe it is the professional ability to adapt to different scenarios.”
“In traditional scenarios, mastering the broadcasting tone is a basic skill for hosts. But when adapting to new media scenarios, we should break out of the rigid reporting mode and adopt a more flexible expression to enhance the sense of interaction…”
Qiao Shutang spoke eloquently, and Professor Zhou kept nodding and smiling.
Internally, the professor even wondered, Did she sneak a peek at my lesson plan?
“Very good. What is your name?”
“Qiao Shutang.”
Some classmates chimed in, “Professor, she’s the campus belle, she’s very famous.”
Professor Zhou’s smile was affectionate. “Both her appearance and professional awareness are very good. Student Qiao, keep it up.”
After finishing four classes in the morning, Qiao Shutang didn’t even want to eat lunch. Completely drained of energy, she returned to the dormitory to catch up on sleep.
Zong Muli looked up from her game world to glance at her.
“Yo, the beautiful top student is back.”
Qiao Shutang was so sleepy she was almost numb. “Babe, I want to nap. Can you wear headphones while you play?”
Zong Muli didn’t answer.
But a few seconds later, the world went silent.
Before falling asleep, Qiao Shutang didn’t forget to fulfill her duties as a girlfriend.
Cat-Ear Xiao Qiao: [( · ) Eat your meals.]
At this time, it was only past 5:00 AM in the UK; Ling Heng was definitely asleep.
Safe.
Zero—: [Give me your address and phone number.]
Qiao Shutang: Σ(°△°|||)︴