Jiang Tang returned to her dormitory. As soon as she put away the things she had bought, she heard her roommate Song Xu scream.
“Tangtang, look at the trending searches!”
Another roommate, Zhou Nuo, also shouted: “And Douyin!”
Wen Nian added: “And the campus forum!”
Only then did Jiang Tang realize with shock that she and Shen Xiunian had been photographed.
They had simultaneously appeared on Weibo’s trending searches, explosive forum posts, and popular Douyin videos.
Jiang Tang hurriedly clicked on the links and was surprised to find that there were hardly any negative comments in the comment sections.
She particularly liked the Douyin video. Douyin had only captured a short clip, which was slowed down, filters were added, and it was paired with a perfectly matching background music—it was truly full of atmosphere!
The comment section was filled with people shipping them.
Jiang Tang whispered, “I thought there would be negative comments, like saying I’m not good enough for Shen Xiunian or something.”
Song Xu exclaimed loudly, “Tangtang, how could you not be good enough for Shen Xiunian?”
“Shen Xiunian is indeed a genius, but you’re not bad either—you’re in the same university as him!”
Wen Nian also said, “That’s right, Tangtang. Geniuses like Shen Xiunian are indeed rare, but we also fought our way through fierce competition, scoring point by point to get into this university.”
Zhou Nuo nodded emphatically, “Exactly! Tangtang, you’re not lacking at all.”
Jiang Tang was deeply moved.
D University was the top university in the country. Every student admitted was outstanding, and each had their own pride.
Naturally, Jiang Tang was no exception—she had also earned her place through her own efforts.
She watched the video two more times and suddenly remembered something.
“Wouldn’t Shen Xiunian’s family have seen these videos too?”
She realized she had been a bit slow on the uptake. She had asked Shen Xiunian to post their photo on his social media, so of course the Shen family had all seen it.
Looking at her roommates, Jiang Tang began to worry, “Do you think something like in TV dramas might happen? Like someone offering me money to leave Shen Xiunian?”
Song Xu, Zhou Nuo, and Wen Nian all laughed strangely.
They sent her another link, still from Weibo’s trending topics.
Jiang Tang clicked on it and could hardly believe her eyes. She read the words out loud, one by one, in shock: “Shen Group headquarters sets off fireworks to celebrate Shen Xiunian dating?”
“Yes!”
All three of them—Song Xu and the others—were laughing.
Jiang Tang clicked on the video. Sure enough, it showed the Shen Group headquarters setting off fireworks. They had even put up a banner: Warmly Celebrating Shen Xiunian Dating!
Jiang Tang was bewildered, “How is this different from what I imagined?”
“That’s not how it goes in TV dramas.”
The System explained for her: “Tangtang, Shen Xiunian himself suspected he might be asexual. Think about his family—they must have suspected it even earlier. Now that he’s suddenly dating, of course the Shen family is happy. For them, this is definitely good news worth celebrating.”
Jiang Tang was puzzled, “But the original story didn’t mention any of this.”
The System replied, “Tangtang, since this is a real world, everything naturally operates on its own in areas not covered by the original story.”
Jiang Tang thought Tongtong made sense.
Leaning against Wen Nian, she forwarded the post about the Shen Group headquarters setting off fireworks to Shen Xiunian.
“Have you seen this?”
Shen Xiunian was currently at the Shen family estate, a sprawling manor.
At that moment, fireworks were also being set off in the manor.
He changed into loungewear and sank loosely into the sofa. His phone was placed beside him, with several apps running in the background—the campus forum, Weibo, and Douyin. The screen remained lit, displaying his chat history with Jiang Tang.
Just then, a message from Jiang Tang came through.
Shen Xiunian picked up his phone, saw Jiang Tang’s message, and quickly replied, “The fireworks were arranged by my sister.”
“Your sister?” Jiang Tang was curious.
“Yes. My sister is the heir to the Shen Group.”
“Wow!” Jiang Tang was genuinely shocked.
Shen Xiunian: “I’ll introduce you to her when there’s a chance.”
“Sure.” Jiang Tang agreed.
Shen Xiunian then recorded another video of fireworks at the Shen family’s ancestral home and sent it to Jiang Tang, along with a message: “My family is setting them off too.”
Jiang Tang opened the video and couldn’t help but marvel—even the Dubai fireworks show wasn’t as grand as this.
The magnificent estate was simply unbelievable.
Jiang Tang laughed.
She laughed at her own poverty.
The video showed many Shen family members gathered to watch the fireworks, with a banner hanging in the background: “Celebrating Shen Xiunian Falling in Love!”
The Shen family’s atmosphere was warm and joyful.
Jiang Tang sent a shy emoji.
Shen Xiunian clicked into Jiang Tang’s social media feed. The latest post was from yesterday, featuring a cat from campus, with no new updates since.
Shen Xiunian: “You haven’t posted the photo yet.”
He quickly sent another message.
“Did you forget?”
Jiang Tang: !!
She could almost sense danger in those three short words.
She had a gut feeling that if she dared to admit she’d actually forgotten, she’d be in trouble.
Jiang Tang hurriedly typed: “I didn’t forget to post it—I was waiting for a special time to share it.”
Shen Xiunian read the message and didn’t reply further. His expression appeared casual, but he was secretly waiting.
He’d been waiting ever since he returned to the ancestral home.
Shen Xiunian’s sister, Shen Xiuyu, the heir to the Shen Group, walked over. She glanced at his phone screen, saw the messages, and teased with a smirk, “Being in love really changes you.”
Shen Xiunian turned off the screen.
Shen Xiuyu said, “Bring her over to visit sometime.”
Shen Xiunian lazily acknowledged with a hum.
Jiang Tang immediately created a group for her mom’s friends and began editing her social media post.
The photo was a selfie of her and Shen Xiunian, with the caption: “Forever Happy.”
Jiang Tang waited quietly until 5:20 PM, then immediately hit “post.”
After posting, she refreshed her feed several times until the post finally appeared.
She took a screenshot showing the posting time as 5:20 PM and sent it to Shen Xiunian.
“Ta-da! Take a look~”
Shen Xiunian saw the screenshot, especially the posting time, and a subtle smile crept onto his lips.
5:20.
Indeed, a very special time.
Shen Xiunian was satisfied. He clicked into the post and gave it a like.
Jiang Tang also clicked into Shen Xiunian’s social media feed and liked the post he had shared.
By the time she finished all this, she was sweating.
She really had forgotten! She never expected Shen Xiunian to remember—it scared her!
She hadn’t realized Shen Xiunian was so particular about rituals.
After dinner, Jiang Tang began organizing the things she’d bought at the supermarket, tossing items like pajamas into the washing machine.
She stayed busy until evening, then prepared to shower and go to bed.
Jiang Tang carefully removed the necklace from her neck and, with a reverent mindset, placed it into a box, storing it securely in a cabinet.
She planned to wear this necklace only when going on dates with Shen Xiunian in the future, leaving it untouched at other times.
Otherwise, if it were to get scratched or damaged, her heart would surely break.