"Mm."
"Don't tell me your child is already old enough to run errands."
"No, still in the belly."
"What are you doing now? Let's meet up." Xu Xiujie's voice was urgent.
"Warming milk for my wife."
"..."
What a surreal scene.
"Old Zhou, what's the situation? How did you suddenly get married? Did Uncle and Aunt force you to get married?" Xu Xiujie couldn't believe it.
"No, it was just a small accident, but it's within controllable limits."
As if. When has anything ever been outside Professor Zhou's controllable limits?
"You're not going to tell me your wife is a foreigner and your child is a mixed-race kid, are you?"
"No."
Xu Xiujie knew he wouldn't get any useful information over the phone, so he said anxiously, "When will you be free? Let's meet up, and bring your sister-in-law along too."
Zhou Ji pondered for a moment.
It wouldn't be a problem to bring Xin Zhiyao to meet his friend, but he would have to ask for her opinion first.
"I'll ask her."
"Okay, okay, ask her and give me your answer."
"The milk will get cold. I'll tell you once I have a reply," Zhou Ji said before hanging up.
"????????"
Xu Xiujie stared dumbfounded at his phone, which had just been hung up on.
Seriously? Just because the milk was getting cold, he hung up on his friend of ten years?
This made Xu Xiujie even more curious about Zhou Ji's sudden marriage.
After all, he had known Zhou Ji for so many years; he could confidently say no one knew him better.
He had been excellent since high school, the center of attention, a prominent figure at school. Although he appeared gentle and polite, he always maintained a clear sense of boundary with people. Countless girls liked him, but he had never shown interest in any of them.
Later, when he went abroad to study, they occasionally kept in touch. He even joked about finding a foreign girl, but Zhou Ji clearly wasn't interested. He would only discuss academic matters with him, like how a certain country had published a new academic paper with a rather novel viewpoint.
Later, the person who published that paper became him. He could always see his name after famous papers, as if publishing SCI articles was easier for him than going to the bathroom. He was incredibly competitive.
At first, Xu Xiujie felt the urge to compete with him, but later, being so far behind, he simply gave up.
Who could possibly compare to him?
So, as far as he knew, the extremely busy Zhou Ji had no time for romance and had never mentioned any woman.
A man who had been single for thirty years, devoid of desire, suddenly telling him he was married with a child made Xu Xiujie suspect he didn't even know how to make a child with a woman.
In short, Xu Xiujie was incredibly curious.
Meanwhile, Zhou Ji had no idea what image he projected to his friend. After hanging up, he took the warm milk and was about to leave the kitchen when he turned and met those big, dark, curious eyes.
Xin Zhiyao had come out for a drink of water and heard sounds from the kitchen, so she peeked in. Zhou Ji had just finished his phone call.
"Were you on the phone?" she asked.
"Mm, a high school friend called," Zhou Ji handed her the milk, "It's getting cold."
Actually, Xin Zhiyao wasn't that fussy; she had never heated her milk before.
But she was starting to like the feeling of drinking warm milk now.
After thanking him and taking it, she took a few gulps and then asked curiously, "You're still in touch with your high school friends?"
"Not many, just one or two."
Xin Zhiyao thought about his time studying abroad and couldn't help but ask, "How do you find life studying abroad?"
Zhou Ji gazed thoughtfully, as if seriously considering her question, "It's quite good. You can exchange cultures with people from different ethnic backgrounds, broaden your horizons. Every place has something worth learning from."
After hearing his words, Xin Zhiyao began to imagine Zhou Ji standing with a group of people from different ethnic backgrounds, exchanging ideas, everyone speaking eloquently, their faces beaming with confident smiles.
Zhou Ji noticed Xin Zhiyao's unconscious look of envy. He smiled slightly, "If you have the chance, you should also go out and see more. The world outside is vast."
See the world.
Xin Zhiyao had never considered it.
The path of studying medicine was already something she had fought hard for. At most, she could imagine working as a doctor after graduation and doing that for her entire life.
See the world outside? She dared not even imagine it.
She didn't say anything and finished all the milk in the cup.
Zhou Ji reached out to take her cup.
Xin Zhiyao repeatedly shook her head and darted into the kitchen, washing the cup clean.
Zhou Ji watched her place the cup on the rack and then thought of something, "The friend I was just talking to on the phone said he wants to meet you."
"Ah?" Xin Zhiyao's eyes widened as she looked at him.
Zhou Ji misunderstood her meaning, "You don't want to go?"
"N-no, it's not that. Why does he want to meet me?" Xin Zhiyao stammered.
"Perhaps because I, a lone wolf, suddenly have a wife, he's very curious."
"..."
Professor Zhou is quite humorous.
Seeing her silence, Zhou Ji continued, "If you don't want to go, it's okay not to."
"No—" Xin Zhiyao shook her head, "I'm just a little nervous."
Zhou Ji's friends must also be excellent people. Would he feel unworthy of them?
Zhou Ji chuckled, "If you're nervous meeting a friend, how will you handle meeting my parents? You'll probably cry and hide."
Xin Zhiyao blushed and shot him a playful glare.
Her charming demeanor was unconsciously revealed, her eyes seemed to hold a shimmering moisture, and her cheeks were full and flushed.
Zhou Ji's heart stirred slightly, then he looked at her calmly, "No need to be nervous. He doesn't bite, and besides, I'm here."
The words "I'm here" were enough to give Xin Zhiyao a sense of security, and she finally nodded, "Okay."
"Then shall we set it for the weekend?"
"Sure."
That evening, Zhou Ji sent a message to Xu Xiujie: Saturday evening.
It was only Wednesday, how could Xu Xiujie wait: Why wait until Saturday?
Zhou Ji: She's busy during the week.
Xu Xiujie: Fine.
Zhou Ji: She's young, so be a bit restrained when you meet her. Don't scare her.
Xu Xiujie almost burst out laughing when he read that. He had never seen Zhou Ji be so protective.
Young? How young could she be? Maybe just turned twenty.
Xu Xiujie: Got it, got it. I don't look scary, do I? Why would I scare her?
Zhou Ji: Hard to say.
Hmph.
Xu Xiujie tossed his phone onto the bed.
This conversation was completely uninteresting.
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