"Zhou Yuwen, I never expected this from you. Did I say something wrong? I told you, I'll wait for you if you repeat the year. Don't you even have that much trust in me?" Su Qianqian was very angry.
Su Qianqian's mother and Zhou Yuwen's mother worked in the same unit, and the two grew up together since childhood. Su Qianqian was a good student, while Zhou Yuwen was more mischievous, one of the boys who liked to show off in class.
There were also a few girls who secretly admired Zhou Yuwen.
Of course, Su Qianqian, who was experiencing her first love, had a secret crush on him too.
However, young love often fades in the face of the university's bustling world.
At this moment, Su Qianqian truly felt that waiting for Zhou Yuwen for a year and then starting their first relationship was the right thing to do. Su Qianqian came from a happy family and was the only child, always treated as the little princess at home. Because of this, she could be a bit spoiled and, while she projected an elegant demeanor in front of others, she was uninhibited around those she knew. Growing up together with Zhou Yuwen, she had always enjoyed teasing him.
Due to the strong personality of her mother and the more passive nature of her father, Su Qianqian had developed a habit of taking charge at home. When they played house as children, Su Qianqian always mimicked her mother, saying Zhou Yuwen only knew how to fish every day and ignored their children.
Looking back now, Zhou Yuwen couldn't help but wonder what he had been thinking in his past life to have liked Su Qianqian. Perhaps the biggest reason was her beauty, with her innocent and charming face. If he were to compare her to someone else, she could rival the popular Milk Tea Sister in terms of having a pure appearance. Although he didn't know much about Milk Tea Sister's personality, Su Qianqian's personality was indeed not very likable.
At this moment, Su Qianqian was complaining to Zhou Yuwen incessantly, seemingly doing so out of concern for him.
Feeling annoyed, Zhou Yuwen simply closed QQ and focused entirely on his writing. In July, he earned a total of sixty thousand yuan in manuscript fees, with two thousand yuan used for his driver's license, and the rest invested in a stock account.
In the past ten years, Zhou Yuwen wasn't really clear about which stocks had significant gains. Nonetheless, buying some high-quality stocks seemed like a safe bet to him. As long as the money wasn't needed immediately, he kept it invested in stocks. Whenever he needed money, he could withdraw it, regardless of how much profit he made. For Zhou Yuwen, keeping money in stocks definitely yielded higher returns than bank interest.
In August, the scorching weather continued. The old air conditioner at home stopped working suddenly, prompting Zhou Yuwen to go directly to the electronics store and bring back two new air conditioners—one for his own room and another for his mother's room.
Curious, his mother asked Zhou Yuwen where the money came from.
Zhou Yuwen replied, "I earned it from writing novels."
"What novels? There are so many scammers online. Don't get fooled," his mother said, expressing her initial concern upon learning that Zhou Yuwen was making money from writing novels.
Zhou Yuwen reassured her, "Don't worry, I can't be fooled. What's there to scam from someone as broke as me?"
His mother then asked how much he earned. Zhou Yuwen said, "Just a few thousand yuan, not much."
Zhou Yuwen didn't dare mention that he earned tens of thousands of yuan. If he did, his mother would definitely think he was being deceived.
A few thousand yuan seemed more believable.
Mother could still boast to her mahjong friends, saying her son had grown up and was now making money.
In early August, Zhou Yuwen's high school classmate, Wang Baoming, came to see him, suggesting, "A few of us who went to Jinling for school are planning to get together. Are you coming?"
"I'm not going." Zhou Yuwen was well aware of how things had turned out for his high school buddies, especially those in Jinling.
Honestly, the trends in society were here. Without any special talents, one could only become a corporate drone. Although some people in Jinling had bought cars and houses, it didn't necessarily mean they were happier. Even with a car and a house, they still squeezed onto the subway at eight o'clock and ate 3.5 yuan egg pancakes.
In his past life, Zhou Yuwen might have boasted, but wasn't he still squeezed into buying a house in Pukou? Even though housing prices in Pukou had risen, who had the leisure to sell their house?
Once you left, you couldn't go back.
Wang Baoming sat on Zhou Yuwen's small bed, scratched his head, and hesitated, "Old Zhou, you should come take a look. Everyone who went to Jinling is going."
"They can do their thing; why should I care? Can't you see I'm busy now?" Zhou Yuwen tapped away at his keyboard. He was quite adept at multitasking since crossing over, simultaneously thinking about the plot and chatting with Wang Baoming, his typing speed showing no signs of slowing down.
"Just come…" Wang Baoming insisted.
Zhou Yuwen stopped tapping his keyboard, looked at Wang Baoming with curiosity, and said, "Hey, something's not right. Why are you specifically coming to ask me to join the gathering? It's not like you."
"Ah…" Wang Baoming evaded eye contact nervously.
Zhou Yuwen instantly understood, "Su Qianqian sent you, didn't she?"
"Ah," Wang Baoming sighed and said, "Zhou, there's no need for this. I know you're still upset about Su Qianqian rejecting you, but she specifically asked me to find you. Can't you give a little face? Why not go take a look? Maybe there's a chance for a turnaround?"
Wang Baoming was acting on behalf of someone else, after all. It was Su Qianqian, the high school beauty queen.
In truth, Wang Baoming was a bit envious of Zhou Yuwen. Just imagine if it were him confessing to Su Qianqian, and she said, "If you repeat a year, I'll say yes."
Wang Baoming would definitely have been determined to stick it out, not just for a year, but even for ten!
But I never expected Zhou Yuwen to be so…
Insensitive!
"Old Zhou," Wang Baoming cajoled persistently.
Zhou Yuwen remained resolute: "I'm not going. You tell that Su Qianqian, either she becomes my girlfriend or we remain strangers. It's her choice."