Her phone on the desk suddenly rang, and Fu Ming Shi's profile photo popped up on the screen. Even now, Zhen Bao didn't fully understand all the functions on her phone. Her contacts and profile photos had been set up by Grandpa Fu.
Although Zhen Bao grabbed her phone swiftly, Jia Xiao Yu still caught a glimpse and tutted, "Your boyfriend's checking up on you already. How thoughtful."
Zhen Bao's face turned red as she went out to the balcony to answer the call, pulling the soundproof sliding door closed.
"Did you have military training today?" There were faint, uneven sounds of chatter coming from below and further away, but Fu Ming Shi's voice was clear, as if transmitted through a channel designated just for him, low and pleasant in her ear.
Zhen Bao murmured yes.
"Are you tired?" Fu Ming Shi leaned back on the living room sofa, absentmindedly looking at Hei Dan squatting in front of him. With her gone, the villa suddenly felt empty. When he had returned after dinner, if not for the dog that belonged to her still being there, Fu Ming Shi had for a moment doubted whether he had dreamt everything - maybe Zhen Bao was only a person from his dreams.
But the call connected and he heard her nervous voice, settling his heart.
"It was okay. The others all said it was hot, but it's much cooler here than in City C," Zhen Bao chatted happily about her school life. "Oh right, there's a high school classmate of mine in my class here."
Fu Ming Shi narrowed his eyes slightly. "Boy or girl?"
"Girl. She lives in the dorm next to ours."
Fu Ming Shi leaned back into the sofa and patted Hei Dan's head. "If you want to keep it secret, even that classmate can't know about us." He was worried Zhen Bao might accidentally let slip their secret to someone familiar, causing trouble for herself. Sometimes, the closer someone was, the more unable they were to accept your meteoric rise, leading to jealousy.
Of course Zhen Bao wouldn't tell Feng Yue. She wouldn't tell anyone unless absolutely necessary.
"You've had a tiring day. Sleep early." Fu Ming Shi wasn't busy tonight but didn't want to deprive Zhen Bao of rest just because he missed her.
"Okay, you sleep early too." Zhen Bao was the one to end the call first, waiting a few seconds before hanging up.
When she returned inside, Qian Lele rushed over first, wanting to see the photos of Zhen Bao's supposedly tall, handsome and virtuous boyfriend. Since Zhen Bao had no pictures of Fu Ming Shi on her phone, she could only open her contacts and show them his profile photo. In the picture, Fu Ming Shi was playing tennis, bending over to receive the ball, his deep dark eyes gazing straight ahead brimming with restrained ferocity ready to strike at any time.
"He's so handsome!" Qian Lele was drooling with infatuation. Even the most serious Fan Xuan had shining eyes.
"Ding!" Zhen Bao received a new WeChat message.
The screen showed it was a photo. Qian Lele suppressed her curiosity and politely returned the phone to Zhen Bao, but she and the other two still crowded around to see the photo possibly sent by Zhen Bao's handsome boyfriend. Worried that it might reveal something of Fu Ming Shi's villa, Zhen Bao looked carefully before daring to show them.
The photo was of a silly, cute black dog.
"That's...a mutt, right?" Qian Lele said, surprised.
"Your boyfriend sure has unique taste in pets," Jia Xiao Yu quickly added.
Zhen Bao couldn't help but explain, "That's my dog."
In unison, the three girls turned to her. "Why is your dog with him then?" They looked as if they had discovered some big secret.
Zhen Bao didn't understand their meaning, but improvised an excuse seriously, "My aunt is away on a business trip so he's helping to take care of it for a few days."
Jia Xiao Yu and the other two humphed, certain there was something more going on.
Zhen Bao hopped into bed and continued reading her book. As she read, she took out her phone to flip through the photos.
She missed Hei Dan after not seeing him for a few days.
~
On the fifth day of training, even Zhen Bao was starting to find it tiring. They barely made it through the morning session. Everyone lined up to march from the training site back to the dorm building where they had gathered that morning before dispersing.
On the way there, Jia Xiao Yu's phone vibrated. Seeing the caller ID, she lifted it to her ear in confusion. "You are...?"
"Zhen Bao's phone can't get through." Fu Ming Shi stood at the side of the main road leading to Zhen Bao's dorm building, his dark eyes sweeping over the passing groups of military training freshmen.
Just as Jia Xiao Yu was about to hand the phone to Zhen Bao, she suddenly noticed the tall, upright figure not far away and recognized him as Zhen Bao's boyfriend. Jia Xiao Yu smiled and said softly, "I see you. Zhen Bao's right in front of me. Let's see if you can find her."
After hanging up, she glanced back at Zhen Bao.
Jia Xiao Yu smiled mysteriously and gripped Zhen Bao's shoulders to make her face forward again. With all the girls wearing camo uniforms and caps covering their foreheads, leaving only a bit of their faces visible, it would be a real test of love if Zhen Bao's boyfriend could pick her out from the crowds.
Fu Ming Shi put down his phone and looked up at the freshmen marchers coming down the road, females in front and males behind. He moved to the stone steps at the side of the greenbelt to take advantage of his height and observe the girls on both sides one by one.
At 165cm, Zhen Bao wasn't very noticeable.
But two minutes later, Fu Ming Shi still recognized his fiancée.
The corners of his lips quirked up as he stepped down from the stone stairs and slowly walked toward her.
Zhen Bao, however, was looking in the direction of the cafeteria. She was hungry, but had to go back to the dorm first to get her meal card. She had left both her card, with its ample balance, and her expensive phone in the dorm, afraid of losing them or cracking the screen during training.
Lost in thought, she was suddenly poked from behind by Jia Xiao Yu.
Zhen Bao looked back halfway before her gaze landed on the figure ahead and froze.
Fu Ming Shi wore a tennis cap. The bright noon sun cast a halo of soft light around him. In the glow, the man's dark eyes looked straight at her. When she finally reached his side, Fu Ming Shi lifted his hand. In it was a thermal flask. "Salted water. Drink some first."
Zhen Bao instinctively moved to take it, but Jia Xiao Yu pushed her right out of the marching line.
Take what? If it were her, with such a handsome, romantic boyfriend, she would have already thrown herself into his arms