Qiu Qiu getting the advancement card was completely unexpected for Little Li. She had deliberately put him on stage to sing the theme song of "Pleasant Goat and Big Big Wolf," hoping he would embarrass himself. But not only did he not embarrass himself, he actually brought them great honor.
She had a feeling that from now on, Qiu Qiu wouldn’t belong to her alone anymore—he’d become “our oppa Qiu.” Yet, another voice in her heart whispered—he never really belonged to you in the first place. The fifty thousand yuan in her hand felt like a cruel joke mocking her recent delusions. She had cast herself as a lead in this drama, but the other main actor never even got into character.
Qiu Qiu was surprised too. He held the advancement card like it was a hot potato, feeling awkward no matter where he put it. When he stepped off the stage, classmates swarmed around to congratulate him, as if the next moment he would become a big star. Da Xiong pushed through the crowd from the back and patted him on the shoulder. “Qiu'er! Don’t forget your old friends when you get rich and famous!”
But Qiu Qiu had never thought about getting rich or famous.
His thoughts about the future had always been vague. So far, his life plan was simple: study hard, dive into the sea of books, try to secure a graduate research spot in university, then pursue a doctorate and keep researching literature... But what to do after finishing his PhD?
He hadn’t figured that out yet.
Maybe he’d be like Teacher Qiu, spending a lifetime in an office compiling dictionaries so that every Chinese textbook bears his name; or like Teacher Dong, teaching and nurturing students, spreading his country’s culture abroad.
Singing was just a small hobby to relax. Even though he could compose music and write lyrics, and often performed on the school’s top ten singer stage, he never dreamed of making a living from it or becoming a big star.
After the crowd of onlookers dispersed, Qiu Qiu wandered around a bit and found a staff member wearing a yellow vest labeled “Super New Voice.” Stammering, he asked to return the advancement card and to withdraw from the competition.
The yellow-vested staff looked at him like he was a clueless Pleasant Goat who had eaten too much grass.
The advancement card wasn’t easy to get; the conditions were very strict. The “Super New Voice” auditions followed the format of previous talent shows. There were five judges in total. If three or four judges gave a pass, the contestant advanced. But if all five judges passed, the contestant would receive a special advancement card, allowing them to skip directly to the provincial semifinals as a seeded player.
“Are you really giving up?” the yellow vest asked. “Don’t underestimate this round just because it’s a live online broadcast with few viewers. Starting from the provincial semifinals, we’ll promote it everywhere! You know about those pop-up ads when you open the app, right? Every viewer who has our app installed will see it the moment they launch the software. Think about it—that’s an amazing chance to get famous!”
Qiu Qiu hesitated. “I’m a student... I don’t want to be famous. I just want to study well.”
“Don’t be so modest. I’ve heard you win scholarships every year, your grades are amazing, and yet you never relax? Little brother, let me give you some advice: when you’re young, you have to do something crazy, or you’ll regret it when you get old,” the yellow vest tried to persuade him.
Qiu Qiu still shook his head. How could an adult rely on adrenaline to get things done? You have to use your brain.
The guy in the yellow vest saw that Qiu Qiu was stubborn as ever and suddenly got anxious. “I’ve never seen anyone as dumb as you! There’s a bonus just for singing a song, and everyone else is scrambling to get in. Why are you backing away?”
That hit a nerve with Qiu Qiu, who had just gone from rich to poor overnight. He wanted to pretend he didn’t care about money, but he was terrible at pretending. “There’s a bonus?”
“Yeah! The provincial semifinals cut from ten to six. As long as you rank in the top six, each person gets fifty thousand yuan in cash!”
Qiu Qiu’s mind immediately lit up—his guitar, which he left with his godfather, was worth exactly fifty thousand yuan.
He thought, why not join another competition? He wasn’t greedy—just enough to redeem his guitar.
...
Because Qiu Qiu had won the campus competition, Da Xiong was shouting for him to treat him. Qiu Qiu wasn’t stingy, so he took Da Xiong to the school canteen for some stir-fried dishes.
Da Xiong was a tough guy, not picky at all. He’d eat anything. Give him a slice of watermelon, and he’d scrape the rind clean. Usually, he was happy eating the seven-yuan student meal sets at the school canteen. Now that Qiu Qiu was treating him to stir-fry, he was all smiles, planning what to order all the way from the main square to the canteen.
Every university had a slightly upscale “staff canteen.” Professors taught all day and worried themselves bald, so naturally, they deserved better food. The staff canteen served only stir-fry dishes—no big pot meals—and the prices were quite a bit higher than the student canteen. Plus, it wasn’t mealtime now, so there weren’t many students around.
As soon as Da Xiong entered, he looked like a polar bear wandering into a seal enclosure. His eyes, as big as copper coins, darted around as he said, “You order whatever you want, I’ll go save us a seat.” Dragging his flip-flops, he headed straight for the swing seats by the window.
Nowadays, most school canteens were run by contractors. The staff canteen’s operator was a savvy businessperson who had set up a row of “romantic swing seats” by the windows. Each table had a wooden swing on either side, decorated with fake flowers, fake grass, and fake fences. These spots were a hit with the girls—perfect for bestie hangouts or couples’ dates, where you could often see whispering pairs swaying gently.
Da Xiong’s girly side was as developed as his biceps. The moment he entered, he rushed to claim a swing seat. Qiu Qiu ordered three meat dishes to suit his tastes, then carried his tray over and plopped down opposite him.
But no sooner had they sat down than Qiu Qiu spotted two familiar figures—
Fu Ruien was dressed in a custom-tailored iron-gray suit, hands in his pockets, standing in the middle of the canteen. His shoes were polished brighter than the floor tiles. From head to toe, he screamed “elite,” completely out of place in the greasy university canteen.
Movie protagonists usually come with their own soundtrack, but Fu Ruien’s presence felt like a three-meter radius force field. Even the most fierce canteen aunties dared not bang their spatulas as hard as usual while cooking.
His secretary stood behind him, also in a suit, holding a stainless steel tray and looking up at the menu posted on the canteen window.
The secretary asked attentively, “Boss, what would you like to eat?”
“Whatever’s quick. We have to be at the airport within an hour.”
After watching Qiu Qiu’s performance, Fu Ruien had originally planned to head straight home. But an important collaboration suddenly came up that required him to personally fly over for a meeting. He spent half the year as a frequent flyer, and no matter how fancy the airplane meals were, he just couldn’t stomach them. So, he decided to grab a quick bite before boarding to fill his stomach.
Since time was tight, what could be faster than the school cafeteria?
As luck would have it, the moment he walked in, he spotted his “sweet son” not eating properly but swinging on the swings instead.
He watched Qiu Qiu from a distance, saying nothing.
Qiu Qiu looked back at him from afar, also silent.
Then Da Xiong suddenly shouted, “Hey hey hey, Qiu Qiu, isn’t that the handsome guy who gave you 300 likes the other night?!”
The secretary couldn’t help but chuckle.
Da Xiong enthusiastically stood up and invited them over to sit together. Qiu Qiu stayed quiet, nervously sitting on the swing, gripping the ropes tightly, his eyes darting around.
The secretary was about to politely decline when Fu Ruien took a long stride over and deliberately sat down right beside Qiu Qiu, not even blushing a bit, acting as if it were a casual coincidence.
The swing swayed back and forth, and Qiu Qiu’s heart followed the rhythm, fluttering along.
Before their dishes arrived, Da Xiong pushed his three plates over to them.
Fu Ruien was in a hurry, so after a brief thanks, he picked up his chopsticks and bowl and started eating. His table manners were impeccable—even eating fish-flavored shredded pork looked like he was savoring a Michelin-star meal. Da Xiong rested his chin in his hands, openly starstruck.
Da Xiong asked, “How do you and Qiu Qiu know each other?”
The secretary helped answer, “Our General Manager Fu admires Qiu Qiu’s talent and has provided him with a private scholarship.”
Da Xiong proudly said, “Our Qiu is so outstanding—only your Vice President appreciates him? What about the General Manager?”
“General Manager Zheng? He’s based in Southeast Asia and hasn’t met Qiu Qiu.”
The two chatted away enthusiastically, seemingly on different wavelengths.
Qiu Qiu wasn’t a shy person, but ever since Fu Ruien sat beside him, he hadn’t said a word—because his godfather had, under the cover of the dining table, placed his hand on Qiu Qiu’s thigh!
Back when their relationship was still innocent and untainted, Fu Ruien would often casually rest his hand on Qiu Qiu while eating—sometimes draping an arm over his shoulder, sometimes placing a hand on his back, sometimes like now, resting it on his thigh.
Each time, Qiu Qiu would firmly shake his hand off and seriously say, “Godfather, your hands are too warm. Don’t keep touching me.”
Qiu Qiu was naturally cool-blooded, but Fu Ruien was always burning with passion.
At first, Qiu Qiu didn’t understand why Fu Ruien kept touching him and would straightforwardly remove his hand. But now that he understood, he... felt too embarrassed to make him pull away.
Qiu Qiu thought something must be wrong with him as he anxiously picked up a piece of braised hairtail fish and quietly nibbled on it.
Qiu Qiu was especially good at eating ribbonfish. Every time, he’d first bite off the small bones along both sides, spit them out, then devour all the meat on the body, leaving behind just the big central bone—clean and neat enough to be used as a comb.
Just as he finished picking off the tiny side bones, a pair of chopsticks suddenly reached over and snatched the ribbonfish meat right out of his bowl.
Only Fu Ruien would have the nerve to pull such a shameless move.
Caught off guard, Qiu Qiu blurted out, “Godfather!”
Straight-shooter Da Xiong: “...???”
Fu Ruien, completely unfazed, took a bite of the ribbonfish meat and said, “What?”
Qiu Qiu: “That fish had my saliva all over it. Aren’t you grossed out?”
Fu Ruien: “What’s wrong with your saliva? Haven’t I eaten enough of it already?”
The universe’s most clueless straight guy, Da Xiong: “…………???????”
Qiu Qiu thought about it and realized they occasionally shared a cup, and often picked food for each other, so maybe he shouldn’t be so picky. But still… Fu Ruien had no right to just snatch his food like that.
Fu Ruien added, “Besides, why are you eating fish? You should be eating grass.”
Qiu Qiu was baffled: “Why would I be eating grass?”
“Because ‘you’re just a sheep.’”
“……”
Qiu Qiu put down his chopsticks, looking at him in confusion. “Godfather, how do you know I went to that singing competition?”
Fu Ruien was caught off guard.
“And why did you suddenly decide to eat in our school cafeteria?”
Fu Ruien put on a show: “I just closed a twenty-million-dollar deal nearby. I’m rushing to the airport, so I’m just grabbing a quick bite.”
That excuse was airtight. No matter how hard Qiu Qiu thought, he couldn’t figure out how his godfather’s twenty-million-dollar deal could possibly be connected to him.
