1240 Side Story 19: Let’s Have Dinner Together

The heavy rain fell like a waterfall.

Gu Tingyin walked half a step behind Shen Zhijin. She secretly took out her phone and sent a text message to the driver, telling him not to come.

Shen Zhijin turned around and saw her hurriedly hiding her phone.

At this time, most families still used landline phones, and it was really rare for someone to be able to use a private mobile phone.

Gu Tingyin quickly walked over and looked outside again. She seemed a little worried, and her beautiful brows furrowed slightly.

“It’s raining so heavily.”

This was really good!

She looked at him, as if she was a little embarrassed.

“It’s not appropriate for you to send me back to the academy in such a heavy rain.”

Shen Zhijin, who had planned to leave after sending her to the bus stop at the school gate was left at a loss for words.

He opened up his umbrella.

“Let’s go,” he said.

She looked at the heavy rain again, hugged her backpack tightly in her arms, and stepped under his umbrella.

The distance between them suddenly shortened, and a sweet and light fragrance filled the air. It mixed with the rain, causing him to unexpectedly caught his breath.

He had never shared an umbrella with a girl before, nor had he ever been so close to a girl.

A few strands of soft hair brushed against his wrist, making it tingle slightly.

He tightened his grip on the umbrella handle.

…

The rain fell on the umbrella, making pitter-patter sounds.

It was already a little difficult for the two of them to share an umbrella, not to mention that the rain was so heavy that the distance between them was very short.

A few drops of rain fell on Gu Tingyin’s left shoulder.

She tilted her head to take a look.

Shen Zhijin noticed her movement. He moved his wrist slightly, and the black umbrella tilted to her side.

A gust of wind blew, and she slipped. She cried out in surprise and almost fell to the ground.

In a moment of desperation, she quickly grabbed the arm of the young man beside her.

Her warm touch could be felt through the thin shirt.

It was a strange feeling, and a frown subconsciously appeared on his face.

Gu Tingyin heaved a long sigh of relief and looked up happily.

“It’s… a good thing… I didn’t fall, otherwise–”

When she saw the young man’s slightly furrowed brows, she realized that she was still holding onto him and quickly let go.

“I-I’m sorry, I didn’t do it on purpose!”

He did not like it when she went to his class, and he definitely did not like this kind of physical contact.

Although she had clearly let go of his hand, for some reason, the place she had touched felt as if it were still burning.

It could not be ignored.

However, she had not used much strength, and the palm of her hand had been soft…

Shen Zhijin suddenly came alert.

What was he thinking?

Seeing that he had not spoken for a long time, Gu Tingyin’s brows furrowed and she became nervous.

Was he angry again?

Shen Zhijin avoided her gaze.

“You won’t be able to stand properly if you carry your backpack like this.”

She was stunned for a moment and mumbled softly, “But I just bought the books here…”

“Popular Astronomy”

He paused and finally said, “Then follow me closely.”

Her eyes lit up. Even though she was trying her best to control herself, she could not hide the joy in her voice.

“Oh.”

She moved closer to him.

Shen Zhijin was about to leave when he suddenly felt something and looked down.

A small, fair hand had quietly held onto his sleeve.

Gu Tingyin asked curiously, “Why aren’t you moving?”

Hadn’t he told her to follow him closely?

Shen Zhijin was speechless.

He moved his legs and walked forward, with a young girl hanging on his arm.

…

When she finally arrived at the school gate, she looked down and saw that the hem of her skirt was wet. Mud had splashed onto it and it now stuck to her calf, causing her to feel very uncomfortable.

She was also cold.

She shivered a little.

When she had come here, how could she have imagined that it would rain?

Shen Zhijin tilted his head slightly. Seeing that they were about to reach the bus stop, he finally raised his hand to hail a taxi.

The distance from Xijing University to the Xijing Academy of Fine Arts was not far. It was only about half an hour by bicycle.

The students from both campuses also interacted with each other a lot.

However, even though Shen Zhijin had been at Xijing University for three years, today was his first time at Xijing Academy of Fine Arts, and he had headed straight to the female dormitory.

The rain had not stopped, so he had no choice but to send her all the way here.

“Thank you for today!”

Gu Tingyin stood on the steps and waved at him.

Shen Zhijin responded faintly and turned around to leave.

“Wait!”

Gu Tingyin called out to him again, only to see that the right shoulder of his shirt was almost soaked.

The thin clothes clung to his body, outlining the young man’s lean and tall figure.

She was stunned. She had thought that she was already wet enough, but he was even more…

However, the look in his eyes was light, as if he did not care.

She felt as if something was rubbing against her heart. Seeing that he was about to leave, she quickly said, “You still haven’t told me your name!”

She seemed to be particularly persistent about his name. Even though she had known it a long time ago, she still wanted to hear it from him.

He turned around.

Her eyes were moist and bright as she looked at him.

After a long while, he said, “Shen Zhijin.”

The corners of her lips curled up into a smile, and her dimples were faintly visible.

“Gu Tingyin!”

Her voice was clear even in the rain.

“I’m Gu Tingyin!”

Of course, she knew his name. However, she wanted to get to know him herself, not from anyone’s mouth, not from any news reports or news.

She wanted him to tell her himself.

This way, it would make sense for her to say…

“Hello, Shen Zhijin, I’m Gu Tingyin.”

…

After that day, Gu Tingyin did not appear in his class again.

The people from the Physics Department sighed.

The class was so boring, and it was rare for a pretty girl to come, but she had been ruthlessly chased away by Shen Zhijin.

Where was the logic in this?

However, this person was Shen Zhijin so they did not dare to say anything. They could only cry silently in their hearts and occasionally cast a few sad looks.

Shen Zhijin’s life returned to its usual routine.

He read literature and conducted experiments.

He did nothing else besides that.

That rainy day seemed to be no different from any other rainy day in the past and was forgotten by him.

…

“Senior Brother, are you going to eat?”

Kong Wenhan asked as he closed the experiment record book.

Shen Zhijin shook his head.

“I’ll wait for this data to finish processing. You guys go ahead.”

Kong Wenhan heaved a sigh of relief. He exchanged a look with the two boys beside him and made an “OK” gesture under the table.

“Senior Brother, we’ll be leaving then!”

With that, they got up and prepared to leave.

Just as he reached the door, he ran into Professor Su.

They quickly greeted him.

Professor Su nodded and walked in. As he walked, he looked back.

“What’s going on? These kids are like hungry ghosts. They run faster than anyone else when it’s mealtime.”

Xu Zhe quickly glanced at Shen Zhijin. Seeing that he did not react, he chuckled.

“Professor Su, they’ve been working hard lately. Isn’t it normal for them to think about their meals?”

“It’s just an excuse,” said Professor Su as he smiled.

“Isn’t Zhijin busier than them? However, Zhijin, it’s not good for you to not eat at the same time. You should pay more attention to yourself.”

Shen Zhijin responded but quickly turned his attention back to the screen again.

It was obvious that he had not listened to him.

Professor Su put one hand behind his back and said, “Oh, by the way, I saw that our Dongyuan cafeteria has been very lively recently. Even many students from the Art Academy have come here. I guess they must have developed some new dishes? ”

Xu Zhe’s heart jumped.

Shen Zhijin’s eyebrows moved slightly and he finally looked up.

Xu Zhe slowly raised his hand, feeling like crying.

“I… I really don’t know!”

…

“Zhijin, I say, this girl isn’t actually disturbing you, is she? She’s just here for a meal…”

At this point, Xu Zhe wanted to slap himself in the mouth.

She had come all the way from the Art Academy to have a meal here!

Who couldn’t tell what she was thinking?

Shen Zhijin did not say anything and continued to walk forward.

Xu Zhe carefully observed his expression, feeling uneasy.

“No, it’s a person’s freedom to eat where they want. You can’t just drive them out of the cafeteria, right? That would mean you’re too–”

Shen Zhijin turned his head and glanced at him indifferently.

Xu Zhe felt a chill run up his neck, and his voice became softer.

“… Ahem… That’s not what I meant. Actually… she hasn’t come here that many times. It’s mainly because she’s so beautiful that the place has become a little noisy. Besides, you don’t usually go to the canteen to eat, so we basically won’t meet, so why are you wasting your time?”

Shen Zhijin suddenly stopped in his tracks.

Xu Zhe immediately stopped and followed his line of sight.

It was already past one o ‘clock. It was supposed to be past the peak period for lunch, but there were still many people in the cafeteria.

It was as if he had some kind of intuition, and he saw her almost immediately.

There was a claypot in front of her, a bottle of yogurt in her hand, and a straw in her mouth.

It looked like she had already eaten.

He felt slightly relieved.

She seemed to like the yogurt a lot. As she took a sip, the sweet and sour taste hit her. She could not help but squint her eyes, like a lazy cat.

The corners of his lips curved up slightly.

But in the next moment, that smile quickly disappeared.

Kong Wenhan and the others were sitting at the same table as her.

“Junior, this yogurt is delicious, right? It’s a must-have at Xijing University!”

Kong Wenhan was the boy she had met with Shen Zhijin the other day.

To a certain extent, it could be considered that everyone knew each other.

Kong Wenhan had only found out a few days ago that the girl who had gone to the class was her, but at the same time, he had also heard about Shen Zhijin chasing her away in person.

So, when he met Gu Tingyin again in the cafeteria, he had guessed her plan immediately, but he never dared to mention it to Shen Zhijin.

He felt that his junior was a good person, but she was just a little stubborn.

Of all people to pursue, why did she have to pursue Shen Zhijin?

Gu Tingyin nodded.

“It’s good! Thank you, Senior!”

As she spoke, she glanced at her watch again.

Why did he always eat so late?

Everyone could tell that she was waiting for Shen Zhijin.

Kong Wenhan and the others looked at each other and sighed.

After a few days of interaction, they had a good impression of her.

It could be seen that she came from a well-to-do family, but she did not have the temperament of a typical young miss. Instead, she was beautiful, warm, sensible, and polite.

Such a girl really should not have hung herself on that iron tree!

Kong Wenhan thought about how to say it so that he would not hurt the little junior’s heart.

“Junior Sister, actually, Senior Brother… doesn’t come often to the cafeteria to eat, and he… he basically eats by himself. He’s not used to eating with others. In the future, will you still…?”

Gu Tingyin was stunned. The yogurt in her mouth suddenly became exceptionally sour.

How could she not understand the hidden meaning behind his words?

Shen Zhijin was distant and proud, and extremely difficult to pursue. It was better to give up as soon as possible.

But it would be great if it was that easy.

She picked up the yogurt and changed the topic.

“This yogurt is so good. Does he like it too?”

“I don’t like it.”

A clear voice came from behind.

Kong Wenhan and the others turned around stiffly. They were petrified when they spotted Shen Zhijin, who had come over without them knowing.

Hadn’t he said he would come later?

And Senior Brother Xu Zhe! Why had he not given them a warning?

Xu Zhe’s face was filled with despair.

In all honesty, he had really tried his best to signal them with his eyes, but all their attention had been on Gu Tingyin!

However, Gu Tingyin did not notice the dangerous aura at all.

The moment she heard this voice, she immediately turned around.

When she saw his handsome and clean face, all her previous chaotic emotions flew away, leaving only joy.

Come to think of it, she had not seen him in the past few days since that rainy day.

Her eyes instantly brightened. They were moist and bright, and there seemed to be a spark hidden in her dark eyes.

The moment he looked over, Shen Zhijin felt his left arm heat up again.

It was the same place that she had touched on that day.

“Shen Zhijin, are you here for dinner too? What a coincidence!”

The moment she said this, everyone who was present fell silent.

But in the next moment, they realized that it was too early to be silent.

That was because she added, “It just so happens that I haven’t eaten yet. Let’s go together!”

Everyone choked.

Xu Zhe looked at the table, and the corner of his eye twitched. Wasn’t her soup still hot, right?

And that yogurt, she was still holding it in her hand!

How could she say that?

But Gu Tingyin could not care less about those things now.

It had not been easy to wait for this person, and this was a rare opportunity.

Worried that he would not agree, she sincerely said, “I haven’t thanked you properly for what happened before! What would you like to eat? I’ll-burp-treat you!”

“…”

This time, even she was silent.

What a sincere invitation.

What a loud burp.

After a while, just as everyone was wondering how the situation would end, Shen Zhijin finally spoke.

“Let’s go to the second floor.”