Jiang Yuan slightly curled her lips, tilted her head a little, and stood calmly below Zhou Xiangmeng.
"Why are you so fast!" Zhou Xiangmeng suddenly raised her voice. Her nails dug hard into her palm, but she felt no pain. "It's only been two or three days. It's impossible, impossible."
How could it be so fast?
This was like looking for a needle in a haystack, and most of the students had already gone home.
"Nothing is impossible." Jiang Yuan lowered her eyes and quietly looked at her.
The white incandescent light in the dormitory cast a pale glow on Zhou Xiangmeng's face, making her look even paler.
Zhou Xiangmeng's heart skipped a beat. Seeing the calm expression on the girl's face and the fact that the counselor hadn't sent any notice about the cheating incident for several days, it seemed that this matter had been easily brushed aside.
"Why do you think it's impossible? Why don't you want to believe it?" The girl's tone was gentle as she coaxed. "It's because you know the truth, right? That's why you're so sure."
The dormitory was quiet for a long time. There was a sound of a rolling suitcase in the corridor outside, rumbling from afar, getting closer, and then gradually fading away.
Suddenly, Zhou Xiangmeng laughed, her face contorted. Her voice was cold as she started to drive them away. "Don't try to get more information from me. It's useless."
"Leave. You're not welcome here."
Jiang Yuan sighed softly in her heart. Knowing that she couldn't get any more information from Zhou Xiangmeng, she left quickly. Back in her dormitory, she turned off the recorder.
It was a bit of a gain, but not much.
Chi Xu had searched high and low for her and didn't want to have anything to do with Zhou Xiangmeng. She couldn't just sit there and wait for things to happen, so she borrowed a recorder to try to get information.
Zhou Xiangmeng was more cautious than she had expected.
Most of the information was useless.
"Yuanyuan, how did it go?" Only Lin Suye and Jiang Yuan were left in the dormitory. Lin Suye's home was far away, across several provinces, and she had booked her ticket late.
Jiang Yuan let her listen to the recording.
"Zhou Xiangmeng is just... She's so sly!" Lin Suye angrily shouted. Suddenly remembering that the dormitory door wasn't soundproof, she quickly changed her words.
Jiang Yuan lazily sat on the stool, took back the recorder, exported the recording, and sent a copy to Chi Xu.
Only then did she have time to talk to Lin Suye.
"It's okay. It's the result I expected." She wasn't surprised.
Chi Xu didn't reply for a long time. It wasn't until evening that he called her directly. At that time, she was dragging Lin Suye to the night market to look for food.
"Yuanyuan, I've found out whose note it is." Chi Xu couldn't hide his excitement in his voice. "It belongs to someone from two classes ahead of you before the exam. Someone told me, but he refuses to admit it now."
"It doesn't matter if he doesn't admit it. We have eyewitnesses. The students who were in that exam room also said they saw an unknown note during the exam. This is enough to prove your innocence. You didn't cheat."
"Tomorrow, no, tomorrow is Sunday. We'll go to the counselor on Monday to explain the situation and ask him to find a way to make up for your grade."
There were shouts from the street vendors around. The lights were bright, and the shadows of the evergreen trees swayed in the wind.
At that moment, many indescribable emotions welled up in Jiang Yuan's heart - joy, gratitude, surprise. It was like a box of paints had been knocked over, and finally mixed into a deep affection.
Her friend Lin Suye was standing beside her. She could see Lin Suye's mouth opening and closing, but she couldn't hear a single word. All she could think about was Chi Xu's words.
It was like carbonated water, bubbling continuously.
Jiang Yuan's eyes curved into crescents. Her eyes were bright with a smile, looking extremely charming, just as beautiful as spring flowers.
"Thank you, Chi Xu." After a pause, she thanked him again. "I really appreciate it."
The paused world came back to life. People were coming and going. The shadows of the trees and people intertwined, swaying in the wind. Lin Suye's voice reached her ears.
"What's going on, Yuanyuan? Did you find the person?" Lin Suye's eyes lit up, and her face was full of smiles. "I knew it. The innocent will always be innocent. Hmph, Zhou Xiangmeng must be so angry."
"Yes. I'll go with Chi Xu to the teacher on Monday to explain the situation. I should take the make - up exam with the students next semester."
Jiang Yuan was in a great mood. She hooked her arm around Lin Suye's and dragged her to continue looking for food. "Don't talk about her. We haven't decided what to have for dinner yet..."
On Monday morning, accompanied by Chi Xu, Jiang Yuan went to see the counselor. The counselor listened carefully to Zhou Xiangmeng's recording and the evidence Chi Xu had found.
"I understand. I'll show these to the teachers in the Academic Affairs Office. Jiang Yuan, you're in a special situation. I'll try my best to get the Academic Affairs Office to approve your application for a postponed exam so that you can take the make - up exam with the students next semester."
"Teacher, what kind of punishment will Zhou Xiangmeng get?" Chi Xu stepped forward and asked, his eyes burning.
The counselor was silent for a while and then said, "She won't be punished."
It was just a small fight among students and wasn't worth a disciplinary action.
Chi Xu smiled gently, like a spring breeze, but his voice was extremely cold. "I'm going to report Zhou Xiangmeng for using illegal electrical appliances like an electric cooker in the dormitory during school."
After walking out of the office, Jiang Yuan asked curiously, "Chi Xu, how do you know that Zhou Xiangmeng uses illegal electrical appliances in the dormitory?"
"Actually, the Student Union found out last semester. Zhou Xiangmeng used her connections to get that person to cross it out. Their minister mentioned it to me. I thought she wasn't causing any trouble at that time, so I decided not to make a fuss about it."
"Don't worry. I have all the evidence. She can't escape the disciplinary action. She won't be able to compete with you for the scholarship, the honorary title, or the qualification for postgraduate recommendation in the future."
"What if she doesn't care at all? Then it won't mean anything to her." Jiang Yuan crossed her arms and tilted her head with a smile.
Chi Xu stopped walking, bent down, and gently pinched Jiang Yuan's cheek. It was soft.
"She cares. Most of the grades in your class have already come out. I took a look. Her GPA is very high. If she didn't care, she wouldn't have gotten such a high score."
"Ah, when did the grades in our class come out? Why didn't I know!"
They walked near the school's small square. Jiang Yuan focused on the previous sentence. She let out a cry of surprise, stopped, and quickly lowered her head to check her grades on the school's system.
Chi Xu sighed helplessly. He slightly turned his head and saw Jia Fang hiding furtively behind the tree. He gave a look, and Jia Fang took the order. He quietly walked around behind them and gave a bunch of roses to Chi Xu. The roses were fragrant.
Chi Xu gave a thumbs - up behind his back. Jia Fang smiled and hid back behind the tree. He picked up the camera and started filming.
"Jiang Yuan." He softly called her name. His voice was deep, gentle, and hoarse.
Jiang Yuan was busy looking at her grades and just responded absent - mindedly. She didn't notice his address.
Chi Xu smiled helplessly and called her again.
Only then did Jiang Yuan look up from her phone and looked at Chi Xu in confusion. There was a faint fragrance lingering around her nose. She sniffed and asked, "Why does it smell so nice..."
A bunch of bright red roses suddenly came into view. The red was so vivid.
Jiang Yuan's eyes widened. She was completely stunned and stood still on the spot. Her mind was in a mess, and she didn't know what to do.
It was like that night when she was drunk, feeling dazed.
She had never thought that Chi Xu would give her a formal confession. Because they had already had a romantic moment before, no matter how magnificent it was, it couldn't compare to this simple and sincere one.
The heartbeat started from the bottom of her feet.
"Jiang Yuan, I like you. I've liked you since primary school. Would you like to be my girlfriend?"
He had rehearsed this in his mind many times, but he was still excited and nervous at this moment. He stared intently at Jiang Yuan, not wanting to miss any of her expressions.
"Yes, I do, Chi Xu."
Jiang Yuan bypassed the roses and suddenly threw herself into Chi Xu's arms. Her voice was choking, and her eyes were slightly red.
"Hello, my girlfriend."