Chapter 113: That’s Your Sister-in-law!

The School of Economics and Management at Jiang University was one of its largest faculties, having merged the departments of Economics and Management. This year alone, nearly a thousand students had been recruited from across the country.

Class One of Economics had sixty-four students, neatly lined up in four rows under the bright sunlight, each wearing identical camouflage training uniforms and donning military-green caps.

Under the glaring sun, it was hard to recognize anyone at a glance.

Yet he spotted his little rascal instantly.

It wasn’t that Lu Qingyue’s petite frame was particularly distinctive; it was mainly her slack, nonchalant stance—so uniquely her own. It took a certain audacity to stand like that on the very first day of military training.

Cheng Xingye smiled silently to himself.

Damn, how could anyone be both so exasperating and so adorable?

She looked like she was begging for trouble, yet he simply couldn’t bring himself to scold her.

Cheng Xingye’s lips quirked imperceptibly before he reined in his expression, straightening his lips as he beckoned Li Hui over.

“See that girl, first on the left in the fourth row?” His tone was calm.

Li Hui uttered a quick “Ah?” and followed his gaze, spotting the pretty girl they’d just been discussing. She stood with her head bowed, secretly using the brim of her hat to shade her ankles from the sun.

He winced inwardly, sensing trouble.

He had thought the weather was indeed hot today and hadn’t planned on making things hard for these new recruits.

He could turn a blind eye, but now he’d been caught.

Since the former president himself had pointed it out, to pretend otherwise would be shameless!

Li Hui coughed awkwardly, nodding anxiously. “Got it. Her stance isn’t up to standard? I’ll make her run two laps right away.”

He was about to stride off to deal with the lazy girl when a hand pressed down on his shoulder, pinning him in place.

“Don’t you dare. That’s your sister-in-law.”

Li Hui: “…Huh?”

Sis… sister-in-law?

At first, Li Hui was confused. It wasn’t until he saw that Cheng Xingye’s eyes held no trace of jest or pretense that he finally realized the significance of those words.

Seeing his mouth fall open in surprise, Cheng Xingye knew he understood. He squeezed his shoulder lightly and said in a low voice, “Keep an eye on her.”

Li Hui, of course, grasped the meaning behind “keep an eye.” For the school celebrity to approach him personally, it was clear he was being asked to look out for his girlfriend during training, to make sure she wasn’t worked too hard.

Li Hui had a knack for reading the room—otherwise, he wouldn’t have made it as the student council president. He thumped his chest in assurance. “Don’t worry, I won’t let her suffer.”

Not only would he make sure this VIP didn’t suffer, he’d have to take extra care of her. If she complained to the former president later, what would become of his own position?

Yet Cheng Xingye, seeing his sycophantic grin, pinched the bridge of his nose in exasperation. Suddenly, he felt the student council needed a purge of its currying, fawning atmosphere.

He shot an annoyed glance at Li Hui’s oblivious face and sighed. “I meant watch out so she doesn’t sneak over the wall. She’s got a record.”

Li Hui blinked in confusion. “Huh?”

What did he mean by “over the wall”? And what kind of record?

She looked so gentle and delicate—surely she wouldn’t do that sort of thing?

Before he could make sense of it, the former president patted his back. “Alright, get on with your work. I just came to say this—nothing else.”

And with that, he really did turn and leave, showing not the slightest intention of pulling strings for his girlfriend.

Li Hui was left standing there, baffled, mulling over the words. Suddenly, he felt sure there was more to the warning than met the eye.

Surely someone as busy as the former president wouldn’t come all this way just to have him watch out for wall-scaling?

Li Hui realized, with a start, that he’d been entirely lacking in perception! He’d been hinted at so clearly—how could he not grasp the deeper meaning?

He cast a nervous glance at his formation, noticing that Lu Qingyue’s row was baking in the sun. He hurried over, calling, “At ease!”

“Ten minutes rest where you are!”

During those ten minutes, Li Hui dared not let the president’s precious one roast in the sun. He quickly moved the formation into the shade beneath a tree, finally allowing himself a breath of relief.

…

Lu Qingyue, standing at attention with her back to them, had no idea Cheng Xingye had come by.

She squeezed into the shade with Lin Min’er, removing her cap to fan herself and rubbing her ankles at the same time.

Lin Min’er took off her cap as well, fanning herself. “Our instructor looks fierce, but he’s actually pretty nice. Look, other classes are still standing at attention, but we’re already resting here.”

Lu Qingyue hummed in agreement, about to reply, when she overheard whispers nearby. She thought she caught Cheng Xingye’s name.

“Have you seen that super-handsome senior from the medical school?”

“Day one, I saw him! Goodness, forget his face—his legs come up to my neck!”

At the mention of “legs,” Lu Qingyue instinctively turned around, eager to see who else had such discerning taste—someone who, like her, appreciated fine legs.

To her surprise, it was the shortest girl in their class—what was her name, Fang or Ting? She’d introduced herself at the last class meeting, but Lu Qingyue only remembered that she was barely 1.55 meters tall.

Cheng Xingye was a lofty 1.88 meters. Lu Qingyue herself, at 1.63, felt like a dwarf next to him; for someone at 1.55, his legs really might reach her neck.

Lu Qingyue felt a twinge of sympathy—no wonder.

The girls, unaware that the official girlfriend was eavesdropping, chatted on with gusto.

“I heard he’s a first-year graduate student. It’ll be hard to see him after this.”

“Not necessarily. If he found a girlfriend from our school, we’d see him every day!”

“Who in our school could manage that? He’s so far out of reach!”

Listening to them discuss her boyfriend, Lu Qingyue felt awkward and quietly turned away.

Hard to win? She didn’t think so.

But she was certainly no slouch.

She recalled their first meeting, also during military training—she’d been late and punished by Lu Yi with push-ups. When Cheng Xingye approached, she’d looked up against the light and instantly noticed those impossibly long legs.

Thinking back, it was mortifying. Looking back, she still didn’t understand why he’d fallen for her.

It seemed that every time she encountered him, she was either in the middle of some social disaster or heading straight toward one, and yet he still liked her. That had to be true love.

Satisfied, Lu Qingyue was suddenly poked in the shoulder by Fang Yang.

“What kind of girl do you think that senior would like?”

Snapping out of her reverie, Lu Qingyue realized they were still talking about Cheng Xingye. She answered honestly, “Girls like me.”

It wasn’t blind confidence—she was, after all, the real girlfriend. If he didn’t like her type, whose would he like?

Fang Yang assumed she was joking and let it pass, but Lin Min’er laughed, pinching her cheek. “Not impossible! Our Dian Dian is beautiful and has a great personality. Maybe that’s exactly his type.”

Lu Qingyue nodded. “He really does like my type. Actually, I’m his girlfriend.”

At first, she’d wanted to keep the relationship secret. Cheng Xingye was so well-known at Jiang University—dating him would surely draw attention. But since she shared a dorm with Fang Yang and Lin Min’er, it would come out sooner or later. She decided to take the chance and tell them now.

But neither Lin Min’er nor Fang Yang showed any shock—they thought she was joking. Lin Min’er clicked her tongue playfully, “What a coincidence. I’m his girlfriend too.”

Lu Qingyue: “…”

She’d better not be!

Seeing their disbelief, Lu Qingyue was rendered speechless for a few moments before repeating, powerless, “I’m serious. We only started dating last month!”

She was so earnest she might as well have produced evidence.

Fang Yang and Lin Min’er exchanged glances and burst out laughing again.

It wasn’t that they didn’t want to believe her, but school hadn’t even started last month—how could she have met him?

Even lies should have some basis in reality!

Seeing Lu Qingyue’s solemn face, Lin Min’er, afraid she’d be angry, quickly stifled her laughter and put on a straight face, playing along. “I believe you! But tell me, how long have you been daydreaming like this?”

Lu Qingyue: “…”

Why wouldn’t they believe her? Was she that unworthy of Cheng Xingye?

She wanted to explain, but Li Hui blew his whistle and called for assembly.

Lin Min’er stood up. “Alright, time to gather! Save your dreams for tonight!”

Lu Qingyue: “…”

Lu Qingyue: “……”