Chapter 49 - 49: Elegance

Jinling had considered that Zhou Yuwen, like herself, had also been reborn. However, a sudden news report asserting that Zhou Yuwen had seventy to eighty brothers and was some kind of gang leader overturned Su Qing’s speculation. Knowing Zhou Yuwen, she knew that even if he were reborn, he couldn’t possibly become a gang leader. Thus, Su Qing’s new theory was that the current Zhou Yuwen had been changed by her own rebirth, which altered the course of his life through changes in space and time. Discover exclusive tales on empire But no matter how much had changed, could it really have altered Zhou Yuwen’s passion for reading? And to have changed it to match Shen Yu exactly? After all, those books that Shen Yu liked were all recommended to Zhou Yuwen by her. At this moment, Su Qing grew suspicious of Zhou Yuwen again. "Why are you staring at me like that? Is there something on my face?" Zhou Yuwen asked Su Qing. "Hmm?" Su Qing, thrown off by Zhou Yuwen’s remark, asked doubtfully, "Do you really like those books?" "What do you mean by ’really’?" At this moment, Shen Yu was also laughing and discussing some scenes from the books with Zhou Yuwen, such as love during the cholera epidemic. Shen Yu had read the book five times and had deep insights into the heroine, Fermina. Zhou Yuwen replied fluently to Shen Yu’s questions. The novel ends with two octogenarians continuously buying cola on a boat—seemingly absurd. Yet, Marquez uses this non-existent reality technique, broadly known as magical realism, to express their love. "Exactly, I think their love is very pure!" After hearing Zhou Yuwen’s insights on the book, Shen Yu’s eyes shone brighter, and she nodded slightly in agreement. "I’m saying let’s chat, but can we not discuss things we don’t understand? Wouldn’t it be better to talk about something understandable?" Chang Hao was somewhat overwhelmed. Not being fond of reading, he barely looked into the contents of textbooks and now Zhou Yuwen and Shen Yu were discussing matters beyond textbooks. Isn’t it okay to just drink? "If you really want to chat, just add each other on WeChat and talk later!" No sooner had Chang Hao finished speaking, than he received warning looks from two people. One naturally was from Su Qing, whose fierce gaze scared Chang Hao. Chang Hao coughed awkwardly. "Cough cough, I meant just a plain literary exchange." The other glance, actually ignorable, came from Li Qiang. His look wasn’t sharp, just somewhat melancholic. Nobody cared about his gaze, but after hearing what Chang Hao said, Zheng Yanyan laughed out loud. She had thought that only Su Qing liked Zhou Yuwen, but now it seemed that Shen Yu also had feelings for Zhou Yuwen. Things were getting interesting, she said, "So tell me, Zhou Yuwen, are you really planning to become a writer?" "No, I’ve never thought about it. I don’t know why she always asks me to write novels," Zhou Yuwen looked towards Su Qing. Now that the focus was on her, Lu Lin finally put away her phone. In the meantime, the food on the table had mostly been eaten, and several people went to grab more, with Su Qing continuing to cling to Zhou Yuwen. This time, Su Qing directly grabbed Zhou Yuwen’s arm. Zhou Yuwen asked what she wanted? Observing Zhou Yuwen, Su Qing asked, "Zhou Yuwen, are you really from this world?" "You’re such a strange girl. If I’m not from this world, then where am I from? Do you feel alright, are you feverish?" At this moment, Su Qing was very close to Zhou Yuwen, who reached out to check her forehead. This ambiguous gesture immediately made Su Qing shy and she hurriedly moved Zhou Yuwen’s hand away, "What are you doing?" Zhou Yuwen laughed too, thinking to himself how could she still be shy after all this time like an old married couple? "Didn’t you ask me to be your boyfriend? How come you are still shy?" Zhou Yuwen teased her. "That’s a different matter." Lu Lin didn’t go to get food; instead, Li Qiang had shifted his focus and was constantly courting Lu Lin. But it seemed that Lu Lin didn’t really want to deal with him. Later, feeling hot, Lu Lin took off her jacket, revealing a black tank top underneath. However, what was different was that removing the jacket exposed her slim and graceful arms. Lu Lin really was thin and indeed beautiful. Seeing this made Li Qiang even more attracted and even more enthusiastic in trying to converse with Lu Lin. However, faced with Li Qiang’s enthusiasm, Lu Lin only found it noisy. At that moment, she noticed the cigarettes Chang Hao had left on the table. "Hey, Lu Lin, why did you come to Jinling to study?" "Oh, I transferred here," Lu Lin answered Li Qiang half-heartedly, picked up the cigarette pack from the table, drew out a cigarette, and skillfully lit it with a lighter, holding it between her lips covered in lipstick, took a deep drag, and then exhaled the smoke. Her movements were skilled, yet elegant. After taking a puff of the cigarette, Lu Lin felt much more relaxed. But when she looked back, she found Li Qiang staring at her blankly. "You don’t mind if I smoke, do you?" Lu Lin asked. Li Qiang shook his head frantically. In reality, Li Qiang was just stunned. Lu Lin’s cigarette-smoking gesture was truly graceful, carrying an indescribable melancholy, and it was Li Qiang’s first time seeing a girl like this. Truly, he realized he had really fallen for Lu Lin.