Chapter 320: 313: What's That Smell?

Yet, Tang Yuxin seemed to have nothing to say.

She’s not very good at sweet talk, nor does she know what to say. She’s always relied on herself. So the thought of depending on a man is somewhat foreign to her. But when she began to learn how to rely on a man, perhaps this man could be the one she’s been searching for.

She looked at Qin Ziye in front of her, a particular phrase kept surfacing in her mind.

Who whispered it in her ear?

May you be treated gently in your next life.

“What’s wrong? What are you thinking about?” Qin Ziye brushed her hair away from her ear, revealing her small but lovely ear.

The girl’s skin was so pale, perhaps even she didn’t realize it. The many years of taking Cold Fragrance Pills had impacted her body in ways she might not fully understand.

She was like a flower waiting to bloom in his eyes—a flower that had yet to fully form.

“Tell me, what are you thinking about?” Qin Ziye’s fingers lingered on her hair as he marveled at the strange familiarity.

“I was thinking…” Tang Yuxin lowered her eyes. “I wish to be treated gently in my next life.”

“What did you say?” Qin Ziye failed to catch her last words because she was speaking so softly, even mumbling a bit.

“It’s nothing,” Tang Yuxin swiftly composed herself and gave him a smile. “Thank you for today.”

Qin Ziye pinched her face, “No need for thanks. Treating my girlfriend is only natural.” He then looked at his wristwatch, “It’s late, let’s go inside.”

He nudged Tang Yuxin towards the entrance, letting her enter first while he stood still.

When Tang Yuxin looked back, Qin Ziye waved her off. In the cold wind, he stood still, watching her leave, protecting her in his own way

As Tang Yuxin looked back again, she was already far from the entrance. The chilly wind blew into her collar and she hurriedly fastened it. At the entrance, the same man still stood waiting.

Suddenly, tears welled up in her eyes for no apparent reason.

She figured she could accept it. This man wasn’t Zhang Yong’an. In her past life, she was good enough to be with an exceptional man without having to rely on someone else.

If he was the man who would treat her gently her entire life, if he was him.

She then turned around and started running toward him.

“Look, she’s back,” Lin Yile whispered to Ting Yuan and they chattered secretly, looking rather sly.

Song Qingtong scrutinized Tang Yuxin for a moment.

“Yuxin, I never expected you’d move this fast. Tell us, how long have you known each other?”

Tang Yuxin tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. “We haven’t known each other for long, but there seems to be some fate between us,” she could feel his fondness for her.

As for her, it seemed to be mutual…

“Let’s go. It’s freezing,” Lin Yile hugged her arms, “While some people are falling in love and feeling all warm inside, we’re standing here in this chilly wind. It’s freezing.”

Achoo! As she was speaking, she suddenly sneezed due to the cold. If they kept standing here, she’d either turn into an icicle or catch a cold.

Let’s go back quickly. The weather is getting worse. Ting Yuan was also huddling, unable to tolerate the cold weather. They hadn’t experienced a Beijing winter yet. Fortunately, their dormitory had a heating system. So regardless of how cold it was outside, they could remain warm indoors.

Choosing a good school indeed had its perks.

Hooray for Qing University.

Ting Yuan was the first to dash back. Despite her plump figure, she was actually the least resistant to the cold. She rummaged through her bag for the key while Lin Yile kept rushing her. Seeing Ting Yuan kick the wall, Lin Yile even started to snivel due to the cold.

Click. At last, the door opened. The dormitory was still warm, but the corridor outside was freezing. Not to mention their dorm room was directly facing the stairs, so every time the door opened, cold air would blow in.

“Oh, we’re finally back,” Lin Yile exclaimed excitedly before Ting Yuan quickly covered her mouth.

She pointed at the bunk bed in front of them and made a hushing sound, “Keep it down. Do you want someone to hear us? She might scold you. Are you not scolded enough yet?”

Lin Yile quickly nodded in agreement. She knew what Ting Yuan meant. She stopped shouting and lowered her voice. Then she pointed at Ting Yuan’s hand over her mouth, gesturing for her to loosen her grip on her mouth. She was struggling to breathe. Honestly, she felt like she was going to suffocate.

“Ah, sorry,” Ting Yuan quickly let go of her hand and moved it away.

Lin Yile panted heavily and clutched her chest.

“I nearly got choked to death.”

Ting Yuan couldn’t help but twitch at the corner of her eye. Couldn’t Lin Yile learn something good from her instead of her negative traits?

Tang Yuxin was the last one to enter, but something felt off as soon as she stepped inside.

She kept sniffing the air inside the dormitory.

“Do any of you smell something?”

She asked her roommates.

The others also started sniffing the air.

“The smell of burned wires?” Lin Yile scrunched up her nose.

“No,” Ting Yuan shook her head, “Could it be that one of the dorms is cooking instant noodles, and the smell has wafted over?”

“Not at all,” Song Qingtong had also noticed the odor when she first entered, but didn’t think much of it and dismissed it without a second thought.

“It’s like… what is it?” She was trying to find the right word to describe the scent.

“Is anyone here on their period?”

“No,” Lin Yile shook her head, “I just finished mine.”

“I haven’t started mine yet,” Ting Yuan counted on her fingers, “Also, even though we’re all girls, can we please not mention ‘period?’ It’s really embarrassing.”

“I’m not either,” Song Qingtong turned to Tang Yuxin, “Isn’t it you?”

“No,” Tang Yuxin lowered her head in deep thought, if none of them were on their period, then the smell was remarkably similar to…

Blood.

The scent of blood.

She suddenly lifted her head to look at Sun Yumeng, who was still asleep on the bunk bed.

“There’s a problem.”

She hurriedly ran up to the bed, startling the rest.

“Sun Yumeng,” Tang Yuxin began patting the blanket where Sun Yumeng lay.

“Sun Yumeng, wake up…”

However, no matter how many times she called, there was no response. The closer she got, the stronger the smell of blood became.

She quickly pulled back the blanket. For her, it was hard to see because the bunk bed was high, but Lin Yile and Ting Yuan clearly saw,