Chapter 152: The Next Day
The next morning, after her morning classes ended, An Han went to the counselor’s office and stood obediently in front of the desk.
“An Han, from now on, you can move out anytime you want.”
Ren Chi handed her a stamped document. “Sign here. Once you live off-campus, all safety issues are your own responsibility.”
An Han nodded excitedly, took the paper, and happily signed her name.
“Thanks, Brother Ren~!”
“There also needs to be your parent’s signature,” the counselor said, pointing at another box.
Her smile instantly disappeared. She looked up at Ren Chi gloomily.
“Can I… sign that myself?”
“Of course not.” Ren Chi lowered his head and waved her away. “Get your parent’s signature and return the paper to me tomorrow.”
“But if I take leave and go home now, it’ll take at least two days for the round trip, right?”
“That’s not my problem.”
An Han froze for a moment, then realized she had just asked a stupid question. After all, as a counselor, he couldn’t openly tell her she could just sign it herself.
So, she picked up the pen again and quickly wrote her mother’s name, then handed the paper back to Ren Chi.
“All done.”
“Alright. From now on, the dorm manager won’t check your attendance at night.”
Ren Chi glanced at the signature and yawned. “So, have you found a place to rent yet?”
“No, too expensive.”
“Then take your time. Pick a place that’s safe.”
When she stepped out of the office, Su Peng was already waiting outside. With both hands in his pockets, he leaned lazily against the railing in the hallway.
“The counselor agreed to let you move out?”
“Mm.”
Su Peng thought for a moment and asked, “Do you need my help?”
Without hesitation, An Han shook her head. “No need!”
If he hadn’t insisted on tagging along today, she wouldn’t even want Su Peng to know she was planning to live off-campus.
Otherwise, it might turn into one of those overbearing CEO scenes. Su Peng buying her an apartment and renting it to her and …
Even though that was clearly a ridiculous thought, Su Peng might really offer to pay her rent.
“Alright then. If you run into any trouble, just tell me.”
Following behind him, An Han still felt a bit awkward. After impulsively confessing to Su Peng yesterday afternoon, she didn’t know how to face him now. But today, it seemed he hadn’t taken her words seriously at all.
Still that same gentle smile. Still that same rich-kid attitude...
Somehow, she felt a little annoyed. She had gathered so much courage to tell him about the system, and yet Su Peng didn’t even care.
Narrowing her eyes slightly, she looked at his back.
“By the way, what’s your family like?”
But just then, Su Peng suddenly turned around and their eyes met.
An Han quickly looked away and said casually, “My dad’s abroad. My mom stays home and takes care of my little sister.”
“Sounds pretty nice.”
“Mm.”
She secretly wondered if Su Peng had misunderstood what she meant by “system” and thought it was something strange. But if he actually did believe in things like that, he’d probably need to be sent to a mental hospital.
After a brief silence, An Han couldn’t help muttering, “It’s not that great. I’ve only seen him two or three times in the past twenty years.”
Su Peng’s eyes lit up with curiosity. He slowed down his pace and walked beside her.
Even though what she said last night had made him imagine all kinds of things, he hadn’t commented since he didn’t know the full story. Now that An Han was finally willing to talk, that was naturally a good thing.
“Which country is he in?”
“England.”
“It’s not that hard to come back from there, right?”
An Han’s face showed no emotion, as if she were talking about someone else’s life. “He sneaked out of the country back then. Later, after he got a green card, he came back a few times.”
“I see…”
Su Peng thought for a moment, his brain spinning quickly. With a curious look, he asked, “If you’ve only met him a few times, your relationship must be kind of distant, right?”
“It’s okay, I guess. He still sends me living expenses every month.”
He noticed that An Han’s face didn’t look very good, there was a bit of irritation and impatience in her eyes, so he wisely stopped asking.
She said “it’s okay,” but most likely, the relationship between father and daughter wasn’t good at all.
Could it be that her father was the reason she pretended to be a boy and lived in the boys’ dormitory?
Su Peng guessed, picturing in his mind a strict, old-fashioned father. The type who strongly prefers sons over daughters.
When they reached the cafeteria, it was right during the busiest time.
Almost all the food counters had long lines stretching for dozens of meters, except for one selling spicy hotpot. Because someone had once found a piece of wire in their food there, it now had a bad reputation, and only a few people went near it.
An Han glanced around, then walked straight to that stall without hesitation.
The other lines were too long, and she didn’t want to squeeze into the crowd.
Now that she was living as a girl, she didn’t want anyone taking advantage of her. If she could help it, she didn’t even plan to take a crowded bus in the future.
“You go find a seat. I’ll buy the food,” Su Peng said.
“Then you’re paying?”
“Sure.” He smiled and pointed toward a free table. “You just save us a seat.”
He seems to be treating me better than before…
That thought flashed through An Han’s mind. She didn’t refuse, just followed his gesture and sat down at the empty table.
Ever since Su Peng found out her secret, she felt her guard against him had lessened a lot.
After all, it was a secret that only he and she knew, even if he might have misunderstood what it meant.
She scratched her head, wondering if she should try to make Su Peng really believe the system was real, or just make up a story and let him think it was all his imagination.
This is so hard!
If I’d known it’d be this troublesome, I wouldn’t have told him!
What was I thinking yesterday?!
And I even said something stupid like “if I accept this identity, I’ll accept Su Peng!”
I must’ve lost my mind!
“Here.”
Su Peng came back with two cafeteria meal trays and sat down right next to her.
An Han’s body went stiff. She instinctively wanted to move away, but the seats were one-person stools, not long benches, so she couldn’t.
“Why did you buy so much? I can’t eat that much,” she said, trying to keep a straight face.
“Three meat dishes, one veggie, and one stew. You should eat more, you’re too skinny.” Su Peng smiled and pushed a bowl of pork brain stew toward her. “I remember you like pork brain, right?”
“If it smells too strong, then no,” An Han said, scooping up a small piece and tasting it. “This one’s fine.”
“Right? I eat here a lot, their stew is pretty good.”
There was something so gentle and caring in his smile that it made her heart skip for a moment. After hesitating a bit, she asked, “How did you know I like pork brain?”
“I’ve noticed before, you often look at the pork brain stew but never buy it.”
An Han froze for a second, then lowered her head, biting her lip.
This guy is way too charming!
Good thing I’m a guy, I’m immune!