Chapter 60 – Hug
Ba Jinyan’s heart skipped a beat as he smiled lightly, the corners of his thin lips lifting with a noticeable curve as he carefully held the piece of paper. “Very beautiful.”
The rose on this paper was bright and gorgeous, surpassing any fresh rose.
Qiao Huaiyao added a drop of rose essential oil while blending the solution.
The faint rose scent wouldn’t be too strong, as if trapping the rose in the confines of the paper.
Ba Jinyan reached out and wrapped his arm around Qiao Huaiyao’s waist, his gentle kiss accompanied by the subtle scent of roses, delicately outlining his lips.
He didn’t unfold the paper completely but folded it back and asked, “How long can this last?”
Qiao Huaiyao thought for a moment, not giving a specific time but said, “Probably… three days.”
Ba Jinyan nodded. “What if I never open it?”
Qiao Huaiyao paused, unable to help but laugh. “If you don’t open it, how will you see the rose inside?”
Ba Jinyan put away the paper. “Send me the video you just took.”
“Okay.” However, when Qiao Huaiyao sent the video, he added, “You can open the paper anytime. If you leave it there without looking, the color will fade as the solution dissipates until it disappears.”
Qiao Huaiyao sent the video. “Alright, let’s eat first.”
The lunch boxes were already taken out of the insulation box. Although the room was at a constant temperature, it couldn’t keep the food warm.
Ba Jinyan replied, “Hmm.”
The video wasn’t very long, and Ba Jinyan watched it repeatedly.
The rose looked beautiful from different angles.
Ba Jinyan’s Weibo still had his last post from a long time ago, promoting a variety show.
He posted the video without any editing.
Ba Jinyan’s Weibo: [This is the most beautiful rose I’ve ever seen. (Video)]
The fans in the comment section commented silently without watching the video: [What’s up, brother? Planning to act in a romance drama?]
[Don’t associate roses with love, so tacky! Brother Bai, tell me secretly, did you finally find love?]
[It’s an endorsement, definitely an endorsement.]
[Oh my—have you watched the video? Is that special effects? How did you do it? It’s so beautiful. A glowing floating rose.]
[It’s rare, Bai Jinyan, you’re still doing business. Do you know how long it’s been since you’ve posted something unrelated to Qiao Huaiyao on your Weibo?]
[Sob sob sob, Bai Jinyan’s Weibo is now without Qiao Qiao, the lord is finally in love.]
[As a professional, it looks a bit like an ASIcdpo imaging reaction, but why is it in color? This is the first time I’ve seen something like this.]
[It’s so pretty, the rose seems to be growing out of the paper like it’s in soil.]
…
At first, the comments weren’t about the content of the video.
Instead, they speculated about Bai Jinyan’s Weibo.
It wasn’t until later that a few comments began to emerge: [It seems like there’s Qiao Qiao’s voice in the video.]
[So let’s boldly guess—post-incident?]
[Gosh, sister, put on some pants, I mean, maybe that rose was a gift from Qiao Qiao!]
[Brother Bai: Roses from the wife, for you single dogs to envy. Jealous?]
[Bai Jinyan speaks with authority!]
[Just go ahead and post, Bai Jinyan, I envy you so much! Ah! Come on!]
[Before, Bai Jinyan’s Weibo: business, serious, promotion. Now Bai Jinyan’s Weibo: Qiao Huaiyao, gifts from Qiao Huaiyao, Qiao Huaiyao…]
[Be content, Bai Jinyan used to have only promotional posts on his Weibo. Now at least he knows how to show off his wife.]
[That rose is really beautiful, it feels so dreamy, sob sob sob… Brother Bai, did you give it away in a lucky draw? I’m willing to trade my thirty years of singledom for it with my best friend.]
[What nonsense? Sister, you’re not sincere.]
…
Bai Jinyan read a few comments and left Weibo contentedly.
Qiao Huaiyao sipped lemon water, watching his brother, who rarely played with his phone during meals. “Brother, the food is getting cold.”
“Mmm.” Bai Jinyan put down his phone, picked up a deboned chicken wing and handed it to him. “Eat.”
The discussion on Weibo was heated.
With Bai Jinyan’s current popularity, any casual Weibo post could potentially trend.
Even a single period would be analyzed by marketing accounts, and the heat would skyrocket onto the trending topics.
But what truly pushed the heat of this matter to its peak was a short video posted on the Qing University forum.
In the video, Qiao Huaiyao was wearing a white coat, showing only half of his profile, with beautiful and delicate features, his thin lips slightly pursed with a cold and aloof temperament, his fair and slender fingers flicking a glass rod on the paper.
The comment section was filled with praise: [I’ve never felt the charm of a white coat before.]
[So handsome! Is such a good-looking person really real?]
[Let me say it, is Qiao Qiao’s wife the most beautiful person in the world? Anyone disagree?]
[Sister, what you said, Bai Jinyan would have to give it a like before leaving.]
[Is experimenting always this casual? Or is he just putting on a show with a coat?]
[Please, look at the watermark above, even Qing University’s official Weibo posted this photo, what are you thinking?]
[It really doesn’t seem like an experiment, using a glass rod like that seems more like painting.]
[…Do you remember Bai Jinyan’s video of the non-special effects rose?]
[??!!!]
[You can connect these things?! Sister, you deserve to be dumbfounded!]
[Going crazy, going crazy—so that rose was drawn by Qiao Qiao stroke by stroke? Sob sob sob, no wonder Bai Jinyan specifically posted on Weibo to show off. If that rose were given to me, I might do a handstand disco on Weibo.]
[The romance of a science student! See, sisters, the person who truly loves you even thinks of giving you roses during a lab experiment!]
[As a student in this field… does the genius not plan to share the technique of changing the color of the solution? Adding color without destroying the original structure, how did he do it, truly admirable.]
…
Late-night Weibo silently celebrated.
The topics of the rose and Bai Jinyan alternately trended on Weibo.
Qiao Huaiyao only realized the discussion about this matter in the dormitory group chat the next day.
Qiu Shufeng: [Study God really have all-around development, how can he also be good at art?! Can’t wrap my head around it.]
Wang Zhan: [Know your strengths, OK? Besides having good grades, do you have anything else worth mentioning?]
Yu Luofan: [Are you considering sharing the production method, Study God?]
Qiao Huaiyao furrowed his brow. He had just finished scrolling through Weibo and had a general idea about the trending topic.
No wonder his brother was glued to his phone during dinner yesterday; he must have been filming a video.
Thinking about Bai Jinyan’s desire to show off, he couldn’t help but smirk.
Qiao Huaiyao: [I’ll post it on Weibo.]
Yu Luofan responded with a happy expression.
The things used were all memorized by Qiao Huaiyao.
It was a simple little experiment, and the production process wasn’t troublesome.
Qiao Huaiyao posted on Weibo, listing all the necessary items and their quantities.
However, he also adjusted some details.
He had concocted the color of the roses, wanting to keep it exclusive to Bai Jinyan.
So, the provided data also indicated different colors.
Qiao Huaiyao: [These are all common items that can be purchased online, very simple. Those interested can give it a try. Coloring is not included in the tutorial; that’s confidential.]
He posted on Weibo in the morning.
The comments section was filled with greetings: [Good morning, Qiao Qiao.]
[‘Very simple.’]
[Forget it, I only have one target, and I don’t want to overwhelm him.]
[Why is it that even though they’re simple letters, when they’re put together, I can’t understand?]
[So, even if the tutorial is provided, the roses Bai Jinyan receives will still be unique, right?]
[Ah, the sugar from this CP is too sweet!]
[Exactly, one really gets addicted to the sugar of the ‘YaoYan’ CP.]
…
After posting the tutorial, Qiao Huaiyao got up and walked out of the bedroom.
Unsurprisingly, he saw the busy figure in the kitchen.
Qiao Huaiyao thought for a moment, casually placed his phone on the table, and walked over to tentatively wrap his arms around his waist from behind.
“Morning, brother.” With his hands intertwined, Qiao Huaiyao hugged Bai Jinyan, tilting his head to ask, “What are you doing?”
Bai Jinyan had heard Qiao Huaiyao’s footsteps early on but hadn’t spoken. He placed his hand on top of Qiao Huaiyao’s, turned his head, and kissed his forehead. “Cooked some porridge, and there are vegetarian buns for breakfast.”
Bai Jinyan took out the buns from the steamer, and Qiao Huaiyao took them over to the table.
At this time of the morning, others might prefer meat, but Qiao Huaiyao still preferred vegetarian buns, especially those made by his brother.
With just one bite of the bun, Qiao Huaiyao knew the filling was special, something that couldn’t be bought elsewhere but suited his taste perfectly.
Bai Jinyan served the porridge and said, “I saw the weather forecast saying it might snow these days. Has the schedule for the sports meet been decided yet?”
The sports meet usually avoided bad weather.
It was almost the end of October after the start of the school year, and the sports meet was just beginning.
The weather hadn’t been very good during this period.
Qiao Huaiyao had signed up but hadn’t paid much attention to the specific timing of the sports meet; that would be communicated by Qiu Shufeng.
He replied, “I’ll ask the class monitor later.”
“Okay.”
The timing for the autumn sports meet at Qing University was always uncertain.
But it usually took place in October.
From early registration to late preparation, it would take a few days.
Qiao Huaiyao: [Class monitor, has the timing for the sports meet been decided?”
Qiu Shufeng: [Not yet, we’re still discussing it in the meeting. There are only a few days left in this month, and finding a suitable day with good weather is quite difficult. If nothing unexpected happens, it might be tomorrow or the day after.]
A sunny day, then seven or eight cloudy days, who can stand it?
Qing University has many sports events, and many students participate.
The sports meet will last for two consecutive days.
For some events, like skipping, which have many participants, there are both qualifying matches and final championships.
When these events are squeezed together with others, it takes two days.
In contrast, running events are much more relaxed.
There’s no need for qualifiers; students who directly participate in the race will get results on the same day.
Qiu Shufeng: [Study God, do you have any plans for time? If it’s inconvenient, you can tell me, and I’ll figure out a solution for you.]
Teachers are very good to Qiao Huaiyao.
If there’s a real problem, he doesn’t even need to speak; teachers will take the initiative to help him adjust his schedule.
He’s good at studying, not arrogant, and instead, he’s modest and generous in helping classmates.
This kind of student is simply what teachers dream of.
Qiao Huaiyao: [No need, just let me know once the time is confirmed.]
[And also inform me about the order of the competitions.]
Qiu Shufeng: [Okay, no problem. Once the meeting ends, we should have the results. As soon as the time is set, I’ll immediately inform you.]
Qiao Huaiyao: [Thank you.]
Qiu Shufeng: [???]
[What’s up! Why are you thanking me? If you thank me again, Study God, I’ll knock you one! 😆]
Qiu Shufeng sent several emojis in a row.
Then suddenly stopped: [I won’t talk to you for now, Study God, they found out I’m playing with my phone, I’ll hide first.]
Qiao Huaiyao replied, [Okay.]
Then he briefly informed Bai Jinyan of what he knew and asked, “If the time is set for these days, brother, do you have time to come over?”
Bai Jinyan thought about his schedule for the next few days and immediately replied, “Yes.”
In high school, most of the remaining events were either 1000 meters or 800 meters, and he had participated in every sports meet before.
After entering university, he wouldn’t miss the first sports meet either.
Qiao Huaiyao chuckled softly, “Okay.”
Most of the sports meet was organized by the student union.
Including venue cleaning, equipment transportation, and environmental arrangement, were all handled by members of the student union.
After the meeting, Qiu Shufeng immediately sent a message to Qiao Huaiyao.
Qiu Shufeng: [Study God! The time is set for the last two days of the month. The opening ceremony will start at 7 a.m., with school clubs performing on stage, and the official competitions will start around 10 a.m.]
The timing for the sports meet was tight; if it dragged on, it would soon be winter.
Then it wouldn’t be called an autumn sports meet anymore.
Moreover, some competitions didn’t cause much sweating, but once it got cold, participants would bundle up, which affected their performance.
Choosing a day with perfect autumn weather was the best.
The weather here was colder earlier than in other places, and if it dragged on, it might not just be a snowy day but a heavy snow or sleet day, making it impossible to hold the sports meet.
Club performances don’t need too much preparation time; they usually start preparing their performances well in advance.
They could perform in full before the opening ceremony.
Otherwise, if they waited for the time to be set for the sports meet before starting to prepare for the performances, it would definitely be too late.
Qiu Shufeng: [Performing on stage can earn credits. Study God, are you interested?]