Warm Water Burns, Chapter 20

Wen Yan’s freshly blow-dried hair, fluffy and silky, cascaded over her shoulders. In her prone position, it stretched all the way down to the soft swell of her chest. The phone screen cast a glow across her face, illuminating skin that was white with a flush of pink. Her slender fingers tapped out words on the on-screen keyboard: [Just finished showering. Reading a book.]

Yuanning: [Did you dry your hair?]

She hadn’t expected him to care about that. Wen Yan replied: [All dry. I only got into bed after drying it.]

Yuanning: [In bed?]

Zhemuw: [Mm.]

Yuanning: [Are you used to sleeping in the dorm bed yet?]

Zhemuw: [I’m not picky about where I sleep. It’s fine.]

In their dorm, Qiu Xue and Zhong Youyou were both particular about their sleeping environment. Neither had slept well during their first week.

Wen Yan had originally planned to read, but she ended up chatting with Fu Lanzhuo instead. Their conversation was all everyday things—nothing profound. They even discussed how the tomato and scrambled eggs she’d had at Yanqing’s Xinzhu Cafeteria the day before were sweet, which she wasn’t used to, leading to a broader discussion about the differences between Huicheng and Yan City cuisine.

On WeChat, Fu Lanzhuo was very patient. Wen Yan couldn’t sense any airs about him. Still, sometimes his words felt more like a gentle elder checking in on her, rather than… a boyfriend.

Gradually, it was already ten-thirty.

Yuanning: [Shouldn’t you be sleeping?]

Yuanning: [It’s getting late.]

By this point, Wen Yan was already lying in bed. The book she’d meant to read sat on the pillow beside her. She drew her knees up: [Mm. You should sleep early too.]

The phone buzzed.

Yuanning: [Send me a copy of your class schedule.]

Wen Yan’s cheeks grew rosier than before. She figured Fu Lanzhuo probably wanted to know her daily class arrangement. As he’d asked, she opened the app where she kept her timetable, took a screenshot, and sent it to him.

After receiving the schedule, Fu Lanzhuo messaged: [Tomorrow at noon I have a business engagement, so I probably won’t be able to come to campus to see you. I’ll only be free in the afternoon. Once your classes are done, I’ll pick you up and we’ll have dinner together.]

Wen Yan paused.

Fu Lanzhuo had already told her he’d be busy. She hadn’t even thought about tomorrow. Her lips curved, and she replied okay.

Monday had been rainy since morning, only clearing up in the afternoon. Wen Yan’s last class was Constitutional Law, held in Teaching Building Five. In the tiered lecture hall, she sat in a row with her three roommates.

With a little over ten minutes left before class ended, the professor at the podium—an elderly man with a head of gray-white curls and silver dentures—spoke with passionate, animated energy. His voice was vibrant, not a trace of the weariness one might expect at his age.

Wen Yan was listening attentively, taking notes, when she heard Xiao Xinrui and Qiu Xue whispering to her right: “That Maybach outside is so cool. I wonder whose it is—some university leader’s car?”

Qiu Xue said, “Could be some rich second-generation’s.”

“No way. Only university leaders or faculty can drive private cars onto campus.”

Wen Yan instinctively glanced out the window. Her gaze fixed.

Because that car outside looked very familiar.

The phone resting beside her book buzzed. Wen Yan picked it up. A message from Fu Lanzhuo: [I’m here.]

Half an hour ago, Fu Lanzhuo had asked which building her class was in. Wen Yan looked outside again and replied: [I can see your car.]

[There’s still ten minutes before class ends, gege.]

Yuanning: [Mm. I arrived early. It’s fine. I’ll wait.]

Wen Yan’s cheeks suddenly grew a little warm. She sent back an okay penguin sticker.

Time seemed to slow. Outside Teaching Building Five, the black Maybach sat in silent stillness. Its sleek body was half hidden in the shadow cast by a thick tree trunk, the other half bathed in the slanting afternoon sun, the paint reflecting a subtle sheen.

The dismissal bell rang. Fu Lanzhuo was no longer sitting in the car. He’d stepped out from the driver’s side, one hand tucked into his pocket.

He wore a precisely tailored dark suit. Tall and upright, his features were handsome and striking. With the Maybach behind him, he drew an enormous amount of attention.

At the end of class, students poured out of the teaching building like a tide.

Wen Yan carried her backpack, caught in the flow of people, her three roommates beside her. She walked on the outermost edge, Qiu Xue to her right.

Xiao Xinrui had the sharpest eyes. The moment they stepped out of the building, she spotted Fu Lanzhuo. Her pupils widened slightly, and she jabbed Zhong Youyou with her elbow.

“Isn’t that Fu Lanzhuo? So that Maybach belongs to this big-shot chairman!”

Qiu Xue heard what Xiao Xinrui said and looked straight over, unable to help exclaiming, “He’s so handsome. And he looks so young.”

Zhong Youyou: “He really is handsome. Wait, why is he at our university today? Looks like he’s here to pick someone up.”

Wen Yan gripped her backpack strap. After hesitating for a long moment, she finally spoke up. “He’s here to pick me up.”

The words landed, and all three roommates went quiet.

Three pairs of eyes swiveled to her in unison.

Zhong Youyou was the first to laugh. “Yan Yan, you’re quite the comedian.”

Qiu Xue couldn’t help chiming in. “Hahaha, Yan Yan, you’re pretty funny when you want to be.”

Only Xiao Xinrui stayed silent, her gaze darting rapidly between Wen Yan and Fu Lanzhuo in the crowd.

Wen Yan wanted to say “I’m not joking.” By now, they’d reached the last set of steps. She could tell Fu Lanzhuo was watching their direction. If they were heading to Jingtang Cafeteria, she’d need to turn right with her roommates. There wasn’t time to explain much. She said, “I’ll explain later. Today… I won’t go to the cafeteria with you. I’m heading over there now.”

All three roommates stopped in their tracks. Then, wide-eyed, they watched Wen Yan walk toward Fu Lanzhuo.

Beyond the three of them, countless other pairs of eyes were watching too. Wen Yan was far too conspicuous a presence on campus. Her look wasn’t the pure, delicate flower type. She had a slim waist, long legs, a graceful figure, and strikingly bold features—a true beauty. Her naturally black, lustrous, soft hair fell loose, cascading like a dark waterfall over her curving silhouette, making her head and face appear even more delicate. She had the refinement of a porcelain doll combined with a radiance so vivid that one couldn’t help but notice her at first glance.

All those eyes followed her until she reached Fu Lanzhuo.

With so many gazes, so much scrutiny, Fu Lanzhuo couldn’t have been oblivious. When she finally stood before him, his deep, perceptive gaze settled on her face.

Wen Yan spoke first. She called out, “Gege.”

Her voice carried the clear sweetness particular to her age. She didn’t know that every time she called him that, it made Fu Lanzhuo question himself all over again.

Fu Lanzhuo responded with a warm “Mm,” then walked over and opened the passenger door. “Get in.”

Wen Yan clutched her backpack strap, stepped forward, and slid into the car.

The Maybach’s door closed from the outside, cutting off the gazes fixed on Wen Yan. All that remained visible through the half-open window was her lovely profile.

Fu Lanzhuo’s shoulder line was straight, his posture tall and unhurried, his presence cool and sharp. Ignoring all those eyes, he walked around the car to the driver’s door.

…

“Holy crap, I eat my words. That big-shot chairman really was here for Yan Yan! Are they… relatives?! How does Yan Yan know Fu Lanzhuo? She never told us!” Zhong Youyou’s expression was still dazed.

Qiu Xue said, “Yan Yan is always so plain and simple. I never thought she was rich. Ah, no wonder Jiang Lu’er looked out for her so much at the student council icebreaker party. Yan Yan’s been hiding her trump card this whole time!”

Zhong Youyou: “So we’ve been roommates with a relative of Yaoheng’s big boss?! Wow. Yan Yan’s low-key-ness is almost excessive!”

Qiu Xue said, “Maybe Yan Yan just didn’t want us to know she’s related to Fu Lanzhuo. People from big families like that tend to be mysterious. I’m a Yan City local, so I know more about these things than you two.”

The two of them were chattering away, completely missing the point. Xiao Xinrui ignored them for now, pulled out her phone, and messaged Wen Yan.

…

The phone buzzed several times. Wen Yan unzipped her backpack.

Three Blades of Grass: [???]

Three Blades of Grass: [AHHHHHH]

Three Blades of Grass: [It’s not what I think it is, right, Yan Yan?! What’s going on between you and Fu Lanzhuo?!]

When Fu Lanzhuo got into the car, he saw Wen Yan with her head lowered, phone in hand, seemingly texting someone. There were too many prying eyes outside. His long-fingered hand turned the key, and both front windows rose smoothly, sealing shut.

Wen Yan was still typing.

Three Blades of Grass: [Dating??]

Zhemuw: [Yes.]

Three Blades of Grass: [Shocked.jpg Shocked.jpg Shocked.jpg]

Three Blades of Grass: [You’re incredible, Yan Yan! But, but, Fu Lanzhuo must be pretty old, right??]

He might look young, but to be the chairman of Yaoheng, he couldn’t actually be young.

Zhemuw: [He’s ten years older than me.]

Three Blades of Grass: [Ah… well, that’s not bad then.]

She’d assumed he was over a decade or even twenty years older.

These days, plenty of older men took great care of their appearance. Especially wealthy older men.

Three Blades of Grass: [Wait, you two moved way too fast!]

“Wen Yan.” Hearing Fu Lanzhuo call her, Wen Yan looked up. She noticed his gaze flicker to her phone before meeting her eyes.

“Oh, I’m texting my roommate. She’s… very curious about us…” Wen Yan told him.

Fu Lanzhuo’s gaze drifted outside. On the steps below the entrance of the teaching building across the way, those three girls were still looking over, seemingly discussing something. He’d noticed earlier that Wen Yan had walked out with her roommates.

“Curious about what?” Fu Lanzhuo asked.

“Curious about our relationship.” Wen Yan looked at him.

“And what did you tell them?”

“I said we’re dating.”

Fu Lanzhuo’s eyes curved. “Mm. Next time, you can properly introduce me to them.”

Wen Yan nodded, gripping her phone.

Outside, beyond her three roommates’ gazes, there were many more pairs of eyes. With the car doors closed, those scrutinizing looks became even more direct and undisguised.

Wen Yan gazed outside.

Fu Lanzhuo also looked out, his voice deep and smooth. “Is this too flashy?”

“Flashy?” Wen Yan turned her head.

“It’s drawing a lot of attention.” Fu Lanzhuo looked at her. “And it’ll make a lot of people talk about you.”

Wen Yan’s lips curved faintly. “I don’t mind…”

“Maybe I’m already used to it. Ever since kindergarten, people have always talked about me.”

“You’ve been in the spotlight since you were little?”

“Mm.”