Chapter Thirty-Five: Registration and the Matter of Choices

He Zhixing and Yu Fang soon arrived at their respective schools in G City, the provincial capital. First, they dropped Yu Fang off at the fashion design institute. The school was teeming with beautiful young women, but He Zhixing paid them little mind; everything in the provincial city felt unfamiliar to him for the first time, including the people bustling around.

Yu Fang’s dormitory was a four-person room. When her new roommates saw that such a handsome young man had brought her, they couldn’t help but look on with envy, joking with her that she was lucky and should keep a close watch on He Zhixing, since men are naturally fickle. Yu Fang simply laughed, unconcerned, and teased, “Or is it that you’ve taken a liking to him?” The girls rolled their eyes. “Please, we’re just worried you’ll be too attached to let go.”

After settling her in, He Zhixing took Yu Fang out of campus. On a quiet, tree-lined path, Yu Fang began to playfully complain, “I’m so tired, and someone here doesn’t even feel sorry for me!” He Zhixing laughed, bent down in front of her, swept her up onto his back, and said, “Let’s go!”

Not far along, a little girl approached them. She looked up at He Zhixing and said, “Big brother, you’re so nice to that sister. She’s really pretty.” Yu Fang nearly buried her face in his shoulder, her cheeks flushed red. “That’s not true. Little sister, you’re very pretty too.” “Thank you,” the girl replied sweetly.

When the quiet path ended and they reached a busier street, He Zhixing set her down. As more people appeared, even if he wouldn’t have minded carrying her, Yu Fang would have felt too shy to be seen like that.

They arrived at He Zhixing’s school, and after he got settled into his dormitory, they found a simple place to have dinner together. Before parting, they agreed to meet again soon and talk about their impressions from the first day of school.

He Zhixing had chosen to major in oil painting as well as traditional landscape and figure painting. On his first day of class, he met the elderly professor of traditional Chinese landscape art and the oil painting instructor. The landscape professor spoke at length about the origins of landscape painting and the cultural, historical, artistic, and collectible value of traditional Chinese art, even showing a few pieces from the museum’s collection. The oil painting teacher also provided a detailed introduction, discussed the history of oil painting worldwide, and brought a large album showcasing masterworks for demonstration. The first class focused on teaching them the basics of sketching.

Yu Fang’s first class introduced the fundamentals of garment manufacturing and the clothing industry: all the steps involved in creating a finished garment, from design and sketching—which required a solid foundation in quick drawing—to pattern drafting, cutting, assembling, and sewing.

Whenever class was over, the two would spend time together: eating, strolling, and discussing their studies. When they discovered that both of their programs required sketching skills, they couldn’t help but laugh at how their paths overlapped so closely.

In a quiet corner of the park, Yu Fang nestled in his arms. He Zhixing whispered in her ear, “Yu Fang, shall we rent a place together off campus?”

Yu Fang hesitated. “But that would cost money. Besides, you still have over a hundred thousand on your card that we need to save for the future. We’ve only just started, and there are four years of living expenses ahead. I think we should be careful with our spending.”

Hearing her meticulous calculations, He Zhixing felt a secret happiness. “Ah, women really do think carefully about life. In every family, it’s always the woman who handles things so prudently,” he mused.

He smiled, kissed her lightly, and gazed into her eyes. “You’re worried about our future and our prospects, aren’t you? Haha…” He tapped her nose. “I’m lucky to have such a practical wife.”

Yu Fang pouted, playfully hitting his chest. “You’re so annoying.”

He Zhixing gently held her shoulders. “Don’t worry, I’ll take care of it. Come, I’ll show you something…” With that, he took her hand and led her away. Yu Fang hurried to keep up. “Where are you taking me?”

He Zhixing gave her a mysterious smile. “You’ll see when we get there.”

They arrived at a sports lottery ticket shop, where a few others were already inside. He Zhixing examined the display of various instant lottery tickets and their rules. After studying them, he spotted a stack of large-format instant tickets under the counter and said to the proprietress, “Could I have a hundred yuan’s worth of those?” He pointed at the big ones.

The shop owner was delighted—business was business, after all. “Those? Right away!” She opened the cabinet to get ten tickets.

He Zhixing quickly interjected, “Can we pick them ourselves? We want to try our luck picking by hand.”

The owner glanced at the young couple and agreed readily, “Of course. Just let me know when you’ve chosen.”

This was exactly what He Zhixing wanted. He hadn’t used his special ability in a long time. As the owner busied herself selling tickets to other customers, he quietly summoned his powers, focusing his energy into his eyes. He scanned the stack of tickets, quickly selecting a five-thousand, a one-hundred, a fifty, and even a grand prize of fifty thousand. He left the remaining six to random chance, since he could see those were duds.

After choosing their ten tickets, he called to the owner, “We’ve picked them! Please ring them up.”

She finished helping the other customers and came over to check. “All set. Good luck to you both!”

“Thank you.”

Hand in hand, the two sat down at a table to scratch their tickets. As they finished, Yu Fang compared the numbers with the prize chart, her mouth forming a perfect “O” of astonishment.

He Zhixing smiled, gathered the winning tickets, and went to the counter. “We’d like to claim our prizes, please.”

The owner took the tickets and scrutinized the scratch-off areas. “Well, you’ve won fifty-five thousand, one hundred and fifty. Young man, you’re lucky indeed! Congratulations. I’ll have someone bring the money over right away.” She called her husband, who hurried to the bank to withdraw the cash.

After taxes and fees, they were left with just over fifty-two thousand. The couple left amid the owners’ congratulations.

Once outside, He Zhixing, carrying the cash, took Yu Fang to the bank. They deposited fifty thousand, keeping a little over two thousand for everyday expenses.

Yu Fang was still dazed. Only when they left the bank did she whisper, “Did we really just win all this?”

He Zhixing grinned. “So, am I amazing or what? Come on, let’s go house-hunting!” He took her hand, tucking it into his arm, and together they set off, full of joy, in search of a place to call their own.