18: Matching
My eyes must be deceiving me.
Shen Jin blinked, calmly backed up a few steps until he was standing in the doorway, then checked the room number again.
Silence spread through the air. Qian Kun wasn’t affected at all. He watched Shen Jin for a moment, very much at ease, studying the version of him that was different from his usual icy demeanor.
Shen Jin remembered something Gu Yue had said on WeChat when he introduced this new roommate.
“Living alone is lonely, so he wants some company?”
You don’t even live here. Lonely my ass.
In the span of a few seconds, Shen Jin went through an upupupupupdown roller-coaster of emotions. Then he took a deep breath.
It’s fine. What’s the big deal about sharing a room with an enemy? No problem.
“Enemy” was still up for debate, but he really hadn’t talked properly with Qian Kun more than a handful of times.
Every time they talked, they’d start sniping at each other. Maybe they just weren’t fated to get along.
When Shen Jin came back in, Qian Kun had already changed into a black T-shirt. He casually slipped a necklace that had been on the desk over his head and onto his neck.
Shen Jin glanced at it once more.
Not because it was delicate, but because he remembered once inadvertently seeing that the central gemstone was red, yet now it was green.
A faint floral-and-herbal scent from body wash lingered in the room. Shen Jin’s ears warmed red. He walked to the window and opened it all the way.
The autumn breeze carried a trace of warmth as it swept inside. Shen Jin steadied his mind.
“You knew it was me.”
This wasn’t a question. It was a statement.
Once he calmed down, Shen Jin realized what was off. Qian Kun hadn’t shown even a flicker of surprise from start to finish, as if he’d known all along that this was the dorm Shen Jin lived in.
“Mm~” Qian Kun admitted it outright. Sitting in a swivel chair, he casually picked up the tumbler toy on the desk and gave it a spin.
That afternoon, he’d had the household staff pack up the things he always used, then moved them into the dorm.
Shen Jin reminded him out of basic courtesy. “The dorm closes at ten-thirty. If you don’t leave now, you won’t make it.”
Qian Kun’s phoenix eyes lifted. “Did I ever say I was leaving?”
Shen Jin nodded. So, he was staying on campus.
He sat down directly, aura fully switched on. “Dorm conditions are bad. You won’t get used to it.”
Qian Kun said, “Class Rep, you should try digging out your classmates’ potential. You can’t crush someone’s confidence before they’ve even started~”
Shen Jin replied, “You’re confident enough. You don’t need external reinforcement.”
Qian Kun: “You seem to know me really well. Are you secretly in love with me?”
Shen Jin: “Your IQ must be above 70. Congratulations.”
Qian Kun laughed. So that’s him calling me mentally deficient.
On the surface they were both smiling politely, looking perfectly courteous. Only occasionally, when their eyes met, a hint of sharpness flashed. Their gazes collided, silently exchanging blows multiple times.
Seeing Shen Jin’s attention keep drifting his way, Qian Kun lifted a brow. “If you want to switch dorms back, Gu Yue hasn’t left yet. You still have time. Though, Shen Jin, are you scared, rooming with me?”
That careless tone made Shen Jin remember the way someone had looked down on him in the car, utterly disdainful.
Provocation might not work on other people, but Shen Jin had been needled too many times back and forth by Qian Kun. He felt like he’d developed a stress response to this man. His expression didn’t change at all.
“Translate this sentence for me: ‘Xi Xi xīxī xié xī xǐ, Xi Xi xìxì xí xǐ xī.’ What does it mean?”
Qian Kun froze on the spot.
What is Shen Jin even saying? Why does it all sound like the same pronunciation?
Qian Kun had lived in an ABC environment for years. His English could hit full marks even if he took it half-asleep.
However the moment it came to classical Chinese, he dropped straight into a knowledge abyss and went blind.
Shen Jin successfully shut him up and claimed a win.
He delivered the verdict. “Not understanding classical Chinese is basically the same as not understanding Chinese characters, which is basically illiteracy. What do I have to fear from an illiterate person? Therefore, your argument doesn’t hold.”
Saying it all in one go felt like taking a sip of an ice-cold drink on a blazing summer day. A refreshing fizz bubbled up inside him.
It was time to let you experience the charm of Chinese characters.
A language dummy who can’t even read classical Chinese. I’m supposed to be afraid?
Dream on.
Qian Kun’s pause only lasted a moment. The next second, he walked toward Shen Jin with a blank face.
As he approached, the tension snapped tight again. Shen Jin’s whole body went into combat-ready mode.
When Qian Kun looked down at him from above, the sense of suppression became even stronger.
At the tip of his nose, the clean scent of the boy’s freshness brushed past.
Qian Kun stepped around Shen Jin, reached straight for the brown sugar boba on the desk. It wasn’t as icy anymore after the walk from the milk tea shop to the dorm, and condensation beaded on the cup.
“I’m heading out for a bit. Use the dorm however you like, I won’t be back for now.” Qian Kun’s voice was low, carrying his usual lazy ease. He pointed at the milk tea. “This is for me, right? Thanks.”
Then he shut the door with a bang.
Once Qian Kun left, the dorm returned to silence.
Only then did Shen Jin’s tightly wound body finally loosen. He flopped into the chair like a pancake.
Whew.
Did I do okay just now?
I didn’t look cowardly, right? I looked like a tough guy, right?
In the hallway, Qian Kun remembered Shen Jin’s faintly contemptuous look, and the competitiveness in his bones was lit.
That indescribable rush of excitement made him suddenly interested in Chinese. He pressed his tongue against his lip.
As for leaving, that was simply to give Shen Jin a buffer.
There was no need to stay at a time like this and make Shen Jin uncomfortable.
They would have plenty of time to live together later.
No rush.
On the first floor of the dorm building, there was a small library reading room. Most of the books there were donations.
Past and current students could donate books they no longer needed. After the administrator sorted them, they’d be put on the shelves.
They were all secondhand, but most were kept in good condition. Maybe because everyone knew where they came from, students who borrowed them treated them with care.
There were also more than a dozen rows of tables for students who got distracted easily in dorms, or who needed a study environment for self-study.
Tonight, after nine o’clock, the reading room gradually emptied out. That was when an Omega noticed a tall, handsome guy walk in. Taking a closer look, they realized it was Qian Kun.
If he was here at this hour, there was only one possibility.
Qian Kun was living on campus!
They immediately opened Nanhu’s Omega-only WeChat group and posted:
[Do you know who I saw in the little reading room? You’ll never guess!!!]
With Qixi already over, the next romance-themed holidays wouldn’t roll around until Christmas and New Year’s. An Omega without love was a wilted flower.
Everyone had been a bit listless in the group lately.
[Who?]
[If it’s not one of the campus heartthrobs, I’m not interested. Omega time isn’t for wasting. filing nails.jpg]
[The crown prince just parachuted in!!!]
[In the dorm!]
[Old news, okay? Are you from the village that just got 2G? Kun-kun signed up for a bed the moment he transferred, he just doesn’t sleep there, that’s all.]
[doge.jpg]
That Omega saw they couldn’t explain it properly, so they dumped photos directly.
[photo.jpg][photo.jpg]
It was obviously a sneak shot. A boy moved between rows of bookshelves.
In that frozen moment of light and shadow, he wore a clean, simple black casual outfit, yet he looked like a natural clothes hanger. Wherever he went, he drew attention.
There was no aggressive air about him, only a careless elegance.
One hand flipped through a book, his finger joints clean-cut, long and pale. His face in profile was lowered, his features deep.
[At this time, AHHHHHH, the crown prince really is living on campus!]
[It instantly feels like our old busted dorm building just leveled up by multiple tiers!]
[Kun-kun seriously means it when he says he doesn’t care about private vs public schools. I like him so much. He never says empty stuff, he just does it!]
[Kneeling for the crown prince’s execution speed!]
[That book in his hand looks like classical Chinese, my god. My idol is already second in the grade and he’s still working this hard. Meanwhile I’m idly picking my feet. I’m unworthy, sob.]
[I want to possess that book he’s holding. Someone tell me what it’s called!]
[Is the dorm building full? I’m also in second year, maybe I can still get on the same floor as my idol!]
Shen Jin came out of the bathroom after a shower. He’d even blow-dried his hair inside, then got fully dressed and neat before coming out.
Qian Kun really hadn’t come back. He’d always kept his word. Shen Jin believed that much.
He did a few problems. His phone kept popping up silent notifications. He was about to close them, but when he saw Qian Kun’s name on the newest chat, he clicked in, almost as if possessed.
Shen Jin was still in the Omega groups. Even though he’d differentiated, none of the group admins had kicked him out.
He skimmed past the messages and focused on the sneak photo. He aimed at the book in Qian Kun’s hand and zoomed in, zoomed in, and zoomed in again.
Shen Jin recognized the cover.
The book was titled: Second Grade Elementary Classical Chinese Appreciation.
It had been in the little reading room for ages with no one interested.
Shen Jin: “…”
Ahem. It does suit him.
So he went out to patch his knowledge blind spot?
Looks like Qian Kun also knew his foundation was too weak and he couldn’t handle jumping straight into middle school-level stuff.
As Qian Kun stayed away longer, Shen Jin’s initial tension gradually dissipated. He felt much more at ease.
Qian Kun didn’t choose to press in step by step. After he softened the atmosphere, Shen Jin would naturally default to accepting him as a roommate.
After all, the dorms were full. Shen Jin didn’t have another choice, did he?
Shen Jin closed the group chat and set it to “don’t notify.”
[Just saying this weakly, but I think I ran into Ice God in the elevator.]
The group went quiet for a beat.
Then it exploded with huge enthusiasm.
Shen Jin didn’t see the messages after that. Even if he did, he wouldn’t comment on gossip about himself.
Handsome, and he knows it, so it’s just… business as usual.
*
When Qian Kun finally opened the door and came back in, Shen Jin was already asleep.
The desk lamp was on. It was set to the lowest brightness, warm white light spilling softly across the room, like someone had been waiting for him.
Something stirred in Qian Kun’s mind.
The sound of the door made the person on the upper bunk murmur, “Mm,” thick with sleep in his voice.
Still so alert. He reacted the moment a stranger approached.
Qian Kun lowered his voice unconsciously. “Sleep.”
He turned the air conditioner up by two degrees. He walked to Shen Jin’s desk to turn off the lamp, and at a glance he saw the childhood photo of the two brothers.
Maybe to make it as eye-catching as possible, the frame was bright gold, the kind that could blind you on sight.
Thinking of Shen Xie'an’s lively energy, Qian Kun figured that with taste like that, for Shen Jin to not shove it into a drawer to collect dust, he truly had to be ridiculously indulgent toward his little brother.
The photo showed Shen Jin as a child, eight or nine, and honestly… pretty cute. Also a bit familiar.
Maybe because Shen Jin had been good-looking even as a kid, with rosy lips and white teeth. If you didn’t look carefully, you could mistake him for a little girl.
Qian Kun looked for a moment, put the frame back, and turned off the light.
The news that Qian Kun was living on campus spread through the students immediately.
The most excited were the people in the Qianjin Shipping Society group. Someone had already seen Shen Jin dragging his suitcase in the morning.
Luo Ying started rallying everyone:
[Comrades, hurry and check which dorm rooms they’re in. Is there a chance we’ll get a meet-up!]
[Same grade, same class, same floor is basically guaranteed. We just need to see if their dorms are close!]
[I found it, the dorm auntie’s registration info got leaked! Who did this, GDPL!!]
[One is 803, one is 806!]
[Jinjing is with the grade-first Gu Yue, Qianqian has a single dorm!]
[AAAAH it’s only the width of one hallway, just 210cm. Round it off and it means they’re breathing the same air!]
[This is candy hidden in nature. I’m truly shipping it this time!]
Luo Ying felt deeply gratified. Their shipping society had to keep a research mindset, analyze professionally, turn impossibility into motivation, attract more fellow shippers to improve together, stay up to date, and always stand at the forefront of the candy-eating scene!
Luo Ying had recently recruited several new members. She was fired up, then noticed the person involved standing right in front of her.
“Group project. Have you collected it?” Shen Jin’s words were as concise and cutting as ever.
“Yes, I’ll get it right away!” Luo Ying’s face reddened. She could ship like her life depended on it online, but she didn’t dare show even a trace in front of the real people.
Ice God might not care that much, but the other big shot… like Zheng Zhepeng said, if you pissed him off, even kneeling and begging might not help.
Luo Ying looked at the two of them in the back row again. For the entire morning, they hadn’t exchanged a single word.
Sure enough, shipping can’t be taken into real life. If you do, it turns into a BE in minutes.
After Shen Jin collected the morning’s homework, he asked Hu Shengqiang for leave. He planned to go to the hospital for a checkup and consult about surgery.
The results weren’t optimistic. His pheromones might erupt in a few days.
He’d been waiting for news from the public matching office. At the moment, one Alpha with a compatibility over 80% was willing to take the job, but wanted Shen Jin to pay extra.
Shen Jin’s offered fee was one hundred thousand. That was already the maximum standard.
This was only a few temporary marks. There was no need for that kind of money.
The staff didn’t recommend agreeing to an Alpha that greedy, because it likely wouldn’t be the first time he demanded extra. More importantly, an 80% match wouldn’t be that effective anyway.
After that, there was no other news.
Shen Jin could only ask about the other possibility.
“If I choose surgery, what’s the success rate?”
“You’re a special type. We can only guarantee fifty percent.” The female doctor probably hadn’t seen many people like this, someone who wouldn’t look for an Alpha, and instead chose to gamble on half a chance, especially at this age. Her voice softened without her noticing. “There’s a chance of surgical infection, organ failure…”
“You could go to the public matching office again. The Alphas there can be bought with money. You’ll always find someone with high compatibility.”
“I’ve been there already,” Shen Jin said.
The doctor saw Shen Jin’s expression and suddenly remembered that Shen Jin was a special type. The ones he could match with were all high-level or top-level Alphas, each one more arrogant and picky than the last.
Doctor: “…”
Shen Jin: “…”
A patient and a doctor, both thinking of the same key problem.
They looked at each other in silence.
When Qian Kun woke up, he realized Shen Jin wasn’t there. At first, he assumed Shen Jin was busy again.
By the fourth period of the afternoon in Music class, Shen Jin still hadn’t shown up.
Qian Kun idly scribbled on the sheet music while the teacher played at the piano up front, fingers flying.
He listened for only a moment before he could tell three notes were wrong.
Zhou You glanced at Qian Kun, who was hiding his irritation, and said, “I saw him go find Old Hu earlier. If nothing unexpected happened, he probably took the afternoon off. Most likely for personal business.”
Zhou You didn’t say who “he” was, but Liu Qimai wanted to butt in and couldn’t understand their wordless riddle at all.
Qian Kun laughed like it didn’t matter. “What are you talking about?”
Zhou You fiddled with the ocarina in his hand and smiled innocently. “Ah, nothing. I’m just talking nonsense.”
Qian Kun shrugged. While the teacher wasn’t paying attention, he strolled out the back door.
The music classroom was on the top floor of the lab building. He went down slowly.
When he reached the third floor, an ambiguous sound drifted through the empty hallway, along with the spread of pheromone scent. The level was low, so the influence wasn’t strong.
The third floor housed research equipment most of the time. Unless there was a class or someone needed it, almost no one came up here.
Passing the stairwell, he saw a pair of first-year students in uniform, a boy and a girl, in the middle of a mark. The Alpha clung to the Omega’s gland like a beast.
The Omega couldn’t help letting out a few sounds.
Maybe because Qian Kun’s presence was too strong, the couple noticed someone approaching. Against the backlight, they couldn’t see who it was.
They couldn’t care about continuing the marking. Enduring the discomfort, they fled at top speed, leaving only a muddled pheromone stench behind.
Qian Kun frowned.
Just like a beast marking territory.
Savage, chaotic, messy.
Qian Kun didn’t feel any of the beauty described in literature.
If anything, his disgust deepened.
Shen Jin only returned to the classroom by evening study. He had barely sat down when his seatmate’s gaze slid over.
His eye color was very light, a pale brown that in sunlight carried some gold, like lemon black tea in afternoon sunlight.
When he had no expression, he always carried something hard to read.
Qian Kun had waited all afternoon, but even after Shen Jin came back, he didn’t ask the question: where did you go?
His thoughts turned a thousand times. He lowered his eyes. Delicate lashes trembled slightly, giving off a pitiful illusion.
Shen Jin had never seen Qian Kun like this. He stared, momentarily stunned.
Qian Kun tilted his head and spoke in a voice only the two of them could hear. “During my nap in the dorm, I spilled water. The quilt got wet.”
Shen Jin stared at this young master. “You… don’t tell me you didn’t take it out to dry.”
Qian Kun: “It needs drying?”
Shen Jin pressed a hand to his forehead, not sure what to say. “Of course it needs drying!”
Before they could finish, someone called from outside. A third-year senior asked Shen Jin to come out for a moment. Shen Jin assumed it was student council business and went without thinking.
He didn’t take his phone. It kept vibrating on the desk.
When it rang a third time, Qian Kun got annoyed and grabbed it to silence it.
Then he saw a number that looked familiar.
Qian Kun’s eyelid twitched. His memory was excellent.
He took out his own phone, pulled up the blacklist in his contacts, and compared the numbers.
It was that harassment fanatic.
The public safety matching office…?
Author’s Note:
A pitiful little Qian Kun.
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