She’s a Passerby, But Can See the Protagonist’s Halo

Seeing Zhu Jue's utterly serious expression, Yan's eyes sparkled, her heart overflowing with boundless love.

She wrapped her arms around his neck and planted a loud kiss on Jue Jue's cheek.

This was her Jue Jue.

The best Zhu Jue in the world, her beloved who belonged to her alone.

Their eyes reflected only each other's images.

Yan brushed her nose lightly against his, their soft breaths mingling. Blushing, she pressed her lips briefly against his in a fleeting peck, then quickly glanced around to make sure no one was nearby.

They rarely showed affection on campus, but just then, she couldn't help herself.

Zhu Jue's hands burned with warmth as he tucked her hand into his coat pocket, and the two continued strolling as if no one else existed.

What he hadn't voiced earlier was an even more selfish thought lurking in his heart.

Pregnancy triggers hormones that make mothers protective of their offspring. Many say their friends changed completely after having children, devoting everything to their kids.

It's those hormones at work, compelling people to instinctively nurture the next generation.

No one was worth her changing for.

Not even a child.

Besides, without a baby, Yan's love would remain concentrated solely on him.

He wanted to be the one she loved most in this world—forever.

Zhu Jue knew that no matter how perfect others thought he was as a boyfriend, deep down, he was an utterly selfish, greedy, and despicable man.

He wanted every ounce of her love, all for himself.

...

Since they had eaten a little at Chu Shen's small eatery in the afternoon, neither of them was hungry now.

Yan cheerfully dragged Zhu Jue around the campus twice, bought a cup of steaming hot grapefruit tea, and then he walked her back to Xia Yuan dormitory.

As soon as she entered the room, Yan saw that He Xing had already returned, while the others were still out.

She greeted her roommates, washed her hands, and immediately started messaging Boss Tu to find a suitable gift for her newly adopted goddaughter.

"Senior, did you just get back today?" Yan casually asked He Xing.

"Just a while ago. I had to sell my evening ticket at half price," He Xing replied, rubbing her temples.

"Half price? That low?" Yan looked at her in surprise. He Xing's tickets were usually the most expensive—selling at half price meant losing hundreds.

"Did the matinee performance crash again?"

Yan quickly searched online. After visiting the aquarium and dealing with the overwhelming emotions earlier, she had nearly forgotten about the "Goddess of the Luo River" dance drama.

"No, the matinee was performed by Bei Bei," He Xing said.

Yan nodded. The "Bei Bei" He Xing mentioned was the lead actress of the dance drama.

"So it's still because of the bad reputation. One bad show, and ticket prices plummet across the board. Is Bei Bei performing tonight too? That’s too exhausting. With five shows in Bin City, the lead performs four, and then it’s off to Jinling City, right? And there are already tickets sold for performances in Yangcheng and Shencheng—how are they going to manage?" Yan sighed, shaking her head.

Just then, Yi Zhi returned carrying a delivery box, and both Yan and He Xing fell silent.

Yan glanced at it. "Fruit?"

Other than fruit, Yi Zhi rarely received anything else in deliveries.

Yi Zhi nodded solemnly. Who knew how many orders she had shipped out over the weekend?

The worst part was, to make it seem like these were actual deliveries, she had to repack them after bringing them back—wasted effort! Heartbreaking!

"I left the fried rice on the balcony to keep it cold," Yi Zhi said.

By evening, the whole dorm had gathered to share the takeout Yangzhou fried rice. Chu Bingbing looked moved.

"Amazing, we actually have new fried rice again. But honestly, isn’t Yangzhou fried rice just egg fried rice?"

"Egg fried rice done right," Ding Ling mused before shoveling a big spoonful into her mouth.

Gu Jiasui silently stuffed her face. She had spent the weekend doing cameos for two film crews and, not wanting special treatment, ate the same awful boxed meals as the crew. Disgusting!

Yan sat nearby, happily munching on fruit. She had already eaten some fried rice in the afternoon and yesterday, so she left the rest for her roommates.

Yi Zhi’s fruit—delicious!

Chu Bingbing, who had made an exhausting round trip to Ning City over the weekend for paperwork, was visibly worn out. She inhaled half her portion before slowing down.

Then she glanced at Yan, who was brimming with energy, and narrowed her eyes.

"Yan?"

Yan had just popped a strawberry into her mouth. "Wha’s up?"

"You seem... different today." Chu Bingbing studied her unusually lively demeanor and unmistakably good mood.

Yan thought for a moment. "Well, I went to the aquarium with Lin Fan, Lin Lu, and their family today, and I became Little An An’s godmother. I’m really happy about that."

"Nope, not that."

Chu Bingbing shook her head, put down her chopsticks, and propped her chin on her hand, scrutinizing Yan’s flushed face. She smirked. "You’re glowing. I think it’s the nourishment of love."

"Yan is always nourished by love..." Yi Zhi started to say before suddenly realizing the implication.

She shuddered and stared at Chu Bingbing in horror. "Were you just making a dirty joke?"

Gu Jiasui coughed into her hand, He Xing pretended not to hear, and Ding Ling, cheeks stuffed with food, blinked at the three of them.

"What joke? What’s dirty? How did we get here?"

"No dirty jokes!" Yan pretended to glare at Bingbing.

Chu Bingbing ducked her head. "Come on, you gotta step up. They say men peak at twenty—strong, energetic, capable. After thirty, it’s all downhill. Use it while you can."

"Where did you pick up these outrageous sayings?" Yan’s lips twitched.

Chu Bingbing sighed dramatically. "Remember ‘Sister Zhang’ from last year’s antique auction?"

The antique street auction? Yan quickly tried to recall which wealthy woman Chu Bingbing was referring to.

"Well, I ran into her in Ning City. After finishing my errands last night... she took me to broaden my horizons."

"That’s ​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‍what Sister Zhang told me!" Chu Bingbing said, her eyes darting away.

Yan grabbed her. "Don’t even think of dodging. What ‘horizons’ did you broaden last night? Spill it."

Chu Bingbing cleared her throat. "Well... Sister Zhang booked me a few male escorts at a club. But I didn’t dare touch them."

Yi Zhi nearly choked on her food. Ding Ling’s jaw dropped.

Under their collective interrogation, Chu Bingbing’s phone was unlocked.

A photo revealed her seated in the middle of seven handsome male models. Dorm 320 erupted in gossip.

"That one’s got some looks," Gu Jiasui commented, pointing at the guy leaning close to Chu Bingbing.

"Ugh, his foundation is so thick!" Chu Bingbing retorted.

"This one’s got a nice body," Yi Zhi noted, indicating another.

"His abs were oiled up—so gross to touch!" Chu Bingbing complained.

"What about this guy?" Ding Ling asked.

"That one acted all aloof, expecting me to coax him. Excuse me? I was the paying customer!" Chu Bingbing scoffed.

"Are you sure nothing happened last night?" Yan eyed her suspiciously. Otherwise, why would she suddenly go full throttle with the innuendos?

"Of course!" Chu Bingbing declared righteously.

"Even though their academic credentials are verifiable, they've passed health checks, have great bodies, decent looks, no criminal records, and no marriage history—I just touched some fine physiques. Can't let Sister Zhang's money go to waste, right?" She stretched out a hand.

"Ugh~~~" The others instantly lost interest.

"Next time, I’ll take you all to broaden your horizons. Sisters should enjoy male models together! Wealth means club boys!" Chu Bingbing waved her hand dramatically.

They chanted in unison, "Next time for sure."

"Such liars," Chu Bingbing muttered.

Yan saw right through her: "I think you’re all talk and no action, dragging us along as your backup."

Topics about love occasionally came up during late-night dorm talks.

Young hormones could be mischievous, and in the dead of night, a sudden wave of lovestruck longing might strike. Chu Bingbing, who had never been in a relationship, would curiously turn to Yan for advice.

Of course, Gu Jiasui rarely responded, Yi Zhi was the stereotypically clueless straight girl, and Ding Ling was the one with an absurdly slow reaction time, usually just posing questions.

As the only "stable relationship expert" in Dorm 320, Yan initially took on the role of a sex education columnist, debunking myths about virginity and such.

These were topics ordinary girls often had no one to teach them about—too embarrassed to ask, sometimes even adults in their forties didn’t understand—let alone in this "particularly wild and untamed dorm."

"By the way, Yan, you mentioned earlier that you became the godmother of Lin Fan’s daughter," Chu Bingbing abruptly changed the subject.

"Yeah, we went out together today. Jue Jue and I had seen photos before, but this was our first time meeting Little An An." Yan immediately pulled up photos on her phone to show them.

"The little one’s so chubby and adorable," Chu Bingbing cooed.

Yan then mentioned how Chu Shen was going to be the second godfather. At this, Ding Ling held up her fingers and counted, "One, two, three, four, five."

"I feel like they’ll end up with five godfathers over there," she said seriously.

"Their dorm might even rank them," Yi Zhi added.

Hearing this, Gu Jiasui sent a message on her phone.

The reply came instantly.

[Wu Jiu]: There’s no ranking among godfathers. It’s just… categorized by function.

[Wu Jiu]: Chu Shen’s in charge of fried rice, I handle medical care—pediatric acupuncture, aka ‘health insurance.’

Gu Jiasui, who was drinking water at the time, nearly choked.

The week’s campus life flew by—Yan attended classes, ate meals, selectively participated in extracurricular activities for bonus points, listened to lectures, and in her free time, visited the campus cat club to pet cats while discreetly observing Brother Xiao and Gu Jiasui. By Saturday, she finally had time to rest, but Yan and Zhu Jue still had plans.

They were heading to the antique market to pick out a gift for their goddaughter!

But as the two walked along the campus path toward the subway, a long-absent wooden door suddenly descended from the sky, blocking their way.

Yan and Jue Jue glanced around—no one in sight—and stepped right through the door.

It had been over a month since they last visited the dimension shop. The moment they saw Lu Chen, both were stunned.

"Lu Chen, what happened to you?"

"Did something go wrong?"

The usually pretentious, long-haired intellectual who favored traditional robes and chain-rimmed glasses was completely unrecognizable. His once-sleek hair now stuck out like a ruffled feather duster, his complexion was haggard, his skin darkened and rough, as if he’d endured some ordeal. He’d clearly lost weight.

His entire "cool guy" image had been utterly overturned.

Seeing them, he also jumped in surprise. "How did you two get here?"

Yan sighed. "Your door appeared."

A few days earlier, she and Jue Jue had wondered why the dimension shop hadn’t shown up at the start of the month and how Lu Chen was doing.

Now, seeing him like this, it really seemed something had gone wrong.

Lu Chen looked like he was still recovering from shock. Hearing Yan’s answer, he seemed dazed.

The shop’s wooden door had appeared? He was back in the modern world?

He’d nearly died in that other dimension!

Tears welled up in his eyes as he looked at the couple.

These two were his saviors—the ones who’d forcibly dragged him back!

Seeing him like this, Yan and Jue Jue were even more confused. What on earth had happened?