Chapter Fifty-Three: The Cousin Not Seen for Ten Years

Beep—

After finishing his duties at the academic office, Xia Shu’s phone suddenly rang.

“Hello, Mom!”

“Hehe, son, have you eaten?”

“I have. How about you?”

“I’ve eaten too!”

“Mm… Mom, do you have something to tell me?”

The voice on the other end was cheerful; it was clear she had news to share.

“Well, do you still remember Qingqing?”

“Qingqing? Which Qingqing?”

“The daughter of your second uncle.”

“Oh, right, I remember now.”

Walking along the road, Xia Shu raised his eyebrows slightly.

His second uncle had divorced once; from his first marriage, he had a daughter, about the same age as Xia Shu, named Xia Qingqing.

But Xia Qingqing chose to stay with her mother, so in Xia Shu’s memory, he hadn’t seen her for at least ten years.

Before the divorce, every weekend when she was free, Xia Qingqing would come over to play at Xia Shu’s house, and their relationship was quite good then.

But after leaving with her mother, they lost contact.

“Mom, what’s up? Why bring up Qingqing all of a sudden?”

“Well, your second uncle just messaged me today. Turns out your cousin Qingqing is attending the same university as you. Isn’t that a coincidence?”

“Huh? Uh…yeah, that is quite the coincidence.”

Xia Shu was stunned; the news caught him off guard.

A strange feeling welled up inside him. In these ten years without contact, he had no idea what his cousin might look like now.

“There’s some bad news too. Qingqing’s mother passed away this holiday. Her family situation isn’t great, so your second uncle hopes you can bring Qingqing home for National Day. I’ll send you her contact information; reach out to her when you have the time.”

Xia Shu’s mother had always liked Xia Qingqing, thinking she was an obedient and lovely child.

His second uncle’s family and his own had always been close; it made sense that his uncle missed his daughter dearly.

“Alright, send me the contact info. I’ll get in touch when I can.”

Xia Shu nodded, sighing softly.

His second uncle hadn’t remarried, and now his cousin’s mother had passed away unexpectedly. It must have hit his uncle hard.

Though he didn’t know all the details, he’d heard his parents and uncle talk about it at home, and knew his uncle felt deeply guilty towards his ex-wife. Living alone all these years, he was a man of rare devotion.

“I’ve sent it to you already. Get in touch when you can, and let me know how it goes. I won’t disturb your nap; update me afterward.”

“Got it, Mom.”

Beep—

After the call ended, Xia Shu’s mother quickly sent the information.

Seeing Xia Qingqing’s contact, he hesitated for a moment, then searched for her number and sent a friend request, noting himself as “Cousin Xia Shu.”

It felt awkward, after all these years without meeting.

When Xia Shu got back to his dorm, the friend request was accepted.

Lying on his bed, feeling drowsy, he glanced at his phone—there wasn’t much time left for a nap. In the end, he focused on the chat box with his cousin.

She had accepted the request but hadn’t said anything. Clearly, if he didn’t reach out, she wouldn’t either.

“Hey, cousin, do you remember me?”

A few seconds later…

“Of course I do [smile], hello cousin!”

“I heard from Mom you got into Yuncheng University too!”

“Yes.”

“What a coincidence! It’s been so long. How about we meet up tonight?”

“Sure!”

“What’s your major?”

“Chinese Language and Literature! What about you?”

“Electronic Information Science and Technology.”

“Oh, nice. Actually, I’ve heard a lot about you, cousin. I wasn’t sure before, but after getting my dad’s message just now, I realized that the famous freshman at our school lately is you! [laughing]”

“Don’t laugh, I just got lucky. Let’s meet this afternoon then—lunch time’s tight and I’ve got military training soon!”

“Alright, see you this afternoon [grin]”

From her use of emojis, Xia Shu guessed his cousin had a pleasant personality.

He yawned, still sleepy, but military training was coming up soon.

His roommates woke up, he washed his face in cold water, then headed to the gymnasium with Lin Xiang and the others.

Military training was nearing its end; there were no new drills, only the final parade.

Today was unusually hot, and after training, Xia Shu felt sweat soaking his back.

Exhaling the heat, Xia Shu pulled out his phone just as Xia Qingqing sent a message.

It was a photo of the area outside the gymnasium.

He could tell where she was.

Walking out of the gym with Lin Xiang and the others, Xia Shu scanned the crowd and spotted a slender figure blinking her large, watery eyes at him, smiling shyly and waving.

“Xia Shu, is she waving at you?” Liu Zhuang patted his shoulder.

“Yeah, that’s my cousin!”

Xia Shu smiled and quickened his pace.

“Wow, so after all this time, Xia Shu has a cousin at the same university—and she’s really something!”

Liu Zhuang was amazed.

Looking closely, he saw the girl standing nearby with a ponytail, her temples damp with sweat, but her skin was fair and delicate.

Her features were exquisite, her aura unique. Even wearing the military uniform, her beauty was clear—truly rare.

“Look at your greedy little eyes, no shame,” Lin Xiang chuckled, then paused as he glanced over, raising his eyebrows: “Isn’t that the famous freshman from the College of Literature? She’s recognized as their campus belle. Wow, I didn’t expect Xia Shu’s cousin to be her. Is everyone in his family good-looking?”

“Strong genes, just like mine—all fat, without exception, haha.”

Liu Zhuang laughed.

“Ridiculous, can you really compare?” Wang Yang couldn’t help but laugh at his remark.

Meanwhile, Xia Shu walked up to Xia Qingqing.

They looked at each other, both feeling a bit nervous.

“Hello, cousin!”

Xia Qingqing’s smile was sweet, her features clean and pure, reminding Xia Shu of her childhood.

She'd always had good looks, but had grown even more striking.

“Hello, cousin. It’s been so long, you’ve changed so much.”

Xia Shu scratched the back of his head, smiling awkwardly.

“Let’s head to the cafeteria and chat over dinner?”

“Alright, cousin!”

They walked toward the cafeteria together.

On the way, they chatted about various topics, but suddenly Xia Qingqing stopped, her expression changing.

“What’s wrong, cousin?” Xia Shu asked, puzzled.

She looked embarrassed; the heat had gotten to her, and she hadn’t brought her military jacket.

She felt a warm flow down her back.

Xia Shu guessed the problem and quickly handed her his jacket, “Are you having your period?”

“Mm…”

Xia Qingqing’s face reddened deeply, biting her lip. She hadn’t expected such an embarrassing moment on their first meeting after so many years.

She wished she could disappear.

She took Xia Shu’s jacket, wrapped it around her waist, frowned, and forced a smile, “Thank you, cousin. I… I need to go back to the dorm first.”

“Alright! Let’s meet again after evening study,” Xia Shu grinned.

“Okay.”