Extra 5: Campus Ambush

When the seasonal flu broke out, Fu Rangyi came down with it not long after the semester began. But his teaching and research duties couldn’t spare him, so even though he was unwell, he insisted on going to work sick.

Zhu Zhixi’s heart ached for him, so he decided to plan a surprise visit to comfort him. His logic was simple: if Teacher Fu’s mood improved, his illness would surely get better faster.

The first rule of a surprise visit, of course, was not to show up empty-handed. For this, Zhu Zhixi made a special trip home. Under the step-by-step guidance of his family’s housekeeper, he finally drove to S University with the hard-won fruits of his labor.

He sent a message before he left.

[Xixi: Surprise inspection! Time, place, people, and event. Confess and you’ll be treated with leniency; resist and you’ll face severity!]

He received a reply in less than a minute.

[Frail Husband: Reporting to Officer Little Rabbit: 12:56 PM, office, just me. I just took my medicine and am now working overtime.]

[Xixi: Roger! You poor thing. There, there.]

Twenty minutes later, Zhu Zhixi arrived at the office door. It was ajar, and a fluffy head peeked inside, round eyes scanning the room.

No one?

Zhu Zhixi boldly pushed the door open and looked around, discovering another door inside the office. The sign on it read [Conference Room].

This door was also open. The lights in the room were off and the curtains were drawn, making it very dim. Zhu Zhixi stood at the entrance and whispered, “Excuse me,” then poked his head in as before, squinting to see. This time, he finally saw a creature that resembled his husband, napping on a folding cot inside.

Why was he sleeping here?

Seeing this made Zhu Zhixi’s heart ache even more. He put down the things in his hand, tiptoed over, and crouched by the folding cot. He tucked the blanket around him and reached out to feel Fu Rangyi’s forehead.

Thankfully, no fever.

The folding cot was a single, rather cramped. Fu Rangyi could barely turn over on it. Asleep, he was habitually curled on his side, subconsciously wanting to hold something.

Zhu Zhixi watched him, then rummaged through his own bag. Inside were only his tablet, some work documents, and a capsule toy and some temporary tattoo stickers he had bought from a small shop on the way. Finally, Zhu Zhixi saw the little rabbit doll hanging on his bag. He took it off and gently tucked it into Fu Rangyi’s arms.

Unfortunately, the doll was too small and Fu Rangyi was too big; holding it was like holding nothing at all.

He sat on the floor by the cot, gently stroking Fu Rangyi’s back and arms until he felt his breathing deepen. Only then did he pull his hand back and quietly watch him sleep.

Half an hour later, his phone alarm rang. Zhu Zhixi was just about to turn it off for him, but Fu Rangyi had already woken up.

Seeing him leaning over with his arm outstretched, Fu Rangyi was dazed. He rubbed his eyes, then opened them again to stare. It wasn’t until Zhu Zhixi smiled and leaned down to kiss the bridge of his nose that he was sure it wasn’t a dream.

“You’re awake?” Zhu Zhixi’s voice was very soft. He leaned down again and kissed his lips.

Fu Rangyi was still groggy, but he instinctively tried to dodge. “You’ll get infected…” His voice was very hoarse.

“It’s fine, I have a strong immune system,” Zhu Zhixi said insistently, determined to kiss him.

“This flu is highly contagious…” Fu Rangyi turned his head, and the kiss landed on his reddened ear. “If you get sick too, I won’t be able to take care of you.”

“Oh, you…” Not wanting to worry him, Zhu Zhixi had to give up. “Sleeping here will make it worse. Your blanket had fallen on the floor.”

Only then did Fu Rangyi turn his face back, asking in a hoarse voice, “The cold medicine makes me so sleepy… Why did you suddenly come?”

Zhu Zhixi beamed. “Didn’t I just tell you in the message? I thought you were so pitiful, so I came to give you a pat.”

Hearing this, Fu Rangyi chuckled and sat up. “Thank you, Officer Little Rabbit, for taking time out of your busy schedule to pat me.”

“There’s more,” Zhu Zhixi said proudly. He scurried out and then back in, turned on the light, and magically produced a thermal food container. “Ta-da! I also brought you some delicious treats as a reward.”

Fu Rangyi sat on the folding cot, watching as he unscrewed the container layer by layer, steam still rising from within.

“This is beef congee with a swirled egg. I made it myself.” Zhu Zhixi set down the spoon and handed him the congee. “The cafeteria food is so greasy. You’re sick, so you probably didn’t eat much for lunch. Have some congee to warm up. There’s also blanched gai lan and blanched shrimp. I’ve already peeled the shrimp, so you can eat them directly.”

Fu Rangyi was a little stunned, staring down at the congee, feeling a sense of unfamiliarity.

“Oh, right, and this!” Zhu Zhixi took out the bottom layer, deliberately covering it with his palm. “Guess what it is?”

Fu Rangyi looked up, his mind a bit jumbled, but he subconsciously played along. “There’s congee, vegetables, protein… Fruit?”

The hand covering it wagged its index finger. “Wrong.” Zhu Zhixi moved his hand away. “It’s our little Nian Nian’s favorite, glutinous rice balls!”

Fu Rangyi was completely stunned.

Being cared for when sick was a foreign experience for him, let alone for just a cold. He had been used to being alone since childhood, used to taking care of himself. But because getting sick would affect his studies and work, Fu Rangyi had started exercising and working out very early on to build up his physique and reduce the chances of falling ill.

The warm steam wafted continuously onto his face. His eyes quickly grew moist.

People become particularly sentimental when they are sick. The Fu Rangyi of the past had never understood this. But now he discovered that he was no exception. In this ordinary moment, he felt an unprecedented sense of being married, even stronger than what he had felt at his wedding.

“What’s wrong?” Zhu Zhixi reached out and touched his face. “Are you feeling really unwell?”

Fu Rangyi shook his head. “No.”

“Then hurry and try it. It took me a long time to make.” Seeing Fu Rangyi start to eat the congee, Zhu Zhixi began to chatter with relief. “I cooked two batches of this beef congee. The first one wasn’t very good. I didn’t marinate the beef properly, and it was so tough it could have been in a museum exhibit on prehistoric aurochs. Luckily, the second time was a success. And this time, I made the filling for the rice balls myself, I didn’t borrow it from frozen tangyuan…”

Before he could finish, Fu Rangyi suddenly looked up, smiled at him, and reached out to touch his lips.

Why the sudden smile? Zhu Zhixi blinked. Such a handsome smile.

He pressed his cheek against Fu Rangyi’s palm and nuzzled it. “Why are you touching my mouth? Am I too noisy?”

“I was thinking of kissing you,” Fu Rangyi said honestly.

“If you want to kiss me, then just do it. Don’t be so nervous,” Zhu Zhixi muttered quietly. “You moved to the spare bedroom after getting sick. We haven’t slept together in three days. Sleeping in separate rooms is a major taboo in a marriage.”

“Four days,” Fu Rangyi corrected him.

“Four days? That long?” Zhu Zhixi thought for a moment. “I’m not sleeping well, and now I can’t even do math. Ugh. Anyway, that’s not important. Hurry up and eat before it all gets cold.”

Fu Rangyi had no appetite after getting sick and had barely touched his lunch. But Zhu Zhixi inexplicably possessed a magical “appetizer” quality. As long as he sat beside him, chattering away in his energetic and adorable tone, Fu Rangyi suddenly felt the desire to eat. He could watch him while eating the food he had prepared.

“I feel much better,” Fu Rangyi said after finishing. He put on his mask and hugged Zhu Zhixi. “Thank you for coming to see me.”

Zhu Zhixi patted his back. “You’re welcome. This is what a husband does.”

“Then thank you, husband,” Fu Rangyi said. He still couldn’t resist kissing the side of his neck through the mask, then uncontrollably buried his face in his neck, inhaling the faint fragrance emanating from Zhu Zhixi’s skin.

It was getting late. Zhu Zhixi started to pack up the dishes and the thermal container. Seeing this, Fu Rangyi wanted to help. He habitually rolled up his sleeves, but Zhu Zhixi quickly grabbed his cuff and pulled the sleeve of his knit shirt back down.

“I don’t need your help,” he said, then brought over his coat. “Put this on, or you’ll catch a chill again.”

Fu Rangyi had no choice but to relent, enjoying the rare treatment of having food served to him and being dressed by another. Zhu Zhixi even took the initiative to tie his hair, though his movements were still a bit clumsy.

He had a class in the afternoon, so they parted ways downstairs.

As they said goodbye, Zhu Zhixi took his hand, swinging it gently. The autumn sunlight fell on his slightly upturned face, making his eyes shine like glass beads.

When Zhu Zhixi said, “I’m going now,” for the third time, Fu Rangyi instinctively curled his fingers as if trying to hook his hand.

But Zhu Zhixi didn’t seem to notice. He said goodbye with a smile and walked towards the parking lot, even turning back to wave once.

Fu Rangyi was almost late, arriving at the lecture hall just in time.

This class had a lot of content. Not wanting to waste time on roll call, he started right away. About fifteen minutes in, a student softly called out, “Teacher,” and raised their hand with a question. Fu Rangyi shifted his gaze toward the tiered seating and answered patiently.

“Have I made it clear? Is there anything else you don’t understand?”

“No, thank you, teacher.”

Fu Rangyi nodded. “Do any other students have questions? Feel free to ask.” As he spoke, his gaze drifted further back, and he suddenly saw a familiar figure in the last row, wearing the same white mask as him, a pair of round eyes smiling brightly.

Fu Rangyi subconsciously squinted and tilted his head slightly. The special “student” in the last row mimicked him, tilting their head and raising two fingers in a V-sign above their head, wiggling them twice.

“Ahem.” Fu Rangyi coughed a few times, turned to find his water bottle, and took a sip. “Excuse me. Let’s continue.”

The culprit, however, was delighted. This was the first time he had ever sat in on one of Fu Rangyi’s lectures.

While Fu Rangyi was napping, Zhu Zhixi had gotten tired of sitting and had wandered around. He saw Fu Rangyi’s class schedule on his desk, memorized the classroom address, and secretly hurried over after they parted ways. Not wanting to be discovered, he sat in the last row.

The Fu Rangyi, who was teachin,g had a different kind of charm. He was very professional, yet possessed a strong sense of tolerance. He wasn’t arrogant; on the contrary, he frequently asked if the students were keeping up and would occasionally drop some strange, deadpan jokes.

He heard the Omega students in the row ahead of him discussing Fu Rangyi’s new hairstyle.

“Professor Fu is actually growing his hair long! Last semester we were just talking about how good he’d look with long hair, like he’d have the vibe of an arthouse film protagonist.”

Of course, he would.

“I think it’s because his husband wanted to see it, so he grew it out. It was mentioned in their wedding vlog.”

“I knew it! He always had short hair before, why would he suddenly start growing it out? His husband has great taste, long-haired men are the best.”

Right, right, you have great taste too.

Zhu Zhixi sat in the audience, looking at the long-haired version of Fu Rangyi, feeling a sense of pride as if admiring his own creation. Standing at the lectern, he was slightly bent over, wearing a cream-colored Henley knit shirt, leaning over to scroll the mouse and check the course material, a few strands of hair falling to the side of his face.

Compared to his neat short hair, the long hair highlighted a deep-seated vulnerability hidden in his bones. Combined with his current illness and the mask, this feeling was even more pronounced.

“Now let’s move on to the next section,” Fu Rangyi said, straightening up and turning sideways to face the projection screen.