Chapter 30

Chapter 30

Su Tinghe agreed to Ruan Xiting's invitation to attend the university anniversary celebration without informing Shang Huoyong in advance. After all, the doctor had told him to avoid movement, and he was going to a place with a large crowd. If Shang Huoyong found out, he would likely not allow him to go.

Unauthorized vehicles were not allowed to enter the school without prior registration, so the driver could only drop Su Tinghe off at the school gate. Ruan Xiting came over and pushed his wheelchair into the school.

As soon as they entered the school gate, they were greeted by a straight and wide tree-lined avenue. The sycamore trees lining the road hadn’t fully turned yellow yet; green still dominated, but they were already showing signs of fading. With just a slight drop in temperature, they would transform into a golden world.

The road was bustling with people—men and women, young and old—coming and going in a steady stream. Su Tinghe's first impression of the university was that it was truly huge.

Meng Meng, hearing Su Tinghe was at the school, rode over on a shared bike. She’d already heard from Ruan Xiting about Su Tinghe’s sprained ankle ligament, so she wasn't surprised to see him in a wheelchair. Meng Meng even offered to help push the wheelchair.

As they wheeled Su Tinghe around campus, they pointed out various spots. When they reached a small square near a fountain, Su Tinghe saw someone in a wedding dress taking photos with someone in a formal suit. The two looked very affectionate, clearly a couple. Curious, Su Tinghe asked what they were doing.

Meng Meng glanced over and said, "They’re probably a campus couple, returning to their alma mater to take wedding photos. But it’s possible only one of them graduated from here—hard to say."

Su Tinghe latched onto the phrase 'wedding photos' and asked, "Do you have to take wedding photos when you get married?"

"Of course!" Meng Meng replied without hesitation, then added, "But you don’t have to, unless you’re willing to wear a wedding dress." Haha, it’s not impossible."

Su Tinghe glanced at the bride being photographed and imagined himself wearing such a dress. He immediately cringed and shook his head vigorously, "No way I’m wearing that."

"You don’t have to wear a dress, you know," Meng Meng said. "I remember there are modified versions of wedding dresses. Let me find one for you." Meng Meng took out her phone, tapped around for a while, and then handed it to Su Tinghe, "Here, something like this. The top is a soft gauze top covered with white lace, and the bottom is just regular white pants, with a long veil on the head. Isn’t it gorgeous?"

As she spoke, Meng Meng looked at Su Tinghe while holding the phone, "Honestly, I think you’d rock this look. You and your husband should consider doing a wedding photo shoot. You could even change your profile picture and give us something nice to look at. Not that your current profile picture’s bad—it’s just too formal, not natural enough, don’t you think?"

After saying this, Meng Meng handed the phone to Ruan Xiting to ask for his opinion.

Ruan Xiting saw the full-body illustration on the phone and automatically replaced the face in the picture with Su Tinghe’s. He nodded and said, "It really suits you."

Su Tinghe furrowed his brows slightly. To be honest, apart from the group photos taken on the wedding day, he and Shang Huoyong had never taken formal wedding photos, nor had they taken any couple photos after getting married. The picture Meng Meng showed him did look quite nice.

The fact that someone was taking wedding photos on campus wasn’t a big deal to anyone, as there were so many people taking photos during the anniversary celebration. It wasn’t uncommon to see people taking wedding photos on campus before, so everyone was used to it. Only Su Tinghe secretly took note of it.

The group continued walking forward, and a clearing ahead was packed with people. Students from various colleges and clubs had set up stalls, offering activities like collecting badges for gifts, selling school-themed cultural products, various quirky little items, and even snacks.

The crowd was so thick that even a regular person would struggle to get through, let alone Su Tinghe in a wheelchair.

Meng Meng pushed the wheelchair while Ruan Xiting stood beside Su Tinghe to shield him from the surrounding crowd, preventing anyone from bumping into him.

As they passed by a stall, someone shouted, "Tingting, Tingting!"

Ruan Xiting and Meng Meng turned to look in the direction of the voice. Meng Meng recognized the person calling out as Ruan Xiting's classmate, so she stopped. Ruan Xiting looked at Meng Meng and said, "Keep going, I don’t know him."

"Ruan Xiting, don’t think I don’t know you’ve already seen me. Don’t be so petty, I won’t call you by your nickname anymore. Come over, come over."

Su Tinghe craned his neck to look over. The person calling Ruan Xiting was waving his arms vigorously in their direction. Su Tinghe turned back to Ruan Xiting and asked, "Aren’t we going over?"

Ruan Xiting nodded reluctantly, "Let’s go over."

Meng Meng pushed Su Tinghe to the front of the stall. The person pointed at Su Tinghe and asked, "Who’s this? Your friend? Is he from our school? Why is he in a wheelchair?"

"Why are you asking so many questions? You're like a walking encyclopedia of questions," Ruan Xiting complained, then introduced, "This is indeed my friend, not from our school."

"Oh. Hi, I’m Feng An, Ruan Xiting’s classmate. Since you’re here, why not join in? You can DIY a dyed card, make a bookmark, a postcard, or an accordion book. It’s very suitable, and the price isn’t expensive, only five yuan per card."

Su Tinghe saw many people at the stall making cards by hand. It seemed this was what Feng An meant by "dyed cards." They resembled landscape paintings but with richer colors and simpler methods, making it easy for anyone to get started.

As soon as Ruan Xiting heard that money was involved, he deliberately bumped into Feng An and raised his voice to complain, "You called us over just to pitch your stuff, huh? Taking advantage of your friends, are you?"

Feng An also deliberately bumped into Ruan Xiting: "Even between brothers, we settle accounts clearly. I'm earning this money the hard way by running this stall. What's the harm in you, as a friend, supporting me a little?"

Su Tinghe observed the methods of the people nearby and roughly knew what to do. He took out his phone, scanned the code, and transferred 15 yuan, "Then I'll chip in. Let's each make one and see how it turns out."

"Take a look at him, then take a look at yourself," Feng An handed them colored ink, cards, and pens, explaining the DIY process in detail.

Su Tinghe didn't wait to hear everything before he started painting on the card, while Meng Meng and Ruan Xiting just mixed a few colors and printed them on the card with plastic film. After finishing, they saw that Su Tinghe had already sketched a few strokes of a freehand landscape.

Meng Meng gasped in amazement, "You draw so beautifully. Compared to you, Ruan Xiting and I are just playing around."

Su Tinghe modestly said, "I just know a little about painting."

After the pattern was painted on the card, one could also write some words on it. The stall offered markers in various colors and brushes. Su Tinghe wasn't good at writing with a hard pen, so he used a brush to write a few sentences on the card.

When the final product was ready, not only Meng Meng and Ruan Xiting, but also Feng An was stunned. The words and painting on the card complemented each other, so exquisite it could serve as a sample right away.

Others working on DIY projects at the stall also saw the dyed card in Su Tinghe's hand and asked if Su Tinghe could help them make one, and they could pay.

Su Tinghe waved off the money but offered to help. He dabbed the card with varying shades of blue and gray, dotted with gold, and wrote a few words as requested.

An anime fan immediately recognized that the words on the card came from an ancient novel. Others who enjoyed novels, dramas, or comics did the same, all asking Su Tinghe to customize dyed cards, all willing to pay.

Su Tinghe was utterly astonished. He was just out for fun, itching to draw a bit, and now everyone wanted to pay him.

Su Tinghe was about to say no to the money, but Feng An quickly thought, you don't turn away business when it comes knocking. He immediately had everyone line up, one by one, and then bent down to whisper to Su Tinghe, "How about we go halves?"

Su Tinghe's expression shifted slightly, hesitating to respond. Feng An thought Su Tinghe was unwilling, and immediately, with a pained gesture, said, "You get sixty, I get forty, that's my final offer. Look at how many people are in line, we can make a big profit together."

Su Tinghe wasn't opposed to splitting the profits; he was just puzzled that his casual drawings could actually make money. But seeing Ruan Xiting's classmate so earnest, he reluctantly agreed.

Su Tinghe only took on postcards and bookmarks, declining the accordion book project because it was too labor-intensive. Someone asked if they could add a contact for future custom orders from Su Tinghe, but he shook his head. Today, he was mainly helping Ruan Xiting's classmate as a favor to Ruan Xiting, he didn't need to earn this small money.

Su Tinghe grasped the requests quickly, drawing with skill and speed, his calligraphy elegant and otherworldly. Word got around fast, and soon he was the talk of the town. More and more people gathered around the stall, lining up to customize dyed cards.

Su Tinghe was completely absorbed in crafting the dyed cards, unaware of his surroundings, only hearing a slightly angry voice from above, "Su Tinghe, is your foot better, running around everywhere?"

Su Tinghe looked up, his eyes wide in shock, wondering how Shang Huoyong could be here.

Before Su Tinghe could think of how to explain, a young man suddenly ran out excitedly, hugging Su Tinghe's arm, "Su Tinghe, you really are Su Tinghe, why did you block me?"

Su Tinghe looked at Shang Huoyong, then at the stranger, instantly feeling overwhelmed.

Meng Meng, Ruan Xiting, and the people around watched the three of them with gossipy eyes, curious about their relationship.

At this moment, a middle-aged man with a square face walked over and said to Shang Huoyong, "What's the matter, are these people acquaintances?"

Ruan Xiting and his classmate shouted in unison, "Dean Wang!"

The square-faced man, addressed as Dean Wang, turned to look at the two, recognizing them as students from his School of Economics and Management, and asked, "What are you two doing here?"

Feng An pointed to Su Tinghe sitting in the wheelchair and explained, "I'm setting up a stall for the school anniversary, collaborating with him, striving to make the stall business bigger and stronger. The people around are our consumer base."

Dean Wang then noticed the handsome young man in a wheelchair next to Shang Huoyong and asked, "And this is?"

Feng An was about to introduce Su Tinghe as Ruan Xiting's friend, but Shang Huoyong preempted, "This is my spouse."

Feng An's eyes widened, looking back and forth between the two, surprised that Su Tinghe, who looked so young, was already married.

Dean Wang showed a loving smile of caring for the younger generation, "I heard you got married some time ago, so this is your spouse. Good fortune, very well matched." Dean Wang noticed the brace on Su Tinghe's foot and asked, "But what happened to your foot?"

Shang Huoyong explained, "I sprained my ankle a few days ago while going out. The doctor advised me not to move around too much during this period. I didn't expect that today for the school anniversary, someone would carry me out to join the fun."

Dean Wang smiled, "Staying cooped up at home gets boring. It's better to come out for a walk in a wheelchair. Maybe he came here specifically because he knew you were attending our college's anniversary event."

Ruan Xiting interjected softly, "No, I invited him to come and play."

"You all know each other?" Dean Wang seemed slightly surprised.

Ruan Xiting managed a bitter smile. He now realized why the name Shang Huoyong sounded familiar—it was the name of Dean Wang's proud student who he always talks about.

The unfamiliar man holding Su Tinghe's arm, after listening to their conversation, leaned over to look at the painting in Su Tinghe's hand and remarked, "Long time no see. Your painting skills have improved a lot."

Su Tinghe then realized that there were still people waiting in line for his painted cards. The person beside him was clearly an old acquaintance of his original self. Not daring to speak carelessly, he mumbled a vague 'Hmm,' while hurriedly finishing the card's painting, writing a few words, drying it, and handing it to the waiting customer.

There were still some people in line, and Su Tinghe apologized, saying he probably wouldn't have time to make cards for everyone in line. Feng An also apologized, as the cards he brought for the stall were almost sold out, thanks to Su Tinghe's help, earning him way more than he expected.

Seeing that they were all young people, Dean Wang guessed they had things to talk about. He patted Shang Huoyong on the shoulder and said, "I'll head back to the college first. You can come find me later."

Shang Huoyong nodded, watching Dean Wang leave, then pushed Su Tinghe's wheelchair to another area. Ruan Xiting and Meng Meng exchanged glances and decided to stay behind to help Feng An with the stall, while the young man who had been with Su Tinghe followed them.

At a nearby café, Shang Huoyong asked, "So, what's going on today? And who is this?"

The unfamiliar young man looked at Su Tinghe, "Is this your husband?"

Su Tinghe was completely baffled. He didn't know this person and had no idea how to explain.