1:15 AM, North Normal University women’s dormitory.

Ever since Shen Yu received the message from Jiang He saying he was heading into surgery, her heart had been in her throat.

’I wonder if it’s going smoothly...’

She muttered to herself, her mind unconsciously picturing Jiang He in his white lab coat.

The more she thought about it, the more awake she became.

And so, she couldn’t get back to sleep at all.

She glanced at the opposite bed.

Xu Juan was sound asleep.

She decided to just throw off her covers and tiptoe out of bed.

She pulled a knit cardigan from the back of her chair, draped it over her shoulders, and switched on the clip-on lamp on her desk.

She set the light to its dimmest setting, which was just enough to illuminate a small patch on her desk.

Shen Yu picked up her pen, her gaze falling on the title at the top of the form: "Application for the Domestic Exchange Student Program."

The psychology department at Huashi University was one of the best in the country. Plus, it had just gotten approval for a national-level key laboratory project this year, and its research focus was a perfect match for her interest in developmental psychology.

She really wanted to go.

But she had to get high scores on the upcoming midterm exams to prove she had the ability to participate in a core research project at another university in a different region.

Of course, it wasn’t just the project she wanted to go for now. It was also because of Jiang He.

’Long-distance relationships are so hard... ugh, no, long-distance *chatting* is so hard!’

Determined to go to Southern China, Shen Yu began to study in earnest.

After studying for a little while, she couldn’t stop her gaze from drifting to the side.

Her phone lay silently on the corner of the desk, showing no signs of life.

Shen Yu picked up her phone, lit up the screen, and checked the time again.

It was almost two.

’Is he still in surgery...?’

She put down her pen and rubbed her eyes. It felt impossible to focus on her studies.

Whenever she thought of Southern China, of Jiang He, her thoughts couldn’t help but drift to the end of the month.

October thirtieth was Jiang He’s birthday.

She had already bought her train ticket and had even rehearsed the scene of their meeting in her mind several times...

She’d wait for him to walk out of the competition venue, or on his way back to the dorm, then suddenly jump out from behind a tree and tap him on the shoulder!

At that moment, Teacher Shen would be like:

Ciallo～(∠・ω

He would definitely be stunned for a moment, and then his eyes would fill with a smile.

At this thought, the corners of Shen Yu’s mouth curled up uncontrollably!

But as she smiled, her cheeks suddenly began to feel hot.

She was thinking about that dream from last night again!

Last night, she dreamed that she and Jiang He were married and living in a small but cozy house.

It seemed to be snowing heavily in the dream, and the weather was very cold.

She was sitting on the sofa in fluffy pajamas, watching TV.

The lock clicked, and Jiang He pushed the door open and walked in.

He had just gotten off work and seemed a little tired, but when he looked up and saw her, his eyes instantly softened.

Then, he pulled a paper bag from inside his overcoat!

"Freshly roasted sweet potatoes. They’re super sweet and still warm."

Even in the dream, the sweet aroma of the potatoes was incredibly real.

And what had her dream self done?

Recalling this, Shen Yu buried her face in her hands.

Her dream self hadn’t paid any attention to the roasted sweet potatoes. Instead, she had shot up from the sofa, thrown her arms around Jiang He’s waist, buried her face in his chest, and nuzzled him vigorously.

She even... she even cooed in a syrupy-sweet voice, "Hubby, you’re back! I missed you so much~"

"Argh..."

Shen Yu let out a groan of despair and buried her head in her arms.

’So embarrassing!’

’I’m not usually like this at all!’

Normally, she was the cultured, energetic Classmate Shen.

’How could I be so shameless in my dream!’

’Could this be... a so-called erotic dream?’

’Damn it! ...That wretched Dr. Jiang, barging into my dreams and messing with my head!’

Shen Yu mentally shook her head, forcing herself to calm down.

’I can’t think about this anymore. If I do, I really won’t get any sleep tonight.’

She forcibly shifted her focus to October thirtieth.

She had decided to surprise him with a visit, but what about a gift?

’Clothes? Shoes? A watch?’

All these things that could be bought with money seemed to be missing something.

Shen Yu lowered her head and glanced at her ring.

She wanted to give Jiang He something just as unique, something that required even more thought and care than this silver ring.

Actually, she’d had a rough idea for the past few days.

—The intangible cultural heritage craft of cloisonné.

Commonly known as Jingtai Lan.

Shen Yu’s grandmother was actually a designated inheritor of the intangible cultural heritage of cloisonné.

The process was tedious and complex, requiring multiple steps such as body-making, wire inlay, enamel filling, firing, polishing, and gilding.

Shen Yu had grown up by her grandmother’s side and, influenced by her surroundings, had been made to practice the fundamentals for several years.

This was also why she had been able to forge the ring so well at the workshop last time.

In a sense, it was a skill she’d been practicing since childhood.

The more Shen Yu thought about it, the more she felt it was an excellent idea.

However, she didn’t have the tools in her dorm, nor did she have a kiln for firing the enamel.

’Looks like I’ll have to find some time, ask my advisor for a couple of days off, and make a trip back home to see Grandma.’

She made the decision in her heart.

Just then, a gust of night wind slipped in through a crack in the window.

The October air in the Capital City already carried a chill.

Although Shen Yu had a cardigan on, her legs were only covered by thin pajama pants, and her feet were bare.

As the gust of wind blew over her, she let out a soft cough.

COUGH...

At first, she thought she’d just choked on the cold air and didn’t think much of it.

But a few seconds later, the tickle in her throat welled up again, and she couldn’t suppress it at all.

COUGH, COUGH, COUGH! COUGH, COUGH!

This time, the sound was a little louder.

On the opposite bed, Xu Juan rolled over. Her head peeked out from behind her bed curtains, her eyes half-closed as she frowned and said,

"Shen Xiaoyu... What time is it?"

Shen Yu answered guiltily in a small voice, "I... I just have a concept I haven’t finished memorizing. I’ll go to sleep right away, right away."

Xu Juan said without a shred of pity, "Get yourself back to bed!"

The health supervisor was now on duty.

Shen Yu immediately backed down.

"Okay, okay, okay! I’m going, I’m going!"

She climbed the ladder to her bunk in the dark and wrapped herself up in her quilt.

COUGH... She couldn’t help but let out another soft cough.

"Remember to drink more hot water tomorrow and wear warmer clothes. Don’t catch a cold," Xu Juan mumbled before rolling over and falling back asleep.

"I know. You’re the best, Juanzi," Shen Yu whispered back from inside her quilt.

Once she was lying back in bed, everything became quiet again.

Maybe it was because her heart was still beating a little fast from being caught by Xu Juan, or maybe it was because she had been thinking about so many things, but Shen Yu still didn’t feel the least bit sleepy.

The moment she closed her eyes, the dream about the roasted sweet potatoes started playing on a loop in her mind.

"Hubby, you’re back..."

Her own syrupy voice from the dream was still echoing in her ears...

"Gah!"

Shen Yu couldn’t take it anymore and started wriggling around under her covers like a little grub.

After thrashing about for a while, she ran out of energy, and her eyelids grew heavier and heavier.

She was actually very sleepy, but she refused to fall asleep, stubbornly waiting for something.

Finally.

The message she had been waiting for arrived.

Jiang He: [Just finished. The surgery went smoothly. Heading back to the dorm to sleep now.]

Seeing this, Shen Yu felt a wave of relief wash over her.

’As long as it went smoothly...’

Perhaps it was because the warmth of her snow-filled dream hadn’t faded yet. As her fingertips tapped the keypad, by some strange impulse, she typed out the word "Hubby."

Shen Yu: "!!!"

She held her breath as a deep blush rapidly spread through the darkness, reaching the very tips of her ears.

Then, like a thief with a guilty conscience, she frantically mashed the backspace key, carefully hiding her fluttering heart. Only then did she steady her breathing and send her reply:

[Great! Dr. Jiang! Dr. Jiang! You’ve worked hard. Get some rest. Good night~]