Psst! We're moving!
After saying “I love you,” Shi Min seemed to gain strength, linking arms with him and striding forward.
“Not scared anymore?” Luo Mingjing was surprised.
Shi Min said, “Love makes me blind.”
From then on, she no longer saw the abyss beneath her feet, nor the precipitous cliffs.
“Wait, I think I have a call.” Luo Mingjing pulled out his phone and exclaimed, “It’s my university.”
The call was from the T University investigation head, informing him of the preliminary decision regarding the plagiarism incident.
The T University investigative committee, composed of members from three universities and veteran professors from the Fashion Design Department, after a series of investigations, comparisons, and analyses, determined that Luo Mingjing’s Clear Sky Crane piece was consistent in style with the works he submitted during his time as a student. In contrast, Wang Zhenyu’s graduation project differed in style from his usual works, and a dorm mate confirmed that he did not personally participate in the design and creation of Chinese Crane. Therefore, the university concluded that Wang Zhenyu’s graduation project submitted to the university was a theft of Luo Mingjing’s graduation design concept.
Thus, T University’s decision was to re-issue Luo Mingjing’s graduation certificate and degree, and to give him an opportunity to display his graduation work.
“You’ll participate in the graduation exhibition with this year’s fashion design graduates, from May 27th to June 28th. You also have three opportunities to go on stage. If you participate, please prepare your work before May 10th and submit it to Dean Fu. If he’s free these days, he’ll contact you. Do you have enough time?”
“Yes! Thank you.”
“You’re welcome, it’s our duty,” the responsible teacher said. “We will submit the application for your degree and graduation certificate first. If all goes well, the university will arrange a degree conferment ceremony in June this year. Ke Ge’s dismissal has been preliminarily approved. And for Wang Zhenyu, we will revoke both his certificates after the court’s judgment. All of the above will be announced via WeChat and Weibo. Is the plagiarism case going to court in April? We will announce the disciplinary action against Wang Zhenyu after the verdict.”
“Thank you, teacher.”
“You’re welcome. Wishing you success.”
Watching him hang up, Shi Min asked, “The university has a result?”
“Yes! I need to go back and finish Clear Sky Crane. It’ll be exhibited in May. The university said if all goes well, I can get my diploma in June.”
Luo Mingjing laughed, “Looks like I’ll graduate with Qianqian...”
Shi Min’s gaze fell on his phone. She pointed at it and asked, “Is your live stream on?”
“...” Luo Mingjing looked down at the flashing live stream icon and said tiredly, “It’s on...”
Inside the live stream, fans were almost dying of laughter.
“Crazy screenshots! That lifeless expression, hahahaha, can be made into an emoji!”
“Congratulations, congratulations!! You’re getting your diploma again! Oh my goodness, my back is so straight now, my idol is a top student!”
“I opened a bottle of wine to celebrate...”
“Eek, the one before me, I ordered takeout to celebrate.”
“While the Fairy is looking at comments, come on, sisters, do it again! Congratulations to the Fairy for marrying into a wealthy family, wish you early childbirth!”
“Congratulations on marrying into a wealthy family!”
“Hahahahaha, second young madam!”
“I’ve been studying Second Young Master Shi’s resume for a long time. I want to snatch the Fairy’s wife.”
“Don’t dream, upstairs, wake up! Can you compare to the Fairy in height, education, looks, and talent? [crying emoji] We only had poverty in common with the Fairy, but now the Fairy is also going to be rich. Unfollow, unfollow (holding on, can’t bear to).”
Luo Mingjing held his phone, turned his head, and said pitifully, “CEO, they know who you are...”
Shi Min’s eyebrows twitched.
“We want to see the CEO!”
“Miss, are you the CEO of the Maserati that the Fairy hit?!”
“Show us your front face!”
“Please, Miss, grace us with your presence! We want to see who our son married! Otherwise, us old mothers won’t be at ease!”
Shi Min said, “Since that’s the case, I have a few words for them.”
Luo Mingjing hesitated, then finally pointed the camera at Shi Min.
The number of viewers in the live stream slowly climbed.
However, Shi Min didn’t speak immediately. She raised her eyes, looking directly into the camera, her gaze slowly changing. It was as if she was preparing something.
Luo Mingjing cautiously asked, “Are you going to... deliver a victory speech?”
They were suspended between two mountains, with an abyss below and a blue sky above.
There was no fear on Shi Min’s face; her expression gradually became firm.
The live stream comments were interesting at this moment:
“Holy crap, my love rival is staring at me!”
“Oh my goodness! Miss looks very CEO-like! So handsome!”
“Pink... the pink hat actually looks so domineering! Ah! Mom, a handsome older sister is looking at me!”
“Damn, those are definitely phoenix eyes?! Her gaze is like a knife, making me want to kneel and call her husband!”
“Friends, at this moment, my mind is filled with 8 million words of a female CEO and my 18X novel plot! Fairy, move aside, Miss, come at me head-on!!”
“That gaze...”
Before going up the mountain, Luo Mingjing had said he wanted Shi Min to rekindle her girlish memories and gave her an off-white coat with a pink scarf and hat.
Shi Min didn’t refuse, but when she wore them, the pink didn’t make her look girlish. Instead, she wore the pink with a sharp edge, transforming it into a simple, linear, independent, and audacious soft pink.
Shi Min finally spoke, slowly saying, “I am Shi Min. As you can see, I am Luo Mingjing’s girlfriend.”
Comments responded:
“Greetings, Queen.”
“Long live the Queen.”
“Hello, Empress.”
“Feels like a court session... No, no, it’s like concubines listening to the Empress’s instructions.”
“What Queen! This is the Emperor, quickly call her Majesty!”
Shi Min continued, “As someone who shares your discerning eye, I thank you for your continued support of Mingjing. I’m sure you all heard what we just said. So, I will say it again, with everyone as my witness.”
“The camera’s shaking, what’s the Fairy doing? Hahahaha”
“Witness, witness, witness! Cheering for Miss!”
“We hand the Fairy over to you! (Smiling with a sense of ritual)”
“CEO, you must treat our silly son well!”
Shi Min took a firm step forward, looked into Luo Mingjing’s eyes, and said, “From love at first sight until today, my feelings for you have evolved from passionate possession to wanting to grow old with you, like a flowing stream. I think it’s time to end one relationship and begin a new intimate one. Luo Mingjing, I want you to be my family, my husband. I want to legally own you, from now on, with one heart, inseparable. I will be your most intimate lover, a family for life.”
“Luo Mingjing, please marry me,” she said.
After a stunned moment, Luo Mingjing frowned.
“No,” he said, shoving his phone into his pocket. “I can’t let you say that. That sentence should be mine to say. At least that one, I should say to you.”
The ninety thousand-plus fans watching the live stream in the dark laughed until they hiccuped.
“Is the Fairy still trying to counterattack?!”
“Want to see Miss’s expression now, hahahaha, beat this kid to death, I was just moved, and he slammed on the brakes!”
“Where’s the kiss!”
“We still want to see the kiss!”
“Shh shh shh!! There are so many words on the screen I can’t hear! Everyone calm down, I want to hear the kissing sound!”
“Hahahahahaha the ones before me are killing me, everyone’s bullet comments are too loud hahahaha, you guys blinded me, my eyes are completely black.”
Tourists on both sides, sensing the proposal, pulled out their phones to record videos.
Luo Mingjing took a deep breath, straightened up, and looked at her intently, saying, “Shi Min, marry me!”
Each word was clear.
Shi Min was surprised for a moment, then chuckled softly. She conceded, tilting her head slightly, studying the serious-faced Luo Mingjing, and replied, “Okay.”
She didn’t care about a diamond ring or a ceremony because she lacked nothing.
For her, none of that mattered. Only Luo Mingjing’s earnestness was what she cared about most and appreciated most.
She trusted him; he was an honest and hardworking person.
Though not ill-fated, he had suffered setbacks and once lost heart, but he didn’t collapse.
In gentleness and steadfastness, he had walked painstakingly step by step on life’s edge, wavering but never abandoning the softness in his heart.
Shi Min thought, How wonderful, I’m fortunate to have met him. And thankfully, he now has me.
Shi Min walked over, hugged Luo Mingjing, buried her head in his chest, closed her eyes, and said, “Luo Mingjing, I want to propose to you again when you are at your most brilliant. Be ready, Mingjing, we’ll get married this year... very soon.”
Very soon, I can give you a home. From the moment I met you, I’ve always been ready.
On the first day they met, she watched his retreating figure and silently thought, “He will be my pillow partner.”
Some loves are destined from the first glance. The day I saw you, the lover I was meant to spend my life with finally had a clear face.
Amidst the enthusiastic applause of nearby tourists, Luo Mingjing hugged Shi Min tightly and kissed her deeply.
The number of fans in the live stream surged to 130,000. All the fans, facing a black screen, relied on the cheers of the tourists in the background and also applauded.
“That must have been a kiss!”
“Hope there’s a Fairy Catching Squad on site to share the passionate kiss video!”
“I’m going to watch Shi Min’s ‘coming out’ video with our Fairy 200 times!”
“Hahahaha, I watched it too, my goodness, it was the Fairy, hahahaha!”
“Ah ah ah ah?? What are you talking about? What video?? I want to see it too!”
“The video of Shi Min coming out last year! Search ‘Shi Min,’ and a ‘coming out’ keyword will follow. Just click and watch!”
“Hahahaha, I never expected the lady in the white dress to be our Fairy.”
“Really??? Are you sure?”
“No mistake! That height hahahahahaha, and that chin curve, no doubt, it’s our son!”
This sudden proposal eventually alarmed the scenic area staff.
As they left, Shi Min and Luo Mingjing each held a small souvenir from the scenic area. Amidst the gazes of onlookers and the blessings of enthusiastic tourists, they walked hand in hand on their way back.
At dusk, the two dragged their luggage away, the sky behind them a warm orange.
Shi Chu called to check in: “Shi Min, you proposed? And live streamed it? Someone uploaded the video, you can see it on the trending topics. You went public? Your name’s search popularity is soaring right now. The ‘coming out’ video of you two kissing passionately by the river has also been dug up.”
“Mm, so what?”
“...You’re serious?”
“Do you think I’d make a fake proposal?”
“Oh, then let me remind you, I’ve been entertaining the International Designers Association’s film crew for three days. They came all the way to interview your man. Hurry back.”
“Ah... I forgot,” Shi Min said. “Okay, I’ll be back soon.”
Shi Chu added, “Was your proposal a bit too childish?”
Shi Min smiled faintly: “I proposed, he agreed. He proposed, I agreed. We reached an agreement, it’s very easy, unlike you.”
Shi Chu choked, then howled, “What do you mean? Are you implying my proposal failed?! Explain yourself!”
Shi Min glanced at Luo Mingjing and saw him frowning, staring at his phone screen without a word.
“Gotta go,” Shi Min immediately ditched her brother and asked Luo Mingjing, “What’s wrong?”
“I suddenly received a text message,” Luo Mingjing said. “From the bank. Someone transferred 800,000 to one of my old cards.”
Shi Min pondered briefly, then said, “It must be from Li Xiang’s family.”
“Hm?” Luo Mingjing was stunned for a moment, then realized.
“They probably transferred some money to you first because they’re afraid you’ll sue them for fraud.”
Just then, Xu Qianqian’s call also came in. As soon as she answered, she spoke urgently: “Brother, did Li Xiang’s mom contact you? She called me, asking if I had your card number, and said she wanted to transfer money to me!”
“What did you say?”
“What could I say?! Their family is so cunning, who knows if they’re trying to trick you again,” Xu Qianqian said. “And! Uncle also called me, asking if I knew where you were. He said he had dinner with a stockbroker yesterday, and the stockbroker suddenly mentioned you. He saw the news report and wanted to ask you about it, but your phone wasn’t reachable.”
“Oh... I’m not using my old number anymore,” Luo Mingjing laughed. “Don’t worry about it, Qianqian, it’s fine.”
“When are you getting married?” Qianqian suddenly chuckled, “I watched your live stream just now! Give me some inside scoop! Weibo is buzzing with clips of your proposal with Shi... ahem, sister-in-law.”
Shi Min suddenly spoke up: “Is she asking about the wedding date? When you get your diploma, when all your honors are returned, when you feel most at peace, we will get married.”
Luo Mingjing’s heart suddenly warmed, and he was speechless.
Shi Min then said, “However, rather than the wedding date, I’m more curious about when you’re preparing for battle? I saw you taking your ‘battle gear’ with you when you left, clearly looking forward to it. So, why not today? How about it?”
Shi Min raised an eyebrow and added, “I’m in great condition, I want to strike while the iron is hot.”
“...” Luo Mingjing was momentarily stunned, then he also abandoned Xu Qianqian, who was wailing on the phone asking what “strike while the iron is hot” meant.
He turned off his phone, stood silently for a moment, then, stroking his chin in thought, said, “...Then, today it is.”
Shi Min smiled: “Good. I’ll treat you to a meal to replenish your strength. Mr. Hand Warmer, please be full of spirit and spend a wonderful night with me.”
Luo Mingjing stifled a laugh: “If I’m well-fed, no problem.”