She’s a Passerby, But Can See the Protagonist’s Halo

Not only in Yan's dorm, but as she scrolled through her social media feed, she also saw posts from other classmates in her department, all expressing pleasant surprise.

"OMG, my classmate made it to CCTV! I hereby declare that our very own Gu Jiasui is the one and only perfect fit for Princess Jianing!"

"Secretly telling you all, she’s even more stunning in person—completely on another level compared to us ordinary folks."

Yan then searched on other platforms and, unsurprisingly, those with star power seemed to naturally attract the spotlight. Tonight was the premiere of the show National Treasures Through Time, and as the opening guardian of the treasures, Gu Jiasui had already skyrocketed to trending topics.

#NationalTreasuresThroughTimePrincessJianing

#ZhouDynastyImperialScrollGuJiasui

#PrincessJianingGuJiasui

Yan clicked on the top tweet under the hashtag, which had been reposted tens of thousands of times. The account belonged to an ordinary person documenting daily life, not a promotional page. The blogger had casually snapped a photo of the TV screen, posted it with admiration, and before long, it went viral.

"Is this really Gu Jiasui??? The same Gu Jiasui who got roasted two years ago for being 'forced down our throats'? Holy crap! She’s literally born to play historical roles—I gotta watch this show now. Hope the photo isn’t deceiving me."

"After that scandal with Yi Lude last year, I thought Gu would quit the industry too. Gotta admit, the styling here is on point."

"Wait, she played all three time periods herself? No actor swaps? Mind blown. If she’s always had this level of acting, she totally outshines her fake little sister."

"Trending right after the show aired? How much did she pay for this? So eager to drag others down already?"

For a moment, Yan couldn’t tell whether this buzz was good or bad for Gu Jiasui.

Such was the nature of the internet—even when praise came organically, some would dismiss it as "fake," assuming it was bought. There would always be those nitpicking or twisting things to fit their narratives.

Come to think of it, since the Bin University cat incident, Gu Jiasui had been quietly attending classes on campus, staying off the radar. Now, her sudden reappearance seemed destined to stir up drama again.

Earlier that morning, Yan had already sent New Year’s greetings to Jiasui. After the show aired, she added another private message wishing the program massive success.

Gu Jiasui had taken half an hour to reply in the morning, so Yan figured she was busy now too. She didn’t mind—her well-wishes were spontaneous, just an expression of the moment.

The show’s runtime was long, and with it being Lunar New Year’s Day, families were out visiting relatives, phones buzzing nonstop. Everyone was exhausted by the end of the day.

Yan and the others went downstairs, and Zhu Jue drove Yuan Ye back to his hotel.

From the second to the fifth day of the New Year, the group decided to go out and have fun. Though Yan and Jue’s homes (including Da Bao and Xiao Bao’s) had entertainment setups, the holiday meant a stream of visiting relatives, leaving no room for them to hog the living room.

The extra house Yan and Zhu Jue had prepared for their friends finally came in handy. They moved the gaming consoles and board games there, creating a little world just for the six of them, free from adult supervision.

At Chu Shen’s urging, Yuan Ye even checked out of his hotel, and the two temporarily moved into Jue’s family’s place.

That said, dinner each evening was eaten at the family compound, where fried rice with eggs was a daily staple.

On the sixth day of the New Year, the group dropped by Uncle Xiao’s place to visit, expressing full approval of little cat Pengpeng’s recovery progress and praising Uncle Xiao’s medical skills and hands-on care.

After each enduring a 15-minute exclusive bone-setting massage, Chu Shen was reluctant to leave.

"Sigh, I gotta reopen the shop soon."

"If I delay any longer, my customers might hunt me down."

Having enjoyed the trip so much, Chu Shen couldn’t resist posting about it—only for his followers to revolt. With Chu’s Family Eatery closed for the holidays, his social media exploded.

The comments ranged from threats to storm Ning City and drag him back, to wails of "Chef Chu, when are you coming home?!" Some even claimed they were in Ning City for the holidays and "totally not" inviting him over just to make fried rice.

Chu Shen booked a ticket back to Bin City for the ninth day, and Yuan Ye wasn’t far behind—though he wasn’t returning to campus. Instead, he headed to Ha City in the northeast for a new project involving winter gear.

By the eighth day, most people had reluctantly shifted out of holiday mode and back to work. Small shops reopened, and the streets regained their usual bustle. After seeing their friends off, Yan and Zhu Jue suddenly felt the house grow much quieter.

Da Bao and Xiao Bao were still around, but after days of constant liveliness, the adjustment was stark.

With winter break winding down, the two began refocusing. Though they didn’t plan rigidly, their days filled up naturally—Yan with her heavy reading load as a Chinese literature major, and Zhu Jue with his medical school memorization.

At home, they buried themselves in thick textbooks, solving problems, sketching, exercising, or playing the piano. Hours slipped by effortlessly.

If Da Bao and Xiao Bao weren’t around at noon, Yan and Jue would stroll out hand in hand for lunch.

Noon was the warmest part of the day. After eating, they’d walk off the meal, hitting their daily step count under the winter sun.

Without their high-profile friends around and Da Bao and Xiao Bao off exploring new hobbies, the remaining month of winter break passed in quiet simplicity.

Come late February, it was time to return to campus. Yan and Jue reluctantly packed up, leaving their cozy home behind.

To help Xiao Qingnang transport little Pengpeng, they booked pet-friendly train cabins again—always more comfortable than flights.

"After long stretches at school, I miss home. Then after being home too long, I crave campus. Now that it’s time to leave, I don’t want to go."

On the train, Yan cupped her face, locking eyes with Pengpeng. She playfully blinked, and the kitten mirrored her with a tiny wink!

Yan burst out laughing. "Our little Pengpeng is just too adorable."

In the last month of break, she and Jue had only visited Xiao Qingnang twice. Having seen the crowds at his family’s traditional clinic, they didn’t want to intrude too often.

Xiao Qingnang watched Yan making faces at Pengpeng and chuckled, recording a short clip to share.

At first, the pets in the cabin had been restless, but soon, familiar calming music played, soothing them into quiet.

With the animals settled, the humans tiptoed around, careful not to disturb the napping furballs.

Little cat Pengpeng stretched out its paws and fell asleep. Yan didn’t want to disturb it, so she adjusted her seat to a comfortable angle, put on her silk sleep mask, nestled into her neck pillow, and prepared to drift off.

Before sleeping, Yan reflected on her first semester of freshman year. Though she had encountered some bizarre incidents due to her extraordinary roommates, she thought about the peaceful winter break and how close she had grown with them. Yan mused—surely nothing major would happen next semester, right?

The same people would still be around, and no matter how big the drama, she had already learned to take things in stride. How much worse could it get?

Over the winter break, she had met two more extraordinary individuals: Yi Lude, the Beast Whisperer, though Yan and Zhu Jue hadn’t interacted much with him. Instead, Uncle Xiao seemed to be in frequent contact with him.

As for the "Justice" officer, ever since their awkward encounter at the hot pot restaurant, the couple had dragged her out of their blacklist, but their chat history remained frozen at that uncomfortable last exchange.

Yan considered it—these two new additions were likely staying within Ning City’s limits. A Beast Whisperer and a police officer—one an animal expert, the other a cop—neither seemed likely to venture near Bin University.

After some thought, Yan concluded that Bin University only had two dorm rooms of extraordinary individuals, which was well within her and Zhu Jue’s comfort zone. No big deal!

Right before bed, Yan checked the group chat for Room 320. Yi Zhi, being a local, had already returned to the dorm to clean and asked if anyone had requests for cafeteria food she could pick up in advance.

Looking at the photos Yi Zhi posted, the dorm was spotless—so pristine Yan might’ve believed a professional cleaner had been hired. Not a speck of dust or mold in sight.

However, Yi Zhi had clearly respected everyone’s personal space, only wiping down desks and clearing dust from shared areas.

[Yan]: Yi Zhi, you’re amazing! Take a break—we’ll handle the rest when we get back.

[Yan]: We should arrive on campus around 2 PM.

After sending the messages, Yan muted her phone. Traveling back to Bin City from home was exhausting—even though it was a high-speed train, it took all morning, followed by transfers. She needed to rest and recharge. Once back in the dorm, there’d be bedding to change, laundry to do, and luggage to unpack.

Compared to the chaos of heading home for winter break, the return trip with their trio (plus cat) was uneventful—no sudden medical emergencies announced over the loudspeaker, just the occasional sound of pets in the cabin.

Though Gu Jiasui was taking an evening flight back to Bin City, a chauffeur-driven car she arranged was already waiting when Yan and the others stepped off the train.

Yan wasn’t sure whether this luxury was thanks to little Pengpeng or Uncle Xiao, but either way, she wasn’t complaining.

Uncle Xiao and Pengpeng were picked up by Chu Shen, who also took Zhu Jue’s luggage. Meanwhile, Yan was escorted all the way back to the dorm by Zhu Jue.

With crowds of students returning, Zhu Jue had to leave after hauling Yan’s suitcase up to the dorm entrance under the watchful eye of the dorm supervisor.

Pushing her luggage inside, Yan was about to cheerfully announce her return when she noticed an unfamiliar presence in the room.

"Yan, you’re back!" Yi Zhi looked at her like a lifesaver.

"Uh, the teacher said… our empty sixth bed is being assigned to someone."

Yan blinked. "Huh?"

"But ​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‍isn’t that for next semester? There aren’t any new students now."

They’d lived in this dorm for half a year, and Bed #6 had long been repurposed as storage—overflowing with clothes, Chu Bingbing’s stockpile of supplies, shared items, and Yi Zhi’s potted plants.

If someone suddenly moved in, Yan couldn’t even imagine where all that stuff would go!

"It’s a student who took medical leave. Technically, she should’ve been your senior, but she had to suspend her studies for treatment. Now she’s fully recovered—a medical miracle, they say," the teacher in the room remarked.

Yan’s ears perked up. A what? A medical miracle?

How likely was that? Could this be… another extraordinary individual? Seriously?