Jiangzhou University, girls' dormitory building.
Xiaoqi, having taken a nap for more than an hour, sleepily poked her head out from the bed and looked around, but didn't see any trace of Tongtong. She wondered where this girl had run off to again.
She thought about it but didn't feel like getting out of bed, so she simply lay there and picked up her phone to scroll through.
As soon as she opened QQ, she noticed new message notifications in the class group chat. Opening it, she was nearly startled—99+ unread messages!
What big news could have happened?
Feeling a tightening in her chest, she quickly opened the chat history and started reading from the beginning:
"Major news! Major news! A new 'Jiang Family Steamed Bun' shop has opened on the first floor of the second dining hall. They only sell one kind of bun, chicken soup steamed buns, and the taste is absolutely amazing!"
Seeing that the group was talking about this, Xiaoqi immediately felt relieved and couldn't help but smile slightly. She thought to herself that the steamed buns from this shop were indeed very tasty. Her home was up north and she had tried many steamed buns from different places, but none could compare to those from the dining hall.
It made her curious about the shop owner. With such great skills, why work at the school dining hall when they could open a shop outside and make a fortune?
Unable to figure it out, she put it aside and continued scrolling through the messages. Another classmate commented:
"Haha, so you know too? I had the soup buns for lunch today, and that flavor is just unforgettable! Especially the soup inside the buns—so aromatic and rich. One sip and it's wonderfully fragrant!"
"It's not just the flavorful soup, the meat filling is also tender and juicy. The best part is it's not greasy at all. Oh my gosh, I'm drooling just talking about it!"
"Damn! You guys are something else. You find good food and don't even think to let us know beforehand? Eating secretly by yourself, are you still human?"
"Exactly, you guys are too much!"
"Hey, don't be like that! Didn't I tell you? The shop is on the first floor of the second dining hall, called 'Jiang Family Steamed Bun.' If you want to eat, you can go buy some!"
"..."
At this point, Xiaoqi couldn't hold back her laughter, thinking to herself that if she hadn't eaten those steamed buns for lunch and saw someone in the group make her crave them, she would probably curse them too.
Luckily, she had eaten them!
She wondered if the steamed bun shop would be open in the afternoon and if she'd want to eat there again if it were.
While she was contemplating, the door to the dorm suddenly swung open, and Tongtong came in, face covered in sweat. She grabbed the water bottle from the desk and took several big gulps before exclaiming loudly:
"Xiaoqi, the steamed bun shop opens at 5:30 in the afternoon, and it's almost five now. We need to hurry and line up. If we're late, the line might stretch outside the dining hall.
Are you still eating tonight? If not, I'm going by myself!"
"I am! Wait for me!"
Without another word, Xiaoqi scrambled out of bed and quickly changed into her clothes and shoes.
When she looked up, she noticed Tongtong giving her a teasing look, with a faint smile on her face.
"Let's go! Line up for the steamed buns!"
Xiaoqi feigned calmness, pretending not to notice, waved her hand at Tongtong, and turned to walk out the door.
She had already blushed for her embarrassment; what does a little embarrassment matter for delicious food?
As long as she's not embarrassed, the embarrassing one will be someone else!
...
Outside Jiangzhou University's entrance, a silver sports car sped in from a distance and came to an immediate halt with a beautiful tail-swipe, stopping steadily next to a pretty girl.
After a moment, the driver's side window slowly rolled down, and a handsome young man poked his head out, furrowed his brows at the girl, and said,
"Little sister, what are you doing? Get in the car, I've already reserved a table at the restaurant!"
The girl didn't move her feet at all, smiled, and said, "Second brother, I'm not going to have western food. There's a really good shop at our dining hall. Why don't you come and try it?"
"Your dining hall?"
The handsome young man raised an eyebrow, somewhat disdainfully, "I know exactly how your dining hall is, don't act like your second brother has never been to college. Stop joking, get in the car, a Michelin three-star chef isn't easy to book, and I've still got to rush back after eating!"
"Oh come on, I'm not lying to you!"
Seeing he didn't believe her, the girl stomped her foot lightly and said with a hint of annoyance,
"I'm telling the truth, that shop only sells chicken soup steamed buns, and the taste is something even a Michelin three-star chef can't make. It's way better than the buns made by the chef at our family restaurant by many times!"
"Oh? You're not lying to me?"
The handsome young man suddenly showed interest upon hearing this. He knew his little sister had an extraordinary sense of taste since childhood. If she said even a Michelin three-star chef couldn't do it, it must be true.
A small shop in a university dining hall capable of making steamed buns that his little sister would deem a 'delicacy'—how could he not go see it for himself?
"Alright, wait for me. I'll park the car first, then I'll come with you to taste this delicacy you've been talking about."
Without any fuss, the handsome young man started the car again and zoomed off to a nearby parking lot.
...
In the library.
Even though the school hadn't started yet, the study room on the first floor was still packed, each youthful face filled with seriousness and focus.
Most of these students were diligently preparing for exams in the second half of the year.
After some unknown time had passed, a chubby male student who had been buried in study for a long while suddenly raised his head. He glanced at the clock hanging on the study room wall, and after a brief pause, seemed to remember something. He began hastily gathering the books on his desk.
"Liu Fan, what are you doing?"
Across from him, a slender male student engrossed in exercises was disturbed. He looked up, puzzled, and asked in a low voice,
"It's not even five yet; you're not hungry again, are you?"
"Shh! Don't speak, just come with me!"
The chubby student named Liu Fan quickly hushed him, nervously glanced around, and whispered,
"The shop I mentioned at lunch is opening in half an hour, we need to hurry and line up. If we're late, the line might be really long, and who knows if we'll even get to eat those buns!"
"Oh, right! I almost forgot!"
Upon hearing this, the slender student set aside his exercises and started packing up, not forgetting to console himself,
"If you can't eat well, how will you have the energy to study? So eating is important!"
After packing up, the two of them didn't take their stuff, just left it there to "hold their seats."
Then, they quietly slipped out of the study room, heading toward the second dining hall.
...
At the same time, similar scenes were unfolding in other parts of Jiangzhou University.
The students who had already tried the steam buns at lunchtime need not be mentioned. Those who hadn't tried them but were tempted by those who had, were also taking action, eager to taste these legendary steamed buns and see if they were as delicious as rumored.
For a while, Jiangzhou University was abuzz, and a large wave of foodies started moving toward the second dining hall…