Summer Vacation Part 1

On the third day of staying at the sanatorium, Lian Jun packed up Shi Jin's things and stuffed them into the car.

Shi Jin looked unhappy and frowned, saying, "I don't want to go to school."

"Even if you don't want to, you have to go. You've already missed the training and mid-term exams. You must complete the remaining half of the semester and the final exams well." Lian Jun didn't give him any room for negotiation and accompanied him into the car. He softened his tone and reassured him, "I'll come pick you up on Friday."

Shi Jin remained silent with a stern face.

"This is your task report and updated record. Remember to hand it in to your counselor after returning to school. You need to memorize the report content as soon as possible and don't let anything slip." Lian Jun handed him a report and gave careful instructions.

He even prepared the report? Shi Jin turned his head to look at him and accused, "Did you plan to send me back to school when we were on the island?"

Lian Jun nodded honestly.

Shi Jin sat up straight in anger.

"Don't you care about your friends?" Lian Jun asked.

Shi Jin hesitated and replied, "But I want to be with you. Your health-"

"My condition has stabilized. As long as I take my medicine on time, the remaining toxins in my body won't become active again, and those dangerous symptoms won't appear. My treatment from now on will mainly focus on recuperation, and with Uncle Long watching over me, everything will be fine," Lian Jun reassured.

Shi Jin still wasn't at ease and said, "But-"

"Shi Jin, I don't want your precious college life to be wasted on taking care of me meaninglessly," Lian Jun gently held his hand and said in a warm voice, "College is only four years, and instead of having you worry about those boring and meaningless daily chores by my side day after day, I hope you can go out and learn new things, laying a more solid foundation for your future life."

Shi Jin remained silent, knowing that Lian Jun was thinking of him rationally, but emotionally, he couldn't accept these words. He had already gone through college courses and college life once, and missing a few classes in this lifetime wouldn't make much of a difference.

But Lian Jun was the only one he had, and he didn't want to miss out on Lian Jun's treatment process. He wanted to stay by Lian Jun's side, supporting him through this difficult time.

"I will call you every day," Lian Jun squeezed his hand and spoke in a soothing voice.

Shi Jin looked at his still pale face, his brows furrowed tightly. He didn't want to argue with him about this or make him unhappy, so he compromised and held his hand back, saying, "Then you must eat well, don't always be busy with work, and don't secretly try any radical treatment behind my back. Take it slow, we have plenty of time, there's no need to rush."

Lian Jun smiled and replied, "I know, I won't. Also, I've been meaning to say, even though I was mad at you for acting recklessly, you did a great job at the conference. Thank you for fighting for me to have some peaceful time. I'm proud of you."

"...Don't try to sweet-talk me." Shi Jin muttered in a soft tone, suddenly reaching out to him and asking, "Where's the ring? Give it to me."

Lian Jun was puzzled, "What ring?"

"The ring I gave you. I haven't seen you wear it since I came back." Shi Jin deliberately put on a stern face and extended his hand towards him, "Didn't you say that you wanted me to personally put the ring on your finger when I came back? So where is it? Don't tell me you didn't bring it with you." His tone had already taken on a threatening edge, as if he was ready to make a scene if Lian Jun didn't have the ring.

Lian Jun's lips curled up as he lowered his head and took out a small, elegant silk bag from the inner pocket of his robe. After opening it, he took out the ring and placed it in Shi Jin's outstretched hand, then extended his own hand.

"Unexpectedly, you really brought it with you..." Shi Jin felt a little regretful, but also a little happy. He held the ring, took his hand, glanced at him, and carefully put the ring on his ring finger. Then he kissed it and said, "You have to gain weight quickly. Without the ring on, no one can tell that we're a couple. I'll give you two months, no, one month to gain weight like this." He gestured a round figure that even Lian Jun had never achieved from birth until now.

Lian Jun was amused by him and held his hand, interlocking their fingers. With his other hand, he lifted Shi Jin's face, turned his head, and kissed him.

......

The journey from the sanatorium to the school was too short. Shi Jin felt like he had only spoken to Lian Jun for less than ten sentences before the car stopped at the school gate.

It was the peak time for students returning to school after the holiday, and there were many cars at the school gate. However, Lian Jun's low-key black car was not too conspicuous. Seeing this, he ordered the driver to park directly at the school gate, instead of stopping on the street as he used to do.

"After you settle in, give me a call," Lian Jun instructed, then released Shi Jin's hand.

Shi Jin nodded, leaned in to give him a kiss, and reluctantly got out of the car with his backpack and gifts for Liu Yong and Luo Donghao. "See you on Friday," he said before closing the car door.

Through the car window, Lian Jun watched him and wanted to slide it down to talk. Seeing this, Shi Jin shook his head, indicating that there were too many people around and they should leave first. Lian Jun reluctantly gave up on opening the window and carefully studied Shi Jin's face with his eyes before instructing the driver to start the car.

As the car slowly drove away, Shi Jin watched it until it disappeared from sight. He let out a shallow breath, rubbed his face, and turned to walk towards the school gate.

"Is that Shi Jin?"

"Looks like it."

"Why is he back at school again?"

"Who knows, maybe he's done playing outside."

Whispers came from behind, and Shi Jin stopped in his tracks, turning to look in the direction of the voices.

The students who were being looked at were startled and quickly shut their mouths, avoiding Shi Jin's gaze as they pushed and shoved their way through the school gate.

Shi Jin furrowed his brows slightly and turned to look at the other students passing by the school gate. He noticed that at least half of them were glancing at him, making his frustration of being separated from Lian Jun turn into super frustration.

After some thought, he took out his phone from his pocket and made a call.

......

Upon receiving Shi Jin's call, Liu Yong rushed out of the dormitory building and met him in a small garden not far from the dormitory building.

"Where's Donghao?" Shi Jin asked after seeing him.

"He hasn't arrived yet. He said there was traffic on the way," Liu Yong explained, looking him up and down and couldn't help but laugh. He playfully punched him and said, "You've gotten a bit darker. It seems like the sun on the island is intense. So, spill the beans, where did you go for your mission this time? You didn't even come to the briefing. You're such a busy person."

When Shi Jin saw him, his mood improved a lot. He briefly explained the location and content of the tasks set in the report, then asked, "Has there been a new version of rumors about me on campus?"

"Um..." Liu Yong hesitated, glanced at him awkwardly, and asked, "You found out."

"It's hard not to notice. They almost came up to my face to tell me," Shi Jin said helplessly, gesturing towards the dormitory building. "Let's talk while we walk."

......

Through Liu Yong's account, Shi Jin learned that the rumors about him on campus had upgraded to a new version. People were no longer discussing whether his family was rich or not, but whether he was really going on missions or just using it as an excuse to skip class and play.

After all, he had a brother with a higher military rank, so it was possible for him to skip class with some conditions.

"In the end, it's all jealousy. It's a fact that you have money, and those people can't say anything about that. So, they made up other things about you. Even though the counselor said you were on a mission, they still spread conspiracy theories. They must have too much free time," Liu Yong said with a tone of dissatisfaction and disdain. It seemed like he had heard similar things before.

Shi Jin didn't know how to respond after hearing this. In a way, the rumors were true - he hadn't actually been on a mission. But being tormented by rumors every time he returned to school was too annoying. These things needed to be resolved.

......

After the evening roll call, Shi Jin returned to his dormitory and headed to the communal bath with his toiletries when the most people were there. Unlike before, he didn't wait until he arrived to completely undress, but instead followed the lead of others and took off his shirt in the changing room.

Coincidentally, his roommate also came to shower and greeted him. Shi Jin returned the greeting and headed towards the shower with his toiletries. On his sturdy and handsome body, the ugly scar on his shoulder was particularly striking.

His roommate was taken aback and asked, "Shi Jin, what's this scar on your shoulder?"

"What? Oh, you mean this scar? It's from a mission I did before," Shi Jin replied simply, thinking to himself that his roommate was a great ally. He didn't show it on his face though, and after speaking, he left directly, looking like he was in a hurry to take a shower.

The changing room fell silent as everyone watched Shi Jin's departing figure, and no one spoke.

......

The next day after morning training, Liu Yong and Luo Donghao went towards Shi Jin in unison, grabbing the collar of his training uniform.

Shi Jin was caught off guard and struggled, "Hey, what are you guys doing? Let go, let go, you're tearing my clothes."

Four hands were too much for him to handle, and eventually Liu Yong managed to pull open Shi Jin's collar.

"Wow, there really is a scar," Liu Yong said dumbfoundedly, letting go. "I thought it was just another rumor."

"Then what's that circular scar next to the long scar?" Luo Donghao furrowed his brow and asked, "Could it be a gunshot wound?"

"A gunshot wound?" Liu Yong's voice suddenly rose, instinctively covering his shoulder, his expression wrinkled, as if he had been shot himself.

Luo Donghao glanced around at the classmates who were attracted by Liu Yong's howling, and for the first time, he thought Liu Yong's nervous personality was quite good.

"It's a gunshot wound. I accidentally got shot here," Shi Jin replied, adjusting his collar. Seeing Liu Yong wincing in pain, he comforted him, "These are actually old wounds. I had them before I went to college. When I have time, I plan to get a scar removal surgery to get rid of them. Otherwise, my boyfriend will secretly feel depressed every time he sees these scars."

Liu Yong couldn't take it anymore and grabbed Shi Jin's head, rubbing it vigorously while gritting his teeth, "You fool! Scars are a man's badge of honor. Don't you understand? You want to get scar removal surgery just to show off to your boyfriend. You're a winner in life, but you deserve a beating!"

Shi Jin laughed and pushed his hand away, rubbing his own head in retaliation.