Chapter 160: Misunderstanding
  Wen Ning had been abroad for almost two months, and Fang Qing was slowly adjusting to independent living. She packed her schedule to minimize missing him.

  Sitting in the computer room, Fang Qing noticed her inbox was empty. Wen Ning still hadn't sent her an email. "Damn it, Wen Ning, it's been two weeks. Even if you're busy, at least you could send a message to let me know you're safe..."

  But then she realized that perhaps the competition was reaching a critical juncture and Wen Ning might not have the time, so she just had to wait.

  Fang Qing was entering her senior year and, according to the school's schedule, began preparing for her graduation project. Her project was to design a building.

  Although she had designed small buildings with her teachers before, this was her first time working on a large-scale project like this.

  The task was enormous, requiring not only consulting various manuals but also adapting the design to the local environment. However, since Fang Qing wasn't very proficient in CAD, she opted for the massive task of hand-drawing, which increased her workload and left her with no time to check her email.

  After three full months, Fang Qing was the first to complete her graduation project.

  It was the weekend, and the school was deserted. Fang Qing finished her assignment early and headed home for a good rest. On the way home, she bought some vegetables and meat, intending to cook a few dishes.

  But upon reaching her doorstep, she realized she had left her keys at the studio. Sighing, Fang Qing hurried back to school with the vegetables.

  Although spring had already begun, there were still a few scattered snowflakes. Seeing the bad weather, Fang Qing worried about the snowy roads and made it difficult to walk, so she ran all the way back to the studio. To Fang Qing's disappointment, the classmate she had been drawing with in the studio had already left. The door was locked and difficult to pry open, so she pushed open the studio window and jumped in.

  With the keys in hand, Fang Qing was about to leave

  when something suddenly lit up outside the window. She leaned over the window and looked down, only to see a figure disappear into the woods. Nothing else seemed to be happening. But as she exited the complex, she noticed an unusual red glow in a room on the second floor.

  She froze for a second, then quickly ran back inside.

  Thick smoke billowed from Room 203 on the second floor. Fang Qing called out, but since it was late, no one was inside.

  Frantically, Fang Qing circled around, looking for the security guard on the first floor, only to discover he'd gone out to eat! What was she supposed to do?
  The second floor was the library, housing much of the college's vital documents. If it burned, it would be an irreparable loss for the college. Furthermore, the building was quite old, and a fire in the wiring would have devastating consequences.

  Fang Qing dropped her belongings and immediately ran to the fire hydrant. She broke the glass and pulled out the hose, dragging it all the way to the room's door. She smashed the window and pointed the hose inside to put out the fire.

  The thick smoke from the building caught the attention of students in the distance, and many rushed to help put out the flames. Fang Qing coughed repeatedly from the smoke, but her efforts were effective, allowing her to safely wait until the firefighters arrived and quickly extinguished the fire.

  While some of the documents were burned, the majority were intact.

  But what Fang Qing hadn't expected was that the fire still spread to the third floor. The studio was full of drawing paper, which quickly caught fire. Although the firefighters put out the fire, most of Fang Qing's design draft was burned, and the remaining half of the drawing was soaked by water and was completely unusable.

  Returning home, Fang Qing was in a mess. She sat blankly on the sofa, holding the wrinkled half of the drawing in her hand.

  "How could this happen?"

  Fang Qing felt very aggrieved. Why did such bad luck always fall upon her?
  Thinking back on the past few months and the hard work she had put into this graduation project, Fang Qing felt as if God was deliberately playing a joke on her, just to see her rolling in the mud again and again.

  Suddenly, a ringtone came from her phone. This was the one Wen Ning had recorded before leaving and used as an alarm clock for her.

  "Qingqing, baby, it's time to eat. Don't be picky..."

  "Qingqing, baby, it's time to eat. Don't be picky..."

  ...

  A gentle voice echoed in the empty room. The streetlight outside shone through the window onto the floor, stretching her shadow long. Fang Qing sat there blankly, Wen Ning's familiar yet distant voice in her ears, but she suddenly felt extremely lonely.

  Fang Qing opened her phone, and with trembling fingers, she played all of Wen Ning's recordings over and over again. She hugged herself tightly, just like Wen Ning had doted on her in the past, coaxing and comforting her.

  "Qingqing, dear, you are the best. Believe in yourself..."

  Tears finally flowed, and her suppressed sobs slowly drowned out the ringing of the phone. The girl's suppressed sobs gradually became hysterical, and the phone she clutched tightly was covered with tears.

  "Brother Ning, please come back soon..."

  "I miss you so much." "

  I really miss you so much..."

  Fang Qing was commended by the school for her feat of extinguishing the fire. After the hospital learned about her situation, they deliberately extended her defense time by two months so that she could focus on finishing her design draft.

  A few months later, Fang Qing successfully completed her graduation defense and began her job search.

  That day, Fang Qing received a call from Tang Xiaoyu, "Qingqing, I heard that you are graduating. Have you decided where to find a job?"

  Fang Qing chatted with her while cutting vegetables, "I haven't decided yet. I may have to go to a few more job fairs."

  Tang Xiaoyu smiled, "Why don't you come to the provincial capital? I know a few friends here. They all run studios and they just need talents like you."

  Fang Qing shook his head and smiled, "I'll think about it. Besides, I feel that Wen Ning should be back soon. It's been almost a year. This competition should be over by then."

  Tang Xiaoyu on the other end of the line suddenly paused. "Really? He contacted you?"

  "No, but I trust him. He wouldn't lie to me."

  But Tang Xiaoyu was a little excited. "How much is trust worth? Are you stupid? What if he lies to you?"

  Fang Qing didn't expect her to be so excited. "Impossible, don't think about it!"

  Tang Xiaoyu was very disappointed. "Use your brain and think about it. What kind of competition would take more than a year for him to come back? To tell you the truth, when I was having a party with friends before, they said that he went abroad to study with that Sisi from your school! And they took up the place for unmarried couples! Fang Qing, wake up!"

  After saying this, Tang Xiaoyu covered her mouth. She clearly didn't want to say it, so why did she say it all in a hurry?

  But Fang Qing on the other end of the phone was completely stunned.

  The doubts and anxieties that had been there for so long finally found the answer.

  No wonder the competition took so long, no wonder Li Xin smiled so triumphantly the last time I met her. No wonder Wen Ning, who promised to email me weekly, hadn't sent any messages, and even Aunt Wen was being evasive.

  "Oh, I'm really stupid..."

  (End of chapter)