The school had arranged a New Year's Eve party on the last evening of 2012.
However, Qin Tian and Xia Nuannuan went out to celebrate the New Year privately, so they naturally did not attend.
In fact, not many people went. There were plenty of such parties at school, and on a special New Year's Eve in such cold weather, couples would naturally prefer to spend it romantically together.
As for those without partners, they would rather stay in their dorms to sleep or play games, to avoid being showered with affection.
After New Year's Day, time seemed to pass even faster.
Students soon faced a tense and busy exam week, diligently reviewing and preparing for each subject.
Qin Tian, of course, was not under much pressure. Under the influence of his super academic god halo, Xia Nuannuan and Chen Zhuang, who often sat near him to listen to lectures, were all confident about their exams for various subjects.
On the afternoon of January 15th, everyone in the class completed their final exam.
After the exam, they could leave school directly and go home to prepare for the Chinese New Year.
Many people had bought their tickets home as early as half a month or a month in advance, especially those who lived farther away.
With so many university students in Jiangcheng, it would be very troublesome not to buy tickets early.
Qin Tian and Xia Nuannuan naturally did not have this trouble; they could just drive home via the national highway.
Most people from the two dormitories did not have tickets for that day, so the two of them didn't rush to leave, planning to go the next morning to see if anyone needed a ride to the station or airport.
In the evening, except for Lü Yanran, with whom they no longer had much interaction, several people from the two dormitories, along with Su Yan and Tian Jing, whom Xia Nuannuan had invited, gathered at a hot pot restaurant outside the school for a meal.
This meal was hosted by Chen Zhuang.
In college, it was common for someone who successfully found a partner to treat their roommates and close friends to a meal, to get acquainted.
Of course, everyone from the two dormitories was already very familiar with each other.
This hot pot restaurant was an authentic Sichuan-Chongqing hot pot. The signature broth was a pure spicy pot, filled with bright red chilies and beef tallow base, which made one worry about their stomach and backside after eating.
Fortunately, Xia Nuannuan spoke up, and the group, with the minority obeying the majority, still opted for a split pot.
"Order, order, everyone eat and drink well today, don't be polite," Chen Zhuang said generously, distributing the two menus brought by the waiter to the girls.
In the past few months, by following Qin Tian's stock investments, he and Zhuang Zhe had earned quite a bit.
Compared to Qin Tian's current assets, which were approaching ten million, it was nothing, but it should be enough to cover their university living expenses in the future.
"Oh, Brother Zhuang, you're finally being generous today!" Cao Mingliang teased with a smile.
"Is this your way of mocking the rich?" Chen Zhuang glanced at him.
"No, no, I'm just living off my parents, how can I be considered rich? Brother Tian is," Cao Mingliang grinned.
"You do have some self-awareness." Chen Zhuang smiled in agreement.
"Don't drag me into your bickering. My family doesn't own a mine," Qin Tian said exasperatedly, holding a kettle and pouring tea.
"Chen Zhuang, Cao Mingliang, stop mocking each other. There's a real rich lady here laughing at you!" Shen Siqi said, putting her arm around Xia Nuannuan's shoulder and smiling.
Hearing this, the two looked at Xia Nuannuan and immediately fell silent.
"What rich lady, that sounds awful," Xia Nuannuan pushed Shen Siqi's hand off her shoulder and rolled her eyes speechlessly.
Su Yan and the other girls revealed bright smiles upon hearing this.
There were many customers in the restaurant, mostly students from Jiangda gathering for meals.
Qin Tian and his group had exceptionally beautiful girls at their table, each with a different temperament, naturally attracting a lot of attention.
Some boys were whispering among themselves, encouraging each other to go over and ask for contact information.
They all recognized Qin Tian and Xia Nuannuan, the model couple envied by everyone in the school.
The big,傻大个 next to them and the girl beside him also looked like a couple.
But the other three girls were also very beautiful, and sitting together, they seemed to be single.
However, Qin Tian's reputation in Jiangda was too great, making them hesitant to approach them rashly.
Soon, the waiter delivered the dishes to Qin Tian's table.
Plates of fatty beef and lamb rolls, several plates of tripe, shrimp paste, duck blood, beef balls, as well as winter melon, spinach, mushrooms, and various other vegetables filled the entire table, even overflowing onto the special dish rack next to it.
Everyone had already prepared their dipping sauces, and the broth had started boiling. The beef tallow broth emitted a spicy, fragrant aroma.
"It's ready, hurry up and put the food in, we can order more if it's not enough. Winter is meant for hot pot, I've been craving this for a long time," Chen Zhuang said, picking up a plate of fatty beef and dropping it into the spicy pot, shouting cheerfully.
"In your Northeast region, don't you guys prefer pickled cabbage hot pot? Why do you like spicy pot too?" Shen Siqi asked in surprise.
"Who said that?" Chen Zhuang turned his head to look at her and said seriously, "I like both. Don't worry, when we eat alone in the future, we won't need split pots, we can just order the spicy pot."
Shen Siqi looked unconvinced and said doubtfully, "Is that true? I always eat extremely spicy pots, and this is only medium spicy."
"I have no problem with that either!" Chen Zhuang confidently patted his chest.
"It seems the anorectal hospital near our school will have another loyal customer soon," Cao Mingliang interjected unexpectedly.
"Pfft!" Zhuang Zhe, who had just taken a sip of tea, spat it out and quickly grabbed a napkin from the table to wipe it.
"Hahaha..." Qin Tian and the others burst into laughter.
"Cao, can you just shut up?" Chen Zhuang's face turned as black as the pot, and he glared angrily.
"It's just that I haven't seen you eat spicy food much before, so I'm skeptical!" Cao Mingliang shrugged.
"That's because I haven't eaten it," Chen Zhuang said stubbornly.
"Drink a spoonful of this beef tallow broth with the spoon, and I'll believe you," Cao Mingliang suggested playfully, pointing at the bright red broth with his chopsticks.
"Get lost, who the hell would drink this? Am I crazy!" Chen Zhuang glared at him fiercely.
"Alright, alright, you two, stop arguing," Qin Tian intervened to smooth things over. He then looked at Shen Siqi, who was secretly chuckling next to Chen Zhuang, and asked curiously, "I heard that the anorectal hospitals in your area are all opened next to hot pot restaurants?"
Before his rebirth, he had seen such videos online.
He had visited many cities, but not Sichuan province.
Due to being too busy with work and stressed by life, he hadn't had the chance to travel there and enjoy the local cuisine.
Now that Cao Mingliang and the others were talking about it, he was genuinely curious.
Hearing Qin Tian's words, everyone found it amusing and curious, and they all turned their gazes towards Shen Siqi.
"This..." Shen Siqi smiled awkwardly and nodded, "Now that you mention it, in the provincial capital, there are quite a few hot pot restaurants opened next to hospitals."
Upon hearing this, everyone's expressions immediately became interesting.
"Of course, the main reason is that there are many hot pot restaurants there, they are everywhere," Shen Siqi quickly added.