"Even Liu the Bull was convinced. Is that really possible?" The Sichuan boy's eyes widened in disbelief.
"Nonsense! If you don't believe it, go ask Brother Liu yourself," Glasses retorted, annoyed.
"Come on! You're joking, right? Where am I supposed to ask him?"
"Brother Liu is at this school. You can find him tomorrow!"
"What? Liu Tang is at this school?" Before anyone else could react, Zhuifeng, who was about to leave, exclaimed.
"Yeah! Is Brother Liu your idol or something?" Glasses asked, puzzled.
"What's he doing here? Hasn't he graduated yet? Is he pursuing a master's degree?" Zhuifeng ignored the question, eager for answers.
"He's not your idol, is he? Otherwise, you'd know this. Are you part of the street racing crowd?" Glasses probed further.
"I'm not. Can you just tell me what Liu Tang is doing here?" Zhuifeng said, exasperated.
Glasses finally explained, "He's a prodigy teacher at Chongqing University. What else would he be doing here but teaching?"
"What? He's a teacher?" Zhuifeng was stunned. Damn, how did I end up in this situation?
"Yeah, what's wrong with that?" Glasses couldn't understand why this person was so agitated. "Wait, you don't have a grudge against Brother Liu, do you?"
"Guys, carry on. I need to go!" Zhuifeng's head was starting to ache. He had no time for idle chatter and left abruptly.
As he walked away, he muttered to himself, "Why can't I have this kind of luck when buying lottery tickets? Damn, how can someone like him be a teacher, let alone a prodigy? Is he considered a genius just because he's teaching at Chongqing University at 24? God, why am I so unlucky?"
While grumbling, he kept walking forward, only to realize a serious problem—he was lost. "Damn! God, are you really looking out for me!" After walking a bit further, "My God! Is this some kind of maze? How come I still can't find my way out?"
Zhuifeng, who hadn't eaten dinner, gave up. "Damn, who designed this campus? Why make it so big? I'm starving! God, can you stop messing with me?"
Damn! Is calling out to the heavens actually useful? Well, believe it or not, it worked this time!
Just as he was about to get up from the ground, Zhuifeng suddenly froze. "Hey, are those footsteps? Ha! God, you're not so bad to me after all!"
"Oh no, it's so late! Please, please don't let the dorm doors be closed!" Another voice called out to the heavens. Is it trendy to invoke divine intervention these days?
Zhao Jie was stuffing books from the library into her backpack while praying and walking forward. Suddenly! A dark figure rose unexpectedly from the ground. Zhao Jie froze for a moment, then let out a piercing scream: "Ah!"
Zhuifeng, excited to see someone passing by, quickly stood up from the ground. He noticed the person suddenly stop, and just as he was about to ask for directions, he heard a scream that rivaled Liu Tang's sister's. The words were forced back into his stomach, and he quickly covered his ears.
Do all women like to scream?
In the dim streetlight, Zhao Jie finally saw clearly that it was a person in front of her. Although she couldn't make out his features, she could see that his hands were covering his own ears, not trying to cover her mouth. He didn't seem like a bad person. Calming her tense nerves, she took a few deep breaths and mustered up the courage to ask, "What... what do you want?"
Seeing that she was no longer screaming, Zhuifeng quickly lowered his hands and exhaled, "Miss, you scared me to death! I almost had a heart attack!"
"I scared you?" Zhao Jie was bewildered. What kind of person is this? Is this what they call a thief crying 'stop thief'?
"You nearly scared me to death. What are you doing here in the middle of the night?" she demanded.
"Middle of the night? It's not even 10 o'clock yet," he said, checking the time.
Zhao Jie was speechless. "Idiot. What exactly do you want? If you don't have any business, stop blocking my way!"
"Well... hehe!" Zhuifeng scratched his head awkwardly. "I'm new to the school and not very familiar with it. I was walking around and got lost..."
"Oh, so you want me to take you back?" she asked suspiciously.
"No, no! I just need you to point me in the right direction. Please, can you help me?" he pleaded.
Zhao Jie had initially thought about screaming for help if he asked her to take him back to the dorm, worried about what he might do on the way. But now... "Are you really lost?"
"Yes, why?" Fortunately, Zhuifeng was unaware of Zhao Jie's thoughts. Otherwise, he would have been truly mortified.
"Nothing, I just find it strange how you could get lost," she replied.
"I'm a freshman," he explained.
Dumbfounded! And he said it so matter-of-factly: "I'm the same as you. I'm a freshman too."
"Oh no, how will I get back?" Zhuifeng was on the verge of tears.
"Hey, do you think everyone is like you, getting lost on campus? You're unbelievable!" How annoying, he even thought I was an idiot too!
"You know the way?" Zhuifeng grasped at this glimmer of hope.
"Of course!"
"Then, please, can you tell me how to get back? Please?" He was practically on his knees begging.
"Alright, go this way, then take the path on the right, then... Got it?" She glanced at the time. "Oh no, it's almost 10:30. Hurry, or the doors will be locked."
"Hey! I didn't even get to thank you!... Never mind, I'll save it for later." He checked the time. "10:30 curfew? Oh no, it's almost time! Taxi! No? Well, I guess I'll have to run! Charge!"
Following the directions, he sprinted all the way, gasping for breath. Finally, he saw the long-awaited dormitory gate: "Phew... Good! The door isn't closed yet, phew..."
Zhuifeng was exhausted beyond words! Like a dog, he half-squatted, supporting himself with his hands on his knees, mouth open, greedily sucking in air. "Wait, something's not right! It's well past 10:30 now. Did that girl trick me?"
After resting outside the door for a while, Zhuifeng didn't see anyone moving to close it. Instead, quite a few senior students were coming and going. He checked the time and felt frustrated.
Afraid that this might be a special passage only for senior students, Zhuifeng imitated their posture and walked in confidently. Seeing that the duty teacher only glanced at him without any reaction, he was overjoyed! He quickly walked past the duty room.
"This doesn't feel right! I need to ask and make sure. I don't want to be treated like a fool on my first day at school!" Zhuifeng slowed down and turned back towards the duty room.
But as he entered the duty room, he hesitated again. What if this really is a back door for senior students? Wouldn't I be walking into a trap? But I can't let it go...
The duty teacher, unaware of Zhuifeng's thoughts, just looked at him again and again, finding this student outside very strange. He kept opening and closing his mouth: "Student, do you need something?"
"Ahem... Teacher, I wanted to ask, when does the dorm close? Isn't it at 10:30?" Zhuifeng finally asked.
"Oh, that. Yes, it's 10:30, but that's only for the girls' dormitory. The boys' dormitory doesn't close. Although it doesn't close, you should be responsible. After all, you're here to study, not to go out and party... Hey... where did he go?" The long-winded teacher realized his audience had disappeared. "Young people these days, can't even listen to a few words..."
"Damn! Good thing I ran fast, or I'd have been stuck there until morning." Still afraid the teacher might follow, Zhuifeng used what little energy he had left to run upstairs.
"Hey... Didn't I turn off the lights and close the door when I left? How come it's..." Zhuifeng saw the lights in his room were on as soon as he got upstairs and started muttering to himself again.
Lightening his footsteps, he quietly approached the door and peeked inside. "No one's here. Then why are the lights... Could it be... could it be a ghost?"
"Excuse me, who are you looking for?"
Zhuifeng was lost in his paranoid thoughts when suddenly a hand patted his shoulder.
Perhaps infected by the earlier incident, he immediately let out a scream: "Ah!"
It seems men can't handle this either. Now the entire dorm building's residents came running out of their rooms. "Damn, who's screaming like a ghost?"
"I thought someone had fallen down the stairs! Why are you making such a fuss over nothing?"
...
"Who are you? If you don't say, I'll call the police!"
Coming to his senses, Zhuifeng realized he had been dragged into the room by that person, no, that ghost... no, that person!
"Damn! Let go!" He shook off the painfully gripped arm. "I should be asking who you are. I live in this room!"
"Really?"
Annoyed! "I sleep in the top bunk by the window. Didn't you see my things? How can you doubt me? This is frustrating."
"That doesn't prove you belong here."
Damn! I can't be bothered with you! Zhuifeng didn't have time to argue with him and directly proved it with actions...
Don't misunderstand, he didn't use his fists! Zhuifeng is a good boy! Hehe...
He walked to the cabinet and very accurately and quickly pulled out his shower things. He glanced at the guy: "Now do you believe I live here? What about you? What are you doing here?"
"Hehe... Well, this is awkward. We're roommates and didn't recognize each other. Sorry, brother!" He laughed awkwardly.
"Damn! How come I didn't see your stuff?" Zhuifeng scanned the room again, staring at him suspiciously.
"I just arrived! My things are coming up later. Someone will bring them up soon." He hurriedly explained, afraid Zhuifeng might get angry.
"Is that so?"
"Of course it's true! I'm Ma Ji, from Jilin!"
After a moment's hesitation, Zhuifeng extended his hand: "Zhuifeng, I'm a local from Chongqing. Are you really staying in this room?"
"Geez! Of course I am. Look, they're bringing my stuff up now, aren't they?" Ma Ji pointed to the door.
Zhuifeng looked at the door and was speechless. "Is all this yours?"
"Of course! If it's not mine, do you think I stole it? Aren't Chongqing people supposed to be straightforward? Why are you acting like a girl?" Ma Ji was annoyed.
"Haha... you misunderstood me. I meant to ask why you brought so much stuff?" After the taxi driver's comment earlier, Zhuifeng thought he had brought the most things, but compared to Ma Ji, he was completely outclassed. Ma Ji had three people specifically bringing his luggage. How much stuff did he have? Embarrassing!
"Oh, this isn't much. The room can fit it all anyway. Chongqing has porters too, right? Why should I carry it myself when I don't have to?" Ma Ji replied.
Speechless! "I'm going to take a shower first!" Zhuifeng said and left.
....
"Wow, you're done unpacking already?" Zhuifeng asked when he returned.
"Hehe, many hands make light work!" Ma Ji replied.
Seeing Ma Ji fiddling with something on his bed, Zhuifeng approached while drying his hair.
"Hey, watch out for the water from your hair! Don't get this wet!" Ma Ji shouted, quickly hugging the object to his chest.
"Come on, it's just a car model," Zhuifeng said, glancing at it.
"Damn! Do you know what car this is? It's my treasure!" Ma Ji carefully wiped the car body, speaking softly.
"Whatever. Isn't it just a Brera GTV? What's so special about that?" Zhuifeng climbed up to his bunk, looking down on Ma Ji.
"What's so special? This is a limited global edition that took me ages to find... Hey, are you into cars?" Ma Ji suddenly realized.
Finding it after a long search? Zhuifeng was reminded of his brother: "My brother's 1961 Porsche 356B also took him a long time to find..."
"Hey, what are you thinking about? I asked if you're into cars. How else would you know the model of this car at a glance?" Ma Ji pressed.
With Liu Tang already here causing trouble, Zhuifeng didn't want to create more problems for himself. He shook his head, "I'm not that familiar. I've just seen it before. Is it really that precious?" He pretended to look at Ma Ji innocently.
"Of course it's precious! It's... Hey, hey! Going to sleep without saying anything? How rude!" After fiddling with the car for a while longer, Ma Ji finally went to meet the daughter of the Dream King.
.....
"Are you trying to get yourself killed?" Zhuifeng, who had never been one for sleeping in, had firmly decided to get a good night's sleep today. Who knew he'd be woken up so early by Ma Ji? How annoying! "What do you want?"
"Hey, it's 5 o'clock!"
"Yeah, it's 5 o'clock! And you wake me up at 5 AM? Are you itching for trouble?" Zhuifeng glared at him and buried his head back in the pillow to sleep.
It wasn't long before Ma Ji woke him up again.
"Okay, what do you want?"
"I'm hungry!"
"Then go eat! Don't bother me, I want to sleep!" Zhuifeng grumbled.
"I can't find the cafeteria!"
"Damn! I really have to admire you. But, hehe... I can't find the cafeteria either!" If I knew where the cafeteria was, I'd have gone to eat already. I've been hungry since last night!