After hanging up with Ran Dongye, Yang Aiguo couldn't help but take another look at Ye Qiu. Standing about 1.8 meters tall, his figure appeared slightly lean, with a delicate face, and eyes that were long and bright. His vigilance was exceptionally high; the moment Yang Aiguo's gaze landed on him, Ye Qiu had already noticed and responded with a calm smile.
Who exactly is this guy? Initially, because of Tang Guo, Yang Aiguo hesitated to investigate Ye Qiu's background. After all, if such a matter were to be discovered, it could lead to unnecessary trouble and speculation.
Of course, Yang Aiguo assumed Ye Qiu was similar to them—someone with an extremely influential background. But now, with Ran Dongye asking him to investigate Ye Qiu, he couldn't avoid it. They had known each other for over a decade, and this was the first time Ran Dongye had asked him to do something.
Yang Aiguo found it difficult to describe his feelings. The girl he liked, Tang Guo, seemed to have a special relationship with Ye Qiu, even getting so angry she injured someone because of him. And now his good friend, Ran Dongye, after meeting Ye Qiu just once, asked him to investigate him, revealing a lot of unpleasant information with that phrase, "Because he's annoying."
If he could, Yang Aiguo wished he had never encountered such a person. Despite his seemingly low profile, Ye Qiu inadvertently dealt the deepest blows to others' confidence.
"Ye Qiu, we have another class to attend, so we'll head out first. Do you have time for lunch? I'd like to treat you all," Yang Aiguo said as he walked up to Ye Qiu. Since Ye Qiu had helped Xiao Liu, it was only right for him to invite Ye Qiu for a meal.
"Maybe next time. I have something to do at noon," Ye Qiu declined calmly.
"Alright, we'll leave it for another time. Whenever you're free, we'll have a meal together." Yang Aiguo smiled and nodded at Lan Kexin, Yang Le, and Li Dazhuang before leading his group away.
"Xiaosan, look into Ye Qiu's background for me," Yang Aiguo ordered once they were far from Ye Qiu and the others.
"Boss, why do you want to investigate him? I think Ye Qiu's a good guy," Xiaosan asked, puzzled. They had a good impression of Ye Qiu because of his straightforwardness during the drinking session and his generous help when Xiao Liu was in trouble. Yang Aiguo's sudden order to investigate Ye Qiu didn't sit well with them.
"I'm just doing someone a favor. It's just a precaution; we just need to know where he comes from. Without knowing someone's background, it's hard to form a deep friendship. Don't worry, there's no malice towards Ye Qiu," Yang Aiguo explained with a smile, though inwardly, he was shocked. This guy's influence was too great, subtly affecting those around him. Normally, his orders were never questioned by these guys.
This realization only strengthened his resolve to dig into Ye Qiu's background for peace of mind.
After Yang Aiguo left, Yang Le and Li Dazhuang began pressing Ye Qiu on how he knew Ran Dongye. Even Lan Kexin looked at him curiously. She clearly remembered taking the same train to Beijing with Ye Qiu. Could they have met in just the past few days?
"She said it herself, didn't she? We met yesterday at a restaurant," Ye Qiu responded casually, though he was a bit worried. So much time had passed, yet she still remembered him. If she hadn't approached him first, he would have forgotten about Ran Dongye entirely.
He vaguely remembered seeing a group of pretty girls at the restaurant near the school gate, but he hadn't noticed Ran Dongye standing out among them. Comparisons highlight differences. Like Qiu Xiang in *Flirting Scholar*, when she walked among a group of other beautiful women, she didn't stand out much, but when surrounded by less attractive women, she was stunning.
The girls from the Film Academy were all attractive enough to be on stage or screen, destined for high-exposure careers in film and entertainment. Even though Ran Dongye was more striking than her peers, she didn't leave a strong impression on Ye Qiu, who had been busy drinking at the time. If he had to recall someone, it would be the sexy beauty who had boldly wiped his mouth and kissed him.
Since Ye Qiu was on an important mission, he needed to think carefully about how to handle this acquaintance with Ran Dongye. It seemed like he would have to find an opportunity to talk to her.
"Kexin, you've never been to a boys' dorm, right? How about visiting our dorm for a bit?" Ye Qiu suggested with a smile. He knew that if Lan Kexin returned to her dorm, she wouldn't have much to do, so he might as well invite her over to chat. Since Ye Qiu wasn't staying in the dorm, only three people were living there, and they were all freshmen who kept the dorm relatively clean—not like the senior dorms, where you could barely find a place to step, and mold might even grow on the sneakers in the corners.
"Okay," Lan Kexin hesitated for a moment but then nodded. As a freshman, she was worried it might be inconvenient to visit a boys' dorm. Freshmen were still quite innocent; once they got used to the school or started dating, some girls even stayed overnight in the boys' dorms.
As they approached the dorm, they saw their counselor, Chen Hailiang, coming out of their room. Seeing Lan Kexin with Ye Qiu, Chen Hailiang raised an eyebrow, thinking this guy moved fast—getting the only girl in the archaeology department on the first day of school, leaving no chance for the other students.
Chen Hailiang smiled and said, "I knew you had no classes for the next two periods, so I came by the dorm to find you. Zhengjing said you hadn't returned yet, but here you are."
"Did you need something, Professor Chen?" Ye Qiu asked with a smile, thinking it was convenient that Chen had come since he needed to discuss not living in the dorm.
"Let's talk inside," Chen Hailiang replied, turning back into the dorm.
Wu Zhengjing was hunched over the desk, playing on his black laptop. Ye Qiu thought, *This guy must come from a decent family.* Although Ye Qiu was used to being around wealthy people, most of the students at Tsinghua University came from modest backgrounds, with some struggling to even pay tuition. There was a story about a sophomore who couldn't afford tuition and ended up selling thousands of pounds of oranges at the school gate.
After inviting Chen Hailiang and Lan Kexin to sit down, Yang Le grabbed a kettle and headed out to fetch water. Chen Hailiang handed a stack of forms to Ye Qiu, saying, "This Saturday is the day when all the university clubs recruit new members. These are student-run organizations like the Literature Club, Street Dance Association, Basketball Club, and Computer Enthusiasts Club. Our department is following the trend and has established an Archaeology Enthusiasts Association."
At this point, Chen Hailiang adjusted his glasses, slightly embarrassed. "Ours is the smallest department in the university, so naturally, our club is the smallest too. Last year, we only recruited twenty members, and even with all the students from our department joining, we barely reached a hundred members."
"Traditionally, recruiting new members has been the responsibility of sophomore students. But Professor Gu is currently working on a research project in Sichuan, and he took all the sophomores with him to assist. So, this task falls on you freshmen."
"I know it's a bit much to ask freshmen to handle this, but our department's situation is unique, and I don't have anyone else to turn to. Ye Qiu, you're the class monitor and now also the chairman of our department's student union—oh, I almost forgot to tell you. After consulting with the other department leaders, we've decided to appoint you as the sixth chairman of our department's student union. How about you take on this responsibility? Don't worry; I won't set any big targets. Just recruit at least twenty new members so that our club can meet the quota and avoid being disbanded."
Ye Qiu couldn't help but laugh at the irony of the situation. He must be the fastest-promoted student leader ever. Yesterday he was elected class monitor, and today he was promoted to the chairman of the department's student union. The frustrating part was that he didn't even have a single subordinate yet.
Looking at the stack of enrollment forms in his hand, Ye Qiu felt a bit stumped. With only twenty students in the entire department, how was he supposed to recruit another twenty for the Archaeology Enthusiasts Association?
To read the manga version, please click the YouTube link https://youtu.be/GnU613H6xm8