Volume 10: Pro and Con
Chapter 13: University (Part 2)
“If we don’t get involved with Zhu Xi, there won’t be any more emergencies,” Lu Li said.
“What are you guys talking about? I don’t understand,” An Baili said, completely bewildered.
Lu Li gave her a push. “Go on, take your things back to the dorm. We’ll meet back here later.”
…
Lu Li carried the vacuum-sealed bedding to Mingji Building. After showing his documents to the dorm manager, he was led to room 319 on the third floor. Mulan University was backed by the Shenzhou Energy Group and was financially robust. The dormitory buildings were also spacious and bright. When Lu Li walked into his university dorm room, he found that there were already three boys inside, sitting in a circle and chatting.
“…is to become a high official, a cadre…” What were they talking about?
“Hey, our last roommate is here. Whoa, brother, your bed is over here.”
The three of them were very enthusiastic. After helping Lu Li make his bed, they invited him to join their conversation.
“Friend, where are you from? I hear a bit of a southern accent in your voice.”
Lu Li was taken aback. Did he have an accent? He hadn’t even noticed it himself.
“I’m from Chuanhai.”
“Chuanhai is great! I hear that place is very rich,” one roommate said cheerfully. “What did I say before? I just want to get into Chuanhai to be a civil servant, a high official, a cadre, and serve the country!”
A thought stirred in Lu Li’s mind. He asked, “What’s your name?”
“Oh, I forgot to introduce myself. My surname is Huang, and my given name is Chao. My ambition is to be an official!” Huang Chao seemed like a simple-minded young man, cheerfully patting his chest.
Lu Li’s eyes twitched. “What’s your name?” He thought he had misheard.
“Huang Chao. I want to be a civil servant.” Very confident.
Lu Li gave a dry laugh and looked at the other person. “What about you?”
“I have some research in theology and want to be a glorious teacher in the future. It would be great if I could be a professor at a university.” The other person had thick eyebrows and big eyes, with a square face, looking like a very upright person. “My name is Hong Xiuquan.”
Lu Li’s eyelids twitched again. He looked at the last person. “And you?”
“My name is Wu Guang. I don’t have such lofty ideals as them. I just want to graduate and go back to run my family’s fish stall business.”
Lu Li asked, “Do you have any brothers with the surname Chen?”
“No, I’m an only child.” Wu Guang looked at Lu Li with confusion.
Lu Li felt that this dormitory was filled with an indescribable fighting spirit and vitality. He couldn’t sit there for another second, afraid he would be dragged into some strange incident. “My name is Lu Li. Er, um, I won’t be staying in the dorm. I live off-campus and usually won’t come to the dorm.”
“Then let’s have dinner together tonight?”
“I’m sorry, I have plans with my girlfriend…s.” Lu Li pronounced the plural ‘s’ very lightly. “Then I’ll be going. We can get together again when there’s a chance.” After speaking, Lu Li hurriedly left room 319.
…
Lu Li strolled along the spacious roads of Mulan University. The campus of Mulan University wasn’t any more spacious than Chuanhai No. 1 High School, but the brand-new environment, new classmates, and new atmosphere gave him a completely different feeling. If he had to describe it in one word, it would be “refreshing.”
Waiting for girls seemed to be a timeless theme. Their actions were always so mysterious, making it impossible to guess what they were busy with. Lu Li waited from 9:30 AM to 10:11 AM, but still no sign of An Baili or Wen Hupo. He remembered that in his previous life, he had often waited for Baili at university. At that time, he would stand under a sun umbrella at the entrance of the girls’ dormitory, and the last message on his phone would always be An Baili’s “Almost there, almost there, be there in a sec~” After they got married, before going out, he would often sit on the toilet waiting for An Baili, and An Baili would always wonder why he loved to poop so much.
It’s not that I love to poop, it’s just that waiting is too boring, Lu Li thought.
The sun was scorching. Splashing a bottle of water forward was like pouring a basin of hot oil on a fire, making a sizzling sound on the asphalt road. Mulan was a central city, and its summers were often more intense than Chuanhai’s. The green vines peeking out from the wire fence shone brightly under the sunlight.
Just then, Lu Li saw a group of people turn the corner not far away, a noisy and chaotic crowd. They were surrounding someone. Lu Li was used to such scenes. In high school, that girl Chu Jingyi was also surrounded like the moon by stars, until the white swan was attracted by a toad. Lu Li would sometimes compare Zhu Xi and Chu Jingyi in his mind. In fact, in terms of family power, the Silly Goose was probably the real princess. He grumbled to himself: Jingyi’s status is so noble, yet she doesn’t put on as many airs as Zhu Xi. What gives Zhu Xi the right to be so pretentious?
Speak of the devil and he shall appear. It was only when the group got closer that Lu Li realized they were surrounding Zhu Xi.
“Wow, we’re really in the same year as a princess of Shenzhou.” A voice came from behind Lu Li. He turned and saw that simple-minded young man named Huang Chao. “This will be a story I can tell for the rest of my life.”
Lu Li said, “What are you doing here? Not staying in the dorm?”
Huang Chao said, “I’m also here to pick up my girlfriend for a meal. Brother Lu, I’m a family man too. Just like you, I’ve been standing here for more than half an hour. Sigh, women are so troublesome.”
Lu Li thought that for someone so young to be in a relationship, he didn’t seem like a very proper person. He shook his head. Sure enough, a good man like himself was still a rare find.
“Aren’t you going to ask about my girlfriend, Brother Lu?” Huang Chao was a chatterbox, like a little kid who couldn’t wait to show off his toys. “My girlfriend and I are childhood sweethearts. Hehe, do you know how I won her over?”
Lu Li had no desire to know, nor was he interested in other people’s girlfriends.
He found a topic to interrupt Huang Chao. “You know Zhu Xi too?”
As expected, Huang Chao followed Lu Li’s lead. “Of course I know. She’s the prettiest among the princesses of marriageable age. Didn’t they say they were going to choose a husband for the Fourteenth Princess before? Everyone was hoping to become the lucky son-in-law!”
A chill ran down Lu Li’s spine. What kind of person would actually compete to be Zhu Xi’s husband? They truly aren’t afraid of death. They’d probably die on the road before they could even touch her toe. Even if you beat him to death, Lu Li wouldn’t participate in some princess’s husband selection.
Huang Chao shook his head and sighed again. “It’s a pity Princess Zhu Xi’s reputation doesn’t seem to be very good.”
“How is it not good?”
“She has so many pursuers, but she’s never given a definite answer, neither agreeing nor refusing, just stringing them along. In my opinion, she’s just a female sea king. An ordinary person can’t tame her.”
Lu Li recalled his few brief encounters with Zhu Xi. He felt that Zhu Xi wasn’t deliberately stringing people along, but simply disdained to respond to those childish affections. That woman had high standards.
“My girlfriend is here. What do you think, isn’t she pretty?” Huang Chao suddenly took a step forward, a broad smile on his face as he greeted a girl. Lu Li raised an eyebrow and saw that she was just an ordinary-looking girl, the type that seemed very suitable for a quiet life. Sure enough, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Or perhaps his standards had just been raised too high?
Just behind that girl, An Baili and Wen Hupo also walked out of the dormitory one after another. Under Huang Chao’s strange and shocked gaze, they floated toward Lu Li like two butterflies.
