By afternoon, the high-hanging sun had been shrouded by a dark cloud. A cool breeze swept through, diluting the stuffy heat in the air.
At last, the main athletic field grew lively, as freshmen from every district converged in groups.
The Basketball Club’s booth was tucked away in a remote spot at the northeast corner, right across from the Soccer Club.
This whole area was dedicated to sports clubs.
Shen An observed quietly for a moment before reaching a conclusion: it seemed sports clubs weren’t very popular at this university.
Otherwise, they wouldn’t have been relegated to such an out-of-the-way corner, far from the bustling crowds.
But after glancing at the staffing of nearby booths, he vaguely pieced together the reason.
Both the Basketball Club and Soccer Club booths were manned almost entirely by girls.
The few boys present didn’t look like athletes at all; they resembled dorm-bound gamers who hadn’t exercised in ages.
Sports clubs without boys.
That was pretty lame.
Was the gender ratio at this school really that skewed? Normally, sports clubs drew crowds of guys.
Even if there were fewer boys overall, not every one of them could be glued to their games, right?
Chen Nannan, whom he’d left hanging, had sneaked several glances at him. Seeing no sign of him softening, she decided to be the bigger person and let it slide.
“What are you staring at so intently?”
She asked softly.
Shen An turned to her. “Senior Sister, how many boys are in your Basketball Club?”
The question froze Chen Nannan on the spot.
She rarely visited the Basketball Club and had zero involvement in its management. She had no clue how many boys there were.
Fortunately, a passing senior sister bailed her out. “Currently, there are three.”
“Three?”
Shen An raised an eyebrow. “That’s a bit exaggerated, isn’t it?”
The senior sister sighed. “No helping it. Do you know why there are so few?”
“I’m all ears,” Shen An said solemnly.
“Because the school doesn’t support us~”
She pursed her lips. “Most of the funding goes to the Student Union, with scraps left for other departmental organizations.”
“Clubs like ours aren’t part of the school’s core structure. They don’t benefit the administration and are a pain to manage. If not for the regulations, the school would probably ban club activities altogether.”
As she spoke, the senior sister shot a few pointed glances at Chen Nannan.
Chen Nannan quietly bowed her head, her gaze flickering.
Shen An took note but held off on digging deeper. “So, it’s a lack of funding preventing recruitment?”
“Recruitment? It’s that there’s no appeal at all.”
The senior sister continued, “Organizations like the Student Union get academic credit bonuses for their events, no questions asked. Clubs have to apply for approval just to earn credits.”
“The Student Union racks up three or four points per event. Clubs bust their asses for one or two—if they even get approved. Nine times out of ten, the Club Federation blocks it.”
“Not to mention the huge gap in credit bonuses between club assistants and Student Union ones.”
“So no one wants to join clubs or attend their events. Over time, they turn into stagnant pools!”
She paused, then added with a sarcastic edge, “On that note, why don’t you ask your Senior Sister Chen? She’d know best.”
With that, the senior sister grabbed her phone and stepped aside.
No wonder Xu Yijing hadn’t recommended clubs.
Broke, undermanned, unable even to book venues—dissolution was just a school decree away.
Once she was out of earshot, Shen An turned to Chen Nannan. “Why’d she say that?”
Chen Nannan looked embarrassed. “I… I’m the Club Federation President.”
The Club Federation—Shen An had heard about it from Xu Yijing, so he had a rough idea.
Officially the Club Joint Management Department, it oversaw all club matters, big and small.
From recruitment and funding to events and booths, everything required their application and approval.
From that senior sister’s tone, clubs harbored serious resentment toward the Student Union, especially the Club Federation.
And Chen Nannan, as its president, was public enemy number one.
That explained why she rarely got involved with Basketball Club business.
Though nominally its vice president, that title was mostly because she’d caved to Zhang Qian’s pleading and let her name get slapped on.
Shen An didn’t press further. Instead, he pivoted to praise. “Senior Sister, you’re not only the Basketball Club’s vice president but also the Club Federation President. You’re amazing~”
The flattery left Chen Nannan even more flustered.
She waved it off awkwardly. “Cut it out. You have no idea how busy it is—endless tasks piling up every day.”
“That busy?” Shen An feigned innocence, asking like a clueless kid.
“Of course.”
Chen Nannan griped, “There are dozens of clubs big and small on campus. Each applies for at least two or three events per semester—that’s hundreds of applications.”
“Reviewing them, regulating them, scheduling… all that in just one semester?”
“And that’s not even counting the Student Union side of things.”
Shen An nodded as if half-understanding, then asked, “Didn’t you say last time you’d quit?”
Chen Nannan shot him a sideways glance. “I only withdrew from my old department’s president race. That doesn’t mean I skipped other ones.”
“Huh? You can do that?”
“It’s normal. No real skills needed—just managing people.”
“Then how’d you end up as Basketball Club vice president?”
“Well… it’s a long story.”
Chen Nannan sighed wearily and explained slowly. “Back in my freshman year, I joined the Basketball Club. But after a few events, I knew it wasn’t for me.”
“I wanted to quit, but Zhang Qian was my roommate then. Our dorm was mixed-class, with roommates from different majors.”
“She was super into the club’s activities, thought it suited her perfectly.”
“Feeling bad for her, I didn’t quit—I just stopped participating.”
“Later, Zhang Qian ran for club president. No one else did, so she snagged it by default.”
“But a club needs more than a president: department heads, vice presidents, the works.”
“The holdovers would only take head roles—no one wanted vice president. I… had no choice but to help her out.”
Now Shen An finally grasped the whole saga.
He blinked and chuckled lightly. “By that logic, you shouldn’t even be here today, Senior Sister.”
Chen Nannan muttered under her breath, “Who’d want to? You pissed me off into it!”
“Hm?”
“Nothing. I’m technically vice president, so I had to show for freshman recruitment.” She huffed lightly.
“Fair enough. With you, the Club Federation President, overseeing things, it solves a few problems at least.”
Shen An nodded.
Chen Nannan faltered, stammering, “I didn’t pull any strings. Everything went through proper channels.”
“Hey, I never said you abused your power.” Shen An’s lips curved playfully.
Only then did Chen Nannan realize she’d been played.
Seeing his teasing smile, she sighed. “I just gave it a little nudge. It is my club, after all.”
“Only human. Helping out doesn’t make you cold if you don’t.”
Shen An said softly, “As long as it doesn’t cross your principles, why not lend a hand, right?”
“Mm~ Exactly.” It matched her thinking perfectly.
“Tsk, sounds like Senior Sister Zhang roped you in on purpose.”
“Oh, whatever. Doesn’t matter if she did or not.” Chen Nannan brushed it off magnanimously.
“I’m just worried you’re too nice, Senior Sister, and it puts you in tough spots.”
Emboldened, Shen An reached out and tucked a strand of her silky hair behind her ear.
Chen Nannan glared but didn’t stop him.
“Heh, so does that mean I can join the Club Federation? Since you’re the president!”
Shen An swiftly changed the subject.
“You want to join the Club Federation?”
“Yeah.”
“Is this for real, or just because of me?”
“Uh…”
“Be honest. I’m strict—if you join, don’t expect any backdoor favors.” Chen Nannan stared into his eyes.
“Ahem, maybe I’ll pick somewhere else.”
Shen An sheepishly withdrew his hand.
“She must’ve told you about it, right?” Chen Nannan’s tone turned oddly off whenever Xu Yijing came up.
“Who? Senior Sister Xu?”
“Yeah, she’s the vice president—my direct boss~”
Chen Nannan laced it with sarcasm, a rare slip.
“She mentioned some stuff.”
“Did she give you any advice?”
“She did, but…”
“Hm?”
“She suggested I join the College Art Troupe,” Shen An said seriously.
“Art Troupe?”
Chen Nannan was a bit surprised. Then she frowned. “It does seem pretty suitable for you.”
“You think so too?”
“Mm, mainly because you look a bit lazy, and the Art Troupe isn’t that busy.”
“Hey, hey, Senior Sister, that’s a personal attack!” Shen An retorted.
“You were the one who told me from the start that you wanted to skip classes. I’m not slandering you—I’m just stating facts.”
“Fine, I am pretty lazy.”
“So the Art Troupe suits you better, but the Art Troupe…” Chen Nannan pondered.
“Does it have some problem?”
“I don’t know how to put it.” Chen Nannan found it hard to broach the subject.
At that moment, Shen An remembered what Yang Bin had said.
“Is it because of that Deputy Troupe Leader?”
“Eh? How do you know?” Chen Nannan looked surprised.
“Cough, cough. Yang Bin mentioned it before.”
“Oh, right. It’s Senior Sister Zhao.” When Chen Nannan said the name, a flicker of fear passed through her eyes.
“Senior Sister Zhao Qingyu?”
“Ha, looks like Yang Bin told you quite a bit.” Chen Nannan smiled lightly and nodded.
“That’s right, Senior Sister Zhao Qingyu.”
“Actually, Yang Bin just said Senior Sister Zhao Qingyu is the Deputy Troupe Leader. Nothing else.”
Shen An figured he could fish for some new intel from Chen Nannan.
“What’s the deal with this Senior Sister Zhao?”
Meeting Shen An’s puzzled gaze, Chen Nannan hesitated before repeating, “I don’t know how to say it.”
“How could you not know? Just say it straight.”
Shen An spoke softly.
“Well, Senior Sister Zhao… her attitude toward guys isn’t great.”
“Once she sets her sights on you, it’s usually… not a good time.”
Chen Nannan lowered her voice and leaned in close to Shen An’s ear. “Some freshmen wanted to chase Senior Sister Zhao, so they deliberately joined the Art Troupe.”
“Once Senior Sister Zhao found out, she messed those freshmen up bad.”
“One of them even dropped out.”
Shen An raised an eyebrow. “Dropped out?”
“Yeah.”
Chen Nannan spoke softly. “The official notice said the guy got sick and had to drop out.”
“But from what I heard privately… he dropped out entirely because of Senior Sister Zhao.”
Shen An nodded. “So, this Senior Sister Zhao really is terrifying.”
“But it should be fine, right?”
Shen An smiled. “I’m not going after her. Besides, she’s the Deputy Troupe Leader. I’ll just be a little assistant. I probably won’t even run into her on a normal day.”
Chen Nannan thought it over and realized he had a point.
Senior Sister Zhao might have a domineering personality, but she wasn’t unreasonable.
As long as you didn’t go out of your way to provoke her, she wouldn’t make trouble for no reason.
At worst, she’d favor the girls a little in work assignments.
Shen An was so lazy anyway—joining might actually do him some good and get him moving.
She was just about to voice her support when Shen An rubbed his hands together, his face full of eager anticipation. “I heard the Art Troupe has a ton of pretty girls. Wonder if that’s true.”
Her words of support caught in her throat. Chen Nannan twitched her lips and let out a cold laugh. “No wonder you’re so eager. So that’s what you’re after?”
“Isn’t the one you live with pretty enough? There’s no one prettier than her in the entire Art Troupe!”
Shen An blinked at her suspiciously. “Why do you always react so strongly whenever this topic comes up, Senior Sister?”
“I…”
Chen Nannan turned her head away. “I just don’t want you to neglect your studies and put the cart before the horse, that’s all.”
“Relax. I just purely like looking. Nothing else on my mind.”
Shen An smiled gently. “People always like to appreciate beautiful things, don’t they?”
“Like when I first saw you, Senior Sister. I couldn’t stop staring.”
Chen Nannan pursed her lips. “Pervert.”
“No, it’s because you’re pretty, Senior Sister.”
“Heh. Then why not join the Club Federation?” Chen Nannan shot back.
“Cough, cough. How about we take a walk?”
Shen An changed the subject. “Sitting this long has my butt hurting.”
