By the time Chen Yansen arrived at the welcome station for the School of Literature and Communication, acceptance letter in hand, his counselor, Guo Dongchen, was just getting ready to leave.
"Are you a freshman, too? Chinese Language or Journalism?"
Guo Dongchen stopped and sized him up, a strange look on his face.
Other than the registration forms in his hand, the young man didn't seem to be carrying anything. There wasn't a parent in sight, either. 'Even if he doesn't have a rolling suitcase, shouldn't he at least have a backpack?'
He'd been busy at the welcome station all day, but this was the first time he'd encountered such a strange student.
"Hello, sir. I'm a freshman in the journalism program."
Chen Yansen nodded and handed over his documents.
In his previous life, Guo Dongchen had only been their counselor for a year. He'd later passed the exams to become a doctoral candidate and had naturally gone to Beiping to pursue his Ph.D.
Chen Yansen didn't remember him very well, but seeing him in person stirred a few fragmented memories.
The man was in his thirties, of medium build, and stood about 1.7 meters tall. He wore a blue-striped shirt and looked at least five years older than his actual age.
"Welcome to Xucheng Academy. I'm your counselor, Guo Dongchen."
Seeing that Chen Yansen was one of his students, Guo Dongchen introduced himself with a gentle smile.
"Hello, Teacher Guo. Can I still register now?"
Chen Yansen asked, gesturing to the staff at the side.
"Of course. But the sophomores helping with orientation have already left for the day. Tell you what, I'll take you to your dorm to get registered. As for your meal card, you can get that on the first floor of the cafeteria."
Guo Dongchen pushed up his glasses and explained patiently.
"Teacher Guo, you don't have to go to the trouble. I'm actually quite familiar with the campus. I can find the dorm on my own."
Chen Yansen replied quickly.
"Oh, is that right? All right, then."
Guo Dongchen was taken aback for a moment but readily agreed.
He was usually preoccupied with studying for his Ph.D. exams and disliked getting involved in the trivial affairs of his class. If it hadn't been the first day of freshman registration, he probably wouldn't have shown up at the welcome station at all.
Five minutes later, Chen Yansen had successfully completed the identity verification and information registration. A staff member handed him a slip and told him to head to the dormitory management office to pick up his bedding.
Chen Yansen said a quick goodbye to Guo Dongchen and turned to leave.
"Old Guo, that student of yours is really something."
Just then, the counselor for the neighboring Chinese Language major leaned over and commented as he watched Chen Yansen's retreating figure.
"What do you mean?"
Guo Dongchen asked, looking puzzled.
"You mean you don't know? That kid snatched the campus SIM card dealership from Zhou Ze Kai of the P.E. college. He's been busy selling cards all day. I estimate he's made tens of thousands today alone."
The Chinese Language counselor's interest was suddenly piqued. He was clearly the type who loved to both hear and spread gossip.
"I've heard of Zhou Ze Kai. He received a major demerit from the university last year for fighting. He didn't go after Chen Yansen?"
A look of surprise flashed in Guo Dongchen's eyes as he spoke in disbelief.
"Hahaha, that's why I said he's really something. The kid drives a Mercedes E300 worth 800,000 yuan. Zhou Ze Kai wouldn't dare lay a finger on him."
The Chinese Language counselor chuckled slyly, repeated what Chen Yansen had said, and then added, "Zhou Ze Kai is a common thug at best. But this student of yours? He's a high-class thug armed with the law."
Guo Dongchen could only shake his head. He hated trouble, and he hated troublemakers even more. A sense of unease began to creep into his heart.
...
...
「Meanwhile.」
Chen Yansen, pulling his suitcase, got his meal card with practiced ease, picked up a brand-new set of bedding from the dorm management, and then headed toward Building 8.
The dorm number was still 8302, completely unchanged.
The door to the dorm was wide open, and five seventeen- and eighteen-year-old boys were gathered together, just shooting the breeze.
"The best gun for killing zombies has to be the cannon. One shots those little red ones!"
"What's so fun about games? I was on the school soccer team in high school. If you're good at soccer, the girls will come flocking. I'll take you guys to play sometime."
"I heard from an upperclassman that we have a real big shot in our year. He snatched the campus card dealership from a junior before school even started. The other guy didn't even dare make a peep. And he gets around in a big Benz."
"Holy shit, what a show-off!"
The guys were chattering away, the conversation growing more and more animated.
Suddenly, the sound of wheels rolling across the floor came from the doorway. They all knew what it meant: their last roommate had finally arrived.
Chen Yansen glanced inside. It was a six-person room with loft beds over desks. There was a balcony but no private bathroom. The only spot left was the middle bunk on the left side.
"Hey, you must be in this room too, right? I'm Tang Zhenzhe, from Luzhou. What's your name?"
While the others were still hesitating about whether to say hello, Tang Zhenzhe had already gotten up to greet him.
'This guy is even more of a show-off than I am,' he thought. He was wearing a light-khaki blazer over a blue-striped shirt, jeans, and a pair of round-toed leather shoes. With his mature look and slicked-back, side-parted hair, you could have told someone he was a student's father and they wouldn't have doubted it for a second.
The two of them had been thick as thieves in his past life. They'd shared a bed when they were broke, and once they had money, they'd often gone for foot massages and to KTVs together.
'He was only half-decent, at best!'
"Chen Yansen, from Zhou Lai. Come visit my hometown sometime, I'll treat you to some beef soup," Chen Yansen replied with a smile.
"Hey, nice to meet you. I'm Wang Zhengqiang. We're from the same hometown! Let's look out for each other."
The second to speak was Wang Zhengqiang. He was nearly 1.8 meters tall and claimed to have been a striker on his high school soccer team. In the previous life, he'd had a shotgun wedding with his high school sweetheart right after graduation, and the couple had both become civil servants in their small town.
"Hey man, I'm Zhu Xiaopeng. From Luzhou,"
a tan-skinned guy with black-framed glasses squeezed his way over. He wasn't tall, just over 1.7 meters. After graduation, he'd gotten into grad school, and Chen Yansen had lost track of him after that. He was the one who had just called Chen Yansen a show-off.
The remaining two guys stayed seated.
"I'm Song Yang, from Jinling. Looks like I'm the only one here from out of province."
The thin and frail-looking Song Yang wore a pair of gold-rimmed glasses and spoke with a self-deprecating smile.
He didn't like sports; his main hobbies were reading novels and playing video games.
Chen Yansen remembered that this guy had moved to Qin Island after graduation and opened two hotels near the Pier. He looked the most ordinary, but he was actually the wealthiest person in their dorm—a fact Chen Yansen had been completely oblivious to back in college.
"Um… I'm Meng Xibo, from Xuanzhou. You can call me Bo Bo."
Seeing he was the last one to introduce himself, the final guy quickly spoke up with a grin, nervously wringing his hands. He looked like he had social anxiety, but he was actually sharp as a tack and put on an act from the moment he woke up each morning.
On his very first day at school, he had already gathered a ton of gossip through upperclassmen and his hometown association. He was the one who had just made Chen Yansen a topic of conversation.
After some brief introductions, Chen Yansen was just about to make his bed when his phone rang.
"Big Sis wants to grab dinner with us tonight. Meet at the south gate. Sound good?"
It was Wang Zihao's voice, coming through the moment the call connected.
Earlier that day, Meng Zhen Country had brought Meng Jie to the school to register. She'd seen him and Wang Zihao busy selling SIM cards and, not wanting to interrupt them from making money, had just said a quick hello before going to line up to pay her tuition.
"This dorm doesn't even have a place to shower. I'm going back to my hotel to take one. Let's meet at the gate at seven. Actually, on second thought, you guys go on ahead to Shuangqing Restaurant and grab a table. I'm worried it'll be packed."
Chen Yansen replied after a moment's thought, then hung up.
"Chen Yansen, are you heading out? We were going to ask if you wanted to grab a bite at the cafeteria with us, since we all just met…"
Tang Zhenzhe said, a hint of regret in his voice.
"It's fine. There will be plenty of other chances. Next time,"
Chen Yansen said, clapping Lao Tang on the shoulder with the casual familiarity of an old friend.
Without further ado, he pulled a Mercedes key from his backpack, packed a couple of changes of clothes, stuffed them casually into a bag, and headed out the door.
"I think that was a Mercedes key in his hand,"
Song Yang suddenly said from his corner.
The only reason he recognized it so clearly was that his family also owned a Mercedes.
"Are you saying… the guy who drives a big Benz and snatched the campus card dealership from a junior… is Chen Yansen?"
Tang Zhenzhe shot to his feet, his reaction dramatic.
"I just said he was a show-off… You guys don't think he heard me, do you?"
Zhu Xiaopeng swallowed hard and asked, his voice filled with lingering fear.
'The guy didn't even bat an eye at a junior from the P.E. department. If he wanted to deal with a 1.7-meter pipsqueak like him, it would be a piece of cake.'