Chapter 517. Dormitory
“I get it, I get it! So annoying!”
“Hang up!”
Zhang Shaoqing impatiently finished the call, kicked the balcony door open, and cursed as he walked back inside.
He glanced over at Wang Jie, who was busy gaming at the desk, pulled out a chair and sat down, restlessly bouncing his leg.
In the dormitory, the only sound left was the clattering of Wang Jie’s keyboard and mouse, along with the noisy background music that was driving him crazy.
“Turn the volume down, can you not be so annoying?”
“……”
Once the chaotic noise stopped, the dorm room became so quiet that all he could hear were the footsteps of students passing by outside in the corridor. Zhang Shaoqing suddenly thought maybe a little noise in the room wouldn’t be so bad after all.
He sighed irritably, turned to look at the game icons on the desktop but was too distracted to open any of them.
His mother’s pressure to break up with Qian Qian, the panic of soon graduating and entering society, and Wang Jie’s perpetual low mood after a breakup… even though he usually had a carefree attitude, Zhang Shaoqing felt like he was struggling to breathe.
Especially with that mother of his, who had such a strong desire for control.
“Damn it, Ning Chu is doing so well…”
Zhang Shaoqing mumbled as he slumped over the desk.
Even if that girl was always meddling, and particularly clumsy at comforting him, at least she was someone he could confide in—not a gloomy guy like Wang Jie.
Unfortunately, Ning Chu was already taken by a succubus and wasn’t the little kid who lived in the dorm anymore.
Just then, there was a light knock on the door.
“Why knock? Just kick it open, it would be the same!”
“What if they’re in there without clothes?”
“Not like we haven’t seen it before~”
Zhang Shaoqing glanced at the door, hearing the conversation outside, and looked down at himself in just his underwear, bare-chested.
“Wait a minute! What the heck! What’s a woman doing in the boys’ dormitory!”
“I can come whenever I want! Opening the door now!”
“Wait two minutes!”
The dormitory, which was just dead quiet, immediately became lively.
In a flurry, he rushed to the wardrobe, grabbed some clothes, and threw them on. Wang Jie also hurriedly pulled on his pants and turned off the game he had been playing.
Not even a minute later, the door opened a crack, and Ning Chu peeked in, her little head poking through with a suspicious look: “Checking for illegal activities!”
“Shut up!”
Fortunately, it was summer, so the clothes were light and it took less than a few seconds to put one on.
By the time the door swung open, Wen Yang came in carrying a big box of beer, and Ning Chu eagerly followed, her big eyes scanning the dorm room she hadn’t visited in a while.
“It’s so cold~ Turn the AC down a bit.”
Coming into the dorm was like returning home for Ning Chu. She skillfully found the air conditioner remote and, with a few beeps, turned the temperature from sixteen degrees to twenty-six degrees.
“Wow! You have a lot of opinions! It’s freezing! Don’t mess with the AC!”
“I’ve got a stomach ache, not turning it off is good enough.”
Zhang Shaoqing couldn’t say anything nice, while his eyes drifted to the beer Wen Yang had brought: “Back for some big spending again, huh? BBQ or what?”
“Grilled fish!”
“Who cares about your nonsense? Wang Jie, what do you want to eat?”
“I’m not eating.”
Wang Jie replied morosely, but was suddenly pulled up by Wen Yang, who hooked an arm around his neck.
On the other side, Ning Chu had already set up a folding table and small stools in the middle of the dorm, cheerfully calling out: “Hurry up, hurry up! We bought some marinated dishes, let’s eat something first.”
“No, I’ve already eaten.”
“Then just drink with us.” Wen Yang pressed down on Wang Jie’s shoulder, making him sit at the table.
Zhang Shaoqing took the hint and sat down, playfully opening the food box and asking while eating, “You remembered to bring something nice, not bad.”
“Isn’t it expected when watching over my son?”
Ning Chu leaned against the bed frame, arms crossed, looking at them.
“Aren’t you eating?”
“Not eating, I said I have a stomach ache.”
She helplessly rubbed her aching abdomen; since her period started, she had been feeling a bit off and definitely wasn’t drinking any beer or soda.
Wen Yang opened the beers for his roommates, explaining: “She’s not feeling well today. I almost didn’t let her come, but she insisted on joining the fun.”
“Seriously, what’s a woman doing in the boys’ dorm?”
“I was afraid you’d get drunk with no one to clean up after you.”
“Ha~ If you’re feeling bad, just go sleep, don’t be here making a ruckus.”
“Who asked you to care?!”
As Ning Chu and Zhang Shaoqing started bickering again, Wen Yang shook his head in frustration and looked at the always quiet Wang Jie.
He picked up a bottle of beer and gently clinked it against Wang Jie’s: “Come on, drink a little.”
Wang Jie appeared lifeless, but he lazily took a sip of beer.
His tolerance wasn’t that great, and after just one bottle, a bit of color flushed his face, and his eyes took on a dreamy look.
Seeing this, Wen Yang slowly asked, “Why did you two end up arguing? Spill it?”
Wang Jie, usually shy, finally opened up a bit after getting slightly tipsy: “It’s not much of an argument, it’s just her family is demanding a bride price, and they won’t budge unless it’s a certain amount…”
“Bride price? How much?” Zhang Shaoqing immediately perked up, “So are you two planning to get married?”
“Not really. After dating for so long, we might as well talk about it.”
“What does your girlfriend say?”
Wang Jie sighed: “She’s tried her best, but her parents won’t give in…”
Zhang Shaoqing, grinning mischievously, looked at Ning Chu and teased: “Hey, how much is your family’s bride price? Think Wen Yang can handle it?”
Ning Chu hadn’t thought about that and pondered for a moment: “I think it’s a few hundred thousand…”
Wen Yang hadn’t expected to end up in this conversation while trying to comfort Wang Jie. Hearing that amount made his face go pale.
Buying a house, a car, and then a dowry of several hundred thousand…
Just the thought of it was overwhelming.
Wang Jie, who had just been looking miserable, patted Wen Yang on the shoulder: “It’s okay, you’ll earn it slowly.”
That tone sounded a bit too schadenfreude.
Even though he was having a rough time, seeing someone else suffer a bit more somehow made him feel relieved.
“At least you still have your parents to support you, Wen Yang is seriously struggling~” Zhang Shaoqing paused, then curiously asked, “Ning Chu, you’re from the provincial capital, right? I remember that place has a rule about bride price needing to be matched with the dowry?”
Ning Chu smiled and nodded: “Right, my family isn’t rich, so we can’t return the dowry, the bride price can be a little token gesture?”
“Your mom won’t have an opinion on this, right?”
“What opinion can she have? When she got married, she probably had to pay to get married.”
Wen Yang recalled the marriage history of his future mother-in-law, which helped him relax a bit.
Now Wang Jie was back to being the miserable one, drinking quietly, any schadenfreude from before faded completely.
Why hadn’t he ever run into anything like this…
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