Chapter 43: The Challenge

The first dinner of the day was spent at the cafeteria with the six roommates from Dorm 351.

On the way, Li Dong and his group encountered several other small groups, likely freshmen as well, who also seemed to prefer sticking together in their dorm units.

Jiangda's campus was large, and it took about ten minutes to walk from their dorm to the nearest cafeteria.

On their way back, Yuan Qingfeng complained that the cafeteria food was not to his taste and said he wouldn't be going there again in the future.

The others didn't mind the food much, mainly because Yuan Qingfeng, being from Shandong Province, was not used to the flavors here in Jiangbei.

Meng Qiping then suggested, "How about we all buy bicycles? Otherwise, walking every day will be exhausting, especially since the teaching buildings are quite far from our dorm."

This suggestion was met with unanimous agreement, and they decided to go buy bicycles the next morning.

Xu Chen made a phone call, and after hanging up, he said, "I know a senior who is in his fourth year. He said we can buy second-hand bicycles. He has a lead on where to get them. They're from graduating seniors, so they're cheap and practical."

The others had no objections, and Li Dong agreed as well. After all, a bicycle was just a means of transportation, so the condition didn't matter much.

That night, everyone was excited, chatting about various topics until late into the night, their voices gradually fading as the hours passed.

...

The next morning, the six roommates from Dorm 351 set off together.

They first had breakfast at the cafeteria and then spent the morning exploring the campus to familiarize themselves with Jiangda's environment.

Although Li Dong was familiar with Jiangda, this was his first time wandering around the campus as a student, and the experience felt different from before.

After wandering around until about ten o'clock, Xu Chen received a phone call.

After a brief conversation, Xu Chen said, "The senior called. He wants us to meet him at the square in front of the Ninth Teaching Building. He's waiting for us there."

There were several teaching buildings on Jiangda's campus, each with its own name, but people usually referred to them simply as the First Teaching Building, the Second Teaching Building, and so on.

Over time, this tradition had persisted across generations.

The Ninth Teaching Building wasn't far from their current location, and they arrived at the square in front of it in less than ten minutes.

From a distance, Xu Chen called out, "Tao Ge!"

A boy standing not far away waved and signaled them to come over, "Come this way!"

The group followed Xu Chen and walked over. The boy greeted them with a nod, but his enthusiasm was subdued.

He then led them to the bicycle shed on one side of the square and pointed to the corner of the shed, saying, "These bicycles are for sale. Pick one yourself."

Li Dong glanced over and saw about a dozen bicycles, all somewhat worn but still usable.

Li Dong casually pointed to a mostly new mountain bike and asked, "How much for this one?"

The boy looked it over and said, "200 yuan. This bike is only six months old and should last you until graduation."

Li Dong thought the price was reasonable. It wasn't too cheap, but it wasn't overly expensive either; a new bike would cost around four to five hundred yuan.

He took out two 100-yuan bills and handed them over, then received the key and took the bike for a test ride. There was no major issue, just that the chain needed some oil.

The others also picked their bikes, with prices ranging from dozens to hundreds of yuan.

Yuan Qingfeng was the last to make a choice. Seeing everyone looking at him, he shook his head and said, "I don't need one. I'm tall, and these bikes are too small for me."

Li Dong wasn't sure what the others thought, but he could tell that Yuan Qingfeng didn't want to buy a second-hand bike.

Judging by Yuan Qingfeng's clothes, his family background seemed good.

It was his choice whether to buy or not, and no one said much. However, Li Dong noticed that Xu Chen was a bit displeased.

The night before, when Xu Chen mentioned buying second-hand bikes, Yuan Qingfeng had nodded in agreement. In the morning, Xu Chen had told the senior they needed six bikes.

Now that Yuan Qingfeng was backing out, Xu Chen naturally felt embarrassed.

The senior selling the bikes didn't say much. Seeing that everyone had chosen their bikes, he exchanged a few words with Xu Chen and then quickly left.

...

With the bikes chosen, it was about eleven-thirty.

They decided to ride their new bikes to the cafeteria for lunch.

Since Yuan Qingfeng didn't have a bike, Li Dong offered to give him a ride, but Yuan Qingfeng declined, saying he wasn't hungry and would go find something to eat on his own.

Li Dong didn't insist. People have different eating habits, and he didn't want to force Yuan Qingfeng to go to the cafeteria.

Once Yuan Qingfeng left, Xu Chen complained, "He's really out of sync with the group, going off on his own on the second day."

"Makes sense. Yuan Qingfeng is from Shandong, so he might not be used to our food. Don't complain," Meng Qiping said with a smile, changing the topic. "I'm heading off now. Who wants to race with me?"

"I'll race you!" Xu Chen put aside his frustration with Yuan Qingfeng and eagerly joined the race.

Li Dong, Li Tie, and Zhang Hao took their time riding slowly behind. Li Tie casually mentioned, "Dongzi, what do you think about me running for class president at the afternoon meeting?"

Li Dong glanced at him and smiled, "Sure, if you become the class president, it'll make things easier for us."

"I support that!" Zhang Hao quickly added.

Li Tie smiled and didn't say much more.

At lunch, Li Tie also talked about running for class president with Xu Chen and Meng Qiping. They had no objections and expressed their support.

Meng Qiping was especially excited, saying, "If Brother Tie becomes the class president, it'll be much easier for us to skip class in the future!"

Everyone laughed at him. He was already thinking about skipping class before school even started, clearly not a good sign!

Xu Chen also laughed, "We'll go early this afternoon and help Li Tie campaign for votes."

Hearing this, Li Tie's smile grew wider, and he became more talkative than the day before.

After lunch, they all returned to their dorm.

When they got back, Yuan Qingfeng was still missing, and he didn't return until around two-thirty.

Li Dong and the others didn't ask where he had been, as it didn't seem like it would take that long to eat.

With the meeting scheduled for three o'clock, they had no time for idle chat and headed to the Third Teaching Building together.

...

When they arrived at the classroom, many people were already there.

The seats were mostly organized by dorm groups, with clear divisions among the small groups. As it was their first meeting, there wasn't much conversation.

Li Dong and his group found some empty seats. Xu Chen, showing his boldness, went off to help Li Tie with his campaign.

Soon, Li Dong saw Xu Chen chatting excitedly with a few girls, occasionally pointing in their direction.

Seeing this, Li Tie couldn't sit still and quickly walked over to Xu Chen.

Yuan Qingfeng had sat quietly since entering the classroom. When he saw Li Tie walking over, he furrowed his brow and asked, "Li Tie is running for class president? Is he the only one?"

"Class president. We're all voting for him from our dorm. If he becomes class president, it'll be great for us," Meng Qiping said with a grin, envisioning a future of convenience.

Yuan Qingfeng's face showed a hint of hesitation. After a moment of struggle, he said, "I also want to run for class president!"

Li Dong and the others were taken aback. Was this a competition within the dorm?

Fearing that Li Dong and the others might misunderstand, Yuan Qingfeng gritted his teeth and explained, "I was class president in high school for three years, and being class president here will help me join the party early. I plan to take the civil service exam after graduation, and having a longer party membership will be advantageous."

Li Dong wasn't sure what to say. Yuan Qingfeng's intention was for Dorm 351 to support him. If Yuan Qingfeng had informed them earlier, they would have supported him without hesitation.

After all, if they weren't running, it didn't matter who they voted for.

But Li Tie had already announced his candidacy, and they had agreed to support him. Now that Yuan Qingfeng was entering the race, it left them in a difficult position.

Li Dong thought for a moment and advised, "If you only want to join the party early, you can run for other positions as well. Class officers generally have the same qualifications."

Yuan Qingfeng didn't respond, leaving Li Dong unsure if he was abandoning the idea or continuing to compete with Li Tie.

After a couple of minutes of silence, Yuan Qingfeng seemed to have made up his mind and walked towards the other students, likely to campaign for himself.

Meng Qiping squinted and said in a low voice, "Dongzi, do you think Yuan Qingfeng is still planning to run for class president?"

Li Dong shook his head. He wasn't a mind reader and couldn't guess Yuan Qingfeng's intentions.

Zhang Hao, who had been mostly silent, suddenly said, "Regardless of whether he runs or not, my vote is going to Brother Tie."

Li Dong and Meng Qiping didn't respond.

However, Li Dong hoped that Yuan Qingfeng would run for another position. After all, they were all in the same dorm, and conflicts could make future interactions difficult.