Chapter 79: The First to Fall Behind

Chen Han Sheng returned to the school around 6 PM. The early winter dusk had already fallen, and the self-study rooms of the F Building were brightly lit, looking from a distance like a glazed pagoda. However, the Entrepreneurial Base 102 was dark, and 101 only had a single incandescent light on, casting a dim glow.

Frowning, Chen Han Sheng walked into 101, where he found Shen You Chu sitting directly under the light, one hand holding a book while she recited aloud, and the other hand covering her mouth to shield her breath from the cold. The faint light cast a pitiful and helpless aura around her.

The early winter in Jianye was dry and cold. 101 was large, and the cold wind blew straight through, making the room drafty and unbearable. 

Chen Han Sheng turned on all the lights in the room, startling Shen You Chu. She turned around and, upon seeing it was him, her eyes, usually full of anxiety, now showed a moment of peace. 

However, Chen Han Sheng looked upset. Shen You Chu immediately got up nervously, saying, "You... you've been drinking? Let me go get some hot water." 

Chen Han Sheng ignored her and asked, "Why isn't the heater on? Why didn't you turn on more lights?" 

"It's just me in here. I'm not cold," Shen You Chu explained softly. 

"I know you're trying to save money, but you don't need to," Chen Han Sheng said, pulling out the electric heater and turning it on. In no time, warm air filled the room. 

"Come here." He motioned to the seat beside him.

Shen You Chu hesitated but walked over, glancing at his face before sitting down slowly.

"Stretch out your hands," Chen Han Sheng said gruffly.

Shen You Chu was a bit reluctant, as students on bicycles frequently passed by outside. 

Chen Han Sheng glared at her. "Stretch them out!" 

"Oh, okay, okay, don't be angry." She meekly replied. 

"I'm not angry now, but put your hands out," he said, his patience thinning.

"Which hand?" Shen You Chu asked, confused.

Chen Han Sheng almost laughed in frustration but sighed and said, "Both hands."

She held out her cold hands to him. They were icy to the touch.

"You're telling me you're not cold?" Chen Han Sheng said, eyeing her. 

Shen You Chu lowered her head in silence, the warm glow from the heater casting a red tint on her soft, fair chin.

After rubbing her hands for a while, they finally warmed up. Chen Han Sheng said, "Next time, don't try to save electricity. When students see that 101 is brightly lit, it gives them a sense of trust, which is good for our promotion."

Shen You Chu didn't fully understand these concepts, having been raised with the habit of using as little electricity as possible.

Chen Han Sheng took out a notebook. "I'll teach you how to use Excel. You can start recording data on your computer."

"Oh," Shen You Chu nodded obediently.

Opening Xiao Rong Yu's laptop, Chen Han Sheng glanced at the desktop. There were the usual programs like QQ, music software, and some study files. 

"To think Xiao Rong Yu's elective is Business Law," he thought, realizing that she must have chosen it for his sake. 

There were two private documents on the desktop: "Family Birthdays" and an unnamed Word file, but Chen Han Sheng's interest quickly faded.

Shen You Chu was a beginner with computers. After several rounds of teaching, she still struggled with Excel. Chen Han Sheng had to tap her on the head, "You're so slow."

She didn't respond.

Afterward, he regretted it, "Does it hurt?"

Shen You Chu turned to him with tears welling up in her eyes.

"My... my head hurts a bit..." she mumbled.

By around 7 PM, after finishing the lesson, Chen Han Sheng got ready to head out for his night shift, where he would be promoting in classrooms with the second team of part-time students.

At the entrance of Building A, he gave another round of encouragement. Xu Meng Zhu from the External Affairs Department was also part of this team.

At first, the team members were full of confidence, but the actual task proved much harder than they had expected.

In classrooms, students studying by themselves were often hard to approach, since they were already focused and didn't want to be interrupted. 

Chen Han Sheng entered the first classroom, but before he could say anything, a girl frowned and started packing her things to leave.

The sound of her books being packed was deliberately loud, and she was clearly irritated.

The team members stared at Chen Han Sheng, who seemed unfazed. He walked to the front of the class and said, "Hello, we're part-time students from 101 in F Building. We just want to take a minute to introduce our courier service…"

The introduction lasted just a minute, but for the team, it felt like an hour. The students in the class didn't even look up, some even covered their ears. 

Yet, Chen Han Sheng remained calm, finishing his speech and handing out flyers to each student.

"Take a look when you have time, the 101 courier service is very convenient," he said. 

Most students just nodded indifferently, some didn't react at all, so Chen Han Sheng simply placed the flyer on their desks and moved to the next student.

Only one girl smiled and accepted the flyer.

It was a familiar face.

"Minister Qi, you're here too?" Chen Han Sheng greeted quietly.

Qi Wei, the minister of External Affairs, was also studying in the class. She glanced at the flyer, "I've heard you've been working on this 101 stuff."

"University life is so boring, I just find something to do," Chen Han Sheng smiled. "Feel free to guide us sometime."

He waved Xu Meng Zhu over. Xu Meng Zhu, usually outgoing, was now very reserved. 

After chatting for a bit, Chen Han Sheng prepared to leave. "We need to cover at least half of the classrooms in Building A tonight. I'll head out now."

Qi Wei nodded. "Go ahead. Give me more flyers, and I'll hand them out in the dorm."

After leaving the first classroom, as Chen Han Sheng was heading to the next, Xu Meng Zhu suddenly said, "Minister Chen, I don't want to do this anymore."

Chen Han Sheng thought it was because of Qi Wei's presence and tried to reassure her, "It's fine, Minister Qi won't mind, student council is one thing, part-time work is another."

"No," Xu Meng Zhu hesitated, "I thought I could handle it, but seeing the cold reactions in the classroom, I find it really hard to speak up."

"Have you thought it through?" Chen Han Sheng asked, now not wanting to push her further. Her hesitation also had a ripple effect on the rest of the team, as he noticed other members shrinking back as well.

"Well, you can head back then, get some rest," he said to Xu Meng Zhu and pushed open the door to the next classroom.

Xu Meng Zhu stood for a while. She had a feeling that her leaving now might mean she was leaving for good.

And so, the first member to fall behind was officially out of the game.