Chapter 25: Boys' Dormitory

After tidying up the dorm and finishing the cleaning, the four of them gathered together and entered casual chat mode. Since they had just met, they weren't very familiar with each other yet, and their conversations always carried a strange vibe—like they were seriously talking nonsense.

Zhou Chao said he wanted to study hard, get into the civil service in the future, secure a stable job, and then bring his rural parents to live in the big city, hiring a nanny to take care of them.

Ren Ziqiang said he wanted to join the student council to hone his skills, with the goal of starting his own business and becoming a big boss someday.

Cao Guangyu was more pretentious. He claimed he was already a rich second-generation kid, attending the Finance Academy to learn advanced management concepts. After graduation, he'd take over the family business, make it bigger and stronger, and achieve even greater glory. He even told Jiang Qin and the others to join him after they graduated.

In short, everyone's dreams were grand—so ambitious that calling them "lofty aspirations" almost felt like an understatement.

"Brothers, can we talk about something guys actually care about?"

Jiang Qin couldn't listen anymore and bluntly punctured their self-important facades.

Zhou Chao paused for a moment before suddenly grinning. "I thought that senior sister doing registration at the school gate this afternoon was really pretty!"

"Yeah, yeah, that senior sister was definitely nice," Ren Ziqiang agreed wholeheartedly.

"And the ones selling water cards and activating campus cards—those two senior sisters were great too!"

"Exactly! Especially the one selling water cards—those legs, so long and fair!"

Jiang Qin burst out laughing. Now that's more like it. This was a proper boys' dorm. What kind of serious boys' dorm chats about ideals instead of girls?

Cao Guangyu glanced out the window, raising an eyebrow nonchalantly. "Women? Boring."

"?????"

"I dated five girls in high school. Got kinda tired of it. Now I'm more into the single life. What about you guys? Don't tell me you've never been in a relationship?"

Ren Ziqiang immediately waved his hands. "No way! I had a girlfriend in high school, but later, for the sake of my studies, I decisively dumped her."

Zhou Chao crossed his legs after hearing this. "I've never dated, but there were two girls chasing me. I turned them both down to focus on my studies."

"What about you, Old Jiang?"

"I'm a solo-from-the-womb guy."

"What's that mean?"

"It means I've been single since birth."

At this, all three of them smirked, feeling like their status in the dorm was secure.

To be honest, Jiang Qin was the best-looking guy in the dorm. Not only was he tall, but he also had fair skin and sharp, defined features—the classic "pretty boy" type that girls loved. Who would've thought he'd never even been in a relationship?

Cao Guangyu let out a smug "tsk tsk tsk," suddenly feeling his confidence swell—his posture straightened, his chest puffed out, and he felt on top of the world again.

"Old Jiang, dating might not be that exciting, but not having a girlfriend during your student days is a real regret. Want me to teach you a few tricks?"

"Chasing girls is actually pretty simple. As long as you're patient and persistent, you'll basically succeed."

"Be nice to her, buy her gifts often, chat with her regularly, send her good morning and good night messages—make her get used to your presence."

"Of course, she won't pay attention to you right away. You've got to keep at it. To put it simply, girls are soft-hearted creatures. Once her heart softens, you're already halfway there."

"For someone rich like me, chasing a girl takes about three or four months. For you, it might take a bit longer."

"Don't be afraid of losing face or getting rejected. If you get the chance, ask her out to eat. If she agrees, you're golden."

After listening to Cao Guangyu's "expert advice," Jiang Qin's mouth twitched. What the hell is this simp nonsense?

Why do spoiled, entitled girls have a market? Because of guys like this who can't stand up for themselves! In another ten years, the "strong woman, weak man" dynamic would practically become the standard relationship model, and this—this was the root of it all!

But when he glanced over, he saw Ren Ziqiang and Zhou Chao listening intently, even scribbling notes in little notebooks.

"?????"

Finally, Cao Guangyu flashed a mysterious smile and wrapped it up with a grand conclusion: "The most important thing is, don't get full of yourself and think a girl will ask you out to eat or chat first. Girls these days are super reserved. You've got to take the initiative to make something happen."

Just as he finished speaking, Jiang Qin's phone started buzzing—and not just once.

He unlocked the screen and saw messages from Wang Huiru, Hong Yan, and Feng Nanshu in his QQ list.

"Jiang Qin, we've arrived at school. Are you free tonight? Want to grab dinner together?"

"No, I've got something going on tonight."

"Actually, it was Siqi's idea. She said she has something to tell you. If you're not busy, come out."

"Not tonight, I really have plans. Let's find another time later."

Jiang Qin had an instinctive aversion to the name Chu Siqi. Even if he ran into her on the street, he'd pretend not to know her—there was no way he'd willingly go meet her for dinner.

After replying to Wang Huiru, Jiang Qin returned to the main screen and opened Hong Yan's message.

"Classmate Jiang Qin, back at the dorm yet?"

"Yeah, just got here."

"There's something I forgot to say—I'm really happy to have met you."

"Me too."

Jiang Qin replied with three simple words, but he didn't put too much thought into this fleeting encounter. There were tons of girls in college—and even more guys. Especially since they were on different campuses, a single meeting might very well be the last.

Back on the main screen, he opened Feng Nanshu's message.

"Jiang Qin, I'm in Building 7, 5th floor, Room 503, Bed 3."

"You can tell me all that, but it's not like I can get in."

"Why not? I wanted to show you the mosquito net I set up myself."

"No idea who made that dumb rule. Tell you what, finish settling in and rest for a bit."

"When are you coming to walk me?"

"4:30. Wait for me downstairs on time—I'll come pick you up."

"The people in my dorm are chatting, and I don't know what to say."

"Just keep smiling."

After sending her his last message, Jiang Qin noticed the three guys in the dorm staring at him with serious expressions. "What's up?"

Cao Guangyu looked exasperated, like Jiang Qin had let him down. "I'm in the middle of sharing my dating wisdom with you, and you're zoning out?"

"I'm listening. No girl will ask you to eat or chat first—you've got to take the lead to make something happen."

"Exactly! If you get that, you're already halfway to success."

Jiang Qin nodded calmly, then glanced at the time. It was just fifteen minutes to 4:30. He got out of bed, threw on a jacket, slipped on his shoes, and headed out of the dorm.

Seeing this, Cao Guangyu, Zhou Chao, and Ren Ziqiang were puzzled. The conversation was in full swing—why was Old Jiang leaving without a word?

"Old Jiang, where you off to? I haven't finished teaching you!"

"I'll catch up later. A girl asked me to chat and grab dinner."

Cao Guangyu's smile froze on his face. His heart skipped a beat, and he felt like the spotlight he'd been building up for half the day had been stolen.

Getting asked out by a girl right after the semester started?

No way. Jiang Qin had to be bluffing. He was probably embarrassed about never having dated, didn't want to admit he couldn't join the conversation, and was just escaping.

Yeah, that had to be it. The dorm's ultimate romantic could only be him!