Chapter 512: The Scenery

After describing Wu Siyao's appearance in detail, Le Yao leaned forward and asked, "How about it? Do you remember her?"

Li Heng nodded. "Yeah, I've seen her on the bus."

Le Yao sounded skeptical. "Really, only on the bus?"

Li Heng grunted. "If you hadn't mentioned her name, I wouldn't even know what she's called."

Sun Ye asked, "Do you often see her on the bus?"

Li Heng grinned but neither confirmed nor denied it.

Le Yao and Sun Ye exchanged a glance, then suddenly understood. "So you were dazzled by her looks right away—otherwise you wouldn't have done something like this. Too bad—never thought Wu Siyao, so famous in our high school, would get tripped up by you."

Li Heng replied, "It's not that serious. We've never really talked—just bumped into each other on the bus. Nothing like that."

As they chatted, dishes arrived one by one, filling the entire table.

Just then, Li Guang's drinking partner, Li Guoyi, suddenly shouted a stop, picked up a cup of liquor, and rushed over to Li Heng. "Brother Li, my admiration for your musical talent flows like the Yellow River—endless! Come, this cup is from me, your brother!"

Li Heng was used to this guy's antics. He filled his empty cup and clinked it against Li Guoyi's.

Li Guoyi tilted his head and downed the drink in one gulp, then fumbled in his pant pocket, finally pulling out a black pen, uncapping it, and handing it to him.

"Sign your name on my shirt—big letters, at least palm-sized."

The fool was wearing a white shirt, its style and quality clearly expensive.

At these words, every eye in the private room turned toward them.

Li Heng was speechless. "You're serious? Writing on your shirt?"

Li Guoyi tugged his shirt hem taut, spittle flying as he shouted, "Only this way can I show my utmost respect! I'll preserve this shirt as a relic, frame it, and hang it on the wall. Years from now, I'll pass it down to my daughter-in-law as a family heirloom!"

Li Heng: "..."

Everyone else: "..."

Hu Ping asked, "Why daughter-in-law? Why not your son?"

Li Guoyi rubbed his chin, unrepentant. "My idol is Huang Jinrong. Huang Jinrong left his fortune to his daughter-in-law. Can't I follow his example?"

Li Guang jumped up. "What the hell! Other people's idols are great figures, scientists, writers—why is yours a gangster?"

Li Guoyi stroked his chin. "Brother Four, such a mysterious matter—how could I tell you?"

Unable to refuse, Li Heng took the pen and signed his name on the white shirt.

Li Guoyi bent down, inspecting left and right, thoroughly satisfied. Then he announced loudly, "I declare: tomorrow I'll wear this shirt and walk the entire campus—clearly showing every ugly guy and ugly girl that my Brother Li's first signed shirt is on me! No one else can claim it after this!"

"Cough! Cough!"

Wei Sisi, who had been drinking, choked. "Li Guoyi, don't be so ridiculous—you're not actually going to do this, are you?"

"What do you mean 'actually'? Just wait and see! After tomorrow, this shirt becomes a rare artifact—worth a fortune. You common folk just don't get it." Li Guoyi flailed his arms, as if to say: your level is too low—you're not on my plane.

Liu Yanling raised her thumb. "Li Guoyi, if you actually wear that shirt around campus tomorrow, I'll respect you—I'll never speak ill of you behind your back again."

"What?! I call you Big Sister every day, and you still talk trash about me?!" Li Guoyi's eyes bulged.

Liu Yanling bounced up and down, grinning. "No point hiding it—I've said plenty."

Li Guoyi shook with rage, pointing at Liu Yanling, then ran out and returned with a bottle of baijiu, slamming it down in front of Zhou Zhangming, hands on hips, yelling, "Boss, I can't touch your wife—I can only take it out on you! Can I vent this anger properly?"

Zhou Zhangming picked up the bottle. "Fair enough. Tonight, I'll drink with you till dawn."

Thus, Li Guoyi, Zhou Zhangming, and Li Guang each grabbed a bottle of baijiu and began drinking fiercely.

Later, Li Guoyi wandered over to Wei Xiaozhu and smirked boastfully: "You're famous in the nearby university circles—when I go out, everyone's first question is about you."

"They ask me, 'Li Guoyi, isn't there a Wei Xiaozhu at Fudan? I heard she's pure and gorgeous.' I've said nothing but good things about you."

Wei Xiaozhu smiled, knowing exactly what he wanted. She raised her cup. "Thank you for your kind words."

"No need to thank me! We're acquainted—that's only natural." Li Guoyi beamed, carefully clinking his cup against hers.

Seeing this, Li Heng and Zhang Bing exchanged a silent glance—everything understood.

Whether it was Le Yao or Senior Zhao Yan, they were all just decoys—temporary placeholders. Li Guoyi's true focus was Wei Xiaozhu.

Later, Li Guoyi found excuses to keep drinking with Wei Xiaozhu, but Hu Ping blocked him. They exchanged a few sharp words, then started drinking again.

The private room descended into chaos: some drank, some watched, others egged them on. Liu Yanling, Zhao Meng, and Sun Ye, bored with spectating, picked up bottles and joined the men's drinking contest.

The atmosphere instantly reached its peak!

While the drinkers competed, others chatted and sipped casually. Aside from the drinkers, Li Heng was the one most toasted tonight—almost everyone had two rounds with him.

When Cai Yuanyuan moved away, Wei Xiaozhu walked over with an empty cup, placed it before him, and smiled sweetly. "Everyone else has toasted you—I haven't. Could you fill my cup?"

Li Heng picked up a bite of food. "We're close enough—no need for formalities."

Wei Xiaozhu disagreed, speaking with quiet depth. "It's different. I have a feeling that after tonight, it'll be hard to ever drink with you again."

Li Heng paused mid-chew, turned his head to study her eyes for a long moment, then looked away without another word. He bent down, picked up a fresh beer, opened it, and filled both their cups. "Bottoms up."

"Alright." Wei Xiaozhu smiled, drank with him.

Li Heng set down his empty cup. "You and Mai Sui are so close—come visit my place whenever you have time."

At the mention of Mai Sui, Wei Xiaozhu turned her empty cup slowly, and asked in a voice only he could hear: "Will you marry Mai Sui?"

Li Heng thought. "I remember you asked me this before."

Wei Xiaozhu reminded him. "That time we rode bikes—by Dianshan Lake."

Li Heng asked, "What did I answer you then?"

Wei Xiaozhu smiled. "You said you didn't know."

Li Heng looked at her, then looked at her again.

Wei Xiaozhu sighed. "So much time has passed—I thought you might have changed your mind. After all, Suisui grows more beautiful every day."

Li Heng refilled both empty cups. "Let's drink one more."

Wei Xiaozhu understood his meaning. She drank, then stood and left, walking out with Dai Qing.

After washing their hands in the restroom, the two women didn't hurry back. Instead, they leaned against the window along the corridor, letting the cool night breeze wash over them.

Dai Qing suddenly asked, "Does Hu Ping have no chance at all?"

Wei Xiaozhu replied calmly. "You shouldn't ask that."

Dai Qing laughed softly. "I feel sorry for him. So many girls admire him, yet he only holds onto you."

Wei Xiaozhu gazed into the distance, her tone implying more. "You only see one side of him. People have many sides."

Hearing this, Dai Qing paused, then asked, "What about Li Heng? How many sides does he have?"

Wei Xiaozhu smiled. "You've been studying him for so long—haven't you figured him out yet?"

Dai Qing said, "I think I've got him pretty well figured out."

"Oh?" Wei Xiaozhu turned her head.

Face to face, Dai Qing said, "He's a playboy. If I had your looks, and chased him relentlessly for seven or eight years, I might still win him."

Wei Xiaozhu said, "You once said in the dorm you'd never be someone's mistress."

Dai Qing's gaze drifted to the window. "Not wanting to be a mistress is a principle. But principles collapse when it comes to a man you truly love.

It's like before you find someone, you have a checklist—what kind of person you want. But once you meet your match, even if he fails every single criterion, you still fall."

"Makes sense. But seven or eight years isn't short—life doesn't offer many of those." Wei Xiaozhu stood shoulder to shoulder with her.

Dai Qing stayed silent at first, then spoke after a long pause. "No choice—Xiao Han and Mai Sui are both too dazzling, and they got there first. Left no room for others."

At this, the two women fell into a long, heavy silence.

Much later, Le Yao appeared in the corridor, calling out to them. Only then did Wei Xiaozhu snap back, whispering softly, "Sleep well tonight. Maybe tomorrow will bring a surprise."

Dai Qing turned, startled. "What surprise?"

Wei Xiaozhu smiled. "Jin Yong is coming to Fudan tomorrow. When that happens, the true identity of 'Author Twelve' will be revealed."

Dai Qing felt a flicker of excitement.

When the two women returned to the private room, Li Guang was drunk, and so were Li Guoyi and Zhou Zhangming.

Hu Ping was slightly better—but not by much—lying slumped in his chair like a toad, puffing out heavy breaths.

Among the girls, Sun Ye and Liu Yanling had already fallen asleep in each other's arms. Zhao Meng was even worse—passed out on the floor, later carried up by Cai Yuanyuan and Zhang Bing.

Li Heng stood and addressed everyone. "Pack your things. Check you haven't left anything behind."

Then he went downstairs to settle the bill.

On the way back, Le Yao asked Li Heng, "Li Heng, how much did it cost? Let's split it with you."

Li Heng, carrying Li Guang on his back, waved his hand. "No need. It's just a few bucks—don't mention it."

As the boys walked away, Liu Yanling and Sun Ye slowly opened their eyes. They were drunk, but not too drunk to walk.

Liu Yanling asked, "We ordered a lot of dishes—expensive ones. How much did it cost?"

Wei Xiaozhu said, "I didn't check the bill exactly. Just the food was over sixty yuan, plus three bottles of Maotai and a lot of beer—it adds up."

The girls exchanged silent, stunned glances—it was equivalent to a high-income earner's monthly salary.

Cai Yuanyuan asked, "Didn't we eat Li Heng into poverty?"

Wei Sisi rolled up her sleeves. "You're underestimating Li Heng. Haven't you read the papers? He's a musician—his album sold 420, 00 copies in mainland China alone, not counting Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, or overseas."

News reports say his overseas popularity is just as high—he'll soon receive a fortune beyond our imagination."

Le Yao counted on her fingers. "So Li Heng's going to be a millionaire?"

"Whoa!"

Someone sucked in a sharp breath—and the entire 107 dorm fell into eerie silence.

For a long time, except for the passed-out Zhao Meng, the other seven girls sat scattered around, staring at each other, speechless.

No one could speak.

Long after, when footsteps echoed down the corridor, Liu Yanling suddenly clutched her chest. "I regret it so much! Why didn't I get him drunk and offer myself? Then I'd be a millionaire's wife! Sisters, if I feed him soup every day from now on, is there still a chance?"

The other girls stared, then burst into laughter.

Flat-chested Sun Ye cursed: "Disgusting! You've got a boyfriend already!"

"Pfft, compared to becoming a millionairess, every other guy is worthless."

Liu Yanling shrugged and rolled around on the bed: "I've got such a great body—Li Heng, come sleep with me! I'll even be your mistress! Aaaah! I regret it so much!!!"

Le Yao couldn't watch anymore: "Qing Qing hasn't said she regrets it—why are you regretting?"

Wei Sisi chimed in: "Exactly! Who are you putting on a show for? If you really liked Li Heng, would you have accepted Zhou Zhangming so fast? Dai Qing is the one who truly loves him."

Dai Qing sighed, sat on the bed, and said: "Don't drag me into this. I know my place—I don't want to get crushed in Li Heng's meat grinder as cannon fodder."

Le Yao asked: "Why call it a meat grinder?"

Dai Qing replied: "Literal meaning—Verdun."

Cai Yuanyuan gestured with her fingers: "What? Qing Qing, back in our Dorm 107, we were called Fudan's Number One Female Dorm. Besides Xiao Zhu, you and Le Yao were key to that reputation—how can you be so lacking in confidence? If you've given up, how are we supposed to go on?"

Dai Qing said nothing. Facts spoke louder than words—she had been rejected by Li Heng, cleanly and without hesitation.

Though the women talked freely, they had all witnessed Dai Qing's year-long unrequited love and seen her grow quiet. Out of tact, they dropped the subject and turned their focus to Wei Xiaozhu.

Sun Ye asked: "Xiao Zhu, why are you so silent? Even Qing Qing has no shot—your chances are the only ones left to land Li Heng. Give us some pride! He's a musician—he'll have millions someday!"

As the saying goes, don't let the rich water flow to someone else's field. If you become Mrs. Li, we'll all follow you around, eating well and drinking fine, walking tall with pride—it'll be amazing!"

As all eyes turned to her, Wei Xiaozhu, idly flipping through Bai Luyuan, spoke: "I don't want to date in college."

Wei Sisi couldn't help asking: "Even with Li Heng? You're not moved at all?"

Wei Xiaozhu still didn't look up: "Don't forget—Li Heng already has a girlfriend."

Dai Qing glanced at her friend Wei Xiaozhu, then lay down, picked up a copy of To Live, and flipped through it aimlessly.

PS: Posted first, edited later.

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(End of Chapter)