Chapter 21: A Letter from the Publishing House

It was past 9:00 PM that night, and Cao Sheng came to the Starry Sky Internet Cafe again.

This time he didn't bring a manuscript, nor did he intend to stay overnight; he had submitted his work to Xinchang Publishing House in the early hours of the morning and wanted to see if there was a reply.

Logically, even though manuscript review takes a week or two, the publishing house should have sent a brief acknowledgment upon receiving his submission, telling him the expected review period; otherwise, he couldn't just wait indefinitely, could he?

It just so happened that because of the mixer with the girls' dormitory that night, he had drunk a little alcohol, which affected his state of mind and left him feeling unfocused, making him ill-suited for writing.

Therefore, unable to stay in the dormitory, he came to the internet cafe.

He planned to go online for an hour.

To see if there was a reply from the publishing house.

And while he was at it, check the current data and reviews for "Living with a Flight Attendant" to pass the time.

He arrived at the internet cafe and opened a terminal.

After the computer successfully booted up, he first logged into his email account.

To his slight delight, there was indeed a new email in his inbox.

He clicked it open and saw it was indeed a reply from Xinchang Publishing House.

—Thank you for your submission! Your work has been forwarded to our review editors and will undergo three rounds of evaluation. The review period is approximately one to two weeks; please wait patiently for our results.

Once the results are out, we will inform you as soon as possible.

Thank you again for your submission! Wishing you good health and a flowing fountain of inspiration!

—Evergreen of Xinchang Publishing House

After reading this brief email, Cao Sheng's gaze fell on the three characters "Evergreen" at the end, and for a moment, he was unsure what they meant.

Was it a blessing for the publishing house?

Or was it the screen name of a submission editor at this publishing house?

He felt it was likely the editor's screen name.

This email made him feel a bit more at ease.

If he had received no reply, he would have had no way of knowing if they were even reviewing his new book, and he wouldn't be sure if he should foolishly wait for a result that might never come.

Now, feeling much more settled, he decided to wait patiently for the review results.

The next day, evening.

After finishing dinner and returning from a shower at the public bathhouse next to the school cafeteria, Cao Sheng walked into the dormitory carrying his toiletries and change of clothes, only to see his roommates all looking at him.

All seven roommates were there, and fourteen eyes were fixed on him.

This scene didn't look normal at all, so Cao Sheng instinctively stopped at the door and asked with a smile, "Why are you all looking at me like that? What? Can't find a girlfriend, so you're all looking for a boyfriend now? Let me state this clearly: I don't swing that way!"

He guessed that the girls' dormitory from last night's mixer had already made it clear they weren't interested.

So, he intentionally made this joke to liven up the atmosphere.

Unexpectedly...

Guan Zhi stood up and walked over, saying with a complex smile, "Cao Sheng! Congratulations. When Xu Ling went back to her dorm last night and told her roommates you didn't have a girlfriend, that He Xinglan said you were quite interesting and wanted to have some one-on-one time with you. How about it? Happy?"

Cao Sheng was very surprised.

Because in the original timeline, after this mixer, none of the seven girls in that dorm had taken a liking to anyone in their room.

Why was the result different this time?

Where did something go wrong?

Last night, I clearly didn't say a word; I just ate and drank the whole time.

What is going on with that He Xinglan?

In the original timeline, I chatted with her several times during the mixer, and she didn't like me; this time, I didn't say a single word to her, and she took a liking to me instead?

Does she just like the version of me that doesn't like her?

Cao Sheng looked at the other six silent roommates and asked with a frown, "What's with these expressions, brothers? Why is everyone so quiet?"

Wei Dongming snorted and turned his head away.

Pang Yunhai curled his lip and said with a depressed expression, "What do you think? You didn't say a word last night, yet the prettiest one, He Xinglan, took a liking to you. We put in the money and the effort, said who knows how many nice things, and even had the nerve to walk them back to their dorm. And the result? They didn't like any of us. You're still asking why we aren't talking? What do you want us to say?"

Song Chao suddenly smiled, "Cao Sheng! Do you like He Xinglan? She wants to meet you alone tonight. Are you going to go see her?"

This question brought everyone's attention back to Cao Sheng's face.

Cao Sheng looked at his roommates' depressed expressions, smiled, and shook his head.

"I'm not going! If I liked her, she was sitting right next to me last night; I would have definitely taken the initiative to talk to her. Why would I have gone the whole night without saying a single word?"

Having said that, Cao Sheng looked at Guan Zhi, "Number Two! Please have Xu Ling pass on my meaning: tell her I have no thoughts of dating right now, and thank her for the opportunity."

Guan Zhi was stunned.

The other roommates were also taken aback.

Guan Zhi: "No way? She's the prettiest one in their dorm! You don't like her?"

Pang Yunhai: "Cao Sheng! Are you serious?"

Song Chao: "Isn't that a huge waste?"

Wei Dongming turned his face back, staring at Cao Sheng with suspicious eyes.

Cao Sheng smiled, said nothing more, and walked over to grab his basin to put away his laundry, preparing to go wash his clothes.

He also thought He Xinglan was pretty.

If he had met her at a different time or place, perhaps he would have been willing to date her and see how it went; after all, he liked all beautiful women.

But he had met her at a mixer between two dormitories.

And for this mixer, everyone else in his dorm had chipped in money, while he hadn't paid a cent. Pang Yunhai and the others, who had paid, had come up empty-handed, while he, Cao Sheng, had gained the favor of the prettiest girl in the girls' dorm. This was already enough to make his roommates depressed; if he actually started dating He Xinglan, how could his roommates face it?

The key was: his career was not yet established, and he didn't have much living money left. If "I Wish to Become an Immortal" couldn't be published soon, he wouldn't even have money for food.

In such a situation, how could he have the heart to date?

Date, my foot!

Should he let the girl pay for every date?

He had zero interest in such a shameless relationship.

After that day, his roommates always looked at Cao Sheng with a strange expression.

Cao Sheng knew it would take time to restore his relationship with them.

He didn't deliberately do anything, just let things take their natural course.

Every day, in his spare time between classes, he still went to the adult education building's classroom to write, and every other day he went to the internet cafe to publish a chapter of "Living with a Flight Attendant."

The saved manuscript for "I Wish to Become an Immortal" grew day by day.

In the blink of an eye, nine days passed.

That night, he came to the internet cafe to stay overnight again, preparing to convert some of his saved manuscript into a digital file. After the computer successfully booted up, he habitually logged into his email.

When he saw a new email in his inbox, his heart skipped a beat.

When he clicked open the email and saw it was from Xinchang Publishing House, he began to feel anxious.