Chapter 99: Wei Ming Becomes the Female Dorm Supervisor (Ally Bonus 33)

Zhu Lin watched Wei Ming leave, holding a new cassette tape in her hand, while he took ten yuan from her.

If her boyfriend found out she’d spent fifteen yuan on just a few foreign song cassettes, he’d probably panic again.

But she’d checked—bootlegged Hong Kong and Taiwan pop tapes usually cost seven or eight yuan, and English songs would be even pricier; little Wei might even be losing money on them.

Oh, next time I absolutely must treat him to a meal.

Wei Ming didn’t lose money, but he did connect with Melinda as a result—some kind of fate.

Back at Peking University’s dorm, he found Long sitting at the desk waiting for him.

“You finally showed up—if you didn’t come back, I was leaving.”

He pulled out his own illustrations.

“Here are all the illustrations for the rest.”

“Wow, you finished them all?!” Wei Ming was surprised—he only needed to submit about ten to cover December’s issue.

Liu Long: “I’ve got real motivation now. Do you have any other jobs? If not, I’ll ask other magazines.”

Wei Ming’s work was his top priority.

Wei Ming smiled: “My wuxia novel’s almost done—help me draw a few illustrations, not many, five or six will do.”

“Story Weekly” wasn’t a children’s magazine; it didn’t need many illustrations to aid reading.

“Alright, oh,” Long remembered something else and rummaged through his bag, pulling out a small box. “This is the snuff bottle your grandfather drew for you.”

The vessel wasn’t large, but smaller items better showcased brushwork skill.

If he wasn’t mistaken, the old man had painted: “Beyond the pavilion, along the ancient road, green grass stretches to the sky. The evening breeze brushes willows, the flute’s sound fades; beyond the mountains, the setting sun glows…”

Li Shu Tong’s “Farewell.”

He’d only said he wanted to give it to a foreign friend returning home—the old man had improvised freely, and the scene fit perfectly.

“Beautiful, truly beautiful!”

He told Long to stay and read: “I’ll deliver this first.”

Since he couldn’t take the manuscript away, Long usually copied passages suitable for illustration, then developed them at home.

Wei Ming carried the snuff bottle into Shao Garden—and to his utter surprise, the dorm supervisor wasn’t there; he walked right in.

At this hour, most resident foreign students were in the cafeteria, so he saw only foreign girls.

“Hi, Sophie.”

“Monica, nice new hairstyle.”

“Nagisa Nagaoka, are you studying another dish? Sashimi? No thanks—I already ate.”

Because he visited the girls’ dorm so often, because he was handsome and witty, unlike those shy boys who couldn’t even look them in the eye, Wei Ming easily became friends with these foreign girls.

When he reached the upper floor, he saw a stranger—a girl who froze when she saw a man.

At first Wei Ming paid no mind, but when he reached Melinda’s room, he found the door open, the room empty, and messy.

Wei Ming immediately thought: Burglary!

The prime suspect? That stranger girl—he turned back fast, but she’d already gone downstairs.

“Old Qin, stop her!” Wei Ming shouted to the Shao Garden gatekeeper.

But Old Qin was old, slow—he missed her.

He asked: “What’s going on? What’s going on?”

Wei Ming: “Catch the thief!”

The girl ran fast, but Wei Ming ran faster—he grabbed her hair just as she neared the west gate, pinning her to the ground.

Then things fell from her: a watch, earrings, and a copy of “Playboy.”

Wei Ming quickly picked them up and stuffed them into his pocket.

At his call, the guard at the west gate sprinted over.

“What’s up, Ming-ge?” It was the colleague who’d switched shifts with him that day. “This girl broke into the girls’ dorm and stole stuff—I caught her. Let’s take her to the security office.”

“Hey, bold move—stealing from international students?”

Wei Ming: “Regular students don’t have much worth stealing.”

“That’s true.”

So the two men escorted the woman to the security office, called a female staff member to search her, and see what else she’d stolen besides the watch and ring.

Wei Ming felt a pang of sympathy—the watch was a foreign brand, expensive, and involved foreign affairs; it could damage Peking University’s reputation. This girl wouldn’t get off lightly—she might spend years in prison.

But when he saw her glaring at him with hatred, he thought: Better serve more years. And you should be glad—you’ll avoid 1983. Maybe it’ll even save your life.

Still, even if she ever got out, if she wasn’t reformed, she’d become one of those old women who fake injuries to extort money.

The security chief was in a meeting, but because international students were involved, he was pulled out to explain.

When he returned to the meeting, the elder seated at the center remembered he was in charge of security and asked: “What happened?”

“Report, President Wang: Shao Garden—oh, the international students’ dorm—was burglarized. Many valuable items stolen.” The elder asked first: “Was the thief caught?”

“Caught. Currently under interrogation.”

“Internal or external?”

“External.”

Wang Lübin, newly appointed vice president and standing deputy secretary, sighed in relief. “Good. Let’s end today’s meeting—I’ll go with you to check the situation.”

He’d just been transferred from Qufu Normal College; though he’d gone from top boss to third, the gap between the two schools was enormous.

And since President Zhou was a scholar, always buried in academic work, often traveling abroad, Wang handled all the day-to-day operations.

Before President Wang and the others arrived, Melinda, fresh from her shower, already knew what had happened.

She checked her precious drawings immediately—thank heaven, they’d been opened but not taken.

Then she and several other girls went to the security office and saw Wei Ming.

!

“Leonardo, was it you who caught the thief?” Melinda exclaimed.

Wei Ming smiled faintly: “Yes.” Yes, I’m just the type who always runs into trouble.

But he said nothing more—he couldn’t seem too familiar with Melinda in front of so many colleagues, and he couldn’t return “Playboy” to her yet.

The colleagues thought: Pretend all you want—we all know what’s going on between you two.

After a while, a female staff member brought up the stolen goods for Melinda to identify.

Melinda confirmed they were all hers, then angrily said: “I’m the poorest in this building—and they stole from me? What bad taste!”

She wasn’t truly the poorest—many girls came from Third World countries; even if they were decent back home, they still paled next to a poor Brit.

But the only valuable thing Melinda owned was that watch—everything else, even jewelry, was cheap street-market junk.

Of course, what she considered “not worth much” was a fortune to the female burglar.

Just as Wei Ming was about to leave, President Wang and the security chief arrived.

Wei Ming froze—was that old man the new vice president?!

President Wang remembered Wei Ming, nodded to him, asked for details, then apologized to Melinda and signaled his desire to downplay the incident.

If her drawings had been damaged, Melinda would’ve insisted on consequences—but since nothing was lost or broken, she didn’t care.

She added: “The school should reward the staff who caught the criminal.”

President Wang asked: “Is the officer who caught the thief here?”

Everyone pointed at Wei Ming.

Wei Ming pulled over the gatekeeper.

“We caught her together.”

The gatekeeper was moved to tears—he’d barely helped; Wei Ming had already subdued her, and he’d just walked her over.

President Wang nodded, shook Wei Ming’s hand, praised him, then asked: “You’re so young—have you been officially confirmed?”

The security chief immediately said: “Xiao Wei was confirmed after just one month at Peking University, President Wang—you’ve probably heard of the Peking University writer Wei Ming.”

“Ah, you’re him? I’ve heard so much about you!” President Wang gripped Wei Ming’s hand tighter—he’d entered the literary world briefly but was already famous; even if Wang didn’t follow literature, he’d heard the name.

Wei Ming smiled: “If there’s nothing else, I’ll head back—I have work tonight.”

As soon as Wei Ming left, the female dorm supervisor finally arrived.

Seeing her, Melinda suddenly proposed: “We strongly recommend replacing the dorm supervisor!”

“Yes, yes!” Not just her—all the other girls agreed. This supervisor was too meddlesome, always sticking her nose in everything.

President Wang said the school would seriously consider it—given this clear lapse, reassigning her was reasonable.

“Mr. President, can we suggest candidates ourselves?” Melinda added.

“Oh? Do you know any suitable staff?”

Melinda grinned: “That guard just now—he was very responsible. I think he’d be perfect.”

The girls cheered wildly—Melinda, you’re a genius! If Wei Ming became dorm supervisor, they’d wear bikinis every day!

President Wang laughed—this was absurd. A young, strong man as dorm supervisor for a group of young girls?

The female supervisor refused—this job was so easy! Sometimes she even found treasures in the trash. She couldn’t bear to lose it.

So she immediately reported: “President, don’t listen to her! That foreign woman is sleeping with Wei Ming—you must investigate!”

“Comrade, watch your language—do you show basic respect to our international students?!”

President Wang lectured: “And what do you mean ‘sleeping with’? Are they married? If not, what’s wrong with dating? What era are you living in—investigate?!”

Then he assured Melinda he’d seriously consider her suggestion.

Though putting a wolf to guard sheep carries risk, if bound by honor, a wolf might prove more intimidating than the lead sheep…

(End of Chapter)