Chapter 79

"Zhang Zixin, don't go too far! What exactly did I do to you that you have to target me like this?"

Zhao Zhouyuan was so angry her eyes turned red; the atmosphere remained tense and cold.

Shen Li, reacting half a beat slow, stood up from her seat, a sense of helplessness surging in her heart. "The clothes are ruined; I can compensate you."

"How are you going to compensate me? That piece of clothing cost over a thousand," Zhao Zhouyuan's eyes were a bit moist. She walked to the balcony, took the stained garment out of the washing machine, and walked into the dormitory, the clothes still dripping water. "This is a limited edition piece from a brand; there's only one like it. Now that it's soaked like this, how do you expect me to wear it?"

One thousand yuan was about her living expenses for a month.

Last week, when she went to Su Shi, her grandmother gave her quite a bit of living money, enough for her expenses this month, plus she didn't usually spend much money.

Shen Li took her phone and transferred the money to her. "I transferred fifteen hundred to you; is that enough?"

She just didn't want them to keep arguing.

"Shen Li, are you stupid? Why are you paying her? This has nothing to do with you!" Zhang Zixin frowned. "Zhao Zhouyuan, Shen Li's family situation isn't great; how can you have the nerve to accept this money? Do you have any conscience at all!"

"Who are you trying to scam here!"

"I already said, I didn't notice Shen Li was resting at noon, so I thought I'd wash the clothes early. If I had known, I wouldn't have turned the washing machine on at all! Now it's my fault instead? Zhang Zixin... don't think that just because you have Xu Zhouyuan backing you, you can bully me."

Seeing her look of grievance, as if she were about to cry, Zhang Zixin rolled her eyes to the heavens. "... A thousand-plus piece of clothing, you wash it in a machine, and you even know it's a limited edition designer item. You're doing this on purpose, aren't you!"

"Fine, consider it my bad luck today! You return the money to Shen Li, and I'll compensate you!"

"... I don't want this piece of clothing anymore! Are you satisfied now!" Zhao Zhouyuan, in a fit of pique, threw the clothes into the trash can.

Zhang Zixin, whose mood had been decent, suddenly felt as if she had eaten a maggot. "If you're unhappy with us, just move next door. Don't act like we're targeting you; stop playing these games with us."

Seeing the two arguing endlessly, Shen Li spoke up slowly, "I remember that stained clothes can be cleaned again."

"Wait for me, I'll ask my grandmother."

Shen Li made a call outside on the balcony. Below the familiar girls' dormitory on the second floor, she saw a figure standing under that camphor tree; Xie Qin was chatting with Xu Zhouyuan and the others.

Xie Qin, downstairs, probably sensed something. As his peripheral vision caught her figure, he looked up and met Shen Li's gaze from upstairs; the smile on the youth's lips deepened.

"Mm, it's one of my roommates."

"..."

Her grandmother's kind voice rang out on the phone; as she spoke, Shen Li listened and memorized it.

"I know, Grandma."

The call ended; at the same time, she shifted her gaze away from him, walked into the dormitory, and told her the method.

Zhao Zhouyuan didn't believe at all that a silk garment could be restored to its original state after being stained.

Shen Li pursed her lips and gave her a reason convincing enough: "My grandmother used to be a professor in the Fashion Design Department at Su Cheng University. Her students used to have similar situations when designing clothing works."

Restaurant.

Zhang Zixin laughed very loudly; almost everyone nearby could hear.

This restaurant was in an alley; the storefront wasn't very big, and the environment was average, but the owner's skills were good, and the repeat customers were all nearby students.

"I really can't take it, it's hilarious... The look on Zhao Zhouyuan's face when she heard Shen Li's grandmother was a university professor was just something else. Without a word, she picked the clothes out of the trash and went to wash them. It was so satisfying to watch! I didn't realize it, Shen Li. You're quite low-key, not mentioning a background like that. Your grandmother is a university professor, what do your parents do?"

Shen Li answered in a soft voice: "Ordinary high school teachers."

Zhang Zixin nodded: "... Being able to teach in Hai Cheng is already pretty good! Your family members are all intellectuals; didn't they push you on your grades?"

Zhou Mingyu, on the side, laughed and said: "Normal! Chen Jianhang, who I used to play with a lot, his dad is a professor of aeronautics at Jiang University, but that didn't stop his dad from having a slacker son like him. Now he's just learning English and going abroad to study to get a gilded degree."

"There are plenty of examples like that."

It really wasn't that rare.

Zhang Zixin: "And you tested so far away... Can they rest easy with you alone?"

This question seemed to touch some chord in Shen Li's heart; she lowered her eyelids, trembling slightly, and answered in a calm tone: "During the college entrance exam period, I was sick!"

"They... were also very busy and didn't have time to look after me, so I came here."

"When I was little, I basically grew up with my grandmother. Wuchuan isn't very far from Su Cheng; it takes just over an hour by high-speed rail."

Xie Qin, on the side, listened to every word earnestly.

Zhang Zixin asked curiously again, "Then how were your grades before? If you were delayed for a period of time by illness, I think it could still be saved; it's a pity not to retake the year."

Shen Li whispered two words: "... Average."

To them, this meant her grades weren't very good.

If they weren't good, retaking the year would be a waste of time, and besides... those who can settle in a big city like Haishi must have good family conditions.

If you don't work hard, you still have your parents to lift you up; being a salted fish is also not bad.

Xie Qin, sitting opposite her, raised his eyes to look at her. "Did she return the money?"

Shen Li met his gaze and nodded: "Mm, she returned it."

Speaking of this, Zhang Zixin scolded her: "You too, she wanted to scam you, and you actually transferred it to her."

Shen Li pursed her lips and said nothing.

... At the time, she was about to cry.

She was also afraid of people around her arguing, so she didn't think much about it at the time.

Shen Li couldn't eat spicy food, so she ordered dishes that weren't very spicy.

When they were almost done eating, Xu Zhouyuan and Zhang Zixin left early.

In the end, only Shen Li was eating slowly, chewing carefully. Xie Qin sat opposite her, playing a game on his phone, not urging her, patiently waiting for her to finish.

Xie Qin: "You have such a good appetite today, should I order two more dishes for you?"

Shen Li shook her head: "I'm already very full."

"Xie Qin..."

His tone was cocky: "Speak!"

Shen Li thanked him seriously: "Thank you for always treating me to meals; I will treat you in the future too."

"You know how to say thank you, hmm... you still have a bit of conscience. As for treating me to a meal..." He leaned back, propping up his long legs, still looking at her with that high-and-mighty, scrutinizing attitude, looking down at her as he said: "I can eat a girlfriend's meal. But a free ride... no."