Chapter 31: Junior, Are You Free Tonight? (Seeking Collections and Recommendations)

"Today is the fiftieth birthday of our great alma mater. On this wonderful day, we..."

On the flower-adorned stage, Yang Mi read her script with a radiant expression.

The reason Master Wang had her go on stage was simple: first, she had good fame, both online and offline.

Second, she had only just graduated, so she served as a great inspiration to the current students.

Not far away, the students of the 2006 Acting Class all wore expressions of longing; the girls all felt they would be the next Yang Mi, while the boys wore looks that suggested they could replace her.

As for Qi Hui... he was playing Snake.

Mobile phones back then weren't smartphones; they could only play small games like Snake or Sokoban.

It was only because this wasn't the restroom that Qi Hui wasn't bored enough to read the ingredient lists on shampoo and body wash bottles.

It really is inconvenient without a smartphone.

Before long, Yang Mi finished reading her script and returned, plopping down right beside Qi Hui.

"How was my speech just now?" Yang Mi asked triumphantly.

"Very good," Qi Hui said without even lifting his head. "The music was beautiful, the content was substantial, the theme was clear, and it was captivating."

Yang Mi’s face darkened. "There was no music when I went up to speak just now!"

"Pfft..." Yuan Shanshan almost couldn't hold back her laughter.

"Oh, is that so?" Qi Hui looked up, glanced at Yang Mi, and said, "Mm, you spoke very well just now."

"...Forget it, let's not talk about this." The veins on Yang Mi's forehead throbbed; she was almost so angered by Qi Hui that she developed a gynecological infection.

Before graduation, Qi Hui had been just as uninterested in her like this.

He hadn't even praised her a few times.

"What did you think of that matter I mentioned earlier?" Yang Mi asked.

"Which one?" Qi Hui pondered for a moment, then asked in confusion.

Yang Mi: "..."

Qi Hui spread his hands. "Don't look at me like that. You said so much just now, how would I remember?"

Yang Mi gritted her teeth. "The one about recommending you to join the cast for a role!"

She was incredibly depressed; she couldn't even pull off a simple act of showing off!

"Oh, that one." Qi Hui realized, then shook his head and said:

"You should help someone else. I'm going to the Magic City in half a month; there's a production where I'm playing the male lead."

Hearing this, Yang Mi and Yuan Shanshan’s eyes widened instantly.

"You're going to play the male lead?" Yuan Shanshan exclaimed, though fortunately, she remembered the occasion and didn't shout it out loud.

Qi Hui shrugged and said truthfully, "I got lucky and stumbled upon it."

Yuan Shanshan felt even more sour. Why couldn't I stumble upon one?

Beside them, the look in Yang Mi’s eyes as she watched Qi Hui changed instantly.

As *Paladin 3* gradually finished airing, the rumors between her and Hu Ge were becoming less and less discussed or attractive.

Right now, she desperately needed something to attract public attention to maintain her current level of popularity.

If she were to spread some rumors with Qi Hui... that wouldn't be a bad idea.

In any case, she and Qi Hui were classmates; no matter how things developed later, there would be an explanation.

For example, if she wanted to shake off the rumors, she could tell the media they were just classmates and had a good relationship back in school.

If they took things further, she could tell the media that they had taken a liking to each other back in school.

Thinking of this, Yang Mi suddenly felt that Qi Hui was very suitable for spreading rumors with her.

"I thought my development was already quite good, but I didn't expect you to be the most impressive one in our class." Yang Mi praised Qi Hui with a smile, her voice turning coy.

Qi Hui’s brow furrowed. Why the sudden affected voice?

Immediately, vigilance rose in his heart. Was this woman up to something?

"Ahem, it's alright, I guess." Qi Hui gave a perfunctory reply, then turned his attention to the leader’s speech on stage.

The previously incredibly dull leader’s speech suddenly became pleasant and full of philosophy at this moment.

Hmm... I, Qi, like it!

As for Yang Mi... until she gets married, Qi Hui would never be alone with her.

A boy out in the world must know how to protect himself!

After nearly two hours of the leader’s speech concluded, the next part was various fun activities and games.

Things like pinning the nose while blindfolded, riddles, carrying balls with ping-pong paddles, and numerous stage plays and dance performances.

It was all very lively, much like a Children's Day event.

Qi Hui found an excuse to slip away. The way Yang Mi was looking at him was a bit off, as if she wanted to eat him alive.

He had to quickly find someone to help block her.

But after walking a circle, he couldn't find anyone he knew.

Those alumni and such had left immediately after serving as the "atmosphere group." Qi Hui wanted to find Zu Feng, but couldn't.

"Do I have to use the same trick again?" Qi Hui looked around, preparing to find a big shot to take shelter under.

If he were chatting about business with a big shot, Yang Mi shouldn't come over, right?

But before he could find his target, a male student called out to Qi Hui.

"Senior, so you're here. I've been looking so hard for you."

Qi Hui turned his head and saw a male student with a long face and hair swept up at the forehead, exposing it.

Looking at him, he couldn't be called handsome, just normal.

However, the other person had a small black mole on his left lip, similar to that spirited Song Yuzhi... no, that’s Lu Qingcheng, no, that’s not right, it should be Li Qian.

The mole by this person’s lip was somewhat similar to Li Qian’s.

Qi Hui only felt he looked familiar. After a moment of thought, a name quickly surfaced in his mind.

Zhai Tianlin!

The person who made university graduates grit their teeth in hatred.

No one hates Zhai Tianlin every single year, but every single year, there are people who hate Zhai Tianlin.

A single question of "What is CNKI?" caused plagiarism check requirements to rise exponentially, and he single-handedly ushered in the "Tianlin Era," causing graduates immense pain.

The pain wasn't just about racking one's brains to lower the plagiarism rate, but also because the cost of checking for plagiarism once was not cheap.

Students were counting on graduating quickly and finding work to earn money, but before they had even earned a cent, they had already spent hundreds on plagiarism checks.

Every graduation season, everyone couldn't help but ask each other, "What year of the Tianlin Era are you in?"

Those who had already graduated sighed with emotion, those currently graduating gritted their teeth, and in the end, everyone cursed Zhai Tianlin together.

Qi Hui had once felt lucky that he was from the pre-Tianlin era and was fortunate enough not to be affected, but those juniors were the ones who suffered.

"Ahem... hello, what do you need me for?" Qi Hui regained his focus and asked with a light cough.

Zhai Tianlin said with a chuckle, "Senior Yang Mi is looking for you. She said it's a class reunion and asked me to pass on a message."

"Hm?" Qi Hui’s brow furrowed. "How did she know I hadn't left yet?"

He had slipped away early on; if it weren't for Yang Mi loitering near the school gate, he would have left the school long ago.

"This..." Facing the question, Zhai Tianlin stammered a bit. After hesitating for a moment, he said, "A classmate from our class happened to see you here, so..."

Qi Hui glared at him. "Your class? I think it was you!"

Having said that, he snorted coldly and flicked his sleeves as he left.

Zhai Tianlin’s face turned from blue to white, and then he spat viciously. "Pah, isn't it just having a bit of luck and getting a good reputation?"

"Without even a single work to your name, what are you acting all high and mighty for!"

Just wait, once I finish my master's degree and get my doctorate, I'll show everyone who's the real deal... Zhai Tianlin clenched his fists and thought secretly.

On the other side.

Yuan Shanshan blocked Qi Hui.

"Something up?"

"There's a class reunion tonight, are you coming?" Yuan Shanshan looked around and said.

"Is that so? Who organized it?"

Yuan Shanshan said, "Of course it was Yang Mi."

Qi Hui raised an eyebrow. "Is it really a class reunion?"

"Pretty much, we're all classmates, so of course it's a class reunion." Yuan Shanshan winked at him and said meaningfully.

"...Understood." Qi Hui realized instantly. "Then I'm not going."

"You can't do that." Yuan Shanshan was a bit anxious. "How can you not go to a class reunion?"

"Just treat it as doing me a favor, alright?"

As she spoke, she pressed her palms together with a pleading look.

Qi Hui: "...Fine."

"Hehehe, see you later." Yuan Shanshan was full of joy and returned in high spirits; Qi Hui should have understood her meaning by now and should be preparing himself.

Watching her leave, Qi Hui shook his head. Women are truly troublesome...

After thinking for a moment, he took out his phone, edited a text message, and sent it:

"Junior, are you free tonight?"