Chapter 6: Are You That Short on Money?
The dorm room was a quad.
Aside from Jian Xiangxiang, Ruan Yu's roommates included two girls with completely different personalities—Chen Manbai and Xia Qiaofeng.
Chen Manbai was lively and outgoing, a somewhat well-known beauty blogger online. Because she had to livestream for her fans every day and the dorm space was too cramped for her to work freely, she rented an apartment off-campus and rarely came back. Xia Qiaofeng, on the other hand, was quiet and reserved, her presence so subdued it was almost as if she weren’t there.
When Ruan Yu returned to the dorm, she took a shower first, then started reading.
A short while later, Xia Qiaofeng also came back. She greeted Ruan Yu, grabbed her change of clothes, and headed into the bathroom. Soon, the sound of running water could be heard.
Ruan Yu checked the time—lights-out was approaching. She usually went to bed on the dot, her biological clock precise. Drowsiness crept in bit by bit, and after yawning several times in a row, she closed her book and climbed into bed.
Xia Qiaofeng emerged just before lights-out. After hanging her laundry on the balcony, she also went to bed.
The dorm fell silent. Ruan Yu fell asleep as soon as her head touched the pillow. She had always slept soundly, rarely waking up at night, and could sleep straight through till morning.
The next day was the weekend, but Ruan Yu didn’t allow herself to sleep in. She got up at the crack of dawn. When she rose, Xia Qiaofeng was still lightly snoring, and Jian Xiangxiang’s bed was empty—clearly, she hadn’t come back last night.
Although Yangshan University’s student handbook explicitly prohibited staying out overnight, the dorm supervisors were lax, so students skipping curfew was common.
Ruan Yu didn’t dwell on it. She tiptoed through her morning routine, then grabbed her books and headed to the campus park to memorize vocabulary.
The early autumn air was cool, and a thin morning mist drifted across the campus. The rising sun tangled with the fog, casting an ethereal, dreamlike beauty over everything.
As she passed the auditorium, Ruan Yu paused.
The auditorium doors were shut tight, her reflection staring back at her from the glass. She stood there, frozen, her mind replaying the scene from last night—five boys dancing with sweat-drenched intensity on stage. Their youth burned bright and fervent, but what about hers?
Ruan Yu tightened her grip on her vocabulary book.
A voice inside her whispered: Just endure it. One day, you’ll break through.
After finishing her vocabulary review, Ruan Yu went to the cafeteria for breakfast. On her way back to the dorm, she ran into Jian Xiangxiang. The girl hadn’t slept all night, dark circles under her eyes, yet she was still buzzing with excitement.
“Ruan, Ruan, Ruan, Ruan! Let me tell you, that Teng Yi is absolutely godlike. Not only is his dancing insanely cool, but his singing is amazing too!” Jian Xiangxiang launched into a rapid-fire monologue the moment she saw Ruan Yu. “Last night at karaoke, he was mesmerizing! If I didn’t have a boyfriend, I’d—ah, never mind, never mind. I have a boyfriend, and he has a girlfriend. Better not entertain such morally questionable thoughts.”
Ruan Yu listened half-heartedly. Hearing that Teng Yi had a girlfriend didn’t surprise her.
Someone that dazzling—it’d be strange if he didn’t have one.
“We’re going out again this afternoon. Ruan, do you want to come hang out?” Jian Xiangxiang asked tentatively. She really wanted to drag Ruan Yu into their group.
“No, I have a tutoring interview later.”
“Another part-time job?”
“Yeah.”
“You’re already working part-time on campus, and now you’re taking jobs outside too? Are you that short on money?”Ruan Yu froze for a moment.
Jian Xiangxiang realized she had spoken carelessly and quickly grabbed Ruan Yu’s arm, shaking it playfully. "Ruan Ruan, what I meant was, you shouldn’t push yourself so hard. You should take a break once in a while."
Ruan Yu nodded and smiled at her.
"Next time."
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