Chapter 97

"Alright, the Economics and Management Department is over there. You can go by yourself. If you have any problems, come find me. I'm Song Youchen, the Vice President of the Student Union!" Although Song Youchen was reluctant to let go, he didn't insist when Li Lei really got angry. He was a master at flirting and knew that Li Lei was the type who appeared cold on the outside but couldn't be pushed too hard.

Li Lei snatched her bag and hurried a few steps before heading towards the new student registration desk. Song Youchen followed closely behind. Although he couldn't get what he wanted right away, there was no harm in following to check things out. As the Vice President of the Student Union, welcoming new students was one of his main responsibilities.

Of course, he didn't follow her like a stalker, which would have been too low-class. Instead, he called a few people to spread out and gather information. Li Lei was about to register, so it was important to get all the detailed information as soon as possible.

"Senior, can you tell me where the Economics and Management Department's registration is?" Ding Hao parked his car and looked at the crowded scene, feeling a bit overwhelmed.

"Over there!" Song Youchen, who had just been rejected by Li Lei, replied to Ding Hao in a bad mood, not even bothering to point, just nodding his head to indicate the direction.

"Shao Chen, Shao Chen, where are you? That girl doesn't seem to have enough money!" Just as Ding Hao turned around, Song Youchen's phone rang.

"Haha, wait for me, I'm coming right away!" He had people keeping an eye on Li Lei, and he didn't expect a situation to arise so quickly. It was a perfect opportunity. Money, the only thing I lack is money!

"Ding Hao, where are you?" Li Lei was extremely frustrated. The money in her bag was just enough for tuition. She was determined to live off Ding Hao until she reconciled with her parents, so she had spent a lot of money recently.

But when the senior asked if she wanted to live on campus, she was intrigued. She had never lived on campus before and was curious about what it would be like. Sharing a room with many people sounded exciting, so she wanted to live on campus, but it required additional fees!

"I'm at the registration desk."

"Can you come over for a moment?"

"What's the matter?"

"I don't have enough money!"

"Oh, wait a moment!" Ding Hao thought she had spent the tuition money and sighed, then headed towards the payment counter.

When he arrived, he found several guys surrounding Li Lei, asking her questions. One of them said, "How much more do you need? I can lend you the money."

"No, really, I don't need it..." Li Lei shook her head when she saw it was Song Youchen. She had been hesitant to let him carry her bag, let alone lend her tuition money.

"It's no problem, we're all schoolmates. You can pay me back when you have the money."

Hmm? Isn't this the senior from earlier? He seemed so unfriendly before. Ding Hao recognized the voice and, upon closer inspection, confirmed it was indeed him.

"Cousin!" Seeing Li Lei surrounded, Ding Hao initially wanted to rush in and pretend to be her boyfriend, but he remembered their agreement and changed his mind.

"It's you?" Song Youchen was a bit annoyed. He had just run into this guy asking for directions and now found out he was Li Lei's cousin? What a coincidence! Song Youchen knew what Ding Hao's arrival meant: it meant he was out of the picture. Li Lei had a cousin to help her with the money, so Song Youchen's face turned sour.

But wait, didn't Li Lei come alone? He gave a subtle signal to his followers, wanting to know what was going on.

"Cousin?" Li Lei, noticing Ding Hao's signals, quickly squeezed out of the crowd.

"What's going on? Didn't you have enough money?" Ding Hao pulled Li Lei aside and asked.

"Living on campus requires additional fees." Li Lei looked innocent, as if the money she had was just enough for tuition.

"Living on campus? What about me?" Ding Hao thought Li Lei was planning to leave.

"I've never lived on campus before, it sounds fun. Can you advance me a month's worth of money?"

"..." Ding Hao laughed. This girl, you're working as my nanny, what will I do if you live on campus? You want me to pay you in advance?

"I'll definitely pay you back, with interest."

"That's not necessary. How much do you need?"

"Three thousand first."

"Isn't that too much?" Ding Hao regretted opening this door. Every time Li Lei asked for an advance, she acted very convincingly, but once she got the money, it was gone in a few days.

"I need to buy daily necessities! Hurry up, Uncle! They're waiting for me to pay."

Uncle again! Ding Hao, helpless, had to give her the money.

Li Lei took the money and said with a smile, "Thanks, Uncle. By the way, are you living on campus too?"

Ding Hao shook his head and went back to complete the registration. What annoyed him was that when he paid, no one asked him, and they directly charged him for the dorm fee! Ding Hao only realized something was wrong when he got the receipt and asked the person at the counter.

They were matter-of-fact: "Aren't you a foreign student? Where else would you live if not in the dorm?" Damn, who said foreign students had to live in the dorm? I have a villa, okay. But then he thought, living on campus could help him meet some roommates, and it would be a favor to them if he paid for it and didn't use it.

Otherwise, asking for a refund would make him look stingy, wouldn't it?

After that, Ding Hao and Li Lei each completed their registration. Fortunately, Li Lei had extorted three thousand yuan from Ding Hao, so she didn't encounter any major issues.

Ding Hao, after receiving a bunch of cards, went to the student dormitory to meet his roommates. His dorm was assigned to the third student apartment, room 412.

When Ding Hao arrived at the door, a smell of stinky socks hit his nose. The room faced east-west, with windows overlooking the street to the south. In early September, a gentle breeze brought the smell inside.

"Are you 412?" Ding Hao pushed the door open. There were already three people inside. One was picking his toes in bed, probably the source of the smell. Two others were standing in the aisle, and the taller one saw Ding Hao and walked over to ask.

"Yes, I am."

"Hi, I'm Ling Yun, as in 'ambition' Ling Yun."

"Hi, I'm Ding Hao!" Seeing Ling Yun's straightforwardness, Ding Hao smiled.

"This is Guan Xiaoxin, and the one on the bed is Liu Xujian."

"Hi, everyone!"

"Ha, our 412 pack is complete. By seniority, I'm the leader, and you're the fourth," Ling Yun said.

"Okay." Since he was the last to arrive, there was no point in arguing.

"No way, either we go by age, or I'm the third! They can move up!" The one picking his toes, Liu Xujian, had a strong objection to the ranking.

"You're such a troublemaker," Ling Yun said, annoyed.

Ding Hao looked at everyone. Guan Xiaoxin smiled but didn't say anything. Ding Hao immediately understood that the toe-picker didn't want to be the second.

"Then I'll be the fifth."

"Alright, thanks! You can call me Ah Liu." The leader and the third were pleased with Ding Hao. Physically, Ling Yun was a bit taller than Ding Hao, but Ding Hao's muscles made them hesitant. In a fight, Ding Hao would definitely be the leader!

"See, the fourth is the most sensible!" Ling Yun emphasized Ding Hao's ranking.

"If you keep this up, I won't recognize you as the leader!" Ah Liu protested.

"Alright, as you wish. Who made you a liar and a scoundrel?" Ling Yun cleverly explained Ah Liu's full name, which was a shortened form of "liar and scoundrel."

"Damn!" Ah Liu was clearly unhappy but couldn't do anything about it.

The roommates were friendly, and soon Ding Hao learned that they were from four different cities. Ling Yun, the leader, was from Shandong, tall and muscular, a few centimeters taller than Ding Hao. He was the natural leader, and no one argued with him.

Ah Liu was from Wuhan, and Guan Xiaoxin was from Xiamen. Among the four, Guan Xiaoxin was the most refined, wearing glasses and always smiling before speaking.

"Brothers, I have a relative on campus who has gathered a lot of information. I'll share some important details about the new students!" After chatting for a while and getting to know each other, Ling Yun jumped onto the computer table and clapped his hands to get everyone's attention.

"Pfft." Ah Liu was unimpressed.

"Shut up, brothers. This is college. Do you know what we're here for? To flirt with girls! Do you know what's most important in flirting? Information!" Ling Yun, the leader, asked and answered himself, making Guan Xiaoxin and Ding Hao laugh.

"We're all brothers, so I'm sharing this early. Someone has already posted the top ten new campus beauties of Jiangzhe University online. Our Economics and Management Department has won three spots, as expected."

"Wow!" Ah Liu finally perked up. Clearly, he was very interested.

"And, and the best part is, two of them are in our class!"

"..." The four of them were no longer calm. Although Ding Hao had seen many beautiful girls, the fact that two of the top ten beauties of Jiangzhe University were in his class piqued his interest and made him glad he had chosen this major.

"The 10th place... The 4th place is controversial. Some people online say she should be ranked 2nd. She's the only one who didn't come by car and the only one without family. She lost points for that. I think she should be 2nd. How can you factor in wealth when choosing a beauty queen?

Even though it's only a fifth of the score, I still think it's unfair. Isn't a proud plum from a poor family more charming? But for now, we have to respect the ranking. We'll have a chance to vote in the future..."

"Cut the crap, who is she?" Ah Liu was completely hooked, standing close to Ling Yun.

"She's Li Lei from our class! Brothers, 4th place! You all have a chance, don't miss it!"

"..." Ding Hao was taken aback, then smiled. The internet at Jiangzhe University was really fast. Li Lei had only been at the school for a few hours, and it was only the second day of the semester, yet the ranking of the top ten new beauties was already out. But thinking about it, Li Lei did look good. However, the information about her being from a poor family must be wrong.