Chapter Ninety: The First Day of University Classes

When Lao Jiu and Xiao Jia saw what Liu Sheng had just done, after Tian Yun left, the two of them threw their arms around Liu Sheng at once and said, “Brother Sheng, why don’t you find us each a girlfriend too?”

“You two will have yours. All right, it’s getting late. Let’s go eat. My treat!” With that, Liu Sheng led the three of them out of the school gate.

The four of them went into a hot pot restaurant together. Since Lao Jiu and Xiao Jia had never been to the mountain city before, they both wanted to try the famed local hot pot for themselves.

After sitting down, they noticed that the people around them were all college students, gathered in dormitory groups, boasting about how formidable they had been in high school. It stirred in Liu Sheng a great nostalgia for his own university days, and also a quiet anticipation for the first day of classes tomorrow.

Wanting to blend in more easily with Lao Jiu and Xiao Jia, Liu Sheng ordered two crates of beer. He had intended to drink them both under the table by himself, but to his surprise, Lao Jiu and Xiao Jia could drink even more than he could. In the end, Liu Sheng had no choice but to seek help from Ren Xia Dong.

Throughout the meal, Ren Xia Dong kept playing with his phone, ignoring everyone no matter who spoke to him, and not speaking to anyone himself. Liu Sheng could not stand it, so he snatched the phone from his hand. Seeing that Ren Xia Dong had been chatting with Tian Yun, he returned the phone and said, “Go on then. That’s the real business.”

Without Ren Xia Dong to bail him out in the drinking battle, Liu Sheng was soon utterly drunk. In the end, it took the three of them, taking turns carrying him, to get him back to the dormitory.

Early the next morning, Liu Sheng was awakened by Lao Jiu. Still not fully awake, he stared at Lao Jiu with a vacant, idiot-like look.

“Today is the first day of class. Are you really planning to skip it on the very first day?” Lao Jiu asked. Before Liu Sheng could answer, Xiao Jia said, “You study psychology, and you don’t want to go to class? Then should I, a mechanical and electrical engineering major, not go at all? And I heard the girls in the psychology department are especially numerous. You’d better find me a girl from your class!”

Liu Sheng, now fully awake, sat up and saw Ren Xia Dong still fast asleep. He showed no politeness at all, reaching out and pinching his ear hard enough to drag him awake by force.

Xiao Jia, sitting on his bed, said, “Ren Xia Dong was on his phone for most of the night last night and barely slept. Don’t let it be that on the very first day of class, he happens to like a girl in my class. If that’s the case, I won’t be polite!”

Liu Sheng smiled to himself and thought, Xiao Jia is overthinking it. Tian Yun studies international trade, not mechanical engineering.

After getting up and washing, the four of them left the dormitory together and went to their separate classrooms. Liu Sheng and Ren Xia Dong were in the same class, so they entered the psychology classroom together.

It was a tiered lecture hall, with the seats fixed to the floor, rising from front to back. Liu Sheng and Ren Xia Dong went to the last row and found a corner to sit in.

Not long after, a very young female teacher walked in, carrying a blue briefcase. Standing at the podium, she said into the microphone, “Students, I’m very happy to meet you here. I’m your counselor. My surname is Fang.”

Counselor Fang turned around and wrote her phone number on the whiteboard, then looked back and said, “This is my number. Everyone make a note of it. If you have any problems in the future, you can call me. For example, if anyone wants to join the student union or apply for financial hardship aid, you can come to me for help. Of course, it’s not for just anyone, and the specific details can be discussed with me privately.”

Liu Sheng, sitting in the back row, muttered, “Isn’t that just telling us to bring gifts? What kind of counselor is this? She doesn’t even talk about how to study first, and instead hints that students should send presents.”

The counselor continued, “Today is the first day of school, so let me briefly tell you what psychology students need to study. The main disciplines are psychology, biology, and computer science and technology. The core courses include General Psychology, Experimental Psychology, Psychological Statistics, Physiological Psychology, Cognitive Psychology, Developmental Psychology, and Cognitive Science. So, students, for the next four years, we’ll be studying around these subjects.”

Liu Sheng memorized every one of those subjects. He planned to go to the library after class and read every book he would need for the next four years.

Counselor Fang glanced over the class and joked, “Freshmen really are full of vigor. But I have to say one thing: I hope the girls in our class won’t bully the boys.”

Her words made the whole class burst into laughter. Liu Sheng also looked around at the students and smiled. In this class the ratio of men to women was one to three, clearly a case of the feminine outnumbering the masculine. At a time like this, Ren Xia Dong should have been overjoyed, but instead he had no interest in anything at all and was still playing with his phone.

“This morning we don’t have many classes arranged, because the professors and substitute teachers won’t start until tomorrow. In a moment I’ll call the roll. When your name is called, stand up and let me get to know you.”

Counselor Fang picked up the attendance sheet and began calling names one by one. When she called Liu Sheng’s name, the whole class erupted, because both the world-class master of animation production and the recently removed film Conquering the Tropical Rainforest had come from Liu Sheng’s hand.

Counselor Fang then said, “When I saw the roster, I also noticed Liu Sheng’s name. I very much wanted to know whether this Liu Sheng was that famous Liu Sheng.” She looked at the students, but seeing no one stand up, she asked, “Isn’t Liu Sheng here?”

“Here! I’m Liu Sheng, but this Liu Sheng is not the Liu Sheng you’re thinking of. Besides, I’m just a college freshman. How could I possibly have achieved anything so great?” Liu Sheng stood and replied.

The students below also began discussing it. “I knew it. If he were that famous director Liu Sheng, why would he come here to study?”

“Study? If I were a great director, would I still go to school? I’d be dating actresses every day.”

Listening to the students grow more and more shameless in their speculation, Counselor Fang said, “All right, all right, let’s continue. Ren Xia Dong!”

No one answered.

“Ren Xia Dong!”

Still no response.

“Ren Xia Dong! Are you here or not?”

Seeing Ren Xia Dong lost in the enchantment of his phone, Liu Sheng hurriedly nudged him. Ren Xia Dong came to himself, quickly stood up, and said, “Here!”

“What are you doing? You’re not paying attention on the very first day of class.” The counselor wasn’t truly angry; she was only teasing him.

Ren Xia Dong was no fool and naturally knew she was joking, so he replied, “It’s all your fault, Counselor Fang.”

“Mine?” she asked, a little puzzled.

“Yes. Who told you to be so beautiful? You had me completely entranced, so I didn’t hear you call my name properly.” Ren Xia Dong’s words made Liu Sheng admire him inwardly. In this day and age, who could be more shameless than Ren Xia Dong?

At the same time, the classmates all began to hoot and jeer.

Counselor Fang was clearly flattered sky-high by Ren Xia Dong’s words, and with an undisguised smile she said, “All right, all right, you silver-tongued boy. Sit down.”

After attendance was finished, Counselor Fang selected a few class officers. With a call of dismissal, everyone began saying, “That’s it? Class is over already?” “Exactly! My mother didn’t lie to me. She said college is all about having fun!”

In his heart, Liu Sheng thought, Don’t be happy too soon. When you start failing classes, you’ll know what real anxiety is.

Because there were more girls in the class, the girls dominated the class’s voice. They proposed that the entire class should have a gathering that evening: the girls would pay nothing, and the boys would split the bill.

The boys all protested, but the girls’ influence was too strong; there was no helping it, and every boy yielded in the end.

At noon, Liu Sheng went to the library. Looking at the books he would need for the next four years, all the knowledge was imprinted into his mind.

In the afternoon, bored, Liu Sheng went to the basketball court to play. Ren Xia Dong went to meet Tian Yun for a date, while Lao Jiu and Xiao Jia, under the pretext of studying, successfully followed along as lightbulbs.

Ren Xia Dong could be said to have seen countless women before, but for some reason, the moment he saw Tian Yun, he lost his composure. And since Liu Sheng had told him to approach Tian Yun as an ordinary person, he could not spend money extravagantly. Ren Xia Dong was truly somewhat at a loss, not knowing how to win Tian Yun’s favor.

He was also very grateful that Lao Jiu and Xiao Jia had come along, which made him feel less awkward. That afternoon, Ren Xia Dong took Tian Yun, together with Lao Jiu and the other one, to the movies.

During the film, Ren Xia Dong did not make a single improper move. He sat beside Tian Yun as rigidly as if standing at attention, not moving a muscle.

His feelings toward Tian Yun were entirely different from how he felt about others. He no longer put himself at the center of everything, and instead considered every matter from Tian Yun’s perspective.

The old Ren Xia Dong had never listened to anyone else’s opinions. Whatever he said was what mattered, and the other person had to do things according to his wishes. Otherwise, he and Lele would never have broken up.

After the movie ended, Ren Xia Dong and Tian Yun walked ahead side by side, while Lao Jiu and Xiao Jia followed behind without saying a word. At that moment, the two of them deeply regretted coming out with them; the dog food they had been force-fed was more than enough to make them full.

“Ren Xia Dong! You made us eat dog food all afternoon. How about treating us to some proper people food tonight?” Lao Jiu asked a little resentfully.

Ren Xia Dong suddenly remembered that there was a class gathering that night, and said, “No. Our class is having a gathering tonight. Tomorrow night I’ll let you eat your fill. We’ll go spend money at the most expensive place in the mountain city...” As he said this, Ren Xia Dong suddenly stopped, remembering that Liu Sheng had told him to pursue Tian Yun as an ordinary person. So he quickly added, “We’ll go spend money at the most expensive place in the mountain city. Liu Sheng’s treating. He’s a textbook rich second-generation heir, and his family is in the restaurant business. The biggest hot pot restaurant in Harbor City belongs to his family.”

Xiao Jia hurriedly said, “Oh, I never would have guessed Liu Sheng was so rich. Then tomorrow we’ll have to fleece him properly!”

Just as Xiao Jia and Lao Jiu were rejoicing, Tian Yun spoke up. “Harbor City... I only knew you were from the north. I didn’t expect you to be from Harbor City. Our homes aren’t far apart. I’m from Yi Province City, next door to Harbor City.”

Hearing that Tian Yun was from Yi Province City, Ren Xia Dong felt she was drawing closer and closer to him. Scratching his head, he quickly said, “Really? What a coincidence. Liu Sheng and these two lightbulbs are all from Harbor City.”

On the way back, the four of them took the bus. Because it was so crowded, none of them had a seat.

As the bus moved forward, Ren Xia Dong saw Tian Yun struggling to keep her balance. Gathering his courage, he drew her into his arms. Tian Yun was startled by the sudden embrace, then looked up at him. Ren Xia Dong hurriedly lifted his head as well, pretending not to know anything at all, but he still had no intention of letting go.

Tian Yun said softly, “Honestly, I never thought I’d see you again, because the first time left such a bad impression on me. I thought you were just a scoundrel, and your intentions in trying to get close to me were far from pure.”

Ren Xia Dong’s expression immediately turned a little flustered. He wanted to explain, but Tian Yun went on, “If you hadn’t been so shamelessly persistent in asking me out, I really wouldn’t have thought of seeing you again.”

“Then do you accept me now?” Ren Xia Dong asked, a trace of joy surfacing in his voice, though a trace of worry remained as well, fearing she might reject him.

Tian Yun thought it over, then said softly, “We’ll see how you do. I can give you one chance to pursue me. Remember, only one.”