Page 25

You had to protect your own eyeballs!

"You were really decisive..." Liang Zhisheng hadn't expected this beginner to be so quick, precise, and ruthless. "The first time I took out colored contacts, I spent an hour too scared to pinch them out. Oh, right, you shouldn't wear them that long the first time. Build up gradually until you get used to them, but even then, don't wear them too long. It's bad for your eyes."

"Thank you," Lai Yudong said gratefully.

As the saying went, luck was conserved. If a dorm had one roommate who was so considerate, then it was bound to have another who seemed less than friendly.

"Excuse me." Li Xu walked past them with a basin in his arms, heading straight out of the dorm. "Hurry it up. Don't disturb my sleep."

[This guy's got a pretty sharp temper]

[He's a rapper, they're all like that]

Most people would have been at least a little put off by his less-than-polite tone, but the two present were rather unusual. One was a sensitive master at reading the room; the other was an easygoing, gentle, and considerate male mom. Both immediately heard that Li Xu was reminding them.

Liang Zhisheng checked the time. "It really is getting late. You Shu, are you ready? Let's go to the bathroom together."

"Almost."

Lai Yudong pushed his packed suitcase into the corner, placing it beside the other three. He glanced over and saw an electronic keyboard lying there, though he didn't know who had brought it.

Whoever had gone to the trouble of carrying such a big thing to the show must truly love music.

Probably Xu An's, he guessed.

After washing up at the fastest speed of his life, Lai Yudong returned to the dorm with Liang Zhisheng. Their other two roommates had already crawled under their covers. Xu An was curled up facing the wall, while Li Xu rolled over to express his displeasure at being disturbed by the noise.

"Did they set their alarms?" Liang Zhisheng muttered quietly.

Xu An: "Mm."

Li Xu: "I did."

Liang Zhisheng: "..."

They were both awake, after all.

He went on, "What time did you set them for?"

A muffled voice drifted down from the upper bunk, sounding as though it might lose signal at any moment. "Ten... forty..."

Compared with the half-asleep Xu An, Li Xu sounded much more awake. "Mine's set for forty-five."

"You're both cutting it pretty close. Aren't you going to put on makeup?"

"Mm... no makeup..." Xu An's voice grew even fainter.

"I don't know how. Even if I did, I wouldn't bother. It's a pain in the ass."

Liang Zhisheng turned to the only roommate who hadn't answered. "What about you, You Shu?"

Lai Yudong shook his head. His suitcase contained only skin care products, no makeup, not even a bottle of liquid foundation.

Even a skilled housewife couldn't cook without rice. He wasn't even a skilled housewife, so he was better off abandoning any unrealistic fantasies sooner rather than later.

Liang Zhisheng heaved an exaggerated sigh of relief and joked lightly, "Great, our dorm doesn't have a single overachiever."

"You talk too much." Li Xu pulled his blanket over his head, his voice becoming muffled. "Are you done asking? I'm going to sleep."

"Sorry, sorry. We disturbed your rest." Liang Zhisheng picked up a piece of clothing and tiptoed over to the camera in the corner. "It's better to cover the camera while we sleep."

He smiled at the lens. "Good night."

[Liang Zhisheng sure knows how to interact with viewers]

[You can't convince me he isn't a male mom]

[Good night!]

[Shouldn't that be good morning? lol]

The clothing covered the lens completely, turning the livestream image a translucent black. In the quiet dorm, the sound of Liang Zhisheng climbing the ladder rung by rung echoed.

Lai Yudong stood quietly by the door. Only when Liang Zhisheng gave him an OK sign from the upper bunk did he press the switch on the wall.

The light vanished, plunging the dorm into darkness.

The hour hand on the wall clock pointed straight at six.

At ten thirty in the morning, the first alarm in Dorm 707 went off right on time.

The alarm had only rung twice before Lai Yudong woke instantly and shut it off. To avoid disturbing the roommates who wanted to get up later, he had set it especially quiet. By the time he had carefully changed into his newly issued Class F uniform, everyone else was still fast asleep.

There was no other reason he had gotten up a little early. He just wanted breakfast.

He didn't know how long this recording would last. If it dragged on like yesterday's, he had no desire to have his stomach growling with hunger in front of the whole country. It would be bad for both his face and his stomach.

[Is someone in Dorm 707 finally awake?]

[Seems like it, I heard something]

[Who got up?]

[My guess is Liang Zhisheng or Xu An]

[It's pitch-black, I can't see anything. The dorm next door turned on their lights ages ago]

[They covered the camera before going to sleep lol]

Only after Lai Yudong walked out of the dorm did he experience firsthand what the comments meant.

In the hallway, most dorm doors were either wide open or left ajar. Dorms like 707, with their doors shut tight and everyone sleeping with their heads down, were a minority among minorities. No wonder Liang Zhisheng had remarked that none of them was an overachiever.

Getting up early alone was nothing. More extreme things were yet to come.

Whether inside the dorms or in front of the sinks, some trainees were applying makeup before their mirrors. Powder puffs patted so quickly their hands left afterimages; contour was applied as though it were free, creating high nose bridges and deep-set eyes; and powder brushes shook out clouds of smoke.

But they were still a step behind. The true powerhouses had long since started styling their hair with curling irons and setting spray.

So competitive. Far too competitive.

Lai Yudong felt ashamed of his inferiority. In terms of grooming, he was only a little better than a male college student heading to an eight a.m. class without washing his hair. But though his heart was willing, his strength fell short, and he could only accept the reality that he had once again lost at the starting line.

Fortunately, the trainees who had risen early to do their makeup and hair were in the minority. Most had completely bare faces; otherwise, he would have faced public execution again.

When Lai Yudong arrived at the first-floor cafeteria, he smelled the food from far away. The fresh, natural aroma of wheat mingled with the rich fragrance of coffee beans, and his empty stomach felt a pang of hunger. Coming for breakfast had indeed been the right choice.