Dormitory Rules

After leaving the office, Bai Yuze decided to head to the dormitory building first to check out the layout of his room.

He walked along the path, contemplating his future plans. Since a peaceful life had already slipped through his fingers, he had no choice but to find a way to survive within the jagged cracks of this reality.

Soon, the dormitory building appeared in his line of sight.

"Whoa! The school is quite wealthy; this dormitory building is truly imposing."

Since it was currently the time for the opening ceremony, there was no one outside the dormitory. Just as Bai Yuze was about to step inside, his footsteps faltered.

He retracted the foot he had poised over the threshold and turned to walk toward the wall beside the main entrance.

Sure enough, there was a notice posted here as well, densely packed with many rules and tips.

[Dear students, as the dormitory building is currently undergoing renovations, please observe the following rules to avoid any unpleasant incidents.]

[1. The male floors are in the lower half, and the female floors are in the upper half. Unless there is an urgent matter, males are requested not to take the elevator to the female floors.]

[2. The janitor for the male floor corridors is male, and the janitor for the female floor corridors is female. Usually, janitors do not wear masks or hats. If you discover a janitor wearing a mask and hat, please do not leave your room casually to avoid confusion regarding their gender.]

[3. The janitors hired by the school have eccentric personalities. If you feel you cannot communicate with them in a friendly manner, please remain polite to them; ignoring them is the greatest form of respect.] Deepened in red ink (Ignoring them in every sense of the word)

[4. The janitor's duty is to keep the environment clean. If your dormitory room is somewhat dirty or messy, you may seek the janitor's help; they will not refuse.]

[5. You may only request help from a janitor if your room is in a dirty or messy state.]

[6. Janitors have no right to order students to help them; students are advised to put away their sympathy.]

[7. If you accidentally anger a janitor, please show them your mobile phone points and pay them a certain fee.]

[8. If you accidentally anger a janitor, please apologize sincerely and politely; they will not pursue the matter further.]

[9. Male janitors do not wander around at night, and female janitors do not wander around during the day.]

[10. Remember to lock your door every time you leave, and when you return, pay attention to whether there are any unusual changes in your room. Though the rules are strict, they are no match for the human heart.]

[Those who prioritize strength may do as they please.]

Bai Yuze let out a sigh of relief. Fortunately, he had suddenly remembered the matter of the rules. Since the shopping mall had its own rules, the dormitory building certainly had its own as well.

"The gender of the janitor is an important matter. It seems there are three types of janitors: one male, one female, and one with a strange gender."

Bai Yuze pondered the odd parts of the rules. The fact that different characters were used to describe the janitors' genders suggested their significant status within the dormitory.

After a moment of deep thought, Bai Yuze stepped into the dormitory building. The moment his foot touched the floor, he felt a prickling sensation all over his body, as if he were being watched by countless eyes.

"Hiss! This dormitory is a bit cold."

Bai Yuze walked quickly into the elevator and pressed the button for his floor.

The elevator rose slowly. As soon as the doors opened, Bai Yuze wore a bitter smile.

"What a coincidence? I ran into one as soon as I arrived?"

At the end of the corridor on this floor, a male janitor was mopping the floor. He noticed the movement of the elevator, glanced at Bai Yuze's position, and then continued with his work.

Seeing this, Bai Yuze had no choice but to bite the bullet and step out of the elevator. As luck would have it, his dormitory was right next to the janitor.

"Tsk! Talk about rotten luck!"

Bad luck was one thing, but as long as he didn't violate the rules, the other party couldn't do much to him. Therefore, he calmed his heart and tried his best to ignore the janitor's existence.

Without incident, Bai Yuze reached his dormitory door. He pushed it open and stood at the entrance, looking inside.

What met his eyes was a spacious single-occupancy room. It was equipped with a bathroom, bedroom, and kitchen, though the facilities were all quite basic.

Bai Yuze reached out to touch the shoe cabinet by the door. Strangely, the cabinet was extremely tidy and free of dust.

"New student?"

The janitor behind Bai Yuze asked. If it weren't for the fact that only the janitor was there, Bai Yuze would have thought he was hallucinating.

The janitor was still mopping the floor, but the problem was that the floor was clearly already clean.

Keeping the rules in mind, Bai Yuze did not engage with the person and continued to stand at the doorway, surveying everything in the room.

"Heh! A novice indeed."

The janitor chuckled, shook his head, and revealed a mouthful of yellow teeth. He unhurriedly pulled a cigarette from his pocket and lit it.

At this moment, Bai Yuze lowered his head and typed a string of characters on his phone. He didn't turn around, instead using his phone to communicate while keeping his back to the janitor.

[Mister, do you have a cigarette? Lend me one; I won't take it for free.]

"Hehe! Kid, got a craving? It's lucky you ran into me. If you don't mind, I'll give you this one I'm smoking."

The janitor smiled and placed the cigarette from his mouth into Bai Yuze's hand. The filter was already soaked with the janitor's saliva.

Bai Yuze was burned by the embers of the cigarette, but he endured the pain and moved his hand in front of him.

He picked up the cigarette with his other hand. Because no one was smoking it, it was about to go out.

"Good, just in time."

Bai Yuze stared at the cigarette in his hand and smiled, then flicked it into the room. A partially burned cigarette and some ash landed on the floor inside.

[Mister, my room is dirty. Could you help me clean it?]

Seeing his cigarette ruined by the brat in front of him, the janitor was about to lash out, but his body suddenly stiffened as if he had been possessed.

The cleaner replied blankly.

"Okay."

The cleaner then entered the room of Bai Yuze holding a mop, and Bai Yuze shut the door behind him; a moment later, the sounds of a struggle drifted from inside.

Before long, the room fell silent, and the cleaner walked out, though this time the cleaner was wearing a mask and a hat.

The other party left Bai Yuze's side without a word, carrying the mop, and once Bai Yuze saw that his room had been cleaned, he turned and walked back inside.

He lay on the bed, reflecting on what had just happened.

In truth, Bai Yuze had noticed something was wrong from the very beginning; the room was too clean, clean to the point of being abnormal, and even though the cleaner had already mopped the floor thoroughly, he continued to mop.

This proved that in the eyes of the cleaner, there were still unclean things present, and the fact that the cleaner had spoken to Bai Yuze for no apparent reason only confirmed this.

However, even though the crisis had been resolved, that sense of being watched still lingered, as if this dormitory did not welcome him.

Bai Yuze stood up, preparing to head to a furniture store to buy some items, and while he was at it, find a way to earn some points.