Only Flender and Zhao Wuji in the entire academy knew him.
He hadn't met anyone else.
The two of them walked toward the dormitories.
Oscar walked very slowly, much slower than usual, as though he were hesitating over something.
Ji Ye followed behind him without rushing him.
After walking several dozen steps, Oscar finally spoke.
"Um..."
"Hmm?"
"You and Rongrong... what's your relationship?"
Ji Ye glanced at him.
Oscar's face was a little red. He looked self-conscious, awkward, and uneasy.
Ji Ye's lips curved slightly.
Oscar was already interested in Ning Rongrong?
Was he afraid Ji Ye would steal his future girlfriend?
"We don't know each other," Ji Ye said, his tone calm.
"She came up to me on the road and struck up a conversation. When she found out I was coming to Shrek Academy, she eagerly offered to show me around."
Oscar's steps faltered.
Struck up a conversation?
Eagerly offered to show him around?
He'd known Rongrong for days, yet she'd barely even looked him in the eye.
"I... I see."
Oscar's voice sank, tinged with a disappointment he couldn't quite put into words.
He quickened his pace and walked ahead, saying nothing more.
Ji Ye watched his back, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly, but said nothing.
That was all it took to make him feel inferior?
The two of them crossed a small courtyard and came to a row of low buildings.
Oscar pushed open the door to one of them.
"Here we are. No one usually lives here, so you'll have to make do."
The room wasn't large. There was a wooden bed, a table, and a chair. The paper over the window had a hole in it, and wind blew through, stirring the dust on the table.
Ji Ye looked around and nodded.
"Pretty good."
Oscar stood in the doorway, watching him. He opened his mouth, then shut it again.
In the end, he couldn't hold back.
"Are you... really just here to audit classes?"
Ji Ye looked at him, a faint smile on his lips.
"What else?"
Oscar shook his head.
"N... nothing."
He turned and left, then looked back after a few steps.
"Dinner's in the main cafeteria. Don't go to the wrong place."
"Okay."
Oscar left.
Ji Ye closed the door, set his bundle on the table, and surveyed the shabby little room.
The wooden bed creaked. One of the table's legs was broken and propped up with a brick.
There was a hole in the paper over the window, and the paint on the doorframe was peeling off in patches.
"Good grief, this could give a school dorm a run for its money."
Ji Ye tidied up a little.
Evening came quickly.
He took a clean outfit from his bundle and changed. It was still a gray cloth robe, similar in style to the one he'd been wearing, but lighter in color, with a neater collar.
His hair still fell loose, with a few wisps hanging over his forehead. He looked a little more refreshed than before.
He glanced at himself in the cracked mirror and sighed.
Even more handsome.
When he stepped out, several people were just leaving the courtyard as well.
Tang San, Xiao Wu, Dai Mubai, Zhu Zhuqing, Oscar, Ning Rongrong, and Ma Hongjun were walking toward the cafeteria together, chatting and laughing.
Ning Rongrong was at the front, turning back as she walked to say something to Xiao Wu. She was laughing so hard she nearly doubled over.
She spotted Ji Ye first.
"Ji Ye! Over here!"
Ning Rongrong waved enthusiastically.
Ji Ye smiled faintly and walked over.
The others stopped, too.
Tang San looked at him and gave a small nod in greeting.
Xiao Wu tilted her head and looked him up and down.
Zhu Zhuqing glanced at him. Her gaze lingered on his face for less than a second before she looked away, but she unconsciously shifted aside to make room for him.
Dai Mubai folded his arms and studied Ji Ye with a hint of scrutiny in his eyes.
Oscar stood beside Dai Mubai, looking at Ji Ye with a complicated expression.
As for Ma Hongjun, he was too ugly to have any presence.
Ji Ye walked over and stopped in front of them.
"My name is Ji Ye."
"I'm here to audit classes. I hope we'll get along."
Tang San responded first.
"Hello, I'm Tang San, and this is Xiao Wu."
Tang San held out his hand, and Ji Ye shook it.
Tang San's hand was remarkably strong. His palm was rough with thick calluses, worn in by years of gripping things.
Xiao Wu peeked out from behind Tang San and waved with a cheerful grin.
"My name is Xiao Wu. The 'Wu' means dance."
Zhu Zhuqing's voice was soft.
"Zhu Zhuqing."
She said no more, her eyes settling on the ground.
Dai Mubai didn't introduce himself. He held his chin slightly high, looking at Ji Ye with an inscrutable expression.
Oscar gave a bitter wave.
"My name's Oscar. If you ever want a sausage, just come find me."
Ji Ye glanced at him, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly.
"Mm."
Ning Rongrong stood beside them with her arms crossed and a slight smile on her lips.
"What about me?"
Ji Ye glanced at her.
"You don't need to introduce yourself. I already know you."
Ning Rongrong smiled smugly.
"That's more like it."
"My name is Ma Hongjun," Ma Hongjun said, waving from the side.
"Mm."
The eight of them headed to the cafeteria together.
The cafeteria was at the academy's easternmost end, in a large one-story building. A wooden sign hung by the door, bearing the two crooked characters for "Cafeteria"—the handiwork of Flender, if ever there was any.
They pushed open the door. Inside was a spacious room with a single long table in the middle, large enough to seat more than ten people.
Food had already been laid out on the table: several large plates of dishes, a big pot of soup, and plenty of rice.
Ji Ye sat down first, choosing a seat slightly left of center.
Ning Rongrong sat to his left without hesitation.
Zhu Zhuqing glanced at Ning Rongrong, paused, then sat to Ji Ye's right.
With a girl on either side, Ji Ye was sandwiched between them.
Tang San and Xiao Wu sat on the other side, not directly across from him.
Oscar stood beside the table with his bowl in hand, frozen for two seconds. In the end, he sat across from Ning Rongrong.
Dai Mubai's expression darkened. He walked over to sit across from Zhu Zhuqing, but she didn't look at him once.
As for Ma Hongjun, he wedged himself between Oscar and Dai Mubai.
Dinner hadn't even begun, yet the tension around the table was already thick enough to choke on.
Ning Rongrong picked up her chopsticks. The first thing she did wasn't to eat, but to place a piece of red-braised pork in Ji Ye's bowl.
"Ji Ye, try this. It tastes pretty good."
Ji Ye glanced down at the meat in his bowl, then looked up at Ning Rongrong.
Ning Rongrong smiled at him.
Zhu Zhuqing said nothing, but quietly nudged the plate of greens in front of her closer to Ji Ye.
The plate had been closest to Dai Mubai, but after Zhu Zhuqing moved it, all he had left in front of him was a small dish of pickles.
Dai Mubai's face turned black as the bottom of a pot.
Oscar held a rib and took a couple of bites, but tasted nothing.
He felt too miserable to eat.
His gaze kept shifting between Ning Rongrong and Ji Ye. Watching how attentive Ning Rongrong was, he found the rib in his mouth more and more tasteless.
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