Dorm Assignments

Shui Bing'er was lowering her head as she sorted her new textbooks. Hearing this, she looked at him and said, "I don't think so. Although Auntie made an exception and accepted you, the girls' dormitory has its own rules. You'll most likely be assigned a room by yourself."

As soon as she finished speaking, Ling Shuang announced the answer from the podium.

"Wu Changkong, one room to yourself, in the independent dormitory at the end of the east side of the second floor of the girls' dormitory building."

A wave of voices immediately rose throughout the classroom.

Ling Shuang ignored them and continued reading. "Everyone else, four to a room. The specific assignments are as follows..."

She read through the list one name at a time. Whenever a name was called, a girl stood up and collected her dormitory key.

Shui Yue'er propped her chin up with both hands and looked at Wu Changkong longingly. "I'm so jealous of you. You get a whole room to yourself. You can do whatever you want, turn off the lights whenever you want, and no one will manage you or make noise."

"Unlike us, cramming four people into one room."

Xue Wu said, "What's there to envy? Just sleep with him."

As soon as she said that, Shui Yue'er giggled. "That wouldn't be impossible... No, wait! My sister would get mad."

Shui Bing'er suddenly turned her head. Her usually cool and composed face flushed red in an instant.

"Yue'er! Xue Wu! What nonsense are you talking about?"

"Hahaha, my sister's angry."

Xue Wu said, "She's obviously embarrassed."

Seeing Shui Bing'er's flustered and annoyed expression, Wu Changkong found her rather adorable.

An idea suddenly struck him, and he joked, "Any of you can come over. I like sleeping with everyone. It's too lonely by myself."

Shui Bing'er abruptly turned back and glared at him.

Her expression clearly said, Why are you fooling around with them too?

Shui Yue'er covered her mouth in disbelief. "Changkong, you've changed!"

Xue Wu raised an eyebrow. "Mm, you went bad on your first day at the academy. As expected of the class monitor—you learn everything quickly."

At that moment, Ling Shuang cleared her throat from the podium.

"Quiet down. Continue listening to the dorm assignments."

That afternoon, after the dorms had been assigned, Ling Shuang led the entire class to the dormitory area.

Shrek Academy's dormitory buildings stood beside Heavenwater Lake. They were three structures built of stone and wood.

Following the assignment list, Ling Shuang brought everyone to the doors of their respective rooms.

Wu Changkong's dorm was at the end of the east side of the second floor of the girls' dormitory building, a separate room isolated from the other dorms.

When he pushed open the door, Shui Bing'er, Shui Yue'er, Xue Wu, and Gu Qingbo happened to be standing next door.

Shui Yue'er was the first to react, pointing at Wu Changkong's door.

"Wow, we live next door to you!"

She skipped over to Wu Changkong and held out her right hand. "Mr. Wu, we're neighbors from now on. Please take care of us."

Wu Changkong extended his hand and shook hers. "Mm, please take care of me too."

"Eh, is your room bigger than ours?"

Shui Yue'er withdrew her hand and was already craning her neck to peer into Wu Changkong's room.

The next second, she let out a voice twisted with envy. "Wow, your bed is huge too."

Wu Changkong stepped aside so they could see the full layout of his room.

The independent dormitory was not particularly large, but its advantage was that only one person lived there.

Against the wall stood a single bed about four feet wide. Its frame was made from fine pinewood and covered with brand-new plain sheets.

There was a window by the head of the bed facing Heavenwater Lake. Opening it revealed the vast emerald waters of the lake and the rolling green mountains in the distance.

Across from the bed were a desk and a backed chair.

"It's too unfair for one person to get such a big bed."

"I heard Teacher Ling Shuang say that this room used to belong to an intern teacher."

"No wonder the bed is so nice."

"Enough. Let's look at our own room first." Shui Bing'er reached out, pulled her sister back, and pushed open the door next to it.

Wu Changkong followed them inside, his gaze sweeping across the room.

This four-person dorm was more spacious than he had expected.

Four beds were placed against the walls on either side. They were not bunk beds, but four separate single beds, each with a drawer cabinet at its foot.

A long table shared by all four stood in the center of the room, with four chairs beside it.

Four double-door wardrobes stood side by side against the wall near the door, each marked with its corresponding label.

"The conditions aren't bad." As soon as Shui Yue'er entered, she threw herself onto the bed by the window, then raised her head and declared, "This bed is mine!"

Xue Wu walked to the other bed by the window and casually tossed the bundle in her hands onto its foot. "Then I'll take this one beside it."

Gu Qingbo entered holding her bundle, chose the bed against the wall closest to the door, sat down quietly, and began taking out her bedding.

Shui Bing'er chose the last bed, facing Xue Wu across the aisle.

"Lay out your bedding first. Don't rush to chat."

Ling Shuang had appeared in the hallway at some point, holding a clipboard. "Before you move in, clean everything thoroughly."

"Dormitory cleanliness is also part of the assessment. Mop the floor clean, wipe the tables and windowsills until there's no dust, make the beds neatly, and fold the bedding into squares."

"I'll come inspect them. If you fail, do it again."

From the dormitories on both sides of the hallway came a unified response. "Got it."

Then came a clattering burst of people searching for mops and rags and fetching water. The entire dormitory building instantly became lively.

Wu Changkong returned to his private room and stood at the door, looking around.

Though his room was smaller than the one next door, the area he had to clean was no less than theirs.

The four people next door could divide the work: one wiped the table, one mopped the floor, one cleaned the windowsills, and one made the beds. He was alone.

He casually tied his silver-white hair behind his head with a strip of cloth, rolled up his sleeves, and got to work.

Back at Shrek Academy in his previous life, housekeeping and cleanliness had also been assessed. He was quite familiar with the process.

First, he used a feather duster to sweep away the cobwebs and dust in the corners and on the ceiling, then used a wet rag to clean the windowsills, desk, and wardrobe.

Shui Yue'er came over halfway through to borrow a rag. She saw Wu Changkong standing on the windowsill and wiping the frame of the highest window, a rag clenched between his teeth, his movements deft.

She stood in the doorway blankly for two seconds, then burst out laughing.

"Wu Changkong, the way you clean windows looks exactly like my dad when he wipes the plaque over our front door."

"Is that so? Does your dad work alone too, with no one helping him?"

"No, my dad just worries that other people won't clean it properly, so he insists on doing it himself."

"You really are a lot like my dad."

"Alright, my good daughter."

"Get lost. Stop taking advantage of me."

"You didn't come here just to watch me clean windows, did you?"

"No, what did I come here for again?"

At that moment, Shui Bing'er came out of the dorm carrying a bucket.

Seeing Yue'er standing before the neighboring door, she asked, "Did you borrow the rag?"