Report

Chapter 38: Report

"Ha ha ha." As the bizarre couple was led away by the railway police, waves of laughter erupted throughout the carriage. People in this era were generally still quite simple and honest. If not for that absurd case ruled on by a certain Judge Wang, people in the future would never have become so indifferent, mainly because they were afraid of getting dragged into trouble.

After the matter was resolved satisfactorily, Xue Chen thanked the skinny young man from earlier. After all, he had helped call over the railway police. Only then did he learn that the young man was also headed to Peking University, though he was majoring in computer science, unlike Xue Chen and Lin Ran, who were studying finance.

"To be honest, I don't even know whether this major is any good. My mom originally wanted me to go to Nanjing University, but the old man said my future was mine to decide. Sigh, once upon a time, Nanjing University was still my dream—!" A nostalgic expression appeared on the skinny young man's face.

The moment he finished speaking, everyone around him, who had previously looked fairly mild-mannered, suddenly felt their fists itching. They could not help wanting to hit someone.

Listen to that punchable tone. What did he mean by "once upon a time"? This was blatant showing off—

"Ahem, um... where's your seat?" Seeing that the skinny young man had yet to notice that everyone around him was already itching for a fight, Xue Chen could only change the subject to keep him from getting beaten to death.

"Huh? I'm sitting one row behind you. Oh, right, my name is Qi Yun. What are your names?" Qi Yun scratched his head.

Hearing his introduction, Xue Chen narrowed his eyes. "My name is Xue Chen, and he's Lin Ran."

The three of them chatted enthusiastically for the rest of the journey, and the several-hour train ride passed quickly. Once they left the station, they soon found the upperclassmen sent to receive them, since they were attending the same school. Following their directions, they boarded a bus that went straight to the university.

At the school gate, upperclassmen were already there to help them. Of course, Xue Chen and the other two were all strong young men. How could they possibly let delicate girls help carry their luggage?

After receiving their dormitory keys, they carried their own luggage to find their rooms. Since Qi Yun was not assigned to the same dorm as them, he said goodbye as well, saying they should get together sometime.

Xue Chen's dorm was on the second floor, an eight-person room. His bed was near the balcony, with a desk and chair beside it. Everything had been wiped spotless; it had probably been tidied up by classmates who arrived earlier.

Lin Ran's bed was in the middle, though it was an upper bunk. Still, the beds assigned to the two of them were fairly good.

After they had made their beds, the door opened from outside, and three boys walked in. At first sight, two of them looked at Xue Chen and Lin Ran with strange expressions, while the other, a smiling fellow, said, "Wow, this is incredible. The two new classmates are way too handsome. Looks like my dream of finding a girlfriend in college is probably going down the drain."

Xue Chen and Lin Ran looked up at the three newcomers and said, "Brother, you really know how to talk. I think you two are the real hidden talents. Don't make fun of us."

All three burst out laughing. One bespectacled boy pointed at the smiling boy in the middle and said, "Wu Liang, I always thought you had a silver tongue. I didn't expect someone else to be even better at flattery than you."

"I don't like hearing that. What do you mean, flattery? That's called being tactful. My dad got ahead so well at work by relying on that skill." Wu Liang refused to accept it, but he still turned to Xue Chen and Lin Ran. "My name is Wu Liang. The one with glasses is Kong Hui; he just happens to share a surname with Confucius. The smiling one is Xu Le. You can tell from his name that he has a pretty good personality."

"My name is Xue Chen, and he's Lin Ran. We were classmates in high school." Xue Chen was not coy about it and briefly introduced himself and Lin Ran.

"You were high school classmates? Then your bond really is something. Three years of high school, then four years of college... tsk, tsk, tsk. Even the seven-year itch isn't as deep as your feelings." Kong Hui and Xu Le both nodded with smiles, while Wu Liang even whistled. Clearly, they were all little troublemakers who lived to stir things up.

Click! The dorm room door was pushed open again, and a crowd of men and women, young and old, poured in. At the front was a middle-aged woman dressed in a bright red fur coat, her hair styled in the most fashionable rich-lady updo. Thick and thin gold chains hung around her neck, huge diamond earrings glittered from her ears, and a gleaming gold bracelet rested on her wrist. Covered in jewelry from head to toe, she had the unmistakable air of a nouveau riche.

The woman ignored Xue Chen and the other five outright. She inspected the dorm while fanning the air in front of her nose, as if the room smelled terrible. When she saw the upper bunk nearest the door, she frowned and began looking farther inside. Only when she reached Xue Chen did she force out a smile. "Classmate, could I discuss something with you? Look, my son is afraid of heights. How about you switch places with him? You're surely the kind of student who values friendship, right? You're an educated person. You wouldn't get angry over such a little matter, would you?"

"Not switching." What a joke. She had opened with moral blackmail. If it had been something else, he might actually have switched, but who was Xue Chen? He had returned after spending so many years in the business world. How could he possibly be that naive? When it came to moral blackmail, he had been doing it since before she was born. The way to deal with moral blackmail was to have no morals.

The woman's expression immediately darkened. "Why are you so heartless? Don't you understand mutual love and consideration? I really wonder how your mother raised you."

"Auntie, every bed has already been assigned. The school doesn't allow changes." Wu Liang's smile vanished as he spoke coldly. Kong Hui and Xu Le also looked displeased.

Xue Chen's face sank. "How my mother raised me is not for you to question. But I already know how your father raised you: shamelessly!"

"You little brat, who are you talking about? Believe it or not, with one phone call, I can have you thrown out of this school immediately. You won't even get a college diploma." The woman sneered, her gaze sharp.

"Oh my, how terrifying. I'm so scared. What, everyone, come take a look! A capitalist is trying to exploit the working people!" Lin Ran had already gotten angry when the woman insulted Xue Chen's mother. Hearing her threat, he immediately began shouting loudly.