The boss's wife

"Of course we know," the three said in unison. "Around this time, he's usually helping out at the parcel pickup station next to campus."

"Oh?" Ouyang Xuanxuan seemed intrigued. "Could you tell me more about him?" she asked softly.

"Of course. Come in." The three ushered Ouyang Xuanxuan into their dorm room. "We know everything about our fourth roommate. We even know exactly how many moles he has."

"Ahem." Ouyang Xuanxuan blushed faintly and gave a soft cough.

"Sorry." Yang Weifeng scratched his head awkwardly. "I never know when to shut my mouth."

"Here, please sit." Sun Kai wiped a chair with his sleeve over and over before offering it to Ouyang Xuanxuan.

"Thank you." She didn't sit, though. Instead, her gaze settled on the small mountain of gifts and envelopes on the desk.

"These are Li Yichen's, aren't they?" Ouyang Xuanxuan bit her lip before finally asking.

"Oh... those... They're not his. They're... our eldest roommate's," Zhang Yong hurriedly said.

Yang Weifeng forced a smile that looked more pained than tears, then glared at Zhang Yong before saying, "Right, right. Don't get the wrong idea. Other people gave those to me."

"Oh." Ouyang Xuanxuan neither agreed nor disagreed. After a few seconds of silence, she asked, "Could you tell me about Li Yichen?"

"Of course." Yang Weifeng wiped away his cold sweat. "Our fourth roommate comes from rural Hebei. His family's so poor they can barely put food on the table."

"Really?" Ouyang Xuanxuan's heart trembled.

"Absolutely," Zhang Yong chimed in. "He won't even spend money on a side dish. He just gets rice and asks the cafeteria lady to pour some meat broth over it. That's his whole meal."

"And we've never seen him buy a single piece of clothing," Sun Kai added with a sigh. "A few days ago, I saw him come back with this huge tear in his T-shirt, and he still couldn't bear to throw it away."

"Yeah, his mom bought it for him when he started college. He usually can't even bear to wear it."

At that, Ouyang Xuanxuan's heart broke. The day she'd first met him rose before her eyes again.

"Are... are you okay?" Seeing a tear roll from Ouyang Xuanxuan's eye, the three were instantly at a loss. "Did we say something wrong?"

"No... no... Go on." Ouyang Xuanxuan wiped her tears and managed a faint smile.

Ouyang Xuanxuan had no idea how she'd made it out of the men's dorm building. Her chest felt tight.

As a pampered young lady, she'd never imagined Li Yichen lived like this. It wasn't pity she felt, but an urge to share his joys and hardships.

"I want... I want to see him." Ouyang Xuanxuan suddenly clenched her fists, her gaze turning resolute, then jogged toward the parcel pickup station.

Zhang Yong poked his head out the door to look around, then carefully closed it before asking hesitantly, "Do you think we made his life sound a little too miserable?"

Yang Weifeng rolled his eyes at him. "Women have a natural maternal instinct. We're helping him, not hurting him."

"He's right," Sun Kai agreed. "Didn't you see Ouyang Xuanxuan crying? If those two get together, they'll have us to thank."

"But..."

"No buts." Yang Weifeng waved impatiently and said, equally impatiently, "The game's started. Don't bother me."

There were quite a few people picking up parcels that day, and his senior, Wang Bo, happened to be unavailable. Li Yichen was run off his feet.

But he didn't notice the pair of beautiful eyes watching from a corner as he went in and out of the shop with a smile on his face.

"Ah." Li Yichen stretched luxuriously. "Finally, almost done."

The thought of earning another two hundred yuan that day made him incredibly happy, especially since he'd transferred the full twenty thousand yuan to Sister Wang in one go.

Although Sister Wang had offered to let him pay in installments without interest, he had to do the right thing. Since he had the money, even he would look down on himself if he insisted on paying in installments.

As for that twenty thousand yuan, it was, of course, the money Ouyang Xuanxuan had given him.

"I'll pay her back all at once when I've saved enough." Li Yichen did the math. If he lived frugally, he should be able to save enough in four or five months.

"Is anyone here?" Just then, a lovely voice came from outside.

"Oh, coming." The voice sounded familiar. Li Yichen answered, opened the door, and froze when he looked outside. Speak of the devil.

"What brings you here?" Li Yichen asked with a smile.

"What?" Ouyang Xuanxuan clasped her hands behind her back and said smugly, "Now that I've tracked down your hideout, am I not welcome?"

"Of course you are." Li Yichen scratched his head awkwardly, then gestured for her to enter. "Come in. It's a little cramped. I hope you don't mind."

"Mm." Ouyang Xuanxuan walked in, looking this way and that with fresh curiosity. "Not bad," she remarked casually.

"Are you helping out here to earn your living expenses?" she suddenly asked, turning to him.

"Mm." Li Yichen nodded at first, then shook his head.

"What's with the nodding and shaking your head?" Ouyang Xuanxuan pouted. "Are you trying to fool me?"

"Heh, of course not." Li Yichen reached for a stool and offered it to her.

It was an ordinary stool, with dust still on it. Embarrassed, Li Yichen was about to wipe it clean.

Ouyang Xuanxuan didn't seem to care at all. She snatched it from him and sat down.

"Wait... never mind..." Li Yichen smiled awkwardly.

"You still haven't explained what's going on." Ouyang Xuanxuan changed the subject, looking at him earnestly.

Li Yichen leaned casually against the counter and smiled. "I've been helping out at the Courier Station to earn my living expenses ever since it opened."

He paused, then continued when he saw how attentively Ouyang Xuanxuan was listening. "But now it belongs to me. I bought the business." A hint of pride entered his voice.

"Wow, you're amazing." Seeing that pride, Ouyang Xuanxuan suddenly felt happy and couldn't help clapping.

"Not really. It's nothing..." Li Yichen waved a hand bashfully. "You're the rich one. Even if I ran this shop for a hundred years, I couldn't afford your car."

"Don't say that," Ouyang Xuanxuan hurriedly replied. "My family bought that for me. You earned this through your own hard work. It's different."

Then she said a little enviously, "Actually, I really envy you. You can keep this shop going on your own, while I'm still spending my parents' money."

"Actually..." A flicker of gratitude crossed Li Yichen's eyes. "I bought the business with the money you gave me last time. I wanted to pay you back, but I thought I'd wait until I'd saved enough to repay it all at once."

"You can't do that!" Ouyang Xuanxuan said, pretending to be displeased. "That was compensation for your shirt."

"That shirt was only worth fifty yuan." Li Yichen smiled wryly.

"Hmm..." Ouyang Xuanxuan thought for a moment, then her eyes lit up. "How about treating that money as my investment in this shop?" she asked happily.

"You want to invest?" Li Yichen looked at her in surprise.

"Yes! We'll each own fifty percent." Ouyang Xuanxuan's eyes sparkled. "Oh... I finally have a business of my own! I can support myself without relying on my parents!"

Then, with her eyes shining, she pointed at Li Yichen. "From now on, you're the big boss."

Then she pointed at herself.

"And you're the boss's wife," Li Yichen blurted out.

Ouyang Xuanxuan blushed. "The second boss... Oh... you're taking liberties with me! Just you wait!" she scolded coyly.

"Help!"

Just then, a soft, slightly husky female voice came from outside. "Excuse me... can I still send a parcel?"