Standard Rooms Sold Out, the Ultimate Tug-of-War over the King-Bed Suite

Zhou Yu stuffed the last piece of grilled oyster into Dania's mouth, and just as he took out his terminal to scan the code, a gust of wind blew the receipt away without a trace.

Dark clouds loomed overhead, and the sound of the waves was muffled, like war drums.

Lu Hesi's distorted voice exploded from the car's loudspeaker.

"All students, immediately take refuge in the hotel lobby!"

Zhou Yu led Dania by the hand, while Sigelica followed behind, carrying the riot shield that was even more conspicuous than herself. The three of them rushed into the chaotic lobby.

Principal Lupa was leaning against the front desk, and the front desk staff's faces were even darker than the sky outside.

"Sorry, the system shows that Preparatory Class 3... has missed booking one room."

He typed away, cold sweat pouring down his face, "There's only one penthouse suite left, two thousand Star Coins per night."

Linnai stood beside him, covering her mouth, her shoulders trembling like a duck just pulled from the water.

Aimis bumped into her, while Chisaki calmly adjusted her glasses. A line of small text appeared on the tablet screen: [Curve of Increased Probability of Intimate Behavior Due to Unexpected Events].

Zhou Yu threw the soaking wet canvas bag onto the marble countertop with a dull thud.

He tapped on the table.

"You're making the guests bear the losses because of the hotel's mistake?"

Zhou Yu pulled up her terminal and directly opened the dial pad for the tourism bureau's complaint hotline. "According to Article 8 of the Consumer Rights Protection Law, you not only have to upgrade for free, but also issue a written apology. Do you need me to read your prepared statement for you?"

The receptionist looked at the number, immediately bent down to work, and completed the check-in process in no time.

Aimis whispered in Linnai's ear.

"Brother Yu's reverse wool-gathering technique is more valuable than my idol's autograph."

Lu Hesi strode over, his gaze behind his gold-rimmed glasses chillingly cold.

"College rules state that male and female students are not allowed to live together." He looked at Zhou Yu. "This room is for Sigelica and Dania."

Sigelica nodded immediately, holding up her riot shield as if she had found her people.

"Doctor Lu is right!"

Zhou Yu pulled a crumpled A4 sheet of paper from his pocket and slapped it in front of Lu Hesi.

"Article 4 of the Logistics Department's Emergency Response Plan states that core combat personnel have the highest priority in terms of accommodation." He pointed to the flamboyant signature on the paper, "Principal Lupa personally approved it yesterday; the ink is still warm."

Not far away, Lupa picked up her teacup, turned gracefully, and admired the storm outside the window.

Director Moning came over with a cup of coffee.

"Zhou Yu, stop making excuses!"

Zhou Yu flipped the paper over, revealing the headline on the back. "Final Ultimatum Regarding the Settlement of Overtime Pay and Consumable Losses in the Logistics Department Years."

He looked directly at Moning.

"Director, would you like to check the accounts now? I brought a calculator." Moning, holding her coffee cup, walked down the corridor without looking back, her back clearly saying, "Don't bother me."

Sigelica panicked and reached out to grab Dania.

"Yaya, come with me!"

Dania, however, reacted like a startled cat, grabbing onto the Roman column in the lobby that was thicker than her waist.

Dania: (Ĭ^Ĭ)

"I'm a light sleeper! I want to stay with Xiao Yu!"

Sigelica stomped her foot in anger.

"Is that a problem with the bed?"

Dania buried her face behind the cold stone pillar, with only a small tuft of pink hair stubbornly swaying outside.

Zhou Yu waved the room key in her hand and left a message for Lu Hesi.

"Respecting patients' core needs is a fundamental quality of medical professionals."

After saying that, he led Dania towards the elevator.

Lu Hesi watched the two figures disappear into the distance, then glanced at Sigelica, who was standing frozen in place clutching her shield, and adjusted his glasses.

"There's a spare room for faculty members next door; you can stay there."

Sigelica breathed a long sigh of relief, deeply moved.

"Doctor Lu, you are such a good person."

Linnai whistled, Aimis her into a hug.

"A lone man and a lonely woman living next door, how about we consider settling Xixi's debts with our bodies?"

Sigelica raised her riot shield and hurled it at them.

"I am a debtor with dignity!"

Chisaki's sweet, childlike voice rang out softly.

"According to data models, the incidence of Stockholm syndrome will increase by 37.8 percent under the combined influence of debt stress and confined spaces."

Sigelica covered her ears and rushed into the elevator.

Zhou Yu swiped open the door to the penthouse suite, and the motion-sensor light turned on immediately.

A huge circular waterbed, translucent pink gauze curtains, and a full-length mirror on the ceiling.

Dania's face instantly turned red to the roots of her neck, and she hid behind Zhou Yu, too afraid to go any further.

Zhou Yu tossed the canvas bag into the corner, walked straight to the bed, and pressed the control panel. The waterbed immediately began to vibrate, and ambiguous saxophone music flowed from the stereo, while the bedside lamp flashed pink light.

He frowned and turned off all the switches.

"That's so over-the-top."

He opened the minibar, saw the mineral water priced at fifty stars per bottle, and then promptly closed it again.

"Damn it, are you trying to rob me?"

Zhou Yu turned around and looked at Dania was still twisting the hem of her clothes at the door.

Go take a shower.

Dania ran into the bathroom clutching her little yellow duck pajamas, and soon the sound of running water and her exclamation filled the air.

"Xiao Yu, the shower gel here is rose-scented!"

"Use your own! And use new towels too!" Zhou Yu took out twelve unopened bottles of mineral water from his canvas bag and arranged them in a straight line on the huge waterbed, bottle mouths to bottle tails, fitting together perfectly.

He then pulled out a stack of sticky notes and labeled each bottle: [Crossing is strictly prohibited][Fire of 100 yuan][Deduction of perfect attendance bonus].

Zhou Yu:(ㅍ_ㅍ)

"Physical isolation, perfect."

He sat cross-legged on one side of the bed, the waves of the waterbed making him sway, then opened his laptop and began writing a guide to bargaining at the seafood market for tomorrow.

The sound of water stopped, and Dania's voice came through the door.

"Xiao Yu, where's the hairdryer?"

Turn on the air conditioning in the left drawer of the sink.

Zhou Yu didn't even look up.

Half an hour later, the bathroom door opened.

Dania came out wearing a rubber duck onesie, her wet hair draped over her shoulders, and her bare feet on the carpet.

She walked to the bedside and looked at the row of mineral water bottles covered with parking tickets.

Dania: (Ծ‸Ծ)

"Xiao Yu, what's this?"

Zhou Yu pulled out the book "Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Self-Discipline" that he had taken from Moning's office from under his pillow and opened it to the first page.

"The Chu River and Han Border."

He pointed at the bottle, "Tonight, anyone who crosses the line will be punished by cleaning the logistics warehouse for a month."

Dania pouted as she climbed onto the bed, burrowed under the covers, leaving only her large eyes peeking out as she stared at the mirror on the ceiling.

The only sounds in the room were the rustling of pages turning and the increasingly loud wind and rain outside the window.

She rolled over, causing the waterbed to shake violently, and Zhou Yu almost dropped the book in her hand.

"Don't move."

"This bed is too soft."

She muttered softly, then asked curiously, "What book are you reading?"

"Identifying and Resisting the Sugar-Coated Bullets of Capitalism."

"Oh."

Dania closed her eyes, then opened them again after a few minutes, pointing to a pink box on the bedside table. "Are there candies in there?"

Zhou Yu looked in the direction she was pointing, and after seeing the words on the packaging, she immediately covered her face with the book.

"Those are tools that adults use to improve their sleep quality."

Can I have one?

Zhou Yu closed the book and reached out to turn off all the lights.

"Sleep."

The room was plunged into darkness.

Ten minutes later, a slight rolling sound was heard.

Zhou Yu opened her eyes and, by the light of the lightning outside the window, saw a mineral water bottle labeled "[Fines 100]" roll onto the carpet.

He didn't move.

Another minute later, the bottle labeled "[Deduct from perfect attendance bonus]" also fell down.

He turned his head and saw the figure in the little yellow duck pajamas, wriggling little by little towards the center like a caterpillar.

Water bottles kept falling, and half of Dania's body had already crossed the former "borderline".

Zhou Yu:(≖_≖)

Didn't you see the label for the perfect attendance award?

Dania stopped moving, closed her eyes, and pretended to be dead, breathing lightly and evenly.

Zhou Yu sat up and looked at her trembling eyelashes.

Stop pretending.

Dania opened one eye and defiantly arched forward again.

"It's drafty here, I'm cold."

"A central air conditioning system at 26°C isn't cold at all."

I don't care!

Dania lunged at him, wrapping her arms tightly around his waist and her legs around him.

Zhou Yu's body stiffened, his hand hovering in mid-air, before finally landing helplessly on her trembling back.

Her heart pounded against his chest, each beat striking through the thin fabric.

Dania buried her face in his chest, her voice muffled.

Dania: (⁄⁄>⁄ω⁄<⁄⁄)

"It's draft-free now, and it's so warm."

Article 3 of the employee handbook states that unauthorized use of a superior's private space will result in a public reprimand.

Dania rubbed against her.

"I accept the punishment."

She whispered, "As long as I can have crab roe buns tomorrow morning."

"If you don't get seafood porridge, I'll deduct your salary."

"Good."

The thunder outside the window gradually faded into the distance.

Zhou Yu closed her eyes, just about to fall asleep.

[Warn.]

[The resonance frequency of Aleph One is approaching.]

He didn't even open his eyes; he mentally rejected the call.

It's really rude of the gods to make harassing phone calls in the middle of the night.

Zhou Yu yawned and pulled Dania closer to him.

Even if the sky falls, we'll talk about it after breakfast.

Aleph One's signal flashed twice before being forcibly cut off.

Dania smacked her lips in her sleep, mumbled "roasted shrimp," and hugged him even tighter.

Zhou Yu adjusted his position, pulled the blanket over her, and thought to himself, "Tomorrow, there will be plenty of grilled shrimp."

Outside the hotel, the torrential rain and wind that had lasted for half the night stopped without warning.

The sound of waves, the sound of the wind, all sounds vanished in an instant.

On the beach, a cloud of black mist seeped from the damp sand, coalescing into the outline of a human figure.

Wherever it goes, the seaweed and shells in the sand wither instantly and turn to ashes.

A red light rose from the fog, fixing its gaze on the only window on the hotel's top floor that was dimly lit by an emergency light.