Su Bai's mission must be completed seriously

【Crispy Goose: Watching anime tonight?】

【Yuxie: Nope!】

【Yuxie: Rest and recuperation!】

【Yuxie: [Cat peeking]】

Looking at the emoji Chen Yusheng sent on his phone, Su Bai couldn’t help but chuckle.

It was as if he could see Chen Yusheng’s conflicted expression—wanting to cling to him but having to hold back due to physical reasons.

Truth be told, freed from the pressure of her mother’s illness, Chen Yusheng’s mental state had relaxed, revealing more of her youthful, lively nature.

A person’s personality is always shaped by their environment. Under heavy burdens, the lighter, more beautiful qualities often struggle to shine through.

【Crispy Goose: Then play games with me tonight】

【Crispy Goose: Almost forgot your main job is being a gaming companion…】

【Yuxie: [Cat nodding frantically]】

【Yuxie: I wanna play too!】

Lately, the balance between outdoor activities and lab work had tipped too far for Chen Yusheng, a self-proclaimed homebody.

It was time to recharge her "homebody energy" by gaming in the dorm.

Speaking of which, Chen Yusheng no longer had to sneak around when gaming in the dorm.

After all, everyone knew about her relationship with Su Bai.

Jiang Qiuran had even officially started acting submissive around her…

Well, based on Su Bai’s assessment of Jiang Qiuran’s current personality,

seeing them duo-queue sweetly in games probably gave the girl some strange sense of pleasure.

Just thinking about how the usually sociable, cheerful beauty had such a quirky side in private made Chen Yusheng hum smugly.

Ah, it’s all because my Crispy Goose is just too charming, heh.

---

After eating at the second-floor cafeteria, Su Bai and Wang Haoran returned to the dorm.

They found the balcony door of Room 510 shut.

Xue Tao was inside, talking on the phone, scratching his head like a monkey.

"What’s the local boy up to?" Su Bai asked Chu Mingzhe.

Chu Mingzhe sighed dramatically: "Ah, the collision of pre-modern familial constraints with post-modern Foucauldian deconstructionism, birthing a Lacanian tragedy of interpersonal relations…"

"???" Su Bai was baffled. "Dude, speak human, will you?"

"Oh, right. Basically, Xue Tao cheated, and Liu Yuanyuan found out."

Su Bai: … (sweat emoji)

Never understood you artsy types.

With Chu Mingzhe’s current vibe, he should grow his hair out and dress in Yamamoto-esque avant-garde fashion to complete the look.

Still, Su Bai was surprised Xue Tao had cheated so soon.

Not that he thought Xue Tao was above it—Su Bai always assumed the worst of people.

Human hearts are as deep and unpredictable as the ocean.

Kids who grow up independent often encounter the darker sides of human nature earlier in life.

The real question was—shouldn’t Xue Tao still be in the honeymoon phase with Liu Yuanyuan? Wait, given Xue Tao’s track record, they probably hadn’t even kissed yet.

Xue Tao had bragged to the guys that they’d kissed and he occasionally got handsy.

But the guy was a notorious exaggerator.

So, safe to say—no kiss.

Xue Tao fancied himself a hunter in the dating scene—after all, he drove a Magotan as a freshman and owned four local properties.

In his mind, breezing through a few romantic flings in undergrad was child’s play. Total domination!

But reality?

His first "prey" wasn’t even secured, and he’d already cheated?

Kinda hilarious.

Wang Haoran asked a slightly savage question: "Wait, a girl actually agreed to help him cheat?"

"…Well, that night at Tianrong Ancient Town, we went to a bar with those hanfu girls and got acquainted."

"Got it!" Su Bai nodded. "So Local Boy scored?"

"He took one of them to Haidilao for round two. What happened after? No clue."

"And you?"

"…"

"Never mind, if it’s too embarrassing—"

"Nah, it’s whatever. I got wasted, passed out, and woke up at dawn when the bar was closing… At least my phone wasn’t stolen."

Chu Mingzhe looked relieved, as if he’d narrowly escaped disaster.

Given his low opinion of locals’ integrity in Jiangcheng, making it back unharmed with all belongings intact was a small miracle worth celebrating.

But Xue Tao wasn’t so lucky.

Apparently, one of Liu Yuanyuan’s friends had also been at a bar in Tianrong District that night.

They even ended up at the same Haidilao afterward.

While eating, the friend overheard Xue Tao at the next table complaining nonstop about Liu Yuanyuan.

She took a photo and sent it to Liu Yuanyuan.

Thus, Xue Tao’s bar-hopping flirtation was dramatically exposed to his girlfriend.

"Classic Xue Tao," Su Bai quipped.

His inner gossip-monger stirred, but barging onto the balcony to eavesdrop was too much.

So he messaged Chen Yusheng on QQ: "What’s Liu Yuanyuan up to in the dorm?"

【Yuxie: ?】

【Yuxie: Why the sudden interest in her?!】

【Yuxie: [Cat hissing]】

【CrispyWhiteGoose: Don’t get defensive, I just want some tea.】

【CrispyWhiteGoose: [WhiteGoose_ThisTeaIsSweet]】

Su Bai told Chen Yusheng all about Xue Tao’s situation.

Chen Yusheng listened with great interest.

And of course, couldn’t resist throwing in some sharp commentary.

【Yuxie: Why is your dorm full of scumbags?】

【CrispyWhiteGoose: ???】

【CrispyWhiteGoose: How are they all scumbags?】

【CrispyWhiteGoose: How dare you slander us like this!】

【CrispyWhiteGoose: [WhiteGoose_Overheated]】

【Yuxie: Well, Xue Tao, for one. And you too. Then there’s Chu Mingzhe—first he had a crush on me, then switched to Jiang Qiuran, and now he’s apparently flirting with some girl from the law school…】

【CrispyWhiteGoose: Okay, fair.】

【CrispyWhiteGoose: But at least my boy Wang Haoran is innocent!】

【Yuxie: He’s got a harem of 2D waifus—he’s a scumbag too. Dorm 510 is just a den of villains, huh? Teehee~】

They bantered back and forth for a while.

But in the end, Chen Yusheng didn’t get any juicy gossip.

Mainly because Yusheng wasn’t exactly the social type.

Asking her to subtly probe Liu Yuanyuan for info? Not happening.

After a moment’s thought, Su Bai opened QQ and messaged Jiang Qiuran’s alt account, ASUka.

【CrispyWhiteGoose: Find out how bad the fight between Liu Yuanyuan and Xue Tao got. ASAP!】

【ASUka: Yes, MaSter~】

Dorm 2, Room 321.

Jiang Qiuran was lying in bed, scrolling through her phone and about to take a nap.

Suddenly, her whole mood brightened!

A radiant smile spread across her face.

Su Bai in domineering CEO mode? Yes, please.

Glancing at Liu Yuanyuan sulking by the balcony below, Jiang Qiuran immediately climbed down from her bed to chat her up.

Whatever Su Bai asked for, she’d make sure to deliver flawlessly.