The Senior Wants to Take a Shortcut in Life

"Looking to rent an apartment?"

"Yeah, the dorm is a bit inconvenient. I'm planning to rent a place near campus."

Zhou Jialu nodded in understanding. Jiangcheng University had relatively relaxed policies, and it was common for students to live off-campus. As a senior, she was quite familiar with the situation.

"I'm in my fourth year now, and about half of my classmates live off-campus. With internships and some jobs being far away or even in other cities, renting makes things much easier. Of course, some also rent in the university's family housing area, usually for grad school prep."

"I see..."

"Hey, let me ask you something first—when you say 'renting,' do you mean it in the usual sense?"

Zhou Jialu figured that since Su Bai was clearly wealthy, his standards for renting would naturally be higher than the average student's.

For most students, renting was about peace and freedom.

Beyond that, things like decor, space, or living conditions weren’t major concerns—or at least, they couldn’t afford to be picky.

But Su Bai was different.

He had money to burn!

"Well, there is a slight difference," Su Bai admitted frankly. "My requirement is to live in the best possible place, preferably with staff to handle most of the upkeep so I don’t have to bother with it."

Renting a bare-bones apartment and furnishing it himself sounded like too much hassle.

If he were going to decorate a place, he’d rather wait until his wealth reached tens of millions and buy a luxury mansion to customize at leisure.

For now, renting a high-end place with the added perk of cashback on rent was the way to go.

After all, indulgence meant enjoying the present!

Zhou Jialu suggested, "Why not just stay at a hotel? You can get long-term monthly rates with discounts—usually 20% or even 30% off, depending on the brand and location."

"A hotel... not a bad idea," Su Bai mused, considering it.

He’d seen online stories about newly rich people who preferred living in five-star hotels.

He hadn’t tried it yet, but it sounded worth a shot.

Maybe book a few nights first to see how it felt.

He pulled out his phone, opened Meituan, and searched for luxury hotels near campus.

After browsing, the JW Marriott stood out.

Scrolling straight to the priciest options, he landed on the River View Executive Suite.

A spacious 94 square meters, with a lavish living room, bedroom, and bathroom.

It also included access to the hotel pool, gym, and executive lounge.

At ¥1,678 per night (a discounted rate due to the off-season; prices would spike during National Day), it cost more than many students’ monthly allowances.

Without hesitation, Su Bai booked it for a week.

The one-week limit was the maximum to trigger the indulgence cashback under his current system tier.

As his lifestyle grew more extravagant, the system would upgrade, raising the cashback cap.

[Ding! Host has booked a luxury hotel. Indulgent spending: ¥11,746. Triggering 10x cashback. Reward: +¥117,460!]

Su Bai paid openly in front of Zhou Jialu, making no effort to hide it.

Zhou Jialu’s heart raced.

He’d said he wanted to try the hotel before deciding on a long-term rental.

Did that mean he was considering living in the River View Executive Suite indefinitely?

That was insane.

Even with the off-season discount, a month would cost around ¥35,000.

Her sharp mind quickly crunched the numbers.

Her breathing grew uneven.

This was spending money like water—the dream boyfriend.

Even self-proclaimed heirs to billion-dollar fortunes rarely splurged like this.

College students were still students, after all; parents usually didn’t give them unlimited funds.

Especially with the recent economic downturn, even the wealthiest guys had tighter budgets.

In the rental market, shelling out a few thousand a month for a decent three-bedroom apartment near campus was already top-tier among students, enough to attract plenty of eager girlfriends.

But Su Bai’s budget was several times that.

There was a brutal elegance to it.

Imagine being his girlfriend—staying nightly in the Marriott’s River View Suite, sipping wine in the executive lounge while overlooking Jiangcheng’s skyline.

Then a dip in the pool before soaking in the lavish bathtub.

The only "cost" was letting Su Bai sleep with her... though that wasn’t even a cost, given his looks and build. He wasn’t a celebrity, but he was easily one of the most attractive guys in class.

Most men at his wealth level were either unfortunate-looking or middle-aged with beer bellies—disgusting to even think about.

With Su Bai, there were no such concerns.

For a moment, Zhou Jialu nearly caved. Why not just throw herself at him?

But a shred of pride held her back.

It wasn’t that she was unwilling—she just wanted Su Bai to feel her allure, to be so tempted he’d make the first move.

Deep down, she’d already decided: Su Bai was the man she’d waited years for, preserving herself just for him.

From now on, her natural charm would be reserved exclusively for him.

"Hey, are you free after dinner?" Su Bai asked.

"What’s wrong? Can’t bear to let your big sister leave?" Zhou Jialu licked her lips and batted her lashes.

"Come check out the hotel with me. Honestly, it’s my first time staying somewhere this nice," Su Bai said candidly.

"Wait, really? Your first time?" Zhou Jialu was surprised.

"Yeah. My family raised me with a ‘tough love’ approach—frugal and hardworking. Now that I’m in college, I can finally enjoy myself."

"Ohhh, that explains it."

Zhou Jialu suddenly understood why Su Bai seemed so low-key. Good upbringing.

Rich kids who grew up spoiled usually turned into useless heirs, incapable of handling family businesses.

Experiencing ordinary life and hardship bred empathy for employees and better decision-making.

That’s how it always went in CEO romance novels!

Her mind spun an elaborate backstory for Su Bai, fueling her infatuation.

As a senior, she’d already done internships and shed her naive student mindset. She understood society now.

Women at this stage often grew pragmatic fast.

Money truly changed lives—and was truly hard to earn.

Dating Su Bai would be a shortcut to a better life.

And who didn’t love shortcuts? Everyone had a lazy streak.