Chapter 31

He Yirou no longer dared to easily trust Ji Yunchen. That’s right—the one who came looking for her was none other than the scumbag Ji Yunchen.

“Gu Nian got into Beijing University. I can take you there to find her. Believe it or not, this is your last chance. Go or stay—it’s your decision.”

Ji Yunchen had no other choice but to seek out He Yirou. He needed someone to handle matters for him. After thinking it over, He Yirou knew she couldn’t stay in that miserable, hopeless place any longer.

“I’ll go.”

Gu Nian was unaware of what was happening with He Yirou and Ji Yunchen. By then, she and Li Pandi had already arrived in Beijing. Since school hadn’t started yet, they had to stay at a nearby guesthouse.

It was already late at night, so after dinner, they went to bed. The next morning, Gu Nian told Li Pandi she was heading out—today, she planned to look for a house.

She wanted to buy a courtyard house (Siheyuan) so she could bring her parents and in-laws to live together. While she was checking out properties, someone suddenly called her name.

“Gu Nian.”

She turned around and saw two professors who had previously lived with her parents. She smiled and greeted them.

“Oh, Professor Qi! Hello!”

“We heard from your parents that you got into Beijing University—and as the top scorer, no less! You’ve really made them proud!”

Back in the village, the two elderly professors had relied on Gu Nian’s support to get by. They had always remembered her kindness.

After some brief conversation, Professor Qi learned that Gu Nian was looking to buy a house. He mentioned that he had a friend who was planning to sell a house and offered to take her to see it.

It was perfect timing—Gu Nian was thrilled and went along. Just as Professor Qi had said, his friend was moving abroad to be with his son and likely wouldn’t return, so he wanted to sell the house.

After some discussion, they agreed on a fair price, and with Professor Qi acting as a guarantor, they immediately went to the local office to complete the ownership transfer.

Gu Nian successfully acquired her first courtyard house. When Professor Qi and his companion invited her over for dinner, she promised to visit with her parents once they arrived.

After that, she sent a telegram to Jiang Huaijing, letting him know the house was bought and that he could bring the family over. Only then did she return to meet up with Li Pandi for dinner.

—-

In the following days, Gu Nian and Li Pandi explored Beijing. The day before school started, they packed their belongings in preparation.

Early the next morning, Li Pandi dragged Gu Nian to register. The university entrance was crowded, and Gu Nian was already exhausted, but luckily, Li Pandi helped her squeeze through the crowd.

After registering, they received their dorm assignments. Unfortunately, they weren’t in the same room, so they had to part ways. Gu Nian was assigned to Room 301 on the third floor.

When she arrived, one girl was already there. She had her hair in two braids and wore a patched-up blouse with faded pants. Upon seeing Gu Nian’s neat attire, she immediately greeted her.

“Hello, I’m Xu Qiuyun, an English major. What about you?”

“Hi, I’m Gu Nian. I’m also an English major.”

Realizing they were in the same program, they quickly started chatting, with Xu Qiuyun doing most of the talking and Gu Nian mostly listening.

Shortly after, two more students arrived—coincidentally, they were the same people Gu Nian had met on the train!

These two were from the same hometown: Ren Caixia and Hu Liping. Eventually, the other four roommates arrived as well.

Since they were all living together, they introduced themselves. Their names were Zhou Meimei, Liu Peiran, Qian Yixin, and Guo Lianxiang. Four of them were English majors, while the other four were in different fields.

On the first day, there wasn’t much to do, so everyone focused on unpacking. Seeing that Hu Liping had a lot of luggage and was struggling to organize it, Xu Qiuyun, who had the top bunk above her, decided to help.

But before she could touch anything, Hu Liping suddenly shouted, “What are you doing? Put my clothes down! Look at how dirty your hands are! Do you even know how much this dress cost?”

Xu Qiuyun had only wanted to help, but with everyone watching, she felt embarrassed.

“I didn’t mean anything by it—I was just trying to help you tidy up.”

“No thanks. I don’t need your help.”

Hu Liping rejected her bluntly. Xu Qiuyun, feeling awkward, silently climbed back into her bed. She couldn’t help but feel self-conscious—if her mother hadn’t insisted she take her brother’s place in the countryside, she wouldn’t have gotten so tanned.

The other roommates felt that Hu Liping was a bit too much. To lighten the mood, Zhou Meimei and Liu Peiran invited Gu Nian to eat at the cafeteria.

The cafeteria was crowded since it was the first day. Gu Nian only ordered boiled cabbage since she was trying to lose weight, but Zhou Meimei and Liu Peiran, thinking she was trying to save money, generously shared their braised pork and ribs with her.

Gu Nian returned the favor by sharing her cabbage, and just like that, a friendship was formed.

Later, she checked in on Li Pandi and found her chatting away comfortably with new friends, which reassured her.

—-

That night, as the eight roommates settled in, a new issue arose. When Xu Qiuyun took off her shoes, the strong smell filled the room, and Hu Liping immediately complained.

“Xu Qiuyun, how long has it been since you washed your feet? The stench is unbearable!”

Everyone nodded in agreement—the smell was overwhelming. Seeing how they all reacted, Xu Qiuyun felt even more self-conscious. She had noticed earlier that all her roommates were from the city, unlike her, a village girl.

Embarrassed, she quickly went to wash her feet, finally getting rid of the smell. But at midnight, another problem emerged—she snored.

The next morning, Hu Liping was furious. She woke Xu Qiuyun up and told her, “You were snoring, grinding your teeth, and even talking in your sleep! It drove me crazy!”

Xu Qiuyun blushed—she had no idea she had these habits. She could only apologize, and everyone eventually let it slide.

Meanwhile, Gu Nian had been staying in the dormitory for a few days when Jiang Huaijing arrived with her parents and the Jiang family elders.

She took them to her newly bought courtyard house. When Jiang Dashan and his wife saw how spacious it was, they were stunned.

After settling the four children, Gu Nian’s mother and Xia Hehua cooked dinner. During the meal, her mother pulled her aside and said,

“Daughter, at first, Aunt Sun was good at taking care of the kids, but lately, she seems absent-minded. One time, she even dropped Suisui and Jinzhao.”

“Also, ever since the baby’s full-month celebration, he hasn’t been gaining weight—he’s actually lost some. That’s why I had to tell you.”

Gu Nian figured that looking after four kids alone was overwhelming for Aunt Sun, so she decided to hire another nanny.

She quickly found one, recommended by Zhou Meimei, who had many local connections in Beijing. But as soon as Gu Nian hired the new helper, Aunt Sun’s attitude completely changed.