Font Size:
Read advanced chapters at Shanghaifantasy.com
Although Wang Sasa was living in the dormitory, she didn’t have much interaction with her three other roommates, aside from Tan Yixuan. The three of them were smart enough to know that Wang Sasa didn’t like them, so they avoided doing anything to annoy her in front of her. However, living together meant they still had to cross paths occasionally.
One evening, Wang Sasa returned to the dormitory to find Zhang Yu and the other two whispering together. Wang Sasa had gone out for a late-night snack, leaving Tan Yixuan to return first. At this moment, Tan Yixuan was sitting on the top bunk, quietly memorizing vocabulary.
Zhang Yu and the other two were loudly gossiping about Wei Qi. One of them was facing the door and, upon seeing Wang Sasa walk in, immediately stopped talking and tugged on the sleeves of the other two.
Wei Qi was the school heartthrob, with countless admirers. Wang Sasa was the most famous of them. Talking about Wei Qi inevitably led to mentioning Wang Sasa and Tan Yixuan. Earlier, with Wang Sasa absent, the three only dared to drop hints while gossiping about Tan Yixuan.
Tan Yixuan ignored them. As they chatted away, it became boring when neither of the subjects of their gossip responded. So they switched targets and began talking about another roommate.
“Do you think Wang Shasha really doesn’t like Wei Qi anymore?”
“Doesn’t like him? Why?”
“Your information is so outdated! Hasn’t it been a while since Wang Shasha stopped trailing after Wei Qi? And it seems like she hasn’t been threatening anyone lately, either.”
As they chatted, Qi Nanlu suddenly frowned and said, “But ever since Wei Qi broke up with Yu Xiaowen, he hasn’t dated anyone. Didn’t I hear he likes someone else now?” As she said this, her gaze drifted upward to Tan Yixuan, who was sitting diagonally above her.
Upon hearing them mention Wang Sasa, Tan Yixuan froze in the middle of turning the page of her book. She calmly flipped to the next page, keeping her eyes glued to it, but her ears were now fully attentive.
Qi Nanlu noticed Tan Yixuan’s indifferent posture, as if she didn’t care at all. Pouting, she retracted her gaze and continued chatting with her roommates. “It’s strange though—Wang Shasha suddenly changed her ways and even became friends with *her*.” The identity of this *her* was something the three of them understood without needing to say aloud.
Zhang Yu crossed her arms and snorted, raising her chin. “You’re too naive. Wang Shasha is just laying low for now.”
She paused for effect, and when the other two looked at her with curious expressions, she continued, “I think someone’s giving Wang Shasha advice. Haven’t you noticed how Wei Qi’s attitude toward her has improved a lot? Just this afternoon, he even came to the classroom to find her. As for someone else…”
She deliberately glanced up at Tan Yixuan, smirking as she said, “Wang Shasha is only acting so close to *someone* to show off in front of Wei Qi.”
Jiang Qishan nervously glanced at Tan Yixuan and, recalling what she had seen earlier in the day, hesitated before murmuring, “Maybe… but I don’t think Wang Shasha is pretending…”
Tan Yixuan cast a casual glance at them, frowning slightly. She wanted to explain that this was all because of Wang Sasa’s second personality, but after thinking it over, she decided there was no need to explain and simply pressed her lips together in silence.
Wang Sasa noticed how animated their discussion was and shot them a sideways glance, curling her lips in disdain.
Originally, while Wang Sasa wasn’t in the dormitory, they had the courage to whisper. Now that the subject of their gossip was present, they didn’t even dare to mutter a word.
Wang Sasa walked over to her bed and sat down, crossing her legs and casting a sidelong glance at them with a faint smile. “Why did you stop?”
Zhang Yu forced a stiff smile and asked, “Stop what?”
“Continue gossiping,” Wang Sasa replied indifferently. “Start from where you said I was pretending…”
Zhang Yu’s face froze, her smile awkward, and she said nothing. Naturally, the other two didn’t dare say anything either.
Wang Sasa shrugged. “Want to hear the latest update?”
The three of them forced out awkward laughs, immediately scattering like startled birds to wash their faces. Wang Sasa shook her head, lifting her chin towards Tan Yixuan, who was sitting on the top bunk. “You don’t find them noisy?”
Tan Yixuan’s expression remained calm, seemingly unaffected by the disturbance, but she pretended to ask nonchalantly, “Aren’t you going to explain to them that you and Wei Qi are just ‘ordinary friends’?”
Wang Sasa wasn’t sure if it was her imagination, but it seemed like Tan Yixuan had placed extra emphasis on the words “ordinary friends.” She rubbed her temples and replied casually, “Don’t you know that explaining is covering up, and covering up means it’s true?” She turned over and lay lazily on the soft bed, letting out a big yawn. “Let them think whatever… Besides, there’s nothing certain between Wei Qi and me yet.”
What does *nothing certain* even mean? Tan Yixuan froze for a moment, wanting to ask more, but Wang Sasa had already closed her eyes, drifting off to sleep.
After a while, Tan Yixuan closed her textbook, placed it by her pillow, and climbed down from her bed to wash up. Seeing Wang Sasa lying there, ready to sleep, she couldn’t help but go over and nudge her shoulder. “Don’t sleep yet—get up and wash your face.” Her fingers brushed lightly against Wang Sasa’s cheek, almost unintentionally.
“Hm?”
Without even opening her eyes, Wang Sasa grabbed Tan Yixuan’s wrist. Tan Yixuan’s hands were cold, and Wang Sasa found the coolness pleasant, absentmindedly rubbing her wrist. Tan Yixuan stiffened at the contact.
Wang Sasa scratched her cheek and groggily opened her eyes, finding Tan Yixuan standing by her bed, staring at her in a daze. Wang Sasa couldn’t help but smile. “I almost fell asleep just now.”
Dorm life had finally settled into a routine for Wang Sasa. On the whole, it was peaceful, except for the fact that she didn’t engage much with her other three roommates. The three of them also avoided any major conflicts with her, though small frictions were inevitable.
After lunch, Wang Sasa and Tan Yixuan returned to the dormitory for a nap.
Zhang Yu and the others liked to chat even after the bell rang, which annoyed Wang Sasa. She frowned and cleared her throat loudly.
The three of them immediately fell silent, not daring to speak again.
After her nap, Qi Nanlu had a habit of eating some fruit—either an orange or a banana. Once she finished, she casually tossed the peel onto the dorm’s only table.
Wang Sasa, although lazy herself, couldn’t stand seeing others be as lazy as her, so she righteously scolded, “What do you think you’re doing throwing it on the table? Are you waiting for someone else to clean it up for you?”
Qi Nanlu opened her mouth, her gaze instinctively falling on Zhang Yu, who had a restrained expression. Gritting her teeth, she said, “I’ll throw it in the trash later.”
Wang Sasa nodded sternly, her face expressionless. “Good. Don’t do it again.”
Qi Nanlu rolled her eyes but quickly picked up the fruit peel and threw it into the dorm’s trash bin.
Zhang Yu and the others didn’t want to stay in the same dorm with Wang Sasa and her group, so they hurriedly packed up and left for the classroom.
Wang Sasa fixed her hair in front of the mirror and noticed that Tan Yixuan was about to change the trash bag. She raised an eyebrow.
The dorm leader of room 104 was Zhang Yu, but so far, it had already been two weeks, and no one had discussed cleaning responsibilities with her. Watching Tan Yixuan tie up the trash bag and prepare to leave, Wang Sasa asked curiously, “You did it last week too, right? Why is it still you this week?”
Tan Yixuan paused for a moment, her long lashes lowered, and she replied flatly, “It’s always been like this.”
Before Wang Sasa arrived, Tan Yixuan had been responsible for all the cleaning in the dorm. The dorm’s original trash bin had somehow disappeared, so after she couldn’t stand it anymore, she bought one with her own money. Her roommates each minded their own business, yet they continued to throw away trash without cleaning up.
Tan Yixuan had initially suggested rotating the cleaning duties, but Zhang Yu had refused. Zhang Yu’s reasoning was solid: “You bought the trash bin, so naturally, you should be responsible for the trash in it.”
Tan Yixuan had already been isolated in the classroom and didn’t want to be ostracized in the dorm too, so she gritted her teeth and accepted it.
Wang Sasa was stunned after hearing this. She glanced at Tan Yixuan, thinking she was truly an unfortunate and pitiable soul. Wang Sasa checked her watch—there were still over ten minutes before class in the afternoon, and the other roommates had already gone to the classroom. She waved at Tan Yixuan, signaling her to come over.
Tan Yixuan: “?”
Wang Sasa took the trash bag from her hands, pinched her nose, and opened it. Using her fingertips, she carefully sifted through the trash. A bag of a certain brand of chips belonged to Zhang Yu, a paper biscuit box was Jiang Qishan’s, and the remaining fruit peels were obviously from Qi Nanlu.
Wang Sasa stared at the trash for a few seconds, her face conflicted. After a moment, an idea struck her, and she held out her hand to Tan Yixuan. “Give me another trash bag.”
Tan Yixuan was bewildered but handed her another bag as instructed.
Wang Sasa took the bag, slipped it over her hand, and began to sort the trash through the plastic. Then, holding her nose, she slowly threw each piece of trash back in front of her roommates’ beds.
After she finished, Wang Sasa removed the bag from her hand, clapped her hands, and declared, “Job done!”
Tan Yixuan stared at her in shock.
Wang Sasa shamelessly said, “Why should you take out the trash they threw away? I just returned it to them, exactly as it was!” As she spoke, her gaze fell on the trash bin on the floor, and she muttered, “Should I throw this away too? Just so they don’t have an excuse…”
Tan Yixuan: “…No need to go that far.”
Wang Sasa nodded firmly. “Alright, I won’t throw it away. From now on, this trash bin belongs to the two of us. Only we can use it!”
Tan Yixuan opened her mouth, thinking about Wang Sasa’s use of the word “us.” After a moment, a small smile appeared on her lips. “Alright.”
The afternoon classes passed quickly, and after dinner, everyone returned to the dorm one after another. The door to room 104 was pushed open, and Zhang Yu and her roommates returned, laughing and chatting, until their eyes fell on the floor littered with trash, and their smiles froze.
“Zhang Yu, what’s wrong?” The other two noticed Zhang Yu standing frozen at the door, her face stiff, and they peeked inside. What they saw was a smelly dorm room, and they too were stunned.
Zhang Yu’s expression turned ugly as she looked between the trash bin and the floor. “What happened? Did a rat get in?”
Jiang Qishan stammered, “That can’t be, right? I’ve never heard of rats around here.”
Qi Nanlu carefully avoided the trash and looked around the room. “We’d better check to make sure no rats are hiding. I heard last semester someone’s bed in the dorm next door became a rat’s nest.”
The three of them discussed it, but none of them thought to clean up the trash on the floor.
They had grown accustomed to having everything done for them and had no sense of responsibility for cleaning.
When Wang Sasa and Tan Yixuan returned to the dorm, the floor still looked exactly as it had when they left. Zhang Yu and the others glanced at Wang Sasa and Tan Yixuan before casually looking away.
Tan Yixuan frowned at their indifference toward the trash on the floor. Wang Sasa grabbed her arm and shook her head. Now it was a matter of patience—whoever broke first would lose the upper hand. If they spoke up first, they’d lose their advantage.
Tan Yixuan looked at Wang Sasa’s hand on her arm. Wang Sasa’s fingers were slender and delicate, perfectly proportioned, with soft pink fingertips free from calluses—hands clearly belonging to someone who had never done any manual labor. Remembering how Wang Sasa’s apartment was like a garbage dump, Tan Yixuan fell silent.
How could she have forgotten? Wang Sasa was someone who could live in a garbage dump without batting an eye.
Looking up at Wang Sasa’s resolute expression, Tan Yixuan sighed.
Although she didn’t want to live in a garbage dump—well, whatever… As long as Wang Sasa was happy.