A Confrontation at the Dorms

“Our team’s greatest need is for talent like you, Senior Sister—someone who possesses both a deep understanding of business operations and a keen technical mind.”

Wu Junzhe’s words were delivered with such sincerity that Zhou Yi found herself genuinely moved.

Despite the pleasant feeling of being revered as a formidable figure by a junior, she was, after all, not a true academic prodigy. Should her pretense be exposed during project discussions, the repercussions would extend far beyond mere embarrassment.

“Alright, I’ll give it some thought,” she said, feigning a serious demeanor. She tucked the envelope away and turned to head back to her dormitory.

Unexpectedly, a sarcastic yet oddly familiar voice drifted from nearby. “Heh… Senior Sister Zhou’s reception business is truly bustling, it seems—even extending all the way to the girls’ dorm building?”

‘Huh?’

Zhou Yi frowned in irritation. ‘Was today some kind of auspicious day? One after another, they were blocking her path. Were they truly not going to let her return to her dormitory?’

Turning around, she realized it was Su Xiao. A slight scoff escaped Zhou Yi’s lips. ‘How truly fated,’ she mused, ‘to encounter this flamboyant peacock everywhere she went.’

Su Xiao stood a short distance away, her gaze fixed on Zhou Yi with an unmistakable glint of malice. Trailing behind her, Li Yanze clung to her side like a devoted pug.

“Move aside,” Zhou Yi stated, not even bothering to spare Su Xiao a direct glance. She merely turned sideways, intending to bypass her. “Good dogs don’t block the path.”

Incensed by Zhou Yi’s dismissive attitude, Su Xiao’s face flushed crimson. She deliberately stepped forward two paces, blocking Zhou Yi’s path, and elevated her voice.

“Oh, my~ Some people certainly possess excellent methods! No sooner do they finish a meal at a high-end restaurant with Senior Jiang Chen than they’re found down here by the dorms, entangled in a clandestine exchange with a math prodigy~”

She deliberately elongated her words, her gaze sweeping pointedly over the envelope clutched in Zhou Yi’s hand. “If Senior Jiang Chen were to discover this… how utterly heartbroken he would be!”

“N-no, it’s not like that…” Wu Junzhe’s forehead beaded with sweat as he frantically stammered, attempting to explain, but his urgency only rendered him more inarticulate.

At that moment, several heads subtly emerged from balconies above, eagerly leaning over to peer down at the scene unfolding below.

Zhou Yi, utterly disinclined to entertain Su Xiao’s provocations, simply crossed her arms across her chest. She settled in with an air of calm anticipation, waiting to see what performance Su Xiao would deliver next.

This display of composure only served to further incense Su Xiao. “Why are you so quiet, Senior Sister? Are you perhaps guilty of a bad conscience?”

Whispers from the upper floors now drifted down, growing audible.

“Oh, isn’t that Zhou Yi?”

“She always seemed so proper, yet who knew she could be so… engaging.”

“Tsk, tsk. I truly wouldn’t have imagined her to be entangled with various men.”

“Alas, no matter how handsome a man may be, he’s bound to fall for a woman like this sooner or later.”

Su Xiao, emboldened by the whispers, grew even more triumphant. She deliberately raised her voice, “Senior Sister, perhaps you’d like to share your secrets on how to simultaneously juggle two ‘male gods’?”

Standing nearby, Li Yanze, hearing Su Xiao’s increasingly sharp tone, couldn’t help but intervene. “Xiao Su, please don’t be like this…”

“You shut up!” Su Xiao snapped, her eyes flashing venomously at him. “You’re more hindrance than help! Is this really your place to speak?”

Under the sudden admonishment, Li Yanze immediately deflated, meekly falling silent and daring not to utter another sound.

Zhou Yi observed the pair—one eager to inflict, the other willing to endure—and felt a profound sense of helplessness. Li Yanze, she mused, truly lived a life of unparalleled subservience.

Yet, Su Xiao, interpreting Zhou Yi’s silence as cowardice, pressed her attack. “What’s the matter? Did I hit too close to home? You dare to do it, but not to admit it?”

The more composed Zhou Yi appeared, the more infuriated Su Xiao became. ‘What on earth could Senior Jiang Chen possibly see in this woman?’

Listening to the faint murmurs from her surroundings and Su Xiao’s increasingly venomous taunts, Zhou Yi found herself feeling rather amused.

She wasn’t a genuine senior sister to begin with, and the item Wu Junzhe had delivered was merely a formal invitation. Furthermore, there was absolutely nothing between her and Jiang Chen, nor could there ever be. Explain herself? She had no such intention.

Meeting Su Xiao’s aggressive stare, Zhou Yi offered a faint smile. “Guilty? That particular word, uttered by you, strikes me as especially amusing.”

Su Xiao froze, her expression instantly darkening. “What exactly do you mean by that?”

“It means…” Zhou Yi said, calmly picking up her phone and idly toying with it. “Given such a thrilling plot, why don’t you simply call Jiang Chen directly and inform him?”

She no longer wished to waste another moment with Su Xiao. Her sole desire was to swiftly conclude this farce and retreat to the girls’ dorm, where she could finally indulge in her soft, fragrant bed.

“Don’t assume I genuinely wouldn’t dare to call.”

“Then go right ahead and call.”

Zhou Yi’s brazen attitude utterly exasperated Su Xiao. Yet, at that precise moment, Zhou Yi feigned surprise, blinking innocently.

“Oh dear! Look at my memory; I completely forgot that you, Junior Sister, don’t even seem to have Jiang Chen’s WeChat contact.”

With practiced ease, she then picked up her phone and navigated to Jiang Chen’s WeChat interface. “Would you like me to relay your ‘brilliant insights’ from earlier on your behalf?”

Before Su Xiao’s contorted expression could fully register, Zhou Yi’s finger decisively pressed the button to initiate a video call!

Soft murmurs drifted down from upstairs. “So, they don’t even have his contact information…”

“Doo… doo…”

The crisp notification tone of an incoming WeChat video call resonated through the night air.

She extended the phone towards Su Xiao. “See? It’s connected. Why don’t you… tell him yourself? It’s quite a rare opportunity, you know.”

“Y-you’re insane?! Don’t you dare!” Su Xiao shrieked, stumbling backward in a panic.

From the balconies above, several suppressed chuckles could be heard.

“Holy crap, she actually called Jiang Chen?!”

“Zhou Yi is so bold! I truly thought she’d cowered just now.”

“Hahaha, now this is going to be a show!”

At that moment, the video connected. On the screen, Jiang Chen was in the midst of toweling his still-dripping hair, his brow slightly furrowed as he looked towards Zhou Yi beyond the camera.

“What’s the matter? Still out so late?”

“Enjoying a live comedy show,” Zhou Yi replied, deliberately panning the camera towards the rigidly frozen Su Xiao. “This junior sister here seems to harbor some rather unique insights regarding our relationship. I’m far too lazy to explain, so I’ve decided to livestream it and let her report directly to you.”

Jiang Chen’s hand, mid-wipe, stilled. He then slowly raised an eyebrow at the camera. “Do I need to clarify anything on your behalf?”

“No need,” Zhou Yi replied, the corners of her lips curving into a faint smile. “There’s nothing to explain. I simply wish to see a river of blood.”

Jiang Chen couldn’t hold back a sudden chuckle. “Do you require me to hand you the knife?”

His words, amplified through the speaker, echoed with startling clarity below the dormitory building, immediately eliciting a chorus of sharp intakes of breath from the onlookers.

From upstairs, some anonymous spectator, evidently one who relished in drama, even offered two distinct claps.

Jiang Chen’s blatant favoritism and their undeniable rapport shamed Su Xiao a million times more profoundly than any direct reprimand ever could.

Su Xiao could endure no more. Her face, drained of color, now flushed an angry green. She stomped her foot, then turned and fled in utter disgrace. After a moment’s hesitation, Li Yanze followed in pursuit.

Only then did Zhou Yi speak into the phone. “Oh, it’s fine now. The river ran away on its own. Keep the knife sheathed; we’ll use it next time.”

From the other end of the line, Jiang Chen’s sigh, laced with amusement, drifted through. “You, honestly…”

Anyone could discern the undeniable indulgence hidden within his tone.

Zhou Yi smiled at the camera. “I’m hanging up now. Good night.”

Afterward, as if entirely unbothered, she turned and ascended the steps to the girls’ dormitory.

Wu Junzhe remained utterly silent from beginning to end, not uttering a single word. It wasn’t until Zhou Yi’s figure had completely vanished around the stairwell that he finally pushed up his glasses and quietly turned to depart.