“Go out and have fun? Where to?” Shu Yuxin repeated instinctively.

She wasn’t sure whether this was some kind of routine club activity, but the fact that Yan Zhikai said he would pay for it surprised her a little.

If it really was a club event, there were so many people in the club—was he really that rich?

“Mm.” Yan Zhikai nodded, confirming her guess. “Everyone in the club goes out together for a trip—build some rapport, get to know each other better and all that. As for the destination, you can make suggestions. For now, we’re thinking of an amusement park.”

Peng Xiaoxiao raised her hand excitedly. “I vote for an amusement park! Are we going to Laiter Paradise?”

“Mm.”

“That works! I’ve heard for ages that Minghai City’s Paradise is super fun. Let’s go with that!”

Peng Xiaoxiao seemed particularly interested in this plan. Shu Yuxin looked at her for a moment, then asked doubtfully, “Aren’t you going home?”

“National Day is an eight-day break. Even if you go home, you wouldn’t stay there all eight days, right? That’d be so boring.” Peng Xiaoxiao leaned closer to Shu Yuxin and took her hand. “You’re not planning to just stay at home the whole time, are you?”

Shu Yuxin hesitated for a moment.

She really had planned to go home. After all, she was basically half a shut-in by nature. Back in middle school, no matter whether it was a long or short holiday, she spent most of her breaks at home. As far as she could remember, she’d only gone out to play once during a holiday—that was in her third year of middle school, when she went to a local anime convention with classmates. The convention wasn’t very big, but they’d had a great time.

If she was honest with herself, she did want to go out and have fun—but she preferred doing so with close friends. At least for now, the only people in the club she was familiar with were Jiang Zixuan and Peng Xiaoxiao. The others were at best acquaintances. Going out with a group like that, she worried she’d feel awkward and constrained.

Noticing the hesitation on Shu Yuxin’s face, Peng Xiaoxiao hurriedly encouraged her. “Come on, let’s go together! It’s an eight-day National Day holiday—how boring would it be to just stay at home? We can go out for a couple of days and then head back!”

Seeing that Shu Yuxin was still hesitating, she added, “Yuxin~ come with us! If you don’t go, I’ll be the only girl there, and I’ll feel awkward too. Okay? Okay? Let’s go together!”

Shu Yuxin paused, then suddenly asked, “So… where are we staying?”

“At a hotel,” Yan Zhikai answered without hesitation. “If we’re going to Laiter Paradise, I can just book a suite at a nearby hotel.”

“A hotel…” Shu Yuxin murmured softly.

If it was a hotel, then there was a good chance she and Peng Xiaoxiao would be staying in the same room…

Late at night, alone… well, two lonely girls together…

Just thinking about it made her feel a little excited.

People really were strange creatures. A few days earlier, Shu Yuxin had stayed in the same room with Peng Xiaoxiao and two other girls for nearly a whole month, and throughout that time she’d felt almost no excitement or impulse at all—except maybe a tiny flicker the night Peng Xiaoxiao climbed into her bed. But now, with just a change of setting and atmosphere, merely imagining it made her excited.

From that first day she became a girl—when curiosity during a shower had sent her straight to the clouds—to now, when even bathing no longer stirred any extra feelings, she had thought she’d already grown used to the change in identity, whether toward her own body or toward other girls.

“Um… Zixuan, what about you?” After thinking for a bit, she decided to ask her best friend’s opinion.

Jiang Zixuan shrugged with a smile. “I don’t really care. Even if I go home, I’ll probably just be guarding an empty house.”

“Is your place close to Laiter Paradise? Why don’t we just stay at your place then?” Yan Zhikai leaned toward him, squinting as he asked.

Jiang Zixuan shot him a look. “Nice idea, but sorry—my place is in the Wuan District.”

The Wuan District was also where Shu Yuxin’s home was, located at the northernmost end of Minghai City, while both Nanhu College and Laiter Paradise were in the Yunhai District at the southern end. The two districts lay at opposite ends of the city.

Yan Zhikai smacked his lips. “Alright then, looks like I really do have to pay.”

Peng Xiaoxiao kept looking at Shu Yuxin. “So what about you? Are you coming or not?”

“Ah… if Zixuan’s going, then I’ll go too,” Shu Yuxin nodded slowly. “Staying at home is pretty boring anyway.”

Peng Xiaoxiao immediately cheered and patted her on the shoulder. “Haha, great! Then we’ll go to the haunted house together!”

Shu Yuxin froze.

Jiang Zixuan noticed her reaction, but instead of commenting, he turned to Yan Zhikai and changed the subject. “So how many people are going?”

“Not sure yet. A few haven’t decided whether they’re going home or not,” Yan Zhikai shrugged. “But I don’t think there’ll be many. There are only a handful who regularly hang out in the club anyway, and quite a few who live far away and have to head back early. I’d guess there won’t even be ten people.”

As he spoke, he lifted a hand to ruffle his messy hair. “Fewer people is better—easier to organize. And it’ll cost me less to book rooms.”

Peng Xiaoxiao chuckled softly. “The second reason is the real one, right? But seriously, why are you treating us? Do all clubs have activities like this?”

“Of course not. I don’t know about other clubs, but ours usually gets together whenever there’s a long holiday.” He paused, then continued, “As for why I’m paying… who knows?”

Before anyone else could respond, he took out his phone to check the time, then packed up the things he’d brought and headed for the door, weaving past the others. “Alright, it’s getting late. If there’s anything else, just talk about it in the group chat. I’m heading back to study.”

It wasn’t until the door closed behind him that Peng Xiaoxiao clicked her tongue and commented, “Guess that’s what being rich looks like.”

Shu Yuxin glanced sideways at Jiang Zixuan, who was smiling calmly.

She really wanted to say that he was also a rich kid—but held herself back.

“You don’t have class this afternoon?” Jiang Zixuan turned to pour them each a glass of water, casually changing the topic.

“Nope. The classes are pretty light these first few weeks of the semester,” Peng Xiaoxiao replied. Then, with a “heave-ho,” she flopped onto the large sofa behind her. “Ah~ this sofa is so comfy! I really want to move in here!”

“If you want, you can come stay in Yuxin’s room. Her bed’s big enough for two people,” Jiang Zixuan said with a smile as he handed them the water and sat down by the sofa.

Peng Xiaoxiao imagined it for a couple of seconds, then shook her head. “Forget it. I don’t have the money.”

More importantly, she didn’t want to be a third wheel.

Shu Yuxin took a sip of water and sat down beside Jiang Zixuan. “By the way, how’s the dorm been these past few days? Has that Cheng Xiaonan kept bringing guys into the room?”

“No. I talked to the dorm supervisor auntie before, and she’s been keeping a close eye on things lately,” Peng Xiaoxiao said as she rolled over, exhaling irritably. “But I really can’t stand Cheng Xiaonan, that b*tch. Acting all high and mighty like some empress every day. I really don’t get how a woman like that can have men chasing after her.”

“She’s probably not like that in front of men…” Shu Yuxin muttered quietly.

The topic clearly dampened Peng Xiaoxiao’s mood. She howled in frustration and kicked her legs into the air. “Ah—! Why did I have to get a roommate like this?! I really want to move out too!”

After flailing around for a bit, she let her legs fall casually onto the sofa and lay there like a salted fish. “If only I had money… I don’t want to work hard either… can someone introduce me to a rich second-generation guy…”

Shu Yuxin gently shoved Jiang Zixuan toward her. “Here. A rich second generation.”

Jiang Zixuan: “…”

Peng Xiaoxiao was clearly stunned as well.

“Ahem. Do you guys want to play some games?” Jiang Zixuan decisively changed the subject again. “I bought a few newly released games the other day but haven’t had time to try them. Want to give them a go?”

Peng Xiaoxiao immediately sprang up from the sofa. “Yes! Let me see!”

While the two of them were checking out the new games, Shu Yuxin finished the last sip of tea, stood up to put the cup on the table, then picked up her package. “You guys play first. I need to change my pants.”

After dragging things out for so long, her pant legs were almost dry by now.

After the past few days of “renovation” and decoration, Shu Yuxin’s bedroom had changed a lot from before. Although the room was overall much larger than Jiang Zixuan’s, aside from the large bed there was only a wardrobe. Because of the bed’s placement, there was no room for other furniture. After some thought, she bought a lazy bedside laptop table online and placed it on the windowsill.

The windowsill had likely been designed for placing items in the first place—it was very spacious. With a blanket laid down, Shu Yuxin could even sleep on it directly. The window faced the same direction as the balcony, offering a nice view. Putting the laptop table there made her very satisfied, though the sunlight could be a bit blinding at times.

After changing her pants, she climbed onto the windowsill, set the package on the laptop table, crossed her legs, and looked out the window.

The rain outside was still heavy. Even though it was only two or three in the afternoon, the sky looked as dark as night. After staring outside for a while, Shu Yuxin took out her phone and dialed her father’s number.

She wanted to let him know that she wouldn’t be going home for National Day.

It took a while for the call to connect, and then the familiar, warmly reassuring voice came through. “Yuxin?”

“Mm, it’s me. Dad, I probably won’t be coming back for National Day. I’m planning to go out with Jiang Zixuan and the others for a couple of days.” Hearing her father’s voice, a smile unconsciously spread across Shu Yuxin’s lips.

“You’re not coming back? That’s fine—we were just about to call you ourselves. We’re in Yuntao City right now, so no one’s home. If you do want to come back, just go to your grandparents’ place.” After a brief pause, Shu Dad continued cheerfully, “Going out with friends is good too. In college, you should make more friends. These friends will be your connections in society later on…”

Once he said that, he really got going. He launched into a long lecture about things to watch out for in college—connections, friendships, socializing, and so on—endless rambling that had long ago made Shu Yuxin’s ears grow calluses. She didn’t even have a chance to cut in, and could only respond with the occasional “mm” or “oh,” listening numbly as he went on.

She felt that her dad had already forgotten the original reason she’d called.