Chapter 17 Chapter 17: It’s All Because of Hardship — Part 1
How strange...
Why does he have a mole by the corner of his eye?
Isn’t that something that only appears after he turned into a girl?
Xu Yecheng couldn’t quite figure it out. Still, having a tear mole wasn’t a big deal—it actually gave his face a distinct look.
Maybe it was even a good thing; it made him more memorable.
Perhaps he just hadn’t paid much attention to his reflection before, so he never noticed it until now—maybe after putting on a mask he happened to spot it, which made him suddenly self-conscious about it.
Thinking this, Xu Yecheng stepped out of the bathroom.
Not that he looked dramatically different anyway—getting fairer or whatever was impossible to notice.
He still suspected the others were just flattering him because he’d bought them milk tea earlier. They were probably in on it together.
Liu Xianlin might’ve been sincere, but personal tastes always differ.
To be honest, Xu Yecheng just didn’t think he was that handsome.
As for why Ji Qingying had started walking with him back then—he wasn’t entirely sure either. After meeting at some campus event, they ran into each other again at a lecture. She主动 asked for his WeChat, and as they got to know each other, he found himself growing more and more attached to her easygoing nature…
But that was all in the past now.
Xu Yecheng sighed inwardly as he left the bathroom—only to bump right into He Xiaohan, who was holding milk tea and about to head out.
Xu frowned immediately. Naturally, he assumed He Xiaohan was on his way to see Ji Qingying.
His mood instantly soured. Poor him—a single dog left to lick his wounds alone in a corner.
No one knew about his past relationship with Ji Qingying.
He’d once even entertained thoughts of showing it off—after all, his girlfriend had been the campus beauty! What a badge of honor among his buddies!
Thankfully, he’d kept things private. Otherwise, with He Xiaohan now dating Ji Qingying, their dorm would’ve been unbearably awkward.
But the downside? He was now just that lonely mutt by the roadside, and every time he saw He Xiaohan going to meet Ji Qingying, it felt like someone had kicked him for no reason.
“I’m gonna nap. Wake me up when it’s dinner time,” Xu Yecheng said as he climbed onto the ladder bed, turning to Zheng Wenxuan and Liu Xianlin, who were deep in a heated gaming session.
“Mm-hmm,” Liu Xianlin mumbled absently.
Xu Yecheng kicked off—and something slipped from his pocket with a loud *crack!*
“Boom! It’s blown! Rush in!” Zheng Wenxuan suddenly yelled.
A terrible feeling shot through Xu Yecheng’s chest. He turned around to see his phone lying on the floor, its camera lens glinting with a bizarre, rainbow-like shimmer.
His heart sank.
Sure, the fall wasn’t from that high—but it landed face-down…
Slowly, Xu Yecheng climbed down, bent over with trembling hands, and picked up his phone. The screen was shattered into a moss-like web of cracks. His heart turned ice-cold.
He held his breath and pressed the power button. The screen flickered to life—relief washed over him for a second…
But then half the display instantly went dark.
“Oh crap—it really blew up!” Zheng Wenxuan shouted again.
Now Xu Yecheng’s heart dropped completely.
The inner screen was broken too…
He poked the lit half—and it went dark as well.
“Totally blown! Damn, bro!” Zheng Wenxuan cheered dramatically, then let out a whoop. “Man, after grinding this city for half a month, it all just blew up in one hit—so satisfying!”
But for Xu Yecheng, whose phone had just been repaired over summer break, this was a disaster.
His expression darkened instantly.
Liu Xianlin, still immersed in his anime with headphones on, hadn’t noticed a thing.
“Hey… Bao Bei Cheng, you okay?” Zheng Wenxuan finally noticed Xu Yecheng’s stormy face and asked with concern.
“You blew it up!” Xu Yecheng took a deep breath and groaned.
“Huh?” Zheng looked utterly confused.
Xu Yecheng buried his face in his hands, looking utterly devastated.
“My phone’s broken,” he sighed heavily, slumping into his chair and fiddling with the device—only to confirm it was beyond saving.
His mood plummeted into deep frustration.
Losing your phone in college was seriously crippling…
He took another deep breath and exhaled slowly, slipping instantly into emo mode.
Zheng Wenxuan climbed down, took one look at Xu’s mangled phone, and felt immediate pity.
He sighed. “Man… that’s a brutal fall.”
Xu Yecheng checked his useless device, swallowed hard—and Zheng Wenxuan, standing behind him, picked up his own phone.
“Here, use my backup. It’s a Xiaomi 11—not bad at all.”
Xu Yecheng was genuinely touched. He reached out and took it. “Thanks…”
“What happened?” Liu Xianlin finally pulled off his headphones, noticed the wreckage, and instantly understood. “Yecheng, did your phone just die?”
“Yeah. Dead.” Xu tossed his broken phone onto the table and started removing his two SIM cards.
“Uh… about that…” Zheng Wenxuan suddenly looked awkward.
“What?” Xu asked, unlocking the borrowed phone—only to be greeted by a whole screen full of adult apps.
“Ahem! I was gonna quit anyway! Just use it!” Zheng quickly explained.
Liu Xianlin leaned over, eyes instantly lighting up at the sight.
“Whoa! All these goodies and you’re not sharing? So selfish!” He clapped Xu on the shoulder.
Zheng snatched the phone back. “This stuff’s toxic! You should quit too—obsessing over porn gets you nowhere in life!”
He started deleting the apps, but his hesitation was obvious.
It hurt—badly.
That one free, ultra-HD app that didn’t even need a VPN? His prized find… now doomed by his own hand.
But… a promise was a promise.
With tears in his eyes (figuratively), Zheng finished wiping out his entire “happiness archive” and quietly wiped away an imaginary tear.
Liu Xianlin watched, equally moved. He patted Zheng’s shoulder solemnly. “I salute you, true man…”
Xu Yecheng blinked, watching the two of them—suddenly overcome with guilt.
One step towards stopping playing rod