I hesitated briefly, then pulled out my phone and displayed my WeChat QR code.
They say you don’t slap someone in the face when they’re being friendly.
Might as well add her now—whether or not I actually play later is my own choice.
Shangguan Xiyue beamed with joy. Her eyes sparkled mischievously.
How wonderful.
Two adorable junior girls added in one go.
Let’s see how that guy Jiuyan can keep calling her useless now.
Not only did she find one cute girl who plays Stellar Reign, she’d landed two.
Honestly, she was amazing.
My WeChat was registered with a new number, mainly to avoid any ID-related trouble.
After all, I’m not someone who enjoys explaining myself.
“Thanks.”
Shangguan Xiyue put her phone away, sneaking a glance at my WeChat avatar first.
It was a silly, derpy husky dog—very cute, just like her.
Definitely a girl with her own unique style.
Shangguan Xiyue had two WeChat accounts: one for work, one personal.
Since we weren’t that close yet, she added me on her work WeChat.
She glanced up at the traffic light, which was just about to change.
“Alright, then it’s settled—once we’re back, I’ll ping you to play some games.”
“Okay.”
I responded with a soft smile, my eyes curving into delicate crescent moons.
It was probably just polite small talk anyway. I was so used to being invited to play Stellar Reign when I was still a guy that the words left my mouth without thinking.
“I actually know a pretty skilled girl too—maybe the four of us can squad up sometime.”
The moment the words came out, I regretted it.
Seriously, what is wrong with my mouth?
How did I let Night Owl slip out like that?
She was someone I knew back when I was still male.
So now, what identity am I even supposed to use to introduce her?
“Sure.”
Shangguan Xiyue stayed focused on driving and didn’t comment further.
Thank goodness she hadn’t taken it seriously and just brushed it off.
I exhaled a slow, silent breath of relief.
Exactly.
We were nothing more than casual acquaintances.
For all I knew, that thing she said about knowing a helpful “game god” was just a throwaway comment—and once we got back, she’d probably forget all about it.
No way she’d actually invite me to play.
The student council president had so much work on her plate every day—how could she possibly have the time to worry about a nobody like me?
With that thought, I finally relaxed completely.
At least I wouldn’t have to come up with an excuse to turn her down.
Still, if I did flatly refuse the student council president’s invitation to play a game… would that be okay?
My left hand rested lightly on my lower abdomen, and the soft sensation at my fingertips seemed to silently feed me strength and confidence.
The enrollment process was simple.
I found my assigned dorm room number in the school group chat and then moved in with Shangguan Xiyue’s help.
My room was on the fifth floor, the very last room down the hallway.
Inside the four-person dorm, there was only one girl present.
She looked quite plain, with a few small freckles across her cheeks.
Her jeans had been washed so many times that they’d faded white, and when she saw us, she immediately tensed up.
Her small hands gripped the sides of her pants awkwardly, clearly nervous.
“Do… do you need any help?” she asked timidly.
“No need.”
Shangguan Xiyue had initially wanted to help me unpack, but after I declined and she remembered she had other matters to attend to, she simply turned and left dorm room 514.
Once Shangguan Xiyue left, the dorm immediately felt spacious—and eerily quiet.
I silently went about arranging my things.
Clack—
I placed my laptop on the desk.
The girl glanced at it and instinctively showed a trace of envy in her eyes before quickly looking away again.
Her small hands, still gripping her jeans, squeezed even tighter.
I wasn’t wearing anything particularly fancy—just a casual, ordinary outfit.
But that quiet confidence and natural aura within me couldn’t be hidden.
To Li Mei, I must’ve seemed completely out of place in this room.
She thought—
A girl like her… she must come from a powerful, rich family.
She looked like a true little princess—shining no matter where she stood.
Suddenly, Li Mei’s lower abdomen tensed with discomfort, and she furrowed her brows.
She quickly ran over to her cloth backpack, which already had two pudding stickers decorating it, and rummaged through it with her head buried deep inside.
In the end, all she managed to pull out was a crumpled, empty plastic bag.
After a moment of hesitation, Li Mei gathered her courage and approached me.
She’d always been insecure and shy—especially about asking for help, let alone something so private.
She lowered her head, face flushed with embarrassment, and asked in a whisper that seemed to come from the floor:
“Um… hi. Could I… borrow a pad from you? I’ll return one after I go buy some…”
She kept her gaze glued to the floor, looking like she wanted nothing more than to disappear into a crack in the ground.
Strictly speaking, it was perfectly normal for girls to borrow things from each other.
She was born in a remote mountainous region and had just come to the big city for the first time.
The towering skyscrapers seemed to shatter all her self-esteem in an instant.
Especially when her roommate turned out to be such a delicate and beautiful girl—just standing in front of me and speaking seemed to drain all her courage, breaking whatever pride she had mustered from getting accepted into Beiqing University.
I was setting up my power strip when I heard her voice beside me.
I turned my head and said, “Hm? A pad? I don’t have one…”
Oddly enough, instead of feeling disappointed after being rejected, Li Mei actually seemed relieved—almost as if it was only natural for someone like me to turn her down.
At least this way, she didn’t have to keep embarrassing herself.
Seeing the look on her face, I immediately understood what she was thinking and quickly added, “I haven’t needed them lately, so I didn’t buy any. Otherwise, I’d definitely lend you one. We’re roommates, after all—of course we should help each other out.”
Li Mei was taken aback, then found herself thinking how gentle I sounded—like spring water hitting stone.
There wasn’t even a trace of arrogance, nothing like what she imagined from someone so pretty and put-together.
Surprisingly, I was easy to talk to.
“Thank you… really, thank you,” she said sincerely.
“Sorry to trouble you.”
But just those few moments of delay had already made her discomfort worse.
Clutching a few crumpled banknotes, she quickly turned and walked out of the dorm.
In the past, she had always bought loose, single pads.
But when packing for school, she had forgotten to bring any.
Now she wasn’t even sure how expensive things in the big city might be.
Her small hands gripped the money a little tighter.
When I heard the door close, I instinctively looked up.
As someone who grew up in an orphanage, I knew exactly what she was thinking.
That was why I always tried to be mindful of these little things—so as to protect someone’s dignity.
Not just out of respect, but also as a way of looking into a mirror called the past, seeing the reflection of that little boy whom no one had ever cared about.
An hour passed quickly.
I’d already made my bed—a clean, floral-patterned summer blanket, with a soft sheet underneath—something very in keeping with the style of a modern college girl.
Ding-dong—
A new message popped up on my phone.
It was from Shangguan Xiyue.
I hadn’t expected her to actually follow up and message me.
【Wanna grab dinner together?】
【I just finished registering and still have a bunch of things to do. Let’s eat together next time. Oh, and I haven’t properly thanked you yet for today. I really appreciate your help with my luggage.】
On the other end, Shangguan Xiyue chuckled softly.
【No need to thank me. If you really want to show gratitude, why not play a game with me instead? Haha, I’m a simple person—I’d rather have that. To be honest, it’s actually a friend of mine who wants to game with you.】
I pressed my lips together and thought it over for a while, but in the end, I agreed.
She’d already put it that way—if I still refused, it would just seem rude.
After all, she had helped me today.
This is exactly why I hate owing people favors.
When someone steps in, no matter how reasonable their request is later, you can’t just turn a blind eye.
【Sure. How about tomorrow?】
I made up my mind—next time, no matter who it is, I won’t let anyone help me again.
【Deal. It’s a date then—tomorrow, we’ll game together. I’ll introduce you to that top-tier player. Don’t worry, I promise it won’t be awkward. If you think he’s annoying, feel free to unfriend him on the spot. You don’t need to worry about my feelings at all.】
Staring at the screen, I finally let out a breath and felt a little more at ease.
As long as she wasn’t trying to force some weird stranger on me, I could live with this.
It’s just one round of gaming, after all.
No big deal.