Zhu Niao and Gou Yu were truly struck with wonder.
“What kind of expressions are those?” Ye Qingchang reached out and waved her hand in front of Gou Yu and Zhu Niao. “Did you two see a ghost?”
“It’s likely they saw that girl earlier, and after hearing her speak, they realized she was a guy,” said Xiao Yi’an, whose swollen cheek had mostly subsided. “That happens a lot in the 2D world.”
He then handed a bottle of ice water to Ye Qingchang, letting her hold it with the hand she had used to slap him.
The fact that the skeletal Ye Qingchang could slap his face until it swelled meant her own hand must be half-ruined as well. Sure enough, her palm was still red, though she hadn’t mentioned it.
Or perhaps she was too embarrassed to bring it up.
After all, she was the one who had hit him.
“It’s a bit more impressive than that,” Zhu Niao said after a long hesitation. “Old Third, do you know how much skill it takes to drive a semi-trailer?”
“A heavy hauler?” Ye Qingchang rubbed her chin and thought for a moment. “That requires an A2 license, doesn’t it?”
Zhu Niao, who had never taken a driving test, naturally didn’t understand the specifics. She just knew it sounded impressive.
She nudged Gou Yu next to her and whispered in a voice only the two of them could hear, “Hey, do you think getting a driver’s license makes you a god?”
“I think that was just a metaphor. He didn’t mean you’d literally become a god. Otherwise, why hasn’t my dad become one after all this time?”
Then, Gou Yu slapped his own forehead. “Wait… huh?”
He went to make a phone call.
Half a minute later, Gou Yu returned.
“I asked my dad. He said he is a god.”
“What!” Zhu Niao stood up straight from her seat. “Then let’s go sign up right—”
“He said he’s a goddamn lunatic. Said I’m one, too.”
Zhu Niao closed her mouth and sat back down.
She should have known. She shouldn’t have relied on Gou Yu, and she certainly shouldn’t have expected anything from Gou Yu’s family.
Except for the Shopkeeper, of course.
“What are you two muttering about? What’s this about gods?” Ye Qingchang caught bits and pieces of their conversation.
“We just learned that getting a driver’s license can make you a god. We wanted to share the news with you in the hopes that you’ll be the first among us to transcend the label of ‘human,'” Zhu Niao said with a serious face.
“You’re crazy.” Ye Qingchang rolled her eyes.
She should have known; even saying those words made her sound like a lunatic.
Upbeat music began to play. It seemed a club was using the central stage again to perform and attract new blood.
“Which club is that?” Zhu Niao asked Gou Yu.
“Probably the Street Dance Club.” Gou Yu’s head bobbed along to the music. “The background music has a good beat.”
“I feel it too. It’s got a rock vibe.” Zhu Niao’s body also swayed. “It reminds me of my days smuggling on the West Coast.”
“Then you’re quite Americanized.”
Beside them, Ye Qingchang watched the Street Dance Club perform for the freshmen, her uninjured hand propping up her chin.
“Actually, clubs are generally divided into two types: the ones school leadership likes, and the ones students like.”
She continued, “A club like our Literature Club, which does absolutely nothing, is the kind most students like. The Anime Club next door is the same. Clubs like the one on stage that enter competitions are the kind the leadership likes. At least they’re more glamorous than sewer rats like us.”
“Doesn’t your Literature Club have any competitions? Like writing or calligraphy?”
“The Creative Writing Club and the Calligraphy Club handle those. It’s not our turn.” Xiao Yi’an waved his hand dismissively.
He then looked at Zhu Niao and Gou Yu. After a moment of thought, he asked, “Which clubs are you two in?”
Ye Qingchang curled her lip. “Don’t even bring it up. During club recruitment last year, I was the only one in the dorm who was awake. I was the only one who joined the Literature Club. I didn’t expect to end up as the president.”
Then, she saw Xiao Yi’an pull out two membership application forms.
“Are you serious? Has our club become so desperate that we’re recruiting these two? Their education level is so low they sometimes have to ask people how to spell basic words,” Ye Qingchang said.
“Actually, for a club like the current Literature Club, what we need most are loyal members who fill the ranks and will never leave,” Xiao Yi’an said firmly, leaving Ye Qingchang with an expression of pure bewilderment.
It actually seemed to make sense.
“Uh, does this thing give us any credits?” Zhu Niao asked, being more pragmatic.
“No credits.”
“Then I’m not joining.”
Zhu Niao’s answer was quite blunt.
However, Xiao Yi’an did not put the two forms away. Instead, he pulled two red cardstock slips from his pocket.
Thinking Xiao Yi’an was about to pull out wedding invitations, Ye Qingchang leaned in to get a closer look.
It was a 1-dollar discount coupon for *Mixue Bingcheng*.
“Are you crazy? What’s the point of bringing those out?”
Ye Qingchang hadn’t known before, but now she knew exactly how rich Gou Yu’s family was. For all she knew, he was just experiencing how the other half lived. She didn’t believe for a second that those things would be of any use.
“Hey, hey, Classmate Xiao, don’t be a stranger.”
Gou Yu and Zhu Niao seemed to recognize what was in Xiao Yi’an’s hand from a mile away.
Zhu Niao, being closer, reached out and snatched the two 1-dollar discount coupons from Xiao Yi’an’s hand, then passed them to Gou Yu.
“Well? How is it?” Zhu Niao asked impatiently.
Gou Yu held the two discount coupons and took a deep breath. “Hmm, 99% authentic. A rare find!”
Upon hearing this, Zhu Niao could no longer hide her joy. She turned to Xiao Yi’an with a solemn expression. “We actually possess the resolve to contribute our meager strength to the collective, even if it doesn’t do much.”
She took the two application forms Xiao Yi’an handed over next. “Classmate Xiao is the one with true vision. Before any good thing happens, he always thinks about whether the people have eaten.”
“What ‘Classmate Xiao’?” Gou Yu corrected her with a stern face. “That’s President Xiao.”
“Oh right, oh right. My apologies for being inconsiderate.”
Ye Qingchang stood by with a numb expression.
“Did you predict those two would come here?” Ye Qingchang felt that only someone like him could find something useful to those two weirdos.
“No, I originally planned to use these as prizes for the raffle, but I realized I didn’t have enough, so I gave up,” Xiao Yi’an said. “But at least they’re useful to them, right?”
The look of despair on Ye Qingchang’s face deepened.
Could even Xiao Yi’an match the wavelength of these two lunatics now?
“Oh, wait. My sister is calling.”
Gou Yu answered the phone, then hung up 30 seconds later.
“She saw the video I posted and told my mom. My mom wants me to come home this weekend so she can break my legs.”
“You’ve got real talent, brother.”
Hopefully Zhu can watch.