After washing up, Yang Shuli climbed into her bed with a bag of milk in her mouth.
Milk before bed was still necessary.
Ye Qingchang on the opposite bed was already in position, holding the cat in her arms.
It seemed to make up for yesterday’s crime, or perhaps she was afraid that even with enough warm padding, the little cardboard castle made from a box would worsen the kitten’s cold when the night wind blew through.
Because the previous night, when she and Yang Shuli were building the castle for the kitten, Yang Shuli had a sudden idea that the castle should have windows.
So they cut windows on all four sides of the castle, and even a skylight.
Yang Shuli’s explanation for the skylight was: “That way, it’s convenient for the evil dragon to come and kidnap the princess.”
Ye Qingchang thought that made sense, so she did it.
So the kitten’s castle, though seemingly exquisite, actually let wind in from all sides.
No wonder the kitten caught a cold today.
“Dorm Leader, you’re the last one to bed—did you forget to turn off the lights?”
Yang Shuli, alarmed by this, looked up and turned her gaze to the spot that originally belonged to Liu Xie.
“Almost forgot, Old Second isn’t in the dorm this weekend.”
Bitterness appeared on her youthful face.
Normally, after everyone had gotten into bed, Liu Xie would put on her headphones and continue gaming quietly.
Even the bagged milk that Yang Shuli brought to bed—she would wait until she finished it, then ask Liu Xie, who was still at her desk, to help throw away the trash.
‘Damn it, punish Liu Xie by making her take out the trash when she gets back.’
Still with the milk in her mouth, Yang Shuli dejectedly got out of bed and walked over to the light switch.
Just as she was about to press it, a knock suddenly sounded.
“Who is it?” Ye Qingchang, who was lying in bed holding the kitten and had decided to endure her rhinitis for now, sat up. She looked at the dorm door, then at Yang Shuli.
“Is Old Second back?” Yang Shuli tilted her head, but still stepped into her fluffy slippers and walked to the dorm door.
Opening the door, Yang Shuli froze.
“Counselor, what brings you here?”
Ye Qingchang, sitting on the bed, froze and then looked down at the kitten in her arms.
“Holy crap!”
She directly shoved the kitten under the covers and pulled the blanket up to her chest.
“I came to see how you all are doing here.”
The counselor was a kind-faced elderly teacher with a short haircut that carried a bit of professionalism.
But she was almost never seen; Yang Shuli remembered the last time she saw the counselor was at the beginning of this semester.
It seemed like these dorm inspections were a work metric for every counselor.
Of course, Yang Shuli hadn’t seen this counselor before—the previous one in charge of the male students was different.
She only recognized her because a large portrait was hung downstairs in the dorm building.
She opened the door and walked past Yang Shuli, who was wearing a onesie dinosaur pajama.
Then she opened the bathroom door and took a look.
It was probably a common habit of these dorm inspectors—always having to open the door and check the bathroom.
“Very clean.”
This was sincere.
Because Ye Qingchang had a slight tendency toward cleanliness, she would keep such places spotless, including the dorm’s tiled floor and the balcony sink.
Like a leader on inspection, the counselor walked into the dorm and looked at Ye Qingchang, who was sitting up in bed and giving her a salute with her eyes.
“Going to sleep? Your dorm goes to bed early.”
“Yes, Counselor, we live a healthy life.” Ye Qingchang was trying hard to hold down the little orange cat that was feeling uncomfortable from being forcibly shoved under the covers and had started struggling.
Then she suddenly froze.
The kitten slipped out of her hands.
It was like the helpless feeling when you’re fishing and not paying attention, and the hooked fish pulls the rod into the water with the line.
So she quickly moved her legs, which were as stiff as a zombie’s, trying to trap the kitten that was as agile as a loach under the covers.
But she didn’t catch it.
“What are you…”
“Uh, I’m doing yoga in bed—life lies in movement.”
Lying without changing expression—this was practically a necessary skill for every student when facing a teacher.
“Aerobic exercise before bed?” The counselor didn’t seem to suspect anything. “I remember your dorm is missing one. Where’s the other one?”
“She registered—she went home for the weekend.”
“I see.”
The counselor strolled around the dorm a couple of times, while Ye Qingchang frantically searched for the kitten on her bed.
‘I can’t even feel a single cat hair now.’
Anguished, Ye Qingchang glanced up and saw that bright orange color.
And next to it, Yang Shuli, who looked as if she’d seen a ghost.
The cat had run down and was now lying on Ye Qingchang’s desk.
It seemed to be gathering strength, and no one knew what it was planning.
Ye Qingchang couldn’t figure out what went through a cat’s head, but she saw that the orange cat’s direction of focus was the counselor, who was just about to turn around.
‘Ye Qingchang understood—this cat was taking revenge on her because she had caused it to catch a cold yesterday. She hadn’t expected that even such a small creature could be so vengeful. The waving tail seemed to say—You’re definitely getting points deducted today.’
“Oof!”
The counselor caught the orange kitten and looked down at it, face to face.
“Uh…”
Ye Qingchang was trying to come up with an almost impossible excuse for herself.
Finally, Yang Shuli spoke: “Counselor, this cat climbed in from outside. It came in through the balcony.”
Ye Qingchang directly threw her headband at Yang Shuli’s head: “Do you have a problem with your brain? This is the damn third floor.”
“Counselor, I suspect this cat is Spider-Man.”
Ye Qingchang was so angry she laughed.
She looked at the counselor and the kitten in her arms, hoping the counselor would be lenient.
“You’ve raised it well. This kitten is quite clingy.”
The kitten in her arms nuzzled against the counselor’s cheek and even stuck out its tongue to lick her, making the slightly older counselor laugh.
‘Ye Qingchang felt that things might have taken a turn.’
Then she heard the counselor ask the two of them: “Does this cat have a name? What is it?”
“It should be Peter Parker,” Yang Shuli replied, rubbing her chin.
“Okay, you can shut up now.” Ye Qingchang grabbed a book at hand and threw it at Yang Shuli.
“Having a cat is fine; I don’t oppose it. Just don’t abandon it casually.” The counselor played with the cat some more. “Also, don’t let the dorm manager find out. I can help you keep it a secret on my end, but if the dorm supervisor catches you red-handed, I can’t do anything.”
‘Ye Qingchang vaguely remembered that the dorm manager had said something similar to her.’
“Alright, alright, I’m leaving now. I still have a few more dorms to inspect. You all go to bed early.”
The counselor placed the kitten on the floor, left the dorm, and gently closed the door.