Chapter 64: Very Big

In the evening, the moment Wang Can pushed open the door to his dormitory, he was grabbed by the arms on either side by Chen Xiaobei and Yang Shuang, both of whom were comically waving a small wooden stick.

"Confess! What's the deal with that fried chicken cutlet shop?"

Facing the "severe interrogation" of his roommates, Wang Can had no choice but to raise his hands in surrender, "pleading guilty" to the fact that he had opened a fried chicken cutlet shop.

Then, pulling two VIP cards from his pocket, he offered a bit of "bribery," which finally secured a "parole" approved by the dormitory head.

"I never took you for someone with real skills, old Wang."

Chen Xiaobei twirled the VIP card between his fingers and asked curiously, "How much capital does it take to open a place like that?"

"Excluding labor costs, the initial investment was under one hundred thousand," Wang Can replied casually.

"That's not too expensive, actually."

Chen Xiaobei thought about it; if he pinched his pennies and saved up for a few months, he should be able to scrape together that kind of money.

However, he had no intention of following Wang Can's lead in opening a shop. Given the time it would take to earn that little bit of money, he'd rather enjoy his university life to the fullest.

"All right, let's talk business."

Yang Shuang's expression suddenly turned serious as he said, "Old Wang, give us your critique of those girls from today's mixer. Especially Zhang Bailan's 'quasi-girlfriend' Chi Xiaoxiao."

Although they had already discussed it once, the three of them still wanted to hear Wang Can's perspective.

In their minds, Wang Can's eyes were like X-rays, always capable of seeing right through the surface.

Wang Can sat back down in his chair, recalling the girls he had met during the day.

"You guys can forget about Dong Xinyi."

He shook his head. "She's my high school classmate, and she's quite wild. The three of you combined wouldn't even be enough to keep up with her games."

"Sigh..."

Chen Xiaobei instantly deflated like a punctured ball, slumping into his chair.

Among the three girls, he had been most interested in Dong Xinyi.

However, during dinner, he had sharply sensed the unspoken, ambiguous chemistry between Dong Xinyi and Wang Can, so the little flame of hope in his heart was now completely extinguished.

"As for that bespectacled girl, Ma Xiaoli," Wang Can continued, "her clothes are ordinary, her looks are mediocre, her figure has no standout features, and her personality is exceptionally dull. She's not interesting at all."

"I agree with that," Chen Xiaobei chimed in.

"The one Bailan has his eyes on is named Chi Xiaoxiao, right?" Wang Can turned to Zhang Bailan, who had been silent the whole time.

"Right."

Zhang Bailan immediately put down his phone, sat up straight on his bed, and stared at Wang Can without blinking.

Wang Can rubbed his chin, looking somewhat hesitant.

That girl looked pure and lovely on the surface, but her speech always carried a deliberate, coy sweetness, and her smile looked as though it had been meticulously rehearsed.

Coupled with the fact that she had sent Zhang Bailan a photo of her legs during their very first chat... she was most likely a budget version of Dong Xinyi.

"Bailan, I'd advise you to interact with her a bit more first, and not rush into investing your feelings." Wang Can weighed his words carefully.

Zhang Bailan wanted to say something, but stopped. In the end, he just gave a muffled, "Alright."

Seeing him like this, Wang Can knew that trying to persuade him was pointless.

Some people won't turn back until they smash their heads against a southern wall.

With that, he stood up to wash up, but Yang Shuang suddenly grew anxious. "Old Wang, what about Jiang Qi?! You haven't talked about her yet!"

"Oh, right." Wang Can smacked his forehead. "That good girl Jiang Qi..."

Halfway through his sentence, he couldn't help but laugh.

Because at that moment, not only was Yang Shuang looking at him with eager anticipation, but even Chen Xiaobei and Zhang Bailan had stretched their necks out waiting for the rest.

It seemed they all had rather heavy tastes.

"Big."

"Pfft!"

The three roommates uttered a unanimous, contemptuous hiss.

...

After washing up and returning to his seat, Wang Can took out his phone to process his piled-up messages.

As his social circle continued to expand, he frequently had to switch back and forth between QQ and WeChat. This dual-line operation made him deeply nostalgic for the convenience of WeChat group chats.

Unfortunately, that feature wouldn't be rolled out until the middle of next year.

He first posted a notice in the Dòuyá group chat, stating that a full-staff meeting would be held tomorrow morning. After seeing a wave of "Received" acknowledgments, he tapped open the chat window with Xia Kewei.

Remembering that the incident of him trespassing in her study was still unresolved, Wang Can decided to test the waters first.

His fingertips unconsciously tapped out the words 「Woman, what are you do...」 on the keyboard, but he instantly snapped back to reality and hurriedly deleted the line.

"Why am I automatically slipping into a domineering CEO script..."

Pondering for a moment, he retyped: 「Are you starved to death yet?」

Xia Kewei replied almost instantly: 「?」

「Seems you're still among the living.」

With a slight upward curve of his lips, Wang Can continued typing: 「Do me a favor over the next couple of days. Find a decently decorated hotel near the school, negotiate a long-term lease for 10 rooms, and procure a batch of live-streaming equipment. I'll send you the list in a bit.」

With the Dòuyá platform about to launch, he couldn't possibly have the student streamers broadcasting from their dormitories.

Not only would the visual quality be poor, but they wouldn't be able to let loose, and it would easily disturb the neighbors.

「No problem. How long is the lease?」 Xia Kewei replied very crisply.

Wang Can thought about it briefly: 「Let's rent them for two months first.」

Two months was more than enough time for him to find another venue and complete the renovations.

An "OK" hand-gesture emoji quickly popped up in the chat window, followed immediately by a message that caught him off guard: 「What are your height and weight?」

Wang Can was momentarily stunned. Though he couldn't make heads or tails of it, judging by this attitude, the matter of his trespassing in her study was probably water under the bridge.

He replied with his stats and smoothly probed: 「Dinner together tomorrow night?」

A cold 「X」 popped up on the screen.

"Fine, a woman's heart is as deep as the ocean."

Wang Can rolled his eyes, closed the chat window with Xia Kewei, and then noticed a red dot on the friend request tab.

Tapping it open, he discovered that the requests were actually from Dong Xinyi and Gu Feifei, whom he had just met that morning.

Rejecting Dong Xinyi first, he gently tapped the accept button for Gu Feifei.

Almost simultaneously, a voice message popped up.

「Hello, hello, is this A-can?」

Gu Feifei's sweet, crisp voice streamed out from his phone's cheap speaker, instantly capturing the attention of the other three occupants in Dormitory 404.

Like a pack of wolves catching the scent of blood, their eyes snapped uniformly toward Wang Can.

"Damn, that voice sounds way too good!"

"Are there photos? Quick, let the brothers see what kind of girl can have a voice that sweet."

"Brother Can, leave a path of survival for your bros. You're practically going to monopolize all the girls at Shenda."

"Get lost!" Wang Can laughed as he scolded them, explaining, "She's a girl from the Shanghai Conservatory of Music, we just met."

"Shen Conservatory?"

Chen Xiaobei's eyes widened in an exaggerated expression. "Old Wang, has your radiation range gotten this wide?"

"Go on with you. I'm not nuclear wastewater, what radiation?"

Wang Can retorted irritably, then lowered his head to quickly type on his phone: 「That's right, it's your A-can.」

Gu Feifei quickly replied with a blushing emoji: 「Do you often flirt with girls like this?」

Wang Can raised an eyebrow; this question was cleverly framed.

Admitting to it would equivalent to slapping himself with a "playboy" label, while denying it and claiming he only acted this way toward her would make him look like an eager suitor.

Rather interesting.

Pondering briefly, he tapped the screen lightly: 「Classmate Gu Feifei, I think you've misunderstood something. I said, “Your good friend A-can.”」

When faced with such a lose-lose question, the best response was always to carve out a new path.

Gu Feifei replied quickly: 「Oh, I see.」

Followed immediately by a sticker of a disappointed cat.

Wang Can narrowed his eyes—this was yet another meticulously designed trap.

If it were a blockhead like Qiao Huayang, seeing a girl's disappointed expression would likely make him think she might actually have feelings for him.

Then he'd panic and rush to explain and make amends.

Yet the more one explained, the easier it was to fall into the passive position of a suitor.

Attraction between men and women has always been built on a foundation of equality.

"She really knows how to play the push-and-pull game."

...

On the balcony of the girls' dormitory at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music, the stars were sparse against the moonlight.

Gu Feifei leaned lazily against the railing as the evening breeze gently caressed her slightly damp hair, a few strands of dark hair swaying softly in the wind.

The thin beige cardigan outlined her slender waist in the breeze, making her figure look even more graceful and charming.

This was her unbreakable daily habit: after taking a shower, she would always come to the balcony to catch some fresh air and hum a few of her favorite tunes.

Tonight, however, was somewhat different. Her gaze remained fixed on her phone screen, her fingertips occasionally tapping it lightly.

The screen suddenly lit up, and Wang Can's message jumped into view:

「Then what did you think I meant?」

"Hmph, harder to handle than I thought."