Around nine o'clock in the evening, Zhu Guangtong hadn't gotten off work yet, sitting in his office waiting for Chen Pingjiang.
University counselors generally don't appear often, especially at the start of the semester.
Zhu Guangtong didn't even have an impression of Chen Pingjiang, but in the past two days, Chen Pingjiang had been mentioned more and more by students below or in QQ groups.
"Teacher Zhu."
Following the sound, Zhu Guangtong saw Chen Pingjiang casually walking over, smiling broadly.
Just these few steps distinguished him from typical students; most other students approached with serious, stern faces, or hurried over with hunched shoulders.
Zhu Guangtong pointed to a nearby stool and said,
"Sit, don't stand."
After thinking for a moment, Zhu Guangtong suddenly asked,
"I heard that card games in the boys' dorms have been quite intense lately?"
Chen Pingjiang's face didn't flush, and his heart didn't race; he had mostly guessed it on his way over.
"Yes, there is such a thing. We don't have classes now, and everyone has nothing to do after class, so we play cards to deepen communication and bond."
Zhu Guangtong nodded noncommittally.
The necessary warning had been given.
University counselors generally don't micromanage students; their interactions are more like those among adults, so they wouldn't treat Chen Pingjiang like a child.
Chen Pingjiang also didn't dwell on how Zhu Guangtong knew these things, or who snitched; it wasn't particularly necessary.
Playing cards or mahjong in the dorms isn't a big deal, and it's normal for some students to be affected and complain.
But if it escalates to gambling, the nature changes, and Zhu Guangtong has a responsibility to give a warning.
"Teacher Zhu, us guys are planning to go out for a late-night snack, would you like to come too?"
Before leaving, Chen Pingjiang thought for a moment and invited Zhu Guangtong to join them.
Zhu Guangtong was slightly taken aback, seemingly tempted, but then shook his head as if considering something.
"I have something to do today. Another day, I'll gather everyone to go together."
Old Zhu's daily pocket money was fixed, and reciprocal gifts for weddings and funerals required prior application; he couldn't carry much money in his pocket.
He was tempted by Chen Pingjiang's suggestion, but he didn't have money in his pocket.
He couldn't possibly let a student pay, that would be too embarrassing, and his secret stash had just been raided.
Watching Chen Pingjiang's retreating figure, Zhu Guangtong fell into thought.
He had heard that this student had great influence among the boys, and seeing him today, he indeed seemed different from other students.
Old Zhu had been a university counselor for so many years and had certainly seen all kinds of students, but few exuded the "experienced veteran" aura like Chen Pingjiang.
"A boy as class president, a girl as vice class president; a male-female pairing makes work less tiring,"
Zhu Guangtong thought to himself.
A good class president could save Zhu Guangtong a lot of trouble, not only gaining some honor for themselves but, more importantly, benefiting all students in the class.
For example, if a class president had connections in the student union, the whole class could benefit.
If a class president wasn't capable, they should be replaced early, otherwise, for four years of university, the class wouldn't get any benefits.
Zhu Guangtong looked at his phone; it was just past nine.
He still didn't quite dare to go home.
His wife had discovered his half-year's worth of hidden private money that night, and going back now would mean asking for a scolding.
Just then, footsteps sounded outside the door.
Zhu Guangtong turned around to see Chen Pingjiang carrying a box of Snowflake Draft beer, with various barbecued items on top of the box.
Zhu Guangtong was stunned for a moment.
"What is this?"
"Why are you just standing there, give me a hand!"
Chen Pingjiang panted from exhaustion; it was damn too far from the snack street outside campus to the teaching building.
Zhu Guangtong didn't know whether to laugh or cry, thinking to himself that this kid really knew how to get things done.
He stood up and took the beer.
Duck neck, fried peanuts, grilled sausages, lamb skewers, kidneys – a spread of various barbecue snacks piled high on Zhu Guangtong's desk.
Chen Pingjiang skillfully opened two bottles of beer with his teeth and handed one to Zhu Guangtong.
"Actually, I..."
Zhu Guangtong opened his mouth.
Chen Pingjiang nodded, with an expression that said,
"I understand, I understand!"
This made Zhu Guangtong lose the desire to explain.
He clinked bottles with Chen Pingjiang and gulped down the beer.
Even though Zhu Guangtong had guided many batches of freshmen, he had never seen a freshman as adept at managing situations as Chen Pingjiang.
This guy was practically a social bandit; most students would at most engage in polite interactions.
"Damn, Teacher Zhu, I've finished a bottle, and you still have a third left. If you drink any slower, it'll be dawn."
Chen Pingjiang chugged his beer, burped, and mockingly looked at the beer in Zhu Guangtong's bottle.
Zhu Guangtong, who had been a bit reserved, gradually loosened up after three drinks.
"You kid, you can drink so much?"
As a university teacher, he usually only drank at colleagues' dinners or during holidays, with very few social engagements.
After two bottles of beer, Zhu Guangtong's head was already starting to feel the effects.
Chen Pingjiang chuckled and then asked,
"Did you argue with your wife?"
Zhu Guangtong, slightly tipsy, didn't deny it:
"A real man just can't be bothered to argue with her."
Then he looked at Chen Pingjiang with some suspicion,
"How did you figure that out?"
Chen Pingjiang grabbed a handful of peanuts and shoved them into his mouth, mumbling,
"What could a university counselor be busy with? They don't work overtime, and they wouldn't still be in the office at this hour for social engagements."
Zhu Guangtong was speechless, thinking to himself that this kid had guessed remarkably accurately.
The two men drank lightly.
Chen Pingjiang was excellent at setting the mood, and their relationship didn't seem like that of a teacher and student, but rather close friends.
They talked about family, life, and school matters, and time flew by quickly.
After several rounds of drinks and dishes, Zhu Guangtong was almost done drinking.
He pulled out two hundred yuan and handed it to Chen Pingjiang:
"Take this. How can a student treat on the first meal?"
"Come on, your secret stash was completely cleaned out by your wife; you don't have any money. Besides, I earned tens of thousands over the summer doing business."
Zhu Guangtong was stunned to hear this, thinking Chen Pingjiang wasn't someone who spoke carelessly.
"What did you do?"
Chen Pingjiang then talked about selling grapes and fruit drinks during the summer vacation.
Zhu Guangtong initially didn't take it seriously, but by the end, he was stunned and asked,
"Your family isn't in business, so how are you so good at this?"
From Chen Pingjiang's narration, he discovered that this student had a lot of tricks up his sleeve: product packaging, market positioning, pricing strategy, marketing strategy – all were well-formed.
This was hardly the kind of approach one would expect from a high school student.
If it were an ordinary person, Chen Pingjiang wouldn't have elaborated so much, but if that person was Zhu Guangtong, it was different.
Chen Pingjiang smoothed his fringe and put on a cool expression:
"Is this difficult?"
Zhu Guangtong felt like smacking him for that.
Unknowingly, their relationship had grown very close.
After seeing Zhu Guangtong off, Chen Pingjiang packed up and threw away the trash, then walked towards the dorms.
This was the downside of drinking beer: drink how much, pee how much.
After only two steps, Chen Pingjiang felt like his bladder was about to burst.
The nearest toilet was still a few minutes' walk away, and Chen Pingjiang felt sure he couldn't hold it.
Since there were few people late at night, and even fewer around the teachers' office building, he found a corner and directly started relieving himself.
"Comfortable!"
Chen Pingjiang held his little brother and freely let loose, a wave of relief sweeping over him.
He even shivered at the end.
"Hmm?"
Suddenly, a faint moan drifted over.
The sound contained pain, excitement, and pleasure.
It was very soft, as if hummed with a suppressed voice, but it was still audible in the quiet night and empty space.
Chen Pingjiang instantly sobered up, his mischievous side emerging.
He scanned his surroundings for the source of the sound.
He found it was coming from below the stairwell.
After stealthily approaching, Chen Pingjiang suddenly shouted loudly,
"Buddy, playing solo is so boring, wanna team up?"
He heard a soft "holy crap," and then silence.
Chen Pingjiang was satisfied and quickly made his escape.
"That guy will probably be too scared to ever show his face again, serves him right for trying to save money on a room!"
(End of chapter)
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