Forced Me to Regress, Huh?

Since this was the first time Cheng Zhu took the initiative to chat with Shen Qingning, she was slightly taken aback when she saw the sender’s name on WeChat.

The two of them barely had any chat history, and what little they did have was dry and lacked any room for further discussion.

This stark contrast between their indifferent online interactions and their chance encounter at the fruit shop the other day was striking.

Shen Qingning knew very well that life was full of people like this.

Some people were lively chatterboxes online but awkwardly reserved in real life.

Others weren’t good at chatting online but came across as quite likable in face-to-face interactions.

These days, everyone seemed to have contrasting personas—one for the internet and another for real life.

However, the problem was that Shen Qingning noticed Lin Lu and Cheng Zhu got along incredibly well online, and they often played games together.

This made her think that maybe she just wasn’t good at holding a conversation.

However, she had been like this since she was young—too reserved. She didn’t place any blame on Cheng Zhu.

Moreover, for some reason, her previous impression that Cheng Zhu and Lin Lu had a somewhat ambiguous relationship, possibly heading towards something more, had faded. These past few days, she hadn’t even thought about it anymore.

On WeChat, Cheng Zhu got straight to the point, stating he wanted to rent the two shops.

Shen Qingning readily agreed. “Okay, I’ll have someone take down the rental listings.”

The two then discussed the price. The rent Shen Qingning offered was the same amount as what she had charged the sushi restaurant last year, and she even added a month of rent-free period for renovations.

Cheng Zhu knew that rent for properties on this street outside the campus rose every year.

Her offer was essentially a friendship discount, not to mention a renovation grace period.

He had never planned to take advantage of her, but since she proactively extended such goodwill, it would be really awkward to decline. He could only think, Rich women are really fucking fragrant!

Moreover, Cheng Zhu immediately thought of how to repay her kindness. When the shop opened, he would find an opportunity to return the favor.

After finishing the rental discussion, Shen Qingning asked curiously, “What kind of shop are you planning to open?”

Cheng Zhu didn’t hide it. “A claw machine shop.”

Then he saw the typing indicator on her end appear, disappear, reappear, and disappear again.

After hesitating several times, she decided to be honest. “Last year, a small arcade opened near the school gate, but business wasn’t great. I don’t even think they broke even.”

The reason Shen Qingning brought up the failed case was to prompt Cheng Zhu to reconsider more carefully.

Based on conventional thinking, the arcade had a wider variety of machines, not just claw machines. It had targeted a broader student audience but still failed to turn a profit.

He understood her intentions and reasoning, so he replied, “My operational methods will be different, but this is my trade secret.”

The aloof and cold girl looked at her phone and smiled faintly. The landlady typed, “Alright, I wish us a successful cooperation.”

After settling the matter, Cheng Zhu mused to himself, Tsk, her identities just keep piling up. She’s a friend’s cousin, a senior sister from my college, and now an urban landlady. She’s really full of traits.

* * *

Meanwhile, at the supermarket near the Sci-Tech University.

As soon as Li Xianqiang’s group entered the supermarket, their eyes were immediately attracted to Lin Lu, who was standing in line at the cashier.

She was here to buy a laptop and sticky notes.

In 2014, sticky notes were quite popular. Many students used them, as did plenty of office workers.

The vibrant, colorful sheets were especially appealing to girls.

When Li Xianqiang first laid eyes on Lin Lu, he felt that he had suffered a beauty crit!

During military training earlier, Lin Lu had been sitting in the corridor opposite them, and everyone could only steal glances at her from afar.

Now that he was up close, he realized she was even more stunning.

Her flawless, soft skin, long and thick eyelashes, and vibrant, youthful energy… Everything about her was utterly captivating.

Just as he was in a daze, he saw Lin Lu waving in his direction.

“Ah! Cheng Zhu’s roommate, hello there!” Lin Lu immediately recognized Liu Feng. Holding the laptop and sticky notes in her right hand and her phone in her left, she gave a slight wave in greeting.

Even though this clearly had nothing to do with Li Xianqiang, he felt his heart melting. Damn, her voice is so nice!

When Liu Feng heard the goddess senior sister greet him warmly, he was instantly captured. Senior Sister Lin Lu is so approachable and friendly. She doesn’t feel any distance at all. She’s really easy to talk to.

If Brother Zhu and her are really in some kind of ambiguous relationship, then our Room 309 will definitely recognize this sister-in-law!

He directly became a fan of the voice actress and unilaterally decided to represent the whole dorm room in endorsing her.

Wearing a silly grin, Liu Feng replied enthusiastically, “Hello, Senior Sister Lin Lu. Uh, we’re here to carry water.”

“Oh, I see. Go ahead then,” Lin Lu said with a smile.

At this moment, Lou Dong, standing beside Li Xianqiang, gave him a light nudge and shot him a look.

The two were roommates. How could Li Xianqiang not see such an obvious signal?

He’s urging me to ask for her contact info!

Lou Dong’s idea was simple. Don’t you want her contact info? You even had a standoff with Cheng Zhu about it earlier. Now that the goddess is standing in front of you, why not go for it? Since there’s a chance, you have to seize it!

Most importantly, didn’t they just see Lin Lu greet Liu Feng warmly? This goddess senior sister seemed quite friendly. Just be thick-skinned and go for it. Don’t chicken out!

Asking for her contact info face-to-face was something Li Xianqiang truly struggled with.

However, after Cheng Zhu had publicly made him lose face earlier, and now that Cheng Zhu’s roommate was watching from the side, he couldn’t help but worry about what Liu Feng would say when they returned.

Li Xianqiang felt trapped, unable to find a graceful way out of the situation.

Damn it, whether I stick my neck out or not, it’s all the same. I’ll just get it over with! He gritted his teeth and prepared to go all out.

He strode over to Lin Lu in two bold steps. But just as the words were about to come out of his mouth, they got stuck. He transformed from ‘that confident guy’ to ‘that stammering guy’ and awkwardly fumbled, “S-Senior Sister, can I add… add you as a friend?”

Lin Lu looked up at him and replied without even a moment’s hesitation, “Sorry, I don’t add strangers to my contacts.”

Her tone was polite enough, but her demeanor was decidedly distant.

Lou Dong immediately understood. It’s not that she’s lively and friendly towards everyone. She’s just lively and friendly towards Cheng Zhu’s roommate.

He even had a ridiculous thought. Why the hell am I not Cheng Zhu’s roommate?

“Uh, okay,” Li Xianqiang mumbled, unsure of what else to say.

Feeling unbearably awkward, he suddenly channeled Popeye-like strength, picked up a box of bottled water from the ground, and shouted at Lou Dong to leave quickly.

Seeing these two rushing off without waiting for him, Liu Feng wasn’t anxious. You clowns can leave first. As someone with connections, I’ll stick around and chat with the goddess for a bit longer.

Suddenly struck with an idea, he turned to Lin Lu, who was finishing her payment, and said, “Senior Sister, that person just tried to ask Brother Zhu for your WeChat.”

Feeling this wasn’t dramatic enough, he added, “He was really persistent and kept pestering him.”

“Huh? Is that so?” Lin Lu looked out of the supermarket’s exit.

“Yeah. Brother Zhu was really annoyed with him and even snapped at him a few times,” Liu Feng said casually as he bent down to carry the bottled water.

If it had been anyone else, Lin Lu might have wondered whether this would create tension between classmates. But considering it was Cheng Zhu, she felt it would already be good enough if he wasn’t the one actively bullying others.

“That guy really knows how to scold people. He’s so overbearing sometimes,” Lin Lu commented with a playful complaint. When she and Cheng Zhu played games together, they often ridiculed each other.

But when her little gripe reached Liu Feng’s ears, why did it sound a bit sweet?!

Then Lin Lu handed him the box of mint candies she had just bought. “Junior Brother, please help me bring this back to him and tell him to stop being so foul-mouthed!”

“Got it!” Liu Feng immediately took the box.

When they parted ways, Lin Lu waved goodbye kindly. “Cheng Zhu’s roommate, bye-bye!”

Liu Feng felt that he had become someone without a name.

He glanced at Lin Lu’s departing figure and noticed how light and quick her footsteps were, as if she was in a good mood.

When he returned to the military training formation, he immediately hurried over to his roommates and said excitedly, “We just ran into Senior Sister Lin Lu at the supermarket.”

Dong Dong loved to show off. The four of them were sitting together, so there was no need to speak too loudly, but he cranked up his volume anyway, yelling so that everyone nearby could hear, “What?! You ran into Senior Sister Lin Lu at the supermarket?!”

And just like that, the guys around Li Xianqiang immediately flocked over to gossip, while the girls pricked up their ears to eavesdrop. Someone even asked him if he had added Lin Lu as a friend.

This sent him into a mild state of shock. It was like a smooth combo attack, and there was even a follow-up damage effect!

Those scoundrels from Room 309!

On Cheng Zhu’s side, Liu Feng eagerly recounted the supermarket encounter in detail, sneaking in a bit of self-credit.

Even someone with as low perception as Dong Dong understood this time. He complained, “Damn it, Chuan’er! Didn’t you say at the internet cafe yesterday that you couldn’t play support?”

Liu Feng ignored him and took out the box of mint candies. “Brother Zhu, these are from Senior Sister Lin Lu. Now, what I’m about to say is strictly her words, and she insisted I relay them verbatim. I’m merely a neutral messenger.”

“What? She told me to stop being so foul-mouthed!” Cheng Zhu was extremely dissatisfied, but he still snatched the mint candies and accused, “Chuan’er, how can you call yourself a neutral messenger? Have I ever scolded you?”

He popped a candy into his mouth while thinking darkly to himself, Damn it, Little Lu, little deer, I’ll let you know how delicious my mouth is someday!

The grind of military training, where no one could show off, seemed to fly by quickly.

When mealtime arrived, the formation dispersed in front of the cafeteria. Everyone was hungry and immediately swarmed inside.

If they didn’t eat with enthusiasm, there would be something wrong with their brains.

While eating, almost all the students of Computer Science Class 2 were talking about the evening’s event being held on the sports field.

Unfortunately, the instructors had said that they wouldn’t be allowed to change out of their military uniforms.

After all, not everyone could pull off being dashing like Cheng Zhu, who could look good even in a sack. Most people still wanted to dress up a little for the occasion.

At night, everyone gathered on the sports field.

To their surprise, students from many faculties had come—nearly 300 people in total.

“Hey, I see Zhu Yingying and her roommates over there!” Dong Dong spotted the fashion design students and waved proudly and ostentatiously.

Immediately, the four girls whispered with the nearby students, and in no time, everyone’s eyes turned towards Cheng Zhu.

Fortunately, Dong Dong’s self-confidence was boundless. He assumed everyone was looking at him, so he straightened his back and puffed out his chest.

The evening’s event kicked off with good energy, and some bold students even shouted, “Let’s have the drill instructors perform! Come on, instructors!”

In the end, no students stepped forward to perform, but the instructors performed a set of boxing moves together.

What followed was the usual lineup of campus talent performances: singing and dancing acts.

Among the performers was Yao Yina, one of Zhu Yingying’s roommates, who danced to AOA’s Miniskirt.

But because she was wearing a military training uniform, the classic dance moves from this song lost a bit of their flair. The original girl group choreography for this song included a moment where the girls raised one leg and gently unzipped the side zipper on their specially designed skirts.

Even so, the dance still caused wolves to howl, and even girls screamed along.

“Brother Zhu, she’s dancing in your direction.” Liu Feng nudged Cheng Zhu with his shoulder.

Cheng Zhu had indeed locked eyes with her briefly just now…

College really is a hormone-driven fiesta. When some girls take the initiative, they’re really damn bold, Cheng Zhu thought.

But for some reason, his thoughts drifted to Shen Qingning. Shen Qingning learned dance when she was young, and she apparently trained in a variety of styles. I wonder what it would look like if she danced.

Yao Yina finished her performance with a playful air kiss and a flashy girl group pose. Her personality certainly was fiery.

Liu Feng and Dong Dong grabbed Cheng Zhu’s arm and howled in excitement, but the main character remained calm.

Back when he ran a live streaming company in his past life, how could he not have a few dance streamers under him?

In his daily life, he inevitably had to look at some VIP-only content.

Some streamers would even set up an exclusive perspective just for him during their streams, and the view he had access to was entirely different from the normal stream shown on the platform.

Forget about something as tame as an air kiss. The sensible ones would sit on the boss and jump up and down.

He genuinely felt no emotional stirrings at all. In fact, he even felt a few of Yao Yina’s moves were off-beat and lacked precision.

The atmosphere at the scene was already very good, but who would have thought that Computer Science Class 2 was full of crouching tigers and hidden dragons? A chubby guy suddenly stood up, raised his hand, and declared, “I can dance Miniskirt too!”

When men decided to get flamboyant, women really didn’t stand a chance!

This guy’s name was Qian Jiankang. Watching a chubby guy perform a girl group dance instantly sent the atmosphere to its peak!

Dong Dong and the others could only lament their lack of singing and dancing skills, feeling they had missed out on gaining priority in the campus dating scene.

Cheng Zhu paid special attention to the girls who could dance, such as Yao Yina, thinking they could come in handy for him in the future.

Later, another guy went up to perform a magic trick, only to have it fail midway through.

As the evening event was nearing its end, a mysterious guest took the stage.

As soon as her name was announced, cheers erupted from the crowd.

Zhang Qiqi? That name sounds familiar. Cheng Zhu had graduated many years in his past life, and with so many girls around him, many of their names had blurred together. As a result, his memory of some notable figures in the university had become somewhat fuzzy.

But he soon remembered he had seen this name on the school forum.

Whenever a thread was about Lin Lu or Shen Qingning, the comments would always include the names Jiang Cen and Zhang Qiqi.

The supporters of these two were quite vocal, insisting that they were the campus belles and goddesses of the Sci-Tech University.