The next day was bright and beautiful, with the sun shining warmly.
Ye Zhou yawned as he walked toward Jianghai University.
Since today was Saturday, he should have been sleeping in. However, the Vice President’s constant phone calls had bombarded him, urging him to come to the Drama and Film Club.
He had no other choice. Turning the corner onto a tactile paving path for the blind, he prepared to squint his eyes and doze off for a bit while walking.
***
Soon, Ye Zhou arrived at the Drama and Film Club. Just as he entered, Shen Yuzhen’s voice drifted out from her office. “Come over here.”
Ye Zhou did not hesitate. He pushed the door open and closed it behind him.
Shen Yuzhen was sitting at her desk, fountain pen in hand, scribbling something onto a piece of paper.
She had her blonde hair tied in a low ponytail and wore black-rimmed glasses. Her upper body was clad in a loose, brown plaid shirt over a white undershirt, while her lower body was dressed in short shorts that revealed her fair, slender legs. Her overall look was both lazy and refreshing.
“Please, have a seat.”
Ye Zhou sat in the chair across from Shen Yuzhen, resting his hands on his thighs as he waited quietly.
After a long moment, Shen Yuzhen put away the paper and capped her pen.
“Since we are face-to-face, I’ll get straight to the point.”
“I’ve done a bit of research. You didn’t stay in the Drama and Film Club voluntarily. You were forced, right?”
Ye Zhou tilted his head and asked, “What do you mean by that?”
Shen Yuzhen rested her chin on her left hand while her right hand gently pushed up the black-rimmed glasses on the bridge of her high nose.
“Literally. I already know that you accidentally broke the club’s Treasure of the Club. Jiang Yingxue used that to blackmail you into staying in the club as free labor to pay off the debt. Is that right?”
Ye Zhou blinked, slightly stunned, then nodded.
He really didn’t understand why the Vice President would suddenly bring this up.
The corners of Shen Yuzhen’s lips curled slightly. “Very well. I am giving you two choices now. Let me be clear—I am not forcing you. This is entirely of your own free will.”
“First: I will go speak with Professor Li. She is a magnanimous person and certainly won’t make things difficult for you. This way, you can leave the club and won’t be forced to stay anymore. Even if Jiang Yingxue tries to stop you then, it won’t do any good.”
“Second: I won’t speak to Professor Li, and you agree to continue staying in the club. Just don’t regret it later because at that point, even if you beg me, it won’t do any good.”
“As I said, I won’t force you. This is a choice between two options, and it’s entirely up to you.”
Ye Zhou hesitated for a moment before replying:
“If it were when I first joined the club, I would have definitely chosen the first option without hesitation.”
“But after spending time with everyone, I’ve realized that everyone is actually a very good person.”
Shen Yuzhen frowned and asked, “Is that your answer?”
Ye Zhou smiled and nodded.
“Does the ‘everyone’ you mentioned include me?”
“Haha, of course.”
Shen Yuzhen’s expression immediately turned cold. “Fine. Then I’m done with you. You can go. Oh, right, don’t leave the club just yet. Once everyone arrives in 30 minutes, I’m holding a meeting.”
Outside the cracked door, Jiang Yingxue was eavesdropping.
After a while, she nodded in satisfaction.
‘Hmph, I knew Shen Yuzhen wouldn’t let things go so easily.’
‘Fortunately, the kindness I’ve shown Zhouzhou lately wasn’t for nothing.’
‘He’s not a heartless little thing after all~’
Suddenly, the side of her face felt a bit itchy. Startled, Jiang Yingxue turned her head.
A stray lock of crimson hair that didn’t belong to her drifted over in the breeze.
“Chen Yuhe, what are you doing sneaking around? You’re like a thief.”
“Huh? Then are you being a thief, President Jiang?” Chen Yuhe asked, tilting her head in confusion.
An unnatural expression flashed across Jiang Yingxue’s face as she hissed, “Of course not. I was checking to see if Ye Zhou and Shen Yuzhen were secretly talking behind my back in the office.”
“Oh, that makes sense. I’m curious too. I wonder if they’re saying bad things about me?”
“Honestly, you’re an adult, so why are you eavesdropping on adults like a child? What on earth did you eat to grow up like this?”
“I ate food to grow up,” Chen Yuhe said, hands on her hips with an air of “it’s obvious.”
Jiang Yingxue looked speechless. She immediately pulled out her phone and transferred 200 to Chen Yuhe, waving her hand dismissively.
“We’re having a meeting in 30 minutes. Go buy a cup of milk tea for everyone. You can decide on the flavors since no one really has any dietary restrictions. You can keep the change as your delivery fee.”
“Oh! President Jiang, you are way, way, way too generous!”
Watching Chen Yuhe run out of the club like a wild girl, Jiang Yingxue quickly pressed her index finger to her red lips. “You brat, keep it down! Are you afraid they won’t know I was eavesdropping?”
Just as Jiang Yingxue perked up her right ear, wanting to hear what other bad things Shen Yuzhen might say about her to Ye Zhou, her head bumped into a solid chest.
Her body stiffened. She looked up and saw a familiar face.
“Uh, Ye Zhou, I was just coming to ask what flavor of milk tea you want. You can tell Chen Yuhe on Green Bubble while she’s running errands.”
***
Thirty minutes passed.
Ye Zhou really hadn’t expected there to be a small conference room right next to the club room.
Shen Yuzhen stood alone on the stage, chalk in hand, writing on a small blackboard as she spoke. The content was entirely about the arrangements for Su Zhihan’s new stage play.
The people below were all doing their own thing.
Because she hadn’t slept well the previous night, Jiang Yingxue was sprawled motionless on the long table, her head covered by her jacket as she slept soundly.
Su Zhihan held a black and red multi-colored pen, noting down every key point the Vice President mentioned in her notebook.
Lin Shulan sat with her head down, playing a game. Occasionally, when the game got frustrating, she would curse at her teammates, letting out all sorts of colorful language.
Meanwhile, sitting opposite her, Chen Yuhe and Ye Zhou were passing crumpled paper notes back and forth like elementary school students.
[Chen Yuhe: Oh! Little Ye Zhou, why is your hair shorter? Did our great Vice President give you a haircut?]
[Ye Zhou: Yeah. Does it look bad?]
[Chen Yuhe: It looks good, but why do I feel like the top of your head is pointy?]
[Ye Zhou: Then let me ask you, why is the top of your head pointy too?]
[Chen Yuhe: Then let me ask you, let me ask you, you…]
[…]
The two of them were stifling their laughter, and the speed at which they passed the notes grew faster and faster.
Suddenly, Chen Yuhe’s hand slipped, and the paper ball flew straight into Shen Yuzhen’s glasses.
She caught it instinctively and smoothed it out to read it.
[Chen Yuhe: Little Ye Zhou, don’t you think the Vice President sounds like a nagging old woman when she talks on stage?]
Shen Yuzhen’s brow furrowed deeply, and the white chalk in her hand snapped.
“Chen Yuhe? Do you really think I’m a soft target you can push around whenever you want?”
“No, no! I was just joking with you, Vice President!”
Chen Yuhe instantly dove under the long table, trembling.
At that moment, Ye Zhou also stood up immediately, pressing his hands together in a repetitive apology, promising that he and Senior Chen wouldn’t do it again.
Jiang Yingxue’s head moved irritably under her coat. She eventually yanked the jacket aside, squinted her eyes as she sipped her milk tea, and grumbled, “What is it now? Can’t you guys let a person sleep in peace?”
Shen Yuzhen’s lip twitched. “President Jiang, it’s one thing that you won’t come up here to say a few words during the meeting, but you have the nerve to sleep?”
Jiang Yingxue opened her mouth but found no argument. She simply pulled her jacket back over her head and continued to play dead.
Beside her, Lin Shulan saw that she had lost another match despite having a huge advantage. She slammed her phone onto the table and stood up abruptly.
“I’m seriously done with these teammates. If I scattered a couple of handfuls of rice on the screen, a chicken could play better than them.”
Shen Yuzhen massaged her aching temples with both hands.
This Drama and Film Club might as well just be destroyed.
***
Premium Chapter
Login to buy access to this Chapter.
Hope this comes back one day. Thanks for the translations!