Chapter 96: The Whole Class Going to a Hot Spring? I’m In!

After a few rounds of drinks, Gao Wenkai was so drunk he couldn’t even walk straight.

Xu Haodong and Zhang Guangfa had to carry him by the arms.

The four of them staggered through a dark narrow alley back to where the car was parked.

They stuffed Gao Wenkai into a corner of the car to let him sober up.

“You guys know, I’m completely degrading myself right now!” Gao Wenkai sobbed. “I’ve become an automatic washing machine in college!”

The alcohol had hit him hard. He cried as if his heart were breaking.

Then suddenly he turned around and stared at Xu Haodong’s neck.

“Hmm? Haodong, why does your neck look like a butt? It’s so ugly. No wonder you’re still single.”

Xu Haodong slammed his face into the car window. “Screw you. That senior sister should’ve scammed you even harder.”

Zhang Guangfa patted Xu Haodong’s shoulder. “Come on, he’s drunk. Why argue with him?”

“Alright, alright. Jiang Zhou, let’s head back to the dorm?”

“Yeah, sleep it off and it’ll all be fine.”

Jiang Zhou stubbed out his cigarette, started the car, and drove back to Shangjing University.

Wenkai threw up once after getting out of the car, then collapsed into bed and fell asleep.

The others were dead tired too. After a quick wash, they all passed out.

—

The next morning, all four got up one after the other.

Everyone acted like nothing had happened, as if yesterday had just been a strange dream.

Even Gao Wenkai didn’t mention being scammed.

He just kept shaking his head, muttering how hangovers really suck.

“It’s almost eight. What class do we have today?”

Zhang Guangfa checked the schedule. “Advanced calculus. That evil old witch’s class.”

“Oh crap, we better run. She takes attendance!”

The four of them shivered and dashed off to the lecture hall.

As soon as he entered, Jiang Zhou looked around.

He quickly found his target.

Today Feng Siruo was wearing a light gray hoodie with white sleeves, paired with black jeans that showed off her long legs.

Unexpectedly, she had her long hair tied up in a ponytail today, revealing her elegant neck and delicate features.

She usually went out of her way to hide her looks, but today, she seemed more open.

Jiang Zhou walked over and sat beside her. A calming scent surrounded him.

“New laundry detergent?”

“Mhm. Kumquat-scented.” Feng Siruo tugged her sleeve toward him, holding it out under his nose with a hopeful look.

Jiang Zhou sniffed. “Hmm… that’s not what I smelled yesterday.”

“No?”

“Smells more like… your natural scent?”

Feng Siruo blushed instantly. “No way!”

Jiang Zhou smiled. “I smelled it yesterday when I hugged you at the amusement park.”

“Shh!”

“What?”

She leaned close to whisper, “Ding Yue doesn’t know.”

Jiang Zhou turned his head. Ding Yue was indeed eavesdropping.

“Why are you being a third wheel again?”

Ding Yue grinned. “Jiang Zhou, I told the class monitor about the trip.”

“Oh? What’d she say?”

“She totally agreed. Said we’ll have a class meeting soon.”

Jiang Zhou thought for a moment. “What about class funds? Did you talk to her about that?”

Ding Yue gave him a mysterious smile. “Turns out the class monitor’s family owns a hot spring resort. Her dad said everyone’s welcome.”

“Wow, are all the girls in our class secretly rich?”

“Probably. I mean, girls studying finance usually come from money.”

Jiang Zhou instinctively glanced at Feng Siruo.

She was looking at him too, a little dazed.

“You think anyone in our class is as rich as my wife?”

Ding Yue rolled her eyes. “You think there are a bunch of princesses like her?”

Jiang Zhou nodded in satisfaction. “So you finally admit she’s my wife.”

“Ugh, you set me up, didn’t you?!”

“Anyone who calls her my wife is my true bro.”

Ding Yue looked disgusted. “You just want bragging rights. Bet you haven’t even held her hand.”

Jiang Zhou got defensive. “Nonsense! I hugged her at the amusement park yesterday—”

Before he could finish, Feng Siruo leaned in with a little wrinkle in her nose, looking cutely fierce.

“What happened yesterday? What did you do to her? Spill it.”

“Uh… we ate French food.”

Ding Yue rolled her eyes. “What’s the big deal? I eat at the cafeteria with her every day!”

Feng Siruo nodded and leaned close to Jiang Zhou’s ear. “Don’t say a word.”

“Alright, alright. I won’t. Good girl.”

“Mhm!”

Ding Yue was annoyed. “You won’t even tell me? Aren’t we besties?”

Feng Siruo blushed and nodded.

Ding Yue’s eyes narrowed. “Then tell me. What happened yesterday?”

“Uhh…”

“I’m dying of curiosity here! Do you want me to lose sleep?”

Feng Siruo lowered her head. “He hugged me…”

Ding Yue’s eyes went wide. “Jiang Zhou! You move fast!”

“No, no, it was an accident! I didn’t mean to!”

“Yeah right. All ‘accidents’ are just pre-planned!”

Jiang Zhou cleared his throat and explained the whole story. How he arranged a private trip to a closed amusement park just for Feng Siruo, how he had a plan to cue the lights with a snap of his fingers, but the 50-something operator messed it up and got caught.

Feng Siruo even thought there was an old grandpa there.

To salvage the mood, Jiang Zhou hugged her and covered her eyes.

“…”

“Now do you get it?”

Ding Yue looked at the two of them. “I can’t take this anymore. Just get married already!”

Jiang Zhou grinned. “Fine by me. But why are you so supportive?”

“You booked an amusement park just for her, rode the Ferris wheel all night… how could it get more romantic?”

Feng Siruo nodded slightly.

It was too romantic.

Her first amusement park.

Her first hug.

The first time someone turned on all the lights just for her.

Ding Yue groaned. “Why would you describe this to a poor single girl like me?!”

“You asked why I hugged her.”

“…Okay, fine. I brought this on myself.”

Jiang Zhou quickly changed the subject. “Anyway, what else did the class monitor say?”

Ding Yue thought for a second. “She said the National Day break just ended, so the hot spring resort’s in the off-season. Lodging is free, but we have to pay for our own food.”

“That’s fine. Lodging’s the most expensive part. That saves us a ton.”

“But there’s a condition. She wants me to ask you something.”

Ask me?

This is a class event, so why ask me?

Jiang Zhou was puzzled.

But soon, it clicked.

Business people never do anything for free.

There’s no such thing as a free lunch.

Jiang Zhou looked at Ding Yue. “Her dad wants to advertise on the campus social app, right?”

Ding Yue’s eyes widened. “How’d you guess that?!”

“I made the same deal last night to open the amusement park early for Feng Siruo.”

“Ugh! We agreed not to bring that up again!”

Jiang Zhou thought for a moment. “I’m fine with it. Go tell the class monitor.”

Ding Yue lit up and immediately got up in excitement.

But she forgot class had already started and got caught by the advanced calculus witch.

So she had to stand in the aisle for the rest of the class.

—

Finally, the bell rang and the teacher left.

Ding Yue ran over and told the class monitor everything.

The monitor looked very pleased.

She even turned back to glance at Jiang Zhou, her cheeks flushed pink.

Jiang Zhou noticed and raised an eyebrow.

Why’s the class monitor blushing?

He looked down to check himself.

He was in a rush this morning but he did put on pants.

Weird…

—

Half an hour later, Class 3 of the Finance Department officially held their class meeting.

Class monitor Qu Xiaoya stepped onto the platform and read aloud the class trip plan she had just written.

The destination was, of course, the hot spring resort town in the western outskirts of Shangjing.

It wasn’t too far, only about a two-hour round trip by bus.

Since this would be an event involving over fifty students, going somewhere too far could lead to unpredictable issues. So the class was quite satisfied with the location.

At that moment, Qu Xiaoya cleared her throat gently and spoke up.

“Anyone who wants to go, feel free to sign up. If you don’t want to go, that’s okay too. It’s completely voluntary. But this is our class’s first trip together, so I hope everyone can join.”

As soon as she finished, the classroom buzzed with chatter.

A class trip was obviously exciting, and it already sounded like a lot of fun.

For college students, aside from eating and studying, playing was the next top priority.

And it was much better to go on an outing with friends than to go alone.

“Wait, how much is this going to cost? I don’t have much of my living allowance left this month.”

Qu Xiaoya smiled faintly. “My dad said everyone’s welcome to come. Lodging is free.”

Xu Haodong’s jaw dropped. “There’s actually a damn good thing like this?”

“Xu Haodong, can you speak like a civilized human being?”

“Er… there’s actually a freakin’ good thing like this?”

Qu Xiaoya rolled her eyes at him and said nothing more.

Another girl raised her hand. “Class rep, what about food? Will that be free too?”

Ding Yue scoffed. “Come on, don’t push your luck. Free food? Lodging is one thing, but don’t expect free meals too.”

“So only lodging’s free? That’s still great! Shouldn’t cost too much.”

“Yeah, if anyone’s short on money, just mooch off your roommate. Plus, we’re probably going to cook together in a big pot, right?”

Qu Xiaoya nodded. “We’ll cook together in the evening. And we can soak in the hot springs.”

The moment she said “hot springs,” the guys in the class got excited.

Mixed-gender hot springs? Holy hell!

That’s way better than sitting in the dorm playing games!

Especially with so many attractive girls in the class, this trip promised plenty of eye candy.

But before their fantasies could get any wilder, Qu Xiaoya threw cold water on them. “Don’t get any ideas. The hot springs at my family’s resort are gender-separated and not co-ed.”

Xu Haodong looked devastated. “Not mixed? That’s such a waste of water!”

Jiang Zhou glared at him. “You think you’re doing this to save the environment? I know exactly what’s going on in your head.”

“Come on, Jiang Zhou, don’t tell me you weren’t even a little excited?”

“Excited about what? I’m not like you single dogs.”

He glanced back at Feng Siruo, only to find her already watching him, completely lost in thought.

Their eyes met, and Feng Siruo quickly snapped out of it, averting her gaze in a panic.

Qu Xiaoya continued, “Since there won’t be any more holidays soon, we’ll need to schedule the trip for a time that works for everyone. I’m thinking next weekend. Anyone who wants to come can sign up now!”

She sat down at the lectern and pulled out a notebook.

Everyone immediately crowded forward to write their names.

The most enthusiastic ones, unsurprisingly, were the guys.

Even if it wasn’t a mixed hot spring, spending the night with classmates, especially girls, was still pretty awesome.

Picture this: an open-air bonfire, showcasing talents, a little music…

Who knew? Maybe they’d actually charm a girlfriend into their lives.

Just then, Huang Qi walked up to Jiang Zhou.

She reached out with her slender hand and gave his shoulder a gentle squeeze.

“Hey, scumbag-ge, wanna share a room on the trip?”

Jiang Zhou glanced at her. “If you don’t mind the risk, sure, but I’m not taking responsibility.”

Huang Qi looked over at Feng Siruo. “If I say yes, think she’ll beat me up?”

“She probably wouldn’t dare.”

“No wonder you picked Feng Siruo, because she can’t control you, huh?”

Jiang Zhou thought for a moment. That… actually sounded true.

Even if he did stay with Huang Qi, Feng Siruo likely wouldn’t say a word.

But afterward… it would be hell.

He’d definitely lose his girlfriend.

“So? Tempted?”

Jiang Zhou coughed. “Don’t test a good man with tactics like that.”

Huang Qi clicked her tongue. “Your eyes lit up the moment I mentioned it!”

“Any normal guy’s eyes would light up. Doesn’t mean anything.”

“So you’re rejecting me? That really hurts.”

Jiang Zhou smacked his lips. “If Feng Siruo doesn’t let me stay in her room, then I’ll come find you?”

Huang Qi’s eyes widened. “What?! Then I’m just your backup? Dream on!”

“Didn’t you just call me a scumbag? That’s exactly what a scumbag would do!”

“I’m going to tell Senior Han and Su everything you just said.”

Jiang Zhou narrowed his eyes. “I’ll deny it.”

“No problem. I recorded it!”

She waved her phone triumphantly.

Damn, that was the same trick he used yesterday.

He had felt so smug when Wei Lanlan was speechless.

How did a veteran like him fall for the same trap?

“Qi… Qi! I was joking, alright?”

“Hey hey hey, don’t go! Your phone wallpaper’s kind of cute, let me see it!”

Meanwhile, Ding Yue walked up to Feng Siruo. “Siruo, aren’t you going to do something about him?”

Feng Siruo pouted and held up three fingers. “Three days.”

“What do you mean?”

“I’m not talking to him for three days!”

Ding Yue’s eyes widened. “You’re actually jealous?!”

Feng Siruo wrinkled her nose and nodded hard.