Money, Breasts, Thighs

Chapter 5: University and Girls, Here I Come

In these past couple of days, I've been busy preparing to go to university. That old principal turned out to be quite trustworthy; I was worried he'd just take the money and not follow through. But to my surprise, he came through on the third day, which was a Monday, handing me the application forms. Not only that, he even fabricated a record for me that portrayed me as a child prodigy since elementary school. Damn, if only it were true, I wouldn't have needed to spend the money. You have to admire the old guy for his cunning, though.

Before leaving, I visited Michelle. Not for any particular reason—truth be told, I was a bit reluctant to leave her. But honestly, I had no choice; the mess I'd left here was getting too big. Forget about the money; if Brother Long found out I deceived him, he'd tear me apart. And then there's Linda, who seemed eager to eat me alive. Most importantly, everyone here knew me as a small fry, and if I actually rose up, it would shock them.

Realizing all this, I knew I had to leave. Yet, I was still a bit attached to the school, or else I wouldn't have given that old principal so much money for a university spot. Heck, that money could've started a school.

But I didn't tell Michelle all this. I just told her I had provoked a local g**g and needed to lay low. I could see she still cared about me from the concern in her eyes. Before leaving, I entrusted my newly purchased apartment to her, as she needed a place to stay. Once I made sure she was taken care of, there was nothing left to keep me here. Jiba had plenty of money, my friends were few, and my uncle—well, he'd be perfectly happy if I left, as he'd been eyeing selling our house for a long time. Let him sell it to his content.

It wasn't until I boarded the train that I realized how unfamiliar my city felt to me.

No one came to see me off. Jiba was laid up somewhere, probably after eating something bad. As for my relatives, I didn't even bother telling them. Just as the train was about to leave, from a distance, I thought I saw a blurry figure with big eyes and long eyelashes on the platform.

The city where I lived is neither too far nor too close to the capital—about a ten-hour train ride. When I got off the train and went to collect my luggage, the impatient expression of the railway staff made me want to tell them, "Hey, these thirty-odd big boxes I checked contain U.S. dollars." I'd love to see their faces, but I wasn't foolish enough to try it. Safety first.

Registration for university was on August 25th, but I arrived fifteen days early. Not for any particular reason, mostly to handle the cash I had on me. I couldn't keep wandering around with it everywhere.

Eight days, it took me eight whole days to deposit all the money intermittently into different banks and various savings accounts. During that time, I issued myself over a hundred bank cards. I don't know if this makes me the person with the most bank cards, but at least this way, I have peace of mind. Just over a hundred cards fit in a single backpack, making it convenient to "make a quick exit" if necessary. Make a quick exit? There's that unlucky thought again.

With one more day left before classes started, I decided to give myself a real break and relax (though for the past seventeen years, I've practically been giving myself a break every day). I planned to explore the capital's famous sites. Had I known that this could get me into trouble, I wouldn't have gone out.

The capital is truly unique. Just look at the girls from all over, their stylish clothes, the cars on the streets, the dignified police... and even the robbers seem polite. Wait—robbers?

I noticed a "robbery" in front of a McDonald's, but it seemed more like harassment than anything else. The assailant was a man in his twenties, not particularly striking, while the victim was a quite pretty girl. It makes sense—if both were that perfect, they'd probably be in bed together instead.

"Weihao, let go of me. I won't go no matter what you say."

"Why are you being so stubborn? I've even invited your favorite celebrity for you. Why disrespect me like this?" Weihao's face was flushed with anger.

"You think I'm like those petty celebrities you idolize, here at your beck and call? I'm telling you, Weihao, you'd better learn to respect me and not treat me as your property." The beautiful girl was also getting angrier, pointing assertively at Weihao.

"You... you're really shameless, Jing!" Weihao couldn't handle losing face any longer. In classic loser fashion, he prepared to slap the girl.

In that moment, I felt like the ultimate hero. Right when he raised his hand to slap her, I grabbed his arm.

"Man, you're overstepping. Can't you solve this peacefully without resorting to hitting women?" I thought I struck quite the impressive figure with my designer clothes and sunglasses, aside from my slightly tan skin making me look a bit rustic—a minor flaw in my heroic image.

"Who the hell are you, brat? Mind your own business. This has nothing to do with you." This kid had a fouler mouth than me. I hadn't wanted to fight, but on the train, I vowed to myself I wouldn't be a wimp here. Besides, where I'm from is practically a haven for street brawls, and I was the champ on my block. I couldn't let this creep intimidate me.

With a swift kick to his gut followed by one to his face, he was down. Man, he was weak—I didn't even use my hands. As he wiped his b****y nose, I sneakily glanced at the girl. She was watching me—good, she should see how handsome I am.

The guy gave me a look, half-crawled back into his car, and sped off. So much for a graceful exit. As I turned to chat with the girl, he called back, "Kid, have the guts to tell me your name. If I let you operate in this country, I'll take your last name!"

Wow, this guy sure talked big, like he was some kind of VIP or politician!

I sauntered up to him slowly and said, "Your brother doesn't change his name or surname. I'm Wu Yeh, as in Yeh from Yale University."

"Alright, Wu Yeh, you'll see." He gestured threateningly before driving off again. "Sure, good boy, I'll wait. Man, I said my name was my grandpa, and you really went with it. You're not just average dumb." As I ridiculed him, I turned back to properly bond with the damsel I just rescued. But she just stared seriously at me.

"You should run," she warned, "no matter who you are, you can't beat Weihao. He's petty and will come back for you."

"Mmm, do you also believe him when he says he'll drive me out of China?" I replied jokingly. However, she didn't laugh, "He could actually do it. His grandfather is XXX." Hearing the name of that frequently televised figure, my heart sank immediately. Damn, where had my kicks landed me?

"But don't worry. In a city this big, he can't possibly find you by just your name. Just leave before he returns with backup." I scanned her face for any signs of jest, but found none. I should really make a break for it. This wasn't what I'd signed up for when I leapt to play hero—hitting steel, I mean.

I sprinted for half a block before realizing taxis existed. Back in my hotel room, I debated bolting, but then recalled the girl's words. She had a point. A city with 20 million people—where would they start looking for me? Even with his grandfather's connections, having the police hunt me down was a stretch. If they did, though, I'd be impressed. Chastising myself for getting rattled, I let the matter drop. I had university to attend tomorrow. I said I wasn't worried, but sleep didn't come easy, leaving me lethargic the following day.

On the day of registration, I arrived at the university full of excitement. The sheer number of pretty ladies was astounding—I almost forgot to check in! Luckily, the first day wasn't for classes, just dorm assignments. I got a spot in the boys' dormitory. Not great. I wondered if a bribe might land me in the girls' dorm?

By the time we reached the dorm with the teacher, I was drowsy. I met my three roommates, but after introductions, I barely remembered their names. Two Dragons (both named Long) and a Pig (surname Zhu)—had they shipped me to a zoo?

While they went off to explore the campus, all I wanted was sleep.

I nearly forgot to mention I enrolled in a computer science program, mainly because I'm good at gaming.

So that's how I settled into one of China's most prestigious universities. I couldn't care less about its history or capabilities. I cared about all the beautiful girls, even more so because of my rural background—everyone seemed like a beauty to me. Maybe I'd even catch an exotic beauty someday.

But for now, I was attending classes, curious to see if the teachers were authoritative. They weren't, though. They didn't ask questions or call parents, so my college truancy began. Within half a month, I explored the city entirely and found secretive spots for a good time. Only then did I realize not all university girls were beauties—many brought a rural aura themselves. Lucky I hadn't lowered my standards!

At last, with the external environment familiar, internal relations required my focus. I needed to cultivate relationships to have someone answer roll call in my place, preferably using my new roommates.

Recall two named Long? The tall one, Zhang Wenlong, claimed his father was a local magnate, worth over 10 million yuan. I've no idea how much of that was true, but he certainly enjoyed nice things. He'd bought a new Apple laptop within days of starting. I wanted one too, but I'd been too busy socializing. The shorter guy, Chen Long, shared my surname and was a quiet type, nothing like Zhang Wenlong's boisterousness. The pig was Zhu g**g, a typical bookworm, not amusing. Over the past half-month, I hadn't exchanged more than ten words with them. I might never have gotten to know them if not for what happened one night.

We have to go back to Zhang Wenlong. Rich kids possess a talent—they gauge a person's lifestyle instantly. Consider Zhang. He'd antagonize the other two but avoid me, probably because despite looking rustic, I wore and used more expensive stuff than he did. The incident one night partly resulted from my share of blame.

I bunked on the top, carelessly leaving my water bottle on the desk. Chen Long, by accident, knocked it over. No big deal—except Zhang's laptop was also on that desk. Splashed, his mood soured right as we were dealing with military training stress, and tempers flared. Sleeping, I absently mumbled for them to cut it out, which angered Zhang. He demanded Chen Long pay for damages—totally unreasonable!

Hoping to sleep, I dismissed his demands. But then the i***t targeted me, "Of course you don't care, it's not your stuff. My dad just bought it for over 10,000 yuan!"

His accusation outraged me, and I jumped from the top bunk, grabbing his laptop and smashing it to the floor. They froze in shock.

"10,000 yuan, huh?" I asked, stomping the machine completely. Not just 10,000 yuan—I stomped until my rage was vented, then tossed 20,000 yuan at Zhang. "Get a new one, and stop flaunting trash."