The semester comes to an end.

Ye Feng didn’t have to endure boredom for long; as soon as Ouyang Lanlan received the bodyguard’s message, she hurried over directly.

“Are you alright?” were Ouyang Lanlan’s first words upon entering the hospital room. She skipped any formal address, which made it seem as though they were quite close; her tone was filled with concern, secretly delighting Ye Feng.

“I’m fine, just feeling weak all over—can't move for now.” Ye Feng tried to sit up but failed, only managing a feeble wobble.

Seeing this, Ouyang Lanlan immediately stepped forward, propping up the pillow and helping Ye Feng sit up against it. “How did you end up like this?”

“I’m not sure myself. After I saw you all home, I was stopped by four thugs on the way back to the dorm. They gave me a beating, and I passed out. When I woke up, I was here. It shouldn’t be a big deal, right?” Ye Feng feigned ignorance.

“Not a big deal? You were missing for a whole day. I thought you…” Ouyang Lanlan trailed off, but Ye Feng understood her meaning.

“What? A whole day?” Ye Feng asked in surprise.

“Yes, didn’t you know?”

“No, I just woke up. But it’s not a big deal…”

“Do you know who attacked you?”

“No idea, but it seemed like it was the most notorious thug near the school—something King, I think.”

“I’m sorry. It’s all because of me that you were hurt.” Ouyang Lanlan’s face was full of guilt.

“You weren’t the one who hit me, so why are you apologizing?” Ye Feng pretended not to understand.

“You don’t get it, it’s…” Ouyang Lanlan’s words were cut off as Amy and Nan Jing walked into the room together. In unison, they asked, “Pervert/Feng, are you alright?”

Ye Feng had been enjoying his time alone with Ouyang Lanlan, and the interruption by the two girls left him a little annoyed. But there was nothing he could do—after all, when two beauties interrupt you, what can you say? He could only repeat his earlier answer, “I’m fine, just can’t move for now.”

“Where have you been for a whole day?” It was Amy who asked. Given how well she knew Ye Feng, there was nothing off limits in their conversations.

“I don’t know either. I just woke up and didn’t even realize a whole day had passed. I thought it was only a moment.” Ye Feng replied innocently, his expression so convincing he felt he’d missed his calling as an actor.

“Oh? Who knocked you out? I’ll get revenge for you!” Amy raised her little fist and made a show of punching the air.

“Forget it, just some local thugs around the school. Not worth the trouble,” Ye Feng replied indifferently.

The room fell into an awkward silence. Everyone knew who was behind the attack, but none of them could say so. Each pretended ignorance, unable to speak the truth.

Ye Feng sensed the strange atmosphere; none of the three women were his girlfriend, yet all three had rushed to see him immediately. Only he could truly understand the conflicting emotions in the room. The girls glanced at each other, none willing to break the silence. In the end, it was a nurse who dispelled the awkwardness.

“Visiting hours are over. Please leave the room promptly,” the nurse announced sweetly, though the message was unmistakably a request to leave.

“Well, I’m off then. Just wanted to check if the pervert had kicked the bucket…” Nan Jing was the first to speak. Though her words were harsh, Ye Feng could hear the concern beneath them.

“Rest well. I’ll come see you again tomorrow…” Ouyang Lanlan added.

“Feng, I’m leaving too. I’ll bring you something tasty tomorrow,” Amy said last, her tone tinged with reluctance, which left Ye Feng somewhat puzzled.

“Mm, bye.” Unable to find better words for the three girls, Ye Feng could only say this.

The nurse, seeing the three leave, helped Ye Feng settle back and then departed as well.

Life in the hospital was nothing short of comfortable. Someone peeled his fruit, someone fed him porridge. Ouyang Lanlan and Amy, two great beauties, took turns waiting on Ye Feng at his bedside. Amy even massaged his shoulders and legs from time to time. As a patient, Ye Feng enjoyed all the benefits of familial care—he was practically Master Ye. Yet, sometimes, the situation was embarrassingly awkward. Porridge and fruit offered by beauties was easy to finish off, but with all that food came the inevitable call of nature. And Ye Feng, not being very mobile, often held it in until he could bear it no longer. When he finally asked for help, each girl’s face turned scarlet with embarrassment. In the end, it was the professional nurse who came to his rescue, leaving Ye Feng mortified in turn.

His days in the hospital were relaxing and pleasant. For the first time in a while, Ye Feng enjoyed a few days of rare peace, free from scrutiny. More than once, he even wished he could stay there long-term.

During his stay, Nan Jing visited once, bringing fruit. She saw that not only was Ye Feng being cared for by two stunning women, but that Ouyang Lanlan, in particular, was not only beautiful and graceful but also gentle in temperament. The tender look in Ouyang Lanlan’s eyes as she gazed at Ye Feng did not escape Nan Jing’s notice. The way Ye Feng looked at Ouyang Lanlan was equally obvious to Nan Jing, and it made her uncomfortable; when Ye Feng looked at her, his gaze was so indifferent, it was as if she were a stranger in the room. She couldn’t bear to stay any longer. After leaving the hospital that day, she did not visit again until Ye Feng was discharged.

All good things come to an end. After a week of rest, Ye Feng’s body had fully recovered—an act he maintained only as long as he could. When he could no longer justify staying, he finally left the hospital.

Amy sent a car to pick Ye Feng up upon discharge. Back at school, Ye Feng noticed—perhaps it was just his imagination—that the entire campus seemed empty, especially the freshmen boys’ dormitory. Normally, around ten in the morning, these guys would only just be getting out of bed, yet today, Ye Feng barely saw anyone. He turned to ask Amy, who laughed at him mercilessly. Only then did Ye Feng remember: the end of the semester had arrived. All those habitual class-cutters had finally abandoned their cozy beds for the sake of their precious credits.

It’s fair to say that few look back on university exams without some degree of loathing. Most students are last-minute crammers, clutching at straws before the tests. After memorizing the key points the teachers highlighted, they’d forget everything immediately after the exams.

Ye Feng had barely returned when the first exams of their freshman year began—always conducted with great formality. Seven or eight proctors patrolled a single large classroom, each student seated far apart, making cheating nearly impossible.

Of course, this was true only for freshman fledglings. Once they became seasoned upperclassmen, exams became a trivial affair.

Before the exams, nerves were running high. The older students had already compiled the key points highlighted by the teachers into computer files, printing them out in microprint—words so small they were like sesame seeds. Since it was winter, and following the advice of their seniors, these guys wore clothes with as many pockets as possible, distributing the cheat sheets among them.

This had two benefits. First, it avoided putting all their eggs in one basket—if a teacher found one, others might still go unnoticed. Second, it allowed them to organize different types of answers in different pockets, making them easier to find—like a directory structure in a computer.

Everyone was extremely diligent before the exams. The tests were at eight, but by six, most were already in the classroom, hoping to snag a seat near the back or at the sides, out of the proctors’ view. But when they arrived, they found Ye Feng already there, reading a novel—he was the only one in the dorm who never slept in. Since coming to school, Ye Feng was always the first up, not just in dorm 218, but among all the freshman computer majors.

Seeing Ye Feng, the others could only sigh and accept their fate. Still, Ye Feng was considerate. He knew that if he took all the best seats, he’d be hated, so he saved only four spots for his dorm brothers. There were still plenty of good seats left for the others.

Then Ye Feng saw a group of guys hunched over their desks, busily writing. Curious, he walked over and immediately broke out in a sweat: “Guys, you’re vandalizing school property!”

The group was furiously scribbling answers to difficult questions on their desktops with ballpoint pens. One of them muttered, “Damn, these desks are so carved up already. Why can’t we take the test in the lecture hall on the third floor?” Ye Feng wondered aloud what was special about the lecture hall.

The guy explained that years of students had filled the lecture hall desks with all the key points. The school knew, but replacing the desks would be expensive, so the issue kept being put off. As a result, no freshman had ever failed an exam held there.

Ye Feng was amazed, thinking that the students at Haifeng University were bold to cheat so openly, and the school administrators even more so to avoid spending money on new desks.

But the students carving crib notes onto their desks were in for disappointment. The proctors’ first announcement upon entering was: “We’ll now assign your exam seats…”

A wail of despair swept the room.

In the end, Ye Feng was lucky enough to be assigned one of those desks, covered in answers. Looking back at the guy who’d prepared it, Ye Feng saw tears welling in his eyes, as if he wanted to swallow Ye Feng whole.

Ye Feng could only shrug innocently. It wasn’t his fault—it was the teachers who assigned the seats. But it was like a pie falling from the sky.

There was no need to ask—Ye Feng’s first exam went very smoothly.

Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, a week had passed. At the sound of a bell, the last exam was over.

For Ye Feng, the exams held no suspense, but for his friends, it wasn’t so easy. At Haifeng University, there was no credit system where failing a course cost you credits, and not earning enough meant you couldn’t graduate. Instead, you paid 120 yuan per retake, far cheaper than the hundreds of yuan per credit at other universities. But there was a catch: if you failed five core courses, you couldn’t get your degree certificate. So the exams were a source of real anxiety—especially for freshmen.

Upperclassmen said that by sophomore year, invigilation loosened up—unless you were unlucky enough to get one of the notorious “detective-level” proctors, you could just bring in cheat sheets and be careful. Otherwise, the university would have countless students failing to graduate each year.

But since most failures happened in the first year, there were always a few exceptional students who lost their degree qualification even by the end of freshman year. So the freshmen took their exams very seriously. In Ye Feng’s dorm, aside from their leader Wu Tian, who read a bit more, the other two spent their time flirting or gaming, rarely studying.

Still, they were lucky—none of them failed, though a few came close. They were fortunate indeed.

After the morning exam, the four dorm mates went to a small restaurant near the school gate and finally ordered dishes with meat—a modest celebration. With that, half their freshman year was behind them, and an eighth of their entire college life had passed.

That afternoon, after seeing his three friends off, Ye Feng packed up and returned alone to his family home. Luo Ming had come to invite him to spend the New Year at his place, but Ye Feng had no desire to return to that cold, empty house, so he declined. Luo Ming could only say he’d visit Ye Feng in a few days.

[End]