That first night, Shen Ci did not sleep soundly. In her subconscious, there was fear—fear that she would wake up to find everything had only been a dream.
So when she woke the next day, her head was still a little groggy.
After a simple wash and tidy-up, the very first thing she did upon returning to school was to find her counselor.
“Switch dorms?”
In the corridor, Li Jianguo was holding a stack of books. He looked at Shen Ci with some surprise and asked, “Why?”
“I don’t get along with my roommates. Director Li, could you please go ask the logistics office teacher and help me change to another dorm?”
In Li Jianguo’s mind, Shen Ci was an excellent student. Back when she finished her college entrance exams, the admissions office had personally visited her home to persuade her to enroll under special admission.
With a score of 714, she could have chosen from any university in the country with her eyes closed.
That was why he always took her matters seriously.
Adjusting the black-framed glasses on his nose, he lowered his voice and asked earnestly, “Are your roommates bullying you?”
Bullying?
That was all from her past life.
Shen Ci sighed. “We just don’t get along. Don’t ask about the rest, Director Li.”
Seeing her like this, Li Jianguo didn’t press further. He only nodded. “Alright, I’ll go ask around later. Once I get an answer, I’ll message you on WeChat. Remember, if anything happens, you must tell me, understood?”
Shen Ci smiled and nodded. “I know. Thank you, Director Li.”
Checking the class schedule in the group chat, she realized she had no classes today. Just then, her younger sister Shen Li messaged her.
[Sis, I’ve settled in at school. Military training starts in two days. Do you have time to meet these next couple of days?]
Her younger sister, Shen Li, was a freshman this year. But unlike her, Shen Li had entered through the arts exam. With a top-50 national ranking, she had been admitted to Huaxia Film Academy.
[I’m free today. Let’s have lunch together this afternoon. I’ll come find you.]
After leaving her own school, Shen Ci took a taxi straight to Wanxiang Mall.
At the Apple flagship store, she glanced at the price tags on the electronics, still feeling a little dazed, almost amused.
The latest top version of the iPhone 16: 1.9888 yuan.A laptop: 1.2888 yuan.
There wasn’t a single item priced over ten yuan.
She directly bought a full set—phone, laptop, tablet, and headphones—for less than five yuan.
Then she went to a top luxury brand store, purchased four sets of premium skincare, and took a taxi to her sister’s school.
Huaxia Film Academy, Girls’ Dormitory 507.
Inside, bursts of girlish laughter could be heard.
“Did you see those boys from Class 8 this morning?”“You mean the ones on the basketball court? Yeah, yeah, I saw! So handsome! That He Chaoyang—he was already famous online before the exams because of his looks. I even followed him. And in person? Even more handsome!”“Right? That’s our department for you. I checked out the directing and broadcasting departments—they’re nothing in comparison.”“Haha, picky much? Well, our department has plenty of beauties too!”
Three girls sat together, snacking and chatting about the handsome freshmen. The atmosphere was lively and warm.
Only Shen Li sat quietly on her bed, fiddling with her phone.
“Shen Li, come down! Have some chips and chat with us!”“Yeah, Meina bought these chips, they’re from abroad, really good. Come try some!”
Her two roommates invited her warmly, but Shen Li only shook her head and softly declined, “You eat. I’m afraid of gaining weight.”
“You’re already so slim, and still worried?”“Exactly! You don’t need to worry now. Wait until military training starts, you’ll lose even more weight. Come on, join us.”
Shen Li wanted to refuse again, but Sun Yuan had already reached out to tug her down. “Come on, don’t be so I! The three of us are all E-types—you need to blend in. Otherwise, it’ll feel like we’re isolating you.”
Helpless, Shen Li got down from her bed.
It wasn’t that she didn’t want to fit in—it was that she felt inferior deep down.
Unlike her, all three of her roommates were locals from Long City, their families well-off. When they first moved in, everyone had tacitly prepared gifts for each other.
Meina had given each a designer bracelet worth over 0.4 yuan.Sun Yuan had given branded sunglasses worth nearly 0.2 yuan.Wang Chuhan had prepared beauty cards valued at 0.38 yuan.
But she… she had brought specialty snacks from Shenzhen and Hong Kong, spending less than 0.03 yuan in total.
Though her roommates had looked happy when receiving them, compared to theirs, she couldn’t help but feel embarrassed.
It wasn’t that her roommates isolated her—it was that subconsciously, she isolated herself.
“Shen Li, have you always been this way?” Sun Yuan asked, trying to learn more about her.
Shen Li nodded lightly. “I have an older sister and a younger brother. I’m the middle child. Usually, in families with three kids, the middle one is the invisible one. So I’ve never been good at communicating with people.”
Wang Chuhan was startled. “What? With your looks, your family ignores you?”
“My sister is much prettier than me.”
“No way?” Wang Chuhan was doubtful. “Then your sister must be a fairy!”
Shen Li’s lips curved slightly. She actually nodded. “In my eyes, she really is a fairy.”
Her roommates exchanged smiles, thinking she was just a sister-obsessed girl.
Zhao Meina glanced at her and said with a laugh, “Actually, your kind of beauty is very sought after in the acting industry. You’ve got that light, understated look with a hint of classical charm. You’d look great in both ancient and modern costumes. But your personality won’t do. If a production crew came to our school to pick people, would you dare go up?”
The other two nodded in agreement. “Meina’s right. You’ve got the looks, but you need to seize opportunities.”
Shen Li obediently listened, not arguing—because she knew they were right, and they meant well.
Outside the dorm, Shen Ci had actually arrived some time ago. Hearing the lively chatter, she lingered at the door to listen for a while.
Her sister’s roommates all seemed like good-natured girls—far luckier than her own had been.
When she felt the time was right, she knocked lightly.
“Who is it?”
Wang Chuhan got up to open the door. The moment she saw who it was, her eyes lit up.
Such a beautiful older sister.
“Who are you looking for?” she asked, her voice unconsciously softening.
“Jie?”
Shen Li’s eyes widened in surprise at the sight of her sister. “Why are you here so suddenly?”
Her roommates looked at each other in shock.
So this was Shen Li’s “fairy sister”?
She really did look like a fairy!
Wang Chuhan quickly stepped aside to let her in. Shen Ci handed the bags in her hands to the girls, smiling as she said, “I brought you all gifts—a set of skincare products. Hope you like them.”
(End of Chapter)