Serenade-Chapter 6: Little Apple

The router is hanging on the bed ladder, with several complex cables connecting the computer on the desk and the interface on the wall.

Jin Xi is feeling dizzy just looking at it.

Meanwhile, Bo Yan is half-crouched in front of the desk, sometimes tapping on the keyboard and sometimes pressing the switches on the router.

Jin Xi brings over her own little stool and places it in front of Bo Yan. "Senior, please sit."

Bo Yan looks down at the small stool with its square corners and soft cartoon cushion.

Are all the items in a girl's home this furry?

He hesitates to sit, afraid of making it dirty or breaking it.

"It's okay," Bo Yan quickly enters the initial password. "That's all."

Jin Xi leans against him, with her hand on the desk, focused on the computer screen. "Hey, I did the same thing just now, why did it fail?"

He scoffs lightly. "Because you're stupid."

Jin Xi pouts in dissatisfaction, but doesn't dare say anything. After all, whether or not they can get online tonight depends entirely on this guru.

She looks down at the screen, her black hair falling onto Bo Yan's hand as he grips the mouse. It's smooth and silky, making his heart itch.

Bo Yan smells the fragrance of her shampoo between her hair, and looks up to see her fair neck and pretty collarbones.

She's taken off her down jacket and is wearing a summer-style T-shirt that girls like, light and casual. Her delicate shoulders and slender arms are very pretty.

This angle is a blessing!

As soon as Bo Yan lifts his head, he can see the undulating peaks under the T-shirt.

His throat feels a little itchy.

Jin Xi notices Bo Yan's gaze and asks, "Senior, why are you looking at me?"

Bo Yan immediately averts his eyes and lectures her with a stern face, "Wearing so little, aren't you afraid of catching a cold?"

"Just now, you told me not to wear a down jacket," Jin Xi reminds him.

"That doesn't mean you should take it off completely."

"I didn't take it off completely," Jin Xi looks down at her T-shirt and watermelon shorts. "I'm wearing more than what you just had on."

"This is a boys' dormitory," Bo Yan has to remind her again. "Don't dress like this and wander around outside."

"I'm not stupid," Jin Xi retorts. "I won't do that. But I'm in my own room, and there's no one else here."

Bo Yan: ...

Does she not consider him an outsider or not consider him a man?

Bo Yan doesn't argue with her about the clothes issue, as long as she knows her limits.

He pushes the computer towards Jin Xi. "Set a password."

"jinxi520," Jin Xi says.

Bo Yan sighs. "I asked you to input it yourself, not say it out loud."

"Is there a difference?" Jin Xi asks.

Bo Yan sternly says, "I'm right in front of you. Now that I know your password, what if you suspect me of stealing your internet?"

"Would Senior steal my internet?" Jin Xi asks.

Bo Yan: ...

Do I look like I'm so broke that I have to steal yours?

In the end, Bo Yan still uses "jinxi520" as the password to help Jin Xi set up the router.

Jin Xi thanks him profusely and hands him a freshly purchased Red Fuji apple as he leaves.

"Tonight I can go online, all thanks to Senior Bo Yan! I can't thank you enough, please have an apple as a token of my gratitude."

Bo Yan happily accepted the red apple: "If you have any problems, feel free to call me. You can also message me on WeChat if it's more convenient."

"Thank you, Senior!"

Bo Yan went back to his room, looking at the bright red apple in his hands. It looked so adorable that he couldn't resist admiring it. He wondered why all the apples she bought were so cute.

He sniffed it under his nose, enjoying the fresh scent.

He couldn't bring himself to take a bite, so he carefully placed it on his desk and decided to enjoy it after finishing his laundry.

Later that evening, Xu Chaoyang returned from playing basketball, sweating profusely. He saw the red apple on Bo Yan's desk and grabbed it, taking a bite without asking.

Bo Yan had just finished his laundry and came back to see his adorable apple completely devoured by Xu Chaoyang. He was furious.

Without a second thought, Bo Yan flew over and kicked Xu Chaoyang onto the bed, leaving him unable to move.

"Bo Yan, what the hell!"

"Who told you to touch my stuff!"

Bo Yan was so angry that his eyes turned red.

Xu Chaoyang was in pain, gritting his teeth: "It's just an apple, is it really that big of a deal? I'll go downstairs and buy you ten pounds of apples!"

"How can they be the same!"

"Why not?"

Only the experienced Jing Chi, who knew everything, smiled knowingly: "Can the apple that the girl gave you be the same as the one you bought yourself?"

Xu Chaoyang blinked, stunned: "The girl gave it to you?"

Bo Yan calmed down and sat back in his chair, ignoring the two of them.

He felt so sad and frustrated.

Jing Chi said, "I bet five cents that Bo Yan has hooked up with the girl next door."

Xu Chaoyang was shocked: "No way, how did you figure that out?"

Jing Chi held his phone confidently: "Just search for the Wi-Fi and you'll know."

Xu Chaoyang searched on his phone and sure enough, he was amazed.

Bo Yan was curious and took out his phone to connect to the Wi-Fi. He saw an extra signal named "Neighbor Senior, don't steal my Wi-Fi!".

Bo Yan: ...

In the public laundry room, Chu Zhao and Lin Luo firmly agreed that there was something fishy about Bo Yan setting up a router for them.

Lin Luo said, "Why didn't he go set up the router for someone else, but instead came to our dorm?"

Jin Xi wrung out her clothes: "Maybe it was just a coincidence."

Lin Luo and Chu Zhao exchanged a smile: "How coincidental."

Jin Xi turned on the tap, washing her clothes, and didn't want to talk about Bo Yan anymore.

Lin Luo leaned over and asked, "What do you think of Bo Yan?"

Jin Xi replied, "He's pretty good."

Lin Luo asked again, "Do you like him?"

Jin Xi replied, "Yes, I do."

"Well then!" Lin Luo nudged Jin Xi with his elbow: "If you like him, go for it and show Bo Yan what he's missing out on!"

Jin Xi was used to the sound of the tap and looked at Lin Luo: "No way."

"You like him, don't you? Don't you want to make him yours?"

Jin Xi struggled to wring out her t-shirt. "If you like the communal washing machine downstairs so much, should we move it to our dorm and claim it as our own?"

Lin Luo: ...

Why would I like the washing machine downstairs? The world is so big.

As more guys entered the laundry room at nine in the evening, Jin Xi and her friends finished their laundry and prepared to leave. Chu Zhao quickly said, "I have two more pieces to wash. Wait for me, I'll be done soon."

"Okay." Jin Xi and Lin Luo put down their laundry and waited for her.

Just then, two girls walked into the laundry room with their dirty clothes. Jin Xi looked up and saw their bare arms and the back of their pajama tank tops, which were cut out in a way that revealed their smooth waistlines and ample cleavage.

Jin Xi recognized them. There were two female dorms on the fourth floor, located at opposite ends of the corridor. These girls were from the other dorm.

When they moved in, they caused quite a stir. Several guys helped them with their luggage, cleaned their rooms, and even scrubbed the windows, all afternoon long.

These girls didn't do anything and just stood by the door of their dorm, like four blooming flowers.

It had to be admitted that they were really beautiful, tall and well-proportioned. Even Jin Xi couldn't help but steal glances at them.

Comparing herself to them, with her flat chest and straight waist, Jin Xi felt inferior. How could people have such different shapes even though they all grew up eating the same food?

Girls are naturally sensitive to the gaze of other girls. The flower in front of her coldly said to Jin Xi, "What are you looking at?"

Jin Xi looked away and said, "Sorry."

The flower sneered and muttered, "Disgusting."

Jin Xi was confused. Why did she find her disgusting?

Lin Luo put down her laundry and confronted the flower, "What are you muttering about?"

The flower didn't back down and pointed at Jin Xi, "She kept staring at me. That look in her eyes...obviously she thinks I'm dressed too revealing and is judging me morally. Do you think I can't see it? It's so hot today, why are you guys still wearing jackets? When we were moving in today, you were peeking at us in the hallway. If you have any complaints, just say it to our faces, don't talk behind our backs and act like petty people."

Jin Xi and Lin Luo did look at them when they moved in, but it was just out of curiosity. They didn't expect these flowers to be so sensitive.

Just because of a few glances, there was already deep-seated resentment. Jin Xi felt it was absurd. "We really didn't talk about you guys behind your backs."

"Then what were you looking at me for just now?"

Jin Xi honestly replied, "Because I think you're really pretty."

The flower was stunned. It was hard to stay angry at someone who was so friendly and sincere in complimenting her beauty. She left with her laundry in embarrassment.

Thus, the conflict was resolved by Jin Xi's calm and sincere approach.

After returning to the dorm, Lin Luo exclaimed in frustration, "Why do girls get judged for wearing less clothing while guys can just stare at us without any consequences?"

Chu Zhao, buried in his books, looked up and replied, "In most cases, that's unfortunately true. Girls like our little Jin Xi, who don't care about what others think, are rare and need to be protected."

Jin Xi retorted, "If someone is difficult to get along with, just don't bother with them."

**

At 11:00 pm in room 409 of the men's dormitory, after failing to log into the online database for the third time, Bo Yan shouted down to Xu Chaoyang and Jing Chi, "Stop downloading movies, you'll regret it if you don't watch them all night!"

"Don't be ridiculous, we still have one-third left, and the internet will be cut off at 11:30," Xu Chaoyang said excitedly, "My little Kawaguchi will sleep with me tonight."

Jing Chi added, "I still have two more seeds left, I'll finish them off quickly."

Bo Yan couldn't even load a webpage at this point. He clicked on the Wi-Fi icon and saw the next-door neighbor's signal at the top of the list: "Dear neighbor, please don't steal my Wi-Fi!"

Bo Yan was speechless.