After Marrying the Evil God - Chapter 11

“I won’t be affected; I am an Evil God by nature, not a practitioner of the Dao,” Ji Sixian said, looking at Xie Chouzhuang with a gentle gaze.

The latter felt his face flush under the scrutiny. “Don’t look at me like that,” Xie Chouzhuang turned his head away, muttering softly.

Ji Sixian gently tilted the boy’s face back up and whispered, “After you and I are married, I intend to look at you every single day. We should start practicing now.”

Arrival at Hua University

A week passed quickly. Xie Chouzhuang packed his luggage and took a car to Hua University. His parents had wanted to see him off, but he had declined. Before he left, Xie Yuanxian stuffed more than a dozen Evil-Warding Talismans and Yin-Suppressing Talismans into his bag.

It was the peak of the enrollment season. The area surrounding Hua University was choked with various private cars, creating a massive traffic jam. Xie Chouzhuang took his suitcase from Uncle Wang, shouldered his backpack, and began walking toward the campus.

Before school started, Xie Yuanxian—worried that his brother might not get along with his roommates—had bought an apartment in a residential complex right next to the school. Xie Chouzhuang planned to stay in the dormitory for a while first; if his roommates proved difficult, he would move out after military training. He also kept in mind that having Ji Sixian visit might be inconvenient in a shared space, so he only brought a small portion of his belongings.

His suitcase wasn’t very heavy, but under the scorching sun, it wasn’t long before beads of sweat broke out on his forehead.

A girl wearing a volunteer T-shirt approached him with a bright smile. “Hello, Junior! Are you here to report for enrollment?”

“Yes.”

“What’s your major?”

“Chinese Language and Literature.”

The girl’s eyes lit up. “My name is Chen Shu. I’m also in the Chinese department, currently a junior. Let me take you to sign in.”

“My name is Xie Chouzhuang. Thank you for your help, Senior.”

“It’s no trouble at all!” Chen Shu led him onto the campus.

On both sides of the main campus road, towering ancient trees grew lush and vibrant. Sunlight filtered through the gaps in the leaves, creating patches of golden light that looked like scattered dreamlike dust. The neatly trimmed lawns stretched out like green velvet carpets, punctuated by uniquely shaped modern sculptures; art and nature blended perfectly here. The campus lake acted as a giant mirror, reflecting the weeping willows and elegant European-style buildings along its banks.

“Freshmen for the Chinese department report here. Junior, just swipe your ID card to confirm your identity, and then you can take the shuttle to the dorms. The male dormitory for our department is Building 6,” Chen Shu explained as they walked.

“Military training at Hua University lasts for two weeks and is quite strict. During that time, you have to stay on campus, and there are room checks every night. Once training is over, they won’t be as strict. You should prepare yourself, Junior, or it’ll be a hard slog. Make sure you have plenty of sunscreen; many students get sunburned every year.”

“Oh, right. Once you get to the dorm, you can choose your own room. There are quad rooms and doubles, all with private bathrooms and a ‘bed-over-desk’ layout.”

“Thank you, Senior.” After gathering the necessary info, Xie Chouzhuang boarded the shuttle.

“Junior, let’s exchange contact info. You can ask me if there’s anything you don’t understand later.” Xie Chouzhuang pulled out his phone and added Chen Shu.

The Dormitory

Once the shuttle slowly drifted out of sight, the group of senior girls from the Chinese department could no longer contain their excitement.

“AAAAHHH! Our school actually got another top-tier hottie! And he’s a completely different type from Liu Ci. I’m going to go dig around in a few days and see if he has a girlfriend.”

“Chen Shu, you just added him, right? Push his contact info to me!”

Chen Shu shook her head helplessly. “I suggest you don’t get your hopes up.”

“Why?” the other girls asked curiously.

“Boys like that are either already taken, or they’re like Liu Ci completely uninterested in women.”

A girl nearby whispered, “But he really is incredibly good-looking.”

Ten minutes later, the shuttle arrived at Building 6.

“Freshman? Choose a room and a bed.” The dormitory manager handed Xie Chouzhuang a form. He noticed the double rooms were already full, so he picked a quad on the third floor and wrote his name down.

“Room 316, Bed 4. Here is your key card.”

When Xie Chouzhuang opened the door to 316, a wave of cool air hit him. There were already two people in the room. Hearing the noise, one of the boys greeted him: “Hi! I’m Zheng Jie.”

Nearby, a boy with glasses and hair long enough to cover his eyes spoke softly: “Hello, I’m Peng Bo.”

“Hello, I’m Xie Chouzhuang.”

“Wait, so you’re the top scorer from Hua Ting this year? I can’t believe I’m in the same dorm as the ‘Number One Scholar’!” Zheng Jie looked delighted. “Come, let me help you unpack.”

“No need, I don’t have much stuff.” Xie Chouzhuang declined the offer politely. He went to wipe the dust off his desk, only to find it was already spotless.

“Um, I got here first, so I wiped everyone’s desk while I was at it,” Peng Bo said in a small voice.

“Thank you.” Xie Chouzhuang unpacked his suitcase, organized his things, and climbed up to lay out his bedding.

Seeing how little he brought, Zheng Jie was curious. “Xie Chouzhuang, why did you bring so few things?”

Since he didn’t know his roommates’ personalities yet, Xie Chouzhuang gave a casual explanation. “I’m a local. I just brought the essentials for enrollment; I’ll get the rest later.”

“Ah, I see. Let’s exchange contacts. I’ll start a dorm group chat.”

Just as they were talking, the door was slammed open with a loud Klang. A teenager dressed in luxury brands walked in. His upturned eyes gave him an arrogant air. He was followed by four or five bodyguards.

“What kind of dump is this?” Tao Beizhi said with a look of pure disgust. “This place isn’t even as big as my bathroom at home. I don’t want to live in this shithole.”

“Young Master, please bear with it. These were the Chairman’s orders; please don’t make it difficult for us.” A bodyguard quickly pulled out a chair and wiped it down with a tissue.

“Unbelievable. What is the old man thinking? Is this dump even fit for humans? I’m not staying here!”

“Young Master,” the bodyguard looked troubled, “The Chairman said that if you don’t live on campus, your allowance will be cut in half.”

“Dammit, he has to control everything!” Tao Beizhi was visibly agitated.

“Young Master, just endure it. The Chairman bought an apartment in the neighboring complex and has already furnished it. He said you can stay there during holidays, but not during the week.”

“Fine. Get my stuff organized.” Tao Beizhi sat down arrogantly and dragged his chair over. “My name is Tao Beizhi. You should have heard of me. My father is Tao Cong, the real estate mogul.”

“Tao Cong? As in the richest man in South City, Tao Cong?” Zheng Jie asked in shock.

“At least you have some worldly knowledge.”