Chapter 137: Probability Is an Unreliable Thing
The thought of sneaking into the girls' dorm at night forced Ye Fuli to confront her own impulses and the sleaziness lurking within.
Alright.
She knew this was the key to Pandora's box.
Ye Fuli set the key down with a hint of frustration.
She couldn't bear to imagine the look of utter disgust Ye Zhen would give her if she actually went through with it.
Even more unimaginable was whether she could maintain her current stable mental state once she confirmed beyond doubt that "Ye Zhen was indeed Ye Zhen."
Ye Fuli had little confidence in herself.
That night, she managed to fall asleep—a rare occurrence. Her dreams no longer featured pitch-black waters or bottomless abysses stretching endlessly into the distance. Instead, they presented a rare, beautiful scene.
It was dusk.
She stood outside the classroom, watching inside where a girl stood on tiptoes, scribbling in messy handwriting.
In the quiet campus, only the two of them existed.
She could almost hear the girl's puffed cheeks and the soft, muttered complaints. She could almost hear the scratching of chalk on the blackboard. She could even see the sweat beads on her nose and the slight flutter of her eyelashes…
Ye Fuli reached out involuntarily.
She wanted to push open the door and step into the classroom; she wanted to take her hand and help finish the remaining work; she wanted to talk to her, even if it was just about the weather lately.
But the moment the door began to open.
she woke up.
When she awoke, the sky was already bright.
Outside the window, bright sunlight streamed in, birds chirped cheerfully, and the hurried footsteps of young girls rushing to class mingled with their playful laughter.
Ye Fuli pressed her forehead, rose, and sat on the edge of the bed.
The dream felt as vivid as if it had just happened.
Two streams of tears slid down her cheeks and fell onto the back of her hand.
The crushing disparity between dream and reality nearly crushed her spirit.
She raised her hand and roughly wiped her face.
Stepping out of the staff dormitory, she sat down at the front desk, intending to pour herself a cup of tea to steady her nerves.
Ye Zhen, who had just descended the stairs, lifted her head slightly and locked eyes with her. The face from the dream suddenly overlapped with the face before her, jolting the dazed Ye Fuli awake.
Ye Zhen: "…"
Holy crap.
Feng Aotian, you really are everywhere!
Don't you have your own business to attend to?
Is serving food in the cafeteria no longer enough to satisfy your voyeuristic urges?
Could you please stop being so terrifying? Early in the morning like this, you're giving me a heart attack.
Ye Fuli shifted her gaze uncomfortably, pretending not to see Ye Zhen. She hoped this would make her odd behavior seem less deliberate.
Ye Zhen: "…"
Fine.
If you enjoy playing these games, go ahead and play them. I'm off to class.
Ye Zhen darted past her like a whirlwind.
Ye Fuli stared at her retreating figure with a look of resentment until it vanished completely into the crowd.
When she lowered her head to look at her teacup, it was already half-filled with tea leaves.
Hmm, specially bought—five thousand yuan per pound of tea leaves.
A bit of a waste.
"Good morning, Auntie… Er, senior? You seem in a good mood, spreading wood ear mushrooms… Huh, they don't even look like wood ear mushrooms."
Just then, a student who was on good terms with the dorm supervisor passed by and made a habitual joke.
Seeing Ye Fuli sitting at the front desk and flipping through the dormitory roster, she quickly cautioned, "Senior, that's the dorm supervisor's seat. Don't go snooping through her stuff! She'll scold you."
Ye Fuli paused her movements. "Your previous dorm supervisor went back to her hometown. I'm the new one now."
"Huh?"
A new dorm supervisor?
Such a young dorm supervisor?!
Another passing student recognized Ye Fuli as the senior who sold desserts in the cafeteria. Smiling, they approached to say hello.
"Senior, how many part-time jobs are you juggling? My friend said they saw you flipping pancakes yesterday too."
Ye Fuli pushed her glasses up. "Yeah."
Huh?
Just a "hmm"?
Shouldn't you at least explain a little?
Facing their curious stares, Ye Fuli felt no desire to explain. She lowered her head and quietly went about her work.
The classmates who'd been trying to befriend her sensed the mood and wisely backed off.
They couldn't help but wonder—was this really someone their age?
Where on earth did such a boring peer come from?
So why did she have such a twisted personality?
"She definitely never had a childhood," declared the girl who’d just greeted her and received a curt "Mhm" in return. "I’ll bet five bucks."
"I'll raise the stakes. I'll bet five bucks and fifty cents that she's acting like this because of a broken heart."
"I'll add a pound too. I'll bet five dollars and sixty cents that she's just emotionally numb."
"Hey, if you're going to raise the stakes, can't you raise them more? What's the point of adding just a dime or two?"
"Haha, so can this bet even be verified?"
Verify?
Well, actually… no way to verify it.
Everyone exchanged glances and sighed.
"Yeah, I wouldn't dare talk to her either."
"You just don't dare talk to her. I can't even look her in the eye."
"Whenever I walk past her, I'm always worried she'll suddenly grab my hair and bang my head on the front desk cabinet."
"Ah, that's a bit exaggerated, haha~"
……
……
The classroom was packed to the rafters.
Today's schedule was packed with classes, most of them boring theory lectures that were incredibly effective at inducing sleep.
Students who had rushed to class early in the morning were yawning nonstop, including Ye Zhen.
Last night, Ye Zhen had briefly chatted with Miss Zhao about life and aspirations, but before long, the entire dorm room had joined in. Their conversation had meandered from personal dreams to the vast expanse of the universe, eventually veering into ghost stories and late-night ramblings. They hadn't slept until well past two in the morning.
Naturally, they were feeling the effects now.
Qiao Xin had already laid her head down to catch up on sleep.
Wang Xiaoya propped up her textbook in front of Qiao Xin, shielding her slightly.
She leaned over to chat with Lu Chengcheng and the others.
"Where do you want to go after class? I'll take you clubbing—I know a place packed with hot guys."
Lu Chengcheng waved her hand. "I don't like places that are too noisy."
Ye Zhen quickly chimed in, saying she'd rather stay in the dorm and play the real farming game—maybe she could even keep raking in coins?
"None of you are going? Then I'm not going either. What a drag."
Wang Xiaoya yawned long and hard before finally deciding to lie down.
Ye Zhen felt sleepy too, but she forced herself to stay alert, memorizing the key points on the blackboard.
She relished the feeling of new knowledge flooding into her mind and wanted to see if she could achieve good grades through her own efforts.
The morning flew by.
Ye Zhen's notebook was now filled to the brim.
Lu Chengcheng was also diligently taking notes.
When she saw Ye Zhen's densely filled notebook, she couldn't help but remark, "Never underestimate any pretty little girl."
"Oh, so you're saying you've been looking down on our little Zhenzhen all this time?" Qiao Xin teased deliberately.
"I admit I have a tendency to judge by appearances," Lu Chengcheng said, pushing her glasses up.
"Come on, come on! Class's over, let's eat, let's eat!"
Wang Xiaoya woke from her nap and quickly packed her backpack.
Her textbooks were spotless, and she hadn't even brought a notebook.
Seeing her carefree attitude, everyone grew concerned about her midterm exams and offered well-meaning advice.
"Huh? Why worry about me? I'm gorgeous and loaded. Even if I don't graduate, I can just go home and inherit the family fortune!"
Wang Xiaoya declared with righteous indignation.
"Giving up feels good for a moment, but giving up all the time feels good forever!"
This left the other three roommates speechless.
Ye Zhen couldn't help but think: If only her parents would just give up like this.
They already had billions in assets—why torment their daughter?
As the saying goes, children have their own blessings; without children, I enjoy mine… Why couldn't they grasp this simple truth?
……
…
In the cafeteria.
Ye Fuli stood inside the food window, examining today's offerings with a slight frown.
She had kept track: Ye Zhen came to this window most often, and the dish she ordered most frequently was sweet and sour pork, followed by braised spare ribs.
On Tuesdays and Thursdays, she came to this window eight times out of ten.
Therefore, she was likely to come today.
But today's sweet and sour pork wasn't fresh.
The ribs were greasy and cloying.
Ye Fuli didn't want Ye Zhen eating such food.
The cafeteria manager watched Ye Fuli's retreating figure with a look of helpless resignation.
It's not that she doesn't do her job well!
It's that wherever she stands at a window, a long line inevitably forms, causing congestion while the other windows sit idle…
So the manager thought, maybe it'd be best to have this big shot take a break nearby? She could even serve as a human signboard.
Just as he was about to speak up, Ye Fuli tossed down her serving spoon and headed into the kitchen.
"May I use the tools and ingredients here?" Ye Fuli asked.
"Oh, of course, of course," the kitchen manager nodded and bowed. "Go ahead, help yourself."
Of course she could.
This cafeteria was practically under Ye Fuli's control!
Though she hadn't openly revealed her identity, who didn't know she was the youngest billionaire heiress around? Better not cross someone like that.
Ye Fuli tied her apron and began rummaging through the refrigerator, pulling out the fresh ingredients they had stashed away.
Wash the vegetables, chop them, toss the wok, stir-fry!
Watching her flawlessly execute each step, everyone in the kitchen stared in utter amazement.
What an all-around talent she was.
Ye Fuli carried out the sweet and sour pork and braised spare ribs she’d prepared, placing them in the corner of the large serving platter. She’d send this over to Ye Zhen later.
Yet, as she sat there, watching the cafeteria crowd thin out until the last diner had left, she still didn't see Ye Zhen or her roommates.
Ye Fuli stared at the sweet and sour pork and ribs in the corner of the large tray, frozen in place for a long moment.
"Probability is such an unreliable thing."
At that moment, she felt a strange sense of longing—like a devoted wife waiting alone for her husband to come home for dinner…