The counselor lived in the school dormitory and arrived quickly after receiving the call. After registering at the dormitory building, she was let in.
A male counselor appearing in the girls' dormitory building early in the morning meant, with a little thought, that something must have happened.
In dormitory 306, opposite 305, everyone was peeking through the peephole at the opposite door.
"Their dorm was incredibly noisy last night."
"We just heard screaming. Could they have gotten into a fight?"
"It's not surprising they'd argue. Xiong Wan always talks strangely. If it were me, I would have argued long ago. It's only because Sheng Nan has a good temper, and Liu Chen is always holed up in the lab, not having time to be in the dorm, that this argument is only happening now."
"You think Xiong Wan talks strangely too?"
"She thinks anything said by someone with a good family background is right. She doesn't even pay attention to people from average backgrounds. I don't know how someone like that got into the same school as us."
"I think so too."
As the people in dormitory 306 were discussing, they saw the counselor knock on the door of dormitory 305 and then bring in a chair to prop the door open.
Everyone understood. It was to avoid suspicion, protecting not only the students but also the counselor himself.
...
When Liu Chen opened the dormitory door, she saw the counselor and nodded, "Teacher Zhou, thank you for coming."
Counselor Zhou saw Liu Chen's calm demeanor and felt a pang of unease. Xiong Wan had described the situation as so severe that she was on the ground unable to get up, yet Liu Chen seemed as if nothing had happened.
Could there be something fishy going on?
After all, the counselor was just that, a counselor, not a class advisor. He didn't have much contact with Xiong Wan or Liu Chen. His first reaction upon receiving the call was to rush Xiong Wan to the school hospital.
But...
Zhou Kang looked at Xiong Wan, who was sitting on the ground with no visible injuries.
"Teacher Zhou, you're here. Please uphold justice for me. This student, Sang Ling, has had minor verbal disagreements with me before, and today she actually laid hands on me. She's relying on the fact that she's from the same hometown as Liu Chen in the dorm, and they're good friends, so she thinks she can bully me!
Teacher Zhou, our dorm rules are clearly written. Any conflicts can be resolved, but no extreme actions can be taken to retaliate against a roommate. Look at Sang Ling today, daring to push me; tomorrow she might poison me. I live with her in this dorm; how can I dare to stay here any longer?"
Xiong Wan's words held some truth. Moreover, Zhou Kang knew the reason why this dorm rule had been established, and he took dorm issues quite seriously.
"Student Xiong Wan, let's go to the school hospital first. After your injuries recover a bit, we can discuss this matter, okay?"
Zhou Kang looked at Xiong Wan sitting on the ground, feeling uncertain. Although she seemed fine on the surface, what if she had a fracture?
"Teacher Zhou, you must give me an answer. Otherwise, I won't be able to swallow this injustice even if I lie in the hospital. Is there any reason why I should yield when I've been bullied?"
"I believe that a prestigious institution like Shuimu University would not condone such behavior of bullying fellow students, right?"
Zhou Kang felt a headache coming on from Xiong Wan's words. Xiong Wan usually spoke gently, so why was she being so persistent now?
Unable to resolve the situation with Xiong Wan, Zhou Kang had to stand up and look at the only girl in the dorm he didn't recognize.
"Hello, student Sang Ling. Look at student Xiong Wan's current condition..."
Before he could finish speaking, Liu Chen stepped beside Sang Ling, took her hands, and looked at Zhou Kang.
"Teacher Zhou, you haven't fully understood what happened, so it's best not to pass judgment yet, right?"
Zhou Kang's brow furrowed slightly at Liu Chen's attitude. He knew Liu Chen was working on a project, but he was still the counselor. To be interrupted by these students multiple times, with the onlookers outside the dorm door witnessing everything, he was losing face.
Zhou Kang simply pulled over a chair from the side and sat down, saying to Liu Chen and Sang Ling,
"Alright, then tell me what exactly happened."
Liu Chen first looked at Tang Sheng Nan, who had been silent the whole time. Seeing Liu Chen's gaze, Tang Sheng Nan lowered her head slightly to avoid it.
Seeing this, Liu Chen said no more and walked directly to Xiong Wan's bed, retrieving the camera she had placed there last night.
She removed the memory card, inserted it into the card reader, and opened her laptop.
"How about this, I'll make a bet with you. None of us in this dorm touched your things. If I lose, I'll give you ten thousand yuan. If you lose, you will apologize to Sang Ling in the dorm hallway, as loudly as you were questioning just now."
Liu Chen clicked on the video, and the scene from last night in the dorm began to play. Liu Chen turned the volume of the computer to the maximum.
Because the door of dormitory 305 was open, the sound instantly spread throughout the dorm hallway. Due to the narrowness of the hallway, there was even some echo that reverberated within it.
Xiong Wan, who was sitting on the ground, heard these words and her eyes widened. Forgetting her pain, she immediately got up from the ground, leaned against the door, and looked at the playback on the laptop.
"Liu Chen, how can you secretly film the dorm without permission!"
Liu Chen looked at Zhou Kang, who had looked up because of Xiong Wan's words, and said, "Don't worry, Teacher. This camera is aimed at the balcony door. Even if someone needs to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night, they'll wear clothes because the balcony is cold, so nothing inappropriate will be seen."
Zhou Kang listened to Liu Chen's words and then looked down at the computer screen. He hadn't noticed before, but upon closer inspection, it was indeed aimed at the balcony door.
Xiong Wan blinked, realizing what was happening, and lunged forward, slamming the laptop shut with a slap.
"Xiong Wan! What are you doing!" Zhou Kang, seeing Xiong Wan lunging at him, quickly got up from his chair and stepped aside.
Liu Chen, however, grabbed the laptop and held it behind her back.
"Teacher Zhou, as you've seen, student Xiong Wan made false statements. To escape the bet, she injured herself by falling and then framed student Sang Ling, wanting Sang Ling to receive disciplinary action.
For student Sang Ling, her future employment and development will be affected. I really cannot agree with her character. Now, not only does she want to switch roommates, but I even dare not stay in the school dormitories."
Zhou Kang looked at the three girls in front of him and felt a surge of exasperation.
"How about this, student Xiong Wan, let's still go to the school hospital to get you checked. As for the dorm issue, I will discuss it with the dorm manager to see which dorm can accommodate student Xiong Wan, or perhaps Sang Ling can be transferred to a dorm in her department. As for student Liu Chen's request not to stay in the dorm, our school regulations require all freshmen to live on campus."
Xiong Wan wanted to say something more, but seeing Liu Chen there, she eventually closed her mouth and agreed to go to the school hospital for an examination. Sang Ling looked gratefully at Liu Chen. When she was being falsely accused by Xiong Wan, she was truly angry and helpless, even having the thought of beating Xiong Wan up.
Tang Sheng Nan stood in the corner of the dorm, silent throughout. Liu Chen could understand her actions, but understanding didn't mean agreement. If Tang Sheng Nan had also firmly told Zhou Kang that Xiong Wan was lying, Liu Chen might not have even brought out the camera.
However, Tang Sheng Nan did not. After careful consideration, she chose silence. While it seemed like she wasn't helping Xiong Wan, in reality, it was a cover-up and tacit approval of Xiong Wan's false accusation.
After Zhou Kang took Xiong Wan away, Tang Sheng Nan opened her mouth several times but ultimately said nothing, knowing that no matter how much she said, it would be useless.
The dormitory 305, which had been filled with laughter just over a month ago, suddenly became quiet.
Sang Ling, carrying her textbooks, went with Liu Chen to a large "Mao Gai" lecture. Neither of them called Tang Sheng Nan.
Walking on the road, Sang Ling spoke first,
"Liu Chen, are you planning to move out and live in your 'Imperial Mansion'?"
Liu Chen nodded. She wasn't surprised Sang Ling saw through her intention, as she had taken Sang Ling to that place before.
"Then I won't apply to switch dorms. Xiong Wan probably won't be living in the dorm anymore. Your place is nearby, so if there's a dorm inspection, I'll message you, and you can come over. I've seen some couples at school do that before."
"Really?"
"You're always buried in the lab, so it's normal that you haven't noticed what's happening at school. But this is good. By the way, did your lab results come out? I'm so envious. You're only a freshman, and the project you're working on has already been completed."
"Don't just talk about me. How's your Weibo lately?"
Mentioning this, Sang Ling's expression of wistful loss was replaced by an undeniable smile.
"Right now, I mainly share my life at Shuimu University, as well as some attractions and shops near the school. Look at this outfit I'm wearing; it was sent to me by a Taobao store owner. They don't even require me to write advertisements, just to take pictures wearing their clothes when I go out.
For such a simple request, they give me two thousand yuan. Liu Chen, I never imagined that money could be this easy to earn."
Liu Chen nodded and turned her head to look at Sang Ling, who was smiling broadly beside her,
"Then do you still want to do computer science?"
Sang Ling's smile paused, and her eyes became a little confused. She shook her head.
"I don't know. I feel like being a blogger and posting ads is easy, but having to go to restaurants every day to take pictures also feels tiring, not physically, but mentally."
Liu Chen nodded in understanding.
"Perhaps you can precisely target your Weibo content. For example, if your positioning is as a high-achieving student who got into Shuimu University, then your daily life, besides those beautiful scenery spots, can also include recording some study routines."
Hearing this, Sang Ling's eyes suddenly lit up.
"Yes, Liu Chen, I think I've found the reason for my fatigue. I'm filming things that others want to see, not my own life. My life has been hijacked by the identity of a blogger!
From today onwards, I want to return my Weibo to my original life!"