A lazy summer afternoon

Shen Qingci pulled out the multi-functional small oven from the car's storage locker and plugged it in.

"Mengyao,"

"Help me bring the seasoning box over—black pepper and salt."

"Okay."

Li Mengyao responded and turned to get them; it was clear she was in a much better state.

Chen Yu found a seat at random, sat down, and looked out the window at the seemingly endless wind and snow.

After the upgrade, the bus was comfortably stable, with even fewer bumps; they could now fill the water to the line when having hot pot.

The regional chat was as lively as ever.

Finally... Chen Yu saw some familiar names again.

[Sun Hao: Who's occupying the East District warehouse? Move aside, we need to get in and pick up goods!]

[Wu Peng: How about some first-come, first-served? We've been here for half an hour!]

[Tian Xiaoyu: The presidents of the Four Great Societies have set up a temporary contact point near the Central Plaza. Students can gather there first for unified housing assignments!]

[Liu Wei: Support! Follow the big brothers and there'll be meat to eat!]

[Zhang Zixuan: And your big sister too.]

[Zhang Zixuan: @Sun Hao @Wu Peng, don't argue. The living area just opened and there are still plenty of resource points. Peace is precious; let's not have internal strife within our Film Academy...]

[Zheng Kun: President Zhang is right!]

[Tian Xiaoyu: Senior Sister Zixuan is the GOAT! Strong yet gentle, love her, love her!]

"The Four Great Societies..."

"New Sun Debate Society, Caiwei Literature Society, Xinghuo Sports Society, and the Youth Volunteers Association."

The four most honored and famous societies at Haicheng Film Academy weren't professional ones like the Drama Society.

Instead, they were the seemingly unrelated debate, literature, sports, and public welfare groups.

To some extent, they could be called the most united societies... Of course, Chen Yu had experienced their 'unity' in his past life, and his death had been beyond tragic.

"Chen Yu?"

Deng Yuxin walked over and spoke softly, "Senior Sister Shen is calling you over to cut the lamb chops..."

Chen Yu closed the regional chat and nodded. "Okay."

...Time passed very quickly amidst the monotonous wind and snow.

Their bus was getting closer and closer to the living area.

The most noteworthy thing was...

The closer they got to the living area, the more they noticed the snow melting; the accumulation was thinning out.

"The temperature is rising significantly."

Dr. Qiao Xi looked at the thermometer inside the car and confirmed again, "The temperature inside is already twenty-six degrees and continuing to rise—no, wait, it's rising very sharply..."

"I told you..."

Wang Mengmeng couldn't help but tug at her collar. "It's getting hotter and hotter. We can turn off the heater."

"Does that mean we're getting closer to the living area?"

Deng Yuxin leaned against the window, looking outside.

"Thirty kilometers left. Get ready,"

Zhang Wanyue reminded them as she sat back in the driver's seat.

Qiao Xi stared at the thermometer. "Wait, it's rising by nearly a degree every kilometer... thirty kilometers... At this gradient, excluding the car's heating, the temperature in our target living area might exceed thirty degrees?"

*Whoosh...*

*Whirr...*

The bus's heating system shut off, and it even began trying to draw in outside air for regulation.

The girls were stunned. "30°C???"

Chen Yu nodded. "Yeah, it's summer. Or rather, it should have been summer all along."

Yang Kexin had already unbuttoned the top of her shirt, her cheeks flushed. "This is too exaggerated..."

Shen Qingci spoke decisively, "It looks like that's it. There's a summer living area ahead. Everyone, don't stay bundled up; change out of your thick clothes quickly, or you'll get heatstroke before we even get in."

As she spoke, she had already briskly taken off her coat.

With her taking the lead, the other girls also reacted.

For a moment, the cabin was filled with the rustling sounds of changing clothes.

Before long,

The Acting Department team had undergone a complete transformation.

Short sleeves, camisoles, shorts, and skirts—a sea of dazzlingly white arms and legs were laid out prominently, gleaming under the increasingly scorching afternoon light.

At this moment, the cabin was finally filled with a young and vibrant atmosphere.

Deng Yuxin wore a light-colored T-shirt with denim shorts, Yang Kexin a sports bra with hot pants, Li Mengyao a pencil skirt, Wang Mengmeng a tight short-sleeved top with tight shorts, and Shen Qingci a T-shirt with cargo shorts... Chen Yu scanned them one by one, like a Khan reviewing his troops.

Finally, when the car came to a steady halt, the Class Monitor had also changed back into her original 'missing bottom' style outfit.

Chen Yu had to admit that the girls were quite easy on the eyes.

There had never been a moment when they were more 'useful' than now.

Wang Mengmeng nudged Li Mengyao with her elbow, her eyes darting toward Chen Yu.

Li Mengyao was startled by the nudge and instinctively wanted to take half a step back.

But Wang Mengmeng grabbed her wrist and whispered, "Go on, just say something. You two haven't spoken for three days. What, do you want to be pushed off the bus?"

After saying that, she spoke up brightly, "Mengyao, you look so beautiful today! This outfit is perfect for summer!"

With these words, everyone's gaze focused on Li Mengyao.

It had to be said, she did look good.

The simple blue pencil skirt followed the curves of her waist and hips, ending sharply at the top of her thighs to fully reveal a pair of straight legs.

Li Mengyao's cheeks turned slightly red at this display. "Mengmeng, what are you doing..."

Chen Yu shrugged, as if suddenly remembering something.

He turned his head. "Oh right, Kexin, you mentioned before, how long are your legs? 173?"

Yang Kexin was stunned. "Huh?"

She hurriedly waved her hands. "That's my net height, 173 cm! How could my legs be 173 cm long..."

Chen Yu nodded and didn't continue the topic, turning instead to look out the window. "Let's go."

Having said that, he got off the bus on his own.

Wang Mengmeng and Li Mengyao felt a bit uneasy behind him.

Especially seeing Yang Kexin's long, slender legs—the advantage of a dance student was clear for all to see.

Wang Mengmeng sighed softly, "Sigh, Mengyao, if only your legs were a bit longer..."

Li Mengyao: "?"

"Do you really think Chen Yu likes long legs?"

"Otherwise?"

"Wang Mengmeng, haven't you noticed that Chen Yu has been targeting you lately?"

"Not really..."

"Not really? Then why are you always kneeling in the cubicle!"

"Uh, that's called... called undergoing a trial!"

"Testing if you can kneel straight?!"

"It's called strategic obedience! You're just jealous that Brother Chen Yu is paying more attention to me now!"

"I'm jealous of you being punished with kneeling every day? Fine!"

"That... that's an honor! Think about it, why doesn't he punish anyone else? Li Mengyao! Can you have some fighting spirit! We need an alliance! Look at Yang Kexin, and that new Dr. Qiao..."

"Wang Mengmeng! You're just a crappy tactician!"

The others didn't have the heart to pay attention to the bickering behind them because everything before their eyes was too subversive.

Stepping onto the asphalt ground, everyone felt a momentary daze.

The midday sun was almost violent.

Beyond the parking lot were actual city streets.

On both sides of the streets were three or four-story buildings with exterior walls painted in bright goose-yellow, sky-blue, mint-green, and so on. Under the sky, they looked like rows of giant candy boxes.

Scattered university students could be seen here and there, discussing something.

Lush tropical plants filled every green space, and the sound of music drifted from some unknown corner.

Everything was too normal.

So normal it felt like a lazy summer afternoon in some tourist city.

Before long,

Seven or eight people hurried over to the parking lot entrance, men and women alike, with enthusiasm on their faces.

"Classmate, you're from the Vocational College, right?!"

"Classmate, is it Polytech..."

Seeing the crowd of beauties beside Chen Yu, several people immediately lost interest.

Only one man and one woman remained.

The man wore shorts and a short-sleeved shirt, while the woman wore a small dress.

The boy greeted them, "By the look of you, you must be from the Film Academy! Acting Department, Dance Department?"

The girl with the high ponytail immediately chimed in, "That's not important!"

She gave a friendly smile. "Welcome to the Binhai City living area! I'm Zhou Qing from the Youth Volunteers Association. You've had a hard journey! Do you need to know the basic rules and resource point distribution of the living area? We can take you to the temporary contact point!"

Deng Yuxin was a bit dazed by this sudden enthusiasm.

She instinctively leaned closer to Chen Yu.

Chen Yu just nodded slightly. "We just got off the bus and need some time to adjust. We'll look into the rules and resource points ourselves. We'll be going now."

The boy's smile didn't fade as he immediately said:

"Understood, understood! If you need anything, feel free to contact us at the Central Plaza! We're from the Four Great Societies. Although the living area is relatively safe, there are some implicit rules to watch out for so you don't lose out."

"Mhm, thanks."

Chen Yu nodded and led the girls into the city.

Watching their departing backs, Zhou Qing whispered, "His name is Chen Yu. According to the statistics, he's sold geothermal core prototypes, hundreds of pounds of crayfish, and countless amounts of drinking water. Heh, there's nothing you can imagine that he hasn't dared to sell."

"Oh, it's him. Director Yu said he was a demon..."

The boy narrowed his eyes. "And aren't several teachers and society presidents looking for him too?"

—————

Side Story: "Book Title Collection"

Lin Yue: Dear readers, long time no see! What should this book be called? I'd like to collect some ideas~

Like those stray thoughts imprisoned in crystal, I'm also thinking hard. Come on, help me out, okay? If yours is chosen, there will be a reward~