Chapter Twenty: The Thankless Task

“What’s going on with Wenrui Xu? Did he get into trouble outside?” Niu Kaiyuan asked curiously. “Why is he packing up so thoroughly? I even saw that guy over there helping throw his things out. Does this mean he’s not coming back?”

As he spoke, the others’ attention was drawn to Gao Yang, whom Niu Kaiyuan had pointed out.

Gao Yang had been sorting through Wenrui Xu’s personal belongings, but suddenly being singled out and having everyone’s eyes on him made him uneasy. His hands froze, and he looked at Niu Kaiyuan, flustered and unsure what to do.

Yan Xue turned to look as well and noticed that Gao Yang was quite efficient. While they had been talking, he’d already folded Wenrui Xu’s clothes from the wardrobe into a woven bag and was now dumping assorted odds and ends from the desk drawer into a large black plastic bag—a garbage bag, clearly.

“What are you doing?” she asked Gao Yang.

Gao Yang hesitated. “Huh? I was going to throw out these useless things… They’re all just bits and bobs. I’ve already put everything that might be useful for Wenrui Xu into this bag.”

As he spoke, he opened the woven bag next to him to show everyone the neatly folded clothes inside. Then he opened the black trash bag to let them see what was inside.

It was indeed filled with all sorts of miscellaneous items: tape, pens, sticky notes, bottles of vitamins, tea bags, bookmarks, clips, and various receipts.

“I can’t just pack all this junk up and send it to Wenrui Xu’s family, can I?” Gao Yang asked.

Yan Xue glanced at the scattered odds and ends in the trash bag and took it from him. “It does look like a lot of random stuff, but since it’s Wenrui Xu’s, you’ve already gone above and beyond by helping his family sort his things. Whether to keep or toss these items should be up to them.”

Her words were tactful and polite, so Gao Yang could only nod and turn back to tidying the bookshelf.

“By the way, there’s someone else I wanted to ask you about.” After this little episode with Gao Yang handling Wenrui Xu’s things, Niu Kaiyuan’s earlier line of questioning was quietly dropped by Kang Ge.

“Of course, go ahead,” the counselor quickly replied, eager to show cooperation.

“Do you recall a girl who was particularly close to Wenrui Xu? I can’t quite describe her face, but she had a distinctive look—she liked to wear white dresses and had long, straight black hair.”

Kang Ge pondered. People’s subconscious image of someone often reflects the most striking impression they have of that person. So the “female ghost” described by that charlatan Duan Yong might very well be the image that appeared most frequently in Wenrui Xu’s memory—a girl who went for that artsy style, favoring long, cotton, white dresses and keeping her hair in that “smooth and straight” style beloved by literary types. Such a look would certainly leave a strong impression on those around her.

But although the description was somewhat vivid, it was still too vague. The counselor thought for a moment but couldn’t recall any such female student. He looked to Niu Kaiyuan and Yu Xingwu, hoping they might have some valuable insight as Wenrui Xu’s roommates.

But both Niu Kaiyuan and Yu Xingwu just shook their heads in bewilderment.

“I’ve honestly never seen a girl like that,” Niu Kaiyuan answered candidly. “The only girls we ever saw around Wenrui Xu were his ex-girlfriend and his ex-ex-girlfriend.

One was tall and thin—she was the last person to wear something as artsy as a long, white dress; I don’t think I’ve ever seen her wear a dress at all. The other was a petite, childlike girl—definitely not that style either.

I can’t speak for the rest of the college or the whole school, but as far as I could see, there was never a girl like that around Wenrui Xu.”

“Exactly. Not just around Wenrui Xu—honestly, I don’t think I’ve even seen a girl anywhere on campus in a long, white dress with her hair down like that,” Yu Xingwu chimed in. “To be honest, that kind of look isn’t really in fashion anymore. My older cousin, back in her university days, was into some writer whose books were full of descriptions of radiant yet melancholy women—that kind of get-up, with a pair of worn-out canvas shoes and hair like straw, was supposed to make you seem unique and soulful.

But my cousin’s thirty now. She herself can’t stand the style she used to wear, and today’s girls aren’t into that at all. Now it’s all about looking polished and refined, or whatever’s trendy at the moment.”

“Look at you, Xiao Wu! As the dorm’s most experienced bachelor, you sure know a lot about girls! You sound like you know more than Wenrui Xu,” Niu Kaiyuan teased him with a grin.

“Why shouldn’t I understand what girls like these days? I know I’m not the kind of guy girls go for, so I try to make up for it—if I can’t be charming, at least I can be a good listener. Wenrui Xu is different—girls already like him, so he doesn’t have to bother figuring out what they’re thinking. He just needs to look cool, and they’ll come chasing after him.

These days, dating in college isn’t about finding someone to marry. Girls just want the experience of being in love; the outcome is secondary.

If you were a girl, would you rather be courted by someone like us, or by someone like Wenrui Xu? It’s obvious! So you shouldn’t spend all your time playing video games—you should try to understand girls’ feelings too.”

Though Yu Xingwu had seemed nervous and awkward around Kang Ge and Yan Xue at first, once he started talking, his words actually made a surprising amount of sense.

“Sure, you keep studying girls. Just don’t turn yourself into everyone’s ‘girlfriend’—the kind who all the girls treat like a sister and want to form a sworn sisterhood with!” Niu Kaiyuan shot back with a laugh.

Since they didn’t know Wenrui Xu had already come to a tragic end, his two roommates, aside from their initial confusion, weren’t especially tense.

“No kidding! Nowadays, young people are so carefree about love—they’re brave enough to chase what excites them, and if the feeling’s gone, they just walk away without a second thought. So easygoing!”

Kang Ge let out a long sigh and, with an air of mock world-weariness, said, “But in that case, Wenrui Xu really was an old-fashioned sort in this era of fast-food romance! From what you’ve said, so many girls liked him, but in four years of college, he only had two relationships—that’s downright conservative!”

“If dating didn’t cost money, imagine how many times he’d date…” Maybe because Kang Ge was so relaxed and easy to talk to, Yu Xingwu added offhandedly.

Niu Kaiyuan picked up the thread, “If dating actually made the girl pay for him, just imagine how busy his calendar would be! He’d be booked solid!”

Both of them burst out laughing, clearly used to this kind of banter—it came so naturally, a routine between them.

Only when they caught the disapproving look from the counselor did they sheepishly quiet down.

After chatting with the counselor and the two roommates, Kang Ge and Yan Xue decided to take their leave. They could have tried to track down members of the student organizations or clubs Wenrui Xu had been involved in, but given that it was the weekend, it would be hard to gather people for a talk—especially since the administration didn’t want news of Wenrui Xu’s death to become public, lest it cause a stir or have a negative impact among the students.

Gao Yang, who had finished packing, left with them. The young man, not particularly tall or sturdy to begin with, now looked even more drained with the huge woven bag slung over his shoulder.

“Tired? That looks pretty heavy,” Kang Ge offered as they stepped out of the dormitory building. “Let us carry it for you. If you’re not in a hurry to get back, maybe we can find somewhere to talk for a bit. How about it?”