### Chapter 34: Another Day of Just Getting By
In the end, Xu Xiaofeng was tortured at the barber shop for over an hour.
He couldn’t help but wonder, what started as a simple haircut turned into perms, treatments, and a whole lot of hair care products?
Looking at the pile of stuff in his hands, Xu Xiaofeng frowned. “Why do I feel like I’ve been conned…?”
“How could that be? I watched your back the whole time; I avoided all the pitfalls!”
“Really?”
“Yep. You’ve just been living life too carelessly before; you need to learn from me!”
Xu Xiaofeng shook his head. “No way, this is too wasteful. All this stuff must cost a fortune!”
“Don’t worry, we’re not short on cash.” Xu Xiaoyue cheerfully flicked her fingers, holding up a card.
“That’s my money! Give it back!”
“It’s our money! I’m just holding onto it for now; you can come to me when you need it.”
“Tsk…”
Xu Xiaofeng suddenly felt that even though he was making money now, life wasn’t really changing much. He was still living off others.
After that, they didn’t have much to do and found a café to hang out in.
Both were glued to their phones while occasionally exchanging a few words.
Yet, just like that, this ridiculously good-looking “sister duo” still became a stunning sight, attracting quite a few onlookers.
Some fresh new students in college even took photos and posted in their group chat.
“Spotted two beauties at Starbucks outside, anyone know them? [Picture]”
“Mom, I’m in love! Not just once, but with two!”
“Aren’t those our campus flowers? The other one must be… Wait, who is she?!”
In no time, the photos spread through both the freshman and senior groups, and the school forum had shared them too.
Many seniors knew about the “Wind Campus Flower” and the “Moon Campus Flower” of Dongda, and there were photos to prove it.
While the Moon Campus Flower was often seen, the Wind Campus Flower made appearances less frequently.
The main reason being that the so-called Wind Campus Flower pictures were special shots that Xu Xiaoyue sent out when dressed as a girl. Most of the time, he rocked a disheveled look that even acquaintances wouldn’t recognize.
Right now though, with ear-length hair and just leaving the salon, even if he didn’t quite match the vibe of the circulated photos, he was still identifiable.
“I used to question the validity of those photos, but now I admit, maybe I was just too loud before.”
“These casual street shots, unedited, really show off the true looks!”
Before long, many people flocked to Starbucks for coffee.
Not for anything special—just a sudden craving for coffee.
Frowning while swiping through his phone, Xu Xiaofeng looked up and surveyed the place. “Xiaoyue, don’t you think it’s a bit noisy here?”
“Then let’s change venues; it’s about time for lunch.”
Before they left, a barista insisted on giving them each a cup of coffee, claiming they were today’s lucky customers.
Xu Xiaofeng, who typically didn’t care much about anyone around him and was more focused on gaming—a true homebody—barely noticed.
Meanwhile, Xu Xiaoyue had her own reputation for being cool and aloof, and she hadn’t joined any of those strange groups.
It wasn’t until the afternoon class meeting that they found out from classmates that they had gone viral again.
As for Xu Xiaoyue, of course, it didn’t matter to her; she even found it a bit funny.
But Xu Xiaofeng…
“If you guys shout ‘Campus Flower’ one more time, see what happens! How many times do I have to say it? I’m a dude!”
“Actually, sometimes, gender shouldn’t be so rigid…”
“Shut it!”
“Looks like the time of the month has really hit you.”
“Yep.”
They exchanged whispered discussions…
The afternoon class meeting went pretty much as expected, mostly laying out the tasks for the upcoming workload. Nothing to write home about.
But at the end, the school introduced a rather bizarre request.
“Collecting our game IDs?”
Instructor Du spread his hands in defeat. “Yes, it’s a notice from the school. I really don’t know what they want with them.”
Xu Xiaoyue raised her hand to ask, “Is it mandatory? What happens if we don’t submit?”
“That wasn’t mentioned.”
“Then this probably isn’t a big deal. What if some classmates don’t play games, or can’t?”
“Exactly!” Others chimed in. “What would the school even do with that? Are they trying to form a team or something?”
This made everyone in the room burst into laughter.
“I just wanted to bring this up casually. You all have some discretion; this is also what many of the instructors think. The school isn’t making it mandatory. But if it’s convenient, just drop your ID in the group; you’ll end up teammates regardless.”
Though it was just tossed out there casually, Xu Xiaofeng still kept it in the back of his mind.
This was strange. What do they mean by casually mentioning it yet not making it mandatory? It felt a bit like they wanted to do something but were apprehensive about it.
He suddenly remembered that Fat Wang had mentioned earlier that the country was looking to amplify investments in gaming even further.
“Xiaoyue, don’t rush to submit your info. Let’s see how things pan out. I have a hunch it’s not that simple.”
“Okay.”
As the class meeting ended, Xu Xiaofeng swiftly darted out of the classroom and headed straight for the house off-campus.
It wasn’t until he walked through the door and shut it behind him that he finally let out a sigh of relief.
After all, home was the most comfortable. The outside world felt a bit too intense, maybe even scary.
He ran his fingers through his hair. “Still needs a trim; short hair is the norm!”
“But I’ve already done it like this, and it does look good…”
He was a little conflicted.
“No, no! I’m a grown man! Why should I care about looks! I’ll chop it off tomorrow!”
As for that little advice, he tossed it to tomorrow’s self, then dashed into his room, ready to revel in happiness.
There’s just too much annoying chaos in the real world; gaming is where the real fun’s at.
I’m the boss! I’m all about the money-making! You all just have to revolve around me!
Right now, it was still under three in the afternoon in real time, but in the game, dawn had just broken.
Xu Xiaofeng—or maybe it’s Xu Lolita—clambered out of bed and stretched.
Wait… didn’t I just lie down? Why am I feeling so stiff already?
This felt off.
Then, associating it with the movements happening in real-world China and the school’s odd requests…
Xu Xiaofeng’s brain started chugging along. After thinking for a while, he still couldn’t piece together the internal logic.
Suddenly, a light bulb went off in his head. “Sister Tong, do you know anything?”
A cold voice echoed in her mind, “Please explore on your own.”
Xu Xiaofeng nodded, a sly grin spreading across her face.
This was the answer she was looking for.
Since Sister Tong responded with that, it meant this issue was tied to the backstory of the gaming world.
One piece of information after another was like beads, waiting to be strung together by a single thread.
Currently, the thread wasn’t clear, but Xu Xiaofeng was already catching a hint of its beginning.
“How interesting… Ouch!”
Out of nowhere, something suddenly clunked against her head, prompting her to let out a yelp.
“Sister Tong, I’m sorry! I won’t pry into your business again! Please forgive me!”
Xu Xiaofeng quickly backtracked, resorting to some charm.
And it worked like a charm.
Once Xu Xiaofeng successfully extracted herself from the situation, she immediately turned back to making money.
Other matters could wait; her top priority was always to make money.
