“Auntie, I’m looking for Xia Xiaolan from Room 307.”

Ji Jiangyuan stood at the bottom of the girls’ dormitory building, holding his basketball.

He was already a popular figure among Huaqing’s ’84 freshman class, and his “love-hate relationship” with Xia Xiaolan had been secretly circulating.

After Ji Ya’s confrontation with Xia Xiaolan at school, they weren’t even on speaking terms. Now that Ji Jiangyuan suddenly came looking for her, everyone in Room 307 had objections.

Su Jing, who originally had feelings for Ji Jiangyuan, was the first to oppose:

“What’s Ji Jiangyuan thinking? Does he think Xiaolan doesn’t have enough trouble already?”

After a semester’s effort, Xia Xiaolan finally reversed people’s initial impressions of her. She’d won a first-class scholarship, and last night the English competition aired on TV, with newspapers covering the competition today.

Already a notable figure at Huaqing, her profile was even higher now. With Ji Jiangyuan coming to find her, countless eyes would be watching when she appeared, and last year’s rumors would surely resurface.

Xia Xiaolan thought about it. During last year’s finals, Ji Jiangyuan had overheard TV staff talking and immediately warned her after carefully extracting information. Despite cutting ties afterward, she still owed him for that.

“I’ll go down and see. He probably has something important.”

Su Jing couldn’t dissuade her and snorted.

Xia Xiaolan pinched her cheek, “Alright, I know you mean well. If he has ill intentions, I won’t let him off easily.”

When Xia Xiaolan went downstairs, she found Ji Jiangyuan playing basketball.

This boy was truly handsome. While perhaps not comparable to Zhou Cheng, he stood out at Huaqing in a different style. Ji Jiangyuan essentially fit the American campus drama second male lead archetype: good family background, handsome, athletic… while the male lead typically started as an underdog destined to rise from the margins.

In reality, there weren’t many underdogs who succeeded. Those who triumphed were often like Ji Jiangyuan, fitting the second male lead type.

The basketball spun on his fingertip as Ji Jiangyuan performed trick moves, making countless girls want to scream.

“Ji Jiangyuan, you needed something?”

Ji Jiangyuan caught the basketball and pointed to a nearby pavilion, “Could we talk over there? There are too many people coming and going here by your dormitory.”

You’re only now realizing that’s inappropriate? Xia Xiaolan held back her sarcasm.

Walking to the pavilion with Ji Jiangyuan, he got straight to the point:

“My mom plans to move her overseas business back to China.”

Xia Xiaolan was completely puzzled.

Ji Jiangyuan smiled bitterly, “Her business is a fashion design studio. She’s an independent fashion designer.”

Xia Xiaolan caught on: “…Because of me?”

Ji Jiangyuan nodded, “Because you opened clothing stores. She thinks you’re deliberately provoking her.”

OK, Xia Xiaolan understood. How could Madam Ji allow herself to be provoked? She’d simply move her studio back to China, ready to battle Xia Xiaolan in the fashion industry.

Xia Xiaolan wanted to ask if Ji Ya had stopped taking her medication recently, as her persecution complex seemed severe. But she kept quiet. If Ji Ya thought this way, Xia Xiaolan couldn’t help it. She did have a grudge against Ji Ya… Once Ji Ya moved her studio back to China, when Xia Xiaolan found out, she would also seize the opportunity to strike back at Ji Ya.

Not in fashion design, of course—Xia Xiaolan was studying architecture, so why compete with a fashion designer?

But independent fashion designers, unless they were just doing it for fun with no intention of making money, would ultimately need to commercialize their work. While Xia Xiaolan wouldn’t compete with Ji Ya in design, if Ji Ya caused trouble, she would drag her into a business competition.

“Ji Jiangyuan, you’ve warned me about this in advance. How will you explain this to your family?”

Xia Xiaolan truly hadn’t known Ji Ya was a fashion designer. Though Ji Ya’s dress sense was stylish, when that woman went crazy, Xia Xiaolan had no time to appreciate her taste.

“I’ve moved out, so I don’t need to explain to anyone. Xia Xiaolan, I’m very sorry I couldn’t stand by you last year. She is my mother after all, and I still can’t help you fight against her now… So, do you think we can still be friends?”

Ji Jiangyuan was still smiling as he said this.

He seemed a bit unrestrained now, his former standard eight-tooth smile gone.

“Wait, you moved out… it’s not what I’m thinking, is it?”

Ji Jiangyuan shrugged: “Yes, you’re not wrong. Today, I’m becoming independent early. I won’t be able to bring you foreign chocolate anymore. My mom wants me to repay all the money she spent on me, and I roughly calculated it’s about several tens of thousands of dollars. From today on, I’m no longer the rich student from America, but a poor person drowning in debt.”

Being able to laugh while owing tens of thousands of dollars—truly a fearless calf unafraid of tigers!

Considering the exchange rate between the Chinese yuan and US dollars, Ji Jiangyuan had accumulated hundreds of thousands of yuan of debt.

Even if Xia Xiaolan gathered all her current assets, not counting future earnings from the building materials and clothing stores, she couldn’t produce that much cash right now.

In ’85, wages had risen slightly compared to the previous two years, mainly with coastal residents’ incomes increasing significantly, and private businesses making quiet fortunes. But this didn’t mean the yuan had depreciated—prices remained stable, and large bills were still rare, with no hundred-yuan notes yet. Money was still valuable—if Ji Jiangyuan stayed to work in China after graduation, relying on a regular salary, who knew how many years it would take to earn tens of thousands of dollars?

Ji Jiangyuan didn’t seem to be joking. Instead of mocking him, Xia Xiaolan asked very seriously:

“Is it worth it?”

Ji Jiangyuan tossed the basketball high in the air.

“To say something unfilial, I feel extremely relieved.”

“Then let me say something that might hurt your pride—if you don’t take money from your mom, can you afford your tuition and living expenses?”

Ji Jiangyuan laughed heartily, “Xia Xiaolan, are you showing concern for me as a friend?”

Xia Xiaolan rolled her eyes and turned to leave.

She didn’t know if Ji Jiangyuan could make it through university.

But Ji Jiangyuan’s conflict with Ji Ya was a good opportunity for Tang Hongen. The inevitable estrangement between father and son after so many years apart gave Xia Xiaolan a chance to let Mayor Tang contribute some fatherly love.

She immediately called Tang Hongen.

While she didn’t want to meddle in others’ family affairs, with Tang Hongen, Xia Xiaolan owed him too much to ignore this.

She couldn’t let his birth mother be sacrificed. Tang Hongen said he would come to Beijing soon, and Xia Xiaolan told him to bring plenty of money:

“If you don’t come soon, I’m afraid Ji Jiangyuan won’t even be able to afford food.”

Anyone hearing these words, as long as it was their child, couldn’t possibly ignore it, right? Whether Ji Jiangyuan’s loyalty could be completely turned now depended on how quickly Tang Hongen acted!

As for Ji Ya wanting to set up her studio in China, Xia Xiaolan was grateful for Ji Jiangyuan’s warning, but she truly wasn’t afraid to compete with Ji Ya in business.