My Demon Friends

Chapter 718 - 679: Good to be Home

The bell for the end of class rang.

Zhou Li and Baozi, both having lost attendance points, exchanged nods at the classroom door. They then walked down from the academic building and hurried towards the cafeteria.

Zhou Li was in a hurry because if he arrived late, it would be crowded, and he was too lazy to queue.

Baozi rushed because if she arrived late, the 2.20 RMB vegetarian dishes would be sold out, leaving her with nothing to eat. Moreover, she had to keep up with her cousin and his wife, or at the very least, with Mianmian and Qian Qian. That way, when they ate, they might give her some of the better dishes, and after the meal, she might even be able to scrounge a free drink.

The cafeteria was a sea of camouflage.

It was always like this around mealtimes; scrambling for food with the ravenous junior students was always very difficult, especially since their dismissal time was earlier than when university classes let out.

Several of them queued up at the rice window.

"Whoa, so many people…"

Brother Nan scanned the crowd, her eyes nearly blurring from the sheer number of people, but she still managed to spot something interesting. She quickly pointed with her chin in one direction and said to the others, "Quick, look! That girl with a braid down her back—her waist is so slim!"

Qian Qian was unconvinced. "Is it slimmer than mine?"

Mianmian was eager. "I'll go check out her front!"

Brother Nan quickly stopped her. "Don't go. In my experience, it's best not to do that."

"Okay," Mianmian replied.

Zhou Li remained expressionless.

After queuing for a few minutes, it was finally their turn. Zhou Li took out his card and swiped it for five people, handing them their trays of rice one by one. Brother Nan got a double portion of rice.

"Thank you, Handsome Zhou!"

"Thank you!"

"Thank you, Cousin…"

"Hehe!"

The girls were all very polite.

Zhou Li took his own tray last and said to them, his expression unchanging, "Stop gawking at pretty girls and go get your food."

Baozi was the first to follow him. She was happy to have saved another three cents on her meal today.

The recruits were ravenous. If you arrived late, there was a real chance no food would be left, especially the good dishes. People who had expended a lot of energy craved meat and oily food. Fortunately, the dishes Zhou Li liked were still available, so it didn't affect him much.

"Let's see what you got... Yuxiang 'Limping' Eggplant, Mapo Tofu," Brother Nan said, the corner of her mouth twitching. "Why do you always get these? Eat some meat, will you?"

"They're tasty."

"You should eat more meat, fatten up a bit."

"How fat?"

"Like Sammo Hung, so you can be my punching bag."

"…"

Zhou Li found a table and sat down. After he'd eaten a few bites, Cotton Swab and Baozi joined him.

Baozi glanced at the food on Zhou Li's tray, echoing Brother Nan, "Cousin, why do you always get these dishes? Get more meat… If you don't want the meat, you can give it to me."

Zhou Li ate silently and finished first.

"I might be moving back home in a few days. There's no campus lockdown this semester," Zhou Li said, putting down his chopsticks. He took out a tissue to wipe his mouth and handed one to each of them. "I'll have to take Lord Dumpling with me then, so he won't be staying in your dorm anymore."

"Thank you, Handsome Zhou," Qian Qian said, accepting the tissue.

"Hmm, half a sheet is enough for me…" Mianmian mumbled. She picked up the tissue and tried to tear it in half, but it was too tough. She had to spread it out flat before she could tear it. "Good quality paper!"

"Did you discuss it with Lord Dumpling?" Baozi asked.

"I did."

"Oh."

Baozi felt a twinge of regret. If her cousin no longer lived at school, they wouldn't eat in the cafeteria as often. That meant her chances to save three cents, or to scrounge food and drinks, would significantly decrease. However, the upside was that her cousin would take her out for big, meaty meals more often. It was hard to say whether she was gaining or losing more.

Brother Nan nodded. "Living outside is indeed more comfortable than staying in the dorms."

Mianmian exclaimed, "So much more comfortable!"

Qian Qian said, "You could move out too!"

Mianmian replied, "But I'd miss you and Brother Nan too much."

Baozi said nothing.

Just then, Brother Nan took several small apples out of her bag. "When you're done eating, go wash these apples for us!"

"..."

Zhou Li paused. He still remembered how she'd caused him to lose attendance points. Mustering his courage, he asked, "Why don't you wash them yourself?"

Mianmian gasped, "Oh wow!"

Qian Qian exclaimed, "Handsome Zhou is so brave!"

Baozi cheered, "Go, Cousin!"

Brother Nan simply raised an eyebrow.

Zhou Li stood up with the apples and headed over to the dishwashing area. He quickly returned, just as the girls had finished their meals.

The girls accepted the freshly washed apples, still glistening with water droplets, from Zhou Li. They thanked him and sat back down, happily enjoying their post-meal fruit while continuing their conversation.

After eating, Zhou Li went back to his dorm room, picked up Lord Dumpling from Brother Nan's room, then left the campus. He scanned a shared bike, placed Lord Dumpling in the bike basket, and rode home.

Since the campus wasn't locked down this semester and he had so few classes, staying in the dorm felt unnecessary. He usually had to read his books in secret there. Sometimes, when he came across unique insights into using Spiritual Power or learned about minor spells, he couldn't experiment with them immediately. Plus, dorm life interfered with his chats with Lord Dumpling and his time watching the Little Cat Girl.

SQUEAK.

The front door opened automatically.

Huai Xu lay on the floor at home, eyes fixed on the ceiling. Without turning her head, she said, "It's not the weekend. What are you doing back?"

Zhou Li glanced at her stealthily.

To his knowledge, the old monster wasn't that adept with Spiritual Power. Managing to flip a light switch with it was already impressive; twisting a doorknob seemed unlikely. So, it was more probable that she had just gotten up to open the door for him, then immediately flopped back onto the floor the instant it was open, pretending nothing had happened.

The mental image was quite amusing.

Zhou Li didn't call her out on it. He just walked inside, saying, "The campus isn't locked down this semester, so I'm planning to move back home."

Upon hearing this, Huai Xu immediately lifted her head a little and looked at him. "Really?"

"Really."

"Phew! I've been so bored I could die!"

"Is that so?" Zhou Li stepped over her arm casually. "Why do you always lie on the floor instead of the couch?"

"I like it."

"The floor is hard and cold."

"Mind your own business."

"Is that so?"

Zhou Li didn't say anything more. He made his way to the balcony and noticed that not only was the window open, but the window screen was too. He closed the screen. Turning to Huai Xu, who had suddenly appeared behind him, he asked, "Why did you leave the screen open? It'll let lots of mosquitoes in."

"Didn't you say your plants needed airflow?" Huai Xu retorted. "Once that screen is closed, a strong wind becomes a light breeze, and a light breeze becomes no wind at all. What if they get infested with bugs again?"

"It wouldn't go that far." Zhou Li found it a bit funny; this old monster could be quite cute. "Just keep the screen closed."

"It's perfectly fine open!" the old monster countered, ready to argue.

"There are mosquitoes."

"Then just carve another wooden mosquito repellent," Huai Xu suggested, following Zhou Li from the balcony back into the living room. "You could make it look like Doudou."

"Whatever you say."