Chapter 320: Next Time, It’s On Me

Shen Xinghe was mostly a listener, but his quietness didn’t make people feel ignored. Instead, it created its own kind of atmosphere.

He would chime in at just the right moment, turning a potential lull in the conversation into a smooth transition. He was great at keeping the mood light.

Although Zhao Ya still didn’t say much, she would quietly share her thoughts when asked.

Time flew by amidst the cheerful laughter and conversation.

The plates on the table gradually emptied, and the broth in the pot grew ever richer.

"Is everyone full? If not, we can order more. Get whatever you want, don’t be shy."

"We’re stuffed. You’ve already ordered more food several times. This is more than enough." Even Wang Lan, the biggest eater of the group, felt like he was about to burst.

Lin Xiaoxiao glanced at the time and exclaimed, "Whoa, it’s already four in the afternoon! We’ve been eating hot pot for two or three hours!"

"Since everyone’s full, let’s wrap this up for now. We can hang out again when we have time," Zhou Yue said with a smile.

"Sounds good. We need to go buy some living supplies anyway," Chen Mo replied with a smiling nod.

The others had no objections either.

Zhou Yue quickly called the waiter over and paid the bill.

Because Zhou Yue had ordered some premium beef and even added several extra plates—spending money as if it were no object—the hot pot meal was quite expensive.

For the eight of them, the bill came out to a little over three thousand yuan.

The premium beef alone accounted for two-thirds of the cost.

However, no one had seen the price of the beef when it was ordered, so they didn’t think much of it while they were eating.

Now, hearing how expensive the beef Zhou Yue kept ordering was, they were all a bit dumbfounded.

This was especially true for Wang Lan, who had been dropping huge clumps of it into the pot with his chopsticks. He felt as if every single grab had cost over a hundred yuan.

In contrast to everyone else’s shock at the price, Zhou Yue’s face was the very picture of satisfaction. She didn’t seem to care about the money in the slightest; instead, she was simply pleased with how well this first get-together had turned out.

"Yuanyuan, you really splurged. Let me treat next time," Chen Mo said with a smile.

"That’s right! The guys have to treat next time!" Wang Lan chimed in. "Otherwise, we’ll feel bad!"

After all, Wang Lan had eaten the most. He’d be too embarrassed if he didn’t treat everyone in return.

"Alright, I’ll hold you to that!" Zhou Yue laughed brightly and clapped her hands. "I’ll be looking forward to making you guys splurge next time! But we get to pick the place!"

"No problem!" Wang Lan declared, thumping his chest.

After settling the bill, the group walked out of the private room, full and content.

Outside the hot pot restaurant, the late afternoon sun was still intense, but much milder than it had been earlier.

A pleasant, post-meal languor settled over them as the group stood at the restaurant’s entrance, discussing what to do next.

"Well, we’re going to take off. We’ve got to go buy some things," Chen Mo said to Zhou Yue and the others, naturally taking Su Yuqing’s hand.

"Okay! We need to go back and finish unpacking too," Zhou Yue said, waving with a smile. "Today was super fun! Let’s do this again sometime!"

"Bye-bye!" "Thanks for treating us!" the others chimed in, saying their goodbyes.

Wang Lan was still marveling, "That beef was seriously good, but also seriously expensive... I can’t afford to treat everyone to that kind of stuff next time..."

Lin Xiaoxiao teased him, "Then you can just treat us to the dining hall next time!"

"The dining hall works! I can guarantee you’ll be full!" Wang Lan said, patting his stomach and making everyone laugh again.

Shen Xinghe gave the girls a slight nod, and Zhao Ya quietly said, "Goodbye."

The two groups parted ways in front of the hot pot restaurant. The guys from room 504 headed back, while Chen Mo and Su Yuqing turned toward the campus commercial street.

The new campus’s commercial street was quite bustling, with everything one needed for daily life. Supermarkets, fruit stands, and hair salons lined the street, which was currently packed with new students and their parents out shopping.

"Bedding, toiletries, clothes hangers, tissues, and..." Su Yuqing murmured, pulling out her phone to look at the list she’d made earlier.

"No rush. Let’s take our time. We can always come back if we forget something." Inside a supermarket, Chen Mo grabbed a shopping cart. "Want to look at comforters and pillows first?"

"Mhm!" Su Yuqing nodded.

The supermarket was packed with people. In the bedding section, there was a dazzling array of comforters and pillows in all sorts of patterns and thicknesses.

Su Yuqing felt a little overwhelmed by the choices, her fingers brushing over the different fabrics as she struggled to make a decision.

"Looking for some bedding?" A store clerk greeted them enthusiastically as they approached. "Anything you buy here, we can deliver it right to your dorm room. Here’s our supermarket’s delivery card. It has a QR code you can scan to access our Mini Program. In the future, if you need any daily necessities, snacks, drinks, or fruit, you can just order on there. We offer 24-hour delivery. Of course, we can’t deliver after your dorm’s curfew, so you’ll need to keep that in mind."

"That’s pretty impressive. With service like this, it’s no wonder your business is booming," Chen Mo said with a smile, taking the business cards and handing one to Su Yuqing.

’Since they deliver, we can buy everything we need in one go instead of making multiple trips.’

"How about this one?" Chen Mo said, picking up a light-blue display comforter. "It’s a ’Magic Pony’ cooling comforter. I see ads for them on short-form video apps all the time. It looks pretty nice, and it feels comfortable. Perfect for the weather here."

"Mhm, it’s really nice." Su Yuqing touched the fabric; it did feel good. She hadn’t done any research on bedding, so she figured Chen Mo’s choice couldn’t be wrong.

"Perfect. They have a matching neck pillow, too. Let’s get them both; they’re not very big," Chen Mo said, handing her a pillow to feel.

"We still need a cooling mat. Oh, and the dorm bed boards are a bit hard, so we’ll need a mattress," Chen Mo added.

"We don’t need a mattress. We can get these interlocking foam mats. The thickness is just right, and they’re not too hard or too soft," Su Yuqing said, pointing to a stack of them nearby.

Chen Mo glanced over and smiled. "That’s a great idea. Now we’ve got everything."

Just as Chen Mo was about to head to another section, he suddenly remembered something. "Right, I heard the mosquitoes are bad here. We’ll need a mosquito net."

"Oh, right!" It dawned on Su Yuqing; she had almost forgotten about that.

"Which of your mosquito nets are the best quality?" Chen Mo asked the nearby clerk.

The clerk enthusiastically recommended a yurt-style pop-up net. "This is our bestseller. It has a zipper opening, breathable mesh on three sides, and a reinforced frame, so it’s very sturdy. Assembly is foolproof—even someone who’s not very handy can set it up. It’s perfect for students."

Su Yuqing reached out to touch the mesh. It was fine and breathable, just as the clerk described. She nodded. "Let’s get this one."