In the end, Bucktooth helped me out of the restaurant, my head covered in blood, and we went to see a doctor.
Zheng Zhantao and Ni Ba's groups didn't leave right away. They stayed behind to drink and eat together. After all, this was supposed to be a reconciliation dinner. Since things had been settled, both sides had to sit down and share a few drinks to show the conflict was resolved.
The bill for this so-called reconciliation dinner, unsurprisingly, fell on me. Combined with the medical expenses from my clinic visit, the total came to nearly two thousand yuan.
Most of this money was fronted by Bucktooth. The rest I borrowed from my other two roommates, Big Luo and Little Luo. I never imagined things would escalate to this extent.
With my head wrapped in a white bandage and two thousand yuan in my pocket—money I had scraped together from every possible source—I returned to Yiyuan Restaurant just in time to catch John and his group finishing up their meal. When he saw me come back to pay the bill, his face lit up with smugness. He sneered, "Heh, managed to scrape together the cash, huh? Looks like you haven't eaten yet. There's still some leftovers inside. Since you're paying, you might as well eat some—don't let it go to waste, haha…"
John's crew burst out laughing and swaggered off. Honestly, many of them came from pretty well-off families. On a regular day, they wouldn't even touch a three- to four-hundred-yuan meal. But tonight's feast wasn't just dinner—it was an apology banquet.
A first-year had offended them and ended up throwing this meal to make amends. It was a huge ego boost. They'd probably brag about it all over school.
After John's gang left, Zheng Zhantao came over with a toothpick in his mouth, reeking of alcohol, and clapped me on the shoulder. "Ah Yu, your big bro has handled everything for you. No need to thank me. Just think about what I said—whether or not you want to roll with me. Give me an answer later."
Then he and his boys piled into their beat-up van, still laughing and joking as they drove off.
I stood there, face like stone, watching both groups leave. My heart was a mess. I couldn't understand—why, after going so far, even being ruthless to myself, did it still cost me so much just to get rid of John?
As I watched them walk away, laughing in their groups, I looked around. Beside me, there was only one small, skinny figure—Bucktooth.
Suddenly, it all made sense.
They could act so cocky and bully me not just because they were arrogant, but because they had numbers on their side. Whether it was John or Zheng Zhantao, they all had brothers who'd fight for them. Me? I had only one timid, cautious Bucktooth.
Turns out, to be truly formidable, you need more than just guts—you need loyal friends who'd go through hell with you.
Bucktooth noticed I was just standing there, silent, and looking pale. Worried, he asked softly, "Andrew, are you okay? It's just two thousand yuan—take it as money to ward off bad luck."
Two thousand yuan was almost half a year's living expenses from the Zhang family. I forced a smile. "I'm fine."
Neither of us had eaten dinner. Bucktooth glanced at the leftovers in the restaurant—some of the dishes hadn't even been touched—and said, "Andrew, since we haven't eaten and you already paid, want to go in and have a bite? No point wasting food."
"No. A righteous man doesn't eat charity food, let alone leftovers from that bastard John. I'd rather starve."
Bucktooth gave me a surprised look. "Didn't expect you to have backbone. But weren't you the one who ate those pastries John stepped on in the dorm?"
I replied, "Those pastries were a gift from someone important. That made them different."
Bucktooth's stomach grumbled loudly. "Then what do we do? I've got no money left."
"I've still got some change from the cashier—about a few dozen yuan. Let's grab Big Luo and Little Luo and hit up a roadside stall for some late-night snacks."
Big Luo and Little Luo, being from the countryside, usually stayed in the dorm on weekends to save money. So Bucktooth and I headed back to school to find them. Once we met up, the four of us went to the street stalls on Pingjiang Street for a cheap dinner.
Pingjiang Street was famous for its night market. The tables were dirty, it was literally a roadside setup, not exactly sanitary, and there wasn't even a decent bathroom nearby. But despite its flaws, the food was cheap and tasty. Fried noodles were five yuan, spicy clams ten, congee with century egg and lean pork also ten, and a bottle of Shancheng beer just one and a half yuan.
With a few dozen yuan, we ordered quite a bit and even got some beer.
I rarely drank—my face would turn red after just one cup. My tolerance was awful. But tonight, I truly appreciated the help from Bucktooth and the Luo brothers. They had supported me when I was down, so I now saw them as real friends.
I lifted my glass and said, "Bucktooth, Big Luo, Little Luo—thank you guys. If it weren't for your help getting the money together, I wouldn't have made it through. From now on, you're my brothers. Cheers!"
"Hehe, to our friendship—cheers!"
Bucktooth already saw me as a friend. He clinked glasses without hesitation.
The Luo brothers weren't super close to me before, but they considered me a friend—otherwise, they wouldn't have lent me money. They raised their glasses and said sincerely, "Cheers."
I downed a whole cup of beer in one go, and my face instantly turned red.
Bucktooth and the brothers could hold their liquor—they could each handle two to three bottles, way better than me. When they saw my red face after just one drink, they laughed and teased me for being a lightweight.
Maybe it was the alcohol, but I got a little hyper. I talked more than usual. For the first time, I felt like I had a lot to talk about with my roommates.
We drank and chatted under the night sky. One bottle led to another, and as typical guys do, we mostly talked about two things—games and girls.
Eventually, the topic turned to the girls in our class. Everyone started debating who was the prettiest.
Big Luo and Little Luo didn't hesitate—they voted for our beautiful class monitor Harper. She was slim, had delicate features, came from a wealthy family but never flaunted it, and always wore a cute pink hair clip. She had a very pure vibe.
Bucktooth, being the kind of guy who probably watched too many adult films, had a thing for curvier girls. He disagreed and said Harper's deskmate, Xu Jie, was the hottest.
I remembered Xu Jie clearly. She was Harper's best friend and seatmate. Not exactly stunning in terms of looks—more cute and wholesome—but her body was something else. Especially her chest—definitely the best among all the girls in class.
So the three of them started arguing heatedly over which girl was prettier. Eventually, they turned to me. Bucktooth loudly asked, "Andrew, what do you think? Is Harper the prettiest, or is Xu Jie the real beauty?"
Just as I was about to answer, my phone rang. I pulled it out and saw the name "Linda" on the screen. I panicked and immediately shushed the others. Walking a bit away, I answered nervously, "Hello…"
Linda's cold voice came through the phone. "Andrew, you've got some nerve. Not coming home this weekend and disappearing on me?"
I quickly explained, "No, no, I was just discussing homework with a few classmates. Time flew by, so I decided to stay at school for the weekend. Is that okay?"
She snorted. "Stay wherever you like. Don't come back if you don't want to. Just stay safe."
She hung up immediately.
Her voice was still cold and distant, but I sensed something I hadn't before—a faint trace of concern. A month ago, she wouldn't have cared enough to tell me to stay safe. That subtle shift in tone made my heart flutter.
After the call, I returned to my seat. Bucktooth and the others were still arguing.
He pulled me in again. "Andrew, tell us—who's prettier? Harper with her sweet looks or Xu Jie with her killer body?"
Maybe I'd had a bit too much to drink, because I let my mouth run freely. "You guys don't know anything. The prettiest girl in our class isn't Harper or Xu Jie…"
They all looked at me in surprise. "Then who?"
I smirked, slurring slightly from the beer. "Of course it's our homeroom teacher—Linda."
"Linda?!"
"Our teacher?!"
Their eyes lit up, all getting excited. They agreed that Linda was probably the most beautiful woman they had ever seen—gorgeous face, perfect figure, and most importantly, a mature allure that made their hearts race.
Bucktooth, being a repeater, knew a lot about school gossip. He immediately added, "Linda's gorgeous, yeah, but it's a shame such a flower is stuck in a pile of cow dung."
I froze. Could he know about the Zhang family trying to make me their son-in-law?
I nervously glanced at him and asked, "What do you mean?"
Bucktooth replied angrily, "I'm talking about Director David. Rumor has it he's got something going on with Linda. Isn't that like a flower stuck in cow dung?"
My heart sank. I asked urgently, "You mean David the bald guy? He really did something with Linda?"
Before he could answer, all three of them suddenly went pale and shouted, "Ms. Zhang!"
I hadn't realized anything was wrong. Still caught up in my emotions, I blurted out, "I'm talking about Ms. Linda! Did that old bastard David really sleep with her?"
A cold voice rang out behind me. "Andrew!"
"Hmm?"
I turned around—and instantly froze.
Standing behind me, dressed in a simple white dress and holding two shopping bags, was none other than Linda.
Her beautiful face was twisted in fury as she glared at me.
"Linda—no, Ms. Zhang—why are you here?"
I was so shocked, my face turned white. Then I noticed a white Buick parked nearby—Linda's car. She had probably just returned from shopping and, seeing me eating on the street, stopped to take a look—only to catch me gossiping about her.