"Gathering for a meal, huh..."
Qin Chuan stroked his chin, his face revealing a trace of interest.
Throughout the three years of high school, he only occasionally went all out at a restaurant outside of school with Little Fatty.
Those classmate dinner parties and the like seemed to be a world away from him.
Before entering Yan University, he had already decided to take this opportunity to make up for some past deficits that he had always longed for.
Though these things might feel somewhat distant to him, already one of the only two Hall Level Players in the world, they might still hold significance.
Everyone needs pursuits beyond their power, if only for the emotional value.
"I'm not that interested in social mixers, so you wouldn't mind if I just bring my mouth to eat, right?"
"Of course not!" Du He'an smiled, "Today's gathering is for barbecue, that barbecue restaurant is quite famous at Yan University. A barbecue wrap stuffed into a pancake and taking a big bite... Man, you'll never forget that taste."
"Just listening to you makes me crave it." Qin Chuan said dryly, actually looking forward to the restaurant they were going to for the gathering.
"It's about time, too. We lads can't arrive later than the ladies," Du He'an checked his watch, "Let's set off now!"
Soon, Du He'an, leading Qin Chuan and the other two, arrived at a barbecue restaurant.
Just upon entering, Qin Chuan believed a bit in what Du He'an had described.
Strictly speaking, it wasn't yet mealtime, but the barbecue restaurant was already full. Each seated pair, male and female alike, appeared to be college-aged, including not just Yan University students but also students from other nearby institutes.
The rich barbecue scent that hit their faces made the four of them, hungry already, swallow their saliva simultaneously.
"I've booked a private room in advance, this way." Du He'an was apparently well-prepared.
Sitting in the private room, Du He'an started to fill the other three in on the situation. "Qiao Chang and I have been classmates for six years, from junior through high school. We discussed and organized this mixer. We're all from the Extraordinary Practical Combat Major, and Qiao Chang's dorm is from the Extraordinary Theory Major."
"I hear our courses are pretty similar, just with different emphases."
"We also need to learn the Extraordinary Theory stuff, but I reckon, like me, most of you are poor students, right?"
"That's not quite right; I somehow managed to get admitted with a score just above the tier one cutoff..." Zhou Xiaochen muttered unwillingly, shrinking his head a bit as he saw everyone else's gaze turning to him, "Okay, fine, I'm a poor student."
"Students from the Extraordinary Practical Combat Major, ninety percent of them obtained B-level evaluations," Du He'an said, shaking his head helplessly. "The pot can't call the kettle black. Based solely on academic scores, we definitely wouldn't meet the cut."
"I got injured during the practical assessments and didn't perform well on the college entrance exam. If it weren't for the two-tier concession, it would've been touch and go."
"So, knowing a few academic high achievers to ask questions when we don't understand could be helpful. And if we could develop feelings in the process of discussing knowledge points..." Du He'an gave the other three a knowing look.
"I don't have a practical combat rating, but they might not be as good as me," Yu Zhao chimed in all of a sudden, casting an awkward silence over the room.
Damn it, a top student snuck in among the poor ones!
Du He'an pointed at Yu Zhao, speechless for a moment, and after a deep sigh, he patted his shoulder, "Yu Zhao, you're not going to make friends that way."
"Qin Chuan, you didn't get in on your raw score alone, did you?" Zhou Xiaochen cast a skeptical look at Qin Chuan, "You, with your thick eyebrows and big eyes, you're not a hidden top student, are you?"
"Me?" Qin Chuan tactically drank some water, then set down his glass, "Recommended."
"Damn! An A-level big shot!" Zhou Xiaochen and Du He'an's eyes widened, even Yu Zhao's gaze towards Qin Chuan took on a hint of surprise.
Managing to get recommended status for practical assessments at Yan University, how impressive was that?
"I heard that in our cohort at the Extraordinary Practical Combat Major, out of 809 students, only 43 were recommended," Zhou Xiaochen spoke faintly.
"That many?" Qin Chuan sounded surprised, "To think there would be so many."
What should I do? I really feel like hitting someone.
"Actually, it's not many." Du He'an shook his head and gave a bitter smile. "This is Yan University; just randomly pick a student, and they were among the top of their city during high school."
"43 recommended spots, spread across each province, even two per province would be somewhat insufficient."
Qin Chuan understood and realized he had been thinking off track.
"Knock, knock, knock~"
A crisp knocking came from the door of the private room. In the next instant, it swung open, and a tall girl with a high ponytail had not yet entered the room when her voice drifted in, "What are you talking about? Did I just hear something about a recommendation?"
"One of our roommates was recommended for admission," Du He'an stood up, "Let me introduce you, this is my old classmate, Qiao Chang."
"Hello!" Qiao Chang waved with a smile, quickly glancing over the other three people, then point at Qin Chuan with a chuckle, "Then my guess is that it's this classmate who was recommended, right?"
"How did you know?" Du He'an asked, surprised.
Qin Chuan and the others were also somewhat taken aback.
"Because out of the four of you, he's the most handsome!" Qiao Chang declared with confidence, and her reason made everyone feel a mix of amusement and speechlessness.
"Alright, alright, come in!" After the jest, Qiao Chang waved towards the door.
Two beautiful girls swiftly walked in.
One of them had long black hair that reached her waist and a subtle smile on her face, which added bonus points to her girl-next-door charm.
The other, with ear-length short hair, had a pretty appearance matched with a dash of a spirited temperament.
As the two girls entered the private room, the atmosphere instantly heated up. Zhou Xiaochen couldn't help but take a sharp breath, his gaze firmly fixed on the girl with long straight black hair, unwilling to look away for a long time.
On the other hand, Yu Zhao, still expressionless, occasionally glanced at the three girls, his small actions proving he was not as calm as he appeared on the surface.
Recently freed from the hardships of their final year of high school, most young men and women nurtured the simplest of desires: to set a modest goal for their wonderful college life.
Although by the time they graduated from college, very few had achieved that goal.
Only Qin Chuan, at this moment, had a particularly odd expression.
He couldn't help but take a glance at the short-haired girl, followed by a second look, and then a third.
Why is Red Leaf here?!
"Is your dorm missing a person?" Du He'an chuckled, teasing his old classmate, "Why didn't you wait for them to come along? Did you have a fallout?"
"Don't stir up trouble in our harmonious dorm relationship," Qiao Chang glanced sidelong at Du He'an, "Lin Yue couldn't make it, later I'll pack some tasty food for her to take back."
"Sure, sure," Du He'an raised his hands in mock surrender.
"Lin Yue?" Yu Zhao suddenly spoke up, "The science subject top scorer from Yanjing City?"
"Right," Qiao Chang nodded.
"It's her! No wonder she couldn't come to the dinner," Zhou Xiaochen couldn't contain his curiosity, "I heard that she wore a mask when she went to take her college entrance exams. Did you guys get to see what she looks like?"
"Ah! I'm so hungry," Zheng Xiaoyu pitifully rubbed her stomach, "I feel like I could eat an entire cow."
"Then let's order first," Du He'an said with a smile, "Order the cow."
Laughter filled the private room.
Zhou Xiaochen, the one who had laughed the most, was so distracted by the interruption that he completely forgot about his earlier question.