Chapter 233 Dormitory
The dormitory is on the second floor.
Pushing open the heavy wooden door, you'll find a room that's about fifteen or sixteen square meters.
The walls are simple whitewashed, and the floor is a wooden floor painted red, with some areas already worn.
There are two bunk beds on each side of the room, for a total of four beds.
There are also four small metal cabinets next to the bed for storing personal belongings.
Two old wooden tables and several stools were placed near the window.
The window is large, but the glass is a bit old. Through it, you can see the bare tree branches and students coming and going below.
There was no one else in the dormitory at the moment; Zhang Yueran was the first to arrive.
She excitedly found the upper bunk with her name on it.
"These conditions are really good! Much better than when we were in school, and there's even heating."
Aunt Feng looked around, satisfied, and began to help her daughter unpack the packages, preparing to make the bed. After helping to put the heavy bedding packages in the dormitory, Xiao Liu went back to the car to wait.
Nan Zhiyi then helped put away the clothes and other miscellaneous items she had brought.
Before long, Zhang Yueran's bed was made neatly, and her luggage was put away properly.
Aunt Feng looked around and found that they were still missing everyday items such as a washbasin, towel, toothpaste, toothbrush, and thermos. She then decided, "I'll go to the supply and marketing cooperative this afternoon and buy all of these. I'll bring them to you when school officially starts."
Zhang Yueran was leaning against the window, excitedly watching the new students walking around and the campus scenery below. Upon hearing this, she agreed without turning her head, "Okay, okay, I'll listen to Mom! I think this place is really great!"
Nan Zhiyi watched from the sidelines, and could only sigh at how quickly young people adapt and how full of energy they have.
Just then, the dormitory door was pushed open, and two new roommates and their families entered.
A round-faced girl, always smiling and appearing very lively, was accompanied by her parents.
The other one was quieter, with two shiny black braids, and was brought by a man who looked like her husband.
With so many people suddenly crammed into the small dormitory, it suddenly felt a bit cramped.
Zhang Yueran was very outgoing and took the initiative to greet everyone: "Hello! My name is Zhang Yueran, and I'm in the Department of Radio Electronics!" She then introduced Nan Zhiyi and Aunt Feng, "This is my sister, who is also a freshman in the Chinese Department, and this is my mother."
Nan Zhiyi and Aunt Feng also greeted the two families.
The two sides exchanged a few simple pleasantries, inquired about each other's hometowns and majors, and the atmosphere was fairly harmonious.
However, the dormitory space was really limited. Seeing this, Aunt Feng said, "Alright, Yueran, you're almost settled here. Let's go back first and get to know each other better when school starts."
The three said goodbye to Zhang Yueran's new roommate and walked down the dormitory building.
Xiao Liu was already waiting by the jeep downstairs. When he saw them come out, he quickly opened the car door.
Once inside the car, Aunt Feng told Xiao Liu to drive directly to the Beijing Supply and Marketing Cooperative and buy everything at once.
Nan Zhiyi knew that Aunt Feng was an impatient person who wanted to finish everything in one go.
She suggested, "Aunt Feng, how about we go back to the service center in the compound to buy it? Things there don't require ration coupons, and the prices are usually cheaper than at the supply and marketing cooperatives outside. Plus, they only provide supplies for their own employees, so the quality is guaranteed. If the service center doesn't have it, we can go to a nearby supply and marketing cooperative to get it. What do you think?"
Aunt Feng thought it was a great idea: "Oh, that's wonderful! Every little bit helps, and it's convenient too! I'll do as you say and buy it at the compound service center!"
The group arrived at the service center in the army compound.
Just as Nan Zhiyi had said, the goods were plentiful, the prices were affordable, and we even saved a lot of coupons.
Aunt Feng quickly prepared all the daily necessities for Zhang Yueran, including a thermos, enamel basin, toothpaste, and toothbrush.
As she picked out items, she exclaimed, "The welfare benefits at the Beijing Military Region are truly exceptional; the goods are both high-quality and inexpensive!"
She was still thinking about her husband. When she saw the army green thermos with a carrying strap on the shelf, she picked out a sturdy one and said, "Buy a new one for your Uncle Zhang. His old one is all chipped and broken."
Watching from the side, Zhang Yueran remembered that her father loved to drink tea, so she said, "Mom, can you weigh out some more tea leaves for Dad? These tea leaves look good."
Nan Zhiyi quickly stopped her, saying, "Don't buy tea here. We have several boxes at home! There's Longjing tea that Fifth Brother usually gives us, and Biluochun tea that others have given us. They're all very good. We can bring some back for Uncle Zhang later. It'll be enough for him to drink for a long time."
She had to persuade her quite a bit before she finally gave up Aunt Feng's idea of buying tea and snacks at the service center.
After finishing shopping, I looked back at my home. As soon as the jeep stopped at the gate, I saw Zhou Anping carrying Xiaoman out of the house to greet me.
As soon as Xiaoman saw her mother, she wriggled in Zhou Anping's arms, stretched out her little hand, and called out in a childish voice, "Mommy! Mommy!"
Nan Zhiyi quickly got out of the car, walked a few steps over, took her son, and rubbed his little face against her cheek: "Hey, Mommy's back!"
Zhou Anping smiled as he handed the little one to Nan Zhiyi, then turned to greet Aunt Feng and Zhang Yueran: "Aunt Feng! Yueyue! Long time no see! Our Yueyue is getting more and more beautiful!"
Zhang Yueran also grasped Zhou Anping's hand with surprise: "Sister Anping, I heard from my sister in a letter that you were also in Beijing, but I knew you were very busy with work. I didn't expect to meet you so soon!"
Aunt Feng smiled and looked Zhou Anping up and down: "Yes, Zhiyi said your husband also lives in this compound? Why didn't you come over and visit?"
Zhou Anping smoothed his hair a little embarrassedly: "He's busy with work too... I just came back from a performance tour in Northeast China with the troupe yesterday, and I'm exhausted, but I was thinking that Zhiyi is about to start school, so I had to come and see her as soon as possible. I didn't expect you to have already registered. If I had known, I would have come early this morning and been able to help out."
Nan Zhiyi held Xiaoman, who was clinging to her and refusing to get down, in one arm and tugged at Zhou Anping's arm with the other: "Stop with the formalities. We're just glad you came. Come inside and let's talk."
Everyone carried their things into the house, sat down on the sofa in the living room, and chatted over hot tea.
Zhang Yueran excitedly told Zhou Anping about the size of Peking University's campus and what her new roommates were like. Zhou Anping also shared some interesting stories about his experiences performing with the cultural troupe.
Xiaoman stayed nestled in Nan Zhiyi's arms, whimpering and occasionally pawing at her mother's face with her little hands, seeking attention.
Nan Zhiyi coaxed him softly, "Mom went out to take care of some important business this morning. There were a lot of people around, and it wouldn't be convenient to take you with me. I didn't mean to leave you out."
Xiaoman didn't care about any of that logic; she just buried her head in her mother's arms, feeling wronged.
Zhou Anping laughed from the side, "When I arrived, this little guy was crying. No matter what Sister Zhang did, she couldn't soothe him. Every now and then she would run to the door to see if you had come back. He looked so pitiful."
Upon hearing this, Nan Zhiyi immediately hugged her son even tighter, coaxing and kissing him softly.
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