Unknowingly, Fang Bai arrived at the west side of the school, where the student dormitories were located.
Here stood Zhixin West Dormitory, built in 1930, a red-bricked, tiled building in a "U" shape, the oldest dormitory at Jiao Tong University, known as the First Dormitory.
By this era, it was being used as a graduate student dormitory.
The undergraduate dormitories were located south of the First Dormitory, consisting of twenty to thirty small buildings, mostly three to six stories high, with few rooms on each floor.
Many of the dorm buildings were "tube-style" buildings constructed in the 1970s, with eight students per room, and a shared washroom on each floor.
The dorms did not have bathrooms; showering required leaving the dorm building and going to a public bathhouse, which only had a row of faucets, making winter showers very inconvenient as one had to heat their own water.
Fang Bai looked around and quickly found Dorm Building 15; his room was 213.
Upon entering the first floor, he briefly surveyed the dorm environment, frowning. He was very satisfied with Jiao Tong University's campus environment, but only dissatisfied with the dormitory living conditions.
It really was an eight-person room, with bunk beds, two desks in the middle, and no back balcony. Clothes were hung to dry on windows, above corridors, or in the clothes drying area in front of the first floor.
Just thinking about the morning rush hour for washing up was troublesome; he could already imagine having to take turns queuing for water. If the water supply stopped, that would be even more problematic; he'd have to find a bucket to prepare water in advance, just like in high school.
Fortunately, he could go back to his rented accommodation to shower after school in the afternoon. Otherwise, showering and washing clothes at school would be truly inconvenient, especially in winter. Taking a shower and being hit by cold air, feeling chilly all over, what was the difference from showering at his rural hometown?
It wasn't that he couldn't endure hardship, but rather that after getting used to superior living conditions, it was difficult to adapt to harsh living conditions again, especially when it came to showering.
Oh well, he'd live here for a while, get to know his classmates, and then figure out a way to move out later.
As Fang Bai walked and observed, each dormitory was bustling, with parents and students chatting happily.
He went up to the second floor and arrived outside room 213, seeing several students and two parents chatting inside the dormitory.
A middle-aged man standing by the wardrobe laughed, "Hello everyone, this is my son, Yang Tan. Please take good care of him in the future, everyone.
This kid of mine is quite easy to get along with, though he occasionally has a little temper; don't spoil him.
We're locals, so if anyone needs anything, just tell Yang Tan. We'll try our best to help if we can."
"I bought some fruits; please don't be shy, everyone, have some." Yang Tan's mother took out tangerines and distributed them to the students in the room. The students, with tangerines in their hands, felt a bit embarrassed but still said thank you.
"My name is Yang Tan, from Jinshan County. These are my parents. I like making new friends, so if anyone needs help with anything, just say so.
After school starts, I want to run for class cadre, so I hope you brothers will support me, haha. Sometimes I speak quite directly." Yang Tan, over 1.7 meters tall, smiled broadly, though his appearance was somewhat cool.
The middle-aged man raised an eyebrow and lightly patted his son's head, "Speaking so directly, you're a bit thoughtless. You should get along well with your classmates."
"My name is Wu Jiang, from Yu Province." A short, mature-looking student sitting on the lower left bunk smiled shyly.
"Dong Jiang, from Rong City. I like literature."
"Cui Xiaoqiang, from Gui Province. I prefer exercising."
"My name is Wang Yifei, from Yue City. If Yang Tan wants to run for class cadre, I'll definitely be the first to support him. I'm not interested in student cadres; I just want to start a business in my spare time, hehe.
Cui Xiaoqiang and I arrived this morning. Wu Jiang and Dong Jiang arrived at noon. There might be two more roommates reporting later." Said the boy with slightly curly hair and a brilliant smile.
Fang Bai stood outside the door and listened for a while, then checked the room number, knocked twice, and said with a chuckle, "If I haven't entered the wrong door, then I should be the sixth to arrive."
Everyone in the dorm looked towards the door and saw a young man with a sunny smile and extraordinary demeanor walk in. His attire made everyone's eyes light up.
"Hello everyone, my name is Fang Bai, Fang as in 'Fangyuan,' Bai as in 'Mu Bai Bai,' and I'm from Wen City." After entering the room, Fang Bai first introduced himself, then greeted the middle-aged man and woman, "Hello, Uncle, Auntie."
While introducing himself, he shook hands with everyone, discreetly performing a scan. Soon, he knew the information of a few of his roommates, but only five of them.
"Hey, young man, you look so energetic! Want a tangerine?"
"Thank you, Auntie, no need. I ate a bit too much at noon." Fang Bai politely declined with a smile.
Fang Bai's confident and natural politeness made the middle-aged man feel that this young man was extraordinary. Among the students in the room, except for Wang Yifei, the others were relatively shy. And his clothing indicated a wealthy family background.
"Little Fang seems to have an unusual aura. What do your parents do?"
"My parents are farmers, now doing a small business, haha." Fang Bai replied with a smile to Yang Tan's mother, "Auntie, you're very well-preserved, looking at most thirty years old, living a life of luxury. Uncle Yang looks vibrant, so it seems he'll be promoted soon."
The middle-aged woman heard such praise for the first time and felt pleased, smiling warmly, "Hoo hoo, Little Fang, your mouth is so sweet! You're so good at talking, and very humble too."
"Fang Bai, what are your hobbies?"
"Just reading and running. I don't have any special talents. If any of you roommates are running for class cadre, I'll definitely support you. I have no interest in being a class cadre." Fang Bai dispelled the concerns of his roommate Yang Tan.
While class cadres in general universities might not mean much, in top universities, the competition for class cadres is fierce, and there are many benefits to becoming a class cadre and joining the student union.
Joining the Party, being evaluated as an outstanding student, staying on campus, and studying abroad all carry a certain weight.
Fang Bai didn't need these resources, nor did he need to compete. He could strive for them himself. Studying abroad was just a matter of time for him, and he had no interest in the others.
He didn't say he would only vote for Yang Tan, in case other roommates also competed.
Yang Tan heard Fang Bai say he had no special talents, which meant one less competitor for class cadre. Moreover, the guy said he would support him, so he was completely relieved. The more he looked at Fang Bai, the more he liked him. This guy had too strong an aura, putting a lot of pressure on him, and he was too good at talking, making his parents so happy.
Suddenly, a "beep beep beep" ringing sound came from Fang Bai's backpack. Everyone in the dorm looked at Fang Bai and his backpack.
An alarm clock?
But it didn't sound like one!
It wasn't until Fang Bai took off his backpack, pulled out a "Big Brother" mobile phone from inside, extended the antenna, and at the same time apologized to the stunned crowd, "Sorry about that."
After saying that, he walked and talked, "Hello, Shuyu, I've arrived at the dorm and met a few roommates. Everyone's very enthusiastic. Uh, it's not convenient to talk right now; I'll call you tonight."
After speaking, Fang Bai hung up the phone and turned back to the dorm before even reaching the door.
But everyone in the dorm had heard his conversation, and even two students passing in the corridor looked at him in surprise as he talked on the phone.
Just now, Fang Bai said his parents were farmers, doing a small business?
Now, no one believed it anymore.
A "Big Brother" mobile phone costing twenty to thirty thousand yuan was not something you could afford to play with unless your family had millions in assets.
But this was just for a student's use, which meant his family also had one. It was as if they treated twenty to thirty thousand yuan as a toy. How much assets must a family have to afford that?
Everyone's brains instantly short-circuited. The top students couldn't figure it out.
They might have seen big bosses use them, but they had never seen a university student use a "Big Brother" mobile phone. Now, Fang Bai had directly overturned their perceptions.
"Brothers, I have an urgent matter, so I'm leaving now. I won't be back tonight. I'll come back the day after tomorrow when school officially starts. If the teacher asks, please inform them. I'll treat everyone to a meal when I have time." Fang Bai waved to the still-shocked people in the room and left. Finding the dorm had achieved his goal.