I Fell in Love With My Cold-Hearted, Flirtatious Roommate (GL) - Chapter 3

The landlady said that the girl had been living there for three years, had a stable job in the area, but kept late hours and few tenants got to see her. The rent wasn’t expensive, one kilometer from U University, and if two people shared it, it would be 2300 per person per month, with a security deposit for one month and three months’ rent in advance.

Rong Ting was very satisfied, but her mother was worried, listing many potential problems to Rong Ting on the way, such as what kind of job the person had, whether she associated with shady people, or whether she would bring people home…

Rong Ting thought simply: she could just ask about it later.

In the evening, the green magic hat finally accepted her friend request and sent a message.

It was very brief.

【I have time tomorrow, you can come to see the apartment after 5 PM.】

Rong Ting replied: 【Received, understood.】 (Note: The original ‘收到，好的’ carries a formal, slightly submissive tone in the context of student/subordinate communication.)

After sending it, she felt a bit awkward. The long-term habit formed in school made her always reply in a subordinate tone; actually, just sending “Okay” would have been fine.

Forget it, it’s sent, it’s not like she could recall it now.

The next day’s courses were quite heavy; it was already 5:10 PM after her Ancient Chinese Language Studies class.

Rong Ting’s mother was waiting for her outside, and they took a taxi to save time.

The residential area was located in a somewhat secluded spot. They had to travel a long way through the Bingjiaokou Alley, pass a specialty store, and then walk through a small lane before seeing the gray, large-slab building.

From the outside, it was very simple and plain, with community management and next to a police station.

The interior of the building was quite clean, practically dust-free. Only occasionally were some things piled up in the corners of the corridors, but they didn’t obstruct the path.

Or rather, Rong Ting didn’t have high expectations for a house at this price; the current environment was already decent.

The apartment they were going to see was on the sixth floor, the highest in the building.

On this floor, there were two units, left and right. One family had a low shoe cabinet outside their door with messy shoes piled on top, and two bags of garbage were also stacked by the door.

Rong Ting instinctively shifted her gaze to the other door. The area in front of it was spotlessly clean, with only a navy blue doormat featuring a Smurf drawing.

She suddenly had a revelation and reconfirmed the apartment number on her phone.

It was 601.

Finally, she knocked on the clean door.

For some reason, her heart was pounding, and she had a premonition that something was about to happen, even feeling like retreating. Why did she accept information thrown at her by a stranger?

Actually… she wasn’t in a hurry.

However, before she could react, the door opened.

The two people facing each other were stunned simultaneously.

“Uh.”

“It’s you.”

The tall, elegant girl standing at the door was wearing a loose black T-shirt and matching denim shorts. Her features were striking, and her dark green hair was loosely tied back, making her extremely conspicuous.

The hem of her black loose T-shirt was originally tied together at two corners, exposing a strip of fair waistline. When she saw the people outside, she untied the knot, and the slightly wrinkled hem dropped down, covering the exposed skin.

For some reason, Rong Ting averted her gaze, feeling a slight sense of regret.

Rong Ting remembered her, but she hadn’t expected the other girl to remember her too.

Ran Jiu’s lips slowly curved into a smile. She opened her phone and scrolled through it, saying, “My name is Ran Jiu, Ran from ‘ranran bu jue’ (continuous), and Jiu from ‘he jiu’ (drinking wine).” (Note: ‘冉冉不絕’ means continuous/ongoing, and ‘喝酒’ is drinking alcohol. The character 冉 is pronounced Rǎn and 酒 is pronounced Jiǔ.)

Ding-dong. Rong Ting picked up her phone. The green hat on WeChat sent a message: 【Ran Jiu】

So it was this ‘Jiu’ (Wine).

Ran Jiu stepped aside to let them in and said in an almost imperceptible tone, “And you still had to give me your contact information in the end.”

Ran Jiu’s bedroom door remained closed. Even though Rong Ting was curious about the inside, she appropriately held back her curiosity.

The apartment viewing process was very pleasant. Rong Ting’s mother, who was generally very demanding, walked around the house twice. Her inspection was unusually strict; she checked everything from the range hood in the kitchen to whether there was scale in the bathroom sink. The water outlet and floor drain were fine, and it was later confirmed that everywhere was very clean.

Best of all, the bedroom Rong Ting would be occupying had a bed, a desk, and chairs. The landlord’s child had studied there, so it had an excellent desk, a wardrobe, and a comfortable computer chair.

The rooms here were all clean, suggesting the person living there had excellent living habits.

The house was fine; now it was just a matter of the person.

The three people stood quietly for a moment.

Ran Jiu checked the time, perhaps wanting to resolve things quickly, “Auntie, please ask any questions you have.”

Rong Ting’s mother sighed with relief upon receiving permission and finally asked everything she wanted to know: work schedule, nature of work, whether she would bring outsiders home, how utility bills would be split…

“My job is quite complex and temporarily confidential, but the schedule is regular, from 10 AM to 7 PM, so it won’t affect her schedule,” Ran Jiu spoke neither fast nor slow, her voice having a cool quality. “…My workplace is far from here, and I won’t bring people home. This year’s internet fee has been paid in full. As for water and electricity bills, we can discuss those when the bills arrive.”

Rong Ting’s mother still wanted to ask more, but Ran Jiu’s gaze suddenly fell on Rong Ting, “What do you think?”

Rong Ting, suddenly called upon, was startled, then answered honestly: “I think… it’s great.”

Later, Rong Ting’s mother couldn’t find any more faults. Since there was no agency fee, they casually found a platform to guarantee the transaction. Ran Jiu said that if they were truly worried, they could download a template from the internet and sign a paper contract.

Rong Ting declined. She felt that Ran Jiu didn’t seem like a bad person and had a mysterious trust in her.

Ran Jiu didn’t ask for a security deposit. Rong Ting transferred half a year’s rent first, and they agreed that she would move in tomorrow.

As they were leaving, Ran Jiu suddenly called out to her, leaning against the door frame, “Do you need help tomorrow?”

Rong Ting was stunned for a moment. Two years was long enough to make her feel numb from the complexities of human relations in the dormitory. She realized she was about to enter a new life, and a wave of joy slowly flowed through her entire body.

She quickly and neatly said, “No need, I don’t have much stuff.”

In the evening, she arranged to meet with her class advisor to inform her of the situation.

The advisor came to her dorm building upon receiving the message. Fortunately, none of the girls from their class were around, so they didn’t see her.

Rong Ting’s class advisor was a master’s student in her second year, personally very accomplished, with rich experience in both academics and work, which was why she was their advisor. However, everyone has limits to their power. Their advisor was clearly very aware of the undercurrents in the dorm and repeatedly asked Rong Ting if she was sure about renting outside.

Rong Ting nodded. She felt that this was indeed the best solution at the moment.

The advisor said, “Or I could talk to them.”

Rong Ting politely refused the suggestion.

First, they were adults, and they should solve their own problems. Second, things that required external intervention often became complicated. Furthermore, the advisor didn’t know the whole story, and even if the issue was temporarily resolved, Wan Sang’s vindictive nature would likely lead to things getting worse later.

In short, she didn’t want to provoke a spiteful person or ruin her general reputation.

U University’s dorm management had always been relaxed, with many students living outside, and the administrators turning a blind eye. Therefore, her class advisor’s agreement was all she needed.

That night, Rong Ting stayed at a hotel with her mother. After taking her medicine, she sat on one bed and her mother on the other.

Her mother looked worried. She knew Rong Ting had never been very talkative since childhood, had few friends, and always kept a few people at arm’s length. She wasn’t smooth when dealing with problems and didn’t know how to placate people, making her easily taken advantage of in social interactions.

Rong Ting’s idea was simple: she didn’t want to learn these deceptive ways. Besides, she didn’t want to waste so much time studying the complex psychology of others, unless she had too much time on her hands.

After all, for a normal person, maintaining basic respect was enough. Beyond that, the coming and going of relationships were beyond her control.

Her mother asked her if she wanted to find a boyfriend. Rong Ting wasn’t interested in that for the time being, only saying she would adapt to co-living life first.

The next day, she returned to the dorm to pack her belongings. The atmosphere among the three other people inside was unusually lively; they seemed to be coordinating a group order for milk tea.

Seeing her return, Chen Saiyu hesitated and asked Rong Ting if she wanted to join their group order.

Rong Ting shook her head, said nothing, and quietly began packing her things.

Watching the large bags being packed, the others gradually realized something was wrong. Chen Saiyu’s voice was a little nervous, “What are you doing?”

Rong Ting’s voice was flat, “I’m moving out for a while.”

She was too focused on packing to notice the atmosphere in the dorm immediately cooling down. Wan Sang, who was helping coordinate the group order on her phone, was momentarily distracted and actually clicked “cancel” on the order.

“No way.” Chen Saiyu walked over and subconsciously grabbed her arm, “Are you sure? Renting outside is so expensive, and it’s inconvenient for classes, and it’s not safe.”

Rong Ting slowly pulled her hand away, “There’s property management there, so it’s relatively safe.”

“Besides, I don’t need to be at school all the time.”

The moment the door closed, with her back to the oppressive past, a crack finally appeared on Rong Ting’s calm face.

She let out a long breath. She was finally free.

Her mother was waiting at the dorm courtyard gate, and in less than ten minutes, she saw Rong Ting coming down with her bags.

“So fast, did you pack everything?” Her mother was a bit surprised. Rong Ting nodded: “I don’t have much stuff.” She only brought her bedding, clothes, and some daily necessities. She thought simply: she would get her books later when she needed them.

The two of them took a taxi directly to the rental place. Rong Ting didn’t have the key yet, so she had notified Ran Jiu in advance.

Judging by the previous response speed, Rong Ting thought she would have to wait at least half a day.

To her surprise, as soon as she sent the message, the reply came back that it was fine.

Rong Ting was cautious and sent another message upon arrival: 【Is it convenient for me to come up now?】

Unexpectedly, in less than thirty seconds after the message was sent, the building door opened. Ran Jiu’s loose hair was very soft, with every strand seemingly glowing. She pushed open the access control and casually took two bags from Rong Ting’s hand, “Let’s go.”

“Oh, no, no need.” Rong Ting was always a little overwhelmed by the generous kindness of others.

Rong Ting was 1.68m tall, but Ran Jiu was slightly taller than her, even looking down at her with a faintly condescending gaze, as if Rong Ting was incapable of carrying the bags.

Having no choice, Rong Ting grabbed the two bags from her mother’s hands.

Upstairs, entering her bedroom, Rong Ting was about to start tidying up, but she saw that the existing desk and bed in the room were spotless, and the balcony was also dust-free.

Ran Jiu didn’t enter her bedroom; she just put down the things and left.

Since there was no need to clean, tidying up was much easier. Her mother was taking a train that evening and suggested that Rong Ting invite Ran Jiu for dinner together later.

Unexpectedly, after she finished tidying up, Ran Jiu was dressed to go out. Her dark green hair was loose, with a small strand near her face braided into a thin dreadlock. Rong Ting heard she was still wearing a thin T-shirt and jacket and quickly reminded her: “It’s a bit cold today, do you want to wear something thicker?”

Ran Jiu had already stepped one leg out of the bedroom but, after a thought, reluctantly stepped back, closed the door, and changed her clothes. When she came out again, she was wearing a high-neck white thin fleece shirt and a light blue windbreaker over it, looking slightly more like a student.

It seemed this roommate was easy to manage, Rong Ting smiled.

Ran Jiu rummaged in her shirt pocket, walked over to her, “Hold out your hand.”

Rong Ting subconsciously held out her hand, and a keychain landed in her palm, with two keys and a thin blue whale card on it.

“One is for the unit door, and the other is for the apartment door,” Ran Jiu put on a black baseball cap. “I’ll be back around 9 PM. I have my key, so just don’t lock the door.” With that, she hurried to open and close the door. The sound of light, quick footsteps echoed in the corridor and soon faded away.

This… Rong Ting was a bit stunned. She had planned to invite her to dinner.

In the evening, Rong Ting saw her mother off at the Beijing West Station. In the car, she felt vaguely how fast time had flown: from her mother’s arrival to finding, renting, and finally settling into the apartment—it had only been a few short days. She had finally escaped that oppressive environment, but she didn’t know what the future held, as she still had a long time to spend in this city.

As her mother was about to have her ticket checked, she waved her hand, telling Rong Ting to go back. Rong Ting still lingered outside, even having a fleeting thought of following her, but she only watched her mother’s figure disappear into the crowd entering the station.

She stood there in a daze for a few minutes. Her phone vibrated, and she picked it up to see two messages.

Rong Mother: 【It’s cold outside, go back quickly, I’m about to get on the train.】

Jiu (Wine): 【I might be home late tonight. Turn off the lights and sleep, no need to wait for me.】