University S Clique (6+1) · Chat

The mountain night wind carried the dry scent of pine needles across the canopy. The pine wood in the campfire burned black, occasionally popping with dark red sparks that rose with the heat and quickly dimmed as they landed on the edge of the moisture-proof mat.\n\nJiang Shiqi's Switch emitted a short low-battery warning, and the screen brightness instantly dropped by half. He pulled off one side of his noise-canceling headphones, his thin black-framed glasses reflecting a faint blue light. Without a word, he dragged a white Type-C charging cable and moved himself along with his folding chair half a meter forward, reaching the plug directly toward the outdoor power station at Shen Huinan's feet.\n\n"Snap."\n\nShen Huinan's leather shoe stepped on the edge of the power box. His oatmeal-colored sweater looked a bit thin in the night wind. His left hand pressed against his eyebrow piercing as his greyish-white eyes looked up from the data stream on his tablet, staring coldly at the charging cable attempting to cross the line.\n\n"The output power of this station is currently dedicated to my satellite network terminal," Shen Huinan said steadily, without any fluctuation. "If you plug that in and cause me to miss these three seconds of NASDAQ data synchronization, selling you to an electronics factory in Nancheng wouldn't even cover the loss."\n\n"Just a 20W port," Jiang Shiqi didn't back down, shaking the metal plug between his fingers. "Don't be so stingy. At worst, I'll write a set of high-frequency trading defense code for you next month."\n\nSitting diagonally opposite, Shang Yiling let out a light scoff. He was lazily slumped in a wide Kermit chair, long legs crossed casually, his white medium-short hair tousled by the night wind. A silver metal lighter flipped between his knuckles; the flame flickered on and off, illuminating the lazy mockery in his eyes.\n\n"If someone took a picture of God Qi's current cyber-begging look and posted it on a geek forum, he’d probably crowdfund quite a bit for his electricity bill," Shang Yiling released his thumb, and the lighter made a crisp metal click as it closed.\n\n"Better than certain people who insist on using a hand-cranked coffee grinder even in the mountains," Lin Mingyuan was wrapped in an expensive solid-colored cashmere blanket, her misty purple curls blown against her cheeks by the wind. She disgustedly fanned away the drifting smell of campfire smoke, her extra-long diamond-encrusted nails glittering in the firelight. She kicked the folding table in front of her. "This chair is as hard as a medieval torture device. How did you all even agree to come to this middle-of-nowhere wilderness?"\n\nSu Wanqing sat beside her, pushing a cup of freshly brewed coffee to the edge of the table. The hem of her light apricot skirt was slightly damp from the dew, a standard smile playing on the corners of her lips.\n\n"Mingyuan, just bear with it," Su Wanqing’s voice was gentle, her amber eyes reflecting the firelight. "After all, the scenery here is beautiful, far from the hustle and bustle of the city—it’s perfect for relaxing. If you feel cold, I’ll go to the car and get a hand warmer."\n\nShe emphasized the word "relaxing" very lightly, her gaze drifting almost imperceptibly over the two fighting for the outlet before she took a sip from her paper cup.\n\nYi Ningning sat under the outermost campsite light, seemingly deaf to the argument by the fire. She wore a neat uniform, her cold white fingertips resting on the pages of a thick original Russian book, flipping a page with a "swish."\n\n"A camping trip for six people, and we brought three laptops, a gaming console, plus a full set of French coffee equipment," Yi Ningning kept her eyes down, her grey-toned pupils hidden behind heavy bangs staring at the printed words. Her voice was as cold as a mountain stream. "Humanity has indeed shown remarkable diversity in the process of regression."\n\nTaking advantage of the moment Shen Huinan turned to look at Shang Yiling, Jiang Shiqi quickly shoved the charging head into the power port. A lightning bolt icon lit up the battery symbol in the top right corner of the screen. He put his headphones back on and pushed the volume up, completely isolating himself from the outside noise.\n\nA rustling sound of footsteps suddenly came from the bushes on the edge of the campsite. Several dry branches were stepped on, making a crisp snapping sound.\n\nIn the darkness where the firelight couldn't reach, clothing brushed against dew-covered shrubs. The gazes that had been scattered everywhere gradually converged toward the shadows at the edge of the canopy. Shang Yiling stopped flipping his lighter, Lin Mingyuan raised an eyebrow, and Shen Huinan's gaze darkened.