Chapter 30: Impossible! Absolutely Impossible!

The group arrived at Zhou Yun’s apartment. After some organizing, they found that, as expected, two suitcases were packed to the brim, with two additional duffel bags piled beside them.

"Seems like we have quite a bit of stuff."

"This is nothing. We’re used to this kind of heavy lifting. Let’s go. Our dorms should be in the same living area, not far from here."

"Right, I’m in Building 3."

"What a shame. We’re in Building 5. Otherwise, we could have popped over to visit."

To help Zhou Yun move, both of them had brought their electric scooters, which was perfect for carrying one suitcase and one duffel bag each. Had Zhou Yun been on his own, he likely would have had to make several trips.

Dorm 316, Building 3.

"We’re here," Zhou Yun said. It was the exact same room from his previous life.

"This weather is absolutely stifling." After just one trip, the backs of all three men were soaked with sweat.

"Let’s turn on the AC first," Yu Tianrui said as he walked into the room and used his phone to activate the unit.

*Beep, beep, beep, beep...*

He set it straight to sixteen degrees. The cool air hitting them finally dissipated some of the oppressive heat.

"The conditions in this dorm aren't bad at all. It’s a four-person room and looks quite clean," Qiu Yan remarked while moving his things inside.

"Everything else is fine, but the AC billing policy is honestly absurd. Back in my undergraduate years, I had never heard of such bizarre charging rules. A deposit for the AC is understandable—that’s fine. But here’s the problem: this damn AC requires a 'service fee'? For four people, that’s over a thousand yuan, plus the deposit, making it over two thousand—and that’s not even including the electricity bill. So, I have to ask: what service are they providing? What kind of service costs over a thousand yuan? You could buy a brand-new unit for two thousand, complete with a warranty and free repairs. This outsourcing company is ridiculous."

Yu Tianrui’s face flushed as he spoke; clearly, even after two years, the memory still infuriated him.

Zhou Yun was well aware of this, having lived here for three years in his past life. Back then, their initial thought was, "Fine, I just won't pay. Once they take the unit away, I’ll just buy my own."

So, the four of them held out, refusing to pay, waiting for someone to come and dismantle the unit so they could buy their own—which they could even sell to the next batch of students after three years to recoup some of the cost.

But guess what happened?

They didn't take the whole unit. They snuck in and removed some small, obscure part from the external condenser, rendering the AC completely useless. As computer science students, they had no idea what had been tampered with. In the end, unable to stand the heat, they had to pay the two thousand-plus yuan. And it wasn't just for their undergraduate years—it was the same story for their three years of graduate school.

Zhou Yun had to give the company credit; they knew how to make money. The cost of a single unit was covered in the first year, and every year after that, each room effectively paid for an entire unit all over again.

Back then, they had complained, but once the money was paid, what could they do? As the pressure of their research grew, the matter gradually faded into the background. If Yu Tianrui hadn't brought it up now, Zhou Yun probably wouldn't have remembered until the collectors came knocking.

Looking back, he realized he had been too young and his approach to problems too naive. He was willing to let bygones be bygones regarding his past life, but in this life? Paying this fee was absolutely out of the question! Even if he didn't lack the money, he had been reborn—was he really going to swallow this humiliation again? Absolutely not.

Qiu Yan nodded along from the side. "We actually had people report this to the school back then, but we never got a response. Who knows where those reports even went?"

"If you ask me, we should go straight to Professor Deng and have him talk to the Dean. That might actually get some reaction."

"Easier said than done. Would Professor Deng even listen? Besides, we’ve already paid it; there’s no point in bringing it up now."

Yu Tianrui suddenly turned to look at Zhou Yun. "It’s useless for us to say anything, but if Zhou Yun brings it up, Professor Deng will surely listen, right?"

Qiu Yan’s eyes lit up. "That’s true! Zhou Yun, if you’re the one to say it, this might actually go somewhere."

"Shall I give it a try?" Zhou Yun stepped into the conversation at the perfect moment.

"Do it! Professor Deng definitely won't give you a hard time. If this succeeds, it would be a huge benefit for all the students to come!"

Compared to Qiu Yan’s excitement, Yu Tianrui was a bit more level-headed. "Though, this might offend some people. Think about it—this AC has been installed for years. By now, it’s essentially pure profit for them."

He couldn't say more, as it was all speculation. "Whether you bring it up or not is up to you. But even if you do offend someone, with Professor Deng behind you, you’ll be fine."

"Wait, now that you mention it, that’s a real possibility." Qiu Yan realized there might be some shady dealings behind the scenes.

Both of them looked at Zhou Yun, as the final decision rested with him. Zhou Yun had already been thinking about how to resolve the issue, and now that his seniors had provided a new angle, he certainly wouldn't refuse.

"Alright, I’ll talk to Professor Deng tomorrow. I hope it works. Even if I don't care about the money, I don't like being scammed."

"Exactly. You’ve already paid the tuition; what’s a few hundred yuan more? If they just included it in the tuition, I wouldn't say a word. But forcing us to pay it separately? That’s just begging to be cursed at."

...

The next day, Zhou Yun arrived at Deng Yonghua’s office.

"Good morning, Professor."

"Oh, you’re here early. What brings you by?" Deng Yonghua had only just arrived; he hadn't even turned on his computer.

"I’ve submitted the final draft of the paper."

"I trust your work. But you didn't come here just for that, did you? You could have just sent me a text for something like that," Deng Yonghua said with a chuckle.

"As expected, I can't hide anything from you. It’s like this: you previously mentioned that I could come to you if I had any issues with my daily life, so here I am."

Deng Yonghua shook his head with a smile. "I stand by what I said. Tell me what’s going on, and I’ll see if I can help."

"I’ll be blunt, then..." Zhou Yun proceeded to explain the dormitory AC billing policy to him.

Deng Yonghua, who had been smiling, gradually began to frown. After Zhou Yun finished, he remarked, "They charge like that?"

"Yes, it’s the same for my seniors. You weren't aware?"

Deng Yonghua shook his head. "How come they never mentioned it? I’ll bring this up at the next school meeting. How are they running this school? Since when do they collect money from students like this?"

He, too, found the charging policy highly unreasonable.