My hometown is far away in Moscow.

041 First Arrival

"Three people sharing a room?" Li Baoqing muttered to himself.

Hu Yi looked around and said, "It's fine. The room is quite big, but there's no toilet or kitchen inside, which is rather inconvenient."

The two men quietly carried the box into the room and closed the door behind them. The person on the bed groaned twice, groggily opened his eyes, stared at them for a moment, and said in Chinese, "Hmm? New here?"

Li Baoqing smiled and said, "Yes, we are from the preparatory course of the Languages ​​Department, and we just arrived today. My name is Li Baoqing, and I major in Journalism. He is Hu... Hu... that... Yi."

"You can call me Anton outside," Hu Yi replied. "I majored in linguistics."

"Huh? Hu Yi? Hehehe... My name is Zhou Dali, the three of us are in the same department, I'm also a journalism major." The person on the bed sat up cross-legged, stroking his toes as he watched the two of them open their suitcases and put their things away: "You don't have much luggage, did you not bring blankets? Don't you have any warm clothes? It gets very cold here in winter."

Li Baoqing put the suitcase into the closet, turned his head and replied, "We both studied preparatory courses in Maji last year, and we left our quilts and winter clothes there. We'll go get them tomorrow."

"Hey, so you're Maji's students." Zhou Dali was of medium build, with a round belly, chubby face, and messy, curly hair. His broken Mandarin had a strong Shanxi accent, and his pronunciation was flat and lacked intonation. He and Hu Li had both come to Moscow last year and failed their preparatory course graduation exams, so they had to repeat a year.

Since they were all the same age and had very similar experiences, they inevitably felt a sense of sympathy for each other. The three repeaters hit it off immediately and quickly overcame their initial awkwardness.

It was dinnertime, so Zhou Dali invited them to have a few drinks at the Arabic restaurant downstairs and also gave them a brief introduction to the dormitory: "The toilets and kitchen are at the end of the corridor. The public bathhouse downstairs is open at set times each week, and the rest of the time it's a laundry room where you can wash large items of clothing at reasonable prices."

Li Baoqing wrinkled his nose: "There's a strong smell of paint in the hallway. Was it recently renovated?"

"This building gets its walls repainted every summer to make a good impression on new foreign students." As the three walked out of the building, Zhou Dali reminded them, "Building 6 is more strictly managed than other buildings. Sometimes they lock the doors at night, so make sure you come back early if you go out at night."

"Lock the door?" Li Baoqing scratched his head. "Why? Are you worried we won't come home at night? Are you going to do room checks?"

"No, it's not that. No one cares whether you stay or not." Zhou Dali thought for a moment, "The lock is probably to ensure the safety of the preparatory students. Moscow is quite chaotic right now. It would be terrible if skinheads or terrorists managed to sneak in."

"Outsiders certainly can't get in, but if a fire breaks out, the people inside won't be able to get out either," Hu Yi said casually. "Besides, the three of us live on the fifth floor; if we jump, we'll be half-dead."

"Don't talk nonsense. There's no open flame in the building, and even the stove is electric. How could it possibly catch fire?" Li Baoqing said, glancing furtively at the fifth-floor window, clearly showing some concern.

They could never have imagined that their casual conversation would later become a self-fulfilling prophecy, confirming the most devastating disaster in the history of Friendship University.

A physical examination is required before enrollment. Hu Yi and Li Baoqing arrived at the infirmary the next morning. A long line had already formed at the door. Several Chinese people in front of them were chatting and laughing, and they seemed to know each other well.

The two stood at the back of the line, chatting quietly while looking out the window, unknowingly creating a meter's distance between themselves and the crowd ahead. Just as Hu Yi was about to catch up with the group, he suddenly heard hurried footsteps behind him, and a tall, blond man brazenly cut in, standing in front of him with his hands on his hips as if nothing had happened.

Slightly displeased, Hu Yi said in Russian, "Queue up."

The person in front didn't react. Hu Yi raised his voice and repeated himself. Only then did the person turn around, squinting at Hu Yi with his triangular eyes: "What did you say?" It was the same young man from Northeast China who had cut in line at the entrance of the Asian Students Affairs Office three months ago.

So it was this kid. Hu Yi smirked, staring at him as he slowly and deliberately switched to Chinese, saying, "I'll make you wait in line!"

The blond-haired man pointed at the people in front of him in the line: "Why are you queuing? I'm in the same line as them." He then turned away with a sidelong glance and let out a light snort.

This retort infuriated Hu Yi, who grabbed the arm of the man with the triangular eyes and yanked him forcefully away: "Stop talking nonsense, get in line at the back!"

Huang Mao was pulled back a few steps, frowning and angrily saying, "Hey? What's going on? Why are you hitting me? You're pretty arrogant, aren't you?" As he spoke, he walked over to push Hu Yi, but Li Baoqing grabbed his wrist and pulled him along, causing him to stumble a few steps and almost fall.

Several students at the front of the line rushed to Huang Mao's side to help him up, calling out, "Brother Wang, Brother Wang! Are you alright?" while anxiously looking at Hu Yi and Li Baoqing.

The blond-haired guy took a few heavy breaths, straightened his middle-parted hair, and, with one leg trembling, pointed and asked, "Where did you two come from?"

"Where are you from?" Li Baoqing glared at him with his small eyes. Seeing his menacing appearance and the scar on his face, the blond-haired man's momentum waned slightly. "I brought these new students here for their physical exams. Are you two preparatory students?"

Hu Yi smiled and mimicked his accent, saying, "A preparatory student, so what?"

"What?...Nothing much. What...what do you want?" The blond-haired man kept a safe distance from the two of them, looking resentful, but his tone had lost its provocative edge, giving the impression of being very measured.

Hu Yi and Li Baoqing didn't want to cause any more trouble, so the three of them just stood there staring at each other, frozen in place. Fortunately, the school doctor came out in time, arms crossed, and warned loudly, "Quiet down, or you're out."

Huang Mao breathed a sigh of relief and stood behind Li Baoqing sullenly, muttering, "We're all civilized people, don't start arguing all the time."

Hu Yi gave a soft hum. Li Baoqing, seizing the opportunity, turned back and said calmly, "Alright, what's past is past. We're all Chinese, let's not start fights."

After going around in circles to complete all the formalities, the two had lunch and returned to Maji to pick up their luggage from Peng Song. They learned that he had been successfully admitted to the Engineering Department of Maji, while Yu Feifei had enrolled in the Economics Department of Youda University.

"Feifei went to Yuda University too?" Li Baoqing couldn't hide his joy. "Why didn't you tell us?"

"It was decided not long ago. They said that the teachers at Yu University are quite capable, have a good reputation, and the tuition is cheap, so it's the most suitable option considering all aspects. But I think that's just an excuse. She probably just can't bear to part with you two, or... one of you, hehe."

Li Baoqing grinned widely and chuckled a few times: "Where does she live?"

"She couldn't contact you, so she came back a few days ago specifically to ask me to pass on her address." Peng Song found a note and handed it to the two of them. Hu Yi and Li Baoqing went to Yan Zhiwen and Lu Tao's room for a while, then rushed back to Youda before dinner, put down their luggage, and went straight to Yu Feifei's dormitory.

Yu Feifei lived in Building 11, a high-rise dormitory building where only female students were allowed to live. The three of them were naturally overjoyed to be reunited at the university. After chatting for a while, Hu Yi sighed softly, "The three of us came to Moscow together back then; I never imagined you'd be our senior now."

"Yes, I won't be able to attend classes and leave classes with you guys anymore." Yu Feifei looked a little dejected. "School starts in a few days. Good luck to you all, you must pass the exams."

Li Baoqing shook his head dejectedly: "I was only able to learn a little bit back in Maji thanks to your tutoring. Now that you're a freshman in college and Lao Hu isn't in the same class as me, I'm feeling... a bit uneasy."

Yu Feifei smiled and said, "I don't understand your journalism stuff, but you can always come to me if you have any questions about Russian."

Li Baoqing perked up: "Great! As long as you can learn Russian well, the other subjects won't be so difficult. I'll be counting on you from now on!"

After dinner, back in Building 6, Hu Yi recounted the conflict with Huang Mao during the physical examination earlier that day. Zhou Dali, sitting cross-legged on the bed, laughed and said, "I know. The guy you're talking about is Wang Shen. He was in my class in preparatory year last year and is a freshman this year. Actually, he's not a bad guy, just has a lot of minor quirks."

"What minor problem?"

"He's a womanizer; he can't resist a girl. He loves to brag and is very concerned about his image. He's also a bit rude and gives off an arrogant vibe."

"That's a bit arrogant, isn't it?" Hu Yi said, squatting on the ground while tidying up his clothes. "He said he was taking the new students for physical exams—was it voluntary work? Is he some kind-hearted person?"

"How could that be? He's working for Sixth Brother, often helping new students with various procedures at the school. I think it's probably to make it easier for him to get close to the new female students."

"Sixth Brother? Who is that?"

Zhou Dali got out of bed, walked to the window, and pointed outside: "Look, the Chinese restaurant downstairs in that building, see it? The owner is known as Sixth Brother. He's quite old and has been in Russia for many years. He has a very close relationship with the university. Many Chinese self-funded students at the ANU-NU were admitted through him, including me."

Hu Yi and Li Baoqing looked in the direction Zhou Dali was pointing and saw a small Chinese-style gate with an antique style that looked somewhat out of place with the surrounding background.

The two exchanged a glance, recalling the scene when they came to Yuda University to register. They guessed that Wang Shen had gone to help the new students with the procedures for obtaining invitation letters, and they vaguely had a reasonable explanation for the old lady's lukewarm and ambiguous attitude towards them.

"So, he's a study abroad agency? He also owns a restaurant. This Sixth Brother must be making a lot of money." Hu Yi lit a cigarette and took a puff. "Looks like he's got connections, huh?"

Zhou Dali nodded and said, "Of course! Sixth Brother is the most influential Chinese person in the school. Wang Shen and some other students sometimes run errands for him, and they also like to hang out at his restaurant when they are free."

"Oh? They're all Sixth Brother's underlings, huh?" Hu Yi chuckled coldly, recalling the days in high school when he fraternized with some petty thugs. "What's up with this? Campus gangsters?"

"You can't say that. They just like to hang around Sixth Brother. When Sixth Brother isn't around, they gather together to play cards and drink. They never cause trouble." Zhou Dali shook his head and said, "Those people are actually quite nice. Most of them are warm-hearted and have good relationships at school. Only Wang Shen is a bit arrogant and not well-liked. I heard that Sixth Brother doesn't like him very much either."

Hu Yi nodded silently: "What do you think of Sixth Brother?"