My hometown is far away in Moscow.

Chapter 145 Farewell to Old Wei

There are quite a few people having dinner tonight. Yu Feifei, Xiang Nan, Xia Yan, Caihua, Zhou Dali, Lao Wei, Fang Qing, Anna, Wang Shen, and Hu Yi make a total of ten people.

Hu Yi had wanted to invite Natasha to keep Anna company, but she had already agreed to have dinner with Maxim's family. That was fine, because Old Wei would be using the dinner as an opportunity to say goodbye, so the atmosphere tonight might be a little sentimental.

Just a few days ago, while Hu Yi was bedridden due to illness, the new head dormitory manager took office. Fang Qing and the others, clinging to their last hope, brought generous gifts to the dormitory, only to be met with a disgusting refusal to open the door.

Being turned away was not unexpected. At this time, the entire Friendship University, and even the whole of Moscow, was terrified of fire and extremely cautious about the various problems discovered during the last major fire inspection. With a new head of the hotel management taking office, it was natural for him to want to downplay the previous suspected violations and make his refusal to allow the restaurant to open for business understandable.

The reason this closed door was described as "disgusting" is that the newly appointed head housekeeper was a former manager who worked in Building 11, the same manager they had bribed multiple times for the hotel's opening and the installation of gas equipment.

Now that she has become the head of the housing department, she naturally wants to suppress the problems she handled before. Not only does she vehemently deny that she accepted money and turned a blind eye to many things, but she also fiercely condemns Anna and others for deceiving the school with tricks.

"Listen up, Semyonovna!" The head housekeeper stared coldly at Anna. "There are no more hotels. No new hotels will be approved to open in the school dormitories in the future. You can use the rooms however you want, but if you bring up the hotel issue again, I will forcibly take back the lease, and anyone associated with the hotel will no longer be allowed to live in the school dormitories."

Having said that, the road ahead was completely blocked. Fang Qing and the others were depressed for a few days, and only went to Hu Yi to discuss countermeasures after Hu Yi recovered from his illness.

"You corrupt official!" All Hu Yi could do was curse angrily to vent his anger. After all, the root of the problem was their insistence on using a gas stove. They had tried to be clever but ended up with terrible luck. Objectively speaking, they couldn't blame it all on others.

Everyone was at a loss, unable to think of any other use for this 70-80 square meter room, and no matter what they did, it would cost a lot of money.

After a few days of delay, Lao Wei couldn't wait any longer. Unlike Hu Yi and Fang Qing, he had a work visa that was about to expire. He had originally planned to keep his visa status at the school after the restaurant opened, but now that the restaurant had fallen through, he had to quickly find a legal employer who could offer him a job so he could renew his visa.

Two friends have already offered him job opportunities with good salaries, but neither is in Moscow. Old Wei hasn't made a final decision yet, but there's a high probability he'll choose one of them in the near future.

Everyone understood his situation. After discussing it for several days, Anna found a way to sell most of the restaurant's belongings and gave the proceeds to Lao Wei, so that he could recoup some of his investment first, and the rest could be dealt with later.

Today's meal is Lao Wei's farewell dinner with everyone. He cherishes the friendship he's built over the years and personally cooked twelve dishes. Since there wasn't enough room in the dormitory for such a large table, everyone brought their food and drinks to a restaurant, intending to close the door and drink until they were completely drunk.

At the restaurant entrance, the couplets that Hu Yi had commissioned to write were still hanging intact on both sides. On the night the couplets were posted, the restaurant was packed with distinguished guests, and everyone was clinking glasses. No one could have imagined that it would fall into such a state just over a month later.

A large table and a dozen chairs remained in the shop, and everyone gathered around it, bringing a long-lost liveliness to the long-empty space. Today's theme was bidding farewell to the old year and welcoming the new, and everyone tried their best to maintain a cheerful atmosphere. However, with parting imminent, a touch of sadness was inevitable.

They ate and drank until after nine o'clock. All the toasts had been made and all the words had been said. Everyone at the table was a little drunk. Fang Qing and Lao Wei, two old men, even hugged each other and shed a few tears.

Anna and Yu Feifei began leisurely clearing away the empty plates, while Xiang Nan quietly approached Hu Yi: "Brother, can I come to your house to watch some TV dramas later?"

"Go ahead." Hu Yi glanced at his watch. "But don't stay up too late."

"Oh, okay." Xiang Nan's face fell, looking rather unwilling.

Hu Yi glanced at her expression, then suddenly remembered how his parents restricted his TV time and video games when he was a child. He couldn't help but frown and say, "What's so good about those TV dramas? Are they really that addictive?"

Xiang Nan pouted slightly: "Then... I'll go to Sister Feifei's house to check."

"Hey! You child, you're getting upset just because I said a few words to you?" Hu Yi, fueled by the alcohol, unconsciously adopted an older brother's tone: "What did I say a few days ago? Exams are coming up, and you're not studying hard at all, all you do is watch TV all day long!"

Xiang Nan looked at him timidly: "Can't we even watch it during the New Year holiday?"

"You can have these few days off," Hu Yi said sternly. "After the holiday, you'll stay in your dorm at night and study to prepare for the exam."

Xiang Nan froze for a moment, then suddenly burst into tears: "You...you think I really wanted to watch TV?!"

Everyone at the table froze, turning to look at them. Hu Yi was also dumbfounded: "Huh? Then... what do you mean?"

"Sometimes my two roommates wouldn't let me stay in the dorm," Xiang Nan said, wiping away her tears with trembling hands. "They said they had male friends visiting, and told me to leave first and come back after 11 pm. I didn't understand anything else they said."

"What did you say?!" Hu Yi couldn't believe his ears and roared in fury, "Why?!"

The others were also in an uproar. Anna quickly turned to those around her and asked, "What's wrong? What happened?"

Yu Feifei, looking bewildered, translated for her in a low voice. Xiang Nan, standing with her hands at her sides in front of Hu Yi, sobbed, "I...I don't know. They said it's the rule, that's how they've always done it. Now, if I go, I'll have to do the same."

"Why?! You just did what they told you to?!" Hu Yi was still in shock. "Why didn't they tell me sooner?"

"I figured it's boring staying in the dorm anyway, so it would be nice to go to your place to watch TV," Xiang Nan said, pouting slightly. "But you don't want me to go. Brother, last time you told me to leave early, and I... I sat outside until eleven o'clock before going back."

Overwhelmed by a surge of heartache, anger, and regret, Hu Yi's eyes practically blazed with fury. He grabbed Xiang Nan and turned to leave, shouting, "Come with me! I'm going to settle accounts with those two women!"

"Wait a minute!" Yu Feifei quickly ran over and grabbed him: "Building 4 is all girls' houses, it's not convenient for you to go in at night, I'll take her there."

"I'm going too!" Anna grabbed her coat and followed. "This kind of thing happening in the dorm is absolutely unacceptable!"

(End of this chapter)