Xie Mengying stared at the umbrella, her face turning pale.
So Si Yiheng was still with Shu Yu after all. Even on a rainy day, he would take the initiative to bring her an umbrella.
If before, Xie Mengying had only wanted to be with Si Yiheng for his money, today—seeing just how well he treated his girlfriend—she felt a sharp twinge of envy toward Shu Yu.
Shu Yu, who seemed so ordinary and unremarkable in everyone’s eyes, was being treated with such tenderness by a man who was born to stand above everyone else.
Meanwhile, Xie Mengying had just made a fool of herself.
Feeling the curious stares of everyone around her, she was convinced they were all secretly mocking her. It felt as though she had been slapped hard across the face, her cheeks burning hot with embarrassment.
She stumbled back to her seat, her face drained of all color.
The whole room had been watching the exchange between Xie Mengying and Si Yiheng. When he openly said the umbrella was meant for his girlfriend, everyone was stunned all over again.
If Si Yiheng’s girlfriend wasn’t Xie Mengying, then who else could possibly be worthy of him? Could there be someone even more beautiful than her?
No one in their department seemed to fit that description.
Shen Qinghan had watched the whole scene unfold. Si Yiheng really didn’t give anyone even the slightest bit of leeway.
“Your girlfriend isn’t here,” Shen Qinghan remarked.
Si Yiheng narrowed his sharp, cold eyes. “Where is she?”
Shen Qinghan shrugged with a lazy, teasing smile. “How should I know? She’s not my girlfriend.”
Since he couldn’t find Shu Yu, Si Yiheng turned and left.
But though he was gone, the commotion on campus didn’t die down—it only grew bigger.
Gu Yunjing patted Xie Mengying’s shoulder, trying to comfort her. “Mengying, it’s Si Yiheng who has no taste. He’s the one being unreasonable. In my eyes, he’s nothing special anyway; he doesn’t deserve you at all.”
Xie Mengying appreciated the gesture, but she knew the truth: Si Yiheng was easily the most outstanding man she could ever hope to meet.
Originally, she had thought of Shen Qinghan as her fallback option. But his cold attitude today, and the appearance of that mysterious girl beside him, had reminded her of something—she had treated others as fools and kept them as backups, but there were far more capable and beautiful women out there.
Just look at Shen Qinghan: he’d been content to linger in the role of her spare tire, only to be lured away the moment someone else caught his eye.
No, she couldn’t afford to be careless anymore.
She needed more than just good looks; she needed real ability and achievement. Only then would Si Yiheng finally notice her.
She lowered her head and scrolled distractedly through her phone, until a particular illustration caught her eye.
The post had received thousands of likes and shares, with countless comments praising the artist as some kind of genius.
Xie Mengying clicked into the artist’s Weibo profile, where the username was Bait. She found that this artist had posted fewer than three entries yet already gained nearly ten thousand followers, and had accounts on almost every major social platform.
She also noticed that Bait accepted commissions, with a starting price of fifty thousand yuan per piece.
Xie Mengying had always followed the traditional path of fine arts—dreaming of holding exhibitions and becoming a respected artist. She had never considered working as an online illustrator.
But doing the math quickly: if Bait only took three or four commissions a month, that would bring in hundreds of thousands of yuan.
Xie Mengying’s interest was piqued. She had a solid foundation in painting; if Bait could do it, so could she. She could replicate that same success.
With a steady income and a growing fanbase, she would stand much taller and more confident when facing Si Yiheng. And she would finally have the means to make Shu Yu look completely insignificant by comparison.
Thinking this way, Xie Mengying’s anxious mood began to settle. There was still plenty of time. Sooner or later, she would stand right beside Si Yiheng.
On the university’s online forum, everyone was buzzing with gossip, trying to figure out who exactly Si Yiheng’s girlfriend was. The thread had already grown to hundreds of replies.
Gu Yunjing hated seeing Xie Mengying humiliated, and she also hated that Shu Yu was suddenly the center of attention. So she logged in anonymously and posted a reply:
Post #109: Si Yiheng’s girlfriend isn’t pretty at all. She’s plain, ordinary, and honestly, even kind of ugly.
Post #110: How can that be? If he doesn’t even look twice at the campus beauty, how could his girlfriend be ordinary?
Post #120: It’s true, she’s just average in every way. And she has nothing else going for her either. I’m her roommate, so I should know.
Post #121: Besides, I doubt Si Yiheng even likes her that much. They’re bound to break up sooner or later. One belongs to the sky, the other to the ground—their relationship can’t last.
Post #122: She’s also a gold digger. She’s tricked Si Yiheng out of a lot of money already. Everyone be careful, don’t fall for online romance scams like he did.
Post #130: Wait—what? They met online?
Post #131: Exactly! No one even knows if she used her real photos or someone else’s to catfish him. She’s completely fooled Si Yiheng. Didn’t you see him waiting at the classroom door for ages today, unable to find her?
Post #135: That much is true.
Post #136: Right! If they had actually met in person, how could he fail to recognize her? It’s obvious they’ve never met face-to-face. He only left because Shen Qinghan told her she wasn’t there.
Post #140: Ugh, and Shen Qinghan didn’t even describe what she looks like to him?
Post #142: Shen Qinghan is no better than a scoundrel himself. He’s out there chasing pretty girls, so maybe he actually enjoys watching Si Yiheng make a fool of himself.
At first, few people believed what Gu Yunjing wrote. But her story was told with such vivid detail and confidence that it soon sounded convincing.
Before long, the rumor had spread all across University A: Si Yiheng’s girlfriend was a plain-looking gold digger who had tricked him out of large sums of money through an online relationship.
Back at the dorm, Shu Yu had given the little orange kitten a bath and was now holding it while drying its fur. Once it was fluffy and warm, the two of them curled up under the blanket, listening to the sound of rain outside, and soon drifted off to sleep.
When Shu Yu woke up again, it was already late afternoon. The daylight had dimmed, and the kitten was gently licking the palm of her hand, sending little tickles through her skin.
“Stop that, Little Orange,” Shu Yu giggled, unable to take the constant tickling.
That was the name she had given him: Little Orange. His fur was bright orange all over, with only a white patch beneath his chin that looked just like a little bib. When he curled up into a ball to sleep, he really did resemble a plump, ripe orange—so tempting that she felt like taking a tiny bite of his soft ear.
Before she could stop herself, she leaned in and nipped gently at his ear.
Little Orange froze instantly, his misty blue eyes widening in utter shock as he stared back at her, as if unable to believe what had just happened.
It was as if he was silently accusing her: Mommy! How could you bite a kitten’s ear like that?!
Shu Yu’s heart melted all over again at how cute he looked.
She grabbed her phone and started taking photos. This time, Little Orange was surprisingly cooperative. Snuggled in her arms, he hooked his tiny claws around the embroidered berries on her pajamas and pressed himself close against her chest.
Shu Yu took photo after photo—every single one turned out perfect.
For someone who usually struggled with social interaction and rarely felt the urge to share things, today she was bursting with excitement. She wanted the whole world to know that her kitten was the most adorable creature in existence.
But as she opened her messaging app, she hesitated. She realized she didn’t actually have many people she could share her joy with.
Her head drooped a little as she held Little Orange closer. “Oh well, baby… I guess it’s just Mommy and you enjoying these pretty pictures together.”
Iron Egg chimed in: “You could send them to Si Yiheng! And while you’re at it, ask him for some money toward kitten supplies!”
Iron Egg added proudly: “That way, you’ll complete today’s money-earning mission perfectly!”
What a clever, profit-minded system it was!
Shu Yu had briefly thought about sending the photos to Si Yiheng earlier, but quickly dismissed the idea—after all, he was only the target of her mission, not a real friend.
But now that Iron Egg had given her a proper excuse, her mood brightened instantly.
She sent the pictures over.
Little Fish Swimming Around: [Photo attached]
Little Fish Swimming Around: Isn’t he cute?
Little Fish Swimming Around: [Photo attached]
Little Fish Swimming Around: Si Yiheng, look look! This is our baby!