After Kong Ning and Wei Mu finished eating, they happened to run into Wei Mu’s roommates, so Kong Ning didn’t walk back with her.
Kong Ning packed two boxes of crayfish to bring back to her dorm. “Eat up,” she said, leaving behind those light words before going to fetch her clothes to take a shower.
Shen Nanxi had been typing out words for her novel all day, and her brain happened to be a bit tired. She was lying on her chair when she saw the things Kong Ning placed on the desk, her eyes lighting up instantly.
“Rich Lady Kong, where did you go to make a fortune recently?”
“Stop using dead memes, Nanxi.” Yu Lingbo noticed that Kong Ning’s state was a bit off.
Normally, she would definitely burst through the door and say with sheer excitement, “Fam, look at what good stuff I brought back! Want some? If you wanna eat, call me Boss!”
Shen Nanxi had told them about Kong Ning looking for a rented apartment. Everyone was very understanding; after all, if it weren’t for Huada’s rule that freshmen couldn’t live off-campus, Kong Ning definitely wouldn’t be staying in the dorm.
Could it be that Kong Ning didn’t find a suitable apartment today?
“Little Kong~ You really came back at an inconvenient time. Why on earth did I already brush my teeth! What a sin, what a sin!”
“Good lord, delicious crayfish versus brushing my teeth again when I wake up… how is little Le supposed to choose?!” Le Xiu, who was on her bed, lamented in sorrow.
“I specifically added instant noodles to the crayfish. Are you sure you don’t want any?” Kong Ning flashed a sly smile, looking at Le Xiu as she walked toward the balcony.
Hearing that, Shen Nanxi had already pounced on the boxes, quickly opening the lids, picking up her chopsticks, and grabbing a mouthful of noodles.
“The Emperor has arrived!!!”
“You thief, Shen, save a bite for me!” Le Xiu had already placed one foot on the bed ladder, terrified that Shen Nanxi would devour everything like a sweeping storm.
She had recently come to realize that the biggest eater in the dorm was actually Shen Nanxi, who looked tall and thin.
“Sigh, this bunch of gals.” After sighing emotionally, Kong Ning walked into the bathroom.
Water streamed down from above her head, flowing past the corners of her eyes.
Kong Ning closed her eyes and tilted her head back, letting the water splash all over her face and soak her hair.
Her straight nose split the stream of water, while her thick, sharp eyebrows were washed into an even darker, glossy shade. The individual strands of her eyelashes were weighed down, trembling slightly.
The sound of water droplets hitting the floor fell sparse and scattered, perfectly mirroring the turbulent, secretly surging currents in her heart.
Wei Mu didn’t like her.
She had thought about it for a long time, why had Wei Mu grown to dislike her? Yet, she could never figure it out.
Back in middle school, Kong Ning discovered that Wei Mu had become very strange. Sometimes she would avoid her, not daring to make eye contact with her, as if Kong Ning were some kind of terrifying monster.
Wei Mu had changed. She was no longer the little crybaby who used to call her “Sister Kong.” She became resilient, brave, and no longer talkative.
Between them, there was an indescribable, subtle rift.
Starting from high school, Kong Ning knew with certainty that Wei Mu hated her. Wei Mu deliberately suppressed her, competing with her over every single thing.
Since she actually hates me, Kong Ning thought, then I, Kong Ning, will hate her too.
Why should only Wei Mu be allowed to hate me?
But… do I really hate Wei Mu?
I must hate her, right? Aside from hatred, what else could it be? Kong Ning pondered.
Today was just a forced, reluctant compromise out of helplessness. Today was just…
It’s all the opponent’s fault for being too frail!!! It made it impossible to attack or criticize her instead.
In the future, she wouldn’t pay any attention to Wei Mu, and ideally, she wouldn’t see a Wei Mu like that ever again.
After stepping out, Kong Ning wiped her hair with a towel. Seeing the three people who had eaten until their faces were smeared like calico cats, Kong Ning showed a comforting smile like an affectionate mother, strutting forward boastfully.
“How is it? Is it tasty? See how much your Boss keeps you in mind?”
“The crayfish from the Old Qi Family is truly the GOAT!” Le Xiu gaily raised her greasy paws to declare.
“Little Kong, did you manage to rent an apartment today?” Yu Lingbo took the opportunity to ask. Kong Ning’s mood seemed to have improved quite a bit after taking a shower.
“Hmm? Little Kong? What about the crayfish then?” Kong Ning scrunched up her face, hinting with her eyebrows and acting angry like a living meme.
“Oh, oh, oh, my bad! Our Boss Kong!” This girl, Kong Ning, still retained a bit of her eighth-grader syndrome; despite being the youngest, she insisted on being the “Boss.”
Well, whatever. For the sake of the “famine relief rations,” they might as well humor her.
“Of course!” Kong Ning held her head high, humming a tune as she went to her closet to get her hair dryer.
“I found an apartment. I’ll move in for a trial stay after returning from the National Day holiday. Of course, I’ll miss you guys~” Speaking of the apartment, Kong Ning was very satisfied with the little cozy nest she found and looked forward to her future life.
“Sob sob sob, trust me, I’ll miss you too.” Le Xiu covered her face and wiped her mouth with a tissue. “It’s so spicy.”
“Hmm?” Kong Ning narrowed her eyes.
“Look, her tears are gushing out from the corners of her mouth!” Shen Nanxi burst into laughter.
“Here, wipe it more. You’re the biggest crybaby here; being able to cry is a blessing,” Yu Lingbo added thoughtfully, handing tissues to Le Xiu.
“A-ma-zing,” Kong Ning evaluated.
The night ended with Le Xiu brushing her teeth three times.
The garlic-flavored instant noodles had thoroughly soaked her lips and teeth, leaving a lingering taste for a long time.
Since the start of the school term, if one were to ask what Kong Ning hated the most, it wasn’t the spicy hot pot that required standing in a long line, nor the 8:00 AM early classes, nor the easy elective classes where the teacher babbled endlessly about his splendid life, nor the inseparable young couples at the bottom of the dorm building, nor the indoor physical education class she accidentally selected.
It was, the Campus Run.
Who on earth invented the campus run? Kong Ning thought in despair as she checked in at various spots across the campus.
She wasn’t trying to become an athlete, yet they even restricted the running pace, which was utterly ridiculous. The maximum daily limit of three kilometers was also quite insidious.
Suddenly, she felt that her high school days were actually pretty nice.
At least back then, only Wei Mu would voluntarily like night running.
When Kong Ning ran to the back gate to check in, she saw Wei Mu running at the back gate of Peking University from afar.
Sure enough, this abominable thing called the campus run didn’t discriminate between universities; at most, it just used different apps.
After finishing her check-in, Kong Ning turned around and left.
On the other side, Wei Mu stopped as she looked at the familiar silhouette.
It had been a long time since she last saw Kong Ning running so seriously at night.
The last time… seemed to be back in high school.
It was during their freshman year of high school when Kong Ning ran while crying for the sake of that boy.
Thinking of this, Wei Mu’s gaze turned fierce and harsh.
When it was time to stream into arts and sciences during their freshman year of high school, Kong Ning, just like now, had already begun to dislike being in the same place as Wei Mu.
Afflicted with eighth-grader syndrome, she hated herself for not being number one.
When Kong Ning was little, she often watched TV dramas, believing she was the “chosen heroine” meant to save the world. How could she, as the protagonist of the world, not be the No. 1?
Given Wei Mu’s sudden return in middle school, she could only be number two. Fortunately, however, Wei Mu preferred science.
Although the top-tier honors class for arts and the top-tier honors class for science were right next door to each other, they were ultimately not competing on the same stage.
If she chose arts and Wei Mu chose science, wouldn’t they both be able to become the number one in their respective fields?
Back then, Kong Ning was overjoyed, and she indeed managed to get first place in every monthly exam as she wished.
However, even a wise man can make a slip.
That day, Kong Ning insisted on taking the exam despite running a fever. When the results came out, she was actually surpassed by the boy in second place!!!
Who on earth was he?! Apart from Wei Mu, no one had ever surpassed her, Kong Ning!
Kong Ning deeply remembered that boy, he was that abominable little boy who had stolen her building blocks when they were young, forcing her to coax the little crybaby Wei Mu for days: Yu Tianjiao.
Just hearing the name revealed how much his parents doted on him.
“Heaven’s Pride”? How arrogant and out of line; a pure case of clout-chasing.
However, among the crowd of second-generation rich kids, Yu Tianjiao’s grades were actually quite decent.
It was only during his sophomore year of high school that he went abroad to study after being unable to handle the blow. Before that, he could barely be considered another one of Kong Ning’s “little rivals.”
Kong Ning considered it a deep disgrace. If she hadn’t run a fever and missed three major math problems, she would never have landed in second place! A second place that wasn’t because of Wei Mu!!!
That month was Kong Ning’s darkest hour. It was the first time she had been surpassed by someone other than Wei Mu. For this reason, she rarely went out to “run” during the evening self-study break.
Running was impossible; Kong Ning went to the playground to stroll, and halfway through her stroll, she ran to the stadium seats to watch Wei Mu run.
Wei Mu liked night running and always ran a few laps during the evening self-study break.
“Boohoo-hoo-hoo, I really can’t understand it! How could a genius like me lose to Yu Tianjiao?!” Kong Ning had even asked Aunt Ge to make a small cloth doll of Yu Tianjiao with his name stuck on it, punching it a few times whenever she thought of it.
That month, every day when she passed by the Top 100 Honor Roll on her way to school, she would let out a sigh and stare affectionately at the first-place spot.
That was her precious first place! The name that belonged next to Wei Mu’s in first place should have been hers, Kong Ning’s!
Darling~ wait for me for a month. Next month, I’ll win you back.
During class, Kong Ning would also glare at Yu Tianjiao ferociously from time to time. Her notebook was filled with the annoying name “Yu Tianjiao.” In order to learn his problem-solving methods so she could learn from his strengths and fix her own weaknesses, she would even deliberately go ask him questions during class breaks.
Finally, through Kong Ning’s unremitting efforts, the gossip that the top two students in the arts stream were dating spread like wildfire.
There were even rumors that it was Kong Ning whose love was unrequited.
Naturally, these rumors reached the ears of Wei Mu in the neighboring class.
Seeing the crestfallen Kong Ning while running, Wei Mu stopped her jog, sat down beside her, and stuffed an earbud into Kong Ning’s ear.
“All because of a boy?”
Wei Mu’s tone was cool and aloof, carrying a barely perceptible trace of anger.
“Huh?” Kong Ning didn’t hear clearly; she thought she heard something about a boy. She assumed Wei Mu was comforting her for not getting first place.
“But it’s really so heartbreaking,” Kong Ning transformed into a doll of resentment once again.
“What on earth is so special about him?” Wei Mu genuinely didn’t know what kind of magic that boy, whom she had disliked since childhood, possessed to make Kong Ning like him so much.
“He’s number one!” Of course being number one made him special, Yu Tianjiao had stolen her first place! As she spoke, Kong Ning’s eyes lit up, revealing a look of absolute determination. She was going to win first place back.
She actually likes the person in first place?
Whoever is number one, Kong Ning likes them?
“Pathetic,” Wei Mu handed Kong Ning a tissue to wipe her tears.
Crying just because a boy doesn’t like you back, how pathetic.
From this, Wei Mu confirmed that Kong Ning liked Yu Tianjiao, and the reason was that Yu Tianjiao was number one, and Kong Ning idolized whoever was number one.
“Thank you.” Kong Ning, in her eighth-grader mentality, thought that Wei Mu, who wasn’t competing with her for first place in arts, was actually quite nice.
“Kong Ning, you are so stupid,” after thinking about it, Wei Mu still blurted out the insult.
If you like number one, why don’t you like me, the number one in the neighboring science class?
“Did you just insult me?” Kong Ning found it unbelievable. From childhood to now, this was the very first time Wei Mu had ever insulted her.
“Mm,” Wei Mu admitted candidly.
Wei Mu transferred streams, moved into Kong Ning’s class, and seized the monthly top spot in the arts stream with an overwhelming advantage.
So you like number one, huh? Then I’ll personally destroy you, force you to look at me as the number one, and make sure you only have eyes for me from now on.
It was just that their relationship grew even colder and more distant.
Kong Ning did indeed face it, from that day on, the way Kong Ning looked at Wei Mu became increasingly displeased.
Kong Ning became the eternal second place, while Wei Mu became the perpetual number one.
The only one who benefited was the original second place in the science stream.
As for Yu Tianjiao, unable to endure the fierce, intensifying academic rat race between the two of them, he succumbed to self-doubt and mental exhaustion, finally unable to take it anymore and leaving to study abroad.