Shi Ranran choked for a moment, but quickly forced a smile back onto her face.
“Then we’ll just see,” she said. “Let’s see how long you can stay above me. But what’s the point of being above me anyway? Your real opponent is Xie Chen!”
Su Yunluo took out a tissue and slowly wiped her fingers.
“Other people say girls are born weaker than boys, and you’re also a girl, but you’re nodding along so eagerly. You really lose your backbone fast.”
“You’re the one with backbone,” Shi Ranran snorted. “But look at you now—you lost so badly, all you’ve got left is a sharp tongue!”
Shi Ranran almost felt like sending Xie Chen a banner of thanks. That “Xie God” had been cold and ruthless, crushing Su Yunluo—someone she thought was overestimating herself—into nothing, finally letting her vent the frustration she had been holding in since the entrance exams.
Su Yunluo glanced at her coldly. Her eyes were as faint and indifferent as dust in the corner of a wall.
“Luoluo? Why are you still not out?”
Yuan Weining had been waiting for Su Yunluo in the hallway. After not seeing her for a while, she came back to look for her. The moment she stepped into the restroom, she heard everything Shi Ranran had just said.
In a few quick steps, she stood in front of Su Yunluo.
“Shi Ranran, have you ever even beaten Luoluo yourself? What gives you the right to stand here and talk like that? If you think you’re so amazing, then go ahead—beat Xie Chen first!”
The other girls, seeing that Su Yunluo now had a tall and loud ally, quickly lost interest in the scene. One by one, they slipped out. Shi Ranran retreated toward the hallway but still tossed back a parting remark.
“Why would I compare myself to Xie Chen? He’s a real top student—I respect him. I’m not like some people who don’t know their place and just embarrass themselves!”
Yuan Weining waved her hand at her impatiently, signaling her to get lost, then turned and pulled Su Yunluo away.
They walked to the stairwell beside the restroom.
“Luoluo, don’t mind her. Shi Ranran’s mouth is just trash—don’t waste your energy getting angry at people like that.”
She studied her friend’s face carefully, her voice softening.
“Are you still upset about your score this time? Have you been overworking yourself lately? I feel like you’ve lost weight…”
Su Yunluo took her hand and pressed it lightly against her cheek.
“I’m not angry,” she said.
Yuan Weining’s palm was warm. The warmth slowly seeped into her skin, and even something cold deep inside her seemed to soften a little.
Yuan Weining placed her other hand over it too.
Su Yunluo’s face was small. When Yuan Weining first met her as a child, she had always seemed like that—quiet, gentle, soft, and a little fragile. That one time she had competed so fiercely against Xie Chen was the first time Yuan Weining had seen her burning with such strong determination, insisting on winning against someone.
And yet…
In the class, those same girls who once watched her challenge him ended up changing sides the moment she lost. One by one, they started admiring the new “academic god” from the other class instead.
Sigh. If she was being honest, she also had a bit of responsibility in that. She had been too carried away that day when she saw her crush.
“Luoluo, don’t be scared. You still have me! I’ll always stand on your side. Even if Xie Chen is my crush’s friend—or even if he himself were my crush…”
She pictured her crush’s face in her mind, gritted her teeth, and finally made a painful decision to “sacrifice” him.
“I’d still stand with you!”
Su Yunluo looked at her, her eyes turning slightly warm.
But then she noticed Yuan Weining’s expression—even when talking about her “crush,” she looked like she was enduring great pain—and couldn’t help but ask,
“Ningning, do you really like Zhou Xubai that much?”
“Of course I do!”
The moment his name came up, Yuan Weining completely lit up.
“Ever since he transferred to our school in second year of middle school, the first time I saw him, I knew I was done for. That feeling of my heart skipping a beat—I’ve never had it with anyone else!”
Then she laughed at herself a little.
“Luoluo, do you think I’m ridiculous? Falling for someone I barely even know… even I can’t tell if it’s love at first sight or just looks.”
“But I really fell hard. I want to see him during the day, I dream about him at night. I even begged my dad to let me transfer here to City No. 1 High School, and at least half of that reason… was for him.”
She sighed. Her usually bright voice carried a rare hint of sadness.
“It’s strange, really. He doesn’t even look cold. If anything, Zhou Xubai looks much more approachable than Xie Chen. But somehow, he’s even harder to get close to. It’s like a beautiful castle—you see all the windows open from far away, but when you get closer, there’s no door at all. So many girls stand outside, but not a single one can walk in.”
“Sometimes I feel kind of sad about it. Maybe until graduation, he won’t even know I exist. He might not even know my name.”
Su Yunluo looked at Yuan Weining. For a moment, she found it a little absurdly funny—but because it was Yuan Weining, that feeling quickly turned into sympathy instead.
She had once experienced a love that was even more intense, even more unguarded.
She had once offered it with both hands, giving it to the people who were supposed to cherish her the most in the world.
But even the fatherly love and motherly love written about in books and sung about in songs—blood ties, family bonds—were nothing more than that.
So what did a love placed on a stranger really amount to?
Was it even worth it for a girl to give herself like that?
But in the next second, Su Yunluo felt a quiet kind of pity for herself.
Maybe she should be the one envying Yuan Weining instead.
Only people who are loved have the strength to love others in return.
Even though Yuan Weining’s parents were often not at home, they truly loved her. They never treated her differently just because she was a girl or thought about “having another child instead.”
So she could dare to fall in love with a stranger like that.
Seeing Su Yunluo lost in thought, Yuan Weining thought she was still upset about her grades. She quickly pushed aside her own emotions and tried to stay in that mood with her. But after staring at Su Yunluo for a moment—and then thinking about her own feelings—she suddenly came up with what she thought was an “excellent” idea.
“Luoluo! Actually… if we want to beat Xie Chen, maybe there’s another way!”
“What way?” Su Yunluo asked.
“We’ve only been focused on competing through grades, but we seem to have forgotten the real point. Isn’t what we ultimately want to prove that girls aren’t weaker than boys?”
Su Yunluo nodded, waiting for her to continue.
“So, as long as we can make him ‘submit,’ haven’t we achieved our goal? Have you heard that saying? Men conquer the world, women conquer men!”
“So even if we can’t beat him in grades, we can take another route. For example—”
She blinked. “Make him fall under your charm!”
Su Yunluo couldn’t help but laugh. “How is that even considered winning? And he’s a person, not a puppet. If I tell him to fall under my charm, he’ll just do it?”
“Luoluo, you really underestimate yourself!” Yuan Weining said, frustrated.
“You seriously have no idea how attractive you are. Since the start of school, how many boys in our class have already ‘fallen’ for you, openly or secretly? Do you really think they’re so noble that, just because they’re boys, they’d willingly support you proving girls are stronger? And those boys who rush to help you clean the classroom—do you really think they’re all volunteers doing good deeds?”
Her eyes grew brighter as she spoke.
“If you really went after someone seriously, it’d be easy! Xie Chen might be annoying, but I have to admit—he’s an elite-level catch. Intelligence, presence, grades—he crushes all the boys in our class. Even his looks…”
She paused, still a bit unwilling, but admitted honestly,
“Even though my crush fits my type more, Xie Chen is definitely top-tier among single-eyelid handsome guys. For girls who like that cold, restrained vibe, he might even be more attractive.”
Su Yunluo thought to herself that he didn’t even really have single eyelids, but that didn’t matter anyway—none of it had anything to do with her. What surprised her more was something else.
She knew she was pretty.
In middle school, she had even been called the class beauty.
But she had never really paid attention to the intentions of the boys in her class.
It felt a little ironic.
She had once thought they were just being righteous and fair-minded. Turns out, it was only superficial attraction.
Yuan Weining was still caught up in her plan.
“Just imagine it—making that arrogant, self-important guy bow his head to you. Doesn’t that feel amazing? And after completely winning him over, you just walk away so casually… wouldn’t that feel even more satisfying, like finally getting revenge…”
Deep down, Yuan Weining vaguely felt this idea might be a bit “cruel,” but she didn’t care anymore if it meant helping Su Yunluo get her frustration out. As for Xie Chen—based on the way he looked down on girls in that challenge letter, it wouldn’t hurt for him to suffer a little at the hands of a girl. Honestly, if she wasn’t so aware of her own looks, she would’ve gone up and taught him a lesson herself.