As soon as Liu Xia spoke, all eyes in the room instantly fixed on the two of them!
The enormous classroom was silent.
Gu Lingluo slowly but firmly withdrew her hand from Liu Xia’s tight grip, a polite smile on her lips, her expression distant and aloof.
“Please allow me to refuse.”
It’s over!
How could she have been so rash as to directly ask to form a CP?!
Liu Xia’s expression nearly collapsed in self-reproach.
Goodbye, my glorious first meeting!
With her heart shattered, Liu Xia offered two dry laughs, grabbed her pen, flipped to the last page of her notebook, and quickly scribbled down a string of numbers.
“Don’t be so quick to refuse. Although my performance when the professor questioned me was lackluster, I am at least a sophomore upperclassman. By any measure, I’m definitely a better deal than finding a freshman contemporary! This is my mobile number. Take your time to consider, and contact me when you’ve clearly made up your mind.”
With that, she abruptly stood up, not daring to meet her Patron Mom’s eyes, which seemed capable of seeing right through her. She randomly pointed behind her.
“Listen! That’s the dismissal bell! Class dismissed! See you around!”
Liu Xia hastily gathered her things and practically fled the scene.
Damn you, Little Bear Biscuits!
She had never been so embarrassed in her life!
The short distance from her seat to the door, a mere twenty steps, felt like a long march. Countless strange gazes mixed with whispers seemed to stab her, almost turning her into a sieve.
“I heard she’s been secretly stalking the Campus Belle. Has she finally made her move, planning to penetrate enemy lines and reclaim the crown?”
“Is it really that complicated? Did you watch too many palace dramas?”
“If you ask me, she might be crushing on her. Don’t they say nine out of ten beauties are gay?~”
“Huh? Isn’t it nine out of ten handsome guys are gay?”
“Ah, close enough!”
Liu Xia stumbled, nearly kneeling before them.
This world isn’t fair. Can’t they wish her well? She has an idol, okay? A male idol!
She didn’t know how she managed to struggle out of the classroom. Just as she rushed out of the teaching building and was about to catch her breath, her arms were linked by her two unreliable friends, who poked their heads out.
Gai Gai teased, “Why are you running so fast? You look like you just failed a confession and can’t show your face.”
It was practically the same thing.
Liu Xia nudged Gai Gai with her elbow, her face etched with despair. “Can you two speak softly? Don’t you think I’ve lost enough face already?”
Gai Gai grinned cheekily. “It’s fine. You get used to losing face after a while.”
Hao Yan was better at prioritizing. “What’s the next step?”
“What do you mean, next step?”
“How are you going to form a CP with her?”
Liu Xia pulled a long face. “What else can I do? Just wait and see if she has a change of heart.”
Hao Yan clicked her tongue. “I can’t believe how little will to survive you have.”
Liu Xia was distraught. “You think I don’t have a will to survive? Didn’t you see what I just did? I publicly asked her to form a CP in front of a classroom full of students from different majors and years! And the critical point is that I failed! Do you two believe me when I say I’m about to become infamous across the entire campus?”
Gai Gai snickered, “Infamous across the campus? You mean notorious, right~~? Who doesn’t know the former Campus Belle turned into a stalker, secretly following the new Campus Belle?”
Liu Xia: “…”
She was so angry! Yet she couldn’t refute it.
The three reached the cafeteria, ordered food, and huddled at a corner table to continue their discussion.
Gai Gai spoke earnestly, “You can’t just sit there waiting for death. You have to take the initiative!”
Liu Xia poked her rice. “I already left my mobile number. How else can I be proactive? Should I try to find out her mobile number?”
Hao Yan snatched the largest piece of braised pork rib from Liu Xia’s plate. “You didn’t know? Gu Lingluo never uses a mobile phone.”
Liu Xia said, “Who are you trying to fool? Impossible! The school records require a phone number.”
Hao Yan said, “It requires a contact method, not a mobile number! She left a landline.”
Gai Gai raised her hand. “I can vouch for that. I looked through the contact register.”
Gai Gai had somehow managed to join the Student Union last semester while trying to pursue the Student Union President, so her information was likely reliable.
“But… just because she left a landline, doesn’t mean she doesn’t have a mobile, does it?”
Hao Yan rolled her eyes, her beautiful face managing to look charming even when she was being contemptuous.
“I said she doesn’t have one! If you don’t believe me, go find out yourself!”
Liu Xia sighed. “People still don’t use mobile phones these days? Is she cutting off the problem at the root because of too many harassing calls? What should I do now? Call her landline?”
Gai Gai wagged her chopsticks, her mouth full, mumbling, “Are you stupid? She rejected you to your face. Will she be easier to talk to over the phone?”
That made perfect sense. I can’t refute it again.
“So what should I do?” This was making her lose her appetite.
Hao Yan smiled mischievously. “Actually, it’s quite simple.”
Liu Xia asked, “Tell me?”
Hao Yan replied, “Haven’t you heard the saying? When water is too clear, there are no fish. When a person is shameless~~~ they are invincible!”
Gai Gai nodded, pursing her lips. “Words of wisdom!”
Liu Xia: “…”
So they were telling her to lose her dignity?
Fine. Since she had already lost her face in front of so many people, there wasn’t much left to pick up anyway. She might as well give up on it. After all, compared to her life, what did face matter? Once she graduated three years from now, they would all disappear from each other’s lives. Who would remember whom?
After three seconds of self-counseling, Liu Xia quickly branded herself with the label “Thick-Skinned.”
As the saying goes, familiarity breeds rapport. Increasing the frequency of their meetings was the ultimate winning strategy to conquer her Patron Mom!
It was evening, with the sun beginning to set.
According to the timetable, Patron Mom’s last class was in Teaching Building No. 5. Liu Xia skipped her own class early and ambushed her by the road, waiting for that once-in-a-millennium chance to ride together.
Ding-a-ling~
The long-awaited dismissal bell rang.
Liu Xia nervously gripped her bicycle handlebars, her palms sweaty.
The figure she was waiting for finally emerged from the teaching building with the rest of the crowd.
A male student was right beside her Patron Mom, his face beaming with a fawning smile, his mouth chattering non-stop. Liu Xia couldn’t hear what he was saying.
Patron Mom was expressionless, occasionally nodding. She seemed calm, but Liu Xia keenly sensed her impatience.
This really was… a treasure found after a long search, a fortune that required no effort!
She was going to descend like a shining god and rescue her Patron Mom from this annoying entanglement!
Liu Xia swung her leg over the bicycle. A push of her sneakers, and she effortlessly threaded through the crowd, approaching her Patron Mom.
As she got closer, the boy’s noisy, jumbled words reached her ears.
“Look, you don’t even have a mobile phone. You can’t get notifications for anything in the group chat, which is incredibly inconvenient. You really should buy one. It’s not just for you; it’s for the entire group.”
Gu Lingluo gave a perfunctory smile. “I’ll consider it.”
The boy cleared his throat, glanced left and right, and noticeably leaned closer to Gu Lingluo.
“If you’re really short on cash and it’s inconvenient, I could actually… buy one for you. I can’t afford an expensive one, but a regular smartphone is no problem.”
Gu Lingluo frowned and looked at him. The boy quickly straightened his posture, looking absolutely righteous.
“I don’t mean anything by it. It’s just a class monitor showing concern for a classmate. Plus, it really is inconvenient. Like this elective course—everyone knew about the notice in the group, but you didn’t, and you ended up being assigned to Mr. Seider. How miserable.”
Liu Xia, listening from behind, almost burst out laughing.
If it’s inconvenient, it’s her inconvenience, so why is it affecting your ability to breathe fresh air? If you like her, just say so. Is this how a man acts, beating around the bush?
Gu Lingluo said flatly, “Mr. Seider teaches quite well. I think it’s good.”
“But he is, after all…”
Before the boy could ramble into a new dimension, Liu Xia slammed on her brakes and stopped right in front of them.
“Eh? Isn’t this Junior Gu?”
Gu Lingluo glanced at her. For this kind of background character—even a background character who had stalked and publicly harassed her—she didn’t bother remembering the name and replied with a uniform, polite smile.
“Senior.”
The boy’s face was natural, smiling at Liu Xia as well.
Liu Xia beamed, aiming for a warm, natural friendliness to close the distance.
“Are you heading home? Perfect, let me give you a ride.”
The smile on the boy’s face immediately vanished. He stared reluctantly at Gu Lingluo.
Gu Lingluo looked at the bicycle’s rear seat, then looked at the boy next to her who was deeply immersed in his long-winded, sleazy attempt.
“Thank you for your kindness, but the class monitor and I have something to discuss. I won’t trouble you.”
The sleazy class monitor immediately smiled, his eye corners wrinkling.
Liu Xia was thunderstruck, a sudden blow that hit her hard.
Is Patron Mom really so unwilling to partner with her that she’d rather be annoyed to death by this sleazy guy?!
Watching their figures walk away side-by-side, moving further and further into the distance, Liu Xia fell into deep self-doubt, even feeling a little self-isolating.
Was she really that unlikeable?
Liu Xia—whose first half of her life had been smooth sailing—was experiencing such a crushing life defeat for the first time.
“Did you fail? You look like you’ve lost the will to live.”
Hao Yan and Gai Gai walked up behind her with their books. Their last class was in Teaching Building No. 6, which was nearby.
Liu Xia turned around and grabbed Gai Gai’s arm.
Gai Gai jumped in surprise. “You, don’t get agitated. Failure is the mother of success. You’ll be able to be her daughter eventually!”
Pooh! What kind of thing is that to say, you brat!
Liu Xia glared at her. “Did you take attendance for me?”
Gai Gai only then realized what she’d done, covering her mouth dramatically. “Oops! I forgot!”
“You forgot? Ha!” Liu Xia pinched her thumb and forefinger together, making a tiny gap, then smiled obliquely and spoke with a sinister tone. “You are this close to getting beaten, woman!”
Hao Yan peered toward the main gate. “You’re not giving up, are you?”
Gai Gai slapped away the hand Liu Xia was using to measure the distance and chimed in, “Didn’t you say your life was on the line? Show some will to survive, babe!”
Liu Xia instantly deflated, looking wronged. “She already rejected me. What else can I do?”
Gai Gai reached up and pulled Liu Xia’s cheek. “Face or life? You choose.”
Hao Yan wore a profound expression. “Do you need me to properly explain the verb form of ‘shameless’ to you?”
Liu Xia suddenly felt that something was amiss. She pushed her bicycle back a step and scrutinized the two of them.
“I don’t know why, but I feel like something is off with you two.”
Hao Yan blinked her innocent eyes. “What’s off?”
Gai Gai gave the same innocent look. “Yeah, what’s off?”
“I’ve never seen you two care this much about my problems before. What’s going on this time? You’re strategizing and actively encouraging me, and since I told you the story about my rebirth, neither of you has even questioned it—okay, maybe just one casual sentence. This is not normal, no matter how I look at it, is it?”
Gai Gai cleared her throat and looked away. Hao Yan continued to blink innocently, adding a fake social smile.
“Actually… whether you’re really reborn or not really doesn’t matter. What matters is…”
Gai Gai couldn’t hold it in and looked back. “What matters is that it’s a good show to watch!~”
Liu Xia’s face instantly went cold.
What was that about genuine human emotion?
To hell with this plastic sisterhood!
Hao Yan pointed toward the main gate. “Aren’t you going after her? You’ll miss your chance if you don’t go now. Tomorrow, you can’t exactly pretend to ‘coincidentally’ run into her while cycling again, can you?”
Even though they were plastic, they had a point.
Liu Xia flipped onto her bicycle, tossed her long hair, and the faint scent of her shampoo drifted away on the breeze.
“I’m going first. I’ll settle the score with you two later!”