Gu Nianzhi recalled that Feng Yixi had tapped her on the shoulder, before she passed out. That was how Feng Yixi had sabotaged her.
It had been just the slightest hint of a prick on her shoulder, but she had felt it all the same.
She was never going to forget the excruciating pain and embarrassment that had followed. Feng Yixi had very nearly destroyed her life.
Gu Nianzhi was also quick to connect the dots: she had been the top-scorer for the post-grad entrance exam, but had missed the interview. Feng Yixi, who had gotten second place in the exam, would have reaped the benefits.
Gu Nianzhi was already being very lenient with Feng Yixi; anyone in his or her right mind would have descended upon the Feng family house in a state of righteous fury and avenged themselves by now. For now, however, Gu Nianzhi had to content herself with denouncing Feng Yixi as her “best friend.”
She may be naïve, but she was no fool.
Mei Xiawen was silent for a while before saying, “Feng Yixi’s reputation has taken quite a beating over the past few days. It’s actually best that you cut all ties with her. You don’t want her dragging you down.”
“What’s wrong with her reputation? Didn’t you just say she’s famous now?” Gu Nianzhi blinked, then cheekily said, as she looked coyly up at him, “Class Rep, please stop pulling my leg, I’m just a young and uneducated girl.”
Mei Xiawen did not respond.
Chen Lie had been watching the two of them with great interest. He snorted at this. “Our dear Nianzhi may be young, but she’s not at all uneducated, is she now, Class Rep Mei?”
Mei Xiawen had gone to pieces at Gu Nianzhi’s coy look, and it was with some difficulty that he finally pulled himself back together. He lowered his head, flustered; he did not trust himself to look again into Gu Nianzhi’s beautiful, playful eyes. He took out his phone, but hesitated for a moment before finally plucking up the courage to hand it to her. “Here, have a look for yourself.”
Gu Nianzhi accepted the phone and found herself looking at a photo of herself. Mei Xiawen had used her photo as his screensaver. She blinked, not knowing how to react. She decided to pretend not to have seen it. She made a few half-hearted attempts at unlocking the phone, then handed it back, smiling. “Class Rep, I can’t unlock it.”
The phone could only be unlocked with a fingerprint password. Of course she couldn’t unlock it.
Mei Xiawen smiled, pressed the Home button, and entered his fingerprint to unlock the phone. He then took ahold of Gu Nianzhi’s hand and said gently, “Here, enter your fingerprint, too. Then you can unlock my phone whenever you like.”
Gu Nianzhi was dumbfounded. What was happening?
“Class Rep, your phone should be kept private. I-I-I don’t want to invade your privacy.” Gu Nianzhi tried to extract her hand from his grasp.
Mei Xiawen did not let go of her hand. His gaze was gentle but insistent. “I don’t want to keep anything from you. I’m giving you the right to my privacy.”
By this time, Gu Nianzhi, as naïve as she was, finally understood what was going on, and was now completely flustered.
She had never had anyone confess their love to her in such a blatant manner. She did not know how to deal with it. She looked towards Chen Lie for help.
Chen Lie’s eyes crinkled as he laughed and winked at her. He whistled, and said, “Our dear little Nianzhi is going to have her first boyfriend! I’m sure your Uncle Huo will be very happy to hear this.”
Gu Nianzhi was at a loss for words.
Mei Xiawen quickly seized the opportunity to save her fingerprint into his phone and set it up as a secondary password. He then opened his Weibo and showed her the latest news on Feng Yixi.
Gu Nianzhi felt her face grow hot. Her mind was in complete turmoil. However, her attention was instantly captured by the trending Weibo posts on Feng Yixi.
She quickly scanned the news. The corners of her mouth slowly curved as she said, “I see. Yes, she’s an internet celebrity now, in every sense of the word.”
Gu Nianzhi knew that Feng Yixi had very little regard for internet celebrities. Every time the topic came up, Feng Yixi would sneer in utter contempt.
In the past two years, Feng Yixi had always played second fiddle to Gu Nianzhi. Gu Nianzhi had sensed Feng Yixi’s jealousy towards her, but pettiness and envy had always been part and parcel of any rivalry between women. Gu Nianzhi had paid no attention to it, never imagining that Feng Yixi’s jealousy would one day drive her to sabotage Gu Nianzhi.
Mei Xiawen let out a small sigh. “She really should have known better. Why did she ever think it would be a good idea to do drugs? She only has herself to blame for the huge mess she’s in now. She was all set to go to B University Law School; the spot was hers, but she threw it out the window. She’s been expelled, and I hear they’ve sentenced her to jail and one year of community service.”
Gu Nianzhi returned the phone to Mei Xiawen and smiled. Deep down, she could not deny that she was happy to learn of Feng Yixi’s misfortune. “You reap what you sow. Like I said, she’s in a whole different class, way out of my league. Please don’t ever call her my best friend again. She always claimed to be my best friend, sure, but I never said she was, not even once.”
Mei Xiawen nodded. “I know. I’m on your side, and I’ll make sure to correct anyone who says otherwise, in the future.” He paused, then asked, “What about me? Am I your best friend?”
“Class Rep, you’re a good friend to everyone in our class.” Gu Nianzhi had hurrriedly racked her brains to come up with this reply, and she was glad to have found it.
Mei Xiawen put his hands in his pockets, and said, with a laugh, “Don’t be in such a hurry to friend-zone me. I want to be more than just your best friend, you know.”
“That’s a nice one, Class Rep, you sure know how to crack a joke.” Gu Nianzhi opened the gift box from Mei Xiawen: it was a pea green fishtail evening dress made of real silk, a Valentino.
“Class Rep, I can’t accept this gift, it’s too expensive,” said Gu Nianzhi, looking at the brand on the label. She quickly put the dress back in the box and handed it back to Mei Xiawen.
“Don’t worry, it’s not that expensive, really. I can afford it.” Mei Xiawen stubbornly refused to take the box back. “If you don’t want it, I’ll throw it in the trash.”
Gu Nianzhi was once again at a loss for words.
Chen Lie squinted at the dress, then chuckled. “Oh well, it’s not even from this season. Last season’s clothes are only fit for the bin, nothing wrong with that.”
Mei Xiawen looked at Chen Lie in surprise.
How had he been able to tell, with just a single glance, that this dress was from last season? He must have an exceptionally good eye, Mei Xiawen mused.
Once Chen Lie said that, Gu Nianzhi knew it would be impolite to turn down the dress. She smiled and said, “It’s a really lovely evening dress, and from such a famous brand, too. It would be a pity to throw it out with the trash. I know Class Rep was just joking about doing that. I’ll accept it. Thank you.”
She would just have to return the favor with a gift of equal value as a graduation present.
Chen Lie had already opened the bedroom door, and was standing there smiling at Mei Xiawen. It was obvious that it was time for Mei Xiawen to leave.
Mei Xiawen knew he could not stay any longer. He reluctantly asked, “When will you be attending classes again, Nianzhi?” He added, “Don’t worry about the postgraduate interview. Feng Yixi scored the highest for the interview, but now that she’s gotten into trouble, B University’s Professor He will never take her. You still have a chance.”
Gu Nianzhi walked over to Mei Xiawen with the intention of seeing him out. She laughed in a self-deprecating manner. “What chance? I dropped the ball at the crucial moment. If she’s out of the running, the candidate with the second highest score will take her place, that’s all.”
Mei Xiawen walked out the front door, and stopped before the elevator. He said, “Feng Yixi was the only one who passed the interview that day. Everyone else has already been rejected. I heard our lecturers say that Professor He is still at our school, and that they’re trying to get him to do another interview. So I hurried over to tell you. See, what’s yours is yours. No one can take it from you.”
Mei Xiawen’s words made Gu Nianzhi very happy. She smiled and said sweetly, “Thank you for your kind words, Class Rep. When I get back to school I’ll look for Professor He and try my luck.”