Chapter 7

At her snort, Li Hongwen went red with rage. “What’s so funny?!”
Yu Linghuan: “Sorry, I just never met anyone with a face as big as a pancake. Couldn’t help myself.”
“You!” Li Hongwen nearly jumped out of his seat. “Don’t change the subject! I looked it up, this watch goes for at least a hundred grand, even second-hand! Are you seriously telling me you could afford that? Bet it’s a knock-off, huh? Just trying to look rich?”
By now, Li Hongwen wasn’t even pretending to be rational, he was determined to embarrass her and get the last word.
Anywhere there’s people, there’s drama, especially at a private school like Langde.
The Gaokao Division might not be as full of rich kids as the International Division, but students here were still hyper-aware of brand names and luxury gear.
If someone showed up one day with expensive sneakers or luxury jewelry, it’d definitely make people talk.
Case in point: this morning, when Meng Xin came to class, half the girls noticed the C-brand hairpin in her hair.
It didn’t look like much, but the thing cost several thousand, easy.
Now, with Li Hongwen swearing up and down that Yu Linghuan’s watch was a fake, everyone was suddenly not so sure...
Wait... Is the watch actually fake?
Did Yu Linghuan see her old friend suddenly living the rich life, feel small about herself, and so deliberately buy a knockoff to keep up appearances?
Just as everyone was drowning in doubt, someone strolled up to the classroom door.
“That’s a gift I gave to Huanhuan.” Meng Xin’s voice was cool and even. “Anything you want to ask?”
Li Hongwen looked completely blindsided.
Boys and girls had separate gym classes, so the guys had all been in the basketball court during PE, meaning they’d missed when Yu Linghuan stood up for Meng Xin earlier.
He figured those two girls had called it quits forever ages ago.
“You, you guys, ” Li Hongwen spluttered, “Didn’t you completely break up as friends? Why are you, like, together again?”
No sooner were the words out than Yu Linghuan and Meng Xin, voices perfectly in sync, shot back: “How is this any of your business?”
Li Hongwen: “…”
Someone nearby couldn’t hold it in and snorted; then, inevitably, the whole class burst out laughing.
Except for Li Hongwen, whose face alternated between embarrassed blue and dead white.
“Why didn’t you just say from the start it was Meng Xin’s gift…” Li Hongwen muttered under his breath.
Yu Linghuan didn’t bother responding. Instead, she gave him a frosty look. “Li Hongwen, we’re not done talking about you sneaking around with my stuff.”
Li Hongwen gritted his teeth: “Yeah, I did it. So what? What are you gonna do?”
He’d only messed with her stuff, not actually stolen anything. Worst case, if Yu Linghuan complained to the homeroom teacher, he’d get a scolding at most.
Yu Linghuan arched a brow. “I can’t do much to you. But don’t forget, what you touched wasn’t just mine. It was a gift from Meng Xin.”
At that, Li Hongwen’s face changed instantly.
Right now, Meng Xin was officially part of the Meng family; her dad, Meng Renping, was a board member at school.
If Meng Xin told Mr. Meng about this, it would definitely blow up, and might even get his parents called in.
Imagining that, Li Hongwen broke out in cold sweat.
If his parents really got called to school, wouldn’t his dad kill him?
Honestly, the idea of facing his father’s wrath was way scarier to Li Hongwen than any teacher’s punishment.
He immediately caved. “F-fine! I’ll apologize, okay? That’s fair, right?”
Yu Linghuan: “The method of apology is up to me.”
Li Hongwen glared. “And what exactly do you want?”
Yu Linghuan thought for two seconds. “Right now, go stand in the hallway and repeat, loudly, ‘I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have taken Yu Linghuan’s stuff’ until the bell rings for the next class.”
She paused, then added, “And you’ll do it again during the next break, too.”
What Li Hongwen did wasn’t really that big a deal. Even if it went to the teacher, it’d just earn a couple lines of criticism, so Yu Linghuan figured she’d let him off easy.
Since Li Hongwen cared so much about his reputation, she’d let him lose face in front of the entire senior class, a lesson he’d actually remember, so he’d think twice before messing with her things again.
And bringing up Meng Xin’s name? That was just there to scare him.
Meng Xin had only just officially joined the Meng family, if this little incident made it all the way to the director, Meng Mingzhu would definitely use it for drama. No need to stir up that mess.
At first Li Hongwen really didn’t want to do it, but then he realized losing face for two class breaks was a small price to pay compared to taking a beating from his dad. So, all things considered, it was a decent deal.
So Li Hongwen only hesitated for a few seconds, then obediently stood beside the classroom door, cleared his throat, and announced: “I’m sorry…”
Yu Linghuan raised a brow. “What, skipped lunch?”
Li Hongwen: “…”
He held back!
Under the stares of students from other classes in the corridor, Li Hongwen yelled, “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have taken Yu Linghuan’s things!”
Yu Linghuan finally nodded with satisfaction. “Good. Keep going.”
…
The third period that afternoon was class meeting. The homeroom teacher walked in right on the bell, and what greeted him? Li Hongwen at the door, bellowing his apology with the desperate look of a man being led to execution.
Li Hongwen was terrified that if he didn’t sound sincere enough, Yu Linghuan might suddenly change her mind and call in his parents, so he yelled for all he was worth, voice echoing through the whole hallway.
Seeing this, the teacher just shook his head. He knew his students well enough, he knew exactly what Li Hongwen and Yu Linghuan were like.
Yu Linghuan might be fierce, but she wasn’t unreasonable. So odds were, Li Hongwen had brought this on himself and was just eating humble pie now.
Senior year was stressful. For small stuff like this, there was no need for the teacher to intervene; a little drama wouldn’t hurt anyone.
At the first class meeting of the new semester, the teacher delivered yet another impassioned speech about just how important this year would be for everybody.
Basically, the college entrance exams were the ultimate turning point in their lives, blah-blah, so they had to give it their all.
He also specifically mentioned that student placements could still shift throughout the first semester, but things would be locked in for good during the second half of the year.
Langde High had five International Classes and ten Gaokao Classes. Among them, Classes 1 and 2 of the Gaokao Division were the elite groups.
If your ranking dropped out of the overall top 100 for two exams in a row, you’d get kicked out of 1 or 2. But if you were in a regular class and cracked the top, you could be transferred up.
Yu Linghuan’s grades had always bounced around a bit, but she’d never dropped below top 50, so she’d stayed in Class 1.
But last semester’s final exam? Yu Linghuan totally tanked it, she landed barely inside the top 120.
Why? Word had already started spreading that Meng Xin might rejoin the Meng family, and that had fried Yu Linghuan’s nerves.
Yu Linghuan suspected she’d already started to fall under the spell of the novel’s plotline by then.
In the book, Yu Linghuan spent all of senior year hell-bent on making Meng Xin’s life difficult, with zero interest in studying.
So, for the first monthly test of senior year, her rank tanked again, out of the top 200, and she got kicked from Class 1.
And with grades in freefall, she “dutifully” continued being the villainous cannon fodder, tripping up Meng Xin at every turn, and at the end of the semester, she got expelled. Never even took the college entrance exams.
Afterwards, she just spiraled, drifted through life, dated a string of trashy guys, wasting years in a blur.
Now, with her head clear again, Yu Linghuan figured she ought to plan for her own future, not just help Meng Xin.
At the bare minimum she needed to make it through senior year. Ideally, she’d ace the exams and get into her dream school.
While Old Qin was off lecturing at the podium, Yu Linghuan cast a sideways glance at the guy sitting next to her, Song Congqian, legendary top student.
Rumor had it he already scored a guaranteed spot at Qingda University, so he was just here for fun and to boost the school’s average.
Yu Linghuan didn’t really know Song Congqian and had no clue if the rumors were true.
When the teacher posted the seating chart this morning, Yu Linghuan had been so distracted she barely registered who her new seatmate was.
Song Congqian didn’t talk much, so after a whole day as desk partners, they pretty much functioned like strangers, zero conversation.
Now that she’d snapped out of plot-zombie mode, Yu Linghuan started thinking ahead, and realized she’d gotten pretty lucky.
With a brainiac like him right beside her, it’d be ridiculously easy to get homework help, making him a prime “resource” in her quest to improve.
At that thought, Yu Linghuan eyed Song Congqian like he was a freshly steamed bun.
Suddenly, Song Congqian turned slightly, catching her stare.
Yu Linghuan: “…”
Song Congqian: “…”
Eyes locking, Yu Linghuan gave an awkward little smile, trying to play it off.
Yikes. She’d really been staring, how rude.
Song Congqian paused, said nothing, and quietly turned away.
…
The forty-minute class meeting was filled with the teacher’s endless exam prep pep talk.
But honestly, for most students at their age, you could fill their heads with a thousand life lessons and it’d still be hard to get them truly stressed out yet.
There were still over nine months until the Gaokao; it felt a lifetime away, with plenty of days to slack off in between.
Only as time slipped by would that pressure actually start to bite.
After homeroom, the next period was a self-study block.
At break, Yu Linghuan gave Li Hongwen a look, and he dutifully went into the hallway to resume his public apology routine.
In the ten-minute break, Li Hongwen repeated, word for word, “I shouldn’t have taken Yu Linghuan’s stuff” at least eighty times, to the point where his throat was about to catch fire.
It got so entertaining that students from other floors actually came up to the fourth floor just to watch the spectacle.
“Haha, I’m dying, this is the funniest thing I’ve seen! Poor Li Hongwen!”
“Yu Linghuan is honestly the fiercest girl in our grade, never afraid of anyone, even the big shots from the International Division. Why’d Li Hongwen pick her to mess with?”
…
Last class of the day was self-study, and most students, including Yu Linghuan, were busy finishing up their first-day assignments.
Homework on the first day wasn’t much; most could finish almost all of it in a single study period.
Halfway through, Yu Linghuan quietly asked Song Congqian a physics question, was it true there were two ways to solve it? He simply replied, “Yeah.”
Other than that, the two still barely exchanged a single word, just like in the morning.
Langde High didn’t force evening study hall, so after the last class, everyone could either head home or back to the dorms.
As soon as the teacher declared class dismissed, the room exploded with noise.
Several classmates immediately gathered around Meng Xin.
“Xinxin, want to come shopping with us? I heard Tianyue Mall just opened a bunch of new stores!”
“Yeah, and we don’t have much homework tonight, let’s go!”
Tianyue Mall was the big shopping center next to the school.
Thanks to Li Hongwen’s “advertising,” now the whole class knew Meng Xin had casually gifted Yu Linghuan an R-brand watch.
This left the whole class stunned.
Sure, everyone knew Meng Xin only gave such an expensive gift because she was Yu Linghuan’s bestie, but still, what if next time they go shopping and Meng Xin’s in a good mood? Maybe she’d buy gifts for everyone!
Before, Meng Xin was quiet and kept to herself, so she didn’t have many friends. Now, being surrounded by so many “enthusiastic” classmates, she looked totally flustered.
“I, I think I’ll skip it, I…”
Meng Xin darted her eyes around, lost, then looked to Yu Linghuan as if spotting her lifeline: “I already made plans with Huanhuan.”
Yu Linghuan caught the look right away and jumped in, “Yeah, we’ve got stuff to take care of after school. If you wanna make plans with Meng Xin, let’s do it another time.”
As she spoke, Yu Linghuan tilted her chin up, “Ready to dip?”
Meng Xin: “Mm!”
The instant Meng Xin nodded, Yu Linghuan grabbed her wrist and whisked her out of the crowd.
Watching the two of them walk away, everyone could only sigh in disappointment.
“They’re really leaving, huh…”
Not far off, a boy’s voice cut in, chilly as ever: “Of course. She’s just landed herself a walking piggy bank, she’s gotta go! Give it a day, Yu Linghuan will be decked out in gold chains and bracelets, all courtesy of her little moneybags buddy. Seriously, those two are thick as thieves. No point trying to butt in.”
The one talking was Li Hongwen.
Everyone glanced at each other.
Li Hongwen got along well enough with the guys, but most girls in class weren’t fans.
One girl snorted, “We may just be tagging along, but that’s still better than straight-up stealing someone’s watch.”
That set everyone laughing.
The classroom was buzzing with energy.
Li Hongwen’s face darkened. “Who stole anything? I told you, I was just looking, just looking, damn it!”
…
Both Yu Linghuan and Meng Xin boarded at school, only going home on weekends.
Langde High was loaded, so the dorms were either singles or doubles, way fancier than any public school.
To give the Gaokao students a better environment, all the seniors got their own single rooms.
Still, no matter how nice they were, dorms were dorms; the International Class’s rich kids would turn up their noses at it.
The male lead, Sheng Han, the fake heiress Meng Mingzhu, and the rest of the wealthy crowd? All day students, naturally.
In the novel, Meng Xin also started commuting in her senior year, just like the fake heiress, living at the Meng household. This set up lots of those classic love triangle scenes from the book.
You know, like two people hugging and getting caught by the third, stuff like that.
As they left the school building, Yu Linghuan asked, “Xinxin, aren’t you moving back home this semester?”
Meng Xin hesitated, thinking for a few seconds before answering, “Dad did ask me if I wanted to. But after all these years of living at school, I’m used to it. I want to get into Jing University, and the study vibe here is way better. And, well…”
The girl’s lips curved into a small smile. “Besides, don’t I still have you with me?”
Yu Linghuan’s eyes softened. “Yeah.”
Honestly, it’s obvious, if the Meng family really cared about their long-lost daughter, they’d be desperate to make up for all those years, dying to keep her close. How could they possibly let her keep boarding?
Truth was, Meng Mingzhu and Meng Xin may have both been daughters, but the Meng family definitely played favorites.
Yu Linghuan asked, “So where to now? Back to your dorm, or…?”
Meng Xin hesitated a little, “There’s somewhere I want to go, but… would you come with me?”
Yu Linghuan was all in: “Just say where!”
Meng Xin: “How about… going to Tianyue Mall?”
Yu Linghuan blinked, then laughed. “Wow, you really let them talk you into it? Sure!”
Tianyue Mall was just a ten-minute walk from campus, on the next street over.
The two of them dropped their bags back at the dorm and headed out to the school gate, right as a dark green Bentley rolled up.
At Langde High, luxury cars lined up at the gate every morning and afternoon, Yu Linghuan was long used to it.
But this Bentley stopped right in front of them. The door opened, and a man stepped out from the driver's seat.
Yu Linghuan couldn’t help glancing up.
Plenty of Bentleys showed up at Langde, but rich parents were always busy, so most of the time the drivers or housekeepers were on kid-pickup duty.
This young man, though, just didn’t fit in with the usual crowd.
He was tall, looked just barely older than them, maybe twenty, tops, Yu Linghuan guessed.
But even with his youth, there was nothing boyish or unformed about his expression.
Unlike most of the guys Yu Linghuan knew, who managed to look like lost puppies even in full suit and tie, there wasn’t an ounce of dopey innocence in this guy’s eyes.
While Yu Linghuan was puzzling over who he was, Meng Xin burst out, surprised: “…Brother? What are you doing here?”
“It’s the first day of school,” he replied, refusing to answer the question. “Want to talk in the car?”
Yu Linghuan finally got it, ah, Meng Xin’s brother.
In the novel, Meng Xin’s family consisted of a grandmother, her father, his new wife, a half-brother on her dad’s side, and one full brother by her mom.
The others always popped up in the story to take Meng Mingzhu’s side …
Only the brother was barely mentioned, just a few sentences here and there.
From the novel: Meng Xin’s brother was Meng Qichuan, sent abroad at twelve and gone for ten years straight.
After a decade apart, Meng Qichuan was basically a stranger to the family. When Meng Xin got recognized and brought home, he just swung by, met his real sister for five minutes, and jetted back abroad.
The novel barely let Meng Qichuan interact with Meng Mingzhu or Meng Xin; his big plot moment was opposing Meng Xin’s romance with Sheng Han after they moved overseas, just another brick in the wall against the leads’ happiness.
This was a tragic romance book, after all, everyone around them had to be anti-love, just to make the heartbreak feel earned.
Yu Linghuan mentally flicked through all mentions of Meng Qichuan, then quietly asked her system: [The novel didn’t have a scene where Meng Qichuan shows up at school, right?]
System: [Definitely not.]
Yu Linghuan: [So why’s he suddenly here? Don’t tell me he’s got a system too? Or maybe, just like Meng Mingzhu, he’s being played by someone else?]
System: [Don’t think so. No weird energy spikes on my end.]
Yu Linghuan frowned, thinking: “Bottom line: something’s up. Whatever his reason for coming home, I’ve got to keep an eye on him.”
Blood ties or not, a brother can still hurt you. Her own family proved that well enough.
While Yu Linghuan chatted with her system, Meng Xin was talking to her brother.
Hearing that Meng Xin already had plans with a friend, Meng Qichuan finally looked away from his sister’s face and turned to the girl beside her.
His gaze sharpened slightly.
The girl’s wide, round eyes were brimming with caution and wariness.
So intense that even Meng Qichuan second-guessed himself for half a second: Did he really look that sketchy?