“What’s wrong? Haven’t you always liked Yishu?”
“No…”
“Don’t deny it. We’re all girls here. We can tell.”
“Yeah, yeah. If you ever need our help, don’t hesitate to ask.”
Zhang Xiaolu and Yuan Yuehan changed dramatically this year—so much so that Tang Yuanyuan was horrified by their friendliness. But having them by her side and keeping her distracted did help her forget about Meng Kefei.
Having a distraction easily diverted her attention away from what she did not want to think about.
“I’m so full. Should we have an orange later when we get back?”
“Yeah, sure.”
The three of them were walking together. When they made a turn, they ran into Meng Kefei who happened to be heading downstairs. Tang Yuanyuan came face-to-face with her and stopped abruptly.
Even though they made eye contact, Meng Kefei acted as though she had not seen Tang Yuanyuan and continued to walk ahead without a change in demeanor.
Zhang Xiaolu and Yuan Yuehan both looked at each other then lamented, “Oh, some people are just so cold and heartless. No matter how you look at it, you were once in the same dorm and were even roommates for two years, yet they won’t even say hi to you now that you’re not living together anymore. I can’t tell if they’re a human or a dog.”
“They’re not human but definitely not a dog either. Even a dog stays by your side after you’ve been with them for two years. They’re more loyal than some people.”
Their unpleasant remarks made Tang Yuanyuan frown. “That’s enough, you two.”
“Don’t worry, Yuanyuan. We’ll stand up for you from now on. That is the least we can say about someone cold and heartless like her.”
“Yeah, Yuanyuan. She was completely indifferent when seeing you earlier. Why do you still want to protect her?”
Not only did Meng Kefei act like she did not see Tang Yuanyuan, but it also seemed like she did not hear what Yuan Yuehan and Zhang Xiaolu said about her as she quickly walked off into the distance.
She was so cruel. Tang Yuanyuan’s eyes began to turn red.
“Don’t be angry, Yuanyuan.”
“Yeah, Yuanyuan. She’s not worth it.”
Tang Yuanyuan took a deep breath and held back the tears that were threatening to fall. “Why do you guys want to be friends with me?”
They hesitated then explained, “Of course, it’s because—”
“It’s because my family has money and influence, right?”
She looked at the both of them with a sharp and clear gaze as though she had seen right through them. “In the beginning, you guys only approached me because you were interested in Yishu. But when you realized he didn’t like either of you, you gave up. That day, at my coming-of-age ceremony, you guys used the fact that you were my classmates to get acquainted with a lot of people, didn’t you?”
“Yuanyuan, it’s not what you think. We did have a motive at first, but we have come to our senses since then. That was two years ago. We’ve matured and we’re all grown-ups now. We were just immature back then so we had those childish thoughts. That won’t ever happen now.”
“Yeah, yeah. Don’t misunderstand. We really want to be friends with you.”
As they spoke, they went in closer to her.
Tang Yuanyuan intentionally took a big step back and glared at them. “I don’t care who you guys become friends with, but never bad-mouth the people in my life again. Meng Kefei and I may not be friends anymore, but neither of you has the right to talk bad about her behind her back.”
“I don’t get it, Yuanyuan. She doesn’t even want to be friends with you anymore. Didn’t you see how she completely disregarded you earlier? Why are you still defending her?”
Tang Yuanyuan had a stern expression. “I’m not defending anyone. I just don’t like it when people around me like to gossip. That’s all.”
After that, Tang Yuanyuan turned and walked away, leaving Yuan Yuehan and Zhang Xiaolu behind.
“What do we do? We were supposed to get on her good side, but we ended up making her angry.”
“What can we do? She doesn’t like it when people talk about Meng Kefei, so we just have to refrain from talking about her from now on. Besides, Meng Kefei already moved out so there’s nothing much she can do now. It’s done and dusted.”
“Alright then. Let’s go.”
They followed Tang Yuanyuan back to their dormitory. While Tang Yuanyuan sat on the edge of the bed, they kept asking if she was okay and eventually apologized to her.
“We’re sorry, Yuanyuan. We were wrong to say those things about Meng Kefei. We shouldn’t gossip about other people. You’re right; it’s not right to talk behind someone’s back. We were wrong. Don’t be angry anymore, okay?”
“Yeah. We won’t talk about her anymore. We’ll just pretend she’s a stranger when we see her next time.”
Looking at the both of them, Tang Yuanyuan felt like they seemed sincere with their words and apology. If Tang Yuanyuan had not overheard their conversation from before, she would have been moved by the way they were acting right now.
But when she thought about how the two of them were only saying those things so they could use her, it just seemed sad and somewhat comical.
She questioned, “If I weren’t Tang Yuanyuan and Tang Yuanyuan weren’t me, would you guys still grovel before me and say all these things?”
Yuan Yuehan and Zhang Xiaolu froze and stared at her in silence.
“Honestly, I don’t need to hear it from you to know the answer.” Tang Yuanyuan lowered her gaze. If I wasn’t Tang Yuanyuan, no one would pay any attention to me. I wouldn’t have had the chance to grow up with Yishu either.
Nonetheless, she still felt like it was nice to have someone who cared about and was there for her. It was hard for her to let go of that warmth. Perhaps it was because she was spoiled with love as a child that made the sudden loss of a friend feel extremely lonely and bitter.
“I don’t really have to think so deeply into this. It’s fine even if you guys only approached me because I’m Tang Yuanyuan. That just means I have some worth, right?”
The two of them remained silent. Since it had come to this point, there was not much of an explanation they could give.
Tang Yuanyuan would not have believed them even if they tried to justify themselves.
Eventually, Yuan Yuehan said, “It wouldn’t mean a thing if we said anything now. But we’re all adults here. As long as we know the truth deep down, we can just let bygones be bygones. Isn’t it better to be friends than enemies? You should go take a shower and go to bed earlier today. We’ll have breakfast together tomorrow.”
She got up immediately and returned to her bed and started putting things away.
Zhang Xiaolu had not expected her to speak so bluntly. She’s not wrong, though. It is better to have one more friend than an enemy. So what if we’re just superficial friends? It’s all good as long as we don’t fight. With that, she also got up in an instant.
“I’ll go and put my things away too. You should take a hot shower. It will help you feel better.”
Tang Yuanyuan remained seated on the edge of the bed for a long time. It was hard to tell what she was thinking from the ambiguous expression on her face. But after ten to twenty minutes, she finally stood up, grabbed her clothes, and went into the bathroom.
“Do you think she took our words to heart?”
