Chapter 25

A jerk only needs to be made happy, and maybe he’ll make you happy too. But a straight guy is different. He will require you to love him.

It seemed Liang Daiwen misunderstood. As he was about to close the door, his blood-stained hand got caught in the door gap, and he winced in pain. Gu Yi was startled—did he have self-harming tendencies?

“Do you have a temper with me?”

Gu Yi didn’t respond. His domineering, CEO-like question almost made her laugh. Was this the response of someone with emotional disorders? Given his usual style, he was about to come up with something unexpected to end the awkward silence, and she was prepared.

After moving from Liang Daiwen’s house to her new, unfamiliar place, the once simple and modern Italian-style décor was gone, replaced with old furniture emitting a damp smell and gray walls. Yet, in this environment, Liang Daiwen somehow looked more alive. His hand must have hurt; otherwise, he wouldn’t have been frowning. The light in the room reflected in his eyes, almost as though it lit him up entirely. Some stray hairs from his forehead brushed into his eyes, and he used his bandaged hand to push them behind his ear, expressionless but biting his lip. In the next second, it felt like he was about to strike.

Gu Yi took a step back, but he followed her into the room, returning her intense gaze. What did this mean—revenge? Gu Yi vaguely remembered Guan Xingxin’s words, “Never say things like ‘let’s break up’ to Liang Daiwen.” Could it be that he didn’t like what she said about giving back what he gave her?

What was next—was he going to hurt himself too?

She hesitated to think further.

“I don’t understand what you mean. If you don’t want to be friends with me, just say it directly.”

“I…”

“I know, everyone around me becomes unhappy. If that’s the case, it’s fine, I can accept it. But I need you to tell me directly, I don’t like ambiguity.”

Gu Yi thought, this way of thinking is really strange. He only pushes others away but won’t allow himself to be isolated. No wonder he has no friends. But at this moment, Liang Daiwen, wearing a black sweater with his hand still wrapped in a bandage, his hair scattered in front of his forehead, gave off an aura that made people want to pity him. Liang Daiwen, dejected, didn’t want to keep his emotions bottled up but only responded to gentleness.

She softly said, “If you push me away first, I’ll be sad.”

Liang Daiwen froze, taking another step forward, his head lowered as if sniffing her scent. The expressions of the actors in K-dramas like Ding Hae-In and Song Joong-ki disappeared, and all that remained was Liang Daiwen’s initial, expressionless demeanor. “I have something to say to you.”

Liang Daiwen, who had emotional disorders, gave her a comprehension question for the first time. Gu Yi perked up her ears.

He got closer, breathing and words coming together, but suddenly something dragged across the next door, making the whole floor echo. She couldn’t hear clearly, only catching the words “you” and “me,” sending goosebumps down her arms.

“What did you say?”

But he didn’t speak again. Gu Yi was stirred by the helpless look in his eyes. If you keep looking at me like that, I don’t care whether you have emotional disorders or not, I’ll drag you in and deal with you right then and there. Do you believe me?

Just as she thought Liang Daiwen was within her grasp, her phone suddenly rang. Liang Daiwen instantly shifted, his self-awareness seeming to shut off like an AI, returning to his usual, stiff state. He answered the phone, and upon hearing it was work, he stepped back, gave her a brief greeting, and left. The sound of him descending the stairs echoed throughout the six-story building, and although Liang Daiwen had no expression, his tone about work told her that he was in a good mood.

So, he left just like that?

Gu Yi, having just made the bed, stared at the ceiling, feeling humiliated. This was too humiliating. The lingering sensation of his closeness still tickled her ear. This man with emotional disorders truly can’t express anything? His manipulation skills were more advanced than normal men. What was even more humiliating was that she had already fully gotten used to Liang Daiwen’s sofa, his footsteps moving in the bedroom and quietly coming to the living room for water, and his occasional calm breathing when he approached her. After two months in his home, Liang Daiwen seemed to have softened, showing traces of expression on his face, though difficult to detect—only she understood it. If she left, he would probably just continue living as he was, or return to his cold indifference. The most important question was... could she leave Liang Daiwen?

In the following days, Liang Daiwen completely stopped initiating conversation with her, as if they had severed ties. He only posted a link on his Moments: “The new voice recognition feature in Xinfly, which reads aloud by tapping the back of the phone, making it easier for the visually impaired to use their phones.” His repost was thought-provoking: “Perhaps we have overlooked those without phones, or those whose phones aren’t smart. Technology is ‘advancing,’ but it hasn’t ‘reached everyone.’ I once visited a blind massage parlor where they also read novels, and the private scenes in the novels would be very awkward when played out loud. Is this truly ‘barrier-free’?”

She missed the days at the Van Gogh gallery a bit.

Gu Yi’s month-long beauty project collaboration had not yet ended. Originally, a four-week schedule was arranged, with each article written from different female perspectives. The articles were completed and submitted to Jacqueline, only to be completely criticized during a meeting. Jacqueline pointed out flaws in every detail, and ended with, “The articles have a lot of flowery language, but the angles miss the mark. They’re not direct or grounded, and there’s no resonance. Your views are too advanced; the readers won’t understand them, how will they share it?”

Jacqueline’s solution for Gu Yi was to go—on a blind date. Gu Yi was forced to go to the People’s Square blind date corner on a workday, where flyers blew into her face and an old man questioned her background and hometown. She was tasked with collecting love stories from couples in different industries and fields, especially requiring subjective perspectives. The summary she gathered was that, regardless of appearance, when a couple is in bed, they are simply people to each other; whether in the dating forum or on apps, she had to chat with potential suitors, constantly receiving messages like, “Are you there?” “Are you sleeping?” “What do you usually do?” “Why didn’t you reply?” It felt like customer service, with frequent harassment calls asking if she needed VIP services from the dating app.

By day, she went on blind dates, and by night, she swiped on dating apps like Tantan and Tinder, carefully marking down the different groups in her spreadsheet. But as she swiped, she unexpectedly met someone—the market director of a neighboring magazine, who was soon to marry, yet still listed as “single” on Tinder with the latest login “3 hours ago.”

Two weeks into this bizarre experience, she started to understand what it felt like to be a heartbreaker, but was left utterly confused—apart from transactional benefits and emotional exchanges, most people seemed to prioritize marrying someone from a better family. They always felt like they were competing, as if it was a process of trying to get the better end of things. The bolder one was, the more one could get.

The most interesting part was when Gu Yi used a bold alias on a site called “Merry U.” After uploading her ID for verification and adding her school to increase her chances, she changed her age by three years and uploaded a selfie that made her look like an influencer, listing herself as a K12 full-time English teacher. Soon, many men began messaging her, and they quickly fell into two categories: scumbags and other men. The scumbags were generally good-looking, spoke casually, and wouldn’t chat much after adding her on WeChat. They seemed like they were “fishing,” and she couldn’t help but wonder: why did these men, who were so clearly playing the field, even add her?

The other type of men sent her daily junk messages, which were mostly aimless and uncomfortable to read. Her top 3 most unforgettable phrases constantly fluctuated, with the most memorable being, “Are you there?” “I don’t believe it, you’ve definitely fallen for me” and “Gold-digger, if I see you again I’ll report you.”

It felt like sexual harassment. After finishing her article and attaching a video script, Jacqueline returned the draft, which was completely altered and ended up almost identical to Pony’s work. Gu Yi was slightly unhappy. Since the articles were supposed to be about topics that struck a chord with the audience, why go around in circles, pushing her into the dating market? Was it because Jacqueline thought her self-awareness wasn’t enough?

In the group chat, Guan Xingxin asked, “Gu Yi, what are you doing recently?”

“Blind dates.”

Liang Daiwen suddenly replied immediately: “Why go on blind dates?”

Gu Yi felt a bit happy, but even so, she didn’t reply to the message. She decided to go to Ounce later, and he would know then.

After two weeks of this chaotic experience, she needed a good meal and to buy herself a gift to soothe her wounded heart. She decided to buy herself a pair of red Mary Jane shoes from Carel, put on a dress and makeup, and went to Ounce. After wearing sneakers for a long time, her feet were raw and bleeding from walking barefoot in the shoes, which hurt so much she gritted her teeth. She sat on the backstage sofa, her sharp, sarcastic jokes arriving earlier than usual. When Yu Dule arrived, she asked, “Did Liang Daiwen get drawn today?”

“No, he’s had bad luck recently.”

Gu Yi’s disappointment was like missing a step while walking down stairs; she hadn’t seen him for almost a month.

When it was her turn, a familiar audience member whistled. She raised her skirt and extended a leg: “Rarely see me like this, huh?”

“Is that Xu Ruoxuan from Ounce?” someone yelled.

“Don’t act like you’ve never seen a woman before,” Gu Yi retorted, and the atmosphere in the audience relaxed. She slouched like a disappointed person and said, “This is how I really am, right? I knew it. You can’t stand seeing a female stand-up comedian try to look pretty. Why did I dress like this today? It’s related to my recent experience—let’s talk about scumbags.”

“Those who come often know that although I don’t have many boyfriends, I’m a real love brain, particularly fond of dating. I really enjoy talking and getting along with boys. Boys are so profound, an endless philosophy to dissect. Their personalities are completely different from ours; girls can somewhat guess other girls’ thoughts, but we can’t guess a guy’s, especially if you like him. Congratulations, everything he does, every little thing, you’ll never get it right.”

“Scumbags are born that way. They’re the most cynical boys. While others were playing with mud and toys in kindergarten, they were already good at noticing the crying pretty girls and comforting them. If a boy starts late in this regard, he might be rejected by a girl in middle school, leaving a white moonlight in his heart. He becomes someone with a story, and his eyes are full of charm. When the starlight hits you, you’ll know that love has come.”

“Don’t laugh. This is all true. Recently, because I was doing an interview, I met all kinds of men, and I was even forced to go on blind dates for undercover research—see, working in media isn’t easy, it’s for the art. During the blind date, I noticed an interesting phenomenon: most people don’t know what they want, so they’re ambiguous about their relationships, wasting a lot of time, and most of them have been tricked by scumbags and gold diggers. Scams like ‘pig slaughtering,’ tea trays, game companions... they steal their hearts and money. These people are called ‘gold-digging men and women,’ who are after money from the start, and that’s unforgivable. But what they didn’t realize is that scumbags and gold diggers have clearer goals than they do. A blind date without a purpose is like opening a blind box; you spend a lot of money, but you might not get the one you like. Hey, when I was doing the interview, my face turned red and white because—I really like scumbags.”

There were boos from the audience. Gu Yi shyly smiled: “Don’t overthink it. I like to find people I like in the crowd; this process is called ‘picking stars,’ specifically choosing the ones I can’t reach, so it feels especially satisfying. Scumbags, since they’re at the top of the food chain, if I fall in love with one, I’ll climb a level higher on the emotional food chain, and this might be the fastest way for me to move up the social ladder.” At this point, Gu Yi deliberately made her tone self-deprecating: “After all, I look alright, right?”

“I’ve encountered scumbags a few times, and these guys have very direct traits—they’re handsome. Either they’re really handsome, or they have a charming aura, or they have a personality that’s plastic-surgery-level, and being with them feels like a spring breeze. They’ll notice your emotions, open the car door for you, pull out a chair, and if it rains, they’ll open their coat to shield you. That kind of considerate but distant smile, casually touching you, makes you melt. The most important thing is that they have stories. When you go to karaoke and play truth or dare, their past relationships were so deep and meaningful that you can’t help but self-insert, thinking this is just like a movie or a TV show. But men who aren’t scumbags—let’s not be too offensive, just call them that for now—will first ask about your height and weight, whether you have a house or a car, what you usually do. If you can’t answer, they’ll ask, ‘What’s going on? Why aren’t you talking?’ If you ignore them, they’ll think, ‘I knew you were interested in me;’ if you don’t, they might jump up, ‘Little girl doesn’t understand, with such conditions, why is she being rude? Turns out she’s just after a rich man!’”

“Scumbags don’t ask for much from people. What they want might be your body, your heart, your money, your attention, your love, or just the pure enjoyment of being adored, wanting to be a hero... but they only need one thing at a time, and once they achieve their goal, they’ll leave. And they give you so much joy. They don’t send ‘Good morning’ texts or ‘Good night’ texts every day, they only hit you right where it hurts. Do you know what that is? Love words. They know all the ways to make you happy in this world, precise poverty alleviation. We’re so hungry, so eager for love, and they’ll aim Cupid’s arrow right at us, making every day a holiday, with 720 acupoints all being G-spots, leaving us so happy that even if we lose it, we’ll never forget it.”

The shoes were really hurting her feet. Gu Yi frowned and shifted her position. While on stage, she had an epiphany: the reason why Cinderella’s older and younger sisters were so evil was because they were too rich. They often bought expensive shoes that hurt their feet and made themselves unhappy. Maintaining a kind character has no secret—being poor is enough.

“This has made me love scumbags even more. All scumbags need is to be kept happy, and maybe they’ll keep you happy too. But straight men are different. Straight men will demand that you—love them.”

The audience burst into applause, and some girls even cheered. Gu Yi thought to herself, Please don’t let anyone think I’m stirring up gender conflict. This was just a joke, and with that cheer, the sarcasm is amplified. Looking around, she saw a boy in the third row waving at her with a bright smile. He had short brown hair, almond-shaped eyes, and thick lips. His hand moved only a few fingers near his face, as though waiting for her to notice him.

It was Xu Guanrui—he really got a ticket.

After the event, Gu Yi stood downstairs at Ounce, pulling her coat tighter. What a coincidence, it was raining today. Unable to get a cab on a weekend, Xu Guanrui called out from behind her, “See, I didn’t break my promise, I really got a ticket. Do you remember me? I’m Xu Guanrui.”

“Yes, I remember.”

Before she could say another word, Xu Guanrui suddenly said, “Wait for me.”

He dashed into a convenience store, and soon came back, smiling as he squatted on the sidewalk. “Did the bad woman in Cinderella force her feet into shoes that are too small?”

It was a band-aid. Xu Guanrui gently motioned for Gu Yi to lift her ankle, took off her shoe halfway, and carefully applied the band-aid to the small cuts. Except for the initial action of holding her foot to remove the shoe, his fingers never touched her again. As he stood up, his voice became slightly playful: “If I took off my clothes and put them over your head, inviting you to come with me into the rainy night, would I be a scumbag then?”