TSDT - 51

Waking up, I felt completely refreshed.

Last night, I was forced to talk on the phone until the early hours, but now it was only a little past eight, and Jiang Ying felt full of energy. It just goes to show that people shouldn’t overindulge; it’s better to save that energy for other things.

Hu Ruochen was still sound asleep.

Jiang Ying fumbled for her phone and saw a photo of breakfast Meng Jingshu had sent over an hour ago.

Such an angelic routine.

She sent him a sunglasses emoji.

“It feels so good to stay out.”

He replied a while later: “A change of pace now and then, of course it feels good.”

Jiang Ying asked: “When’s the meeting?”

“Nine-thirty.”

He didn’t reply instantly, so he was probably quite busy on his end. Attendees at a seminar were usually industry experts, so networking was inevitable when they met. Jiang Ying didn’t bother him further and rolled over to scroll through Weibo.

Her main account was a small yellow V, and besides posting daily life, she also shared legal information, occasionally answered netizens’ questions, and sometimes commented on hot topics. But because she didn’t focus on popular content, she only had about two thousand followers. She treated it as a pastime, spoke without much inhibition, and enjoyed her freedom.

She was happily commenting under a popular Weibo post when several messages suddenly flashed across the top of her screen.

One was a text message—Jiang Ying had booked after-sales service for the water heater yesterday, and the technician said they would arrive within two hours, asking her to ensure someone was home.

The other messages were all from Xu Jiahong on WeChat.

“Come out tonight for a late-night snack.”

“Damn jet lag, didn’t sleep at all last night, I’m going to catch up on sleep now.”

“Don’t play dead when I look for you then.”

Jiang Ying replied: “Only trash plays dead.”

Xu Jiahong: [Smile].

Jiang Ying got up and woke Hu Ruochen. The young girl had gone to bed early last night, so she woke up sober and didn’t linger much. Both of them quickly got ready, and it wasn’t long before they checked out.

They went downstairs to Starbucks to eat. Jiang Ying kept feeling like someone was watching her, but the store was large and crowded, and she couldn’t pinpoint anyone. Perhaps she was being overly sensitive. She needed to get home on time, so they didn’t stay long, leaving after they finished eating.

As they drove out of the parking lot, Jiang Ying caught a glimpse of a slender figure in her rearview mirror. The hem of the woman’s white coat swirled with each step she took.

It was just a fleeting glimpse of her upper body; she didn’t even see the person clearly, yet Jiang Ying’s heart inexplicably tightened. She didn’t hesitate in her driving, stepping on the gas to go up the ramp and out of the exit, instantly seeing the clear sky.

In the car, Hu Ruochen was still a bit hazy from her hangover. She asked, “Sister, did we see Feng Xirou last night?”

Jiang Ying: “Mm.”

“Was she...” She seemed a bit disbelieving, speaking slowly, “With two men... booking a room??”

Jiang Ying nodded: “Mm.”

“Ah...” Hu Ruochen leaned back against the seat, her eyes vacant.

Jiang Ying smiled: “Shocked?”

“Mm,” she nodded heavily, “Chen Tianjing actually likes someone like that?”

“Who knows.”

There are billions of people in the world, each living their own way. Who can control so much?

________________________________________

The after-sales technician didn’t waste time. Not long after Jiang Ying got home, he arrived. The inspection went smoothly; the problem was found on the first check and fixed in about ten minutes.

After the technician left, Jiang Ying sat in a chair, lost in thought for a while.

The tabletop was empty; her laptop and Kindle had all been moved to Meng Jingshu’s place, leaving her feeling a bit at a loss.

Her phone screen showed a message he had sent at 9:20 AM:

“Meeting now, might not notice my phone.”

From when did it start? Such an untamed person, now willing to explain everything to her, share everything with her. If she showed even a hint of displeasure, he would become uneasy. Every time they argued, the more cautious he became, the more satisfied she felt.

She had seen Meng Jingshu’s arrogant indifference, which only made her more certain that she was favored. No one dislikes being favored.

True heart for true heart, no loss.

She just didn’t know if she should move her things back...

Meng Jingshu had mentioned a few times before that he wanted her to move to his place, but she had been too lazy to move. Now, having been forced to stay there for a few days, she had easily grown accustomed to luxury...

Especially in this cold weather, thinking about the underfloor heating at his place, she really felt a bit reluctant to leave.

Jiang Ying sent Meng Jingshu a tongue-out emoji, then got up, patted her clothes, and hooked her finger through her keyring. The metal clinked against her ring, making a crisp sound. Driving someone else’s car, going back to someone else’s home.

On the way, Jiang Ying thought about Meng Jingshu’s birthday next Tuesday, which meant she would have to video call his grandmother in three days. She was filled with an unspeakable mix of nervousness and excitement, probably similar to how she felt the day before exam results came out—knowing she did well, but not knowing exactly how well.

She smiled to herself while waiting at a red light.

Although she said she wouldn’t give him any more gifts, with the diamond ring sparkling on her finger and about to meet his family, it would be odd not to prepare something, right?

But gifts for men were so hard to think of...

Jiang Ying was haphazardly calculating when she made a smooth turn, guiding the car into the underground parking garage of Dongming Jiayuan.

She paused in the aisle, about to reverse into a parking space, when a slender figure slowly entered her rearview mirror.

A long white coat, paired with a black slim-fit turtleneck and a deep purple velvet long skirt. This time, her face was clear: beautiful features enhanced by delicate makeup. She also looked into the rearview mirror, meeting Jiang Ying’s gaze.

Time stopped for a moment, and the car’s voice system beeped, reminding the driver to reverse.

Jiang Ying scoffed quietly.

Life was truly so stimulating; just moments ago, she had been ecstatic and light-headed with happiness, but now it was as if a bucket of ice water had been dumped over her head. She was experiencing such a ridiculous drama for the first time, finally understanding what it meant to be on cloud nine one moment and in the depths of despair the next.

Long time no see, Fu Xuan.

Jiang Ying parked the car, got out, and walked towards Fu Xuan without hesitation. Since she had come looking for her, Jiang Ying wouldn’t be timid.

“It really is you, Jiang Ying,” Fu Xuan looked at her with narrow eyes.

Last night, Feng Xirou had organized the gathering, and Fu Xuan went along. Soon after, her friend sat down with a group of men to drink. Fu Xuan wasn’t as uninhibited, but while Feng Xirou’s circle was messy, it was also large. When Fu Xuan went with her, she occasionally met men who suited her better, both physically and financially. Last night, she met one, and after a night, she felt it was neither good nor bad, with no need to continue, so she left early.

Unexpectedly, at the coffee shop downstairs, she ran into an old acquaintance. She was still the same—good-looking even without makeup, not as pretty as herself, yet so spirited, and her friends liked her so much. It was annoying.

What kind of talent did she have for winning people over? In college, both of them were class leaders, yet every time they organized an event, Jiang Ying always had more support than her. So they constantly competed, overtly and covertly.

By chance, Fu Xuan found out that Jiang Ying had a crush on someone for many years whom she never managed to get. After inquiring, she learned he was such a prominent person, perfectly matching her requirements. As expected, she succeeded and became Meng Jingshu’s actual girlfriend. Every time they met, the look in Jiang Ying’s eyes made her feel triumphant.

Who knew things would turn out so unpredictably? She ultimately failed to hold onto Meng Jingshu. What was even more unexpected was that she only went to the parking lot out of fleeting curiosity, wanting to see how much worse Jiang Ying’s life was than hers. But then she saw Jiang Ying driving Meng Jingshu’s car. How many times had she wanted to drive it, but he never let her, preferring to buy her a smaller car rather than let her touch his beloved one. Now Jiang Ying could drive it casually. How could she swallow that anger?

“After all these years, it’s still you.”

Jiang Ying looked at her and sneered, “What kind of shoddy high-end residential area lets just anyone in?”

Fu Xuan curved her lips: “The security guards recognize me.”

When women confront each other, they try to gauge each other’s thoughts, choosing words specifically to make the other uncomfortable. Fu Xuan had plenty of past incidents to bring up and annoy Jiang Ying.

But after a few years of maturation, Jiang Ying was no longer the little girl who would recklessly resort to violence at the slightest disagreement. She had learned her lesson from that kind of loss.

Her expression unchanged, she said indifferently, “It doesn’t matter if the security guards recognize you. What matters is that Meng Jingshu doesn’t recognize you anymore. Otherwise, why would you need to stand in the garage freezing to wait for me? Can you still get upstairs, can you still get into the house now?”

“You!”

No matter how beautiful a face, once dominated by anger, it won’t look good. Jiang Ying was right; their breakup was messy. After they officially separated, Meng Jingshu changed both his access card and the door lock. She had indeed relied on her memorable face to get into Dongming Jiayuan.

Fu Xuan took a deep breath, composed herself, unwilling to be thrown off balance first.

“That person was you, right? You charmed him into not coming home, charmed him into cheating, and breaking up with me. What do you call this? Stealing someone’s boyfriend for revenge? Where’s your holier-than-thou morality?! You told others I reported you and made you lose your postgraduate recommendation, right? But you did hit me, didn’t you? When you ganged up with others to accuse and ostracize me, did you ever think you’d do something so despicable?!”

Jiang Ying laughed in anger: “You have the nerve to say that?”

________________________________________

Back then, when Jiang Ying suddenly heard that Fu Xuan and Meng Jingshu were together, her mind felt like it had been hit with a club. It wasn’t just jealousy; it was anger and disappointment. Her own feelings could gradually fade with time, and if it were anyone else, she would at most feel a little regret, but why did it have to be Fu Xuan? At that time, she and Meng Jingshu weren’t close enough to share “who is my most hated person,” so Meng Jingshu naturally wouldn’t know which girl she had a bad relationship with. But how could he fall for someone like Fu Xuan?!

Although times had changed, and Jiang Ying, after the Chen Tianjing incident, could now understand that anyone could have moments of blindness. But back then, she was young and hot-headed, watching the person she had always admired and loved being superficially seduced by looks, disregarding her character. Jiang Ying was furious at his lack of discernment, angrily sending many messages questioning him why it had to be Fu Xuan.

Fu Xuan was at the height of her triumph then, enjoying the praises of Meng Jingshu’s friends and the envy of potential rivals, sticking closely to him. Sometimes when they went out, she would take the opportunity to coquettishly demand to check his phone. Although he wasn’t thrilled, he didn’t object. Jiang Ying just happened to send her messages at that time. Fu Xuan took screenshots of the messages and then deleted the records.

The next day, they ran into each other in the dorm hallway. She couldn’t help but flaunt the screenshots to Jiang Ying, mocking her relentlessly, thinking she had finally won a complete victory. Unexpectedly, Jiang Ying not only didn’t break down in tears from the humiliation but instead gritted her teeth and slapped her hard. Fu Xuan, in shock and anger, they wrestled into a messy heap.

It happened to be National Day, and the bar exam had just ended, so there weren’t many people in the dorm. Only one of Jiang Ying’s roommates heard the commotion and came out to stop them. Fu Xuan was pulled away and tried to rush back, but accidentally slipped and was stunned for a while. Later, she went to the hospital and was diagnosed with a mild concussion, so she was furious and called the police. Finally, the police retrieved the dorm’s surveillance footage, confirmed that the primary responsibility was not with Jiang Ying, and since no serious consequences occurred, they called in a counselor to mediate before letting them go back.

It wasn’t a big deal originally, and the college intended to handle it discreetly, so very few people knew. But Fu Xuan held a grudge. She sent a letter of complaint to the principal’s office, directly accusing Jiang Ying, as a law student, of breaking the law and being unqualified for postgraduate recommendation. Fu Xuan had other career paths and wasn’t focused on academics; dragging Jiang Ying down caused her no harm. And not long ago, a doctoral student from another college committed suicide by jumping from a building. The school didn’t want to stir up more public opinion at such a sensitive time and directly withdrew Jiang Ying’s spot.

The counselor felt it was a great pity, but Jiang Ying indeed had fault. She advised Jiang Ying to compose herself well; if postgraduate recommendation didn’t work, she could take the postgraduate entrance exam. Given her usual academic performance, her chances of getting into their own university were high. Jiang Ying only said she would consider it carefully.

She went back and thought for a long time, about the past, about the future, with many grievances against herself. She couldn’t resolve them. But a person cannot hate themselves; once you dislike yourself, nothing you do will bring happiness. So she could only hate others; she blamed everything on Meng Jingshu. She was utterly disappointed in him and resolved to remove him from her life, preferably never seeing him again.

________________________________________

From beginning to end, no matter how you calculated it, Fu Xuan was absolutely not the victim. Yet now she was self-righteously claiming to be the one who was cheated on and ostracized?

“Fu Xuan, why don’t you go see a psychiatrist and check if you have persecutory delusions? You’re starting to believe yourself.”

Fu Xuan glared at her: “What did you say?!”

Jiang Ying’s expression was cold: “I fought with you over such trivial matters and even lost my postgraduate recommendation. I was too ashamed to talk about it everywhere. You say others ostracized you, why don’t you first reflect on what you did? Now that you have more followers, they mindlessly praise you through screens, and you’ve gotten carried away, right? Has no one ever told you that you are truly annoying?”

“You’re lying!” Fu Xuan’s large eyes nearly popped out. “You clearly couldn’t get Meng Jingshu yourself, and when I did, you got jealous! After all these years, you still haven’t given up, and now that he’s back in the country, you’re eagerly throwing yourself at him! You’re despicable!”

“You know who’s truly despicable in your heart!” Jiang Ying was angered by her, and her insults became much more direct.

“You have the nerve to play the rich, beautiful, and virtuous persona. Whose money did you use before you became famous? You change boyfriends every now and then, and only look for rich ones. Who doesn’t know about that? You made two boys in our class fight over you and become enemies, you often came back late disturbing people’s sleep, you didn’t clean the dorm, and the school never picked you when they needed people for meetings...”

Fu Xuan’s face flushed red, and she yelled at her: “Shut up!”

Jiang Ying ignored her and continued, “You’d flirt with boys to get them to write your elective papers, and then act arrogant towards girls, one face in front and another behind their backs. Do you think anyone in our class would still like you? Do I even need to badmouth you? Do you think you can do whatever you want just because you’re pretty? I’m telling you, you’re just trash in human skin!”

“You’re the trash!” Fu Xuan shrieked, throwing her bag at Jiang Ying.

Jiang Ying instinctively raised her hand and slapped the flying handbag away. Fu Xuan was jolted, her body swayed, and she nearly twisted her ankle. Jiang Ying’s arm also stung, but because her heels weren’t high, she stood firm.

Fu Xuan glared at her bitterly: “I do whatever I want, what business is it of yours! You’re not in a position to be making moral judgments! You’re no different, prying into other people’s relationships and being a mistress!”

Jiang Ying met her gaze for a few seconds, then smiled softly.

“He just likes me now, and he doesn’t like you anymore. So what?”

Not telling Fu Xuan that they already knew about her cheating, letting her believe she was truly the victim, would be the greatest torment for someone as self-centered as her. On this point, Jiang Ying’s thinking was surprisingly consistent with Meng Jingshu’s.

Fu Xuan was choked by this answer and stared at Jiang Ying in disbelief for a long time.

Although there was no wind in the underground garage, it was truly bone-chilling in this deep winter. They had been standing there for so long that they were both very cold, but neither was willing to back down. Fu Xuan stiffly brushed her hair and suddenly burst out laughing.

Jiang Ying’s brow furrowed; she didn’t know what kind of fit Fu Xuan was throwing now.

“Like? Do you think he really likes you?” She looked at Jiang Ying mockingly, “You’ve known him for a long time, haven’t you figured it out? That man has no heart. We were together for three years, and didn’t he still change his mind just like that? Even when he hadn’t changed his mind, he still...”

Fu Xuan remembered Meng Jingshu’s cold eyes. He was a man who could easily attract women. She had never been so stubbornly intent on clinging to someone, but he handled things effortlessly, wasn’t bad to her, and was even generous enough to make many others envious, yet she always felt his affection was too shallow. He never looked at her with the same admiration for her beauty and nobility that her previous men had. And she had been the center of attention since childhood; she deserved to be held in the palm of one’s hand. If this person couldn’t give her enough affection, then she naturally had to seek it elsewhere.

It was Meng Jingshu’s fault; how dare he change his mind?!

After they broke up, her popularity with men remained high. But the rich ones weren’t as generous as him, the generous ones weren’t as rich as him, and the rich and generous ones were often unattractive. She picked and chose, but nothing ever stuck. And Jiang Ying, whose looks and figure were far inferior to hers, had snagged such a big catch. She was consumed with jealousy!

“Jiang Ying, you think just because he’s with you now, you can keep him forever?” A hint of tears welled in Fu Xuan’s eyes, her carefully drawn eyes looking as if they were laced with poison.

“I was with him too! Did you know? We were together for less than a month, and he took me home! His grandmother loved me too! You know I didn’t study hard in college and my grades were very average, but I played the pitiful act for his grandmother, and she had someone contact a school to send me abroad with Meng Jingshu!”

Jiang Ying stared intently at her, biting her lip tightly, but a crack appeared on her face.

Fu Xuan laughed shrilly: “Hurts, doesn’t it? Haha! I’m not even done yet! Back then, back then his grandfather had just passed away, and you blocked him because of the postgraduate recommendation, it was me who stayed by his side to comfort him... Hah! He... he was so grateful to me, and he even said, said he would only love me forever... He said he loved me very much, do you know that! But what happened? Didn’t he still change his mind? I’m telling you, you’ll be the same! You’ll be just like me!”

Other residents came to park their cars, curiously eyeing the two women, one hysterical, the other stiff as a corpse.

When Jiang Ying opened her mouth, her teeth chattered, and a mark from her teeth appeared on her lower lip. She dug her nails into her palms, desperately suppressing the chill rising from the bottom of her heart.

“But you’re still jealous to death,” she said.

“I’m not!” Fu Xuan immediately said, “Why would I be jealous of you! I’m prettier than you, I’m not short on money, and I’m not short on men. What would I be jealous of you for! I’m just telling you, as an old classmate, not to get too smug too soon!”

Jiang Ying was as calm as stagnant water.

“Then let me also remind you, don’t hang out with Feng Xirou just because she knows a lot of men.”

Fu Xuan’s eyes suddenly widened: “How did you... What business is it of yours!”

Jiang Ying curved her lips: “It’s useless. You won’t find anyone better than Meng Jingshu.”

Fu Xuan’s face darkened, and she yelled at her: “You’re no different than me! You’ll be abandoned one day too! Just wait!”

Jiang Ying ignored her and walked straight to press the elevator button. Fu Xuan still stood there, glaring at her bitterly. The elevator doors slowly closed, blocking Fu Xuan from view, but they couldn’t obscure the mottled memories of the past. The moment the doors fully closed, a drop of water still fell to the ground.

________________________________________

After the intense battle, Fu Xuan wasn’t sure who had won or lost.

She had always been very image-conscious, rarely having such wild outbursts, and now she was utterly exhausted. But if her words could create discord between them, then it was worth it.

She walked stiffly out. The security guard greeted her warmly, but she ignored him.

She remembered the very beginning, the day she first met Meng Jingshu. The Computer Science department had won a national competition, and the team went out to celebrate. Coincidentally, one of the team members was her colleague in a student club, and she used every trick in the book to get him to bring her along.

They gathered in front of the library. The moment she saw Meng Jingshu, she knew she had to have him. She was very good at making herself likable in front of boys, so even though they were strangers, they were very enthusiastic. Meng Jingshu, however, was neither warm nor cold, polite but somewhat distant, which only made her more intrigued.

Suddenly, she heard him ask, “Do you know Jiang Ying?”

She paused, then said, “Yes, we’re in the same class.”

He asked again, “Who is that with her?”

She followed his gaze. In the distance, Jiang Ying and a boy wearing glasses were walking together, chatting and laughing.

She smiled, showing a perfect blend of girlish shyness and curiosity: “He’s also a classmate of ours. They often study together at the library. They’ve probably... probably gotten together.”

He said “Oh” and didn’t say anything more.

The boys from the Computer Science department were very straightforward and left the seat next to Meng Jingshu for her. She didn’t quite understand their topics, but she always managed to maintain her composure and catch onto their jokes. The person beside her, however, remained cool and detached for some reason, as if isolated from the lively atmosphere.

The boys kept challenging each other to drinking games. She watched Meng Jingshu drink bottle after bottle. Eventually, she couldn’t help but gently block his hand and whisper:

“Oh no, don’t drink anymore.”

He narrowed his eyes and looked over, then suddenly smiled.

Her heart fluttered, and the whole table erupted in cheers.

Later, after they were together, she often playfully begged and pleaded, asking Meng Jingshu if he loved her. He would simply smile faintly and say, “Mm.” She knew he wasn’t one for sweet talk and never explicitly said “I love you.” But sometimes, she also wanted to press him, to ask him what exactly he liked about her.

He thought for a moment and said, “You have a good personality.”

A good personality?

This was a compliment she had never received before.