He even passed the test again this time, and his total score returned to 6.5, not to mention his individual sub-scores.
Chi Cheng was originally scheduled to take the IELTS test tomorrow morning, but he had no classes this afternoon and was waiting to go to Hong Kong later. Now, looking at his score, he doesn't want to take the test at all, and he knows how effective his studying has been over the past two weeks.
I told the agent that since the exams in Hong Kong and mainland China are not conducted through the same system, I could directly register for the exam next week.
I cancelled the Hong Kong test and registered to take the test in mainland China next week as practice, then I'll try for the Thailand test two weeks later.
Chi Cheng felt annoyed after hanging up the phone.
Lin Shan called him as soon as he opened the game.
Chi Cheng hadn't seen Lin Shan for a long time. When he was in Guangzhou, he spent almost every day with Shi Ling, and Lin Shan called him several times but he didn't come out. Later, Lin Shan guessed that something was going on with him and knew that he valued women over friends. After Chi Cheng admitted this, Lin Shan stopped contacting him.
Lin Shan asked him if he wanted to go out tonight.
Chi Cheng thought for a moment, then remained silent.
Lin Shan chuckled, "I know your girlfriend is worried. Don't worry, I've recently found a boyfriend. Let me introduce you to him. You can bring her out to play too."
Chi Cheng was somewhat surprised, "Tsk, when did you move so fast? Where did you come from?"
Lin Shan feigned mystery, saying, "I just suddenly really like it. You'll know when you see it."
Chi Cheng had nothing to do tonight. He had been studying for IELTS and going back and forth between two places every day, which made him feel like he was going to rot. He was also curious about Lin Shan's boyfriend, so he readily agreed to date her this time.
"Okay, but she went back to school, so I'll do it myself."
See you at 9 o'clock.
"Where to go?"
"The new stadium is open, waiting for your turn."
Actually, meeting in this kind of setting, surrounded by a bustling and excited crowd, Chi Cheng didn't feel like a third wheel at all, and wasn't embarrassed at all.
I thought that since Lin Shan hadn't dated for so long, she would find someone very suitable for her, but it turns out she's quite old.
He's at least 30, with medium-length hair tied in a short ponytail and a mustache, looking every bit the middle-aged artist.
Lin Shan took his hand and introduced him to Chi Cheng, "David."
She gave a brief introduction, and sure enough, he was an artist. She had met David last week when she was having a photoshoot. David was a photographer for the studio and sometimes made independent documentaries.
Lin Shan was quite easygoing; they got together in less than a week after meeting, saying that passion was irresistible.
Chi Cheng looked down on David; he didn't seem like much, and who knew how chaotic his circle was? Unlike Chi Cheng and Lin Shan, who at least had a bottom line even when they acted recklessly.
However, Chi Cheng still had to give Lin Shan face, so he said a few polite words.
After exchanging only a few words, Lin Shan dragged David off to the club to dance.
When Chi Cheng saw David accompanying Lin Shan off the stage, he tried to grope her while putting his arm around her, but Lin Shan slapped him away. After they were off the stage and still visible, David was dancing even more enthusiastically than Lin Shan, and Chi Cheng realized he wasn't a good person.
However, he didn't need to say such things, lest he dampen Lin Shan's spirits.
Once Lin Shan realizes he's not good enough, with her fiery temper, a breakup is inevitable.
Chi Cheng sat there playing on his phone. Shi Ling had almost fallen out with him last time they talked about IELTS, so she hadn't wanted to talk about him since. Today the results came out, and she didn't know if she had forgotten or what, but she hadn't asked him about it.
So that Chi Cheng wouldn't have to make up excuses to fob her off.
Chi Cheng put down his phone and sipped his Long Island Iced Tea for a while.
In that brief moment of inattention, a woman scrambled to sit down beside him. She was extremely petite, wearing a baseball cap, her hair pulled low to the side, obscuring her face. Only half of an exaggerated octagonal metal earring was visible. The woman seemed to have sat down in a great hurry, and whether intentionally or unintentionally, she bumped into Chi Cheng.
Chi Cheng frowned and spoke in a tone that kept strangers at bay, "Sorry, I don't want to play."
The woman sitting next to him lifted her hat brim slightly and nudged him with her elbow, saying, "It's me."
Chi Cheng recognized the voice but couldn't place it. He turned to look at her and muttered under his breath, "Damn it."
Beneath the hat was a delicate, small face with a slightly mischievous smile; it was She Jiaxin.
Chi Cheng asked her, "Why are you here?"
He sized up She Jiaxin; she was dressed all in black, with a coat pulled up to her neck. He casually asked, "Still dressed like that?"
It had been months since they last saw each other, and She Jiaxin hadn't contacted them at all. She seemed to have lost some weight, and her chin had become much sharper.
Chi Cheng was genuinely surprised to see her.
She Jiaxin pulled her hat brim down. "I'm here to find someone."
Chi Cheng responded with an "oh," indicating he wasn't curious about her affairs.
However, Charmaine Sheh's next question to him was, "How do you know the drug kingpin?"
Chi Cheng asked in confusion, "The Poison King?"
"Yes, it's that guy who was sitting across from you earlier, with a woman on his arm. Don't tell me you don't know him. You're sitting at the same table." She Jiaxin said through gritted teeth, "I came here to see him."
Chi Cheng then realized that she was referring to Lin Shan's boyfriend, David. "He said his name is David, and he's my friend, Tiao Zai."
She Jiaxin rolled her eyes. "Yeah, he usually calls himself David because he has a small side and likes the perfect kind, like David. People in the industry call him Ah Du in private. When he heard that, he said that calling him 'Drug King' sounded really awesome, like the 'drug' in 'drug.' He's an OG in the sex industry, so everyone calls him that."
Chi Cheng's eyelids twitched when he heard the word "cannon circle." Who knew Lin Shan would find such a scumbag?
"Then what are you going to do with him?"
She Jiaxin looked around, then took his arm and pretended to pull him away, saying, "Let's go outside and talk."
Chi Cheng grabbed her wrist and pried her off. He didn't want to get involved in She Jiaxin's mess. Even if he knew what kind of person David was, he would just warn Lin Shan. Lin Shan was an adult and could tell right from wrong.
She Jiaxin could tell that Chi Cheng was unwilling to get involved, so she leaned close to his ear and said, "He's the one who gave me my illness. He did it on purpose. I don't know if he succeeded in getting your friend."
Chi Cheng's expression changed this time.
He thought to himself that Lin Shan couldn't be so stupid as to not see through this.
She Jiaxin was a little anxious. "I came here today because of a message from my friend. I'm afraid he'll see the two of us. Come out and I'll explain to you what's going on."
Chi Cheng then responded softly, "You can go out first."
Chi Cheng sent a WeChat message to She Jiaxin saying he would be back soon, and then walked in the direction She Jiaxin had gone.
The two were talking in a corner outside a small door of the nightclub.
Standing outside, the streetlights are much clearer than the light inside, and you can tell she doesn't look well. Her makeup is quite heavy and a bit cakey.
Chi Cheng lit a cigarette. "Go ahead and speak."
She Jiaxin took a cigarette from his pack and lit it. She took out her phone, turned on the video, and turned off the volume to show Chi Cheng.
Knowing that Chi Cheng was skeptical, she first showed her sincerity.
Chi Cheng took it, and it was a group party video.
At first, the view was confusing, but I gradually realized that one of the men was David.
While talking to Chi Cheng, She Jiaxin said, "I only recently found out about this drug kingpin. He deliberately infected others. When he was an OG, I was too young to know him. He retired from the drug trade and got married. I don't know why he came out again this year and was playing very recklessly. I had gonorrhea back then, and I kept thinking about it and it was him because he was wearing black, so I couldn't see anything. But at that time, I couldn't be sure."
Chi Cheng realized that the drug king in the video was also doing the same thing; it was probably just a cover-up.
"Hmm, like in the video?"
She Jiaxin's eyes were full of hatred. "Yes, I've never seen a condom like this before. I thought he wanted to make it thicker. After all, he's been playing around a lot and he's old, so he must have erectile dysfunction. Later, several people in the industry got it, and they all suspected it was him, but there was no evidence. He even got a certificate from a top-tier hospital from who-knows-where. But he's been avoiding the limelight lately, so he's probably gone to play around with respectable women. Even if he got infected, no one in the industry told anyone. I guess it's just that your friend is unlucky."
Chi Cheng asked, "Didn't he wear a condom?"
She Jiaxin gritted her teeth, "I suspect he poked it, it's a very small hole."
Chi Cheng understood. "If it's just a little bit, you really can't tell."
Chi Cheng calmly forwarded a copy of the video to his own WeChat account.
She Jiaxin realized what he was doing. She reached out and pressed the button to undo it. "Tell your friend that I have no objection. Wait until I'm done."
Seeing that she was holding the phone, Chi Cheng simply handed it back to her, asking, "What do you want to do?"
She Jiaxin's eyes were filled with resentment, "I'll take revenge on him and ruin his reputation."
Chi Cheng shrugged. "Just take the video and call the police."
At the very least, it could be considered a case of gathering a crowd to commit a crime.
She Jiaxin shook her head, "No, my friend is in there."
Chi Cheng: "..."
She Jiaxin tugged at his arm again, "Chi Cheng, please help me. He really sent it to me on purpose. Several of my friends did the same. I'm so angry and really want to get back at him."
Seeing that Chi Cheng really didn't want to put in any effort, she took his hand and tried to get closer, but Chi Cheng took a half step back.
"Chi Cheng, if you help me this time, I'll go to a hotel with you, I'll take my medicine, and I'll do whatever you want. Besides, I'm all better now, and I'll take you to see a doctor for a diagnosis."
Chi Cheng pulled his hand back, his tone icy, "I have a girlfriend."
She Jiaxin didn't try to seduce him again. She knew her limits and wouldn't touch those she didn't want to play with.
"What about your friend? The drug king is all talk and no action. Do you think she'll believe you? I'll give you a video; you can show it to her."
Chi Cheng frowned and threw down the cigarette butt, crushing it.
Lin Shan has such a stubborn personality that she won't listen to anyone when she gets angry.
However, the two have been close friends since high school, for six or seven years now, and it's impossible for them to ignore her.
Chi Cheng spoke up, "What do you plan to do with him?"
She Jiaxin had clearly acted impulsively without thinking things through, "Should we drug him? Or should we really give him some ketamine?"
Chi Cheng laughed sarcastically, "Haven't you learned your lesson yet? Didn't you fall hard enough? You're finished if you bump into these things."
She Jiaxin rolled her eyes. "Then what do you suggest we do?"
Chi Cheng thought for a moment, "What do you want him to do? If you want to find a police officer to deal with him, release a video. If you want to teach him a lesson, find some evidence and expose him. If you want him to pay compensation, you can also provide evidence to demand compensation."
She Jiaxin nodded. Although she hadn't thought it was that complicated, she had heard a lot about the ins and outs of it.
"Okay, so you mean it's a honey trap?"
Chi Cheng: "Not necessarily. I'll try to get him to talk first, and then record the conversation to prove he's sick."
She Jiaxin shook her head, "Impossible. A friend of mine asked him about it, but he couldn't get any information out of him. You're the girl he's trying to hook up with right now."
Chi Cheng said helplessly, "Then we can only resort to a honey trap. It's agreed that I can only hang him or make him pay for medical expenses. I won't do anything else."
She Jiaxin agreed, "What else would I want to do? Whoever is short of money, I want to expose them, preferably make them admit it themselves, so that when it gets out, they won't be able to harm a woman like him."