"Yes, yes, that's it!" Lang Xi slapped her thigh excitedly. "The female celebrity glared at people again!"
Ning Chen pushed Chang Jingxue directly into the guest room arranged by Yu Nan and slammed the door shut.
Yu Nan nudged Lang Xi with her elbow, "It seems like the female celebrity really dislikes you. What did you do to offend her?"
"Heaven and earth bear witness, I did nothing..." Lang Xi tried to protest her innocence, "Besides, she shouldn't dislike me... I'm not even sure if she dislikes me..."
Yu Nan asked with a gossipy look, "What? Is there some love-hate relationship going on? Even after all this, you still hate me?"
"Actually, the three of us used to have a very good relationship. Jingxue and I could talk about almost anything, while Xiaoning always clung to Jingxue but didn't reject me... Suddenly one day, Xiaoning turned on me and wanted to tear me apart."
"This is what it means to hate someone..."
“I used to think so too,” Lang Xi said, a rare look of melancholy on her face. “Until later, Ning Chen saved my life.”
"She is my savior."
Lang Xi fell into a long silence, and Yu Nan wisely refrained from asking any further questions.
Yu Nan knew that Lang Xi had a gunshot wound scar, which she had sustained when she was attacked while studying abroad.
It probably refers to the fact that Ning Chen saved her.
"Who cares! I'm the boss now!" Lang Xi patted Yu Nan and Zhu Yao on the shoulders. "Work hard. We'll all be colleagues from now on. If I get to eat meat, I'll make sure you get soup first."
Yu Nan/Zhu Yao: ...
I think I understand now why Ning Chen dislikes Lang Xi.
…
Yu Nan continued studying her textbooks, while Zhu Yao went to find Lang Xi.
"What? You missed me after not seeing me for a few days?"
"Yes, I'd like to have a talk with my second brother."
Lang Xi stepped aside and gave a gentlemanly bow, gesturing for him to come in.
Chapter 48 Something Happened
"Because of Yu Nan's confession?"
Zhu Yao nodded gently.
That incident has been keeping Zhu Yao on edge for the past few days. She wants to run away whenever she sees Yu Nan, and even talking to Yu Nan feels strange; she has no idea what to say.
She dutifully served as a "nanny," never daring to overstep her bounds.
"Miss Zhu, there's no need to consult me. If you like each other, be together; if you don't, just refuse."
Lang Xi doesn't consider herself a "confidante," especially since she once had feelings for Yu Nan and is now collaborating with her with the intention of getting closer to Yu Nan.
"If I'm not mistaken, Miss Lang pursued Yu Nan, didn't she?"
"I did pursue you," Lang Xi readily admitted. "I also pursued Ning Chen and Chang Jingxue, and to be honest, I even planned to pursue you."
Zhu Yao: ? How strange.
"However, you're just joking about pursuing Ning Chen, but you really are pursuing Chang Jingxue and Yu Nan."
Zhu Yao understood; her guess was indeed correct.
"Then why isn't Yu Nan with you? You two seem to get along very well."
“Your map of Yan is a bit short,” Lang Xi said, looking hurt. “Why aren’t you together? Of course, it’s because I didn’t win her over. If I had, we would have been together long ago.”
Zhu Yao also realized that she had asked a pointless question, a question that was exactly what Zha Langxi wanted to ask.
"Um... I'd like to know why Yu Nan rejected you. Miss Lang seems very outstanding..."
When Zhu Yao asked him that question, Lang Xi opened up and started to complain to her.
"I don't know either, I'm really frustrated!"
Lang Xi looked utterly devastated: "Although I enjoy making friends with beautiful women, and although I like girls who are funny and talkative, I'm loyal and devoted when it comes to people I like!"
"Chang Jingxue and I were childhood sweethearts. In high school, we were practically on the verge of a romantic relationship, but Ning Chen just appeared out of nowhere, and his target was clearly Jingxue..."
"After finally overcoming the psychological trauma of high school, I worked for a few years and then met Xiaoyu. This girl was incredibly mischievous, making me both lovable and exasperated. She said she wanted to make indie games, and I was willing to dedicate all my energy to supporting her dream. I waited for three years, searching for a studio while preparing for game development. Just when things were almost ready, I was about to pursue Yu Nan again..."
As a result… Zhu Yao appeared and immediately captivated Yu Nan.
Zhu Yao: ...Sorry, but it's really funny.
Lang Xi looked up to the sky and roared, "Don't worry, I'm a self-respecting woman. If you two get together, I'll definitely keep my feelings in check..."
Zhu Yao didn't refute this statement, which made Lang Xi even more heartbroken—it meant that Zhu Yao didn't reject being with Yu Nan.
Fine, in this world... only her wolf-blade is superfluous...
"Miss Zhu," Lang Xi suddenly grabbed Zhu Yao's hand, "I'm serious. That kid Yun Nan is really something. If I pursued you, would you agree?"
"No, I'd feel awkward about dating my readers..."
"Isn't Yu Nan also your reader?"
"That's different. It's a chicken-or-egg problem. Yu Nan became my reader later, during those few days when I went to Mount Kongtong."
Lang Xi: ...
"Then...can I know the real reason you rejected me? I'll change next time I meet someone I like..."
“Miss Lang, you are a good person, thoughtful, considerate, and humorous…” Zhu Yao thought carefully for a moment, “but… when I heard your confession, I felt like you were joking, so I couldn’t help but reject you.”
It feels like Lang Xi has a "confession will always be rejected" buff. Even though she is someone who can easily make people's hearts flutter, hearing her confess makes you want to reject her!
Lang Xi felt like she was choking on blood, unable to spit it out or swallow it down. "Stop! What's your purpose in coming to my room? To hurt me and reject me?"
"Uh..." Zhu Yao scratched her head sheepishly, "I just wanted to ask why Yu Nan rejected you."
If there are faults, correct them; if not, strive to improve.
Lang Xi: ...Listen to me, thank you.
"Thank you, Master."
Zhu Yao suddenly became serious and looked at Lang Dao'er with a serious expression: "You are actually... trying to match me up with Yu Nan, aren't you?"
Without Lang Xi, the relationship between Yu Nan and Zhu Yao might still be stuck at the stage of going to Mount Kongtong—at that time, Zhu Yao was trapped in the past and blocked out all the goodwill from the outside world.
Whether as an "online friend" or a "roommate," Lang Dao'er would always make ambiguous jokes to bring her and Yu Nan closer, and subtly and gradually bring them out of the closet.
It wasn't just about feelings... Wolf Blade brought Yu Nan the independent game studio she needed most, and also brought Zhu Yao a career path other than "writer," patiently explaining game production to the two of them.
As the saying goes, a good teacher and a helpful friend are invaluable assets. Zhu Yao is wholeheartedly grateful to Lang Xi and sincerely hopes that she will find happiness...
Of course, this excludes the kind of happiness Lang Xi experiences with herself or Yu Nan.
Lang Xi waved her hand, as if to say, "Back then, Chang Jingxue didn't want to accept Ning Chen, and it was I who persuaded her with tears in my eyes..."
"Oh? Could you elaborate?"
It's gossip! Zhu Yao perked up.
"Chang Jingxue used to be withdrawn and insecure. Ning Chen was the kind of person from a wealthy family who seemed like a celestial being descended to earth, and he pursued Chang Jingxue relentlessly... Chang Jingxue just couldn't understand why Ning Chen would pursue her, and why he absolutely refused to accept her..."
"Hey, I knew it! I'm your boss now! I'm the great people's entrepreneur! You've all been paired up and are now working for me, making the most of your surplus value!"
Lang Xi looked utterly miserable, pointing and gesturing with tears in her eyes, "We don't care about feelings anymore, we only care about money! I'm going to exploit you bunch of scumbag girls to death, waaaaah!"
"Thank you, Boss Lang," Zhu Yao said, pressing her palms together and sincerely bowing to Lang Dao'er. "Thank you, Matchmaker Lang, God of Wealth Lang."
…
Having overcome the hurdle in her heart, Zhu Yao attempted to forget the psychological trauma caused by her niece's "ex" and planned to interact with Yu Nan with a completely new mindset.
But this mindset only lasted one night. When he got out of bed the next day, he found that something had gone wrong.
She and Yu Nan were doxxed.
First, "Xiao Tu's" identity was revealed, based on "Lang Dao'er's" announcement of a long-standing collaboration with "Yu Miao," combined with the speculation in the video that Yu Nan had watched—everyone confirmed that she was indeed Yu Miao.
Yu Nan's shout of "Zhu Yao" shattered the [Yao Ling] costume, revealing her identity, her author ID, and the embellished stories about her past told by her former classmates.
Netizens' tolerance for homosexuality is limited. As the saying goes, the taller the tree, the more the wind will blow. Yesterday's apparent harmony and blessings were just the prelude to today's big move.
"I'm Zhu Yao's high school classmate. She's a disgusting lesbian who harassed girls who had boyfriends. But now... those girls are married and have kids. I don't know if she's still harassing them..."
"Zhu Yao...we went to the same high school. Her family is rich and she looks down on others. She thinks she's superior and that being a top student makes her great..."
"Her mother seems to be a mistress... Sure enough, a mistress's child is also a mistress, harassing someone else's girlfriend..."
In an instant, such videos became the key to generating traffic—as long as there was a class photo of Zhu Yao and the account owner, one could fabricate stories.
Yu Nan took the device from Zhu Yao's hands, who was pale and trembling as she stared at the screen, and looked at her almost pleadingly: "Sister, let's not watch it for now, okay?"
Zhu Yao could barely speak. Her stomach was churning, and countless memories she had deliberately forgotten were now churning like silt from the seabed in a downpour, rising to the surface…
"This whole thing is aimed at Zhu Yao. I always knew that students from Beiling couldn't possibly be reduced to just writing novels and getting welfare..."
Lang Xi's face was half-hidden in shadow, her eyes filled with undisguised coldness: "Yu Nan, take Zhu Yao out for a few days to relax and avoid the internet. Leave this matter to us."
"I…"
“Go ahead, leave it to us. You guys lay low for a while,” Ning Chen patted Yu Nan on the shoulder. “Come back and we’ll play games together.”
"Thank you," Yu Nan said, her eyes welling up with tears, and bowed to the group.
After the two left, Ning Chen, Li Yue, and Lang Xi looked at each other in silence.
“I knew Zhu Yao’s identity was not simple, but I didn’t expect it to be so sensitive,” Li Yue sighed. “If I had known… I would have changed Xiao Yu’s roommate back then.”
"Whether it's a blessing or a curse, you can't escape it. Zhu Yao will have to suffer this blow sooner or later."
“I don’t care about Zhu Yao, I only care about my cousin.”
"Alright," Ning Chen interrupted their conversation. "So what if Ma Cha is a diplomat? How dare you have an affair and have an illegitimate daughter, yet you want to drive your own daughter to her death because the illegitimate daughter is a lesbian? What a scoundrel."
"Guangweizheng... damn it, I'd better go to the Guangweizheng bar, wow!"
Lang Xi glanced nervously at the grinning Ning Chen…
Hmm... it seems that inviting this hot-tempered young lady along was the right decision.