At noon, the university campus was filled with birdsong and blooming flowers. The four of them were eating together in the cafeteria, chatting and laughing.
anwhile, over by the campus pond in a gazebo, tiny goldfish swam around in the water, occasionally blowing a few bubbles to the surface.
Fang ng handed over a chicken wrap to Jiang Qian—it was the sa kind Lin Zhengran had bought at the cafeteria the day before.
“Here you go, Qianqian.”
Jiang Qian, her long hair flowing, took the food and asked, “How’d the plan go?”
“It failed. Lin Zhengran said he has zero interest in joining any clubs. Said he already has things to do with those three girls.”
“Oh,” Jiang Qian replied, taking the wrap, unwrapping it, and biting into the juicy chicken slowly.
To outsiders, her face remained emotionless. But as her lifelong best friend, Fang ng could tell Jiang Qian was feeling a bit down.
Not that this kind of disappointnt would knock her down. But still—she used to talk to Lin Zhengran every day. Now, even though they were still in the sa class, she couldn’t even get a proper conversation in.
The downside of college freedom—who could really understand the pain it caused a girl in love?
Fang ng took out her own lunch—it was the sa al—and the two of them ate while staring blankly at the fish in the pond.
Fang ng broke the silence:
“Qianqian, there’s sothing I want to remind you of. At the end of the day, Lin Zhengran is a real person. I know he’s perfect in your eyes,
but since he’s human, he’s bound to have flaws. Maybe not in terms of ability, but perhaps in his habits or behavior. Either way, no one’s perfect.”
“What are you trying to say, Xiaong?” Jiang Qian’s cool gaze turned toward her.
Fang ng smiled, shifting the topic slightly.
“I want to start investigating how to get Lin Zhengran interested in a girl. Even though love at first sight doesn’t apply to him, we know he can feel sothing for girls, which ans there has to be a way to move him.
We just haven’t found it yet.”
She paused for a mont.
“My next steps might not be helpful, but I want to change tactics. I’m going to stop investigating Lin Zhengran and instead look into those three girls and the rich girl. If I find sothing... I hope you’ll be ntally prepared.”
Jiang Qian wasn’t dumb. She knew exactly what that ant.
She even said it out loud: “You’re saying all three of those girls—and my sister—each possess sothing that appeals to Lin Zhengran, aren’t you?”
“Mhm.” Since Jiang Qian was being direct, Fang ng responded in kind:
“To be blunt, I suspect Lin Zhengran is probably stringing all four of them along. It’s obvious the rich girl and those three all like him,
and if he likes them back, then there must be... sothing going on between them. Of course, it’s just a theory. I really can’t picture the rich girl being okay with sothing like that.”
Jiang Qian looked toward the pond and took a few more bites of her chicken wrap.
“Guess he really does have a lot of legs. Fine, Xiaong, go ahead and investigate. Starting today, we’ll operate separately. Since he’s not joining any clubs, I can guess what he’ll be doing. After all, I was his desk mate for three years.”
She finished eating and stood up.
Fang ng was surprised. “Even if that’s true, do you still want to be with him? You still like him? Even knowing he’s such a flirt? Can you really accept sothing like that?”
Jiang Qian half-turned, her long black hair dancing in the campus breeze—beautiful beyond words.
“Xiaong, I don’t know why, but after hearing everything you said just now, I wasn’t even surprised. Maybe we’ve known deep down from the beginning that Lin Zhengran is greedy when it cos to girls.
From the first mont we t him, those three were always around him. I don’t know the specifics of their relationship, but I can see that he genuinely cares about them. Even now, with my sister in the picture, he hasn’t pushed any of them aside.”
Fang ng fell silent.
Jiang Qian asked:
“Can you honestly say my sister didn’t see that from the start? She’s dealt with so many people, done business with big-na CEOs—
she’s definitely the type who can spot things at a glance. And yet, even knowing that, both she and I still fell for soone we probably shouldn’t have. I don’t know what made her fall for him,
but for ... the thing that touched most was how he never abandons the people who matter to him. He doesn’t get bored and move on. Once you have him, you never have to worry he’ll toss you aside. He’ll always care and protect you.
That strange sense of security is why I’m so stubborn. And honestly, the fact that he’s a flirt is almost in plain sight. It’s like he’s saying to everyone—”
Jiang Qian repeated, “This is just who I am. What you see is what you get. If you don’t like it, stay away. I won’t co chasing after you either.” She smiled. “There’s sothing really attractive about that.”
Fang ng suddenly chuckled too.
“I get it. Lin Zhengran is the type who’s visible and tangible. He’s so strong he doesn’t need to pretend around anyone. He just does whatever he wants without caring what others think. That kind of freedom is deadly for girls.”
Jiang Qian:
“But don’t worry, even after everything I said, I don’t intend to share a man with my sister. She’s different from those other three—she’s soone who’ll never be left behind.
Once I’m with Lin Zhengran, he can still be with my sister as her brother-in-law. And I’ll be by my sister’s side for the rest of my life.” Her tone darkened.
“Of course, if I do get dumped, then so be it. She deserves it. Who told her to steal Lin Zhengran from ?!”
Fang ng gave her an awkward grin. “Qianqian… you really have a special kind of grudge against the rich girl, huh.”
Jiang Qian looked forward again.
“As for those three girls, I know Lin Zhengran will definitely keep them by his side. Since that’s the case, I’ll just make sure I beco the most important one in his heart.
I can accept being one of four. Because the mont I fell for him, I realized—I could actually live with that. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have fallen in the first place.”
With a faint blush, she looked up at the sky. “Strong, confident, gives absolute security, and he even changed in high school.
A guy like that... if he’s a little flirty, then so be it. Everyone has flaws. And I... just happen to like him anyway.”
She turned to Fang ng, her expression turning cold again.
“Alright, that’s enough talking. Our plan now is this: you investigate those three girls and my sister—figure out what exactly it is that Lin Zhengran likes about them.
I’ll use my own thods to get close to him, find chances to be with him, and work on breaking him and my sister up. Let’s move.”
Fang ng nodded helplessly. “No problem. I’ll get the info ASAP.”
As she watched Jiang Qian disappear into the campus, Fang ng placed a hand over her chest.
“Girls really are such idiots, huh? Even knowing Lin Zhengran is a giant fire pit, we all still jump in one by one... included.”
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