Such a hamster-like reaction!
Seeing that Wen Ying hadn’t picked up on anything, Xie Qian instantly relaxed.
The two of them circled the railway station construction site without getting bored, chatting about the logistics company, chatting about the film industry, and time flew by.
When Wang Shuang finally rang to say they’d finished counting stock, Xie Qian glanced at his watch and was shocked to see it was already 11:30 pm.
He made a snap decision and told Wang Shuang, “We won’t come back over. I’ll get a taxi to take Wen Ying to her hotel. You head back to campus yourself.”
“Alright, alright, got it!”
Wang Shuang was drenched in sweat and just wanted to get back to campus for a shower.
He still had a last shred of gentlemanly manners and knew he should walk Hang Xiaowen back too, since they were both going the same way.
On the road, Hang Xiaowen tried several times to start a conversation, but Wang Shuang had zero interest.
Once the stocktake was done, he knew exactly how many clothes there were.
His head was now completely full of ideas about how to sell the clothes and recover some costs. He had no energy left to humour Hang Xiaowen!
The boys’ and girls’ dorms were in different directions. At the fork in the path, Hang Xiaowen said earnestly, “Wang Shuang, don’t worry too much. There’ll be a way to deal with the clothes. I’ll help you.”
Wang Shuang replied absent-mindedly, “No need. I’ll figure it out myself.”
Watching Wang Shuang’s retreating back, Hang Xiaowen bit her lip hard.
Ever since that so-called good friend Wen Ying arrived in Shanghai, Wang Shuang had been acting strange!
Back in his dorm, all five of Wang Shuang’s roommates were studying.
University students, right? As relaxed as they are during term time, that’s how hard they cram when finals approach.
Just as Wang Shuang was about to grab his basin for a shower, one roommate put down his book.
“I heard you fell out with Hang Xiaowen and the others?”
Wang Shuang rolled his eyes. “Who did you hear that from?”
“It’s all over the department. They’re saying you, the rich second-generation, deliberately played everyone, swore you’d start a business together, then kicked them overboard halfway!”
His roommate’s words sent Wang Shuang into a rage.
He slammed his basin onto the floor, yanked open the door, and charged out.
“Hey, Wang Shuang, stop!”
The roommate who had spoken leapt up to chase him, and the other four followed.
There were boys from his own class who had joined the start-up. Wang Shuang stormed next door, kicked the door open, pointed at the guy sleeping on the top bunk nearest the door, and roared, “Was it you, you little shit, spreading lies about me? I paid for this business, gave you all shares, paid you wages, and now the money’s gone and I want to call it quits, that’s not allowed?”
They’d been classmates for a year, and Wang Shuang had always been seen as easy-going.
This was the first time anyone had seen him lose his temper.
The guy naturally denied it.
His roommates were terrified Wang Shuang might hit someone, but Wang Shuang just turned and left, then kicked open the door at the end of the corridor.
He asked the same question a second time.
This guy was in the same major but a different class.
He denied it too. “I never said anything!”
Wang Shuang sneered. “Not you either? Then it must be some other little shit!”
For the third time, Wang Shuang charged upstairs.
The third guy was a year above him, a second-year.
At first his roommates were worried, but they gradually caught on. By the time Wang Shuang was kicking doors, they were only pretending to hold him back, all fake moves.
And so Wang Shuang went through several rooms. More and more students followed behind to watch the show.
Including Wang Shuang and Hang Xiaowen, the start-up team had seven members. When he reached the last guy, Wang Shuang was still in full fury. “Not you either? Then which rotten asshole is smearing me? It’s the middle of the night, I can’t exactly go kick down the girls’ dorm door, can I!”
Nobody admitted it.
In the end, only Hang Xiaowen was left carrying the blame.
Normally they all called her “senior sister” with great affection, but at the critical moment, not one of them considered her reputation.
Wang Shuang had half-expected this when he started making a scene. Seeing things unfold exactly as predicted, he finally saw his so-called business partners for what they were.
The commotion eventually woke the boys’ dorm supervisor.
She thought Wang Shuang must be drunk and acting crazy, but when she got close, there was no smell of alcohol.
“Do you want a disciplinary warning?”
“Auntie, I was wrong! I’m going straight to bed!”
The Wang Shuang who had been rampaging moments ago backed down lightning-fast, squeezed through the crowd, and sprinted back to his room.
His roommates and the onlookers covered for his escape. The supervisor tried to chase but couldn’t catch him, and ended up scolding everyone. “You little rascals, get back to your rooms and sleep!!”
The crowd scattered instantly.
Back in the dorm, his roommates gave Wang Shuang a big thumbs-up. “Shuang-ge, you’re the man!”
Wang Shuang was modest. “Just average. Third in the world.”
After Wang Shuang’s performance, nobody would dare badmouth him behind his back again.
If people wanted to gossip, they’d gossip about the others.
By tomorrow, the whole department would know Wang Shuang was a straight-up guy. He was the only one who put in money when they started the business. Everyone else contributed nothing, yet took shares and drew salaries!
The start-up failed, but that wasn’t Wang Shuang’s fault… The honest guy had really been taken advantage of.
Wang Shuang went to sleep happy. Hang Xiaowen, however, lay awake all night.
The whole boys’ dorm block was talking about it. Some guys told their girlfriends at the same university, and word spread until it reached Hang Xiaowen’s ears.
She was completely stunned.
“It wasn’t me!”
She genuinely hadn’t started the rumour!
The team might be dissolving, but she didn’t want to burn bridges with Wang Shuang. She wouldn’t smear him at school.
But she knew exactly who had said it. Two of the younger guys were hot-headed and unhappy with Wang Shuang’s decision. They had been badmouthing him.
Hang Xiaowen, being well-connected, had heard about it ages ago.
She hadn’t intervened. She planned to wait until the rumour grew bigger, then step in to clear Wang Shuang’s name and earn his gratitude.
She never imagined Wang Shuang’s ferocious operation tonight would scare the real rumour-mongers into silence and leave her carrying the can.
Hang Xiaowen tried to ring Wang Shuang to explain, but his phone was already turned off.
“It really wasn’t me…”
She tearfully protested to her roommates.
They comforted her kindly. “We’re just not in the same world as rich second-generations. He’s too hard to please. Just stay away from him in future! In a few months we’ll all have jobs. Apart from coming back for graduation projects, we won’t have to deal with these people anymore. Why care what they say?”
Jobs? What jobs?
If she could land a good job, would she have gone to all this effort?!
…
Wang Shuang’s performance even earned Wen Ying’s admiration. When they met the next day, she couldn’t help praising him out loud.
“I’ve got one more signing tomorrow, then I’m off to Beijing. Don’t worry about being bored. Sister Kiki says Mengjiao has a commercial performance in Shanghai. She arrives tonight.”
Wang Shuang didn’t mind Wen Ying telling others about his financial loss, but he absolutely didn’t want Li Mengjiao to know. He begged Wen Ying to keep it secret.
“It’s too embarrassing. She’ll definitely laugh at me!”
Boys and their weird pride.
Wen Ying saw right through him but didn’t call it out. “I can keep quiet, but what if you two meet and Senior Sister Hang happens to ring?”
Wang Shuang stroked his chin. “Good point.”
He had also noticed that Hang Xiaowen had a habit of hearing only what she wanted to hear and ignoring refusals.
What could Wang Shuang do?
He immediately pulled out his phone and blocked Hang Xiaowen.
