GV – Chapter 52

Not long after the New Year’s party was Song Zhiqing’s birthday. Ye Yuhuan gave her 10% of Sheng Jing’s shares as a gift.

Sheng Jing was now the key to Shen Wei turning the tables. Forging an alliance with Shen Wei by starting with Sheng Jing was the most stable option. For now, as long as they got through the next plot point, Song Zhiqing’s chances of avoiding her villainess fate were nearly one hundred percent.

And Ye Yuhuan could finally break free from the aftershocks of that dream.

When Shen Wei found out, she clicked her tongue and immediately sent Ye Yuhuan a meaningful text: 【You never told me what you wanted, but now I’m guessing it’s ninety-nine percent related to Song Zhiqing.】

Ye Yuhuan couldn’t be bothered to reply.

At the time, Song Zhiqing didn’t understand the value of this gift, thinking it was just Ye Yuhuan sharing the fruits of her startup.

But what Song Zhiqing could feel was Ye Yuhuan’s sudden distance.

It was a hard feeling to describe, one only the people involved could discern.

On the surface, Ye Yuhuan treated her the same as before. Their friendship was as solid as ever.

But anything more than that was gone. It had been there before—an invisible magnetic field of mutual attraction between them. But after the New Year’s party, Ye Yuhuan had built a wall between them, blocking out anything related to hormones.

What was the reason?

Before Song Zhiqing could figure it out, the final exams arrived.

Shen Wei’s protagonist halo couldn’t stand up to Ye Yuhuan’s study god halo. For the first semester of their second year, the top spot at Qinglin—and in the entire city—still belonged to the ever-consistent Miss Ye Yuhuan. The hardworking Auntie Shen Wei had to settle for second, with Shangguan Xianxian in third. Song Zhiqing secured her spot in the top hundred, and because her crush had gone from second in the school to first, her motivation to study surged, allowing her to miraculously jump twenty places from her midterm ranking.

As a school for the elite, Qinglin naturally had its own style. One of its policies was no make-up classes during vacation. After all, the children of wealthy families had plenty of ways to study if they wanted to, and the scholarship students could easily afford tutoring with the stipends from Qinglin. There was no need to take up vacation time and interfere with some families’ travel plans.

Song Zhiqing’s family was one of “some families.” Gao Yiren had finally cleared a large chunk of her schedule, and the plan for a family trip during winter break had been set from the beginning. After Song Chen worked overtime for half a month to get his company’s affairs in order, he took his wife and daughter to a private island in the Pacific for a vacation.

Basking in the warm, pleasant sun of the Southern Hemisphere, Song Zhiqing lay on a beach chair, glumly watching a boy swimming not far away.

The ever-present Chi Yuan.

As a world-famous movie star, if Gao Yiren were to travel to any tourist spot without a disguise, it was easy to imagine the chaos it would cause. Just dealing with fans asking for photos and autographs would take up a significant amount of time, which went against her intention of having a relaxing vacation with her daughter. However, a trip to the island with just the three of them would be too dull. Coincidentally, Xiang Wanyu was free recently, so Gao Yiren invited her along. Of course, it wasn’t just Xiang Wanyu and her son, Chi Yuan; the Cheng family, who were on good terms with the Songs and had been their neighbors for years, also came.

The Cheng family’s daughter, Cheng Changxue, was one of Song Zhiqing’s few friends. Unlike her friendship with Chi Yuan, which was born from their parents’ relationship, Song Zhiqing and Cheng Changxue could be considered kindred spirits. It was a shame she went abroad for high school; otherwise, the Cosmic Beauty Garden would have certainly gained another formidable member.

The dispute between Song Zhiqing and Chi Yuan hadn’t reached the adults’ ears. So when Song Zhiqing found out Chi Yuan was coming too, she nearly threw a fit and refused to go.

What kind of situation was this? The person she liked was a world away, yet here was her rival, an eyesore right in front of her.

But Song Zhiqing had always been well-behaved around her mother, so she swallowed her discomfort. She figured she could just ignore the guy. If she actually spoke to him, they might end up in another fight.

Ye Yuhuan’s harsh words last time had indeed discouraged Chi Yuan for a while, but he soon reverted to his old ways, becoming even more fervent than before. According to him, it was because he discovered that not only did Ye Yuhuan’s looks and talent suit his tastes, but even her personality scratched an itch for him.

Upon hearing this, Song Zhiqing had immediately called Chi Yuan to a boxing gym and beaten him up.

Right now, the swimming boy’s back was still covered in bruises from Song Zhiqing’s heavy blows. As the school tyrant, she had a few basic moves learned from the film crew’s martial arts director up her sleeve.

Cheng Changxue waved a hand in front of Song Zhiqing’s face. Seeing no reaction, she called out, “Hey,” and asked quizzically, “What’s wrong with you? Didn’t you used to dream about going on trips with Auntie Gao? How come you look like you’ve lost your soul now that your dream’s come true?”

Song Zhiqing heaved a heavy sigh and said nothing.

Cheng Changxue plopped down on the beach chair next to Song Zhiqing. “Is that Ye Yuhuan really all that?” she asked curiously.

“I heard you and Chi Yuan are practically enemies now.”

Song Zhiqing listlessly pushed away Cheng Changxue’s face as she leaned in close. “Don’t let my mom hear you say that. I don’t want her to think Ye Yuhuan is some kind of bad person.”

Cheng Changxue shook her head dramatically. “You haven’t really fallen for her, have you?” she exclaimed. “I never saw you this heartbroken even when you liked Shangguan Xianxian.”

“But I’m telling you, you’d better make things clear with Auntie Gao. Sure, you haven’t told her that you and Chi Yuan have turned against each other over a girl, but look at your attitude towards him. Even a blind person could tell something’s wrong between you two. And even if your parents respect your freedom to choose your friends and don’t pry into your school life, Auntie Xiang isn’t like that. If she says something later, won’t all this suffering now be for nothing?”

Song Zhiqing wasn’t moved by Cheng Changxue’s advice. Instead, she first corrected her seriously, “Ye Yuhuan isn’t just a beauty. She’s amazing in every way, and she hates it when people talk about her looks.”

Huh? Was that supposed to be the main point?

Cheng Changxue’s face was full of disbelief. She nearly choked on her fruit juice. After wiping her mouth with a towel, she gave Song Zhiqing a thumbs-up. “Song Zhiqing, you’ve really fallen for her this time.”

So what if I’ve fallen? It’s not like I don’t know it myself.

Song Zhiqing rolled over, lying on her stomach on the chair, still looking listless. “What’s so strange about it? It’s not like I’m some kind of Tripitaka.”

But the one I like is a great big nun, sob sob sob.

“I really don’t get you. Your family’s Shen Lan is full of beautiful people, but I never saw you get particularly obsessed with any of them growing up. The moment you got to Qinglin, you changed. And each time, you fall harder than the last.”

Song Zhiqing repeated the same line, as if chanting a spell, “Ye Yuhuan is just the kind of person you can’t help but fall for.”

Cheng Changxue was numb to it. She couldn’t be bothered to argue with this love-struck fool. Popping a cherry into her mouth, she advised, “Seriously, you and Chi Yuan don’t have to be so hostile. Why not just compete fairly? You’ve known each other for so many years, there’s no need for this.”

The topic made Song Zhiqing angry. “If he were competing fairly, I wouldn’t care. But he bothers Ye Yuhuan every single day. He’s so thick-skinned and won’t listen no matter what anyone says. Is that how you’re supposed to treat someone you like?”

But… wasn’t that the common way of pursuing someone in their second-generation rich kid circle?

Throwing money around, creating grand scenes, a full set of luxury cars, flowers, bags, and jewelry.

But Song Zhiqing, who had always been seen as the quintessential rich kid due to her school tyrant status, replied, “He doesn’t respect Ye Yuhuan. When you like someone, you should at least respect them. You shouldn’t do things that trouble them.”

Ye Yuhuan doesn’t like any of that stuff, okay!

Cheng Changxue was completely stunned. How had she never noticed that her childhood friend was so pure-hearted? Even a princess living in a castle, lulled to sleep by fairy tales every night, would probably be just like this.

Coming back to her senses, Cheng Changxue leaned close to Song Zhiqing, gave her a flirtatious look, and joked, “Hey, sis, is it too late for me to swing your way? If you can’t win over Ye Yuhuan, how about you consider me?”

Song Zhiqing shoved her away in disgust and went back to cosplaying as a turtle on the chair.

Hmph, she would definitely win Ye Yuhuan over. It might take some time, but she would definitely succeed.

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Cheng Changxue’s words weren’t baseless. At that very moment, Xiang Wanyu was complaining to Gao Yiren, “I don’t know what’s so charming about that Ye Yuhuan from Qinglin. It’s bad enough that my Yuan is smitten, but I heard Qingqing is crazy about her too. They even got into a fight a while back. I was hoping they’d make up on this trip, but it’s been almost a week and they’ve barely said two words to each other.”

Hearing this, Gao Yiren took off her sunglasses. Her exquisite face was revealed to Xiang Wanyu’s admiring gaze. Even after all these years, Xiang Wanyu still felt as inadequate before Gao Yiren as she had when they first met.

“Sister Wanyu, are you saying Qingqing and Yuan are fighting because of little Ye?”

“What else could it be? Yuan told me everything. Qingqing is always stopping him from pursuing Ye Yuhuan. He’s just a kid and can’t see it clearly, but we adults can tell at a glance that Qingqing is just jealous.” After saying this, Xiang Wanyu curled her lip in a sneer. “I wonder what tricks this Ye Yuhuan has learned to have them both so bewitched. I told the Qinglin administration long ago not to accept those scholarship students. What’s the use of being good at studying? If a person’s character is crooked, it’s better to be a little dumb.”

Song Chen had told her about Xiang Wanyu’s veiled insults toward Ye Yuhuan at the last banquet. Gao Yiren knew that this friend of many years had a snobbish streak due to her insecurity about her own origins, but that she was a good person otherwise. Back when they were struggling in the entertainment industry, Xiang Wanyu was known for being a workaholic. But she never expected her to be so snobbish that she couldn’t see a person’s true character.

Xiao Ye had no real flaws aside from her background. And speaking of backgrounds, she and Xiang Wanyu hadn’t come from wealthy families either.

Had the dyeing vat of high society really turned the sister who used to cheerfully bring her meals into this person who now fawned on the powerful and trampled on the weak?

Gao Yiren said disappointedly, “I know Qingqing likes little Ye. I even approve of her pursuing her.”

“I don’t know what Yuan did to make Qingqing angry enough to fight him, but I trust my daughter’s character. If Yuan hadn’t gone too far, she wouldn’t be unable to tolerate a rival in love.”

Xiang Wanyu’s fingers, which were reaching for a cocktail, froze. “Are you saying,” she asked in disbelief, “that it’s Yuan’s fault?”

Gao Yiren frowned at her sharp tone but explained patiently, “I’m not saying it’s definitely Yuan’s fault. I’m just offering my guess. To know what really happened, we’d have to ask them both. I’m simply making this judgment based on my understanding of little Ye and my daughter.”

She could accept it from Song Chen; Xiang Wanyu knew that people in high society had always looked down on her for being an actress in her early years. But how could Gao Yiren do this? They had climbed up from the bottom together. And now, over a mere Ye Yuhuan, she was implying her son had poor character!

She knew it. Gao Yiren looked down on her now.

It made sense. Who was Gao Yiren? The renowned Best Actress Gao. And who was Xiang Wanyu? In the past, the media called her Gao Yiren’s friend. Now, they called her Gao Yiren’s best friend. She was nothing more than Gao Yiren’s accessory.

Xiang Wanyu viciously chugged her drink. “Yiren,” she sneered, “you really have changed.”

With that, she turned and walked toward the villa.

Gao Yiren stood where she was, watching her retreating back.

Who was the one who had really changed?

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