Her phone was ringing. The caller ID showed Mrs. Lu. It must be about the suit fitting that was coming up soon—she had something to remind her about.
Before leaving, she had even specifically mentioned that the second young master of the Yang Family was returning to the country. Who knows what she was thinking.
Feeling as if she had lost all her means and strength, Cheng Buxi completely ignored Xiao Yingying. She pressed the answer button and walked straight out of the dormitory, shutting out the gossip inside.
"Hey, don't go!"
"She's calling her sugar daddy to cry poor!"
"Damn... she really is being kept!" Hu Die smirked with a triumphant look, crossing her legs. "I told you, this is way more explosive than wearing fake Arc'teryx!"
Hearing the word "fake," Xiao Yingying looked like a poor man who had found a gold nugget, an expedition team that struck treasure. It took her a while to steady her excited breathing. "What did you say?"
...
"Koukou, have you arrived at school?"
"Mm, I'm here... Brother drove me all the way to the gate."
She leaned against the wall, putting almost all her weight on it. Her voice sounded soft and weak.
Mrs. Lu rarely called her directly; she usually sent messages or simply transferred money. The money accumulated on her supplementary card over the years had become an astonishing sum.
Money had always brought her more harm than good. She had learned that during her middle school years, and gradually, she lost her illusion about it. Now, in college, she maintained a simple persona—no background, no money, just a pretty face, an ordinary, poor person.
Yes, poor.
That's why any high-end item that happened to appear on her became the target of others' malicious speculation and gossip.
"Why are you so listless? Listen, Auntie is telling you, when you go to Yiguan, get yourself a custom-made coat too."
Cheng Buxi never lacked clothes for any season, but she still obediently replied, "Okay."
"Remember to dress up beautifully. What's wrong with a little bit of makeup for a young girl? Don't be stingy with money. Why don't you use the card I gave you? Don't be so frugal, sweetheart. Misers never come to a good end, you know—and oh, do you remember the second young master of the Yang Family? He used to visit often when you were little. He'll be coming too."
Mrs. Lu chattered like a machine gun, her maternal affection overflowing. She even had it on speakerphone.
Lu Siyu, who was nearby, was annoyed by the noise and couldn't help covering her ears.
The second young master of the Yang Family.
Cheng Buxi seemed to have some impression of him. That boy was decently dressed and gentle, very proud, not very talkative, and always had a little follower behind him. That little girl who always tagged along had exchanged a few words with her: "...I remember."
"Mm, good that you remember. I'll arrange for you two to meet. Your brother, such a grown man, still hasn't settled down!"
Cheng Buxi: "..."
Her eagerness to see grandchildren was completely undisguised.
Lu Siyu knew her mother well—always worrying, never aging. She didn't hold back and openly sneered. She had been planning to stay one more night before returning to Shanghai, but now she didn't want to stay a moment longer.
Just then, an acquaintance passed by in the hallway and saw Cheng Buxi standing alone outside the dorm. Not one to mind their own business, they came over and joked, "What's up? Got kicked out by your roommates again?"
Far away at home, the second sister paused mid-motion, clearly hearing that through the speakerphone. Her features were sharp, and the contrast between smiling and not smiling was strong, like a little fox in late autumn.
Caught off guard by this interruption, Cheng Buxi's expression stiffened. She waved at the joking student and said coldly, "No."
Mrs. Lu, not as perceptive as the younger generation, noticed she hadn't spoken for a while. "Koukou?"
Cheng Buxi let out a breath. "I'm here."
"Have you remembered the date? Auntie checked the weather forecast for you. Oh, it's going to be a sunny day." She laughed several times, clearly happy. "Be good. Auntie and Uncle are doing this for your own good."
Cheng Buxi hummed softly. "I remember."
"That's good."
After a few more words, the call ended.
In just a few minutes, Lu Siyu canceled her plane ticket and had her luggage brought back upstairs.
Mrs. Lu asked her, "Not going back to Shanghai?"
Lu Siyu's eyes sparkled with cunning, and her little plan was already in motion. "No, I've got work."
"What work?"
"Undercover inspection."
With that, she brushed past her father, who was going downstairs to get water. When she rolled up her sleeves, a large area of delicate tattoos was revealed. The latter looked at his wife on the sofa with a confused expression.
The couple only then realized she had dared to get tattoos, and both were fuming.
...
Back in the dorm, Xiao Yingying had taken over her seat and was stroking the Arc'teryx jacket that had been taken off, laughing wildly and triumphantly. "Cheng Buxi, you're latching onto a sugar daddy, and you're still wearing fake stuff?"
Hu Die and Feng Yuan stood on either side, like the demoness's left and right guardians. "Exactly."
"Female college students today are so depraved!"
Guan Qianru, the dorm leader, was supposed to stop this, but she usually managed everything. Now she was hiding in a corner, staying quiet.
Cheng Buxi didn't move. The ugly words flew at her like mud, but she remained as if nothing had happened, indifferent and unconcerned, like a general who didn't easily attack cities. When left alone, she didn't provoke; but once provoked, the consequences were unpredictable.
She couldn't remember when she had last offended this social butterfly, but the mud had already been splashed on her face.
Such low-level slander didn't work on her. She silently opened her phone's video recording function, aimed it at the three in front of her, and spoke in a calm, clear tone: "Mm, go ahead and say it to the camera."