Chapter 28: Two Men, One Statement

Wen Qi was startled, and her drowsiness instantly vanished.

She quickly propped herself up on Wei Qingxuan’s arm to look at the post.

After three hours of fermentation, the thread had already been bumped to the very top.

—Wen Qi definitely knows that freshman. I saw her get into his car today.

—Freshman, car? Do those two words even match? At least make your lie realistic.

—What if that freshman is super rich? By the way, what’s his name?

—Came from the neighboring forum to eat melons, he’s called Wei Qingxuan. Our principal poached him from Chengyu University.

—It’s true. Why would I lie to you?

A photo was posted.

Wei Qingxuan’s side profile was clearly visible, and Wen Qi’s upper body could be vaguely seen too, though her face was half hidden by windblown hair.

Anyone familiar with her would recognize her at a glance.

And after tonight’s gossip storm, plenty of people now knew exactly what she looked like.

—Wow, it’s really him!!!

—But isn’t Wen Qi Jiang Tinghao’s girlfriend?

—Two-timing? Can someone contact Jiang Tinghao? He’s been cheated on.

—Didn’t they say Wen Qi and Wei Qingxuan are both from Zhian? Not sure who’s been cuckolded yet.

—Two handsome guys. Wen Qi is amazing. Please start a class.

The feed was scrolling so fast Wen Qi felt dizzy.

“Wei Qingxuan.”

He just happened to walk over with a cup of warm milk, tested the temperature, then placed it in her hands.

“What’s wrong?”

Wen Qi slapped her phone against his chest.

“I think I chose the wrong school. I should’ve gone to drama academy so I could act in melodramas like this.”

How could so many things collide at once like this?

The thread was still exploding.

—Did I just catch a live TV drama?! Where are we in the plot now?

—We’ve got two shows: ‘Sweet College Romance, Why’s the Ex Still Interfering’ and ‘Old Flames Unextinguished, New Love Ablaze – Whose Heart Will She Choose?’ Pick your favorite.

—HAHAHA I’m dying.

Wei Qingxuan raised a brow and handed her the phone.

“Which one do you want to act in?”

Wen Qi’s vision went black.

God, those titles were mortifying, especially with that smile still lingering at the corner of his lips.

She snapped, “Obviously the first one. I already have a new love.”

She poked his chest.

“Why is this so-called ex still trying to interfere and cling?”

Wei Qingxuan corrected calmly, “It’s an ex.”

“Ex my ass. You’re lucky I even acknowledge you as an old acquaintance.”

“Got your strength back?”

His smile didn’t change, but Wen Qi inexplicably felt a chill sweep over her.

She hurriedly retreated into the sofa and covered herself with her coat.

“Your neck’s exposed.”

At once, she tugged the coat higher.

Wei Qingxuan smiled faintly, hands in his pockets, looking at her with affection that seemed ready to overflow.

“Your elbows aren’t covered. Are you inviting me?”

Wen Qi had no choice but to press the coat edges under her elbows.

“Qiqi,” his Adam’s apple bobbed, “you only covered your upper body.”

No kidding. The coat was only so big.

She threw the coat aside, ready to argue.

“Then I might as well suffocate- ah- Wei Qingxuan!”

The living room heating was strong.

He had only changed her into a nightdress earlier, saying it’d be easier for bathing later.

Now it was clear, it had been for his convenience.

Something slipped under her dress.

She tried to grab the culprit, but only caught his hair.

The strands were soft and fluffy, brushing lightly between her fingers as he moved.

“Old love or old acquaintance, hmm?”

His voice came muffled from below.

“It’s a new love,” Wen Qi gritted out.

Wei Qingxuan froze for a split second.

For someone so clever, he always lost all composure the moment she showed even the slightest softness toward him.

“Really?”

Wen Qi braced against the sofa back and kicked him with her leg.

“Kidding. You’re just a lecherous devil.”

Tricking him felt good.

Kicking him felt good.

The only problem was, she hadn’t kicked him away.

Wei Qingxuan remained steady beneath her skirt.

Knowing full well she was lying, he didn’t argue.

He simply gripped her waist and pressed her down while lifting himself up.

“I’ll ask again. What am I?”

His voice was hot and dangerously soft.

Wen Qi bit her lip, unable to form words.

“What am I? Hmm?”

“O-old love, okay?”

“What does it feel like sitting on your ex’s face?”

“…Wei Qingxuan, stop talking.”

This man could seduce her with every inch of his body.

Wen Qi tried to minimize contact, pushing herself forward along the sofa.

He gently tugged her ankle and pulled her back.

“Baby, keep touching me.”

“Touch what? Wei Qingxuan-”

She mustered her strength and dragged him out.

“Didn’t I say not tonight? Can’t you understand human language?”

His lips and face were wet.

His eyes lowered.

“I’ll just bite a little.”

What a scoundrel.

She slapped him.

“I’ll just touch you.”

He was too tall.

Her sudden force only made her palm ache.

Since she was already exhausted, the slap left just a faint red mark on his sharply defined face.

It almost looked decorative.

Wen Qi stayed fully on guard.

She had no spare energy left to wrestle him.

Unexpectedly, he let her sit steadily, took her hand, and pressed it against his cheek.

“Then rub it for me.”

“I should get you a muzzle so you stop biting people.”

“I don’t bite people. I only bite you.”

He smiled.

“But if you want to see me wearing a muzzle, I’ll satisfy you.”

She sneered.

“You’d better wear it every day.”

She looked around for her phone, then remembered she had knocked it off the sofa earlier.

After some effort, she retrieved it and reopened the thread.

If this wasn’t controlled, she’d become campus-famous by tomorrow.

Wei Qingxuan was watching too.

He lingered on Jiang Tinghao’s reply for a long time.

Then he asked, “If he knows about me, will he break up with you?”

“No,” Wen Qi answered without thinking.

“Why?”

Her scrolling slowed.

“There’s no why.”

She exited the thread and opened her chat with Jiang Tinghao.

“Even if we broke up, I plan not to date for three years.”

“Maybe five.”

Wei Qingxuan said, “Qiqi would be best off never dating again. After breaking up with him, marry me.”

“Proposing to someone else’s girlfriend is very rude, Wei Qingxuan. Please follow the rules of the human world.”

He followed her wording.

“In our… animal world, if you like something, you snatch it. No morality. No bottom line. Only survival of the fittest. The strongest, best genes deserve to be passed on. Qiqi, no one can snatch you from me. I’ll ruin him.”

Wen Qi looked up at him.

He corrected himself quietly.

“I’ll follow your human rules. Fair competition.”

She didn’t argue.

Instead, she typed to Jiang Tinghao.

—A lot happened tonight. Sorry I didn’t reply sooner.

—I understand. I’ll try to contact the original poster and get it deleted.
—That Wei Qingxuan… what’s your relationship with him?
—I don’t mean to pry. I just think this needs clarification, or it won’t be good for you.

—It’s complicated. Let’s set a time and I’ll explain properly.

“Will this post affect you?” Wei Qingxuan sat beside her.

She quickly locked her screen.

His gaze flickered, but he showed nothing.

“Not mentally. But people probably think I’m two-timing.”

She suddenly burst out laughing.

“Someone said I’m not stepping on two boats but a yacht. That’s kind of funny.”

Still, dragging Jiang Tinghao into this made her uneasy.

Things had spiraled too fast.

Before she could react, people had already written the entire script for her.

“He really won’t break up with you?” Wei Qingxuan asked again.

“I said he won’t. You’re really hoping I break up, aren’t you?”

“I thought that was obvious,” he replied.

“If he can tolerate my existence, it means he wants something big from you. Qiqi, don’t be fooled.”

“If you can tolerate him, your intentions aren’t small either,” she shot back.

“At least for now, you’re coexisting peacefully.”

But his words reminded her.

She knew far too little about Jiang Tinghao.

Unlike Wei Qingxuan, she couldn’t see through him at a glance.

She needed caution.

She had to figure out Jiang Tinghao’s intentions, use the boyfriend identity to negotiate with Wei Qingxuan, and solve this post.

Jiang Tinghao had messaged that he still hadn’t found the poster.

Wen Qi had no leads either.

One issue after another.

None could be delayed.

She sighed.

“I’m tired.”

“Go shower and sleep.”

She didn’t move.

He finally threatened, “If you don’t want another round, you’d better sleep now. Don’t think about anything. I’m here.”

When she’d been running away, she hated his methods.

But right now, he was the fastest solution.

She yawned.

“I’ll sleep. I have something to tell you tomorrow.”

“What can’t you say tonight?”

Because she feared provoking him into another round.

She wanted to walk normally tomorrow.

“Tomorrow’s matters, tomorrow.”

Wen Qi was sensitive to cold.

In winter, she usually needed fleece pajamas, thick sheets, sometimes even heat patches.

But tonight, she slept unusually soundly.

With a self-heating body pillow beside her, she felt warm all over.

She slept until eight.

Her first class was at 8:30.

She dressed quickly and went looking for Wei Qingxuan.

He was already ready, sitting on the sofa with a laptop.

“Why didn’t you wake me?”

“I was about to ask for leave for you.”

“No.”

This class was Wu Jianshen’s.

He rarely stayed on this campus and only added students on WeChat face-to-face.

She needed to catch him in class.

She also wanted more information about exchange programs.

And Professor Ethan…

She desperately wanted that opportunity.

She had no ties in China.

That made her a good fit for working under him.

But he was older now.

Without a recommendation letter, it’d be hard to reach him.

And if he’d already accepted a student, her chances would plummet.

Ethan might not take many at once.

Breakfast was already prepared.

She grabbed two slices of toast and ran out.

“I’ll drive you.”

She immediately thought of last night’s photo.

If she appeared again at the school gate with Wei Qingxuan and that car, more threads would explode.

She didn’t care deeply about gossip, but she couldn’t tolerate strangers secretly taking photos and speculating about her.

“No. You, your face, and your car are too conspicuous. If you want what’s best for me, we shouldn’t appear together.”

She ran toward the subway.

Wei Qingxuan looked at his car for the first time with disdain.

If Qiqi didn’t like it, he’d change it.

She arrived just in time.

Though seated near the back, whispers still followed.

“That’s Wen Qi?”

“Shh, don’t point.”

“She’s really pretty. Too bad she’s taken.”

“You sound regretful. Can you compare to those two guys?”

The post again.

She realized she hadn’t asked Wei Qingxuan about it.

While Professor Wu wrote on the board, she checked.

The love-triangle thread was gone.

The top post now was from Wei Qingxuan.

—We grew up together. I’ve chased her for a long time and still haven’t caught her. Her parents happened to visit and sent me to pick her up.

Jiang Tinghao had replied at midnight:

—We just got together not long ago. Finally won her over. Please go easy and don’t scare her away.

She had underestimated him.

His lies sounded real.

Qian Jinghao beside her whispered, “Wen Qi, are you really with Jiang Tinghao?”

Her lips twitched.

Admitting she had a boyfriend felt smooth in front of Wei Qingxuan.

In front of others, it felt blocked.

After some mental coaching, she deflected, “Why?”

“Lots of girls asked me yesterday. They said many confessed to him and he never agreed. They want your secret.”

“How do they know I wasn’t the one confessed to?”

“Oh right,” Qian nodded. “He chased you, right? I was so mad when people said you were two-timing.”

“They don’t know the truth.”

“Good thing it’s clarified.”

She lowered her voice.

“That handsome Huai University guy—Wei Qingxuan—he’s chasing you too?”

Wen Qi shook her head.

Chasing?

More like capturing.

“No. Just… decent relations.”

Her lying skills were improving.

“So lucky. Your boyfriend’s Jiang, and your childhood friend’s that handsome.”

Her phone buzzed.

—Handled it. Tonight, we continue.

—Continue what?

—Are you planning to sleep with him and then deny everything? All those tastes have been hit.

She couldn’t even pretend not to understand.

—If you keep thinking about that, it’s a disease. See a doctor.

—I did. I saw one the day you ran away.

Her fingers paused.

—Are you really sick?

—s*x addiction. Sexual fantasy object: you.

Her phone dropped.

Her breathing tightened.

No wonder he’d said there was no turning back.

She typed carefully.

—Is there any way to change the… object?

A voice message popped up.

Wen Qi wasn’t wearing headphones, and she didn’t dare play it publicly, not even wanting to transcribe it.

Her intuition told her it wasn’t anything good. She only had one class in the morning, so Wen Qi went back to her dorm.

The dorm management at Huai Mei University was quite strict; if you didn’t report not staying in the dorm several nights ago, you had to get a signature from the dorm supervisor.

Later, alone with Bluetooth earphones, she listened.

Wei Qingxuan’s low laugh vibrated.

“Qiqi, do you want to sleep under me?”

Of course.

She cursed him immediately.

But more worrying was tonight’s negotiation.

She planned to use “I have a boyfriend and need time with him” as leverage.

Then…

Apology messages flooded her phone.

Many IDs looked familiar.

They were the ones who’d insulted her.

Wei Qingxuan’s doing, clearly.

That afternoon, she met Jiang Tinghao at a café tucked in an alley between two gray buildings.

At least no random encounters here.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

She smiled brightly.

“Very.”

She explained her plan briefly.

Leaving out certain details about Wei Qingxuan.

“I won’t take much of your time. I just need you to appear as my boyfriend occasionally.”

Still dazed, Jiang Tinghao confirmed,

“Appear with you… in front of Wei Qingxuan?”