It was just unfortunate that Chu Hang’s emotions ran so deep beneath the surface — though inside he’d essentially just detonated an emotional bomb, on the outside he still looked as composed and unruffled as ever, so Tan Yin never noticed the shift in his mood at all.

She kept dragging Zhou Ming along, forcing him to keep cooperating with the public displays of affection. Following the dining hall incident, Tan Yin pulled off a string of other schemes, and sure enough, thanks to her efforts, she and Zhou Ming rose to become the campus’s most talked-about couple, practically functioning as a walking billboard wherever they went on campus. Thanks to all this attention, the rumor that Zhou Ming had been desperately trying to harass Duan Yingfei began to fall apart on its own. Instead, the original poster who’d started the rumor got dragged through the mud by everyone for spreading false information, and was eventually forced to post a public apology and clarification, ultimately deleting their account — and with that, the whole matter finally began to settle down.

“Now that my reputation’s cleared up, can’t we stop pretending? It’s kind of embarrassing with so many people watching us every time.”

Truth be told, putting on these displays of affection was exhausting every time, and Tan Yin wanted to wrap it up sooner rather than later. But unfortunately, reality had put her in a bit of a bind — she’d gone overboard trying to help clear Zhou Ming’s name, and now the momentum was hard to stop.

“The impression we’ve given people so far is that we’re in the honeymoon phase. Breaking up out of nowhere now would look too suspicious — I’m worried it’d backfire and give people more material to criticize us with.”

Tan Yin sighed. “We need to let the relationship cool off gradually, so it looks like it faded naturally with time — that way the breakup looks reasonable. Let me go back and revise the script, arrange a few public arguments. While we’re still showing affection, we should also let people see that even though we were close friends before, once we started dating, we discovered we actually have some real personality clashes. If we argue enough times, it’ll lay the groundwork for a breakup down the line.”

Being the good-natured sort, Zhou Ming naturally didn’t object. He was usually reserved and low-key, and he’d never expected that thanks to his romantic status, he’d suddenly find himself living like a campus celebrity. At this point, all he wanted was to return to his quiet former life as quickly as possible. Whatever Tan Yin said to do, he went along with it.

**

The first script Tan Yin arranged took place at the Zhixing Building. She’d previously borrowed a stack of architecture textbooks from the library, all piled up in the studio classroom, and now they’d make a perfect prop.

According to the plan, Zhou Ming would come to meet Tan Yin at the studio door after her design class let out. It was right around noon, the sun scorching, and Zhou Ming wanted to take Tan Yin to eat first — but Tan Yin would refuse to budge, insisting he first return the books she’d borrowed, right there in the blazing midday heat on an empty stomach.

Tan Yin had planned it out carefully — this kind of storyline wouldn’t hurt Zhou Ming’s image, nor would it cause her any harm, since a girlfriend being a little unreasonable in a relationship was generally understandable.

“Basically, according to the plan, I’ll act up and make a scene, being totally unreasonable, and eventually I’ll get even you — with your good temper — worked up. Since you probably can’t pull off a public shouting match, we’ll keep the script suited to your personality: you just go quiet, give me the cold shoulder, and walk off, leaving me alone jumping around and yelling.”

“Fine, that works, but you…”

Tan Yin waved this off. “I’ve already got a reputation from chasing Chu Hang like crazy, plus that banner incident my dad caused — as a campus celebrity, I was born to bear this kind of pressure and attention that people my age shouldn’t have to deal with. Don’t worry, being a public figure means being resilient is basically a required trait. As long as it doesn’t hurt you, I’m fine.”

Zhou Ming felt terribly guilty, but at this point, under Tan Yin’s pressure, there was no turning back — he had no choice but to go along.

So when design class let out, Zhou Ming composed himself and waited outside the studio door.

As planned, Tan Yin waited until most of the class had filed out, when the hallway was at its busiest, before she slowly emerged carrying a stack of textbooks, her face already set with the makings of a scene.

“Tan Yin, let’s go get lunch first.”

Tan Yin glanced at Zhou Ming and began the performance according to script: “I don’t want to. You go return my books first.”

“There’s no rush on the books, is there? Can’t we return them after we eat?”

Tan Yin acted unreasonable, brushing him off. “No, I want them returned right now. I’m not hungry yet — you go return them for me first.”

Zhou Ming’s expression turned awkward. “But it’s so hot at noon, and I’m hungry too…”

Tan Yin took a deep breath and bellowed loudly, “Zhou Ming, are you even a man?! This stack of books is so heavy in my hands, and you can’t even think to help carry it for me?”

She was gathering herself, about to launch into today’s main event — a spontaneous argument with Zhou Ming — when, before she could even open her mouth, the weight suddenly lifted off her hands. She looked down, and the stack of books, her all-important prop, was gone…

In its place was Chu Hang’s voice. He was walking past behind Tan Yin, now holding her stack of books. “I’ll return these for you.”

Tan Yin: ???

Dude, do you not realize you don’t have a single line in this script?

But Chu Hang clearly had no idea what her stunned expression meant. He simply shot Zhou Ming a cold glance. “It’s just returning some books before eating — is that really so hard?”

With that, ignoring Zhou Ming’s reaction entirely, he swept a light glance over Tan Yin, then looked away and walked off with the stack of books as if it were nothing, leaving Tan Yin with nothing but a view of his tall, cold, retreating back. ???

Tan Yin was completely thrown off by this unexpected turn of events.

With the prop for their argument gone from her hands, how was she supposed to keep the fight going? Zhou Ming, being an honest, simple soul, was equally at a loss, looking to Tan Yin with a helpless, questioning glance, as if seeking a solution.

But Tan Yin, for all her grand ambitions, was powerless against Chu Hang’s random interference — she could only exchange a few baffled looks with Zhou Ming. The conflict point had already been resolved by Chu Hang, and whenever Tan Yin encountered Chu Hang, her brain automatically short-circuited; right now she couldn’t think of a single solution.

And in that brief moment, the crowd that had filled the hallway just a minute ago had almost entirely dispersed — everyone had rushed off to the dining hall like starving wolves…

No matter what excuse Tan Yin might come up with to keep the argument going, it was pointless now without an audience.

Argument failed! Plan aborted!

Round one — a crushing defeat!

Tan Yin trudged along, somewhat deflated, walking side by side with Zhou Ming toward the entrance of the Zhixing Building, staring out at the scorching sunlight outside.

Zhou Ming suggested, “Since the whole plan failed anyway, maybe we shouldn’t have your classmate return those books after all. It’s so hot out, and he’d have to carry that whole stack all the way to the library — that’s a lot of trouble for him.”

Tan Yin thought this over and figured it made sense. Zhou Ming’s electric scooter happened to be parked right outside, so why not just catch up to Chu Hang and take the books back?

She decided on the spot to have Zhou Ming drive while she sat on the back of the scooter, and they took off toward the library. Despite Chu Hang’s height and long legs, he was still no match for the scooter’s speed, and it wasn’t long before Tan Yin and Zhou Ming caught up with him.

“Chu Hang!” Tan Yin called, squinting against the sun. “Give me back my books!”

Hearing Tan Yin’s voice, Chu Hang clearly looked surprised. He turned his head slightly and finally made out Tan Yin against the glare of the sun, sitting affectionately close on the back of her boyfriend’s scooter, waving at him.

Chu Hang sized up Zhou Ming, his inner disdain nearly bursting past its limits — this Zhou Ming was so thin, not the least bit masculine, and here he was, with a scooter to get around on, and still wouldn’t spare a trip to return Tan Yin’s books for her. What was the point of Tan Yin keeping a boyfriend like this…

But as Chu Hang’s gaze kept flicking toward the scooter, something started to feel off. The electric scooter Zhou Ming was riding — the more he looked at it, the more it seemed strangely familiar…

Seeing that Chu Hang wasn’t responding, Tan Yin simply hopped off the scooter and took the stack of books from his hands herself. “You must’ve found this heavy — I’ll just return them myself.”

But Chu Hang didn’t answer her at all. He just stared fixedly at the scooter. After a moment, he looked up, glaring at Tan Yin with a look of pure venom —

“Is this the same scooter you rode when you were delivering food?”

Tan Yin nodded repeatedly. “Yeah, actually, speaking of the scooter, I’ve been meaning to ask you — did the security guard who fixed it maybe get something mixed up? Zhou Ming said the serial number on this scooter doesn’t match — maybe your complex had another scooter also sent in for repair around the same time, and they got confused?”

But Chu Hang didn’t seem to hear a word of what she said. He just kept staring at the scooter, and when he spoke, there was a strange, disbelieving accusation in his voice: “You let him ride it?”

Almost reflexively, she explained, “No, no — this scooter was Zhou Ming’s to begin with. I just borrowed it from him back when I was delivering food.”

This time Chu Hang’s voice took on an even more gritted-teeth edge as he looked at Tan Yin. “Good. Great. Wonderful, really.”

Tan Yin blinked in surprise — Chu Hang might not even have realized he’d just said “good” three times in a row. Following his gaze, she finally seemed to understand. “Oh, this scooter brand is really good, isn’t it — do you want to buy one too? Zhou Ming, quick, introduce Chu Hang to the—”

But before she could finish, Chu Hang’s face had darkened. Without a word, he shot Tan Yin one more complicated, resentful glance, then turned and stormed off in a huff. ???

Utterly baffling.

But Tan Yin didn’t have the energy to dwell on this odd little incident. She went back to her dorm and spent the whole night devouring romance novels, cataloguing all the classic argument and breakup scenes she found. She wasn’t one to give up easily — if one plan failed, she’d simply come up with another.

Zhou Ming’s law school had recently organized a weekend hiking trip. Compared to the architecture department, the law school was a large one — Zhou Ming’s year alone had over a hundred students — so even without full attendance, the final headcount still came out to over forty people. And like any leisure activity, this hiking trip also allowed people to bring friends and “family,” and in the end the group had swelled to over sixty. Aside from the law students themselves, it had practically drawn in students from 80% of the school’s other departments.

This was the perfect breeding ground for spreading information and gossip!

Tan Yin decided almost instantly that she’d tag along on the hike with Zhou Ming. “I checked the route — there’s a resort halfway up the mountain where people who just want a token hike can rest, eat, and have some tea, so all the food and entertainment is concentrated there. After resting halfway up, whoever wants to keep climbing can continue, and whoever doesn’t can head down from there.”

Tan Yin held up the law school’s itinerary. “At noon, everyone will gather at the farmstead restaurant halfway up for lunch. After lunch is free time — people can keep climbing, enjoy the scenery halfway up, or head down, whatever they want. So our second scene will be set during the rest period after lunch, when the most people will be gathered together — if we argue then, the word will spread the widest.”

Tan Yin laid out the scene for Zhou Ming like she was drafting a battle plan. “After lunch, we’ll get into an argument over what to do in the afternoon. You’ll say you want to keep climbing, and I’ll pretend I’ve twisted my ankle, can’t climb anymore, and I’ll refuse to just wait around for you — no matter what, I’ll insist you carry me down the mountain to the hospital right away. And that’s when the argument starts.”

Zhou Ming nodded, psyching himself up. “Hopefully it works this time.” He really couldn’t stand all the attention their “relationship” was getting anymore, and he hoped this argument would help things naturally “end” between them.

Though Zhou Ming looked worried, Tan Yin was full of confidence. “Don’t worry, I’m completely sure about this plan.”

But as it turned out, one should never speak too soon. When they gathered at the foot of the mountain, Tan Yin’s left eyelid began twitching the moment she spotted Chu Hang and Xu Yu — and standing next to Chu Hang were Anna, Duan Yingfei, and… Zhang Chen?

Xu Yu loved outdoor activities, so it wasn’t surprising he’d join this kind of event. Chu Hang tagging along with his good friend also made sense. Anna was Chu Hang’s girlfriend, so her presence was reasonable too. Duan Yingfei, being both a law student and clearly wanting to disrupt Chu Hang and Anna’s time together, made sense as well. But what was Zhang Chen doing here?

Jiang Yilu was baffled too. “As far as I know, that skincare devotee is all about staying pale, not tanned — he’d never even consider coming out hiking on a sunny day like this. Has Zhang Chen decided to reinvent himself, going for the rugged outdoorsy type now?”

As someone plotting to win over Xu Yu, Jiang Yilu had jumped at the chance to join once she heard about the law school’s event, tagging along with Tan Yin under the pretense of helping fan the flames for Tan Yin and Zhou Ming’s planned argument to maximum effect.

Tan Yin glanced casually over the group, but her gaze kept drifting, unconsciously, back to Chu Hang. He was dressed in a sporty tracksuit today, looking energetic and radiant with health, so handsome it was hard to look directly at him — yet the expression on his face was anything but sunny. And just as Tan Yin looked his way, Chu Hang seemed to sense it and lifted his head, looking back at her. Tan Yin, almost in a panic, looked away at once. For some reason, Chu Hang’s eyes had carried a hint of gritted-teeth venom as he glanced at her — and he’d looked away even faster than she had.

Tan Yin was utterly baffled. Was he still afraid she’d disrupt his and Anna’s time together? If anything, instead of glaring at her, he ought to be keeping a closer eye on his new girlfriend — Zhang Chen was standing closer to Anna than he was, the two of them chatting away with easy familiarity, clearly full of things to talk about. Meanwhile, Chu Hang stood off to the side, his expression unreadable and cold, keeping a distance from Anna.

But soon enough, once the hike started, Tan Yin didn’t have any spare attention for Chu Hang. She didn’t exercise much normally, and her fitness wasn’t great, so by the time they reached the halfway point, she was thoroughly winded. Zhou Ming, being the scholarly type too, was faring somewhat better as a guy, though he too showed some signs of fatigue. Xu Yu and Chu Hang, by contrast, looked utterly unfazed, not even out of breath, as if walking on flat ground.

The gap between people really was unfair sometimes!

According to the itinerary, after everyone rested for a while, they all ate together, and after resting a bit more, the group left the farmstead restaurant to browse the souvenir stalls set up halfway up the mountain.

Seeing the timing was about right, Tan Yin exchanged a look with Zhou Ming and Jiang Yilu, then began her act. “Ow!” Tan Yin cried out dramatically, then pretended to wince in pain, immediately drawing a fair number of eyes.

Following the script, Zhou Ming rushed to her side with concern. “What’s wrong?”

Tan Yin put on a pitiful expression. “It’s your fault, you were too busy looking at the souvenirs — I just twisted my ankle when I wasn’t paying attention.”

…

The two of them went back and forth a few more lines according to the script before finally getting to the main event. Tan Yin suddenly raised her voice accusingly, “What?! You still want to keep climbing?! Then what am I supposed to do?”

“Why don’t you just rest here halfway up? I’ll come back down and get you once I’m done climbing.”

“No way!” Tan Yin protested fiercely, launching into full drama mode. “I’ve twisted my ankle, I need to go down and see a doctor right now. Zhou Ming, and you still have the heart to keep climbing at a time like this? I order you to carry me down the mountain right now!”

Zhou Ming wasn’t naturally good at confrontation, but bound by the script, he forced himself to raise his voice slightly. “Tan Yin, don’t be unreasonable. I saw what happened — you just stumbled on a small rock and nearly tripped, that’s not a serious sprain. It’s not so bad you need to see a doctor right away. I think you’re probably just tired from the hike, and if you rest here for a bit, you’ll be fine.”

That’s it, perfect — Tan Yin shot Zhou Ming an approving look, then glanced at Jiang Yilu, who, right on cue, was about to jump in and start stirring the pot, ready to push this little spat to its climax…

But before Jiang Yilu could get a word out, Chu Hang’s cold, indifferent voice cut in. He glanced at Tan Yin. “You twisted your ankle?”

Tan Yin blinked, afraid he was about to derail her perfect plan again, and quickly nodded. “Yes.”

“Need to see a doctor?”

Feeling a little guilty, Tan Yin still nodded.

“Can’t walk?”

“…Right!”

There, he’d asked everything! Chu Hang, please hurry up and leave now! Don’t interrupt my performance!

Just as Tan Yin had hoped, Chu Hang did leave — but before he left, he took her along with him too.

Before Tan Yin could even process what was happening, she felt her body go weightless, then the sensation of her feet leaving the ground. It took her several dazed moments before she realized, looking up close at Chu Hang’s handsome, stern face above her line of sight, that his arms were wrapped around her, carrying her in a princess-carry, sturdy and steady. Though Tan Yin couldn’t at all keep pace with how fast things were unfolding, Chu Hang’s expression was calm enough that it made this whole development seem like the most natural thing in the world.

He gave Tan Yin a casual glance, then looked straight at Zhou Ming. “I’ll take her down the mountain to see a doctor. You can keep climbing.”

Tan Yin’s eyes lit up — thinking on her feet, this could actually work! Even Chu Hang was willing to take her to the hospital, while her own “boyfriend” wouldn’t — wasn’t that the perfect escalation point for their conflict?

But… wait, why was Chu Hang already carrying her and heading down the mountain? And, taken by surprise, Zhou Ming and Jiang Yilu were both stunned, standing there dumbly, making no move to stop him, just watching as Chu Hang carried Tan Yin down the mountain…

Tan Yin panicked — this wouldn’t do at all! If Chu Hang carried her away like this, separating her from Zhou Ming, the argument would never happen! After all this buildup, she absolutely couldn’t let it fall apart now! Chu Hang, you don’t even have a role in this script! Why are you inserting yourself into the story again?!

But Chu Hang’s stride didn’t falter one bit. He walked on steadily, lips pressed tightly together, saying nothing.

Tan Yin grew frantic. “Chu Hang, seriously, put me down! Why are you taking me down the mountain?!”

Chu Hang glanced at her, unbothered. “Oh, I’m the safety monitor for this trip. As group leader, I’m responsible for the members’ well-being. Since you’ve got a problem, naturally I need to see it through.”

Tan Yin was practically in tears — when would Chu Hang ever ease up on this excessive sense of responsibility of his? Ditching Anna halfway through like this — sure, given Anna’s personality she’d probably understand, but right now there was a certain Zhang Chen eyeing her like a hawk! Chu Hang’s nerve really was something else!

If it had been anyone else, Tan Yin might have spoken up to warn him. But when it came to Chu Hang, she selfishly couldn’t bring herself to say a word. The man carrying her — even though he could never belong to her — if only he could belong to no one at all. Tan Yin had always thought of herself as a kind person, but only now did she realize she wasn’t. She’d been able to be kind because, most of the time, she didn’t feel strongly enough about things to really want them badly. But Chu Hang was different for her. Even as she desperately suppressed it, kept up a composed front, even telling herself that real love meant being able to watch the person you love walk toward their own happiness — some dark, twisting vine still managed to creep up from the corner of her heart —

Long-distance relationships were hard to sustain to begin with, weren’t they? Chu Hang was probably a bit aloof and reserved even with Anna. If she just kept quiet and said nothing, wouldn’t he and Anna eventually break up someday, sooner or later?

Part of Tan Yin thought, everyone looks out for themselves in the end — and part of her felt ashamed she could even have such petty thoughts…

Chu Hang’s voice broke through her spiraling thoughts: “You — why are you with Zhou Ming?”

There was a hesitance in Chu Hang’s voice, as if he wasn’t sure whether he should even ask this question — but once the words were out, his tone firmed up. “I don’t see what’s so good about him.”

“Zhou Ming’s good in every way,” Tan Yin said, defending him almost reflexively, as if defending family. “He has a great temper, never gets angry no matter what I say, he’s warm-hearted, always willing to help whenever he can, and he’s thoughtful too…”

“Great temper? Warm-hearted? Thoughtful?” Chu Hang cut her off without ceremony, his voice carrying a faint, carefully restrained mockery. “Where’s his good temper and thoughtfulness toward you? You wanted to return your books, and he wouldn’t help; you wanted him to carry you down the mountain, and he wanted to keep climbing instead.”