Chapter 28: We are just friends, baby. Are you really that possessive?

Jiang Nian actually didn't care who was gossiping behind his back. He was impossible to rattle, and even less likely to reflect on himself. After all, he had a reputation—a mix of good and bad—and he was determined to live life according to his own eccentric nature.

High school is just a small society; where there are three people, there’s bound to be an idiot. People have mouths of their own, and a single word from them can label you in an instant. Since you can’t do anything about it other than curse their mothers in your head, it’s better to just pretend you don’t know. Rather than doubting yourself, it’s better to blame others.

"Lemon Twig": "I can't say. It doesn't feel right to betray someone."

Jiang Nian was speechless. He clicked on her profile, ready to delete her. If you don't say anything, you're an accomplice. How are you any different from someone standing on the sidelines kicking me while I'm down? Your kindness is all well and good, but "hunting mothers" is my ultimate skill.

*Ping.* The next second.

"Lemon Twig": "I’m talking about something else now. Are you close with Yu Tongjie in class?"

Jiang Nian moved his finger away from the "Delete Friend" button. He hadn't liked her previous tone, but he certainly appreciated the flexible moral boundaries of his dear "Twiggy baby." So-called friends are people who are willing to abandon a few minor moral constraints to be together. Translated, that means: "Don't be friends with a saint."

His tolerance for friends: 1. No betraying the country, no breaking the law. 2. I have the right to know. He didn't necessarily have to support them, but he wouldn't condemn them.

"Yu Tongjie? Isn't he just one of the people who moved up to Class 4 with us?" Jiang Nian tapped out a quick reply, then found typing too inconvenient. "Can you do voice messages there?"

"Lemon Twig": "I..."

Jiang Nian: "Phone out of credit?"

Zhang Ningzhi replied weakly: "You call me."

The slightly noisy ringtone played for about five seconds before a rustling sound followed. Through the phone, he could vaguely hear the sound of the night wind; she seemed to be answering the call from the balcony.

"What did Yu Tongjie say about me?" he asked, getting straight to the point.

The moment of testing their friendship had arrived.

On the other end of the line, Zhang Ningzhi swallowed hard and whispered, "He said... you cheated on the exam to get into that class. I already refuted him for you."

"Cheating?" Jiang Nian’s tone was slightly displeased. *How infuriating. Just because I didn't get caught doesn't mean I was using cheats! What kind of judge of hacks is he?*

Hearing Jiang Nian's tone, Zhang Ningzhi's heart pounded with nervousness. "Don't be angry. I believe you. We were sitting right in front of and behind each other during the exam..."

Jiang Nian wasn't angry at all. It came back to what he always said: people have their own mouths.

His hands were itching; he needed a knife. Listening to her rambling attempts at comfort—things like "you'll score higher next time," "there's a test in the middle of the month," and "time reveals a horse's strength"—made him want to laugh.

"You can't go pick a fight with him. You'll be demoted if you get into a fight," Zhang Ningzhi said anxiously. "It doesn't matter what others say, just do your own thing."

"Yeah, yeah, I know." Though Jiang Nian wasn't a kind person, that didn't stop him from liking kind, beautiful girls. As for Yu Tongjie? He was just a piece of trash.

At the end of the call, Zhang Ningzhi, unable to keep things to herself, asked a question that she pretended was casual but was actually very obvious. "Why didn't you add me?"

"Uh... aren't we sitting in front of and behind each other? I didn't think of it in the classroom. I only remembered when the holiday started, and just as I was about to add you, you added me first."

"Oh, okay. But you added a girl who was blowing a big bubble with gum in the classroom," Zhang Ningzhi said gloomily.

*Wait, seriously? We're just friends. Baby, are you really that possessive?*

"Do you pay that much attention to me usually?"

"Huh?" Zhang Ningzhi froze, panicking instantly. "No... I didn't... it just happened to... don't think too much, I... I'm a bit sleepy."

The call hung up in a rush. Jiang Nian tutted, tossed his phone aside, and left his room.

In the living room, his mother was still replying to messages on the sofa. Seeing Jiang Nian come out, she reined in her joyful expression, but her face stiffened again at the thought of his poor grades.

"A colleague of mine has a son, Yu Tongjie, who seems to be in your class. Both of you moved up. Any impression of him? Should we go visit them sometime?"

He never kept things bottled up. "Yeah. He just finished telling people I cheated on my exam to get into the class."

Hearing this, Li Hongmei's expression shifted. "Well, that person has a nasty heart. Don't interact with him much. I was actually thinking of having our two families eat together, but there's no need now. My kindness was wasted on a dog."

Jiang Nian smiled; his temper clearly came from his mother.

The next day, the first day of the National Day holiday, Jiang Nian spent the whole day lying around at home. Zhang Ningzhi hadn't made a peep since last night, and Jiang Nian couldn't be bothered to care. He didn't know what it was, but ever since the "Divorce System" had descended upon him, his mindset had changed.

Life is like a block of tofu; no matter how mushy it gets, it's just bean dregs. If he followed his original life path, he would end up divorced in the future, and no amount of grinding would lead to a promotion or a raise. He’d be poor in his youth, and by the time he worked hard for a few years, he wouldn't be young anymore.

Jiang Nian had seen the light. Happiness in life comes from self-effort—Deep Blue, add points!

He didn't leave his room until dark, only to be startled to find Uncle Xu from across the hall chatting with his own father.

"Uncle Xu? Are you on holiday today?"

In his memory, Xu Qianqian's father was incredibly busy, the type of workaholic who thrived on the grind. He’d heard he was supposed to transfer hospitals, but stayed put because of Xu Qianqian.

"Oh, Little Nian is up?" Director Xu smiled kindly. "I heard from your mother that you moved up to the Olympiad class. You've made great progress."

Jiang Nian stood there and started chatting with Old Xu. "Pretty much, I just memorized some books."

Li Hongmei poked her head out from the kitchen, frowned at the sight of Jiang Nian laughing in the living room. "You've been playing all day; go call Qianqian over for dinner."

Ever since Xu Qianqian's mother passed away five or six years ago, the two families had spent almost every major holiday together. Being across the hall made it easy; adding two pairs of chopsticks was no trouble at all.

"Oh."

The door across the hall was ajar. Jiang Nian wandered in and saw Xu Qianqian’s bedroom door open. She was hunched over the desk doing homework. Hearing the commotion, she looked back.

"Are you done with your homework?"

"No, I'm planning to copy yours." Jiang Nian sat down on her bed and flopped back with a groan. "I don't want to do the ones I know how to do, and I'll look at the ones I don't know later."

"Get up, don't sleep on my bed," Xu Qianqian said, clearly annoyed. "You're filthy, get out!"

"I haven't even left the house today."

"Still filthy."

"Whatever. Hey, you're being called for dinner." Jiang Nian sat up from the bed, stood beside her to look at her test paper, and suddenly pointed at a spot. "You spelled this word wrong."

"Where is it wrong? It's supposed to be like this," Xu Qianqian glanced at it, hesitating.

"It's wrong. The correct spelling is..." He casually Baidu-ed it, placed his phone on the table, and walked off after his moment of showing off. "Remember to come over for dinner, the food is ready."

He left the girl alone, staring blankly at the test paper, a thought finally bubbling up in her mind: *Did he really memorize it all?*

Dinner was mostly the adults chatting; it would likely be late before they dispersed. Jiang Nian and Xu Qianqian ate extremely quickly, and with a tacit understanding, they made eye contact as they set down their bowls.

"Mom, I'm going across the hall to do my homework."