CG - Chapter 29
Chapter 29
On the first day of school, Wei Jinzhi had an early meeting and could only drop Wu Gu off at the school gate. However, she left her assistant to help Wu Gu move her things upstairs. Wu Gu didn't mind at all; in fact, she quite enjoyed Wei Jinzhi's thoughtfulness. It wasn't until she got to her dorm that she realized she was the last one to arrive. The assistant put down the large and small bags Wei Jinzhi had prepared for her and then left.
Liu Ningyu stared in astonishment. They hadn't seen each other in just two months, but now Wu Gu was wearing a navy blue long-sleeved dress, her hair down instead of in a ponytail. Her long, well-cared-for hair fell to her shoulders, and her skin was suddenly fair, tender, and stunningly beautiful. Liu Ningyu clicked her tongue in wonder. Where did this pure campus belle aura come from? She knew Wu Gu was pretty before, but she never imagined a little dressing up could make her this beautiful.
She said sincerely, "I'm definitely voting for you in this year's campus belle election."
Cao Zhenzhen nodded. "Me too, me too."
Wu Gu didn't feel she had changed much. After all, Wei Jinzhi had done all of this for her. She just had to be a doll and let Wei Jinzhi dress her up. Ever since meeting Wei Jinzhi, she hadn't done any more odd jobs, so she was out of the wind and sun. Plus, because of her foot injury, Wei Jinzhi had kept her at home and nurtured her. Little by little, she had been cultivated into a delicate flower. In short, Wei Jinzhi was very satisfied with her masterpiece.
Liu Ningyu asked, "Who was that man just now?"
"Sister Wei's assistant." Wu Gu said as she opened the bags. "Sister Wei said there are gifts for you all in here. She said you can pick what you like."
Cao Zhenzhen glanced at the bags, which were full of nice things. "You should just give them to us. What if we take something you like?"
"It's fine. Sister Wei said if you take them, she'll just buy me more."
Wu Gu said this so naturally, but it made Liu Ningyu's heart bubble with envy. She sighed, "I wish I had a rich and beautiful older sister like that too."
Cao Zhenzhen agreed, "Me too." The other roommate picking out gifts also nodded. "We all want one, okay?"
Wu Gu knew Zhao Shu wouldn't come get one, so she brought a gift over to her. Zhao Shu was embarrassed to accept it and, for once, didn't comment on her appearance. Actually, Zhao Shu had always felt bad about Wu Gu getting lectured by the counselor. She said awkwardly, "Thanks."
Wu Gu smiled. "Don't mention it."
Liu Ningyu said, "I heard the autumn recruitment starts early this year. Should we go check it out?"
Cao Zhenzhen said, "Yeah, let's go see what it's like." Then she added pretentiously, "Which one do you think I should choose? Ruifeng, Rongfang, or Qianwei Group?"
Getting into any of those three was difficult. Liu Ningyu chuckled. "Girl, stop dreaming, will you?"
School had just started and the coursework was heavy. Wu Gu dove into the ocean of knowledge and forgot all about Ji Yu. In the blink of an eye, it was late September, her birthday. She didn't have any special way of celebrating; she had always followed her master's tradition of eating a bowl of longevity noodles. But this year was different. She had Wei Jinzhi.
From the moment her twentieth birthday officially began at midnight, Wei Jinzhi's surprises never stopped. Wu Gu spent the whole day as if soaking in honey, either blushing or grinning foolishly. In the evening, Wei Jinzhi had arranged a candlelight dinner at a restaurant that overlooked the entire city. Wu Gu pressed against the glass, excitedly trying to find her university.
Wei Jinzhi asked, "What would you like to eat?"
Wu Gu turned back. "I don't know. You decide."
Wu Gu had her hair in a bun today and was wearing a long dress that accentuated her slender figure. As she looked at Wei Jinzhi with eyes like stars, Wei Jinzhi thought to herself how wonderful it was that this beautiful, jewel-like girl was hers.
After dinner, Wei Jinzhi drove Wu Gu back to school. She had class the next morning and couldn't stay out overnight. In the car, Wei Jinzhi gave her the last gift of the day: a soft leather backpack, once again in a pale white color. It was a custom model that Wei Jinzhi had designed herself—very thoughtful.
Wu Gu held the bag and examined its clever features. There was a pocket designed for the Soul-Piercing Bell, just the right size, and a diagonally placed opening on the back so she could easily reach for her Bronze Sword. Inside the bag was also a leather sword sheath and a palm-width belt, which she could use to carry the Bronze Sword when she wasn't wearing the backpack. She felt the belt; the leather was soft and fine, and the edges were carefully polished so they wouldn't cut her skin.
She tried on the belt and sheath first. They were a perfect fit. The inner layer at the small of her back was thickened for lumbar support. Then she hugged the backpack to her chest, her eyes curving into happy crescents. Her voice was sweet as she said, "Thank you, Sister Wei. I love it so much."
Wei Jinzhi felt that the Wu Gu before her was like a piece of candy. She really wanted to taste just how sweet this candy was. She chuckled softly, reaching out to rub Wu Gu's earlobe. Her voice was gentle. "May my Wu Gu have success in all things and a hundred years without worry."
Wu Gu felt fireworks exploding and flowers blooming in her mind. At that moment, she didn't want to leave Wei Jinzhi at all. She initiated a hug. "Thank you, Sister Wei."
Wei Jinzhi could see what Wu Gu was feeling. She leaned down and kissed her on the forehead, coaxing, "Hurry back now. They're about to lock the gates."
Wu Gu pressed her lips together, reluctant to leave. "Sister Wei, good night." She didn't let go of Wei Jinzhi's gift even when she went to sleep that night. The smell of the leather wasn't particularly pleasant or unpleasant, but she could always detect Wei Jinzhi's scent in it.
After Wu Gu's birthday, October arrived quickly. Outside of the time she spent with Wei Jinzhi, she devoted herself to her studies. One day after class, Wu Gu went to the cafeteria with Liu Ningyu. They had just sat down when a boy came over to ask for her contact information. Wu Gu frowned, unhappy about being disturbed while eating. Besides, ever since the semester started, more and more people had been finding excuses to hit on her.
Liu Ningyu said, "Did you know you're a dark horse in this year's campus belle election?" Wu Gu shook her head while sipping her soup. Liu Ningyu continued, "I bet you'll make it into the top three this year." She cupped Wu Gu's face as she was drinking her soup. "Let big sister get a good look at this outstanding little face. I must have been blind to have overlooked such beauty for two whole years."
Wu Gu pulled her face away and cursed, "You're crazy." Then, her eyes darted, and she asked, "So, does this face of mine match Sister Wei's?"
Liu Ningyu put on an "I knew it" expression. "I just knew you were fantasizing about your Sister Wei. But with her looks and aura, it's no wonder she makes people's knees go weak. Sometimes when I see her coming from a distance, my heart starts pounding. An older sister like that is everyone's type. It's no surprise you're so obsessed with her."
As soon as Wu Gu heard that Liu Ningyu had coveted Wei Jinzhi, she immediately said, "My master says not to talk while eating. Talking too much while you eat can make you choke to death."
Liu Ningyu burst out laughing. "You're jealous already? I bet you the line of people wanting to throw themselves at your Sister Wei would stretch from here to outside the school gates." She analyzed seriously, "Little one, you're beautiful enough, but you're too young and innocent. I think men would be into your type, but it's hard to say with the older sisters."
Wu Gu didn't want to talk to Liu Ningyu anymore. She suppressed her anger and focused on eating. If she ever talked to Liu Ningyu about Wei Jinzhi again, she, Wu Gu, was a pig. It was so infuriating.
The North City University campus belle competition was in full swing, and the school's online forum was updated daily with little bits of gossip about the contestants. Wei Jinzhi would occasionally go online to take a look. There were a few candid shots of Wu Gu on campus that were very nice, and she saved them. She then picked her favorite from her collection, resized and printed it, and put it in her wallet.
These past few days, Wu Gu had been busy with classes and homework and hadn't had time to see Wei Jinzhi. Out of boredom, Wei Jinzhi found herself checking the forum for updates on Wu Gu more and more often. The latest photo of Wu Gu seemed to have just been posted, but she herself had become the main subject of the picture—or more accurately, her car had. Someone had posted a photo of Wu Gu getting out of her car on the forum. The comments below were mostly suggestive and ambiguous. She frowned, looking none too pleased.
Wu Gu was completely unaware of the outside gossip. She had been dropped off in a luxury car more than once, her change in clothing was very obvious, and on top of that, she had been escorted to her dorm by a young man on the first day of school. That's how the rumors about her being a sugar baby started.
During several classes, Wu Gu noticed her classmates occasionally giving her strange, probing looks that she couldn't understand. After meeting another classmate's evasive gaze, she leaned over and asked Liu Ningyu, "Why do I feel like something weird is going on?"
Liu Ningyu kept her eyes on the professor's podium without looking at her, but her tone was deliberately exaggerated. "Wow, you finally noticed. If you hadn't noticed soon, I wasn't going to tell you. Miss Wu, people are saying you're a sugar baby, okay? The thread about you being kept is the most popular on the school forum. Congratulations, you're famous. They say fame brings trouble. You're sitting pretty in second place for campus belle, and the rumors are flying."
Wu Gu blinked and said, "Oh." She thought it was something serious. She didn't take the sugar baby rumors to heart. Studying was boring, so students were just looking for some novelty and following the trend. The rumors would stop on their own once the campus belle election was over. Right now, she just wanted her afternoon class to end quickly so she could go have dinner with Wei Jinzhi. She hadn't seen her Sister Wei in almost a week.
Because of the rumors, Wei Jinzhi came directly to the classroom to pick her up that afternoon. Wu Gu was so surprised and happy she almost pounced on her. Some of her roommates, who had already started walking away, even came back just to greet Wei Jinzhi, calling out "Sister Wei" even more sweetly than she did. She suddenly remembered Liu Ningyu saying that the line of people wanting to throw themselves at Wei Jinzhi could stretch out of the school. Her gaze immediately turned dangerous as she looked at her roommates, shooing them away.
Liu Ningyu ignored her and put on her sweetest smile. "Sister Wei, long time no see! Are you here to pick up Wu Gu from class?"
"Yes, I'm here to pick her up."
Zhao Shu also quite liked Wei Jinzhi. She was coming out of the classroom late, and when she saw her, she wanted to come over and say hello. But before she could even raise her hand to wave, she received an eye-roll from Liu Ningyu. Annoyed, Zhao Shu turned and walked away. She knew that because of the dorm-swapping fiasco, her roommates had jumped to the conclusion that she was involved in the sugar baby rumors about Wu Gu. This baseless, unspoken accusation made her feel very wronged.
That evening, after Wu Gu had dinner with Wei Jinzhi and returned to the dorm, her roommates gathered around her, gossiping and trying to subtly ask about Wei Jinzhi's identity. But as soon as Zhao Shu walked in, the previously boisterous group suddenly scattered. The sense of injustice in her heart reached its peak. She put down her book, rushed in front of Wu Gu, and blurted out.
"I didn't start the rumors at school. I admit someone asked if I'd seen you get out of that car, and I said yes, but I didn't mean anything by it. And last time, getting you in trouble with the counselor was unintentional. I just wanted to switch dorms, and I felt terrible about it afterward. Yes, I did look down on you a bit and we didn't get along, but I never said a single one of those baseless things."
She was resentful and sad, wiping away tears with the back of her hand as she spoke, her voice choked. "I apologize for what happened last time. Actually, I've wanted to apologize to you for a while, I just couldn't bring myself to do it. Besides, you really scared me on the back hill that time! You scared me so much I had nightmares for days. I hated the way you tried to suck up to Cao Zhenzhen, but I never said anything bad about you. How could you all think that of me?"
Wu Gu rubbed her nose, feeling a little guilty. It wasn't that she thought Zhao Shu had started the rumors, but that she had indeed scared her on the back hill on purpose. Hearing Zhao Shu's aggrieved self-defense, she remembered her own past misdeeds. She offered her the milk Wei Jinzhi had bought for her. "Want some? Sister Wei says this kind is really good."
Zhao Shu pouted and took the milk. It was normal for girls to have a little friction; it was good that they had talked it out. She emphasized again, "I really didn't say it. I even voted for you for campus belle."
Wu Gu laughed. "Thanks."
Zhao Shu said shyly, "You're welcome."
Liu Ningyu suddenly coughed. Zhao Shu turned to look at her. Seeing Zhao Shu's tear-streaked makeup all smudged, she couldn't help but laugh. "You should go take off your makeup first. And… I'm sorry, too."
Wu Gu also tossed a carton of milk to Liu Ningyu. "Sister Wei says drinking milk before bed helps you sleep well."
Liu Ningyu opened it and took a sip, praising sincerely, "My Sister Wei really has good taste." Wu Gu huffed and ignored her.
In fact, Wei Jinzhi had looked into the rumors about Wu Gu. It was normal for there to be jealousy and discontent in a competition among young women. Jealousy itself was harmless, but spreading rumors was a matter of character. However, it was a school matter, so it wasn't her place to interfere. Seeing that Wu Gu didn't care, she was even less inclined to intervene directly.
In late November, the autumn campus recruitment began. North City University was nationally renowned, so naturally, many companies, both large and small, came to recruit. Wu Gu went with her roommates to broaden their horizons and see the world. Looking at the surging sea of people in the venue, they all broke into a cold sweat for their future selves graduating next year.
After wandering around for a bit, they came out of a side door of the venue and happened to overhear some gossip. It was stuffy in the gymnasium, and they had been sitting for too long and needed some fresh air. A male employee from some company said, "I heard the Eldest Miss came in person today."
A female voice replied, "It's rare enough for the Eldest Miss to even go to the office. Why would she come here?"
"Don't be a skeptic. The boss just said so. She's in the president's office." Seeing the other person still didn't believe him, another man lowered his voice and said, "I heard she came for her young boyfriend."
The woman said, "Young boyfriend? The Eldest Miss is actually dating an undergraduate? I'd really like to see what kind of person could possibly catch her eye."
The gossip continued. Wu Gu and her friends hadn't meant to eavesdrop; they just happened to overhear these few sentences as they walked by. Suddenly, a familiar voice called out Wu Gu's name, interrupting the gossip. Wu Gu turned around to see Wei Jinzhi, who had just been passing by and spotted her.
Wu Gu happily went up to her. "Sister Wei."
The group of gossipers froze collectively. They came over and said respectfully, "Eldest Miss, you're here. Would you like to go inside and take a look?"
Wei Jinzhi shook her head. "You all carry on. I'm here to pick her up." Then she took Wu Gu's hand and asked, "Was it interesting in there? What do you want to eat later?"
Wu Gu's jaw dropped. No, it wasn't just her; her roommates' jaws were hanging open too. This synchronized expression appeared after they saw the name badges of the gossiping group: Qianwei Group. They had never imagined that the "Wei" in Sister Wei was the "Wei" from Qianwei Group. No wonder Wei Jinzhi had such a powerful presence, and no wonder the gifts she casually gave away were so expensive.
Wei Jinzhi scanned everyone's reactions and was very satisfied. This was exactly the effect she wanted. Since everyone was spreading rumors that Wu Gu was a sugar baby, then she might as well be kept by her, the Eldest Miss of Qianwei. She took Wu Gu's hand, said goodbye to her roommates, and then began to tease Wu Gu, "What's wrong? Stunned?"
Wu Gu said, "So you're this incredible. I always just thought you were some dumb, rich second-generation heir."
Wei Jinzhi laughed. "You can keep the 'dumb' part for yourself. The other two aren't wrong. Alright, close your mouth. What do you want to eat later?"
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