Chapter 33: Gaotang vs. Bai Jinyan (Please collect and recommend)

By the time Chen Ruowen left the principal’s office, school had long been dismissed. As she watched the campus gradually empty, a strange melancholy settled over her. Since that tense parting on Saturday afternoon, she hadn’t spoken a word to Bai Jinyan for several days.

She’d furtively checked his social media: the photo of them together that she’d posted was still there, not deleted. That should mean he wasn’t truly angry, shouldn’t it? If that was so… why hadn’t he come looking for her? The rumors had been swirling these past days, yet he hadn’t even tried to comfort her. Honestly—

What a petty man!

With a grumble, Chen Ruowen yanked a handful of innocent maple leaves from the roadside, as if she’d completely forgotten that she was the one who’d told Bai Jinyan to “disappear from her sight immediately.”

A notification chimed on her phone. She swiped open WeChat, only to see the message was from Gao Tang.

“Guo Jingyuan seems to be having some trouble. I’m not in a position to step in. Would you like to take a look?”

What trouble could Guo Jingyuan be in now? Chen Ruowen halted, puzzled. And since when did Gao Tang know Guo Jingyuan?

“What does Guo Jingyuan’s trouble have to do with me?” she replied.

His response came swiftly.

“I thought you two got along, so I figured I’d give you a heads-up. If not, forget it~”

Chen Ruowen shoved her phone back in her pocket and kicked a loose pebble with her expensive lambskin boots.

“What’s wrong with him, dragging me into Guo Jingyuan’s business?”

…

Ten minutes later, on the third floor of the teaching building, Chen Ruowen’s long strides carried her up the last flight of stairs, wind at her heels. She turned away from the direction of Class 1, heading instead for the liberal arts section.

It was dinnertime, so the corridors were nearly empty. As she turned a corner, she spotted Gao Tang leaning listlessly against the railing. Not far from him, two girls peeked around the corner, clearly his secret admirers.

Gao Tang waved as she approached, his tone teasing.

“Well, aren’t you the one who claims not to know Guo Jingyuan?”

“What’s it to you?” Chen Ruowen replied irritably.

Truthfully, she and Guo Jingyuan weren’t close. The time she’d intervened for her in the corridor had already been an act of rare chivalry—Chen Ruowen was not one to meddle. And yet, when she thought of Guo Jingyuan’s clear, despairing eyes, she found she couldn’t quite bring herself to walk away.

Gao Tang chuckled, then lightly draped his arm over Chen Ruowen’s shoulder, pulling her a little closer before quickly withdrawing, not giving her time to react.

“Heroine coming to the rescue—I get it. Pity Guo Jingyuan isn’t my type, or I’d have beaten you here.”

“…?”

What was this guy talking about? Was something wrong with his head?

“So what’s actually going on with Guo Jingyuan?” Chen Ruowen was running out of patience.

Gao Tang sobered, raising his brow.

“Oh? Aren’t you going to ask what my type is?”

He was definitely crazy.

Chen Ruowen stared at him for two seconds, then abruptly turned to go. Gao Tang hadn’t expected such decisiveness; he instinctively grabbed her wrist and pulled her back.

“All right, all right, no more jokes.”

He leaned in, lowering his voice as he pointed discreetly toward Class 8 across the hall.

“I saw Guo Jingyuan come to school yesterday wearing a mask. Thought it was just for the wind, so I didn’t think much. But just now, I walked past her classroom and saw her take off the mask in front of the mirror—there’s a big bruise at her lip, and more injuries on her face. Looks like she was beaten. I wanted to ask about it for you, but…”

Gao Tang gestured to his own striking face.

“If I showed up in front of Guo Jingyuan, she wouldn’t have a peaceful year.”

Chen Ruowen looked at Gao Tang’s face, so deliberately close to hers, and couldn’t help but be impressed.

“You really are shameless.”

He looked as if he’d been punched, but quickly struck what he thought was a more alluring pose, his eyes smoldering with a wild, innocent charm as he whispered in her ear.

“Am I not handsome?”

Such a scene could turn even a man’s head, make him question himself, maybe even come out—yet Chen Ruowen, utterly unmoved, pushed him aside and turned her attention to Class 8.

“Average, at best.”

“…!”

Infuriating.

Just then, as Chen Ruowen turned away, she spotted another familiar face by the stairs—Bai Jinyan.

She didn’t know how long he’d been standing there. His expression was unreadable. He made no move to speak, and since she had no reason to address him, her gaze only swept briefly across his face before she strode straight toward Class 8.

Gao Tang took in the sudden chill between the two, smiling as he greeted Bai Jinyan and extended his hand.

“Gao Tang.”

No introduction was necessary—at first glance, Bai Jinyan recognized him. The man in front of him was identical to the photo Chen Ruowen had shown him: strikingly handsome, exuding a unique, free-spirited aura, and dressed in a style marked by a refined taste. All of it pointed to his identity.

“Bai Jinyan.”

He nodded, extending his right hand in return—a gesture both polite and reserved.

“I’ve heard so much about you.”

Gao Tang released his hand, glancing in the direction Chen Ruowen had gone, and explained with a smile.

“I’ve heard about you many times from Chen Ruowen. Nice to finally meet in person.”

The implication was clear: not that Chen Ruowen talked about Bai Jinyan constantly, but that they themselves had shared many conversations.

Bai Jinyan grasped the undertone immediately.

If they’d spoken so often, why was he completely unaware?

A strange pressure gripped his chest, as if an invisible hand had seized his heart, choking off the flow of blood. Were it to squeeze just a bit harder, he felt he would shatter.

He looked once more in the direction Chen Ruowen had gone, then turned a searching gaze on Gao Tang.

“Oh, she’s not here to see me, don’t misunderstand,” Gao Tang clarified, which made Bai Jinyan breathe easier.

“She’s here for Guo Jingyuan—apparently something happened to her. I just happened to notice and let her know.”

Guo Jingyuan and Chen Ruowen? Those two had only met once—why were they suddenly involved? And how did Gao Tang know something even he didn’t?

“And just now,”

Gao Tang fixed his eyes on Bai Jinyan’s impassive face, adding unnecessarily,

“We were only… chatting. Nothing more. Hope you don’t mind.”

…

Bai Jinyan felt as if he would explode.