Chapter 68 Chapter 68: Taotao, I’Ve Been Watching You.
Chapter 68: Taotao, I’Ve Been Watching You.
“Qianqian! Qianqian!”
In the dorm, Su Tao sprang out of bed early in the morning and quickly went over to Chen Qian, handing her the phone. “Why do you think Xiao Cheng would ask me something like this?”
“If Ye Liang and I fell into the water, who would you save?”
Isn’t this just the classic “who would you save, your mother or your girlfriend” dilemma?!
In contrast to Su Tao’s bewildered panic, Chen Qian merely cast a faint glance, then continued to rub on her face mask. Her tone was calm. “What else could it be? Chi Xiaocheng’s just having one of her episodes.”
“This…” Su Tao’s voice was tangled. For her, it truly was one wave after another, without a moment’s peace. She had only just gotten out of the small dark room yesterday. Today, Chi Xiaocheng had another new question for her. Wave after wave of pressure left her feeling a suffocating sensation, as if she were being entwined by a python.
She couldn’t make up her mind. “So, Qianqian, what do you think I should answer?”
“Do you like Ye Liang?” Chen Qian glanced at Su Tao.
Su Tao pressed her lips together, first shaking her head, but then paused halfway through. She felt a bit of fondness, but couldn’t call it love. Chen Qian let out an annoyed “Tsk” inwardly, but didn’t show it on her face. Following Chi Xiaocheng’s earlier instructions, she said as usual, “You’re silly, too. What’s the point of caring so much about Ye Liang?”
Su Tao looked at her, puzzled. Chen Qian turned around, gently peeled off her face mask, and said very sincerely, “Logically, I shouldn’t interfere with your choices, but as your best friend, I really can’t stand to see you like this anymore. I just don’t understand what’s so great about Ye Liang.”
Chen Qian counted on her fingers, “Look, he orders you around. He never gives you a good look. Every time, I hear you say Ye Liang called you, so you grab your phone and take a taxi to go find him. Why doesn’t he come to you himself? When Dongfang Yang looks for you, he even drives his sports car right downstairs to the dorm building. What about his attitude? He doesn’t even reimburse you for the taxi fare! Oh, he says he likes you, he says he’ll give you anything you want, but what about his actions? What kind of high-and-mighty CEO bullshit is that? What else does he have besides being a bit handsome? I really don’t know what you see in Ye Liang.”
As she spoke, a dormmate who was still asleep stretched out an arm and chimed in, “Taotao, Ye Liang really isn’t worth your attention. You’re so perfect, you could pick any wealthy family you want, isn’t that right?” Chen Qian glanced at the dormmate, feeling that she herself was starting to get weird. She couldn’t help but fall into thought.
Come to think of it, why had she once liked Ye Liang so much, even to the point of opposing Su Tao? After experiencing the potency of Chi Xiaocheng’s little blackhead-removing pill last time, Chen Qian had completely sided with Chi Xiaocheng, becoming part of the “Orange Faction.” Once she let go of her entanglement with Ye Liang, she slowly began to feel that something was off. In high school, she had always been putting on a warm face to his cold shoulder with Ye Liang, and there had been no earth-shattering encounters. So why did she fall madly in love with him, as if she’d been cursed? The moment she saw Su Tao, she would become obsessed with wanting to antagonize her. Something was definitely off.
However, after a moment’s thought, she didn’t dwell on it too much. Now, watching Su Tao struggle and suffer under Chi Xiaocheng, she was secretly delighted. She reached out and patted her best friend’s shoulder. Chen Qian said earnestly, “Sister, face reality. You say Chi Xiaocheng’s yandere tendencies are terrifying, but at least she genuinely loves you, right? She’s so cute, she appeals to everyone, men and women alike. I can’t even imagine how wonderful it would be to cuddle that little body to sleep.”
As soon as she said this, Su Tao gave Chen Qian a deep, meaningful look. “Are you serious?”
Chen Qian smiled. “Just a joke, from your perspective.”
Su Tao felt a strange unease in her heart. Chi Xiaocheng had treated her like that, so she should really stay away from her. But hearing Chen Qian say she wanted to hold her while sleeping, she felt a sudden, inexplicable annoyance. It was as if something that belonged to her had been stolen.
Su Tao didn’t want to delve deeper into that topic. She redirected the conversation back to her phone. “So, how should I reply to Xiao Cheng? Isn’t this a death sentence question?”
Though it seemed more like Ye Liang’s life was on the line.
Chen Qian said, “Chi Xiaocheng is a yandere. If you want to appease her, you have no choice but to say you’d save her. What you can choose is the depth of that commitment.”
“What do you mean?”
Chen Qian: “The standard answer is to save her and not Ye Liang. But you could also reply this way: ‘You choose to save Ye Liang, because then there will only be the two of you in the river of love.’” With that, Chen Qian snapped her fingers. “That way, Chi Xiaocheng will like you even more.”
Su Tao listened, wide-eyed. “Qianqian, you’ve never even been in a relationship, how do you know all this?”
“Thanks, I’ve been called out.” Chen Qian chuckled. “I usually read a lot of novels; these are all answers I’ve copied from the comment sections.”
Su Tao: “This…”
She hesitated, indecisive.
Chen Qian reminded her, “The key is probably that first sentence, right? Chi Xiaocheng and Ye Liang had a falling out. If they both like you and want to determine a winner, then this question is about making your choice.”
Su Tao swallowed. “But she said it was just a small… a small disagreement, right?”
“In front of a yandere, even the smallest disagreement will be magnified.”
Chen Qian sighed. “Do you remember what my uncle told you last time?”
“Become a doctor?”
“Exactly.” Chen Qian nodded. “Either send Chi Xiaocheng to a mental hospital for treatment, or try to accept and appease her.”
The sleeping dormmate poked her head out again. “Mental hospitals aren’t good places. Wasn’t there news last time about a child sent to an internet addiction rehab school who ended up being beaten to death, and the parents tearfully made 1.4 million? Mental hospitals are pretty much the same, aren’t they?”
It seemed like two choices were given. But in reality, there was no choice at all.
Seeing Su Tao lower her head, tormented and conflicted, Chen Qian gave the dormmate a thumbs-up. The dormmate curved her lips in a smile, everything conveyed without a word.
And just then, Su Tao’s phone suddenly vibrated again. Chen Qian took it, glanced at it, and let out a 'Tsk tsk' of surprise. “Look, Taotao, Ye Liang’s looking for you.”
It was a message from Ye Liang: Su Tao, what happened last time was my fault. There’s something I want to talk to you about. I’m at the company, come over here for a bit.
Chen Qian shrugged, lamenting, “Again, making you run to him, and an apology is just a single ‘it was my fault.’ Ah, ah, truly a domineering CEO.”
Su Tao bit her lower lip, and the hand clutching her phone seemed to tighten slightly. Chen Qian added fuel to the fire, “Alright, stop agonizing over it. Ye Liang is a rich young master, he’s got plenty of beautiful women around him. Maybe he’s just playing with you and doesn’t care about you at all.”
For any girl, words like “he doesn’t care about you” carried immense destructive power. Long-term verbal manipulation, pressure from the external environment, and the shared topics among those around her—every single point was stimulating Su Tao’s nerves.
When all the accumulated resentment converged and was brought to light, memories swept through her like a wind. The good ones were subconsciously blocked out. What had been discussed around her gradually surged forth.
Yes, maybe Ye Liang didn’t care about her at all. He ordered her around, never showed any concern. When she was locked in the small dark room by Xiao Cheng for three days, he did nothing, and instead cursed at her the moment they met. If he cared about me, why didn’t he come looking for me then? And now, his apology was so flimsy, and he was still making her go to his company like a servant!
How did Xiao Cheng apologize when she did something wrong? With tear-filled eyes, clutching at her sleeve, always blaming herself and humbly begging her not to abandon her.
The tall figure that had vaguely occupied a corner of her heart was completely severed. Su Tao heavily typed two words in reply to Ye Liang: “No!”
Chen Qian and the dormmate quietly watched Su Tao beside her, a chilling smile curving on both their lips. Behind them, there seemed to be a small figure with brown hair. Like a ghostly shadow, lingering nearby.
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