After a moment of silence, Shen An slowly typed: “My condolences. Take it easy.”
Wang Yuqiong stared at the flickering screen, her expression relatively calm.
In truth, this outcome had been within her expectations. Zhao Qingyu wouldn’t let her have her way so easily.
That sly fox of a woman loved nothing more than to ruin other people’s good fortune!
But in front of Shen An, the emotions Wang Yuqiong could normally keep in check bubbled over in a small outburst.
It was as if the closer one was to someone, the more willing they became to reveal their true self.
“I knew it!”
She hammered out her response with a vicious tone, slapping an exclamation mark onto the end of every line: “That woman is the pettiest of them all!”
Shen An felt a touch of helplessness too.
There was only one person who could sway the decision, so Wang Yuqiong’s assignment to the Drama Group was undoubtedly Zhao Qingyu’s doing.
“So… what are you going to do now?” Shen An asked. “Look for another option? Or…?”
Wang Yuqiong let out a light scoff. “Do I even have another choice?”
No.
She didn’t.
The two-week freshman recruitment period had come to an end.
The Art Troupe was the last group to announce results.
All the other Student Union departments had already wrapped up their recruitment.
“This is too much! She’s straight-up bullying you!”
“I’ll go ask her about it.”
Shen An couldn’t just sit idly by. He immediately stepped up to help.
“Hey, calm down!”
“How am I supposed to calm down? You clearly want to join the Office, and there’s no issue with your skills. She’s deliberately making things hard for you!”
“No way. I can’t just watch you get stuck in the Drama Group!”
Shen An was filled with righteous indignation.
Truth be told, he was genuinely annoyed right now.
The Office had been propped up single-handedly by him so far. Even if Song Rui joined, she’d only handle some miscellaneous tasks at best—and he’d probably have to keep an eye on her to make sure that silly girl didn’t cause any mishaps.
He had been counting on Wang Yuqiong to come over and give him a real hand.
Now that dream was shattered, with her assigned to the Drama Group…
“???”
Wang Yuqiong almost laughed. “Pull the other one. You just want payback because you lost a helper, right?”
“Of course not!”
“Hmph, as if I can’t see through your little scheme.” Wang Yuqiong saw right through Shen An’s motives.
But despite her sharp tongue, a hint of a smile crept onto her face. She liked his attitude.
“How could you underestimate me like that? We’re good bros, after all.”
“Alright, alright. Talking big in front of her won’t do a thing— it’ll just get you in hot water.”
Wang Yuqiong sighed. “Besides, the results are out now. Asking her to change it would be like slapping her in the face.”
“If the results hadn’t been announced yet, maybe we could’ve negotiated something.”
“But now? We just have to accept it.”
“As long as you’re okay with it.”
Shen An knew that full well.
If the results hadn’t been released, Zhao Qingyu might have used it as leverage for some back-and-forth.
But once they were out, it was set in stone. Unchangeable.
That was just how domineering her personality was—no room for dissent.
One of his gains from this time in the Art Troupe was a firsthand sense of the bone-deep fear everyone else held toward Zhao Qingyu.
Even calling her a Wu Zetian might be underselling it; only someone like that empress truly fit the bill.
“Don’t worry. It’s just the Drama Group. This lady refuses to believe I can’t stir up a storm there and slap her in the face good and proper!”
Wang Yuqiong’s emotional recovery was far stronger than Song Rui’s. In an instant, she shook off her earlier dejection and perked right up.
“Yeah! I’ll back you up from the Office side. Together, we’ll topple her tyrannical rule!”
“Oh ho? Screenshot saved.”
“Ahem, this is just bro talk. No way it should leak to outsiders, right?”
“Hmph! Get some sleep already. You’ve been run ragged lately.”
“Tsk, is this your way of showing concern?”
“If you think so.” Wang Yuqiong’s tone was casual.
“If you really care, then stop bothering me during class. Let me catch a break, at least.”
“No can do. Sympathy is one thing, but principles are non-negotiable.”
“??” Shen An’s mouth twitched. “I’m off to bed.”
“Mm, I’m heading back too.”
“Heading back? You’re not in the dorm?”
“Nope, I’m downstairs in the dorm building. It’s quiet here.” Wang Yuqiong sat on a bench. “The dorm’s a total madhouse, like a wet market.”
“Tsk, who knew you’d actually get nervous.”
“I’m not a robot. Of course I’m nervous.” Wang Yuqiong pursed her lips. “I just don’t show it easily.”
“So, did I accidentally shatter Class President Wang’s perfect image?”
“Nah, because I told you myself.”
Wang Yuqiong rose slowly, the bright lights catching the curve of her smiling lips. “Remember, early class tomorrow. Don’t be late.”
“You should worry about yourself first.”
“Fair point. Someone’s always there to wake you up right on time and bring breakfast. Tsk, when do I get treatment like that?”
Wang Yuqiong teased with a hint of jealousy.
Song Rui got up promptly at seven every morning and headed to the balcony.
Wang Yuqiong wasn’t blind; she’d seen it all but chosen not to make a fuss.
She couldn’t find a good excuse to anyway.
After all, she wasn’t Shen An’s girlfriend right now. She had no right to meddle.
The more she meddled, the more her own feelings might slip out.
“Then keep looking. Who knows, you might find someone.”
Shen An tossed out a few words. “I’m really crashing now. Night, bye.”
“Bye.”
Wang Yuqiong slipped her phone into her pocket but didn’t rush back to the dorm.
She strolled leisurely along the quiet walkway, bathed in moonlight and lamplight.
Her gradually furrowing brows betrayed that she wasn’t as at ease as she seemed.
The Student Union’s Discipline Department and the Art Troupe’s Office.
Both held special meaning for her.
That’s why she’d aimed for both from the start.
Zhao Qingyu must have seen through her plans—first blocking her from Discipline, then shipping her off to Drama Group.
That woman… such a small-minded grudge-holder.
Unable to get back at her directly, she’d taken it out on Wang Yuqiong instead.
Wang Yuqiong’s furrowed brows smoothed out as she recalled Zhao Qingyu’s past humiliations. Her mood lifted instantly.
Eh…
How did she end up here again…
Snapping back to reality, she realized she was surrounded by darkness.
This was the Little Grove.
Their Little Grove, hers and his.
Heh.
Wang Yuqiong shook her head with a self-mocking smile.
Lately, she’d been keeping up high-intensity interactions with Shen An.
From classroom antics to casual chats in downtime.
Just scrolling through their chat history ran dozens of pages.
And this was while Shen An was swamped beyond belief.
In other words, it wasn’t just Chen Nannan and Shen An entering the settling period—Wang Yuqiong was right there with them.
Oh shoot, curfew’s closing!
Wang Yuqiong glanced at the time and hurried off, slipping back into the dorm building in the final minutes before lockdown.
Meanwhile, Shen An hadn’t rushed to sleep either.
He pulled up the Art Troupe’s main group chat and checked the new member lists for each department.
Only the Office looked utterly desolate and empty.
Qi Taili had even stepped down from her temporary minister role. Now it was just him and Song Rui…
Hm?
Hold on…
Shen An tapped to check. Something was off.
Three people?
The last name: Shen Lianyao.
!
Shen An quickly opened the Dance Group’s list…
No Shen Lianyao.
Ah?
Looks like she wasn’t spared either—not just Wang Yuqiong.
Shen An scratched his head. Was this his fault somehow?
But he and Shen Lianyao hadn’t had much interaction for Zhao Qingyu to notice, right?
Oh well.
The deed was done. No choice but to accept it.
Shen An’s emotions finally stirred a bit.
After all, his relationship with Shen Lianyao was still quite distant.
And distance meant plenty of room left to explore and connect.
Truth be told, he was pretty curious about this “cold-faced handsome guy” now.
He wondered what she’d look like when she softened up.
He really wanted to find out.
