Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Li Xiaoxiao was just giving her an excuse. She definitely didn’t have such high standards when it came to Long Xiaoxi. She said, “I trust her.”
Wang Hulu could tell that they did not want to be friends with her. She thought to herself in disgruntlement, Do these two bitches know who I actually am?
Are they looking down on me just because I’m dressed like a country bumpkin?
Unable to contain her anger, she turned around and called her father.
“Father, my roommates are looking down on me. I want you to get rid of them. Have them eliminated in the next round.”
“What are their names?” Wang Hulu’s father asked.
“Xuan Yin and Li Xiaoxiao.”
“My dear daughter, we can’t get rid of them.”
Wang Hulu asked in astonishment, “Why? Don’t tell me they have a strong background too?”
“Xuan Yin is just Long Xiaoxi’s stage name. You’ll know who she is once you search her name online. Try and get along well with your roommates. Don’t get into a conflict or be too hostile with them.”
Overwhelmed with frustration, Wang Hulu ended the call.
She frantically searched for Long Xiaoxi’s name on the internet, only to receive a great shock.
That’s it. It’s over for me, she thought to herself.
There goes my chance of winning the first place.
Wang Hulu’s heart began to sink deeper and deeper as the competition progressed. They actually made it to the top ten!
Only three contestants would remain after the last round of elimination.
Wang Hulu could no longer keep her cool after seeing that Li Xiaoxiao and Long Xiaoxi were both in the top three.
She hurriedly returned home and asked her father, “Father, what title is that Long Xiaoxi going to get?”
Mr. Wang refused to divulge. “That’s a secret. We can only reveal the places after the next round. I can’t tell you.”
“Father! Can’t you just tell me? Forget it, don’t tell me about her placing. Can you at least let me know if I’ll be in first place? Didn’t you promise to make me the champion? Is that still the case?”
Mr. Wang answered, “You’re going to come in fourth.”
“What!?!” she exclaimed, flabbergasted.
Unable to accept the truth, Wang Hulu exclaimed agitatedly, “I should at least make it to the top three! Father, you’re the organizer of this contest, shouldn’t you be making me the champion? I changed my name deliberately because of this contest, just so that everyone could remember me better. I made such a huge sacrifice!”
“Xizhen, I know you’ve put in a lot of effort for this contest, but didn’t you read the comments about you online? You’ve received so much criticism. If I let you become the champion, wouldn’t it be obvious that you made it because of connections? Fourth place is more than enough.”
“No! Everyone is criticizing me because I’m not pretty enough and that’s all your fault! I’ve been suffering from an inferiority complex!”
Not wishing to argue with her any further, Mr. Wang said, “Enough. Do you know how many contestants would kill to be in fourth place? Don’t be greedy. I’m the organizer, but there are lots of people who are above me. You may be my daughter, but I can’t blindly let you win first place. From an objective viewpoint, those three contestants are indeed far more outstanding than you.”
Wang Hulu stormed off in a huff. As soon as she reached the entrance of the dormitory, she caught sight of Long Xiaoxi standing in front of a luxury car and speaking to the driver. She put on a mask and began walking toward Long Xiaoxi to take a peek at the driver.
She stood rooted to the ground in shock.
She waited for the car to leave.
“Who’s that man?” she asked Long Xiaoxi.
“A friend of mine. What’s wrong?” Long Xiaoxi asked coldly.
“Isn’t he your boyfriend?”
Recalling Li Xiaoxiao’s reaction when she saw Jin Rongyan, Long Xiaoxi smirked and answered, “No.”
“What’s his name, then?”
Long Xiaoxi turned around and continued walking inside. “Don’t tell me, you’re expecting me to introduce you to him?”
She had hit the nail on the head. Wang Hulu asked in embarrassment, “Can you do that?”
“I… don’t think we’re close enough for me to do that. I’m sorry,” she declined.
Wang Hulu was extremely displeased to be rejected by her. “What’s his name, then?”
“Ji Gui.”
“Where does he live?”
“Didn’t I make myself clear enough? Are you trying to do a background check on him?” Long Xiaoxi said bluntly. She felt that there was no need to sugarcoat her words, especially when it came to people she disliked.
“I was just asking a casual question. Forget it if you don’t want to tell me.”
Long Xiaoxi did not answer her. For the very first time, she suddenly felt extremely proud and delighted to be surrounded by so many outstanding men.
Upon returning to the dormitory, she packed her purse in a bid to leave again. She was planning to meet Zhong Minhe and return to the dormitory by afternoon.
Li Xiaoxiao was at the hospital.
Ever since the first time she visited Jin Rongyan at the hospital, she would register for an appointment at the hospital whenever she was free. After realizing that she had been frequenting the hospital, Jin Rongyan decided not to pick her number. She then stopped registering for a consultation and instead just stood outside his office to look at him.
Long Xiaoxi knew where she had gone. Although she admired and respected Li Xiaoxiao for her courage and bravery, she had understood long ago that love could not be forced.
Long Xiaoxi arrived at the studio to see that Zhong Minhe was still working. Hence, she waited for him outside and gazed at him through the window.
He was extremely focused.
Thus, he did not discover her presence at all.
In order not to disturb him, she sat in an obscure corner where he could not notice her and looked down at her mobile phone.
After Long Xiaoxi had been waiting for a while, a young girl who was dressed in a red quilt jacket and a skirt entered all of a sudden.
She was rather pretty and her face was full of collagen. She had her hair tied back into a ponytail.
The assistant did not stop her from entering, seemingly knowing who she was. Long Xiaoxi asked the assistant, “Does she work here too?”
“No, she’s Brother Zhong’s sister.”
Long Xiaoxi acknowledged with a nod. The girl was Zhong Tian’ai, the adoptive daughter of Zhong Minhe’s parents. Zhong Tian’ai looked extremely different from the way she did when Long Xiaoxi left for abroad.
“Are you Tian’ai?”
Zhong Tian’ai immediately looked at her and asked, “You are?”
“I’m Sis Xiaoxi.”
Long Xiaoxi said that because Zhong Tian’ai used to address her that way.
