Unbeknownst to her, the action of touching her face seemed like a provocation to Lan Xi.
Gritting her teeth, Lan Xi glared at Shen Jianyi. "You're so full of yourself. I really don't know how someone like you, all looks and no substance, got into our school. You're ruining the reputation of our Huaqing University!"
Which one of them hadn't gotten into the school through their own efforts? Only Shen Jianyi had just shown up out of the blue. It was said that she was often absent, not taking the school seriously at all!
Shen Jianyi was getting annoyed. Leaning against the iron gate of the dance studio, she gave Lan Xi a cold look and spat out two words.
"Chatty."
She was an eight - out - of - ten beauty, but her mouth took away six points.
"Me? Chatty?"
Lan Xi's face turned green with anger.
"You said you came first, and that's supposed to be the truth?"
Shen Jianyi crossed her arms, a hint of mockery on her face.
She hadn't wanted to get involved at first. It was just fine not to rehearse. But Lan Xi had been targeting her with every word.
She, Shen Jianyi, didn't have the patience to tolerate someone bossing her around.
"We really came first!"
Lan Xi raised her voice.
"Well, I'm not giving it up. What are you going to do about it?"
"You!"
Lan Xi was so angry that she couldn't speak.
One was red - faced with anger, the other calm as ever. The onlookers couldn't help but snicker.
Hearing the laughter, Lan Xi got even angrier.
"Fine, just wait and see how you'll make fools of yourselves at the school anniversary. I heard you're doing a fairy - tale script. What era are we in? This is so old - fashioned!" Lan Xi said sarcastically.
The girls from the psychology department looked embarrassed.
Lan Xi's class was from the art department. Their performances always received a standing ovation every year, and the dance they rehearsed before had even been interviewed by the TV station.
Now that Lan Xi was belittling their class like this, even though they were dissatisfied, they didn't dare to talk back.
Shen Jianyi suddenly felt bored.
She really was too idle, arguing with a girl like two elementary school kids. If this got out, people would surely laugh their heads off.
Thankfully, Lan Xi and her group didn't pester them any longer. Seeing that Shen Jianyi and the others weren't going to give in, they left huffily.
After entering the dance classroom, the other students seemed unenthusiastic.
"Shen Jianyi, why did you pick a fight with Lan Xi? Now that they've said such things about our program, if it gets out, a lot of people will laugh at us..." someone complained, blaming Shen Jianyi.
Shen Jianyi put down her schoolbag and glanced at the girl. "So what? Should we give the dance studio to them?"
No one had said a word before, but now they were blaming her.
"I... I didn't mean that," the girl said. After being glared at by Shen Jianyi, she regretted her rashness.
What if Shen Jianyi hit her?
"Okay, stop arguing. Let's start rehearsing," Lu Yuan stepped in to mediate. "We should thank Shen Jianyi. If it weren't for her, we might not even have a dance classroom. Thank you."
Lu Yuan gave her a smile.
Shen Jianyi's heart softened for no reason.
When she realized it, she was stunned for a moment, a flash of annoyance in her eyes.
If she wasn't sure that she liked Lu Jinsheng, she would have suspected that something was wrong with her.
The following rehearsal went on smoothly.
The others had thought that Shen Jianyi was just here to make up the numbers, but unexpectedly, her line - delivery skills were excellent. She could basically remember the lines after just one look at the script, with hardly any mistakes.
However... her expressions didn't match the witch in the script at all.
"Shen Jianyi, can you look more intimidating? You're a witch, not an emotionless ice sculpture."
"Shen Jianyi, can you have a more evil smile? You're doing something bad, not like someone owes you money."
"Come on, we're acting a script, not just reading the lines, okay?"
When the girl who had picked on her earlier voiced her dissatisfaction for the third time, Shen Jianyi gave her a cold smile.
"Is this smile enough?"
She hadn't wanted to act in the first place. If she hadn't agreed on a whim, she would be lying comfortably in bed right now.
"I... do whatever you want," the girl said, shivering at that smile.
The others looked at each other but didn't say much.
This time, they were just memorizing the lines. Everyone knew why that girl was deliberately targeting Shen Jianyi.
Of course, only Shen Jianyi didn't know.
It wasn't until the rehearsal ended. As she was carrying her schoolbag and about to leave the school, she accidentally caught a glimpse of a scene.
Shen Jiayu was standing under a tree. A girl was standing in front of him, giving him a gift...
And that girl was the one who had been targeting her.
She couldn't remember the girl's name. She never bothered to remember the names of people she wasn't familiar with.
Shen Jiayu stood there shyly, looking at the baby - faced girl in front of him. He scratched his head awkwardly. "Sorry, I... I don't want to be in a relationship."
"I know. You've just started your career in the entertainment industry. I just want to congratulate you on finally having your own life goal," the girl said shyly, looking completely different from how she was in the dance classroom.
Shen Jiayu didn't know what to say.
This sudden attention made him feel strange.
Before he entered Aolin, he had been bullied, and no one had ever helped him or said they liked him... Well, except for Shen Jianyi.
Shen Jianyi?
Suddenly, Shen Jiayu seemed to see something. His smile grew wider. He pushed the girl's hand away. "Sorry, I have something to do. I have to go."
With that, he picked up his schoolbag and ran away quickly.
The girl slumped her shoulders dejectedly. She looked in the direction Shen Jiayu had gone, and finally saw him following Shen Jianyi, looking extremely shy...
...
"What are you following me for?"
After being followed for five minutes, Shen Jianyi turned around and looked at him expressionlessly.
"I haven't seen you for a few days. Sister Yue said you went abroad?"
"Yeah, just got back."
"I... I signed a contract with a company, the one you asked Sister Yue to find for me." He scratched his head, looking a bit nervous.
Shen Jianyi stopped in her tracks.
She turned around, her tone a bit colder. "You might be mistaken. I thought that company was good, so I asked Qin Yue to recommend it to you and Tiantian, not just to you. And that company belongs to the Lu family."
She paused for a moment and continued, "I'm taking care of my husband's younger brother and getting resources for him."
Husband's younger brother...
Hearing these five words, the smile on Shen Jiayu's face froze. But he quickly regained his composure.
"I know," he nodded. "I'll perform well. I won't let you down!"
"Okay, good luck."
After dropping these three words, Shen Jianyi turned around and walked away, quickening her pace a bit.