Chapter 236 - 235: Suspicion

Chapter 236: Chapter 235: Suspicion

Lin Xiao relentlessly ran up to Gu Qingyin, her face a mask of unbearable fury. "Why are you haunting me? I came out here with my seniors to relax, and you still managed to follow me. I’ve already broken up with Zhou Jingchuan, what more do you want?"

The surrounding college students exchanged glances, all wearing the expressions of spectators enjoying a good show.

Gu Qingyin remained expressionless. "Don’t make me slap you when I’m having such a good time."

Tears streamed down Lin Xiao’s face in an instant. She defiantly raised a hand to wipe them away, a bitter smile on her lips. "You’re rich and powerful, and I’m just a girl with no one. I can’t afford to cross you. But I won’t let you bully me forever. Sooner or later, I’ll reach a height you can’t even dream of touching."

Gu Qingyin didn’t even spare her a glance, focusing solely on eating her lamb skewer.

"Auntie," Huo Xingchen said, blinking his innocent eyes, "do you have one of those legendary conditions? What’s it called... a histrionic personality? So many acts in just one minute." He held up his little hands and clapped. "CLAP, CLAP, CLAP. Are you a professional actress, Auntie? What shows have you been in? I’ll go binge-watch them when I get home!"

Gu Qingyin couldn’t help but snort. She turned to Huo Xingchen with an admiring look. ’This kid really knows how to be passive-aggressive.’

Lin Xiao was choked speechless. She was a grown woman, and faced with such a small child, anything she said would be wrong. A light retort would be pointless, but a harsh one would surely draw the crowd’s ire. Her best move was to pretend she hadn’t heard, but she was absolutely fuming inside.

"Um..." The handsome guy was pushed forward again to mediate. "Is there some kind of misunderstanding between you two?"

Lin Xiao was interested in applying for his advisor’s graduate program, so she’d been in touch with them recently. Although he hadn’t known her for long, he felt that Lin Xiao was a fairly simple person—kind, strong, and a good girl.

Lin Xiao shook her head, about to speak, when Gu Qingyin said unhurriedly, "Ah, yes, there is a bit of one. Lin Xiao and my ex-fiancé fell in love at first sight. I was considerate enough to break off my engagement with the scumbag to let them be together. Who knew they’d break up again so soon?"

Gu Qingyin looked completely innocent. "She probably thinks I said something to the scumbag, but I really didn’t. I have absolutely no interest in recycling trash."

WHOOSH! Everyone’s head snapped toward Lin Xiao.

Lin Xiao’s face turned beet red, but she was speechless because everything Gu Qingyin said was the truth. After a few seconds of fuming, she forced out a low growl, "We were truly in love!"

"Mhm!" Gu Qingyin nodded, advising her with the air of someone with experience. "It just proves you can’t trust a scumbag. Falling for one person after another is just how they are. You’re still young. You’ll meet someone better."

This only made Lin Xiao angrier. ’Better my ass! After breaking up with Zhou Jingchuan, she couldn’t find a man of his caliber anywhere. The young and handsome ones had no money, and the rich ones were old and greasy, not to mention total perverts in private! They were all into some filthy, disgusting stuff!’

"You cursed us! If you hadn’t said we wouldn’t last, we would never have broken up!" Lin Xiao was getting hysterical. "It’s all your fault, you jinx!"

At this point, even the handsome guy beside her couldn’t take it anymore. "The lady was just giving you some well-intentioned advice. Don’t be so ungrateful."

The senior with glasses spoke calmly, "Don’t think you’re so special that you can be a playboy’s final harbor. In reality, he just drifted your way on the wind for a moment and was always going to drift away."

"Yeah, a scumbag isn’t worth it," another senior chimed in. "Only academics are real!"

"You can’t rely on men, but the knowledge in your head will never betray you."

The seniors all tried to persuade Lin Xiao not to be so obstinate, but she didn’t appreciate it at all. In fact, she felt like they were all mocking her.

"Shut up!" Lin Xiao shouted, her eyes red. "None of you understand! We were truly in love! Gu Qingyin turned us against each other, that’s why we broke up! You’re all just jealous that I found a boyfriend who’s rich, powerful, and handsome!"

Gu Qingyin mentally scoffed. ’Huh. I originally thought that besides her love for acting up and causing drama, Lin Xiao had at least a few brain cells. Looks like I was wrong.’

Sure enough, after a few seconds of silence, the same seniors who had just been offering kind advice all turned on her.

"Oh, no wonder you went after him even though he was engaged. You really have to grab onto a high-caliber man like that. It’s true you might not find another."

"Mhm, it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, after all. Twenty-some years in the making."

"It’s just a shame. The richer and more handsome they are, the better they are at lying."

"Sigh, you can’t really blame her. It takes two to tango, and those kinds of guys are always generous when they’re dating someone."

Hearing this, Lin Xiao wanted to vomit blood.

She had hardly spent any of Zhou Jingchuan’s money when they were together. She had even returned some of the more expensive gifts.

’Her thinking at the time had been perfect: she couldn’t spend too much of Zhou Jingchuan’s money while they were dating. She couldn’t let him get the impression she was a gold-digger. Once they were married, his money would be her money, and she could spend it however she pleased, right?’

’Lack of patience in small matters foils a great plan!’

’But she never expected that Zhou Jingchuan would actually break up with her!’

’She had lost her innocence, wasted so much time, and gotten nothing in return! How could she possibly accept that?’

She had been in a winning position from the start. When did things spiral out of her control? Lin Xiao recalled in a daze, and then, a sudden realization hit her. It was after Gu Qingyin’s suicide attempt at the hospital, after she’d lost her memory. That’s when things started to go wrong.

Gu Qingyin’s personality had completely changed. She became sharp-tongued, as if... she were a different person.

The moment that thought surfaced, Lin Xiao couldn’t help but shiver.

But the more she thought about it, the more it made sense.

Terrified, Lin Xiao peeked at Gu Qingyin and was momentarily dazzled by her beautiful side profile. She subconsciously took a few steps back. ’That’s it!’ she thought. ’I’m right!’

’The real Gu Qingyin must have died long ago. This "Gu Qingyin" now is probably some wandering spirit that took over her body!’

Lin Xiao clapped a hand over her mouth to keep from screaming, then turned and scrambled into her tent. She made up her mind: as long as Gu Qingyin was here, she absolutely would not come out.

Seeing that the buzzkill had left, the others went back to eating happily.

Listening to the cheerful laughter outside, Lin Xiao felt even more miserable. After some thought, she dialed Zhou Jingchuan’s number.

Zhou Jingchuan’s cold voice came through the phone. "Who is this?"

Lin Xiao’s eyes reddened, and she almost burst into tears. "Jingchuan, it’s me..."

"Didn’t I tell you not to contact me anymore?" Zhou Jingchuan cut her off impatiently. "We’ve already broken up. Stop pestering me."

"Wait! It’s about Gu Qingyin! I’ve discovered her secret!" Lin Xiao lowered her voice and said quickly, "I suspect Gu Qingyin is already dead. The Gu Qingyin right now isn’t the original one at all!"

The other end of the line went silent. After a long moment, Zhou Jingchuan’s tense voice sounded again. "Explain."

A flash of triumph crossed Lin Xiao’s eyes. "Don’t you think Gu Qingyin is completely different from before her suicide attempt? I think she’s been possessed by a ghost!"