Chapter 2 — The Ice-Cold Senior and the Fated Nickname

Rui gazed at me with icy indifference, his expression detached as he delivered the final blow. Chu Doanh, we have already broken up, and I have a new girlfriend. I sincerely hope you will stop bothering us from now on. I snapped right back without missing a beat, crossing my arms over my chest. Wait, wait, wait! You two really are a match made in heaven, both absolute master actors in this melodrama. May you two stay together forever and pop out twins and triplets right away, is that satisfactory enough? Did you really think everyone in the world is as idle as you two, tracking your every move? Or do you think this is some cheap, melodramatic soap opera? I had to admit, my spine had grown considerably stiffer lately, all thanks to my rigorous training in verbal sparring with the notorious campus leader. The lingering resentment from being dumped out of nowhere was completely washed away on the spot. Both Rui and Linh turned a pale, ashen grey, their arrogant facades crumbling instantly. But before I could turn away, a smug smirk quickly crept onto Linh's lips, her voice dripping with venom. Chu Doanh, I suppose you still do not know the absolute truth yet, do you? Three years ago, Rui originally intended to confess his feelings to me. As for how he ended up dating you in the first place... well, it was all due to a ridiculous misunderstanding. That single sentence felt like a thunderous slap across my face, ringing loudly in my ears. I slowly raised my head, locking eyes with Rui, whose awkward silence and submissive posture practically confirmed every word she said. My heart plummeted straight into an abyss. Taking full advantage of my momentary shock, Linh twisted the knife deeper, her tone chillingly cold. The entire three years you spent clinging to Rui, you were essentially stealing him away from me. What else could I possibly say in response to that absurdity? I could only offer a deeply sincere, deeply perplexed expression. Well, I suppose this must be what a severely low intelligence quotient looks like, right? Then, with absolute earnestness, I proposed a helpful suggestion. You two should really download an anti-fraud application immediately, because given Rui's track record, he is bound to fall victim to endless scams for the rest of his life.

I could vaguely guess what was going through Linh's mind at that moment. If I were in her shoes, I would undoubtedly be consumed by curiosity as well, burning to know what kind of pathetic substitute could possibly hold onto my stolen boyfriend for three whole years. Naturally, upon finally laying eyes on me, she felt an overwhelming sense of triumphant superiority. But so what in the end? The heavy price she had to pay for her precious victory was inheriting a boyfriend with a thoroughly defective brain. Maintaining a thoroughly blatant look of profound pity on my face, I hoisted my cup of osmanthus tofu pudding and spun around on my heel to walk away. Ting, the dreaded campus leader whom everyone feared, had been watching me from a distance all this time; he frowned slightly as I approached. If you had not shown your face within the next ten seconds, I was fully prepared to dial the emergency hotline, he muttered. I offered a helpless shrug. Just ran into a couple of brain-dead zombies, that is all. Because I had been held up by that ridiculous confrontation for far too long, the ice cubes floating inside my dessert cup had nearly melted away into nothingness. Still... even if I chose not to utter a single syllable aloud, he would somehow manage to perceive every bit of it in my dreams anyway. Therefore, I spared no details, recounting every single word that had just spilled from Linh's mouth. Even the notoriously intimidating campus leader could not help letting out a sudden snort of amusement as he watched my cheeks puff up in sheer frustration, offering repeated, awkward apologies. I never would have imagined... did that guy seriously fancy himself the tragic male lead of some romance novel? Do not let it weigh on your mind, Doanh. This entire mess was never your fault to begin with. A wave of suffocating mortification washed over me, so intense that I desperately wished I could dig a trench into the earth using only my toes and hide away forever. According to the campus gossip, three years ago, Linh had traveled to my city to take her art school entrance exams, and by sheer coincidence, she happened to rent a room right on my residential street. Rui had caught a fleeting glimpse of her just once and was instantly smitten, immediately dispatching a friend to snoop around and gather information about her whereabouts. That loyal friend wandered up and down the neighborhood asking questions until he finally tracked down a lead... which happened to be my exact address. Consequently, Rui penned a passionate love letter and instructed someone to deliver it straight into my hands. Back then, I had foolishly believed I was merely experiencing the bitter, unrequited end of a genuine romance. Only now did I realize the brutal truth. The entire three-year relationship had been nothing more than a ludicrous, embarrassing comedy of errors. A misplaced romance born entirely from a profoundly stupid mistake.

A warm, gentle hand suddenly settled atop my head, ruffling my hair with unexpected tenderness. It was Ting, who had drifted silently to my side without me even noticing. He leaned down slightly, his voice dropping into a soft, comforting murmur right beside my ear. Stop crying already, or people passing by are going to start assuming I am out here bullying you. If you genuinely feel the urge to weep, save it for tonight when you slip into my dreams. Over there... I will always be waiting for you. I froze completely on the spot—and then burst into loud, unapologetic tears right then and there. It was entirely his fault for speaking with such devastating gentleness. All the grievance and humiliation I had bottled up inside finally broke through every barrier. That very evening, the fearsome campus leader had to awkwardly cover his face with one hand while escorting me back to the dormitories with the other. I trailed closely behind him like a lost duckling, my fingers firmly gripping the hem of his jacket and refusing to let go. I sniffled and sobbed mournfully the entire way back. Naturally, every single student we passed turned their heads to stare in open astonishment. Within minutes, the campus online forum exploded with a brand new trending topic. Oh my god, look! The campus leader is out here bullying innocent girls again today! What on earth was I supposed to do now? After tonight, I was going to be far too mortified to ever dream about him again.

The history of my complicated entanglements with the campus leader had already spawned countless wild versions across the school. Some claimed I had confessed my undying love and suffered a humiliating rejection, others insisted I was brutally bullied by the tyrant and had gone crying to demand justice, and a few truly unhinged individuals even whispered that the two of us were actually long-lost siblings separated at birth... Truly, the most absurd gossip imaginable. The moment I pushed open the door to my dormitory room, I was greeted by an intense scene. There sat my three roommates, lined up in a strict row on their chairs, staring at me with expressions of grim, solemn interrogation. Head resident Viet banged her computer mouse against the wooden desk like a stern judge hammering a gavel. Doanh! Confess immediately! What on earth is the actual nature of your relationship with the campus leader?! I decided that a full confession might at least grant me some leniency, so I boldly claimed that I held compromising dirt on the tyrant, which was the only reason he obeyed my every command. I even forced Rui to take that beating because I ordered him to! I declared, lifting my chin high and puffing out my chest with feigned arrogance. Unsurprisingly, my roommates immediately erupted into enthusiastic cheers of approval. That is our girl, Doanh! Brilliant job handling that piece of trash all by yourself! Viet even reached out to give a casual squeeze to my proudly inflated chest. So tell us... do you and the big bad campus leader have any sort of secret, sweet little romance brewing under the surface? I clutched my chest defensively, blinking in sheer bewilderment. Huh?! The three of them immediately huddled together, whispering among themselves in a stage whisper loud enough to wake the dead. Look at her, she still has not figured it out yet! Oh well, it does not matter; if the campus leader is willing to let her hold leverage over him, it is definitely completely voluntary on his part! Exactly, exactly! Who would have ever guessed our clumsy Doanh could actually lasso the wildest stallion on campus straight into her heart? I hurriedly rushed to set the record straight. Absolutely nothing is going on! At most... in my dreams... I occasionally touch his abdominal muscles just a little bit. As soon as that thought crossed my mind, a guilty panic seized me, and my face burned a brilliant shade of crimson. Viet caught my revealing expression and flashed a wicked, knowing grin, preparing to dig deeper. I frantically scrambled to change the subject. You guys have no idea how shameless Rui still was tonight! And with that, I launched into a dramatic retelling of our entire encounter with Rui and Linh at the bubble tea shop. My three roommates slammed their fists against their desks, cursing loudly enough to wake the neighborhood. Why on earth did that idiot Rui not check himself into a recycling factory to get remade from scratch?! Linh always looked like she had a brain, but it turns out she is just as thick as a brick! Their screaming and shouting eventually grew loud enough that the dormitory supervisor actually marched upstairs to pound on our door and issue a stern warning. Only then did the three enthusiastic inquisitors finally agree to call a temporary intermission. Viet noticed me shrinking back into my bed like a timid quail, her eyes glittering with mischief. She studied me for a long moment before breaking into a deeply suspicious smile. So, Doanh, how do you actually view the campus leader? I feigned utter ignorance, blinking blankly. View him... in what sense? Viet deliberately raised her voice so the whole room could hear. Well, if you truly do not harbor any romantic feelings for him whatsoever, why not introduce him to me instead? I knew perfectly well she was just teasing me unmercifully, yet for some inexplicable reason... a sour, prickly sensation bubbled up inside my chest. After a moment of genuine hesitation, I replied with absolute sincerity. But... didn't you say he had a terrifying, gloomy resting face last time? Unfortunately, I accidentally let him overhear you... So he probably holds a permanent grudge against you now... Viet's face instantly drained of all color. She lunged forward to grab my hands, grinding her teeth in sheer desperation. Doanh! My entire future and survival on this campus rest entirely in your hands! You! Absolutely! Must! Seduce! That! Tyrant! I stared at her in utter shock. What kind of warped logic was that?! Without a shred of hesitation, the mighty Head Resident Viet immediately began passing down her supreme teachings of the art of seduction, claiming it was a foolproof strategy to achieve lasting peace and turn a bitter enemy into a devoted lover. I was pushed and prodded until my head spun in circles, and before I knew it, exhaustion claimed me and I collapsed straight into a deep sleep, a lingering, nagging sense that I was forgetting something terribly important echoing in the back of my mind.

The following morning, I jolted violently awake from my sleep. I remembered. I had dreamed about it again! In the vivid, mortifying dream, Viet was actively coaching me through the precise steps to successfully captivate the campus leader. I was even wearing a revealing, sweet-yet-sexy miniskirt, twisting my body into exaggerated S-curves, fluttering my eyelashes, and throwing blatantly suggestive winks at him! Oh sweet heavens... just picturing that agonizing scene made my entire body break out in violent goosebumps. Right at that exact second, my phone chimed loudly with a WeChat notification. A message had just popped up from Ting... My fingers hovered over the screen, paralyzed by sheer terror, completely lacking the courage to unlock my phone. What on earth was I supposed to do now?! Should I march straight over to the male dormitory blocks right this second and smash the campus leader's head with a brick to induce temporary amnesia?! Which spot on his skull would yield the best results? The back of his head or his frontal lobe?! Somebody, please save me! This was an emergency on par with a raging house fire!

In the end, I could not suppress my paralyzing curiosity forever, and I tremblingly unlocked the screen to inspect his message. The campus leader had written: I knew it. Since you keep feeding me so much tofu in real life, you definitely harbor some deeply malicious ulterior motives. I stared at the screen and typed back: ......It was all just a massive misunderstanding. The tyrant instantly replied with an incredulous sticker: Is that truly the case? Because I certainly do not believe a single word of it .jpg This is entirely too exhausting... can someone please just detonate this entire planet right now? In the end, the two of us agreed to meet up at a secluded bubble tea shop tucked away in the downtown commercial district, located safely far away from the prying eyes of our university campus. The clandestine rendezvous felt entirely like a scene straight out of a low-budget spy thriller depicting a shadowy black-market transaction deep inside enemy territory. True to form, the campus leader showed up wearing a heavy, long-sleeved athletic hoodie paired with thick trousers, bundling himself up so thoroughly against the summer afternoon heat that he looked like he was preparing for a lethal radiation hazard zone. I stared at him in utter disbelief. The temperature outside is burning hot enough to fry an egg, are you entirely unafraid of suffering a massive heatstroke? The campus leader instinctively crossed his arms tightly over his chest, shooting me a deeply defensive glare. A young man walking alone out in this cruel world must know how to properly protect his own chastity, you know. His sharp gaze flicked back toward me, loaded with unmistakable warning subtext. Otherwise, who knows which hungry female beast might suddenly pounce out of the bushes and devour me alive? I pressed my palms together in a gesture of absolute surrender, silently praying that he would simply find a way to zip his lips and spare me any further torment. But the moment the tyrant realized I had yielded, he only pressed his advantage further, his smirk widening. I managed to figure out your devious schemes ages ago, you know. You have been harboring wicked intentions toward me all along. And look at the disastrous result now—my pristine, innocent reputation has been completely dragged through the dirt by your hands. He was undoubtedly referring to all those sensationalized gossip threads circulating on the campus forum. A wave of profound guilt immediately washed over me. When I stopped to seriously think about it... The poor guy just wanted a peaceful night of undisturbed rest. Instead, he ended up getting relentlessly harassed and tormented by me even inside the sanctuary of his own subconscious dreams. Both his physical body and his mental peace had suffered devastating collateral damage. The campus leader truly was the ultimate victim in this entire absurd fiasco. Struck by a sudden surge of righteous chivalry, I aggressively pounded my fist against my chest and promised in a solemn vow: If you want, I can just write a public declaration and post it on the forum right now to clear your name! The campus leader glanced sideways at my hand, which was still hammering against my ribs with dramatic flair, and raised an eyebrow. And exactly how do you plan on phrasing this public clearance, pray tell?