A Love Rival Is Still A Love Rival, Yet The Love Rival Becomes The Wife - Chapter 5

“Have you seen my two friends?”

Zhao Moqiu looked around the private KTV room. Some people were already drunk and passed out on the sofas, some were singing and taking photos, and others were eating the takeout snacks they had just ordered.

“No. Didn’t they go to the restroom?” The girl sitting beside her glanced around. “Maybe they went home? That cute junior went home just now, too.”

Zhao Moqiu’s phone vibrated. Almost simultaneously, she received messages from Zhong Qing and Hua Liyan saying they were heading back first. She couldn’t help but fall into thought.

“I’ll treat them to a meal another day then…” Relaxing instantly, she ran to the front to join the others in singing.

The night was long, and even after ten o’clock, Spring City remained bustling, with delivery drivers weaving busily through the streets.

In a small rented apartment, Hua Liyan sat on the sofa, staring at the ceiling in deep thought. The sound of running water came from the adjacent bathroom, and the washing machine was humming.

Ding-dong—

Hua Liyan looked toward the door warily. Immediately after, the phone on the table lit up with an incoming call.

She answered.

“Hello, your delivery is here.”

The voice from the phone merged with the one outside the door. She relaxed. “Just leave it at the door.”

After hanging up, she saw the wallpaper on her phone—a picture of lemon ribs. She knocked on the bathroom door and asked, “Did you just order delivery?”

The sound of water inside stopped. “I bought some clothes.”

Hua Liyan was stunned for a moment. Having not used those apps for a long time, she hadn’t realized how advanced the internet had become.

Ten minutes later, Zhong Qing had finished washing the smell off her body. She looked at herself in the mirror, gradually calming down. In all her years, she had never experienced something like this—or rather, it was the first time someone had vomited all over her.

She had originally planned to go back to school to deal with it, but the laundry room would be closed by the time she got to the dormitory, and she had no desire to hand-wash vomit. She had been so angry at the time that she had ended up at Hua Liyan’s place in a daze.

Reflecting on it now, if she hadn’t insisted on pulling Hua Liyan into that stall, and if she hadn’t mixed that drink for her, none of this mess would have happened. Thinking about the soiled keychain, Zhong Qing admitted to herself that she had been careless.

Those were small matters. There was one thing she needed to confirm…

“You aren’t Moqiu’s girlfriend, are you?”

Zhong Qing changed into the newly purchased black long-sleeved shirt and sweatpants. She sat on the small sofa, a small bowl of hot water resting on the low coffee table in front of her. She took a cursory glance at the sparse apartment. The only sign of life was the clothes Hua Liyan had just changed out of, tossed at the foot of the bed; even the stove area was spotlessly clean.

“No.” Hua Liyan shook her head. She never had guests, and since she didn’t have extra cups besides her kettle, she had perfunctorily used an infrequently used bowl. “The clothes will take another hour to dry. Have some water.”

Zhong Qing picked up the bowl and saw the barcode on the bottom looked brand new. She asked suspiciously, “Do you actually live here? You aren’t trespassing, are you?”

“That’s none of your business.” Hua Liyan looked at Zhong Qing, exasperated. “The matter with the clothes and the keychain offset each other. Just take your clothes and leave as soon as they’re done.”

“Based on what?” Zhong Qing, used to bickering with her roommates, countered instinctively.

“Based on what?” Hua Liyan shot back in an incredulous tone. “What else do you want?”

She had figured it out—Zhong Qing had only looked after her at the barbecue restaurant for Zhao Moqiu’s sake. Once she realized they were romantic rivals, she stopped showing any kindness.

“What are you getting so worked up for…” Zhong Qing tapped the somewhat dirty white crochet cat with her finger and looked up at Hua Liyan. “Even though we’re rivals, we can form a united front.”

Hua Liyan rolled her eyes and sneered, “Childish.”

Zhong Qing took a sharp breath and continued, “A lot of people will probably confess to Moqiu this semester, because she’s going abroad as an exchange student in her senior year.”

“Oh, so what.” Hua Liyan said bluntly, “Moqiu won’t say yes anyway.”

“Rotten peach blossoms are a nuisance too!” Zhong Qing slapped the table. “You don’t realize the gravity of the situation at all. It hasn’t even been a week since the semester started, and two people already want to confess to Moqiu. Setting aside that junior, what if that department head causes trouble for her?”

Hua Liyan saw through Zhong Qing’s motives immediately. “That being said, you want to confess to Moqiu yourself, don’t you? I think you just want to use your connection with me to increase your chances of spending time with her.”

“The friends Moqiu acknowledges can only ever be friends.” She picked up the keys, dangling the white crochet cat in front of Zhong Qing to show it off. “But being ‘just a friend’ isn’t enough to get her to give you a handmade gift like this… You’re jealous, aren’t you?”

Thump!

Zhong Qing slammed the table in anger. She glared at Hua Liyan, who didn’t back down at all, smiling provocatively.

Is this really the same socially anxious, introverted person from before? The contrast is too huge.

Zhong Qing fought back effortlessly. “You’re so sharp-tongued and mean. Does Moqiu know you’re like this? How hilarious.”

Hua Liyan stared displeasurably at Zhong Qing’s clenched fist. People like Zhong Qing, who acted on impulse and were emotionally unstable, were the real potential threats. Picking up a key and waiting so long to return it was, simply put, unreliable.

Even now, she was acting impulsively like a child without considering long-term plans. She couldn’t understand why Zhao Moqiu would be friends with someone like this—it couldn’t possibly be for her “genuine personality.”

Of course, she wasn’t much better for bickering with Zhong Qing.

“You should go.” Hua Liyan checked the time. “By the time the clothes are dry, it’ll be past your curfew. I’ll leave them at the main building of the Library’s South Wing. You can pick them up tomorrow.”

“Tch.” Zhong Qing wanted to say something else, but seeing Hua Liyan’s chilly gaze, she didn’t bother communicating further.

On the way back, Zhong Qing pulled the stomach medicine she had bought along with the clothes out of her pocket; it was specifically for easing stomach pain after vomiting.

Thinking about Hua Liyan’s two faces, a sense of uncomfortable familiarity washed over her. Passing a trash can, she threw the medicine in without hesitation.

“Hypocrite…”

She gazed at the dark night sky, her mood utterly terrible.

“Where did you guys go yesterday?”

The next day at noon, Zhao Moqiu made a point to ask Zhong Qing out for lunch.

They were at a small restaurant near the school. It was after 1:00 PM, a time when there were few people.

“Yesterday…” Zhong Qing had just picked up her dried clothes from the library. Although she hadn’t run into Hua Liyan, the scent of the unique floral detergent on the clothes was identical to the woman’s scent, which made her feel a bit sick. She asked curiously, “Moqiu, what kind of person do you think Liyan-jie is?”

Zhao Moqiu blinked. “She’s a very gentle and caring sister. She can be a bit socially anxious and soft-spoken sometimes, but once you get to know her, she’s very kind.”

“Haha…” Zhong Qing laughed dryly. This didn’t match the Hua Liyan from last night at all!

“Did something happen between you two?”

“No, it’s just…” Zhong Qing sighed. “I accidentally got her keychain dirty. The white crochet cat one.”

The smile on Zhao Moqiu’s face widened. Zhong Qing even knew what Hua Liyan’s keychain looked like. She said, “That was a thank-you gift for her teaching me how to do crochet. Since it’s dirty, you should compensate her with a new one.”

“Eh? Why?” Zhong Qing hadn’t expected the conversation to go in this direction.

“Because you dirtied it.” Zhao Moqiu took the rice noodles the waiter brought over and said, “Liyan-jie might not be angry with you, but she’s very sentimental. She’s the type of person who uses things for a very long time.”

Zhong Qing really wanted to argue that Hua Liyan had definitely already been angry with her, but since Zhao Moqiu had put it that way, she really did owe her an apology. It was her fault for picking up the keys and not returning them promptly, and her fault that while her own clothes were now clean, the white cat couldn’t be washed.

But it still felt frustrating. If she really wanted to get to the bottom of it, wasn’t it the fault of the careless Hua Liyan who dropped the keys and ran away in the first place? And would Hua Liyan even accept a replacement keychain?

After all, it was something Zhao Moqiu had made… Ah, having something given by a crush get dirtied—thinking about it that way, it really was reason enough to be angry.

Zhong Qing’s energy suddenly flagged.

“Tomato Beef Ramen is ready!”

Zhong Qing’s energy returned. After adding a spoonful of garlic juice and pickled radishes to the noodles at the condiment station, she took a small bowl to scoop the noodles out. She blew on the steam, waiting for them to cool slightly before taking a careful first bite.

Zhao Moqiu was already halfway through her rice noodles. She slowed down and said, “If you feel awkward about giving a gift, I’ll do it for you. I’ll find some time to make another one—”

“No! No, no, no…” Zhong Qing shook her head immediately. She couldn’t let Hua Liyan off that easily. “I did it, so I’ll be the one to replace it!”

Zhao Moqiu smiled. “That’s great. I thought you wouldn’t want to.”

“Not at all! I’m very willing. I happen to have no classes this afternoon, so I’ll go to a nearby accessory shop to buy one and hand it to her personally. You don’t have to worry about it!”

“That’s wonderful.” Zhao Moqiu finished her noodles with a sense of relief. Seeing that it was almost time for class, she left first.

Zhong Qing continued eating her ramen gloomily. After finishing the noodles, she ordered a side of white rice and a fried egg, adding them to the remaining tomato broth along with some chili and sauerkraut from the condiment bar. After mixing it all together, she took out a large spoon she carried with her and ate leisurely.

The rice soaked up the sour, spicy, and hot broth, which carried the flavor of the beef. The chili and sauerkraut stimulated her taste buds, and paired with a glass of lemonade, this lunch was pure bliss for a fan of sour flavors.

Her stomach full, Zhong Qing’s gloomy mood evaporated. She picked up the bag of clothes and called her roommate.

“Xiao Wen, want to go to the accessory shop? I need to buy something…”

The March evening was somewhat cold, and the wind made Hua Liyan shiver. Before leaving work, she checked the front desk of the main building and felt relieved to see that Zhong Qing had taken the clothes back.

After driving Zhong Qing away last night, Hua Liyan had fallen asleep from exhaustion. When she woke up this morning and recalled that surreal night, her heart was in turmoil.

She hadn’t lost control like that in a long time, and she had even been so cutting toward Zhong Qing. It might have been the alcohol talking.

Now she just felt regret—immense regret.

Judging people by their appearance was wrong, and it was a fact that Zhong Qing had helped Zhao Moqiu. Picking a fight with a student five years younger than her was simply disgraceful.

It was another day of self-loathing.

Hua Liyan wandered around the cafeteria but had no appetite at all. Perhaps because she had eaten too much rich and varied food the day before, her stomach was acting up today. In the end, she just bought a bun to settle for dinner.

The next morning, Hua Liyan woke up in a daze, her body feeling exceptionally heavy as she got out of bed. She forced herself to perk up, ate a piece of toast, and went to work.

Ring-ring—

Zhong Qing yawned. Morning classes were agonizing. She finished washing up and ate some crackers to line her stomach; it was too late to go out and buy breakfast now.

“I’m so sleepy, I want to skip class.” Her roommate moaned as she climbed down from her bunk. Seeing Zhong Qing already dressed, she threw on a random jacket and wide-leg pants. “Wait for me, let’s go together.”

Zhong Qing’s eyes fell on the other girl’s messy hair, which was half-black and half-blonde. “I’ll give you two minutes.”

“Wen Wen, is that guy pestering you again?” Another roommate who had just woken up poked her head out and looked at the dormitory leader, who was still snoring behind closed curtains. “Too bad we don’t have classes this morning, otherwise we could help block him.”

Wen Wen quickly combed her hair and tied it into a messy ponytail, having no time to tidy the blonde strands interlaced with the black. She said, “It’s okay for now. Didn’t they announce at the class meeting yesterday that we’re getting a new counselor? The new one is a woman, so she should believe what I say. Besides, I’ve already gathered the evidence.”

“We’ll go with you when the time comes… You and Zhong Qing have zero credibility with teachers based on your looks alone.”

“Hey! Hurry up!” Zhong Qing urged impatiently.

“Just~ give me two more minutes~” Wen Wen couldn’t help but sing. “Let me draw one more eyebrow~ I’ll treat you to a big meal after class!”

“You’re out of tune…” Zhong Qing’s expression softened. She thought for a moment. “Let’s make it dinner. I have something to do at noon.”

“What is it? Treating your goddess to lunch?” a roommate teased.

“What goddess!” Zhong Qing said sheepishly. “I’m going to the library.”

Silence spread through the room, broken only by the light snoring of the still-sleeping dormitory leader.

The roommate then looked at Wen Wen. “Let’s go buy a lottery ticket today.”

Wen Wen nodded solemnly. “Yeah, we’re definitely hitting the jackpot today.”

Zhong Qing frowned slightly. “Hey! What’s that supposed to mean!”

“There’s no way you’re going to the library to actually read!” the roommate teased.

“Why can’t I go to read?” Zhong Qing shot back, though she really wasn’t going there for the books.

Zhong Qing touched the gift bag in her purse. The thought of apologizing to Hua Liyan at noon made her feel uncomfortable all over.

Why did she have to apologize to her romantic rival?