Dating Myself - Chapter 13

Jian Yixi had only taken a quick look at the phone and couldn’t comprehend Xie Maomao’s abstract explanation. It wasn’t until morning self-study was over that her two classmates in front of her, Gu Lanfang and Zhou Lu, joined Xie Maomao in explaining the whole story.

Jian Yixi’s worldview had been rocked by the photography incident yesterday, and now it was completely shattered and reassembled over and over again. Leaning on her elbows with her head in her hands, she was having a hard time digesting it all.

“Hold on, let me get this straight. You’re saying Qin Yige stole my sister’s account to slander me? Just because he doesn’t like me?” she asked.

Gu Lanfang, a girl with short hair, sat facing her and spun a pen in her hand. “That’s right. You’ve summarized it perfectly.”

Xie Maomao added, “Originally, Qin Yige just wanted to vent by making a post, but no one expected the forum to glitch and cause a huge scandal on Weibo.”

Jian Yixi suddenly remembered that Qin Yige was Xie Maomao’s crush. He had not only rejected her but had also had a public meltdown, so Xie Maomao must be feeling a little sad.

Jian Yixi turned to Xie Maomao, her eyes clear even in the shadows. “Are you… okay?”

“Huh?” Xie Maomao was confused. “Why wouldn’t I be okay?”

“You know… about the WeChat thing.” Everyone knew Xie Maomao had asked Qin Yige for his WeChat, so it wasn’t a taboo topic.

Xie Maomao’s face changed. It wasn’t sadness but anxiety. “Oh… I’m so sorry… Can you please not be mad at me?”

“Me? Why would I be mad?” What was Xie Maomao thinking now?

“If I hadn’t dragged you there to ask for his WeChat, you wouldn’t have been slandered like this…”

Xie Maomao was genuinely guilty. She tugged on Jian Yixi’s sleeve. “I’ll treat you to lunch to apologize. If one meal isn’t enough, then two, or even three. Deal?”

It seemed that Xie Maomao didn’t have strong feelings for Qin Yige. Her excitement was probably like seeing a cute cat on the street and wanting to pet it, only to realize it was just a poster. It was a slight disappointment that was quickly forgotten.

That’s good, Jian Yixi thought.

Zhou Lu, Gu Lanfang’s deskmate, was surprised that Jian Yixi had time to care about this. “He slandered you like that? Aren’t you angry?”

“It’s already been exposed, so what’s there to be angry about?” Jian Yixi genuinely didn’t care.

“Exposed or not, it doesn’t erase the fact that he slandered you,” Zhou Lu insisted.

Jian Yixi smiled slightly. “That’s exactly why I shouldn’t be angry. He slandered me because he wanted to see me upset, right? If I get mad, I’m just playing into his hands.”

Zhou Lu and Gu Lanfang exchanged a look. That actually makes sense, they thought.

“You’re just too easygoing,” Zhou Lu said. “If it were me, I’d go to class 2-1 and fight him!”

Xie Maomao tugged at Jian Yixi’s sleeve again, looking pitiful. “What about me? Are you still mad at me?”

“It had nothing to do with you in the first place, so why would I be mad?” Jian Yixi said with a laugh.

“That’s great! I’m so relieved!” Xie Maomao let go of her sleeve and patted her chest dramatically, successfully easing the remaining tension.

Xie Maomao then asked, “So what are you going to do now?”

“Do about what?”

“About An Mu! She’s running in the wrong direction, don’t you think we should guide her?”

Jian Yixi thought it was time to give Xie Maomao a reality check. “Maomao, I think joking around is fine when everything’s normal, but maybe you shouldn’t joke about this.”

“What are you talking about?” Xie Maomao protested.

Gu Lanfang giggled. “We heard it all from the front. You said An Mu likes Jian Yihu. That’s absurd!”

Zhou Lu nodded in agreement. “They don’t match at all.”

“You guys don’t get it!” Xie Maomao insisted.

“You have a ‘fujoshi’ lens. You need to be realistic,” Zhou Lu said, shaking her head.

Gu Lanfang agreed. “Even me and Zhou Lu would be more believable as a couple than them.”

Zhou Lu gave her a look of disapproval. “Stop talking nonsense.”

Xie Maomao was speechless. She covered her face, then suddenly looked up and turned to Jian Yixi. “You just don’t understand my good intentions!”

“I won’t understand until you tell me,” Jian Yixi said, mimicking Xie Maomao’s actions. “We’ve only known each other for 24 hours and 45 minutes, minus the time after school, so we’ve actually only spent…”

Xie Maomao quickly grabbed her hand. “Okay, stop. You’re making me feel sad. Let me clear my name.”

Zhou Lu and Gu Lanfang leaned in, curious to hear what she would say. Xie Maomao cleared her throat.

“I admit, last night I really thought An Mu liked your sister. But after reading all the gossip, my face hurts from being proven wrong. I just said it because I was afraid you’d be upset.”

“Upset?” Jian Yixi repeated.

“Yes! Think about it. One is your sister, and the other is your friend. They’re now enemies, and you’re stuck in the middle. Isn’t that tough? If we frame it as An Mu liking your sister but just expressing it the wrong way, isn’t that easier for you to handle? At least you’d have some room to maneuver. You can tell your sister that An Mu did all this because she likes her, and you can tell An Mu that it’s all a misunderstanding. Then, you can try to get them to sit down for a meal and smooth things over.”

“But most people would be uncomfortable if they found out someone of the same gender liked them,” Gu Lanfang pointed out. “Especially if it’s an enemy.”

“You forgot about what happened last semester,” Xie Maomao said. “A senior sent Jian Yihu a love letter before she graduated. Jian Yihu even posted about it on Weibo, saying she was grateful for the senior’s love and that all love is precious. She said she couldn’t accept it but admired the senior’s courage.”

Gu Lanfang and Zhou Lu remembered. “Oh, right! That did happen.”

“So it’s not an impossible idea. Otherwise, it’s really hard to be in the middle,” Zhou Lu said.

Xie Maomao shook her head proudly. “See? I’m wise beyond my years. You simple-minded mortals just don’t understand!”

“Okay, stop bragging,” Gu Lanfang said.

“Is all this really necessary?” Jian Yixi asked. “Can’t I just tell both of them it was a misunderstanding and get them to talk it out?”

Xie Maomao groaned. “Why don’t you get it? The problem isn’t with An Mu; it’s with your sister! An Mu directly exposed her on Weibo. This is a much bigger deal than their argument in the cafeteria. It’s a real feud! It’s like if I spread a rumor that you got an abortion after cheating on someone, and then I just said, ‘Oops, it was a misunderstanding!’ Would you forgive me?”

“Is it that serious?”

“My example is a little extreme. If it were that bad, your sister couldn’t accept it, even if An Mu liked her. But at this point, it’s perfect. Qin Yige took the blame, and your sister’s reputation is mostly safe. Now, if we say An Mu likes her and thought she was a fake ‘innocent victim,’ that it broke her heart, and that’s why she exposed her, it makes sense. Then, we can say An Mu feels bad and wants to apologize over a meal. Your sister is so kind and understanding that she’ll definitely agree. They’ll eat together, and whether An Mu apologizes or not, your sister will move on. Don’t you see? The problem is solved!”

Jian Yihu had a great public image. Most people believed she was a kind and beautiful person.

“But… what if my sister actually believes An Mu likes her?” Jian Yixi asked.

“So what? If she doesn’t believe it, this plan won’t work anyway! Besides, your sister is straight. She won’t accept An Mu’s feelings. If you’re really worried, a few days later, you can tell your sister that you were mistaken and that An Mu’s feelings are just a fan’s admiration. See? It’s that easy.”

“Then why can’t I just say she’s a fan from the beginning?”

“Think about it this way: what’s your first reaction when you find out your idol cheated? You’d probably go to their Weibo and comment, whether you’re defending them or cursing them. But what’s your first reaction if your own husband cheated on you? You’d be furious! You’d probably expose him to the whole world!

“Based on the forum incident, if An Mu were a fan, she would have just commented. Exposing her directly doesn’t make sense. It’s more believable that she had a crush on your sister. Of course, you could say she’s a fan, but why take the long way around? To solve a problem, you have to be quick, precise, and ruthless!”

Jian Yixi listened to Xie Maomao’s rapid-fire explanation and, despite knowing she shouldn’t take it seriously, found herself thinking that it all made a strange kind of sense.