My Nemesis and My Wife - Chapter 4

Chapter 4: Snatching My Peach Blossoms, Too.

“It might not be very good if Student Qin found out, you know.”

Qin Lan had hired someone to perform an exorcism, but Jiang “The Malignant Aura” Yan continued to haunt her life like an unshakeable spirit.

Qin Lan had always had abundant “Peach Blossoms” (romantic interests). During the first semester of her sophomore year, two young masters from her social circle confessed to her one after another, followed by a relentless wave of their friends…

Qin Lan found it difficult to handle. She had categorized these people as friends; aside from their families being long-time acquaintances, they actually got along well.

Because Qin Lan hesitated and didn’t refuse coldly enough at first, the group mistakenly thought they had a chance and began pursuing her grandly both on and off campus. Qin Lan was beyond annoyed. One day, she noticed that the most persistent pursuer had suddenly vanished. Feeling lucky, she looked into why he had fled.

Three days later, the truth came out: someone had seen the man walking with Jiang Yan after class.

At that time, Qin Lan still lacked vigilance toward Jiang Yan until a month later, when another person confessed to her, only to disappear mysteriously less than five days later.

Qin Lan asked casually: “Where did so-and-so go?”

Yang Xingji turned around with a suggestive look: “Him? He’s having dinner with Jiang Yan right now.”

Qin Lan still didn’t realize the gravity of the situation until the same thing happened again half a month later…

Qin Lan was furious: “She’s just jealous that I have pursuers!”

Her close friends were puzzled: “That shouldn’t be right. I heard Jiang Yan has even more admirers than you do.”

“Then she hates me and can’t stand to see me happy,” Qin Lan’s anger lingered. She was about to go and give Jiang Yan a piece of her mind but was held back by the others. They advised her that since she didn’t like those guys anyway, and since they changed their minds so quickly, if Jiang Yan liked eating “shit,” just let her eat it.

As it turned out, Jiang Yan only wanted to snatch “shit” from Qin Lan. Once she got them, she dumped them immediately. What was even more terrifying was her sophisticated methods; although those men didn’t even earn the title of “ex-boyfriend,” they all unanimously claimed Jiang Yan was wonderful and wouldn’t say a single bad word about her.

Qin Lan rolled her eyes to the heavens, wanting to report to the school that a certain Jiang was using dark arts and had definitely bewitched people.

The event that caused Qin Lan’s opinion of Jiang Yan to hit rock bottom occurred in the second semester of her sophomore year. She hadn’t gone to many classes all semester. A week before finals, she returned to school and sat in the library to cram and research her final projects.

The next morning, she received a note with a few lines of writing. The person who wrote it was Wei Mengli from Acting Class 6, inviting her to complete a final film project together. Qin Lan had collaborated with Wei Mengli on a script two months prior, and they had a good private rapport. Qin Lan looked into it and felt the script Wei found was good. Plus, with Wei claiming she had already secured a famous senior from the Photography department, Qin Lan readily agreed.

She closed her laptop, looked around, and saw Wei Mengli sitting three rows away, staring at her with sparkling eyes.

Qin Lan stood up, folding the note as she walked. Passing by Wei, she put the note down and gave an “OK” gesture.

Wei Mengli jumped up in excitement and hung onto her in a silent embrace, whispering: “That’s great, Sister Qin Lan! AHHH!”

Qin Lan was startled and nearly dropped her. Although Wei was silent, her movements were large, and everyone around looked up. Just as Qin Lan was about to put her down, Wei landed on her own feet and pulled Qin Lan’s hand to run outside.

Wei Mengli had a lively and cheerful personality, something Qin Lan was used to seeing on film sets, so she let herself be pulled away. For the next few days, she simply stayed in the dorm, researching the script with the project team by day and cramming for exams with Wei Mengli by night.

Wei Mengli was warm and hospitable, preparing all sorts of non-fattening snacks and milk tea for the entire crew every time she came. She arranged things well, so even after several days, Qin Lan didn’t realize her portion was actually different from the others. Qin Lan’s heart was dead amidst the busy finals week; sometimes when she was too exhausted, Wei Mengli would support her as they ran between floors.

The filming finished quickly, and Wei Mengli treated everyone to dinner. Once everyone had dispersed, she suddenly pulled a large bouquet of roses from under her chair, lit candles, played music, and the “enthusiastic puppy” began her confession.

Qin Lan listened patiently, then rejected her in one go, elegantly leaving the booth without taking a single rose petal. She heard Wei Mengli shout at her back: “It’s okay, Sister Qin! I will pursue you!”

Qin Lan waved her hand without looking back, too lazy to waste her breath. From then on, Wei Mengli began high-profile pursuit of Qin Lan, though she knew when to advance and retreat, so it didn’t cause repulsion. After refusing a few times, Qin Lan didn’t bother saying anything more, treating it as having a tail behind her, waiting for the girl to give up on her own.

After submitting her final projects, Qin Lan felt light as a feather. Seeing the beautiful summer day, she strolled through the campus in a red dress, red lips, and red hair blazing like a cluster of flames.

Countless people turned their heads along the way. Qin Lan gave a seductive smile to the cameras being raised; her black eyeliner made her look both demonic and cool, enchanting thousands of boys and girls. She was in full bloom on her own, but as she walked to the artificial lake’s rockery, she suddenly stumbled upon two women standing face to face. One of them held a small bouquet of flowers and was handing it to the other.

Qin Lan didn’t think much of it until she took two more steps and realized the one shyly accepting the flowers was Wei Mengli. The one giving them was even more ridiculous—it was Jiang Yan.

She found it strange but still didn’t pay it much mind. At noon, she met Song Man and Yun Chui for lunch. Mid-meal, her phone rang. Seeing it was Wei Mengli, she hung up. A moment later, a message came in: Wei Mengli wanted to treat her to dinner.

Qin Lan replied very coldly with two words: No way.

Wei Mengli asked if even afternoon tea was a no, sounding like she was about to cry.

Qin Lan’s reply was even colder: Denied.

Seeing her bad expression, Yun Chui asked what was wrong. Qin Lan curled her lip and said, “On the way here just now, I ran into her on a date with someone else.”

Song Man was instantly indignant: “What kind of person is this? Texting you while on a date with someone else?”

Yun Chui remained silent.

“You won’t believe me when I say it,” Qin Lan sneered. “It was that Jiang Yan.”

“What?? Jiang Yan?!”

Song Man even double-checked: “That ‘clean-living’ Jiang Yan?”

Yun Chui continued her silence.

“I don’t see any ‘clean-living’; her level is just very high,” Qin Lan gave a seductive smile. “Even her fans know Wei Mengli is pursuing me. There’s no way Jiang Yan doesn’t know.”

Song Man suddenly turned to Yun Chui: “Didn’t you change dorms recently? I remember your new roommate is Jiang Yan!”

“Yes.” Yun Chui said only one word, then resumed her silence.

“If you dare help her bully Old Qin, I’ll kill you,” Song Man wrinkled her nose. Yun Chui hurried to say she wouldn’t dare. Song Man ranted about Jiang Yan for a long time, then suddenly added: “But to be fair, Jiang Yan is truly good-looking.”

Qin Lan was furious: “She’s just average! Are there any truly ugly celebrities? Don’t they all look the same?”

Song Man countered: “You can say Jiang Yan is a ‘green tea,’ a ‘fake,’ or a ‘white lotus,’ but if you say she’s average, I can only say your aesthetics are flawed.”

Qin Lan angrily pulled out her phone and searched for Jiang Yan’s unedited photos on the spot: “She just has a nose and a mouth…”

The nose was a nose and the mouth was a mouth, and they fit together just right on the lower half of her face. Qin Lan trailed off, then added: “It’s not like she doesn’t have two eyes…”

She stopped again. Song Man even used two fingers to zoom in on the screen to appreciate it. The most “demonic” part of Jiang Yan’s face were her eyes. Her eyes were narrow and long, her aegyo sal (under-eye bags) were narrow, and her eyes resembled a squinting fox. Her gaze was soul-stealing, and the tear mole under her eye was the finishing touch.

Yun Chui was no longer sparing with her words: “What’s wrong with the eyes? Are they not pretty?”

Qin Lan pondered for a long time and couldn’t find a single word of rebuttal. She had no choice but to huff and roll her eyes, slapping her phone face-down on the table: “Even if she’s a little bit good-looking, it doesn’t cover the fact that she’s truly annoying!”

In the afternoon, they went shopping and saw a movie. After dinner, Qin Lan returned to school to pick up some things.

She passed the artificial lake again. Heaven knows those two were still there, sitting on a bench by the lake’s boardwalk, the flowers placed at their feet.

Qin Lan felt it was bad luck and planned to take another path, but a sob drifted through the wind: “I’ve pursued her for so long, why does her attitude keep getting worse? Even a stone should have been warmed through by now!”

Jiang Yan was gently patting her back, saying empathetically: “I went to a temple last month to draw a fortune. The master said for some people, fate is already predetermined. Not forcing it will actually make you happier.”

“Waaa… how can she treat me like this? I’m a little princess too, why do I have to keep chasing her?”

Wei Mengli raised her face. Jiang Yan had already prepared a wet tissue and was meticulously dabbing away her tears: “Mengli, you are amazing. Student Qin is too mean. Just ignore her from now on.”

Hearing this, Qin Lan’s eyes widened and she gritted her teeth. She decided not to leave, wanting to hear what other explosive things this “dog couple” would say.

Wei Mengli dried her tears. Jiang Yan opened a cake box and handed it to her: “Don’t cry anymore; it makes my heart ache. Have some; you haven’t eaten all day.”

“But Sister Yanyan, haven’t you not eaten either?” Wei Mengli took a piece of cake.

Jiang Yan showed an impeccable, charming smile: “It’s okay. I’m happy to accompany Li-li and guide you out of the sadness of heartbreak.”

Qin Lan was shocked. It was such a natural guidance; even if Wei Mengli had hope before, she would likely now subconsciously accept that she had already “suffered a heartbreak.”

Wei Mengli looked up at her, a glimmer of hope appearing in her eyes: “Sister Yanyan, you… you are so good to me, and you understand me so well…”

Jiang Yan smiled and leaned back against the bench, relaxing her body: “Of course. Who wouldn’t like a girl as cute as Mengli?”

“But, but… Sister Qin doesn’t like me…” Wei Mengli wanted to cry again, filled with a sense of defeat: “Why doesn’t she like me? I’ve worked so hard to pursue her, but her attitude is getting worse…”

Jiang Yan smiled, intimately linking her arm with Wei’s: “It’s Student Qin’s lack of vision that she doesn’t like you. But I’ve always believed my vision is the best… Mengli is the best girl in the whole world.”

Wei Mengli looked at her dazed, as if trying to confirm something, but Jiang Yan left the ambiguous statement hanging and changed the subject, using a tissue to wipe cream from the girl’s lips: “It’s late. I’ll walk you back after we finish the cake. Remember to cover yourself well with a blanket when you sleep tonight.”

Wei Mengli hesitated for a moment and said, “Actually, Sister Yanyan, today you could…”

Before she could finish, a ripple appeared on the lake, followed by a sudden summer rain that came crashing down. The ground was wet in an instant. None of the three had umbrellas. Wei Mengli stood up and grabbed Jiang Yan’s wrist: “Sister Yanyan, come to my dorm first!”

“I’ll walk you to the door and then go back.” Jiang Yan’s gaze flickered over her captured wrist, and she discreetly pulled away.

“Oh!” Wei Mengli grew anxious: “In such heavy rain, you’ll catch a cold! Stay in my dorm today; we can sleep in one bed…”

Jiang Yan shook her head and spoke in a tone that could drive Qin Lan to madness: “Hmm… that’s not quite appropriate. It might not be very good if Student Qin found out, you know.”

Before Wei Mengli could speak, Qin Lan had completely lost her patience. She marched out aggressively in her stiletto heels: “Well, I know now! So what? You two really are a match one playing two sides, and the other a ‘green tea’ white lotus.”

“Sister Qin!” Wei Mengli was stunned, covering her mouth. The color drained from Jiang Yan’s face instantly, her composed gaze becoming frantic: “Qin Lan?? Listen to me, I didn’t mean it that way.”

“Fine, I’ll listen to your excuses,” Qin Lan interrupted with a sneer, her red lips moving amidst the falling rain.

Jiang Yan felt cold all over, swaying on her feet.

“I should even send you two back to your dorm for the ‘wedding night.’ Weren’t you going to sleep in one bed? Jiang Yan, are you a bandit? Why do you have to snatch everything? Is your fate cursed to clash with mine? Are you specifically targeting only me to snatch things from?”

Jiang Yan moved her lips, but Wei Mengli grabbed Qin Lan: “Sister Qin, don’t blame her. It has nothing to do with Sister Yanyan—”

“Let go of me!” Qin Lan threw off her hand, looking at her with disgust. Wei Mengli couldn’t take that cold look and turned to run away.

In the rain, only Qin Lan and Jiang Yan remained. Jiang Yan took a step forward, seemingly wanting to take her away. Her long, straight black hair was as smooth as silk in the rain: “It’s too cold here; you’ll catch a cold. Let’s go to the nearby teaching building first. I will explain—”

“Stop faking it.” Qin Lan’s beautiful eyes widened as she brushed back her soaking hair. Her red dress and fiery curls were plastered to her body by the cold wind and rain, yet she was still radiant and bold, like a flame burning in the rain: “There’s no one else here. Why are you still acting like ‘green tea’?”

She turned to leave with great flair. However, after two steps of being “cool,” her body suddenly tilted. Her stiletto heel had gotten stuck in a gap between the boardwalk planks.

Qin Lan tried to lift her leg. She pulled with force, but it didn’t move. She pulled again; still nothing.

Qin Lan closed her eyes, gritted her teeth, and took a breath. Suddenly, her ankle felt a chill: “Don’t move. Let me.”

“Let go!” Qin Lan shivered from the cold of her hand: “Let go! Who asked for your help?”

Jiang Yan also knew her hands were too cold. She lowered her eyes sadly, her eyelashes holding raindrops like wet magnolias: “Student Qin, I’m thinking of your health. You can’t stay in the rain. You must leave here immediately.”

Jiang Yan couldn’t pull the heel out, so she unbuckled the strap, intending to free the foot first. Qin Lan didn’t want her help at all. She pulled her leg up hard, and her foot left the shoe, kicking Jiang Yan in the chest. Both fell back a step. Qin Lan staggered barefoot on the wooden boardwalk, staring at Jiang Yan in shock.

“What are you doing?” She couldn’t help but soften her tone, no longer as aggressive. Jiang Yan had fallen to the ground, one hand clutching her chest, the other still holding the high heel she had just pulled out.

She raised her head. After a moment of silence, her face was white as snow: “Put on your shoe first.”

Since then, Wei Mengli never appeared before Qin Lan again. Qin Lan didn’t bother to pay attention, assuming she and Jiang Yan were dating. It wasn’t until a gathering where they discussed local gossip that she learned Jiang Yan was still single. For a period, Wei Mengli and Jiang Yan were indeed very close, but they soon drifted apart, and no further connection was heard of.

Qin Lan pondered for a long time and decided Jiang Yan was just a curse on her. She couldn’t stand to see Qin Lan doing well and had to snatch away everything she had.

“So I’m telling you, she’s just a ‘green tea’,” Qin Lan continued to rant. “I don’t think she liked Wei Mengli at all. The way she talked to her that day was so ‘tea’-like. She’s just doing it to oppose me.”

Yun Chui said nothing, but Song Man chimed in indignantly, cursing Wei Mengli as well. As they went back and forth, they “summoned” the real Jiang Yan.

Qin Lan and Song Man looked toward the door simultaneously. Jiang Yan pushed open the door and walked in showily, greeting everyone: “Hi, Student Qin, Student Song.”

Then she walked straight to Yun Chui and naturally held out a key: “Here. I’m not going back to the dorm tonight, so I’ll leave the key with you.”

Yun Chui took it, said thanks, and started chatting with her. Qin Lan looked at Song Man in shock and mouthed: Are they that close?

Song Man nodded, looking a bit unhappy. Yun Chui’s back was to them, so Jiang Yan could see Qin Lan over her shoulder. Song Man noticed that she kept looking at Qin Lan with a gaze like a puppy seeing a bone very aggressive.

Song Man was bewildered: “Why does she keep staring at you?”

Qin Lan also noticed and felt Jiang Yan probably hated her: “She definitely wants to set me up. What else could it be? She’s probably just watching what I do so she can do the same snatching resources, crowding me out, disgusting me. Isn’t she best at deceiving her brainless fans into scolding me?”

They eavesdropped for a while and found the two were just chatting about mundane dormitory things, acting quite seriously as if there really was something going on. Later, when there was nothing left to talk about, Yun Chui led Jiang Yan over: “This is my roommate and good friend, Jiang Yan.”

Jiang Yan maintained her smile and nodded to them.

Qin Lan said dryly: “I know.” Song Man was even stiffer: “Yeah, we’ve met.”

“We’re shooting the ‘Flower Dan’ magazine together next month. I’m lucky to have Student Qin there.” Jiang Yan smiled, still staring at Qin Lan relentlessly: “I’ll have to ask Student Qin for lots of guidance then.”

In Qin Lan’s ears, this was automatically translated to “I have to shoot a magazine with this ‘green tea’ again next month,” and she immediately pulled down the corners of her mouth.

She hated people like Jiang Yan most. They always left her not knowing how to use her strength. If the other party was straightforward about their dislike, she could curse back directly. But when Jiang Yan was all smiles, she didn’t even know how to open her mouth.

Song Man stayed to continue practicing. Yun Chui was covered in sweat and wanted to return to the dorm to shower first. Qin Lan didn’t want to stay anywhere Jiang Yan was and quickly left with her.

Jiang Yan wasn’t familiar with Song Man, so she nodded and left alone as well. Song Man looked strangely at their departing backs and resumed her focused practice.

Once Qin Lan left that practice room, she felt a sense of relief, her features softening considerably. They walked down the ginkgo avenue on campus, a gentle breeze rustling the treetops. Yun Chui looked at her phone; Jiang Yan had sent a “wronged” emoji: Why does she hate me so much?

Yun Chui then asked: “Why exactly do you hate Jiang Yan so much?”

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