Online Love, Based on the Real Object - Chapter 53

“…”

That face drew closer and closer. The expression on Qi Ning’s face had shifted from blankness to utter helplessness, a look of internal conflict practically spilling from her eyes.

Is she really going to kiss me?!

Should I push her away or not?!

I haven’t even been drinking; I’m completely sober, okay?!

The more Qi Ning thought about it, the more tangled her mind became, and her brows furrowed unconsciously.

Every tiny shift in her expression fell into Chu Yunjing’s gaze: the blush creeping up her cheeks, the panicked look, the conflicted eyes, and that uneasy frown. She could feel Qi Ning’s hands gripping the hem of her shirt—very tightly.

Chu Yunjing’s lips moved—

A gentle puff of air blew across Qi Ning’s eye.

Qi Ning: “???”

Chu Yunjing reached out and lightly brushed Qi Ning’s eyelid, saying nonchalantly, “You had a stray eyelash right there.”

She sat up and looked down at the person still lying on the yoga mat, who hadn’t quite processed what happened. A smirk played on Chu Yunjing’s lips. “You didn’t actually think I was going to kiss you, did you?”

Qi Ning: “???”

Feeling completely outplayed, she rolled her eyes internally in frustration. If you’re just blowing away an eyelash, why do you have to make it so ambiguous?!

She quickly sat up as well, glaring at Chu Yunjing with puffed-out cheeks. Not one to back down, she shot back, “Did I say anything? Talk about narcissistic!”

Thinking it over and still feeling cheated, she added, “Shameless!”

Chu Yunjing didn’t argue; she just watched her and laughed. “Anyway, Chen Yi sent me a WeChat message earlier about the class reunion.”

“Oh, she messaged me too, I haven’t replied yet.” Qi Ning sat cross-legged on the yoga mat, her eyelids lifting slightly. “Are you going?”

High school reunions didn’t happen often, usually just a spontaneous dinner organized by someone every couple of years. Last year, Chu Yunjing was busy and didn’t attend, so Qi Ning went alone. Remembering that experience, which was less than pleasant, Qi Ning made a face of slight disgust.

Chu Yunjing noticed the change in her expression and tilted her head. “Why that face? Did someone bully you?”

“Not really,” Qi Ning muttered.

Reunions were always a prime stage for showing off. Last year, Qi Ning was surprised to find that many of her female classmates had already become mothers. Once they started talking about their kids, she couldn’t get a word in edgewise. On the other hand, the male classmates who were doing poorly didn’t show up, while those who were doing well were incredibly greasy, incessantly bragging about how much money they had made that year.

Qi Ning had wanted to laugh the entire time.

Of course, there was the usual drama. Some men, now successful, finally found the courage to confess the feelings they were too shy to voice back in school. Two couples were actually formed that night. This prompted other male students to start prying, asking why Chu Yunjing hadn’t come. They were all hoping to see the “Goddess Scholar” of their youth.

At the time, Qi Ning looked at a certain classmate’s beer belly—which was nearly as big as his head—and his fawning expression as he asked her to introduce them. She had practically rolled her eyes to the ceiling and told him right then and there: “In your dreams.”

Qi Ning wasn’t particularly keen on going this time; she felt reunions were more exhausting than company team-building events.

“Well,” Chu Yunjing said, not thinking much of it. “I declined last year, and I promised I’d definitely go this year.”

“…” Qi Ning was silent for a long moment. “Then I guess I’ll go too.”

As the organizer, Chen Yi quickly sent out the time and location once the headcount was confirmed.

The venue was quite upscale—a high-end leisure club. Qi Ning’s first thought was that Chen Yi must have struck it rich this year to afford such a place.

“Tsk tsk, I bet you can’t even get in here for less than several thousand yuan per person,” Qi Ning complained to Chu Yunjing as they walked in. “Last year we just had dinner and went to KTV, and we even had to split the bill.”

“The ‘big bosses’ making millions a year suddenly acted like they were stone-deaf when it was time to pay. Thinking back on it makes my scalp crawl with embarrassment.”

Entering the main gates, they found the interior decorated in a classical style. In the corridor, they could admire rockeries and water features in the courtyard, complete with a small, elegant fountain. Following the waiter down the long hall, they stopped at a glass door. From the outside, they could see a luxurious interior with large leather sofas and beautiful crystal chandeliers.

A few people were already inside chatting. The waiter opened the door for them.

Most of the faces were familiar to Qi Ning, but those people froze the moment they saw the person beside her.

One male classmate stood up. “And this is…?”

Chu Yunjing’s features had fully matured since high school, and she was wearing sophisticated makeup. Seeing her after all these years, none of her old classmates dared to assume this was the quiet, serious class monitor who did nothing but study.

In high school, Chu Yunjing wore thick black-rimmed glasses, but after she stopped wearing them in college, her vision had actually improved. She looked like a completely different person. Today, she wore a light-colored turtleneck sweater with black skinny jeans, topped with a long trench coat draped casually over her shoulders. It made her legs look incredibly long; one might easily mistake her for a model.

After graduation, she hadn’t kept in much contact with her high school peers, and many had lost touch after changing numbers. She only had Chen Yi’s WeChat because Qi Ning had shared it.

Seeing the group’s bewildered expressions, Qi Ning couldn’t help but laugh. She slung an arm around Chu Yunjing’s shoulder. “What, you’ve already forgotten your class monitor?”

Gao Wei was the first to react. “Oh my, well they say a girl changes eighteen times as she grows up, but this… what a beauty!”

Gao Wei was the same student who had asked Qi Ning for an introduction the year before. His eyes practically popped out at the sight of her. He immediately moved closer, intending to shake her hand, but Qi Ning blocked him.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Qi Ning said. “I don’t see you trying to shake my hand. Your eyes are about to fall out of your head!”

“Heh heh,” Gao Wei laughed sheepishly. “It’s been so many years. I’m just excited, that’s all.”

The guest list showed over twenty people. Classmates continued to trickle in, leaving only the host, Chen Yi, yet to arrive. This didn’t stop the group from sitting together and bragging.

During the conversation, Gao Wei pulled out his phone, pointedly placing his car keys on top of it.

“Whoa, Gao Wei, business must be good this year. You bought a luxury car!”

“Nah,” Gao Wei said with a performatively humble smile. “It was only around 300,000 yuan. Hardly a luxury car.” He then turned to Chu Yunjing. “Monitor, let me drive you home later!”

“No thanks, I drove myself.”

“We haven’t asked yet—where is the monitor working these days?” one of the female classmates piped up.

“I started a small company,” Chu Yunjing replied modestly.

They took the “small” part literally. A female classmate who had married into wealth and stayed at home said, “Why work so hard as a woman? Finding a husband who treats you well is much better than exhausting yourself out there in the world.”

“Yunjing, do you have a partner? Want me to introduce someone? My husband’s younger brother is quite good. Very young, only thirty-two.”

“…” Chu Yunjing gave a polite but awkward smile. “No, thank you.”

Qi Ning glanced at the woman, whose hands were covered in jewelry—she clearly wanted everyone to know her husband owned a jewelry store. Back in school, she loved to brag about which boys were chasing her. Qi Ning rolled her eyes internally. If you want to be dependent on a man, fine, but don’t try to brainwash others.

She spoke up immediately: “Does your husband’s brother have eight-pack abs? Does he have his own house and car? Is the house a villa or an apartment? Is the car a Maserati or a Bugatti?”

“…” The wealthy socialite was silenced.

Qi Ning let out a long sigh and leaned against Chu Yunjing, saying in a mock-dramatic voice, “If her standards weren’t so high, she would have married herself off long ago.”

She clicked her tongue. “You guys have no idea how picky she is. She ignored the second-generation rich kid whose family does real estate. She turned down the elite returnee making millions. Even if we go for someone a bit ‘lower,’ like a 195cm male model with perfect abs and a handsome face, she doesn’t want him either. She deserves to be single!”

Since everyone there was exaggerating anyway, Qi Ning figured she might as well play the game. Her Jingjing was a wealthy, beautiful woman who owned a major company; matching her with those socialites or “elites” would be doing them a favor.

Realizing there was always a bigger fish in the pond, the female classmate went quiet. Qi Ning glanced at the silent group, satisfied that they had given up on being “matchmakers” for Chu Yunjing. She had shut them down last year, too; they really didn’t learn.

After a while, the organizer, Chen Yi, finally arrived.

“Oh, look at our lady boss, looking beautiful today,” the group teased.

“Stop it, what lady boss?” Chen Yi laughed. “The food is ordered. I’ll call the waiter to start serving.”

As the dishes were laid out, the group gathered around a large circular table. Chen Yi had left an empty seat next to her, with Qi Ning sitting in between.

Before they started eating, she suddenly said mysteriously, “Actually, there’s a mystery guest at this party.”

“This guest is paying for the entire gathering today,” she said, sweeping her gaze over the room. “He’s an old classmate as well, and you all know him. He came today specifically for one of our classmates.”

“Wow!” Sensing gossip, the group immediately became lively.

Chen Yi didn’t keep them in suspense much longer and invited the person in. He was holding a large bouquet of roses that obscured his face, but one could see he was wearing a deep blue suit. He was lean and stood about 175cm tall.

Qi Ning was always interested in these “long-lost confession” scenarios. She crunched on a melon seed and whispered to Chu Yunjing, “Emma, there’s going to be a show.”

Just as she was settling in to enjoy the drama, she realized she was the star of it.

The man stopped at the table and moved the flowers away, revealing his face. His stubble was neatly shaved, his hair was styled with wax, and his looks… were alright. Qi Ning found him familiar, but for a moment, she couldn’t place him.

Chen Yi was about to introduce him, but he stopped her. He turned to Qi Ning and said with a grin, “Qi Ning, do you remember me?”

That voice instantly told her exactly who it was. Qi Ning’s eyes widened, and her body recoiled, leaning right against Chu Yunjing.

Suddenly, the gossip didn’t taste so good.

Qi Ning never expected Wang Hongwen to make an entrance like this. A debt from her youth had come to collect.

Back in high school, this classmate had chased her relentlessly. Qi Ning was in her rebellious phase, and seeing everyone else with partners—plus his persistent pestering was honestly quite annoying—she had offhandedly accepted him.

However, not long after, Qi Ning was pressured by her family to focus on her studies, with getting into university as the priority. She finally said goodbye to her “slacker” days and started studying hard, which naturally meant the relationship fizzled out. To comfort the “pure-hearted boy,” Qi Ning had even said they could consider being together if they got into the same university.

As it turned out, Wang Hongwen didn’t make it to university and started working right after high school. They gradually lost contact. Now, it seemed he had made some money.

At the time, Qi Ning was the one who had cut off contact. The relationship had only started because she was being egged on by her girlfriends; after they broke up, she had actually felt a sense of relief. She just didn’t expect that after all these years, this guy… what did he want now?

“WOW!!” The group’s excitement reached a fever pitch.

“I heard from Chen Yi that you’re still single,” Wang Hongwen smiled at her. “I didn’t come with any other motive; I just want to pursue you again.”

“No, no, no…” The person who was just so eloquent now leaned into Chu Yunjing’s embrace like a startled kitten, waving her hands frantically. “That… look, it’s been so many years. You still remember that?”

“Hahahaha! Qi Ning, you’ve finally met your match!”

“What a devoted man!”

“The debt collector is at the door!” The group laughed at her, with no intention of helping her out.

Wang Hongwen moved closer, trying to give her the flowers. “Please, take these.”

Qi Ning had nowhere to retreat. Chu Yunjing could feel the rejection radiating from her.

Chu Yunjing calmly raised a hand, placing it between Wang Hongwen and Qi Ning to prevent him from getting closer. She narrowed her eyes at him. “You’re frightening her.”

“Oh, sorry.” He realized his mistake and scratched his head, backing off a bit.

Qi Ning finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Chen Yi quickly stepped in to smooth things over. Once the meal finally started, the conversation moved away from the two of them. Someone eventually asked Wang Hongwen what he was doing now.

Wang Hongwen said he had opened an auto repair company. As he spoke, he kept glancing at Qi Ning, as if his eyes were glued to her. Qi Ning felt her scalp tingle; had she known this would happen, she wouldn’t have come even if someone killed her.

One reason Wang Hongwen had managed to date Qi Ning back then was his sheer persistence. Out of all the girls in class, he had fixed his sights on her, treating her like a goddess. He’d bring her breakfast in the morning and snacks during lunch. Qi Ning had rejected him many times, telling him not to buy her things, but every time she reached into her desk for a book, she’d find a small snack…

Thinking back, in today’s world of jaded youth, it was probably hard to find someone so “devoted.” But… even back in high school, she never really had any special feelings for him. If he was going to start a frantic pursuit like he did back then, she was going to have a massive headache.

“Qi Ning, I tried to add you on WeChat a while ago, but you didn’t accept.”

“…I might have missed it.” Someone had tried to add her recently without a name or explanation, just the words “Qi Ning.” Seeing it was a man, she had ignored it. Who knew if it was a salesperson? There are countless marketing accounts like that.

Wang Hongwen was likely about to suggest adding her now when Chu Yunjing suddenly spoke up. She turned to Qi Ning: “Let me switch seats with you.”

“Yes! Yes, please!” Qi Ning was desperate to move. The moment the words were out, she swapped seats with eager haste.

Wang Hongwen: “…” Watching them switch, the words he wanted to say got stuck in his throat.

Having swapped seats, Chu Yunjing leisurely took a sip of tea. she gave him a side-glance and asked coldly, “Is there something you need?”

Her expression was as cold as a heartless female assassin.

Wang Hongwen withdrew his gaze sheepishly. “No!”

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