"In any case, we are not here to talk about that. We're here to discuss the solution to the mistake that Feng Qi had committed." Pei Ling silently switched the 'incident' term out for 'mistake' to describe what Feng Qi had done, this was to plant that idea stealthily into Jun Yang's subconscious, to make the young man also see it that way.
Jun Yang was glad for the change of topic. He felt weirdly uncomfortable when Pei Ling was lampooning Feng Qi even though the young man could find no argument to counter her statements. In fact, Jun Yang inability to defend Feng Qi could be the source of his discomfort.
"You're right," he said to get the conversation going, "What kind of idea do you have?"
"The solution is actually deceptively easy. You only need to understand how the machine of rumors and gossips work. The way to stop a rumor is not to place a ban on it, to get people to stop talking about it, history proves that it will only backfires and spreads the rumor even faster," Pei Ling explained. Jun Yang was surprised that Pei Ling was so knowledgeable about this topic. He chalked it up to something that was taught to her by Mrs. Pei, after all, the battlefield for the wives of powerful Chinese moguls was often shrouded in smokes and mirrors. Attacks were made through seemingly innocuous words that were shared over dinner and wine.
Pei Ling continued, "Instead, there are two correct ways to handle this, one is to wait for the talk to run its natural course and die out; two is to create a bigger topic for the people to talk about. From this aspect, gossips are not much different from waves in the ocean, they have a short life and a bigger wave always swallows up a smaller one."
Jun Yang nodded to acknowledge that he was listening.
"For the first method, we don't need to do anything, we only need to wait but unfortunately, time is of the essence and it is the only thing that we do not have now." Or at least that was the impression that Pei Ling was trying to make. She was attempting to introduce a sense of urgency into the situation.
"Then, what about the second method?" Jun Yang asked. His tone was normal and flat, it was hard to tell whether he had fallen for her trick or not.
Pei Ling pressed forward, "For the second method, we need to create a bigger topic that can overshadow the impression that is created by these pictures."
"I assume as much but what kind of rumor do you have in mind?" Jun Yang tried to think about it but his mind was not wired this way. Deception and manipulation was definitely not up his alley.
Pei Ling took a deep breath and announced plainly, "It's simple, just say yes to be my boyfriend."
"Wait, what?!" Jun Yang had heard that proclamation many times over the past few months from Feng Qi, but that did not mean he has gotten desensitized to it. Furthermore, this time, the suggestion came from Pei Ling. Jun Yang could not help but get a little cautious especially since the thing that happened on his birthday.
Seeing the frown on his face, Pei Ling shrugged and said, "Don't get the wrong idea, I'm just asking you to pretend that we're a couple. If our classmates see us together, they will forget completely about the pictures released by Feng Qi and they will talk about us instead."
Jun Yang went into a contemplative silence. He could admit that Pei Ling had a point and he could see her plan working… but the young man had his reservation, not about the plan but the person that he was conducting the plan with.
Generally speaking, Jun Yang still had faith in the goodness within people's heart. He tried to convince himself that Pei Ling was making this offer out of the kindness of her heart and she was not trying to take advantage of the situation.
She saw a friend in trouble and wanted to lend her aid in the only way that she knew how. That was all there was to it.
While Jun Yang was figuring this out, he could hear Pei Ling droning in the background, "We only need to act in front of the class for a few days. It'll be easy."
As much as Jun Yang tried to buy the girl's innocence, the young man found it difficult to silence the dubious part of his brain. Everything aligned a bit too perfectly for this to happen.
After some back and forth in his mind, Jun Yang finally landed on a decision. He told Pei Ling, "Thank you for your suggestion, Pei Ling but I will need some time to think about it."
"Of course, I understand, Jun Yang." Pei Ling nodded with understanding and concern.
That moved Jun Yang slightly to place his trust in her. If the girl was trying to take advantage of the situation, she would have pounced on this opportunity to push her agenda but Pei Ling did not.
If anything, when Pei Ling heard about Jun Yang's need to consider, she appeared rather cavalier. In fact, her attitude was more like, 'I'm offering you this help but if you don't want to use it, then fine by me.'
Pei Ling soon left after Jun Yang said he needed some time. By the time Jun Yang decided it was time to go home, most of the students had gone home already, only the staff remained.
Jun Yang still had not come to a decision, he did not know what to do. Thankfully, he ran into someone that might help him make the decision.
As the young man stepped down the stairs at the front of the school, at the end, around the corner, stood a character pertinent to this whole incident.
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