Song Xilai never expected that her casual remark would land her in big trouble!
Here's how it all happened:
At 10 p.m. last night, Song Xilai had just stepped out of the dormitory bathroom, her hair still dripping wet.
Her phone, placed on the desk, suddenly vibrated twice.
Ignoring her wet hair, Song Xilai immediately picked up the phone, which was charging. She noticed a red "2" notification on her pinned WeChat conversation.
Her eyes brightened slightly as she opened it.
However, as soon as she saw the photo and message sent by Xu Huai, the smile froze on her face. She stood in place for a moment, dazed, while her damp hair soaked the white T-shirt she was wearing, turning it semi-transparent.
Her roommate Chen Qingyan called out, "Xilai, do you still need the hair dryer?"
No response. Chen Qingyan raised her voice, "Xilai!"
Song Xilai seemed to snap out of a dream. She took the hair dryer, plugged it in, and began drying her hair.
Her face was wet, a mixture of water from her hair and tears, blending indistinguishably. The loud hum of the hair dryer drowned out the soft sobs she couldn't suppress.
In the dorm room, her roommates Chen Qingyan and Fang Xiaoting were wearing headphones, busy with their own tasks on their laptops, completely unaware of this little incident.
This time, she dried her hair for an unusually long time, long enough for the tear streaks on her face to dry before she finally put the hair dryer down.
Picking up her phone again, she opened Xu Huai's chat.
Normally aloof, Xu Huai had inexplicably changed his tone and sent her a photo of himself with another girl, accompanied by a single line:
[My girlfriend. Pretty, right?]
In the photo, the girl was beautiful and alluring, with a stunning figure. Beside her, the boy's features were handsome and his expression cool. They looked like a perfect couple, a striking match anyone would compliment. The background of their photo appeared to be a nightclub or KTV.
Clutching her phone tightly, Song Xilai stared at the screen without blinking.
Her initial sadness and disappointment were quickly replaced by intense anger!
She had secretly liked Xu Huai since sophomore year in high school. Now in her junior year of college, she'd been infatuated with him for five years.
Back in her freshman year of college, she'd even confessed her feelings to Xu Huai. She still remembered his response at the time:
"Sorry, I'm not considering dating for now."
The boy, dressed in a white tracksuit and holding a basketball, stood on the tree-lined campus pathway.
It looked just like the road Mei from My Neighbor Totoro took to find Totoro—a beam of sunlight streaming through the gaps in the leaves landed perfectly on Xu Huai's straight nose bridge.
He was like the male protagonist of a campus romance novel, seemingly out of reach.
Despite being rejected, Song Xilai didn't feel defeated. Instead, she beamed brightly:
"Then can I pursue you?"
Xu Huai didn't say yes, nor did he say no.
So, Song Xilai began seriously chasing her "male god."
But chasing her male god was no easy task. She didn't dare to message him excessively on WeChat, only daring to tease him subtly. She delivered water to him at nearly every basketball game he played in. Xu Huai only drank a specific brand of mineral water that was only available at an imported goods store near the campus.
For every holiday, big or small, she meticulously prepared gifts for him. Though the watches and sneakers she gave him were never seen in use, she accepted it. After all, Xu Huai was the young master of a wealthy family, accustomed to expensive items. But the gifts she gave were already the best she could afford within her means.
She even heard that Xu Huai went for a night run every Wednesday, so she managed to cure her late-stage laziness just to "accidentally" meet him at the track every week, running five kilometers in his wake!
After years of persistent effort, Song Xilai began to entertain the illusion that Xu Huai might one day be moved and she could win his heart.
Xu Huai had always been the untouchable "cool flower on the mountain" type of male god at school.
Following her principle of "as long as no one else wins him, I can boldly pursue him," her teasing grew increasingly daring.
And last month, on Xu Huai's birthday, Song Xilai thought she was about to succeed. He agreed to go watch a movie with her.
But before the movie even started, Xu Huai's business partner from his side hustle called him away. Song Xilai, who had dressed particularly beautifully that day, ended up going into the theater alone, spitting out the rose-flavored mint she'd prepared for fresh breath. Instead, she finished an entire oversized bucket of popcorn, leaving her stuffed and hiccupping.
When she stepped out of the theater, it was raining. The rain smudged her carefully applied makeup.
She messaged Xu Huai on WeChat on the spot:
"You agreed to come watch a movie with me. Does that mean you like me?"
Xu Huai replied:
"Can't friends watch a movie together? I don't think I've ever said anything ambiguous."
Upon receiving his response, Song Xilai sighed dramatically, feeling she deserved it.
After all, she was a self-confessed "face fanatic" through and through! She was highly sensitive to aesthetics and proportions, requiring only one thing in a future boyfriend—looks.
And Xu Huai matched her ideal aesthetic perfectly. From high school onward, his handsomeness was dazzling. At 187 cm tall, with refined features, pale skin, and top-tier academic performance, he was the untouchable "cool flower on the mountain."
So, wasn't it normal for her to fall for him?
Song Xilai comforted herself.
The internet had a saying: "Rejecting handsome men starts with you? Sorry, I can't do it." She figured that was her situation exactly.
Sometimes, she got so fed up with herself for being so devoted, she'd delete all their chat history, pretending she'd never chased after him!
But last night, harsh reality slapped her in the face, vividly illustrating the saying: "Simping gets you nowhere; you'll end up with nothing."
Xu Huai was no longer the untouchable "cool flower on the mountain." He had a girlfriend. Someone else had gotten to him first.
Song Xilai didn't understand why Xu Huai sent her a photo of him and his girlfriend, but after some thought, it made sense.
He was in a relationship now and wanted to send her a clear message: stop chasing him; she didn't stand a chance.
Perhaps he found her persistence annoying or worried his girlfriend might misunderstand. Either way, he had sent her that photo for a reason.
Staring at the couple's picture, Song Xilai knew she had no right to be angry. Yet she couldn't help herself. Anger mixed with frustration, jealousy, sadness, and humiliation.
With trembling hands, she opened Weibo and began searching for photos of handsome men.
She needed to find someone more attractive than Xu Huai. But no matter how many pictures she looked at, none matched her taste.
As she was about to exit the app and try another platform, she stumbled upon a gym photo of a man whose face wasn't visible.
Guided by impulse, she clicked on the photo. Her eyebrows arched in surprise.
Is this physique even real? Not some AI-generated image?
The man in the photo was shirtless, his Adam's apple prominent, his shoulders broad, and his waist slim. His muscles were sculpted and defined, veins winding around powerful arms. He wore loose gym pants that hung low on his hips, exuding an overwhelming aura of masculinity.
With just one glance, he radiated enough sex appeal to make anyone's knees weak.
Though his face was hidden by a baseball cap, his body and the atmosphere in the photo suggested that, as long as his face was decent, he was undoubtedly a heartthrob.
Probably some male model flirting on the edge of decency.
Song Xilai didn't dwell on it. She immediately downloaded the photo, removed the gym's watermark, opened her chat with Xu Huai, and sent the photo. Biting her lip, her eyes glinted with stubborn resentment.
Rich Auntie: [Forgot to mention, this is my new boyfriend. Isn't he super handsome?]
Rich Auntie: [I've never met a guy with a body this good before. Double-door fridge, 119-pack abs, super hot. It was love at first sight for us. 🥰]
Her anger boiled over, and she lashed out in a way that felt like venting five wasted years of her life.
She had liked Xu Huai for five years, but he had never liked her back. If he had even a sliver of interest, he wouldn't have kept her waiting, wouldn't have been ambiguous about her affection, and wouldn't have always put her last. He had let her be consumed by insecurities, following him like a fool.
Her romantic infatuation cracked like a broken vase, and a metaphorical truckload of cement poured into her heart, solidifying quickly.
Tears began rolling down her cheeks. Her tone grew sharper as years of frustration erupted.
Rich Auntie: [His abs feel amazing to touch.]
Rich Auntie: [And one more secret—my boyfriend isn't just good to touch. He's also amazing in bed. 🥰]
Xu Huai, who hadn't responded until now, finally replied:
Xu Huai: [You've already slept together?]
Rich Auntie: [Obviously. With a body like his, who could resist? Of course, we've slept together. Ugh, I haven't been able to get out of bed for three days. 😳]
A long silence followed.
Just as Song Xilai thought he wouldn't reply, Xu Huai sent a single cold word:
Xu Huai: [Oh.]
Song Xilai puffed out her cheeks, threw the annoying phone aside, climbed into bed, and pulled the blanket over herself to sleep.
She cried quietly for a long time before unexpectedly falling asleep.
Her sleep was restless. She dreamed of meeting Xu Huai for the first time in their sophomore year of high school.
That winter, Xu Huai had just transferred to their school. The strikingly handsome boy in a white sweater was clean and radiant, leaving an indelible first impression. Song Xilai, seeing such a good-looking boy for the first time, couldn't stop sneaking glances at him during class. As the Chinese class monitor, she even found excuses to linger around him while collecting assignments.
On the day she met Xu Huai, her face turned completely red, from her cheeks to her ears. She must've looked ridiculous.
But in her half-asleep state, Song Xilai began to feel that the Xu Huai she had liked back then wasn't the same as the Xu Huai now. She couldn't pinpoint what had changed, but it was as if his once-untouchable brilliance had dimmed, revealing a clearer, more ordinary person.
That night, she tossed and turned, her mind foggy and waterlogged like a soaked sponge.
The next morning, Song Xilai woke up with a splitting headache. She felt like she had a fever.
Despite the pain, she reached for her phone to order medicine but habitually opened the campus forum first. A trending post caught her eye:
[Hot Scoop: The Campus Prince Is Officially Taken!! I'm Crying My Heart Out...]
The "Campus Prince" wasn't Xu Huai.
Though Xu Huai's looks were top-tier, the title of Campus Prince at A University belonged to someone else.
Song Xilai, knowing of but not familiar with the Campus Prince, clicked on the post out of boredom.
The moment she opened it, a familiar name jumped out at her.
[Juicy gossip! Last night, during a basketball team dinner between A University and City U, a lot of people attended. Afterward, they went to Pure K for drinks and played truth or dare. Xu Shen lost.]
Xu Huai?
Song Xilai sat up, her messy hair like a bird's nest, as she read the bustling comments under the post.
[OP, stop teasing and spill the tea! How does this involve Xu Shen? Isn't the Campus Prince from City U?]
OP replied:
[Let me explain. Xu Shen's dare was to take a photo with someone of the opposite sex, pretend they were a couple, and send the picture to the fifth person in his WeChat contacts!]
[LOL, what a savage dare! Knowing Xu Shen, he'd probably drink a penalty shot rather than go through with it.]
[Wrong! Xu Shen chose the dare. He sent a photo with Cai Wenwen, claiming she was his girlfriend!]
Song Xilai's pupils shrank in surprise.
So the photo Xu Huai sent her last night was part of a game of truth or dare?
Her brows furrowed deeply.
The gossip continued:
[But here's the twist! The girl he sent the photo to replied with a picture of the City U Campus Prince, claiming he was her new boyfriend. Not only that, but she said they'd already slept together! She went on to describe how "touchable" and "irresistible" he was, and how she hadn't been able to get out of bed for three days. (Swear it's true—word for word!)]
With a thud, Song Xilai's phone slipped onto the bed. Her breathing quickened as she sat stunned.
Snatching her phone back up, she continued reading, her face inches from the screen.
[OMG! Who is this girl? The Campus Prince has been spotless for three years—who managed to snag him?!]
[A friend of a friend recognized the profile picture and name. It's Song Xilai from the Journalism School.]
[Could this be fake? Anyone could claim the Campus Prince as their boyfriend.]
[It's likely true. Song Xilai and Xu Shen went to the same high school. They're known to be close friends, so there's no reason she'd lie about something like this.]
[I used to think Song and Xu were a couple, but then I realized they weren't. If she and the Campus Prince are together, it must've been kept under wraps!]
[How unfair! How did Song Xilai land the Campus Prince? I'm so jealous!]
Dazed, Song Xilai wondered if her fever had muddled her brain. She suddenly felt breathless, her vision darkened, and she fainted on the bed.