novelraw Chapter 622: Just For Fun
Chapter 622: Just For Fun
The Jing Shu in this video looks so unsophisticated! she thought. Even if they say the ultimate in plainness can be beauty, this is just too much. I can’t even bear to look directly at it. Thankfully, my face isn’t very clear due to the darkness.
Jing Shu comforted herself. I’m just trying to keep a low profile, so there’s nothing much to it. Besides, the lighting is bad, so ordinary people wouldn’t recognize me anyway.
Her family didn’t feel the same way. Urged by Mr. Jing, the whole family eagerly gathered around the TV, watching the local news from Wu City with great interest. Mr. Jing would occasionally point at the scenes on the TV, talking about how he had been right there at that moment. When the camera swept over him, he bounced excitedly, pointing at the screen and shouting loudly.
But Mr. Jing rapped him with a chopstick, forcing him to sit. "Stop shouting, sit down! You’re too loud."
Mr. Jing grunted.
Jing Shu’s thoughts wandered far again. Actually, I’m not too worried about this. There aren’t many people who still watch TV and news at this hour, since everyone is now watching short videos about big data on their smartphones.
Just then, her phone started BEEPING non-stop. Jing Shu suddenly had a bad feeling. After unlocking her phone, her suspicions were confirmed: the high school group chat was fervently discussing something. When she scrolled up, she indeed found the video of herself in a bulky coat, shaking hands and smiling.
"This looks like Jing Shu @Jing Shu, is it you?"
"Looks a bit like her, but this is the news..."
The chat was generally focused on whether the person was Jing Shu. Some said it was her; despite the dim lighting, Jing Shu had worn that exact bulky coat before. Others said it wasn’t, arguing that this was the news, unlike that incident with Xishan shares.
Both sides presented their arguments. Of course, the biggest source of disbelief stemmed from the titles mentioned, such as being photographed with Wu City’s leader and being the President of the Medicine Association.
Who would believe that an old classmate has climbed to such a position now? Did you see that person, Big Yellow Teeth? He’s so old and is just the vice-president of the Medicine Association, yet the person in that bulky coat is so young and is already a vice-president...
Jing Shu had already given everyone the impression of being mysterious and capable. Her family didn’t seem very influential, yet she always possessed a strong, enigmatic aura. She could even befriend Su Malie, who notably admired her. Of course, everyone later found out that Jing Shu actually had a share in the coveted West Mountain Stone Garden.
But even with all this, it seemed implausible that someone so young could become the vice-president of the Medicine Association or be personally greeted at the airport by a powerful leader. Most people found it hard to believe, or rather, were unwilling to.
Jing Shu shook her head. Even though several people mentioned me and Su Malie in the group chat, since there’s no concrete evidence, I’ll just act oblivious and stay silent. Su Malie seems to be absent. I have no idea what she’s up to; she seems busy recently. Grandma Jing did mention the neighboring villa has been empty for days.
It had to be said, Jing Shu had perfected the art of playing aloof, as if she’d mastered a player’s handbook.
The group’s attention quickly shifted to a new topic. To stimulate consumption and find new food sources during the apocalypse, Wu City had organized a "New Apocalypse Food Competition." The premise was simple: anyone, whether they were digging in the soil or just going about their day, could submit any new species they encountered to the competition judges. These judges would then determine if the species was edible. Furthermore, if someone could cultivate a new edible plant, discover a new edible species, or synthesize new food, they could enter their creation into the competition, provided it was edible.
The prizes included a wealth of Virtual Coins, a standalone home, and many other smaller prizes and participation awards.
Indeed, lured by the rich rewards, people discovered quite a few new edible species from the apocalypse. Although they weren’t very tasty and some even had potential side effects, that hardly mattered anymore.
The news broadcast had finished, and Jing Shu was almost done with her second meal at home when the university group chat started BEEPING with notifications again.
Jing Shu, already irritable, was about to close the chat. I’m not very familiar with my college classmates anyway. To be honest, with over ninety people in one class, aside from large lectures and shared electives with other classes, I can hardly remember most of their names now. So much time has passed; I’ve almost completely forgotten them all. That’s why, since I joined the group, there’s seldom been any conversation. Even after all this time since the apocalypse, there’s hardly been any interaction.
Jing Shu’s college was a tier-three institution in Wu City specializing in performing arts. The tuition fees—goodness, they were expensive! Consequently, the families who could afford it were generally well-off, inevitably leading to comparisons. Moreover, most students paid meticulous attention to their appearance and physique. Premium makeup, skincare, and personal trainers were considered basic necessities, not to mention various nutritional and beauty supplements.
The former campus belle, with her flawless white skin and nearly perfect figure, had spent millions on upkeep. Yet, some always naively believed that such a "pure" campus belle would actually fall for something as absurd as love.
I used to like that feeling too, and I envied everything about them, Jing Shu mused. But ten years in the apocalypse have worn down all my sharp edges and illusions. It’s better to be simple and down-to-earth now. So in this life... I have a more detached view on these matters.
Jing Shu frowned as notifications tagging her kept popping up. Who could it be? she wondered. Upon checking, she saw it was that news story again, and it had clearly sparked a strong reaction.
Jiang Changke: "@Jing Shu, the woman in this news, it’s you, right? She looks a lot like you."
Liu Xia: "There are many people who look alike. By the way, who is Jing Shu? I don’t remember her."
Cheng Long: "How could it possibly be someone from our school, let alone Jing Shu? I know that girl; I even chased her once, hahaha."
The conversation started from there and, surprisingly, even escalated into an argument. Jing Shu scrolled down, perplexed.
Liu Xia: "Cheng Long, your kids are old enough to be running errands for soy sauce, and Sister Tang Yuan is also in this group. How can you still talk like this? Aren’t you afraid Sister Tang Yuan will smack you?"
Cheng Long: "...It was just for fun back then. I only chased Jing Shu because I lost a bet; it was nothing serious."
Now I vaguely remember this Cheng Long person, Jing Shu thought. He did seem to pursue me back then, but I was solely focused on becoming an actor and had no interest in such matters. The reason I remember is because my dorm mates tricked me into a gathering. I went, only to find Cheng Long was the only one there. He told me to order first, saying everyone else would arrive soon. So, naive little me ended up having a meal with him, utterly confused.
Zhen Hu: "I remember now! Jing Shu became an internet celebrity and was endorsing products online. Nothing much was heard after that. But how could she possibly represent the Wu City Medicine Association in a competition? Besides, the Medicine Association isn’t easy to get into."
Liu Xia: "Exactly! Jing Shu has no background in pharmaceuticals or medicine. That’s a completely different field!"