novelraw Chapter 246: "Why Are You Angry? Was Anything I Said Wrong?
Chapter 246: "Why Are You Angry? Was Anything I Said Wrong?
"It’s not just that..." Gu Yunjia shook her head and said calmly, "You know, ever since I was little, all my relatives told me I was pretty. I was the school beauty in junior high, and my family was well-off. I always got whatever I wanted... until high school."
Gu Yunjia looked at the girl before her. She wore a plain black down jacket, a dark gray scarf, and short boots with black jeans. Only her hands and face were exposed to the elements, and her makeup-free cheeks were slightly red from the cold wind.
Even though she was bundled up like a ball, she still had a magical quality that made all other scenery pale in comparison wherever she stood. "You’ve gotten more and more beautiful, much prettier than you were in our first year. You weren’t this beautiful when I first saw you, but even back then, I realized something."
"What?" Xu Su asked, a little confused.
"I realized that a person’s beauty can have a real impact. It can leave people completely dazed." Gu Yunjia paused, then added, "It’s what people call ’breathtaking.’"
"..." Xu Su was speechless and felt a bit awkward.
’Didn’t she say she hated me? Why is she suddenly complimenting me like this...’
"So, I’m not bitter about losing to you. In fact, I now think Xi Zirong was the one who got the better deal by being with you. He was your first love, right? You don’t seem like the type to date in junior high."
Xu Su was silent for a moment, then nodded.
’Across two lifetimes, Xi Zirong had been her first love...’
"See? Xi Zirong definitely got the better end of the deal." Gu Yunjia’s tone remained calm as she suddenly asked, "Have you two done it?"
"What?" Xu Su thought she must have misheard.
Gu Yunjia let out a scornful laugh. "What are you pretending for? I’m asking if you and Xi Zirong have slept together."
"..." Xu Su felt even more awkward.
The question was far too personal. Even Huang Feng and Qian Jia had never asked her that. Xu Su didn’t think her relationship with Gu Yunjia was nearly close enough to discuss such topics, and she had no desire to answer.
Xu Su stammered, unwilling to speak, but Gu Yunjia didn’t seem to care. She continued on her own, "I used to hate you for not knowing how to cherish someone’s sincere feelings. I yearned for that sincerity but could never have it, yet you cast it aside so easily."
She said coldly, "But I don’t hate you for that anymore. Now, I just hate the way you are."
’The way I am...?’
Xu Su truly didn’t understand. "What’s wrong with the way I am?"
A look of disgust appeared in Gu Yunjia’s eyes. "Why act so innocent? There’s no one else here. You and Xi Zirong dated for a year and were stuck together every day. Are you telling me you never slept together?"
Xu Su was at a loss for words. After thinking for a moment, she couldn’t help but ask, "Is this question really that important?"
Gu Yunjia stared intently at her and nodded.
"..." Xu Su was taken aback. She could understand why Zhou Mochen would care, but why was Gu Yunjia so fixated on it? It’s not like she was anything to Xi Zirong.
After a long silence, seeing that Gu Yunjia’s desperation for an answer was written all over her face, Xu Su finally replied, "We didn’t."
"You’re lying!" Gu Yunjia’s voice suddenly rose. "Xi Zirong admitted it himself! What are you putting on an act for?!"
Being taunted with "What are you putting on an act for?" over and over again made Xu Su’s brow furrow tightly. Her temper wasn’t the best to begin with, but considering the recent school rumors and Gu Yunjia’s current unhinged state, she tried not to provoke her. Forcing her anger down, she shook her head and said, "I don’t know why you think this is so important, but since you want to know, I’ll tell you. I never slept with Xi Zirong. I have no reason to lie to you."
"How could that be... How could that be..." Gu Yunjia took half a step back and leaned against the railing, her expression blank and helpless.
Xu Su looked at her. "What’s wrong?"
’Why does she look so devastated...?’
"Right! You have a live-in boyfriend, too! An older guy, just like mine. He’s just a ’boyfriend’ in name only. You’re no better than me." Gu Yunjia’s face flushed with agitation, a malicious yet relieved smile playing on her lips. "Xu Su, you’re not any better than I am. We’re the same!"
She looked a little frightening. Xu Su frowned and said, "Gu Yunjia, calm down. Didn’t you say you don’t care about the school rumors?"
"You’re no better than me, right? You call him your boyfriend, but you’re just being kept by him, aren’t you? Don’t deny it..." Gu Yunjia struggled to stand up straight and smiled at her. "Xu Su, are you still a virgin?"
Xu Su: "..."
The question struck Xu Su silent. She found Gu Yunjia completely irrational. Her patience completely spent, she turned to leave.
"I’m not anymore!" Gu Yunjia’s voice trembled. "Xu Su, I’m not! It happened that week I took off from school. It was with the middle-aged man from the rumors."
Xu Su whipped her head around, suddenly understanding the meaning behind all of Gu Yunjia’s questions. "Gu Yunjia! Don’t tell me you did this just because you saw that I got a boyfriend from outside of school!"
Gu Yunjia sneered. "Don’t flatter yourself. I may want to compete with you in everything, but I never intended to compete in being trashy."
’Trashy...’
In her two lifetimes combined, no one had ever used such a word against her. Xu Su’s lips trembled, but seeing the unstable state of the person before her, she forced herself not to hurl insults back.
But Gu Yunjia was relentless. "Why are you getting angry? Did I say anything wrong?"
Damn it!
After being subjected to so much passive-aggression, Xu Su’s rage finally boiled over. She looked up, her gaze burning as she stared at Gu Yunjia. "Everything you said was wrong! So what if I slept with my boyfriend? How does that make me trashy?"
Gu Yunjia laughed with unrestrained glee. "See? I knew we were the same. Aren’t you selling your body for money, too?"
’This is completely insane!’
Xu Su identified the point Gu Yunjia was most fixated on. She took a deep breath to suppress her anger and went straight for the jugular. "Sorry to disappoint you, but I haven’t slept with anyone. Not with Xi Zirong, and not with Zhou Mochen."
"But I refuse to let you describe my relationship with Zhou Mochen as ’trashy.’"
It was cold on the rooftop. Xu Su hadn’t worn gloves, so she tightened her scarf, stuffed her hands in her pockets, and walked over to Gu Yunjia. "I was with both of them because I liked them, not to ’sell my body for money’ like you said. Even if I had slept with both of them, I wouldn’t think of myself as ’cheap.’"
"I don’t believe you! I don’t believe you’ve been living together for almost half a year and have done nothing." Gu Yunjia’s face went pale, and her voice trembled. "Why are you lying to me? Tell me the truth!"
’She’s completely losing it...’
Xu Su reached out and grabbed Gu Yunjia’s arm. Afraid of provoking her further, she softened her tone. "If it makes you feel better to think that I did it, then fine, I did it. It’s really not that important."
Zhou Mochen had been driving her to and from school for so long, and the news that they were living together was known throughout the school. It was normal for people to misunderstand, and she didn’t care what others said.
But the words Xu Su thought were gentle only served to provoke Gu Yunjia further, her eyes turning bloodshot with rage...