Xie Linchuan.
Her online romance boyfriend, Xie Linchuan!
Dong Jiaoyan's gaze locked onto the man in front of her, remembering the vague phone call he made to her this morning about breaking up.
Ha!
What a dog of a man!
He must have gotten together with Qiao Liuyue, which was why he was so desperate to break up with her.
Dong Jiaoyan shifted her gaze, and when she looked at Qiao Liuyue again, her expression turned dark and sinister.
She raised her voice, speaking with intense agitation:
"Oh, so this is how you treat your best friend, Qiao Liuyue?"
"I treated you like one of my own. I asked you to help me test my boyfriend, and instead you took the chance to steal him away. Do you have no shame?!"
Her angry shouts were loud, drawing the attention of students passing by.
Soon a crowd gathered around, everyone coming to watch the drama unfold.
Chu Xubai was among them.
His phone had just sent a message to someone.
The reply came back: "I'll be there in two minutes."
Facing Dong Jiaoyan's hysterical outburst, Xie Linchuan was the first to speak up in objection:
"Don't project such dirty thoughts onto others. Whether it was testing him or playing games together, Liuyue always interacted with me appropriately—there wasn't a hint of anything inappropriate!"
"Ha! I'm the one projecting dirty thoughts? Then explain this—you called me this morning to break up! And then what?"
Dong Jiaoyan pointed angrily at Qiao Liuyue and added: "She said you two got together yesterday! Isn't that being the other woman? Isn't that seducing your best friend's boyfriend?"
Xie Linchuan was momentarily at a loss for words.
He knew Qiao Liuyue had deliberately claimed to be his girlfriend mainly to mess with Dong Jiaoyan.
But he didn't understand why she said they got together yesterday—if she'd said today, then there'd be nothing to criticize.
His gaze turned to Qiao Liuyue, but she looked completely calm.
She even curved her lips slightly.
Offering him a faint smile.
But that smile looked like pure provocation in Dong Jiaoyan's eyes.
She was so furious her teeth itched. She stepped forward to slap Qiao Liuyue, but someone stopped her.
"Xie Linchuan, what are you doing? Let go of me!"
Dong Jiaoyan instinctively assumed it was Xie Linchuan grabbing her.
But the person stopping her was Chu Xubai.
"You dare lay a hand on Liuyue? Did you ask me first?" His tone was unhurried, his usually gentle eyes flashing with a dark glint.
Dong Jiaoyan sneered at him: "What a lapdog! Coming out to show your loyalty now? What's the use? Qiao Liuyue doesn't want you anyway—she's already gone after my boyfriend!"
Qiao Liuyue watched her having her meltdown.
Finally, she spoke.
"Dong Jiaoyan, you say he..." Qiao Liuyue pointed at Xie Linchuan, then added: "Is your boyfriend?"
"Yes!" Dong Jiaoyan nodded furiously.
She had always prided herself on being clever, and now she couldn't stand the fact that she'd had her boyfriend stolen by Qiao Liuyue!
Xie Linchuan noticed the judging looks from the crowd and said:
"We broke up this morning. I'm not your boyfriend anymore."
Dong Jiaoyan was about to say something.
But Qiao Liuyue suddenly cut in: "Oh, so you two were still boyfriend and girlfriend yesterday?"
Hearing this, Dong Jiaoyan's anger erupted.
"Yes! We were still boyfriend and girlfriend yesterday, and you, Qiao Liuyue, are a rotten seed! On Valentine's Day you seduce your best friend's boyfriend, even getting together with him. If that's not being the other woman, what is?"
The murmurs around them grew louder.
Among the onlookers, some classmates who knew them were shocked—they'd never imagined that the usually quiet and well-behaved Qiao Liuyue would be this kind of person.
And they couldn't believe that Dong Jiaoyan, who always thought so highly of her own beauty and carried herself with such pride, had actually lost her boyfriend?
For a moment, no one knew whether to praise or condemn them!
Just as the tension was reaching its peak.
Suddenly, a deep, bright male voice rang out.
"So you still had a boyfriend yesterday? Then why did you lie and tell me you were single!"
Immediately after, a tall, dark-skinned handsome guy in a white tank top squeezed through the crowd.
It was the PE senior from the neighboring college who had gone on a date with Dong Jiaoyan yesterday.
Chu Xubai smiled and glanced at his phone. A new message had arrived.
It was from his friend asking: "I've arrived, but why is there such a big crowd here? Did something happen?"
And so he came to watch the drama.
He hadn't expected to become part of it himself.
Dong Jiaoyan hadn't expected the PE senior from the neighboring college to show up here. Her face turned pale, and she stammered, unable to respond.
After a long moment, she finally managed to say:
"Wh-Why are you here?"
The dark-skinned senior was furious, raising his voice a notch: "If I hadn't come, I'd never have known I was being played for a fool! Dong Jiaoyan, you're something else! You had a boyfriend, and yet you still went out to dinner with me on Valentine's Day yesterday."
At these words, public opinion immediately flipped.
At first, everyone thought Qiao Liuyue was in the wrong for stealing Dong Jiaoyan's boyfriend, but then came the unexpected twist.
Dong Jiaoyan wasn't innocent either.
She had a boyfriend, and on Valentine's Day she was still meeting up with another guy.
Wasn't she just keeping backups?
Scandalous! Absolutely scandalous!
Dong Jiaoyan heard the condemning voices around her and stuttered:
"Wh-What date? All we did yesterday was have a meal, and you were the one who offered to treat me. You and I are just ordinary friends."
Hearing this, the dark-skinned senior nearly choked on his rage.
"Fine! Ordinary dinner? Then why did you accept the red roses and the black swan necklace I gave you?"
Dong Jiaoyan forced herself to hold steady: "It's normal for friends to exchange gifts. If you think the gift was too expensive, I'll just return it to you later!"
The dark-skinned senior couldn't believe how shameless she was being even now.
He simply pulled out his phone.
Pointing at the chat history.
He delivered the final blow.
"Fine! Then how do you explain calling me 'baby' in our chats? Do you call all your ordinary friends 'baby'?"
The crowd gasped.
Xie Linchuan chimed in with a sneer: "Didn't know you handed out 'baby' like it was wholesale."
Dong Jiaoyan's face went ashen.
She wasn't about to be the only one getting blamed.
She turned to Qiao Liuyue, pointing a finger at her in accusation:
"Yes! So I was a little too friendly with other guys, but I only ever had one boyfriend."
"But you—Qiao Liuyue—you were my best friend."
"You knew Xie Linchuan was my boyfriend. I asked you to test him, to chat with him, and instead you seduced him away while you were at it."
"We hadn't even broken up yesterday—he was still my boyfriend—and then you ended up together with him. What do you have to say about that?"
Qiao Liuyue smiled.
Her expression was completely calm. She pointed at Xie Linchuan and said in a relaxed tone:
"Him? My boyfriend?"
Xie Linchuan's expression turned tense.
The next second, he heard Qiao Liuyue say slowly:
"As if! I'd never be interested in a man that stupid."
"I was just messing with you a moment ago. Can't believe you actually took the bait."
