After Rebirth, I Discovered the Whole World Wants to Harm Me [GL] - Chapter 16

Late September.

As students across the country’s universities slowly struggled out of their post-holiday syndrome, the crowd on the S-University campus finally began to thicken.

Beside a path lined with mango trees, a black-haired girl walked slowly. She wore a simple white short-sleeved top paired with a gradient light-blue ink-wash long skirt and silver wedges.

Earphones were still plugged into her ears, though this time, she wasn’t in her usual news-listening mode.

“What? Uncle Zhao’s matter is connected to Big Brother? Tang Xiaoyu, be honest—is the excitement in your voice because you’re planning to dig up eighteen generations of their ancestors?” The girl frowned slightly, biting her pale pink lower lip. Her gaze was fixed on the end of the path as she hissed a warning through her teeth.

Tang Xiaoyu had a full schedule of classes today, and his campus was at the opposite end of the city from hers. He had no time to meet in person, so the moment he got his hands on the primary data, he called her with great enthusiasm.

“…Is the image of your brother in your heart really someone who digs up ancestral graves at the drop of a hat?” Standing in the hallway outside his classroom, Tang Xiaoyu couldn’t raise his voice too high even though he was annoyed.

Consequently, the receiver was filled with the sound of eerie teeth-grinding.

Tang Xiaoran let out an “Uh” and quickly changed the subject. “You didn’t tell anyone else about what happened that night, did you?”

Tang Xiaoyu had no intention of being pleasant with her anymore. He was “no-f***s-given” speechless toward this sister who managed to offend him in eight out of ten sentences.

Annoyed as he was, he still snapped back: “No!”

Seeing the signs that he was about to hang up, Tang Xiaoran hurriedly apologized with a smile and added: “Wow, my brother really is the best brother in the world, capable of anything. I don’t have classes tonight; I’ll come over and treat you to dinner—as for Big Brother’s business, let me talk to him first.”

To such a half-hearted compliment, Tang Xiaoyu had the backbone to ignore the “sugar-coated shell” that tasted bitter even on the outside. He gave a cold snort and replied unhurriedly:

“No time. The centennial anniversary is in two days; I have to go to the Student Union tonight to oversee rehearsals.”

Fine, fine, you’re all talented elites, and I’m just a ‘meow-meow’ piece of trash.

Tang Xiaoran hung up and walked out of the secluded path. The low-hanging branches and layers of leaves that had shielded her suddenly vanished as she rounded the corner, and her field of vision instantly brightened.

It was like stepping from a mountain trail straight into a metropolis; she could see several lonely blue skyscrapers standing outside the school gates.

She was about to call her big brother to set up a dinner date and chat about family matters. However, she spotted two stylish figures walking toward her, chatting and laughing. Seeing them, she had to give up on the call.

—These two were girls she had seen at the bar before, fellow members of the S-City “second-generation parasite” circle: Sun Jiali and Qin Weiwei. Their expertise lay in eating, drinking, and playing.

She stood her ground. Before long, the two spotted her and waved happily. But when they got close enough to see what she was wearing, they both gave her looks of utter disdain.

“Well, well, Tang Xiaoran. Haven’t seen you for a few days and you’ve turned into a ‘Model Student’? We invited you to go clubbing, get beauty treatments, and go shopping, but you didn’t reply to a single word in the group. Be honest, which ‘wild man’ are you hanging out with that’s made you forget your way home?”

Sun Jiali came up and hooked an arm through hers. Her makeup was impeccable; the double eyelids she’d had done and the nose job now blended perfectly with her features, making her so beautiful that one couldn’t find a flaw—yet also making her almost impossible to remember.

“There’s been some stuff going on at home lately, so I’ve been busy.” Tang Xiaoran couldn’t be too explicit, nor did she dare to drop any “bombs,” as everyone’s background was roughly the same.

If people started thinking her family was in trouble, who knew how many times Gaosheng’s stock would fluctuate?

Qin Weiwei circled her once, laughing as she added: “Why do I feel like Xiaoran has been very mysterious lately? You haven’t been possessed, have you? You have this terrifying look of someone who’s bid farewell to the world of fun to strive for self-improvement.”

Oh, young lady, you’ve stumbled quite close to the truth.

Tang Xiaoran curled her lips and let out a chuckle, replying absently: “Possessed by who? Xin… Xiao Shixin?”

To her surprise, the two of them nodded seriously. After exchanging a look, they agreed in unison: “It’s possible!”

“I feel like I can hear the sound of a tsunami inside someone’s head.” Tang Xiaoran glanced at them expressionlessly, thinking they were mostly crazy.

Sun Jiali habitually flipped her hair, a hint of mystery appearing in her eyes. Her red lips parted to reveal a shocking piece of insider news: “Don’t dismiss it yet. A couple of days ago, the news of the South American branch of the Xiao Group faking their accounts was leaked. It was led by executives who had been there for decades. I heard Xiao Shixin was so furious she started a company-wide fine starting with herself. Several vice-presidents had to dig into their own pockets along with her.”

She “tsk-tsked” twice, the emotion in her eyes practically turning into subtitles: That’s Xiao Shixin, the legend of the S-City business circle. I’ve never heard of her making a mistake!

Qin Weiwei punched her right palm with her left fist and reached a conclusion: “See? Our theory is logical and convincing. You and Xiao Shixin swapped bodies. That perfectly explains why you’re cold and heartless now, and why she actually made a mistake.”

Tang Xiaoran was awestruck by her imagination. Looking at her with pity, she said: “With such a rich imagination, it’s truly a shame you didn’t become an author all these years.”

Qin Weiwei was about to wave her hand and say she didn’t care about the money, but Tang Xiaoran suddenly dropped her smile.

“So are you trying to say I’m stupid, or stupid, or stupid??”

Qin Weiwei: shivering.jpg

Sun Jiali burst out laughing and lightly pulled on Xiaoran’s skirt. “Hey, we just came to share this exciting good news with you. Why are you being so fierce?”

The “shivering” girl instantly came back to life, nodding vigorously with eyes full of schadenfreude.

There was no helping it; people like them who just waited to die couldn’t stand the success of those who were self-reliant. Having heard “Look at the Xiao family/President Xiao/Xiao Shixin…” for so many years growing up—that resentment didn’t come from nowhere.

As a member who was about to enter the “other people’s children” category, Tang Xiaoran rubbed her nose, unable to share the schadenfreude. She even felt a bit uncomfortable in her heart.

But her two former friends were completely oblivious to this subtle shift in her mood. Having seemingly adapted to her cold demeanor, they continued to find amusement at President Xiao’s expense:

“Hey, I heard they’re inviting famous alumni back for the centennial anniversary in a couple of days. Do you think she’ll still show up?”

“How should I know? I can’t read the mind of an old woman obsessed with her career.”

“That’s enough.” Tang Xiaoran interrupted their chatter, a look of genuine displeasure on her brow. She didn’t even realize how dark her expression had become.

She followed up quickly: “Don’t talk about her in front of me anymore.”

Startled by the sudden interruption, Sun Jiali and Qin Weiwei were a bit dazed. Hearing the second half, they automatically misinterpreted it: Tang Xiaoran hates Xiao Shixin so much she doesn’t even want to hear her name.

They exchanged a look and breathed a sigh of relief as the atmosphere grew awkward. They raised their hands in compromise: “Fine, fine, we won’t mention her. It’s not like there’s any good gossip about her anyway.”

Tang Xiaoran looked at them, wanting to say she didn’t hate Xiao Shixin at all. But seeing them laughing and talking about other wealthy families in S-City, she swallowed her words.

—Forget it. Clarifying with them is pointless.

Using the excuse of a family dinner tonight, she declined their invitation. As they pouted and called her “boring,” she smiled and turned toward the school gate.

If she was boring, so be it. The person who made her feel “not boring” wasn’t either of them anyway.

Looking down at the chat page on her phone that had been idle for a few days, her eyes unconsciously curved into smiles. She held the phone to her face and sent a few voice messages.

Curtains partially obscured the transparent glass. The neon lights of the city outside left only faint traces inside the room, failing to catch the inhabitant’s attention.

By the open kitchen, a figure stood at the counter, head down as she chopped a head of Chinese cabbage.

The crunch-crunch sound echoed rhythmically, with the occasional sound of a small pot boiling on the stove. However, whether it was because the chill on her body was too heavy or the room lacked the warmth of another person, the scene was far from cozy.

—In fact, if the cabbage-chopping were replaced with meat-cleaving, it would have created the atmosphere of a horror movie.

The phone resting on a clean counter flashed. She glanced at it, intending to see who sent a message before turning it off.

After lighting the screen and seeing the voice messages from Tang Xiaoran, her finger hovered over them for a long time before she finally tapped one.

A lively voice emerged from the phone:

“Sister Xin, Sister Xin, you’re back in the country? Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Are you off work? Let’s have dinner together!”

The ice in Xiao Shixin’s eyes cracked.

No one knew that she actually harbored a mass of irritable, unreleaseable emotion in her heart. She thought for a long time, intending to decline the invitation from the youngster, but a call came through the very next second.

She had no choice but to answer.

“Sister Xin, I’m telling you, I’m so pitiful. I can’t find anyone to eat with tonight, and I don’t want to go to the cafeteria alone.”

“Sister Xin, would you be willing to grant this pitiful little thing a meal?”

The voice on the other end was noisy—much noisier than the mess of emotions in her own heart—yet it miraculously calmed her aura.

After a long silence, she replied in a low voice:

“I’m at home. You can come over directly.”

The Author has something to say:

Little Theater:

Big Brother Tang, who could have been asked for dinner: “…Indifferent.”

Hee-hee, Sister Xin has a little secret, and this secret is making me consider whether to change the synopsis hints hhh.