Chapter 11: Her malice

In an office at Rongnan University, a woman drinking tea paused the movement of her teaspoon.

Her gaze involuntarily fell upon the striking contact name on her phone screen.

— President Gu —

Upon seeing the name, her breath hitched.

She curiously clicked the voice message, then dialed the number back without hesitation, her voice laced with undisguised respect.

“President Gu, I hope you’ve been well.”

As the Principal of Rongnan, Xu Huan was a clever woman.

She naturally understood that a busy person like Gu Ge wouldn’t look for her unless there was something important.

Outside the hospital doors, Gu Ge switched the hand holding her phone and stepped into the black Bentley that a maid in a black-and-white uniform opened for her.

She gave her hair a slight toss and replied with a smile.

“Principal Xu Huan, your voice sounds as youthful as ever.”

“You flatter me, President Gu. Have you encountered some sort of difficulty?”

“Mhm, a little…”

Gu Ge gazed at the sign for the First People’s Hospital and pursed her lips.

“I want you to help me look someone up in the student database.”

“Look someone up?”

Xu Huan was stunned.

Did President Gu go through all this trouble just to find a student?

“Go ahead. I’ll check the back end for you. However, I don’t have access to certain files here; it’s mostly just basic student class assignments.”

“It’s fine, I won’t make things difficult for you. I want you to see if there is a girl named Jiang Ran. In her ID photo, she should have a single ponytail. She’s in the Literature Department.”

Gu Ge added a few keywords.

On the other end of the line, Xu Huan reached her computer, logged into the school’s back end, and performed a simple search.

Five results popped up.

“There are several students with that name. Do you have her ID number?”

Gu Ge didn’t hesitate, reciting the last four digits accurately.

“3275.”

Xu Huan scratched her head and typed in the numbers.

The results instantly dropped from five to one.

Clicking on the student’s ID photo, Xu Huan was a bit puzzled.

‘This girl doesn’t look anything like President Gu.’

The girl looked very shy, with a nervousness she couldn’t hide between her brows.

Her cheeks had a faint, pale glow from trembling with anxiety.

Aside from being pretty, she couldn’t see anything special about this girl.

Her clothes were a plain white shirt, and her face showed no signs of makeup, leaving a layer of dull pink on her lips.

Xu Huan leaned back in her office chair.

She wondered why President Gu would go to such lengths for such an ordinary girl.

Thinking it might be a child from a relative’s family, she simply sent the photo over.

“President Gu, I found her. Is this the one?”

Gu Ge opened the photo.

Seeing those timid eyes, her lips curled upward.

“It’s her. Thank you for your hard work.”

“It’s no trouble at all. President Gu, since you’re looking for her information, is she perhaps a relative of yours?”

“Not quite, but she will be soon. Please send me her tutor’s contact info. There are some things I want to confirm with her in person.”

“That’s no problem. Her teacher is one of our school’s very senior professors. She was also responsible for writing the scripts for our local TV station’s evening gala programs. The teaching quality is very reliable.”

“Mhm.”

Gu Ge narrowed her eyes with pleasure, listening to Xu Huan ramble on the other end of the line.

Noticing the silence on the other side, Xu Huan asked uncertainly, “President Gu, is there anything else I haven’t considered?”

“Nothing. I just suddenly remembered that your school’s Graduation Assessment includes a club requirement, doesn’t it?”

Gu Ge pinched her fingernail.

She was quite familiar with Jiang Ran’s personality; if it weren’t for a mandatory activity related to graduation, the girl likely wouldn’t participate.

Xu Huan paused for a moment before realizing.

“There is such a requirement. However, it was an idea from the teaching group. They said it was to prevent the students from getting depressed and wanted them to try integrating into the community.”

Gu Ge gave a strained smile.

“And if a depressed child is unsociable, wouldn’t they become even more depressed?”

Xu Huan was left somewhat speechless by the retort.

To be honest, these tasks were just things to be reported for inspection; she didn’t actually manage them on a daily basis.

If something went wrong, she would just blame the teachers in charge.

How could she know so many details?

Aware that she was in the wrong, she could only offer a helpless, apologetic smile.

Recalling the timid girl from earlier, she said, “President Gu, since we’re at this point, why don’t you be more direct? Has Miss Jiang Ran been bullied in her club?”

“That’s not it.”

Hearing Xu Huan’s obvious sigh of relief, Gu Ge added, “I’m just curious about which club she joined.”

“About that, I’ll have to ask the teacher in charge. I’ll get back to you in a moment.”

“Alright, then I won’t disturb the Principal of Rongnan’s work any longer.”

Gu Ge hung up the phone.

The maid in the front seat asked, “President Gu, are we returning to the company?”

“No, let’s go home.”

“Which home?”

The maid asked an extra question.

President Gu had so many houses that even if she rotated between them, she could go thirty days without repeating one.

Yet, she specifically loved a certain old Family Compound.

Sure enough, Gu Ge’s next words were, “The Family Compound.”

Hearing this, the maid stepped hard on the gas pedal.

The engine let out a low roar, tearing through the screen of light on the city’s elevated bridge.

Gu Ge leaned her head on her right hand.

The evening sunset burned half the sky outside the window a deep red.

Half of the slanting sun was being swallowed by the shimmering river, and the remaining afterglow was covered by orange-yellow clouds.

All that remained was a lonely setting sun leaping over the water, burning its last bits of light and heat.

The corners of her lips hooked up slightly, her pearly teeth visible through her translucent, jelly-like pink lip gloss.

The phone screen flickered dimly.

After a long while, several new messages popped up from the bottom of the lock screen.

“I found it.”

“The club Miss Jiang Ran joined is…”

“The Service Club.”

“President: Su Wanqing.”

***

In the main hall of the Hospital, at the billing window, a cashier in a white coat pushed a freshly printed bill out of the small window.

“The total is 3,600 yuan. Someone settled part of the bill for you a few days ago, so you only need to give me 700.”

The cashier picked out seven bills and rang the bell, signaling Jiang Ran to take the rest.

Taking the change from the iron slot, Jiang Ran put all the money into her wallet, zipped it tight, and placed it in her front pocket.

Having been in this world for half a day, Jiang Ran was constantly adapting to this weak body.

In the past, personal items like a wallet wouldn’t be targeted even if they were in a satchel.

But now that her body had changed, she was truly worried that a passing street thief might snatch her bag from this sickly frame.

She had just scrolled past local news of a robbery on a short video app.

Whether it was true or not, it was best to be careful.

Jiang Ran picked up her bag and walked out through the hospital’s rolling gate, breathing in the scent of the sycamore trees.

Although it didn’t smell great, she was excited to say goodbye to the irritation of disinfectants and alcohol.

The leaves that had been rained on emitted a faint, musty smell, mixed with the scent of sweet corn boiling in an insulated barrel on a street vendor’s cart.

It was an indescribable comfort.

There were many vendors on this street.

Many tricycles had a simple wooden board acting as a cutting board, with various sauce bottles placed beside it.

A wooden stick was tied to the front of the tricycle, with a white light bulb—yellowed by grease and smoke—wrapped around the top with wires, casting a faint circle of light on the cutting board.

Jiang Ran walked under the streetlights and stopped in front of a vegetable stall.

She bought some potatoes and tomatoes, intending to go back and make a simple stir-fry.

Since the house had all the necessary kitchenware, she wouldn’t eat out.

Carrying her vegetables, Jiang Ran hailed a car on an app.

Before getting in, she worried that the dirt would get on the driver’s seats, so she placed a few tissues under the bag before sitting down.

Then, she turned her head to look at the city receding outside the window.

Just then, her phone buzzed.

It was Sister Gu Ge asking if she had finished the discharge procedures.

Jiang Ran replied that she was finished and closed her phone.

Until she got out of the car, Jiang Ran stared eagerly out the window.

When she reached her destination, Jiang Ran carried her bag toward the apartment building.

Just as she was about to enter the unit door, a woman noticed her from a distance.

“Ran, you’re back! How are you? Did you miss Mom?”

The woman rushed forward to hug her, but Jiang Ran unexpectedly dodged.

The woman raised her head blankly, only to be met by Jiang Ran’s cold gaze.