Chapter 2 – Fake Sisters

Shen Nanqing knew very well that trying to defend herself was a trap—rather than let others lead her by the nose, it was better to go straight for the jugular. She swept her gaze across the desk behind Xu Ruyan and said coolly, “Pay me back.”

The smile on Xu Ruyan’s face instantly froze. She knew Shen Nanqing had been targeting her because of Li Haoxuan, but she hadn’t planned to fall out with her just yet. After all, it wasn’t easy to find a rich and gullible sucker.

The other girls in the dorm seemed to smell the scent of gossip and promptly shelved the idea of reporting Shen Nanqing. They were far more eager to watch the drama unfold.

Everyone knew that Xu Ruyan had come from a rundown courtyard house and a family so poor it echoed when they walked—but her food, clothes, and cosmetics were anything but shabby. Just look at the snow cream and sandalwood powder on her desk—those were luxury items.

There were six girls in the dorm, divided into two camps. One was led by Li Zhen, with her two loyal followers Zhu Xiaomeng and Liu Huixin—girls from military compound families.
The other was Shen Nanqing and Xu Ruyan’s camp. As for Su Xiangqin from the countryside, she was an invisible nobody, completely overlooked.

“Nanqing, you… you’re joking, right?” Xu Ruyan asked awkwardly.

“Cut the crap. Pay me back.” Shen Nanqing walked over to her own bed and pulled a small notebook out from under her pillow.

Her mother was an accountant, and the original Shen Nanqing had picked up the habit of keeping financial records from her.

And it was a good thing she had—because when Shen Nanqing flipped through the book, she was stunned. Xu Ruyan had borrowed a total of 138 yuan from her over time. That didn’t even include the skincare products, old clothes, and other occasional gifts.

Shen Nanqing couldn’t help but roast the original Shen Nanqing in her heart: What a big ol’ sucker.

Their monthly allowance was only 40 yuan. That much money, called a loan, was really just a donation—Xu Ruyan clearly never planned on paying it back.

Shen Nanqing said, “You borrowed a total of 138 yuan. Add in all the food, clothes, and stuff I gave you—fine, I’m not petty, let’s round it up to 150. Pay up.”

With that, she held out her hand toward Xu Ruyan.

Li Zhen sucked in a breath. Her family wasn’t poor, but 150 yuan was still a hefty sum. She gave Shen Nanqing a disdainful glance, grumbling inwardly: What a fool—only a brainless show-off would make a scene over this.

At that moment, Xu Ruyan was anything but happy. She was furious that Shen Nanqing would humiliate her in front of everyone over such a small amount. She dug her nails into her palm to calm herself down, forcing a fragile expression back onto her face.

She subtly studied Shen Nanqing, trying to read her expression—but Shen Nanqing remained cold and unmoved.

Xu Ruyan thought she knew her: Shen Nanqing was someone who cared deeply about appearances. She was probably just furious for now, and all she needed was a little sweet talk to calm down.

So she gently held Shen Nanqing’s outstretched hand and said in a soft, delicate voice, “Nanqing, Comrade Li Haoxuan was really worried about you today.”

Shen Nanqing yanked her hand back, sneering silently. Worried? Then why didn’t he show up at the infirmary? Probably too busy comforting his precious little flower, Xu Ruyan.

She couldn’t be bothered to play the fake-sister game anymore and decided to lay everything out plainly.

“Xu Ruyan, let’s not pretend anymore. No more fake sisterhood. You and I both know you got close to me for your own reasons. When you first joined the troupe, you were actually aiming to cozy up to Li Zhen, weren’t you?”

Li Zhen, suddenly being named, froze for a moment. Then her mind spun quickly—come to think of it, Xu Ruyan had tried to chat her up when she first arrived. But what she’d said? She couldn’t recall.

Shen Nanqing continued, “Li Zhen’s father is a division commander, and Zhu Xiaomeng and Liu Huixin weren’t about to share their spotlight. They quietly sowed discord and made Li Zhen hate you.”

“You couldn’t get into their circle, so you settled for second best and got close to me. On the surface, you were always praising me, but deep down, you were just jealous and resentful.”

“There was never any real conflict between me and Li Zhen. At first, we minded our own business and stayed out of each other’s way. But because of your manipulative games, we ended up clashing constantly. You had us dancing in the palm of your hand—must’ve felt great, huh?”

“I was really dumb before, treating you like a real sister. Falling down this time was a blessing in disguise—it cleared my head. So from now on, you go your way in the sunshine, and I’ll stick to my narrow wooden bridge.”

Shen Nanqing wasn’t a saint. She said all this partly because she knew Xu Ruyan was the type who’d grovel if you didn’t cut her off cleanly. If she didn’t burn the bridge, Xu Ruyan would keep clinging to her. Shen Nanqing wanted to force her to request a dorm change.

She only had one life to live—why waste it on people who meant nothing to her?

On the other hand, she also wanted to plant a seed with Li Zhen. Li Zhen had connections, and while they might not become close, at least they wouldn’t end up as enemies. In chaotic times like these, one more friend meant one more path forward.

Besides, Li Zhen was a lot like the old Shen Nanqing—just a spoiled kid. Not inherently bad, just easily led astray.

If she could wake up in time, great. If not—well, then she wasn’t worth saving.

There was just too much information to process. Xu Ruyan froze, stunned. How did this idiot Shen Nanqing figure all that out?

She couldn’t believe it.

Now she was genuinely panicking. All her secrets felt like they were spiraling out of control. Desperate, she tried to salvage things: “Nanqing, I know you’re only saying all this because of Li Haoxuan. I swear, I won’t have anything to do with him anymore.”

Shen Nanqing actually laughed. She could see what Xu Ruyan was trying to do—drag the whole mess into the realm of romantic drama, as if all her earlier accusations were just a jealous girl talking nonsense.

Truthfully, Shen Nanqing didn’t even like Li Haoxuan.

He was a textbook mama’s boy. Sure, he treated the original Shen Nanqing decently—but only under certain conditions.

Back when they were little, none of the other courtyard kids liked playing with her. She was too spoiled—always crying and tattling if things didn’t go her way. So Li’s mother forced Li Haoxuan to play with her. He didn’t want to at first, but after getting beaten a few times at home, he learned to comply.

That’s how their families got close—through their kids. Over the years, Shen’s father had promoted Li’s family quite a few times.

“Don’t flatter yourself. Li Haoxuan can be friends with whoever he wants. At most, he’s just the boy-next-door. He’s not worth me getting angry over,” Shen Nanqing replied righteously.

She glanced around. Everyone’s faces clearly said they didn’t believe her. After all, the old Shen Nanqing had done some pretty dumb things for Li Haoxuan.

She was annoyed the original had been so blind and foolish—falling head over heels for a pretty face, and now she had to clean up the mess.

“Tch, fine! I’m just annoyed—believe what you want.” Shen Nanqing raised her chin proudly, full of swagger. “I’m a flower of the military, okay? The line of people who like me could wrap around the base camp a few times. Li Haoxuan? He’s nothing!”

“Show-off!” Li Zhen rolled her eyes so hard they nearly got stuck. But inside, she thought: Now this is more like it. This was the Shen Nanqing she knew. That strange version from earlier had felt unfamiliar—but not entirely unpleasant.

Xu Ruyan realized she had lost. Like a balloon with a hole, all her energy deflated. She didn’t bother pretending anymore.

“This is all I’ve got,” she said through gritted teeth, her eyes filled with hate as she slapped ten big bills onto the table.

Shen Nanqing looked at her with a half-smile. “You sure that’s all?”