Chapter 4

“You’re not only bad at studying and have a terrible character, but now you’re also seducing Lin Yeci.”
Ye Muwan was fuming at Jiang Zhiyu’s fake innocent act and dropped some harsh words.

She had spent the entire afternoon digging into Jiang Zhiyu’s background, and knew clearly that this girl would definitely break down crying if spoken to like this.

Hearing the word “studying” piqued Jiang Zhiyu’s interest. She wanted someone to challenge her on the one thing she used to be proud of.
“Oh? Grades? What’s your national ranking?”

Ye Muwan puffed her chest proudly.
“I don’t know about national, but I rank within the top 1000 in the entire Jingbei City.”

“Trash,” Jiang Zhiyu said instinctively. Top 1000 in Jingbei? That probably translates to over 100,000 nationally.

“I’m trash? I bet you don’t even have a ranking!” Ye Muwan couldn’t understand why this supposedly weak and timid girl was suddenly so sharp-tongued.

As the sun began to set, Jiang Zhiyu couldn’t be bothered arguing anymore. She decided to give Ye Muwan a solid dose of humiliation, chuckling behind her hand.
“Sure, sure, Ye-classmate, your grades are great. But when it comes to Lin Yeci, you’re still totally unattractive to him. You’re right next to him every day and still can’t win him over. I suggest you just transfer to our class—maybe a bit of daily interaction will spark some feelings.”

Ye Muwan cried, maybe because she got hit where it hurt the most. She sobbed prettily and ran off.
“No one has ever spoken to me like that before!”

Nearby, He Shiduo, who had come to spectate, rubbed her eyes in disbelief and asked someone next to her,
“No way… was that Ye Muwan who just ran off crying?”

“It was! Look, there’s Jiang Zhiyu and that transfer student from Class 3, Zhang Qiangyi.”

He Shiduo clicked her tongue.
“Tsk tsk. If Ye Muwan’s crying like that tonight, Jiang Zhiyu’s definitely in trouble.”

On the way back, Jiang Zhiyu casually coaxed Zhang Qiangyi into revealing her home address.

After parting ways, she walked alone down a quiet path, taking in the fresh air.

In her past life, she had died of cancer, so she now placed great importance on her health.

She didn’t think this body was bulky or rough—just slightly hunched, which hurt her overall aura. The acne on her face was likely from liver heat and puberty-related oil overproduction. But her facial features were actually pretty good.

When she reached “home,” Jiang Zhiyu took out a key from her bag and opened the door.
Someone inside seemed to hear the noise and opened it for her.

At the door stood a woman in a green dress with her hair up, wearing a kindly expression.

Jiang Zhiyu cautiously asked,
“…Mom?”

The woman looked overjoyed, placing both hands on Jiang Zhiyu’s shoulders.
“What did you just call me? Say it again?”

Gulping nervously and worried she had called the wrong person, Jiang Zhiyu pressed on anyway,
“…Mom?”

“Old Jiang! Come quick—our daughter just called me ‘mom’ after all these years!”
The woman shouted excitedly into the house.

A man in black pajamas came out, equally kind and thrilled.
“She must’ve had a rough day. Bring out the late-night snack you made for her.”

One word—“Mom”—and the whole family was over the moon? Jiang Zhiyu thought to herself.
If she guessed right, this man was her father, and the woman her stepmother.

She figured the original Jiang’s birth mom must’ve had some kind of accident, and the dad remarried. The original Jiang then closed herself off, which explained her messiness and lack of interest in studying.

Her sudden use of “mom” was admittedly a bit abrupt, so she added,
“Tomorrow… at ten… the teacher wants to meet the parents.”

Her dad and stepmom just chuckled—no big deal.

After dinner, Jiang Zhiyu asked her stepmom for an acne treatment product and went back to her room.

Her home wasn’t rich, but not poor either. Middle-class. A 3-bedroom apartment on the 16th floor. Compared to her past life, this was an upgrade.

The living room was tidy and clean. But her bedroom was a complete disaster—a clear sign of a long-term shut-in.

Since her stepmom clearly wanted to bond, all it would take was a few well-timed “Mom”s to get her to clean the room too.

Sure enough, with a few sweet “Mom” bombs, her stepmother got to work enthusiastically and kept smiling—even when she went back to her room, she kept telling Jiang’s dad,
“Our little Yu’er has changed—how wonderful!”

After showering, Jiang Zhiyu applied a face mask, spun a hula hoop, and read. She wasn’t slacking.

This was a kind of life she never dared dream of in her past life.

Suddenly, her phone lit up. She opened it and saw she’d been added to a group chat.

Over thirty people were in it—boys and girls.

He Shiduo and Ye Muwan were also there.

MuMu’s Fan: “Get out here and take your scolding.”
MuMu’s Little Bootlicker: “Ugly Jiang Zhiyu, get out! How dare you make our Muwan cry!”
Wan’er’s Sweetheart: “@He Shiduo, tell us why Muwan cried.”
He Shiduo: “I don’t know the details. I just saw her crying after talking to Jiang Zhiyu.”
Wan’er’s Ultimate Treasure: (posts a meme mocking Jiang Zhiyu)
Ye Muwan: “I’m so touched by everyone’s support.”
MuMu’s Little Bootlicker: “Down with the ugly thing!”

Jiang Zhiyu frowned at Ye Muwan’s fake-sweet comments and couldn’t help smirking.

She almost lost her temper, but then realized she should outsmart them instead.

So she posted:
“All the above conversations have been screenshotted. Your words have infringed upon my personal reputation rights and constitute defamation. If necessary, this can all be submitted in court with your IP addresses tracked.”

After sending it, she turned off her phone and went back to reading.

Thirty minutes later, she checked her phone again.
No one had responded. The group chat had been disbanded.

Having a soul older than these high schoolers, she naturally knew how to handle them.

Had she just threatened to report them to the teacher instead of mentioning legal consequences, they probably would’ve insulted her nonstop for three days. After all, Ye Muwan was the “model student” in the teacher’s eyes.

Before bed, Jiang Zhiyu received a friend request.

She opened it—it was from Lin Yecí.

Curious, she accepted to see what he’d say.

But nothing came. As time passed and it got late, Jiang Zhiyu muttered and lay down.

Suddenly, her phone chimed.

Jiang Zhiyu grumbled and picked it up.

Lin Yeci: Sorry.

???

Sorry for what?
Jiang Zhiyu, puzzled, sent back three question marks.