"Qingxue, honestly," Li Mumei said with practiced certainty, "a family like the Song clan cares a lot about face. If you marry Ye Mo and something happens to him right after, everyone would suspect the Song family. But I don't think they'd bother with something that thankless."
Ning Qingxue was silent for a while, then finally nodded. "Alright, I'll consider this as owing him one more time."
Li Mumei shook her head. "No, Qingxue, this time it's he who owes you. I'm sure Ye Mo would be more than happy—probably thrilled. How about this: tomorrow is Jingwen's birthday. We'll use that as an excuse to go to Ninghai. After the party, I'll go with you to Ninghai University and confront him together. How's that?"
Ning Qingxue was no stranger to the name Su Jingwen. Back in her student days, Su Jingwen had already been a well-known beauty in Yanjing. After her mother had an accident, she moved to Ninghai. Though they had never met, Ning Qingxue knew of her—and Li Mumei happened to be one of Su Jingwen's closest friends.
Ye Mo rarely attended class anymore. Most of the university material he had already studied on his own. The only reason he came today was because Shi Xiu had invited him for lunch—he had scored a few free meal coupons to the school's gourmet restaurant, Ju Wei Lou. Of course, he didn't want to enjoy it alone.
If Ye Mo had any real friend left at Ninghai University, it was Shi Xiu. Whenever Ye Mo came to class, regardless of the subject, Shi Xiu would sit next to him. From the very first day at university, they had clicked. Even after Ye Mo was kicked out of the Ye family, Shi Xiu's attitude toward him never changed.
In fact, it was Shi Xiu who first noticed something was wrong with Ye Mo and warned him to stay away from Yan Yan. After Ye Mo lost the Ye family's support and fell into financial hardship, Shi Xiu helped him however he could. In all of Ninghai University, only Shi Xiu and Wang Ying had offered Ye Mo any financial support. Wang Ying might have done it for Ye Ling's sake—but Shi Xiu was a friend through and through.
"Ye Mo, today's class is with the Ice Queen again," Shi Xiu whispered cautiously. "You've already ticked her off once. Maybe you shouldn't have come. Let's just keep quiet and avoid trouble."
Ye Mo chuckled, patting Shi Xiu on the shoulder. "Don't worry. I'm not going to pick a fight. I don't care how petty she is. I can keep quiet for the whole class—or a whole month, if needed."
Shi Xiu laughed too. He doubted Ye Mo could stay silent for a whole month.
Just then, a sharp female voice cut through the air. "Who are you calling petty, Ye Mo? A useless loser like you still has the nerve to talk about others? And you still have the audacity to show your face in class?"
It was Yan Yan.
"What's your problem?" Shi Xiu snapped. "Ye Mo wasn't even talking about you. Why butt in? Do you think he's an easy target?"
Shi Xiu had no love for Yan Yan—ever since she had humiliated Ye Mo so badly he fainted. That incident still annoyed him. If Ye Mo had brought that one on himself, this time Yan Yan was clearly just being nasty.
"Oh, wow. Look who's got a spine now," Yan Yan sneered. "Yelling at me, are we?"
But Ye Mo reached out and held Shi Xiu back. "No need to stoop to her level. Just pretend it's a dog barking."
"You—Ye Mo!" Yan Yan's face flushed with rage as she pointed at him.
Ye Mo sneered. Before she could go off, he calmly said, "Being ugly isn't your fault. But being ugly and acting like a clown—that's your problem. Oh, and about what you said last time—'Can you sleep with me?' Sorry, but I'm just not into dinosaurs."
Ye Mo wasn't about to let the original owner of his body suffer in vain. This was his way of settling that score. Yan Yan had been too smug for too long.
Yan Yan's face froze for a second—then she actually laughed. "Ugly? Me? Ye Mo, are you blind? Tell me, is there any girl you know who looks better than me? If there is, I'll admit I'm ugly. But if not—"
Just then, a soft, pleasant voice interrupted her. "Ye Mo, can you come out for a second? I've been looking for you for days."
Every head in the classroom turned toward the door. The male students all froze.
Standing in the doorway was an incredibly beautiful girl. Unlike movie stars who used makeup and lighting to look good, this girl looked naturally radiant—like a lotus emerging from clear water. Her delicate eyebrows and gently smiling face were enough to take anyone's breath away. Even without seeing her figure, anyone could tell she was a rare beauty.
If this girl were a student at Ninghai University, Su Mei would no longer be considered the school's top beauty—this girl would take that title in a heartbeat.
Yan Yan was stunned, like a hen being strangled mid-squawk. Just moments ago, she'd boasted that no girl Ye Mo knew could rival her looks. And now, here was someone infinitely more beautiful—and she was looking for Ye Mo.
Ye Mo cast a cold glance at Yan Yan. He had no interest in further quarrels; his point was made. From now on, she was irrelevant.
"Jingwen, did you need something?" Ye Mo was surprised that Su Jingwen had actually tracked him down to his classroom. From her words, it sounded like this wasn't the first time.
She rolled her eyes at him but didn't object when he dropped the formal "Jingwen-jie" and just called her by name.
Because of her father, Su Jingwen had always been wary of men—but Ye Mo was different. He didn't leer at her like others did. His gaze was always clear and honest. And he was still a student. All of this made her feel oddly comfortable around him.
"What, can't a girl come find you for no reason?" she asked with a teasing smile. "Got a minute? Let's talk outside."
Ye Mo sighed. So that free meal wasn't without strings after all. Last time, eating one dinner meant covering a night shift. This time, Su Jingwen had bought him a meal, and now she was back for more. He waved goodbye to Shi Xiu and told him not to wait up that evening.
As they turned to leave, Ye Mo spotted his English teacher, Yun Bing, walking toward the classroom with a few textbooks in hand. Her face twisted in disdain when she saw him leave class. But then she caught sight of Su Jingwen—and her expression turned to surprise, followed by sympathy.
Ye Mo noticed, but he didn't care. He didn't give a damn about credits or teachers like her. Even if she gave him a zero, he wouldn't bat an eye.