Leaning against the wall, Gu Nanqiu gazed down at the floor, lost in thought about something unknown. Beneath her raven-black eyelashes, her tea-colored pupils shone, and her entire expression was serious.
Yue Yiyue watched Zhang Yang enter the classroom: "Do you think she has a problem?"
"Hmm?" Gu Nanqiu snapped out of her thoughts. "She didn't mention Wang Yong just now, did she?" "Let me confirm. Only the two of us were in that classroom at the time, so only we two witnessed Wang Yong's death."
Recalling the gruesome scene, Gu Nanqiu felt a chill. She instinctively wrapped her arms around herself: "Zhang Yang mentioned everyone, but she deliberately omitted Wang Yong, and she also claimed she only arrived today."
Following Gu Nanqiu's line of thought, Yue Yiyue only then realized there was something strange about what Zhang Yang had said earlier. Since they were all classmates according to the setting, it was impossible for her to mention everyone except Wang Yong. Did she know that something had already happened to him?
"Regardless, I still need to remain vigilant toward them," Gu Nanqiu rubbed her face tiredly. She forced herself to cheer up and showed Yue Yiyue a smile: "It seems like the only person trustworthy in this place is you." Her voice was soft, and her words carried a hint of probing.
"Yes." "Only you."
Faced with that smile, it was hard for Yue Yiyue to say no to Gu Nanqiu. Her muddled brain struggled to move, then suddenly jolted awake. She hadn't been right ever since she met Gu Nanqiu. She couldn't just believe everything the other person said because she was beautiful; she couldn't act without thinking. Yue Yiyue secretly chastised herself for being distracted by beauty and not thinking about the loopholes in what Zhang Yang just said, which Gu Nanqiu had pointed out.
"I missed hearing some of what Zhang Yang said earlier. I'll review it with you when we get back tonight," Yue Yiyue smiled shyly, uncomfortably fiddling with the edge of her clothing.
"Is it because I slept with you last night, so you didn't rest well? Or is it because what you saw in the classroom today was too disgusting?" Noticing that Yue Yiyue had been distracted since this morning. But even so, she had instinctively protected herself just now. Regarding what she saw, she had only said lightly: "The Class Monitor died. It was quite gruesome, but it wasn't as shocking as Wang Yong's death." Especially since she had been so scared her legs went soft when she saw Wang Yong before, having to be held in her arms. It had only been one day.
Gu Nanqiu thought she also needed to work hard to keep up with Yue Yiyue and not hold her back.
With only three minutes left until class started, the two returned to the classroom one after the other. The bell rang a few minutes later. The teacher, wearing a black jacket, walked in clutching two red books. She scanned the entire class and tapped the desk: "There were two malicious fatal incidents today. Students need to watch their behavior." Normally, they could turn a blind eye, but if they scared someone away, it would be troublesome when that Adult got angry. It had taken so much effort to lure those few fools into the trap.
The teacher withdrew her thoughts and announced expressionlessly that the previous Class Monitor had been dealt with, and a new one would be selected in a few days. She instinctively looked toward Gu Nanqiu, sitting upright and seriously taking notes. A feeling of pleasure welled up from the deepest part of her heart. The teacher's expression shifted: "Nanqiu, you don't need to work so hard copying notes. If you are interested in the position of Class Monitor, you can come to the Dean's Office after class."
Suddenly called out, Gu Nanqiu was surprised. She looked down at her notebook, thanked the teacher, closed the book, and pondered.
The people around her all had their own schemes. Curious glances constantly turned toward Gu Nanqiu, carrying flattery and expectation. Gu Nanqiu, at the very center of the whirlpool, bit her lip, preoccupied, uninterested in the rustling sounds around her.
Yue Yiyue, sitting in the back, noticed that Fan Ning beside her wasn't staring at Gu Nanqiu like the other students but had looked in her direction several times. Although she didn't understand why, she forced out a friendly smile. Seeing the pure, white, eight-toothed smile, Fan Ning flinched for a moment, then buried her head back into her book.
Yue Yiyue glanced at the blackboard. To become Class Monitor, one needed two-thirds of the class votes. This would be easy for Gu Nanqiu. But primarily, what help would becoming Class Monitor offer for getting out? If becoming Class Monitor actually led to restrictions, the gain wouldn't be worth the loss. Then there was the matter of Zhang Yang. What role did she play in this school? And the bullied Fan Ning…
The boring class continued. Idly flipping through the Five Three exercises she had half-finished in her desk, Yue Yiyue noticed her pen had run out of ink. She casually tossed the pen onto the desk and leaned down to rummage for a water-based pen in her desk drawer. Her fingers suddenly touched something. She pulled it out and froze.
"Yue Yiyue, what's wrong?" Her deskmate's voice sounded at just the right moment. Yue Yiyue calmly tucked the piece of paper away. "Nothing, my pen is dry. Can I borrow one?"
A day here didn't pass quickly, but because Yue Yiyue came from an orphanage, she cherished this opportunity exceptionally. She flipped through the test papers she found in her desk again and located the library's reading room during break time. Gu Nanqiu was doing fine too, accustomed to this kind of life, though she occasionally spaced out. She had already finished the Gaokao (college entrance exam) only to be dragged back to school! How hateful. At times like this, she particularly longed to go back to her wonderful university life… At these times, Yue Yiyue would come over and pat her shoulder, saying dryly: "We'll go back soon." But both knew they were utterly confused about their situation here; they even had to observe Zhang Yang to determine if she was friend or foe.
After dinner, back in the dormitory, Yue Yiyue first analyzed Zhang Yang's identity. She suspected Zhang Yang had received the Bully Identity Plate. The deceased Wang Yong probably did too. The original novel said so, and the piece of paper she just felt for also gave a reminder. Although she didn't know who left it, the bright red characters on it read: "More than one person is being bullied!!! Hurry… escape!!!" Her first reaction upon seeing this note was to hand it to Gu Nanqiu. But the second sentence read: "Do not become the Class Monitor." The plot had deviated from the original novel. Yue Yiyue dared not blindly trust the book she read; one wrong step leads to many more. She needed to stay alive and wait for the day she could return. This note mysteriously appeared in her desk. Besides this, there was also a small key… When she got back, she would match it to the lock. If it really belonged to the locked cabinet in the dormitory, she would tell Gu Nanqiu, as she couldn't tell people things without confirmation.
Meanwhile, Gu Nanqiu was considering the possibility of what Yue Yiyue said: "So, that means Zhao Heyi has the Bully Identity Plate?" Then where was he now? Were they entering in batches? What was Wang Yong's death connected to him?
Tap, tap, tap. A faint knocking sounded, interrupting the two's thoughts.
"Who is it?" Gu Nanqiu asked the person outside the door.
"It's me, Fan Ning. I'm sorry, but can I… bother you tonight?"
The door opened, and a soaked Fan Ning appeared before the two. She looked miserable, hugging her arms and shivering. It was summer, but being suddenly drenched like this and then hit by the evening wind was enough to cause torment. Gu Nanqiu quickly ushered her into the bathroom and took out a new towel from the cabinet. Yue Yiyue went to the wardrobe to get clean clothes for changing.
Twenty minutes later, a steaming Fan Ning emerged from the bathroom, red-eyed and standing awkwardly on the balcony.
"I'm sorry… but I really have nowhere else to go." "That girl in the same dorm was forced by them to throw my quilt off the bed." "She warned me that if someone of my low status like me stays in this class, they will eventually execute me." Tears finally fell from Fan Ning's eyes when she uttered the word 'execute.' "I'm truly scared. You saved me before; perhaps you have a way to help me escape."
Gu Nanqiu led her to her bed, comforting her softly, telling her not to be afraid and not to worry. A moment later, Gu Nanqiu led Yue Yiyue outside the dormitory. She hesitated briefly as she looked at the person inside the room.
"You want her to stay in our dorm?" Yue Yiyue guessed Gu Nanqiu's intention and lowered her voice to ensure the person inside couldn't hear.
"I'm not sure if she's friend or foe, so it involves a bit of a gamble."
"Mm… but I'm still worried if we just leave her alone. Also, do you remember what the script-killing game said?" Factions. If Fan Ning was truly one of the bullied, then they were on the same side. But it also didn't say that people on the same side couldn't be enemies. Nor did it say anything about identity switching. If Fan Ning could shed the status of the bullied, Yue Yiyue believed she would be very willing to do so.
Silence spread between the two. Gu Nanqiu thought of many things, such as the impact on Yue Yiyue if they made this decision, and whether something might happen tonight.
"Let's go check her dorm first. If what they said is true, we'll let her stay, but tonight, you and I will sleep in our beds, and you sleep on the inner side," Gu Nanqiu thought. If Fan Ning really had nowhere to go tonight and was killed, she might feel guilty for the rest of her life.
"You sleep on the inner side," Yue Yiyue had already expected Gu Nanqiu's decision and didn't say more.
"Let's just say we'll accompany her back to the dorm to get a few clean changes of clothes. If she's willing, we'll let her stay in our dorm—"
"Just sleep on my bed," Gu Nanqiu looked at Yue Yiyue somewhat shyly. "I'm sorry. Although this request might seem a bit unreasonable, I still hope you can keep this secret for me. I'm a bit of a neat freak, and I don't like others near my bed. I had classmates in the past who misunderstood and thought I was looking down on them."
"When they found out, they always tried to stain my things with their scent so they could justifiably take my things away." Gu Nanqiu said with some distress. "Okay, Yiyue, I don't want that to happen here, as they seem much crazier."