Ever since successfully confronting Gu Lian, Gu Qianran had not seen Gu Lian at home. She was perfectly fine with it; life was peaceful without interference from the malicious stepmother. The system had also gone silent, issuing no new tasks.
Two months of this quiet, comfortable life passed without incident. During this time, Gu Qianran discovered Bai Ziyuan's adorably clumsy nature and gained a small group of devoted admirers. No surprise—academic prodigies shine even in a second life.
As Gu Qianran's biggest fan, Bai Ziyuan adored Gu Qianran wholeheartedly. In her words, "Those good at political science are big shots. Whatever big shots say is law." Bai Ziyuan said this with hands on her hips, full of innocence and self-righteousness. Gu Qianran could not resist patting her head again. There was something magical about the heroine's hair—addictive, really. Bai Ziyuan, already used to Gu Qianran's spontaneous head pats, didn't resist but instead closed her eyes with pleasure, like a lazy cat.
Seeing the heroine slowly becoming more lively, Gu Qianran smiled. It meant the shadow left by past betrayals was finally fading. Bai Ziyuan was only fifteen; she could not afford to shut herself away in an icy shell. As for Bai Ziyuan's dual-personality tendency—outwardly bold, inwardly soft? Who cared if that applied to her?
Where there was admiration for Gu Qianran, there was also jealousy. After the monthly exam, someone began spreading rumors that Gu Qianran had cheated. Gu Qianran had no intention of arguing with these children, but Bai Ziyuan exploded first. "Ran Ran, don't stop me! It must be Chen Jiale! She tricked me out of a month's worth of milk tea! She can't stand anyone being better than her. And her boyfriend just broke up with her. He's chasing you now!"
Gu Qianran blinked. "What? A love letter? How come I didn't know?"
Behind her, Ji Tang quietly pulled out a thick stack of letters from her desk pouch. "They thought you'd be sitting here. Here, for you."
Gu Qianran opened them to find incomprehensible foreign languages mixed with awkwardly strung-together idioms, forming long, chaotic essays.
She muttered, "If your English is bad, don't show off, thank you."
With practiced skill, she tossed the letters into the trash bin and felt extremely satisfied: the letters perfectly matched their chaotic grammar.
Bai Ziyuan, seeing the pile of letters, felt a pang in her chest and puffed up her cheeks in indignation. Gu Qianran gently smoothed her hair. "Alright, alright, trash belongs in the trash bin. Besides, you know I didn't cheat, right? Don't bother with them. Thanks for standing up for me. I'll treat you to even better milk tea, okay? Be a good girl." Lately, Gu Qianran found herself using the word "good girl" more than usual. In her eyes, Bai Ziyuan was soft and obedient toward her but bold and hard to coax with others. The ice-queen persona had long melted away.
"Really?" Bai Ziyuan's eyes lit up, but the glow quickly faded, and she lowered her head. "But… they're still insulting you."
Gu Qianran smiled gently. "Aren't you studying law? Tell me, what counts as breaking the law when someone spreads lies?"
Bai Ziyuan paused and silently opened the General Principles of Civil Law. Seeing her quietly reading, Gu Qianran's expression softened even more. Quiet children reading are the most beautiful; pouting in anger is not cute. In her view, the matter was settled. Chen Jiale was just a background character, and nothing more could be done than complain in class.
Chen Jiale glanced at Gu Qianran's indifferent expression, her eyes flashing with malice.
That afternoon was class meeting time. Normally, Gu Qianran would nap through this equivalent of self-study. Bai Ziyuan had considered nudging her, but after seeing her grades, she wisely stayed silent. Compared with classmates skipping class or playing on their phones, sleeping during class was harmless, so teachers mostly ignored it.
But today, Di Zhonghai, uncharacteristically, called Gu Qianran out and looked serious. Anyone unaware would think something had happened at her home.
Gu Qianran frowned. First thought: "Gu Lian didn't actually get into trouble, did she? Did she manage to get herself killed?"
She held back a smirk and calmly asked the teacher, "What's wrong, Teacher?"
"You dare ask? No sleeping in class, understand? What is this behavior! Class monitor! Even the class monitor is leading the sleep! You people never give anyone peace!" Di Zhonghai threw a test paper onto Gu Qianran's desk. Silence fell over the room. Normally, this was a prelude to gossip: someone doing something naughty as a cautionary tale. Students perked up their ears, eager for gossip, since gossip is the main point of class meetings.
"Gu Qianran, tell the truth. Did you cheat on this exam? Someone reported you!"
Here it comes—the ultimate student move: sacrificing reputation and dignity to summon a teacher.
Gu Qianran's relief was quiet; Gu Lian hadn't caused trouble. She frowned slightly. How outdated, accusing first to save your own skin? She curved her lips coldly. "No, Teacher." Her gaze toward Chen Jiale was icy.
She was taking it easy and found it a good opportunity to teach these children about honesty and respect.
Before the teacher could speak, Chen Jiale panicked. How did Gu Qianran know it was her? She stood, handing the phone to the teacher. "Teacher, this is my evidence!"
Di Zhonghai played the video for the class. It showed everyone working on their test, with Gu Qianran and Bai Ziyuan quietly discussing something.
Di Zhonghai slammed his desk, glaring at Gu Qianran. "So, you learned to lie, huh? Call your mother!"
Gu Qianran didn't move. She stood calmly, her indifference sharply contrasting Di Zhonghai and the flushed, panicked Chen Jiale. It was as if Chen Jiale was the one being punished.
Bai Ziyuan was puzzled. She hadn't spoken to Gu Qianran during the exam. Instinctively, she wanted to defend her, but Gu Qianran blocked her and spoke coolly.
"First, we watch the video. Your phone is good—very clear resolution. We can see the electronic clock shows November fifteenth at eleven o'clock. The exam ended on November tenth, right? And it was self-study, everyone just working on their papers. Discussing problems during self-study isn't wrong. Now I ask you, why record video in class? School rules forbid phones during class, right? And secretly filming us—is that not an invasion of privacy?" Her words came rapid-fire, leaving no room for reaction. Chen Jiale's face turned pale.
Di Zhonghai carefully watched the video and finally realized. He had been too focused on the cheating accusation to notice Chen Jiale's phone.
Gu Qianran turned to Chen Jiale. "Bai Ziyuan, what is the second-to-last term on the personal level of the Core Socialist Values?"
Bai Ziyuan, still stunned by Gu Qianran's fierce display, blurted instinctively: "Integrity!"
Gu Qianran fixed Chen Jiale with a meaningful stare. "Integrity. You did not uphold it. My grades are earned through my own efforts, unlike some who sour over what they cannot have."
"Just this? And you dare challenge me, Gu Qianran?" Was Chen Jiale foolish or overconfident? It didn't matter. Di Zhonghai was strict, and the punished wasn't Gu Qianran.
Gu Qianran's eyes flickered mischievously. Bai Ziyuan noticed and quietly lit a candle for Chen Jiale.
Di Zhonghai realized and apologized to Gu Qianran, glaring at Chen Jiale. "Come to my office!"
The drastic difference in grades was enough to raise suspicion, yet Di Zhonghai focused on facts rather than overblowing the cheating accusation. Gu Qianran admired him slightly; he might swear, but he was responsible.
No sooner had Di Zhonghai left than the class erupted.
"Ahhh, Gu Qianran, you're so cool!"
"Academic prodigy, amazing reflexes!"
Gu Qianran ignored them, smiling gently at Bai Ziyuan. "Did the bald teacher throwing the book scare you?" She recalled Bai Ziyuan being sensitive to loud noises. But Bai Ziyuan rolled her eyes. "That? Who's scared by that? My clapping is louder. The only one in my family afraid of that is my silly older sister."
Bai Ziyuan had an older sister? Gu Qianran was curious. Flipping through the plot, she noticed Bai Ziyuan wasn't the only one with siblings—the male lead also had a younger brother. The author had probably intended to plant a plot thread, but then forgot to follow up.
"Then you're amazing." Gu Qianran praised Bai Ziyuan instinctively, like one would encourage a child. She understood how deeply Bai Ziyuan craved recognition from friends. Past story moments were now supplemented by her.
"Hehe, but you're amazing too, noticing the clock." Bai Ziyuan giggled.
Gu Qianran shook her head. "Not me." She looked at Ji Tang. "Thanks."
Bai Ziyuan followed suit, eyes wide. "Class monitor? Weren't you sleeping? Why are you involved in gossip too? And how do you two know each other so well behind my back?"
Ji Tang pushed her glasses helplessly. "Bai Ziyuan, we sit near each other. Naturally, we interact. Besides, I don't like cruel people messing with others. An enemy's enemy is a friend."
Gu Qianran glanced at Ji Tang. She remembered Ji Tang was a supporting character in the original story—a successful businesswoman who ended up giving up enmity with the male lead, causing her company to fail and herself to exit the story.
She hadn't expected this supporting character to be decent. Ji Tang's delicate features, paired with black-framed glasses, gave her an air of restrained elegance—a refined rogue. Gu Qianran thought, since she was already taking Bai Ziyuan under her wing, why not Ji Tang too?
"Anyway, thank you for delivering the message to Ran Ran." Bai Ziyuan nodded to Ji Tang.
Ji Tang didn't even look up, rummaging through the desk pouch. "Next time, five yuan per message."
Bai Ziyuan: "..." Damn capitalism!
Gu Qianran watched the reflection in Ji Tang's glasses. "Are you checking investments?"
Ji Tang looked up, surprised. "How did you know?"
Gu Qianran smiled mysteriously. "Do you trust me?" Ji Tang hesitated, chestnut eyes wary. Gu Qianran pointed at a spot on the screen. "How much money do you have? Trust me and invest it there."
Ah, Ji Tang was a ready-made resource. Gu Qianran knew all the financial trends. Helping Ji Tang would ensure the male lead's small company had trouble. After all, adding obstacles to the male lead was her current task.
Ji Tang narrowed her eyes. "This student had changed so much over the past few months, improving yet still baffling." Should she trust Gu Qianran? Her family was wealthy, and her father, favoring sons, had her manage company matters from a young age. She had learned a lot about finance. Now, this project seemed unremarkable—why was Gu Qianran so confident?
Well, she was so confident. Anything could happen with her. She had no reason to lie. After all, someone who rose from sixth-to-last to first must have extraordinary skills.
"I have a little money, over a hundred thousand yuan." Ji Tang answered.
Bai Ziyuan: "...This is a little money? Alright, we don't understand the rich."
"Invest it all. Trust me. If it loses, I'll pay double." Ji Tang's doubts vanished. She invested everything into the shared bike project. The two of them huddled together discussing finance. Gu Qianran, once a business tycoon, taught effortlessly. Ji Tang, hearing her speak, became more convinced Gu Qianran was secretly a versatile genius.
They were engrossed in discussion, leaving Bai Ziyuan utterly baffled.
"Ran Ran, Ran Ran, what are you two talking about? Are you abandoning me… You cheat! New love, no old love…"
Gu Qianran patted her head. "This is science knowledge. Don't worry, you'll cover it in high school politics. Quickly, memorize the fourth unit, I'll quiz you later."
Bai Ziyuan resignedly opened her book, ready to cry silently. Genius, big shot, rich, ruthless socialite, dating—she missed a political class exam and ended up surrounded by the strangest classmates ever.