Chapter Twenty-Two: Class Reunion

Chapter Twenty-Two: The Class Reunion

No one quite knew how Su Yitong managed to uncover Shen Ce’s family circumstances, but she anonymously broadcasted the news across the school forum with great fanfare. Shen Ce had always despised the way people scrutinized him simply because he was an orphan. He hadn’t even told Qin Song about it; for Su Yitong to know, one couldn’t help but marvel at her resourcefulness.

Since Shen Ce had no parents to rely on financially, the post zeroed in on how he managed to pay his tuition and living expenses. Everyone knew Shen Ce was a reclusive homebody, never seen working part-time jobs—so just how did he support himself?

The post ultimately reached an absurd conclusion: he survived solely by his looks.

Of course, Shen Ce’s handsome appearance was widely acknowledged, but the idea of a man living off his face naturally provoked all sorts of speculation. Su Yitong, knowing this all too well, uploaded several photos as “proof,” showing Shen Ce meeting privately with a certain middle-aged woman. The locations varied, and Shen Ce, usually known for his cold demeanor, appeared unusually gentle in the images. Even the most skilled Photoshop users found no signs of tampering.

The live post broke the university forum’s record for highest clicks within an hour. The comments were remarkably unanimous: the fall of an idol.

Shen Ce discovered he was being slandered two hours later. His dorm housed four people; aside from Qin Song, there were two other boys with whom Shen Ce had never been particularly close—simply because their goddess, like Qin Song’s, was Su Yitong.

While the post was live, the two roommates eyed Shen Ce with ambiguous, suggestive glances. Shen Ce was puzzled at first, until his gaze accidentally swept over their computer screens and he realized the crux of the issue.

He skimmed through the entire post, and upon seeing the photo of himself dining with the orphanage director, he was overwhelmed with mixed emotions—who would have the patience to stalk him so diligently? As a tech enthusiast, Shen Ce immediately traced the poster’s IP address. He had a decent relationship with the forum moderator; whenever hackers invaded the forum, the moderator would seek his help. So Shen Ce asked him to delete the post and further confirmed that the poster was indeed Su Yitong.

Once Su Yitong’s post was deleted, the university was in an uproar. Discussion threads sprang up everywhere—some accused Shen Ce of guilty conscience, others defended his character. It flooded the forum homepage until the moderator had to use code to block all related threads.

Even with such suppression, rumors continued to swirl. Shen Ce, disdainful of explanations, left only Qin Song, Xie Fei, and a handful of others privy to the truth. After the incident, Qin Song completely blacklisted his former goddess, Su Yitong. He tried to defend Shen Ce, but one person’s voice was drowned out by Su Yitong’s legion of supporters.

For a time, whenever Shen Ce stepped outside, he was subjected to countless stares. He didn’t mind; he never lived for others’ opinions. What did their views matter to him?

It was not until half a year later that people realized they had misunderstood Shen Ce. The misunderstanding was cleared up when Qin Song secretly contacted the orphanage director, inviting her to host a major charity event at the university, without mentioning Shen Ce’s situation.

After the event, Qin Song posted a photo of Shen Ce and the orphanage director together on the forum. At last, everyone understood how the live post had twisted the truth. Some bored individuals tried to track down the original poster’s motives, but although suspicion pointed to Su Yitong, her “divine” status made people doubt their own conclusions. Eventually, the investigation fizzled out.

Once Shen Ce’s reputation was restored, he was approached by a girl who apologized for misunderstanding him and begged for forgiveness. Shen Ce interrupted her halfway, indifferent to the opinions of onlookers and caring nothing for forgiveness. But his dislike for Su Yitong was certain, especially since she continued to seek his attention despite knowing his aversion.

Now, five years after graduation, the class had organized at least six or seven reunions, but Shen Ce had only attended the first, dragged along by Qin Song—and had left in haste after showing his face. He wondered what would unfold should he attend another gathering now.

The next day, Shen Ce received a call from Qin Song early in the morning. “Hey, Shen Ce, I’m downstairs at your place. Hurry up and come down.”

Shen Ce hung up, changed into a white shirt and deep gray plaid trousers, and after some thought, added a long, smoke-gray trench coat. When he went downstairs, he saw Qin Song leaning against the car, winking at him with a grin. Shen Ce glanced inside the car, his voice low and steady: “Where’s Xie Fei?”

Qin Song tilted his chin, stepped forward, and gave Shen Ce a hearty hug, laughing as he explained, “She’s already at the hotel, waiting for us.”

On the drive, Qin Song bombarded Shen Ce with questions, which Shen Ce answered one by one. Their conversation drifted to a programming genius Shen Ce had once admired. Qin Song sighed, “Honestly, I wish you’d give up gaming and pursue something else. Do you remember Mo Yi? I heard he became a vegetable. Life is so unpredictable.”

Shen Ce lifted his head, startled. “How could that happen?”

Mo Yi had been a programming prodigy Shen Ce admired since high school. His participation in the international collegiate programming competition in freshman year was largely motivated by his desire to pay homage to Mo Yi, a former champion. But by junior year, news of Mo Yi became scarce, and Shen Ce stopped following his updates. He never imagined that in just a few years, everything would change so drastically.

Qin Song shook his head, sighing. “I don’t know the details, just something I heard by chance. Supposedly, the stress from coding was too much. If not for you, I probably wouldn’t even remember his name.”

Shen Ce pressed his lips together and fell silent.

Fifteen minutes later, they arrived at the entrance of Shengfeng Grand Hotel. A neatly dressed attendant opened the door for them. “Gentlemen, do you have a reservation? Would you like me to show you the way?”

Qin Song nodded, “Yes, we know where it is. No need for help.” He and Shen Ce walked through a corridor of dark gold, took two elevators, and arrived at their private room.

As soon as the door opened, Shen Ce saw a crowd of elegantly dressed men and women raising glasses amidst a haze of alcohol and perfume. He subtly stepped back, disliking such scenes, but Qin Song, sensing his discomfort, half dragged, half coaxed him inside.

Someone noticed Shen Ce’s arrival and, after a soft gasp, all eyes turned to him and Qin Song. Some blinked in disbelief, and for a moment, silence reigned before the lively atmosphere resumed.

A woman in a red V-neck cocktail dress, holding a glass of crimson wine, approached and blocked Shen Ce’s path. Her refined features were even more striking under the lights. “Shen Ce, it’s been so long.”

She lowered her head slightly, the smile lingering on her lush lips. The deep V of her neckline revealed a generous expanse of skin, drawing the gaze of several men who eyed her enviously—not least at Shen Ce’s fortune. After all, to have a great beauty pining for you for years was something to be envied.

Shen Ce responded with a faint “Mm.” Qin Song gave an awkward smile. “Su Yitong, it has been a long time for us, too.”

Su Yitong laughed, her long pearl earrings swaying beside her cheeks. She glanced at Qin Song, then returned her gaze to Shen Ce. “Yes, we haven’t seen each other in ages.”

She drew out the last word, then suddenly exclaimed, spilling a bit of wine from her glass, nearly tumbling herself and the wine onto Shen Ce.

Shen Ce frowned, quickly steadying the glass in Su Yitong’s hand and pushing her aside. “Miss Su, you ought to hold your glass more firmly.” Since Shen Ce saved the wine but not her, Su Yitong lost her balance and nearly fell. Qin Song hurried to steady her, recalling that she had once been his goddess, though he now felt somewhat bitter seeing her so changed.

Su Yitong managed to stand upright, casting a coy glance at Shen Ce as she retrieved her glass, seemingly blaming him for his lack of gallantry. She tucked her hair behind her ear, her eyes shimmering like autumn water. “Shen Ce, you really are…”

Shen Ce met her gaze coolly. “Sorry, I have something to take care of.” With that, he and Qin Song went to find Xie Fei. Seated in a corner, Xie Fei seemed oblivious to their earlier predicament, wholly absorbed in her culinary battle, devouring fish mousse crystal buns and fermented rice balls one after another.

Qin Song snatched the bun from Xie Fei’s hand and popped it into his mouth. “You’ve got it easy, didn’t come help us up front. Shen Ce and I, two grown men, nearly couldn’t handle it.”

Xie Fei glanced at them without a care, quickly grabbing a slice of watermelon. “With so much food, who has time to worry about you two? Besides, Su Yitong is way out of my league. I’m not about to provoke a deity like her.” After finishing the watermelon, she nodded in Su Yitong’s direction, grinning mischievously. “Shen Ce, Su Yitong’s been chasing after you for ages—you really won’t consider her?”

Shen Ce shook his head, taking off his coat before sitting down. Qin Song immediately threw an arm around his shoulder. “You called her a deity—how could our Shen Ce dare mess with her?”

Xie Fei punched Qin Song hard, a mock-threatening smile on her face. “You talk big. Since when did Shen Ce become yours? I must have missed that memo.”

As Qin Song started to retort, Xie Fei pinched his face, then looked teasingly at Shen Ce. “Honestly, Su Yitong’s not right for you. But Shen Ce, when are you going to bring a girlfriend? That way, maybe certain people will finally give up.”

“He’s buried in games every day. Where would he find time to date?” Qin Song said, pinching Xie Fei’s cheek in return.

“Plenty of people get married in games and end up dating in real life!” Xie Fei shot back, glaring at Qin Song.

Watching this endless display of affection, Shen Ce’s lips curved, his sharp features softening.

Yet as Qin Song and Xie Fei spoke of game couples, Shen Ce’s mind involuntarily conjured the image of Selos. Though they shared no feelings, the mysterious assassin had been absent for days—where could he have gone?