"You're just a child, it's best not to listen to those sordid stories from years ago."

"Alright."

The aunt advised her niece, "I think that girl is very calculating. It's better to keep your distance from her, lest you get taken advantage of."

"If you're wronged, you'll always have family to back you up. But family can only help you save face, they can't bear the hurt for you."

"I understand."

Facing the suddenly heavy rain, Gao Yun rummaged through her bag for her phone, hesitating about whom to call.

Shi Li and Shi Qiuyu were supposed to go to their interest classes tonight, so they should have already left school.

Perhaps she should call the driver and tell him to come into the teaching building to pick her up.

Before she could make the call, Gao Yun felt a tap on her shoulder from behind.

She turned to see a tall, thin boy wearing glasses. He looked somewhat familiar, but she didn't know him.

The boy was holding an umbrella and gave a gentle smile. "You didn't bring an umbrella, did you, classmate?"

"My umbrella is big enough. Let me walk you for a bit."

Gao Yun was slightly wary, but figured it should be safe since he was a schoolmate.

She thanked him, "That's very kind of you, thank you."

The boy's eyes briefly swept over the discreet logo in the corner of her bag.

He tilted the umbrella more towards Gao Yun's side.

After leaving the school gates, Gao Yun pointed to the parking lot and said, "If you wouldn't mind, could you walk me a bit further? My family's driver is waiting for me over there."

This was no problem, of course. The boy escorted Gao Yun to the car.

The gleaming car logo made the boy's smile deepen even further.

The boy waved goodbye to Gao Yun, watching as the car drove away.

Because he had tilted most of the umbrella over Gao Yun, his other arm was completely soaked by the rain.

In the late autumn weather, the feeling of wet clothes clinging to skin was quite unpleasant, but the boy didn't seem to mind at all.

Another weekend came, and Shi Li slept until noon. When she woke up, she saw two missed calls on her phone.

Both Fu Huixing and Shi Qiuyu had called her in the morning.

Shi Li's phone was on silent while she slept, so she had missed both calls.

Considering she was closer to Shi Qiuyu, Shi Li decided to call Fu Huixing back first.

When the call connected, she explained why she hadn't answered, "Hello, I'm sorry, I was asleep when you called this morning, so I didn't see it."

"It's alright, I should have considered that."

"You calling me out of the blue must mean you have something to tell me, right?"

"Yes, I do have something to say."

"Brother Song, the one who brought people to threaten you, has gone back to school. I went to see him today, and he said a student from our school paid him a thousand yuan to do this."

"A student from our school? Does he remember the person's name?"

"He said the guy's name is Qiao Shan, a boy about 180 cm tall, wearing black-framed glasses. He claimed you bullied his girlfriend and wanted to teach you a lesson."

"I don't know if you know this person."

Shi Li gritted her teeth. How could she not know him?

"If there's no case of mistaken identity, then yes, I know him."

At this point, she couldn't continue troubling Fu Huixing with this matter.

"Thank you for everything these past few days. When are you free? Let me treat you to a meal."

Fu Huixing didn't want a meal, worried that given Shi Li's tastes, she might take him to some rustic farmhouse where they'd have to catch and kill their own chicken.

"No need. The gold medal you gave me was heavy enough. What I did should be worth that medal's price."

"But you saved me! Are you saying my life isn't worth a piece of gold?"

"It's just a meal together. If you're busy recently, we can always arrange it for later."

With that, Shi Li hung up the phone.

Shi Li thought to herself that she and that scoundrel Qiao Shan were simply incompatible. It absolutely wasn't because Qiao Shan was Gao Yun's boyfriend in their previous life, and she, as the best friend, naturally clashed with her friend's boyfriend.

It was because Qiao Shan was just not a good person.

In this life, she was determined to keep a close eye on Gao Yun and absolutely not let Qiao Shan find any opportunity.

However, things might really be different this time around.

Qiao Shan was actually pursuing the female lead, Liang Rongrong, treating her like a goddess.

In their previous life, Shi Li and Shi Qiuyu had often gossiped behind their backs, saying that the only reason Qiao Shan dated Gao Yun was because her family was rich.

As for why Qiao Shan chose Gao Yun among all the rich second-generation kids, the two had analyzed that they became classmates after splitting into arts and science streams, so it was a case of propinquity.

In normal life, the chances of Qiao Shan meeting a rich person were even lower than meeting a fake rich second-generation.

As for the abundance of wealthy second-generation students at school, why did Qiao Shan set his sights on Gao Yun? It was because Gao Yun had a flaw that others didn't - she was a naive fool.

Stupid and rich was the favorite type for con artists.

In the eyes of Gao Yun's best friends, Qiao Shan was just a social climber.

In this life, Qiao Shan actually revering Liang Rongrong as a goddess was something Shi Li hadn't anticipated.

Shi Li thought to herself that before the two met, she should badmouth Qiao Shan more in front of Gao Yun.

Make Gao Yun form a bad first impression of him, as first impressions were very hard to change.

While pondering about Gao Yun and Qiao Shan, Shi Li dialed Shi Qiuyu's number.

Shi Qiuyu complained, "Why didn't you answer the phone this morning either?"

"Sis, it was only nine o'clock when you called. Just because you don't sleep doesn't mean others don't need to sleep, you know?"

This was the difference between close friends and ordinary classmates. She had slept in and missed the call, yet she was blaming the other person for calling.

Shi Qiuyu had thought Shi Li was up studying for TOEFL. Hearing that she was still sleeping, she was speechless.

"Don't tell me you just woke up. I got up at seven this morning and went to calligraphy class at eight."

It wasn't that she had just woken up; she had already talked to Fu Huixing on the phone. But there was no need to tell Shi Qiuyu that, lest she overthink it and Shi Li would have to waste breath explaining.

"Why are you looking for me out of the blue?"

"Of course I have a reason to find you. I originally wanted to ask if you wanted to have lunch together, but I've already eaten now."

Shi Li was puzzled, "Why didn't you ask Gao Yun? Why are you asking me today?"

It wasn't that the two were forming a clique to isolate Shi Li. It was just that she usually didn't like to move around, and every time they invited her to go shopping, it was like asking for her life.

Over time, when they wanted to go out shopping, they stopped asking her.

"It's because Gao Yun said she had something to do and didn't want to come out with me. I'm baffled. She's such an unlearned person, what could she possibly have to do?"

"I slept well last night," Shi Li replied to her. "I'll get ready and head out. Find a coffee shop and wait for me; I'll join you as soon as I can." It was indeed time to buy some winter clothes.

Shi Qiuyu had thought she'd need to persuade Shi Li for a while, but was surprised at how readily she agreed today.

Shi Qiuyu had initially wanted to complain about Gao Yun's words, but she swallowed her criticism and quickly responded, "Alright, I'll send you the location. Take your time getting ready, there's no rush."

Shi Li hastily ate a couple of bites of the lunch prepared by the housekeeper. While putting on her makeup, she thought of Wei Yi, whose father had passed away.

At Shi Qiuyu's location, Shi Li texted: [Should I ask Wei Yi to join us for shopping?]

The question mark was to seek Shi Qiuyu's opinion, and she quickly replied with an "OK" emoji.

Shi Li then messaged Wei Yi, asking if she had time.

If Wei Yi didn't want to come, she could easily say she was busy.

Two minutes later

Wei Yi: [Sure, I'm so bored at home]

Shi Li: [Get ready, I'll come pick you up with my driver]

Shi Li went to Wei Yi's family villa to pick her up, greeting Wei Yi's mother and offering words of comfort about taking care of her health.

These were mere pleasantries. Shi Li couldn't see any trace of sorrow in Wei Yi's mother; instead, she seemed to be regaining her vibrant vitality.

Since her husband's death, Wei Yi's mother had devoted all her energy to her daughter and the company.

She had originally been a capable and promising career woman herself, only gradually stepping away from her profession after marriage and childbirth.

Now, having been disconnected from the professional world for over a decade, jumping back into the company posed some challenges for her.

But she was already slowly taking over the company's operations.

Unlike before, when she stayed at home every day, Wei Yi's mother now rarely had weekends off.

"Be careful when you're out shopping. If you run short on money, just ask our Yi Yi. She's quite the little heiress now."

When Wei Yi's father passed away, since his parents had already died, his daughter and wife inherited all his assets.

While her classmates were still receiving monthly allowances from their parents, Wei Yi had already become worth billions.

Shi Li accepted Wei Yi's mother's kind offer, "That's too kind of you. But since you insist, I won't refuse."

When Wei Yi came downstairs and saw Shi Li chatting animatedly with her mother, some unpleasant thoughts immediately surfaced in her mind.

Her mother had previously misunderstood that she had a crush on Shi Li. Surely she wasn't talking about that?

The mere possibility made Wei Yi panic.

Afraid her mother might say something inappropriate, she quickly interrupted, "What are you two talking about?"

Seeing her daughter's nervous expression, Wei Yi's mother gave a knowing smile, "Don't worry, I'm not bullying your little classmate. Your friend has been waiting for you for a while. You should get going now, have fun."

Shi Li and Wei Yi met up with Shi Qiuyu at the coffee shop.

While shopping, Shi Qiuyu realized why Shi Li had been willing to go out – she actually needed to buy things.

Shi Li liked two pieces of clothing, and Wei Yi voluntarily went to pay for them.

Of course, Shi Li didn't want her to pay, but Wei Yi said, "It's fine, I have money."

If it weren't for Shi Li's warning, she and her mother wouldn't have known about her father's illegitimate children, let alone been prepared for it.

Just the illegitimate children who showed up at the funeral to claim their inheritance had taken away nearly half of their family's wealth.

Spending money on Shi Li was something she was more than willing to do.

It wasn't as if the family company had gone bankrupt or that she couldn't afford to eat. Shi Li didn't need anyone else to pay for her.

The cashier stood holding the POS machine, waiting for one of them to pay, while two black cards fluttered up and down in front of her.

"Let me pay. My dad just died, and I inherited a fortune. I have money."

"The person I have a crush on doesn't like me back, so I don't need to support a boy toy. I have money too."

The cashier girl thought to herself: So, are you two showing off your wealth or trying to gain sympathy?