Song Qingyi hesitated for a moment, replied with a single word—"Fine"—and then looked up at Tang Zhiwei. "I need to think about it."
"Fair enough." Tang Zhiwei didn't seem surprised. "Keep my business card; contact me whenever you're ready."
As he left the restaurant, Tang Zhiwei insisted on driving Song Qingyi back to campus, but she politely declined.
The two parted ways on the street. Just before leaving, Tang Zhiwei bought a bouquet of sunflowers from a nearby florist and handed them to her.
Around the corner, a young woman in a baseball cap quickly snapped a photo, freezing the moment in time. She looked down at the image, a cold smirk curling her lips.
***
At C University, inside the women’s dormitory for the Performing Arts department, Song Yueyue stepped out of her room and immediately initiated a video call.
A cold, stern face appeared on the screen—Song Julan.
"Big Brother, she’s back!" Song Yueyue’s voice carried a carefully feigned tremor. "Brother, you wouldn't believe it! Song Qingyi has been missing for four years, and not only is she back, but she also studied at H University in the U.S. and is now a graduate student under some Professor Richard!"
Song Julan’s eyes turned icy. "When did this happen?"
"Today! Right at the registration desk!" Song Yueyue’s eyes reddened. "She even hinted in front of everyone that Xie Wan’s death was my fault... Brother, I’m so scared..."
"She’s still slandering you?" Song Julan’s anger simmered, and he punched his desk; the video feed shook violently. "The murderer actually has the audacity to return and stir up trouble!"
Song Yueyue seized the chance to add fuel to the fire. "And... Tang Zhiwei came to pick her up personally. They seem... very close."
That name made Song Julan’s expression darken further. The Tang family and the Song family had always been at odds, and Tang Zhiwei was notoriously difficult to deal with. Moreover, Tang Zhiwei had held a grudge against them ever since the incident four years ago.
If Song Qingyi had managed to latch onto that connection...
"I'll handle it," Song Julan said coldly. "Yueyue, stay away from her. Don't let her hurt you."
After hanging up, Song Yueyue wiped away the fake tears, revealing a triumphant smile. She knew that as long as she mentioned Xie Wan and Song Qingyi, her brother would be furious enough to target her. Song Qingyi was destined to be knocked down from her pedestal by a few words, just as she had been seven years ago, when she had been recommended for admission to C University only to have her life ruined by a single whisper.
Just as Song Yueyue was gloating to herself, a knock sounded at the door.
She quickly smoothed her expression and opened the door, only to be startled by the four or five girls standing outside. The leader, Zhou Huan, was a star student in the Performing Arts department who had once starred in a hit youth film.
"Is Song Qingyi really your sister?" Zhou Huan asked, getting straight to the point, her eyes sharp as knives.
Song Yueyue caught the subtle expression on Zhou Huan’s face and instantly switched to a pitiful look. "Yes... but she never liked me growing up..."
"What’s her relationship with Tang Zhiwei?" Zhou Huan interrupted her performance, cutting to the chase.
A flash of calculation crossed Song Yueyue's eyes. It was no secret that Zhou Huan liked Tang Zhiwei. It seemed his appearance today had truly provoked the starlet.
"This..." Song Yueyue hesitated, but every word she uttered was loaded with implication. "My sister has always been very good at cozying up to powerful people... Four years ago, she already..."
Zhou Huan’s face grew increasingly ugly.
A roommate beside her couldn't help but interject, "Huanhuan and Tang Zhiwei are childhood sweethearts! Who does your sister think she is, trying to seduce Young Master Tang?"
"Qiqi!" Zhou Huan scolded her roommate, her eyes icy. "Yueyue, which dorm does your sister live in?"
Song Yueyue pretended to hesitate for a moment before "reluctantly" providing the location of Song Qingyi’s single-occupancy room. Watching them leave, she retreated into her room and closed the door, a sinister, satisfied smile tugging at the corners of her mouth.
***
The lights in the laboratory didn't go out until nine in the evening.
Song Qingyi rubbed her sore neck as she walked out of the lab building with Professor Richard.
"Progress was excellent today," Richard said with satisfaction. "Your theoretical foundation is even more solid than I imagined."
"That is thanks to your guidance, Professor," Song Qingyi replied modestly.
"Too humble. Come on, Little Song, let's go get dinner at the canteen." Richard rubbed his own aching lower back as he spoke. Although he was only thirty-eight and quite youthful in appearance, he had developed a deep bond of "revolutionary camaraderie" with Song Qingyi after spending the afternoon running experiments. The way he called her "Little Song" had become quite natural.
Song Qingyi nodded and followed him. After dinner, Richard insisted on walking her back to her dormitory.
At their parting, the internationally renowned professor looked somewhat apologetic. "About the registration incident today—I didn't think it through. I should have come to pick you up myself." After all, she was his only student. If he didn't look out for her, she would easily be bullied.
Song Qingyi shook her head. "It was a small matter, not worth your concern."
"Little Song is too easygoing. Alright, I'm heading off. Call me if anything happens; I’m available 24 hours a day." Richard waved at her, and Song Qingyi said her goodbyes with a smile.
When she walked into the dorm building and reached her room, the moment she pushed the door open, she froze.
Her room looked as if it had been robbed—the sheets were pulled onto the floor, books were scattered everywhere, and her clothes had been tossed out of the closet. Most jarringly, the word "SLUT" had been scrawled on the walls and desk in red marker, looking gruesome under the lights.
Song Qingyi suddenly laughed. It wasn't out of anger, but rather because the situation seemed so surreal, as if she were living in a completely different dimension from the rest of the C University graduate apartments.
She didn't touch anything, but took a quick assessment of her belongings. Her laptop had been smashed—it appeared the perpetrator had deliberately used it to beat the laptop bag, coincidentally destroying the USB drive inside.
Now, this was getting interesting. The contents of that USB drive were far more precious than anything else in the room.
Song Qingyi took out her phone and dialed the police without hesitation. "Hello, I’d like to report a crime. Room 302, Building 7, C University graduate apartments, has been subjected to malicious vandalism..."
After hanging up, she didn't rush to clean up. Instead, she locked the door securely and went outside to call Professor Richard.
"Little Song, what's wrong?" Richard, who had just driven off campus, picked up.
"Professor, my dormitory has been vandalized, and the experimental data I brought from the Mayser lab has been destroyed," Song Qingyi stated clearly.
"What?!" Richard exclaimed. "Little Song, wait there. I'm coming back right now!" *Damn it! Who was so bold? How dare they bully his student!*
***
When the police arrived, Song Qingyi was standing by the window in the hallway. The blue and red lights flashing in the distance grew closer. She checked the time—only ten minutes had passed since she reported the incident; the response time was unexpectedly fast.
"Little Song!" Professor Richard ran up the stairs, panting, followed by two police officers. His clothes were rumpled, his tie askew—he had clearly sprinted from the ground floor.
"Professor." Song Qingyi greeted him, her voice as calm as if she weren't the victim. "You arrived very quickly."
Richard didn't bother with small talk and had Song Qingyi open the door in front of the police. Peering into the room, his face turned livid. "Holy shit!" he cursed, turning to the officers. "This is clearly deliberate sabotage!"
The lead officer was a man in his early forties with a badge reading "Zhang Ming." He frowned, surveyed the room, and took out his notepad. "Student Song, can you describe the lost and damaged items in detail?"
Song Qingyi nodded, leading them inside. She moved carefully to preserve the scene. "My laptop is completely destroyed, and there was no backup of the data inside. Also, this USB drive," she pointed to the broken device on the floor, "contained the original experimental data I brought back from the U.S."
Richard gasped, pushing his glasses up his nose. "The data from the Mayser lab?" He turned to the police, his voice rising. "Do you realize how much this data is worth? International patents! Global cutting-edge research on cancer medication!"
Officer Zhang was clearly stunned by the gravity of the situation; his writing hand faltered. "We will handle this with the utmost seriousness. Let’s go check the surveillance footage..."
"The control room is on the first floor," Song Qingyi reminded them.
However, when they reached the dormitory office, the manager on duty sat with a stiff face. "Officer, it’s not that I’m being difficult, but the school has rules. Footage can only be viewed with the approval of school leadership. I don't have that authority."
"What authority? Madam, the police are standing right in front of you—what more authority do you need? To be blunt, if someone had been killed in that dorm, would you still need to wait for a superior's approval to check the cameras?" Richard snapped, his chest heaving.
The manager just rolled her eyes impatiently. "You talk a big game. You look young; are you this girl's boyfriend? I haven't even asked how a man got into the women's dorm, and yet you’re here trying to intimidate me."
Richard was furious. Without a word, he pulled out his phone and made a call. "President Li? It's Richard. My student's dormitory in the graduate building has been severely vandalized... Yes, right now... Okay, thank you."
He hung up and told Song Qingyi and the officer, "We’ll be able to see the footage immediately."
"Hmph." The manager let out a disdainful snort.
Song Qingyi exchanged a glance with the officer and then looked at Richard. The manager was truly… Song Qingyi was speechless.
Less than three minutes later, the manager’s phone rang. Her expression shifted after answering, and she unwillingly produced the keys. "Follow me."
In the surveillance room, the high-definition footage clearly recorded all activity from 5:00 PM onwards. At 6:18 PM, five girls walked into Building 7. At 6:30 PM, they appeared in the third-floor hallway. At 6:35 PM, the leader—Zhou Huan—took a key from one of her followers and easily unlocked the door to 302.
"That's enough." Officer Zhang pressed pause, the screen frozen on Zhou Huan kicking the door open. "The evidence is conclusive."
The police moved with lightning speed. Within half an hour, the Performing Arts dorm building was surrounded by patrol cars. By the time Zhou Huan and her five followers were led away, a large crowd of students had gathered.
"Isn't that Zhou Huan?"
"What happened? What did she do?"
"I heard she trashed the dorm of that murderer."
"What murderer? Zhou Huan is the one getting arrested for vandalism!"
"What are you talking about? Who's a murderer? Do we have a murderer at our school?"
"Why would she do that?"
"I heard it’s because of Tang Zhiwei..."
The whispers spread like a tide. Song Yueyue hid at the back of the crowd, her fingernails digging into her palms. She hadn't expected Zhou Huan to be so stupid as to lead the vandalism herself and get caught on camera. Now, she could only hope Zhou Huan wouldn't sell her out.
"Clear out! Go back to what you were doing!" security guards began to disperse the crowd. Song Yueyue took the opportunity to slip back to her room and immediately called Song Julan.
"Big Brother, something happened..." her voice trembled.
***
In the police interrogation room, the fluorescent lights were blindingly bright. Song Qingyi sat on the hard chair, summarizing the events once more with concise clarity.
The officer finished his notes and suddenly asked, "Student Song, are you sure you have no prior conflicts with Zhou Huan?"
"None," Song Qingyi replied. "Officer, I only arrived back from the U.S. this morning. I didn't even know who Zhou Huan was until today. How could I have a personal vendetta against her?"
The officer was stunned. Zhou Huan’s side had claimed otherwise... Thinking of Zhou Huan's status as a public figure, the officer felt a headache coming on. "Student Song, the other party is offering compensation to settle. Do you accept?"
"Absolutely not!"
Before Song Qingyi could answer, Richard slammed his hand on the table. He loosened his collar for the third time that day, his blue eyes burning behind his gold-rimmed glasses. "That data is priceless! Do you know how much effort Little Song put into achieving those results? It’s all gone!"
The officer recoiled slightly, only just realizing this young man was the expert C University had just recruited.
"Professor, please calm down..."
"Calm down?" Richard sneered. "I go to the trouble of luring a student from MIT, and on her first day, she gets bullied like this? You want me to calm down?"
Song Qingyi raised an eyebrow. She remembered it was her own advisor who recommended her to Richard at an academic conference, and she had contacted him herself. When did she become "lured"? But she didn't dwell on it.
The officer wiped sweat from his brow. "Zhou Huan is a public figure; if this blows up, it won't be good for the school..."
"And so?" Song Qingyi interrupted softly. "Does being a public figure grant one the right to maliciously destroy other people's property?"
Her voice was quiet, but every word was a stab. "That data was tied to research that could potentially save millions of cancer patients."