"Wu Xiaoya, are you saying Yingying did something wrong? She doesn't like Xue Yang, so what's wrong with turning him down? Would you accept someone you don't happen to like? As it happens, doesn't Zhong Hong from the finance department like you? Why don't you go accept him?"
"That's not what I mean. I just feel that junior Xue Yang was wrong to like Yingying, but after saying those things in front of so many people yesterday, he must be hurting inside. Yingying should apologize to him. If she doesn't like him, she doesn't, but matters of the heart can't be forced, right?"
Even if she didn't like him, there was no need to say such harsh things in public!
She didn't like Zhong Hong, and she had made that clear to him without accepting a single thing from him.
She also couldn't understand why Chen Ying clearly didn't like Xue Yang, yet every time Xue Yang sent her messages and letters, she would proudly share them with everyone, and she accepted every gift he sent.
If she didn't like him, shouldn't she have refused and not taken his things?
Besides, Xue Yang had chased her for a full six years, spending his entire youth on her, only to be hurt like that in the end. Wu Xiaoya felt a bit indignant on his behalf.
"Xiaoya, just how naive can you be? Let me tell you, men are all good-for-nothings who only cheapen themselves; the easier things are to get, the less they appreciate them. Besides, our Yingying is so pretty, she's bound to marry into a wealthy family in the future. What is Xue Yang anyway? If he wants to chase her, let him keep chasing. That just shows how popular our Yingying is."
"..."
Hearing this, Chen Ying's gloomy mood instantly vanished.
That's right, I'm so pretty, what kind of guy couldn't I find? Why should I settle for Xue Yang, whose family background is so ordinary? Just to suffer through hardships with him in the future?
Wu Xiaoya opened her mouth, but ultimately refrained from arguing with them further.
Subconsciously, she still felt that doing this was wrong.
"But still, doesn't this feel terribly unfair to Xue Yang?"
"There's no such thing as fairness in love to begin with."
"All I saw was that Xue Yang was truly hurt this time. There was no light left in his eyes at all."
"..."
Chen Ying half-listened to what her close friends were saying.
In the past, whenever Xue Yang saw her, his eyes were full of light. But today, not only did she fail to see any light in Xue Yang's eyes, she couldn't even find her own reflection there. It was as if he had banished her from his world, refusing to spare her even an extra glance.
Come to think of it, this was the first time Xue Yang had been so cold to her. He hadn't greeted her proactively; for the first time after being rejected, he hadn't apologized to her; and for the first time, he had ignored her in front of a crowd.
He used to say that no matter when or where, he would always be the first to spot her in a crowd, then break through every obstacle to come to her side and let her see him. He said he would grow into someone she could rely on.
Yet this time, he had taken the initiative to distance himself from her.
Had she really gone too far this time?
Whenever Xue Yang confessed to her in the past, she always thought of him as just a kid who could be brushed off easily. Who could have known he would persist for six whole years, and even manage to get into Yanbei just for her?
Yet having witnessed the bustling prosperity and the wider world of Yanjing, how could she ever be content being tied down by Xue Yang?
That was why she had spoken so harshly to him. But asking her to take the initiative to apologize? That was out of the question.
Over six years, Chen Ying had long formed a habit: Xue Yang would never truly be cold to her. Even when he threw little tantrums, they never lasted more than a day before he came scurrying back to her.
If he thought this stunt would make her accept his confession, he was being far too naive.
Hmph! When he finally came to his senses and came back to apologize, she certainly wouldn't forgive him so easily. She'd make him sweat for at least a week.
In Chen Ying's worldview, it was fine for her to be cold to him, but he was not allowed to be cold to her.
If he dared to be cold to her, then there would be absolutely no hope for them left.
Similar unfair principles included: she could get angry at him, but if he ever dared to get angry at her, she would ignore him forever; she could accept his gifts, but she couldn't accept his confession; and if he chose not to send gifts, he had better not bother talking to her ever again.
Yet this time, Xue Yang seemed completely resolved to stop chasing Chen Ying. For a whole day, he hadn't sent her a single message.
Not even an apology letter.
Let alone bubble tea.
This left Chen Ying entirely out of sorts all day long.
And Wu Xiaoya had seen right through all her abnormal behavior.
"Yingying, if you have feelings for Xue Yang, you can go find him. I'm sure that as long as you take the initiative, Xue Yang will be thrilled."
Chen Ying's face stiffened, then she put on a casual facade and said:
"Impossible. I've said all along that I don't like him, and his behavior right now is exactly what I wanted. Finally, no one is bothering my life every day—you have no idea how happy I am."
With that, she even forced a smile to prove it.
Yet Wu Xiaoya could see that her smile was anything but genuine.
"Yingying, put your hand over your heart—are you really happy? I don't think so at all. I've known you since we started university. Even though you spent every day complaining about Xue Yang's enthusiasm being a nuisance, it was obvious you were enjoying every minute of it. You actually wanted to accept him, so why do you keep acting like this? Besides, if you truly didn't want to accept him, you shouldn't have given him hope; you should have completely cut off his illusions. Not only did you let him get into the same school as you, but you also kept accepting his gifts—what is that if not giving him hope? Yingying, be honest with me, you actually like Xue Yang in your heart, don't you? Otherwise, you wouldn't have gone all these years without dating once."
Chen Ying's smile gradually faded, replaced by a rare expression of internal conflict after all these years.
"What, just because he's been chasing me all this time, I'm obligated to be with him?"
"Yingying, for the sake of us sharing a dorm for all four years of college, I don't want you to regret this in the future. Are you really, truly not going to consider being with Xue Yang?"
"I didn't before."
"And what about now?"
"I have considered it. But if I had agreed to be with him the moment he got into college, what would I do if he was just messing around? That's why I can't just agree to be with him so easily. Besides, he's only a freshman; how do I know if he'll have the ability to take care of me in the future? I can't just hang myself on a single crooked tree. If it were you, would you be content with that?"
Content?
Very few women would be content living a mediocre life after marriage, especially since they attended Yanbei, where their future prospects were boundless.
Still, Wu Xiaoya felt that Chen Ying's approach was wrong.
"Chen Ying, how many six-year periods does a person have in life? If you don't like him, stop wasting his time."