"Chu Han, look over there—isn't that Zhou Yi sitting in the corner?"
"Yes, wasn't he your devoted follower before? Haven't seen him around you lately."
"With Young Master Gao in her life now, Chu Han obviously wouldn't care for someone like him—a poor boy with nothing to offer."
Not far away in the cafeteria, Chu Han was having lunch with a few of her friends.
To Chu Han's group, Zhou Yi had always been just another one of her admirers—someone beneath their notice.
"Who would've thought he'd turn out so handsome. Any regrets, Chu Han? Hehe."
"If you're not interested anymore, maybe you can pass him along to me. Do you have his WeChat? Hook me up?"
The thought of Zhou Yi already being involved with a wealthy and beautiful woman—and worse, blocking her on WeChat—dimmed the playful smile in Chu Han's eyes.
Stirring the soup in her bowl absentmindedly, she said coolly, "Why would I bother adding someone like that? If you want his contact, go find him yourself."
"Sigh… I heard he's tough to get close to these days. Otherwise, I'd have asked ages ago."
"But why is he hanging out with Su Ning and those girls? She's known as the ice queen!"
It was hard to miss the presence of Su Ning and Wang Yixin among other stunning beauties who had gathered near Zhou Yi.
Chu Han usually dined out with Gao Wenhao, but today, perhaps sensing her shifting attitude toward Zhou Yi, he seemed displeased and left her behind this time.
She didn't mind. Used to his occasional tantrums, she had no intention of chasing after him or catering to his whims.
When she heard whispers about Zhou Yi being here, surrounded by Su Ning and others, curiosity got the better of her, and she glanced over discreetly.
Propping her chin up, Chu Han studied them carefully. "Is that Wang Yixin next to him?"
A curly-haired girl beside her scoffed indignantly. "Hmph, it's that manipulative witch again. Looks like Zhou Yi's going to get played—just like everyone else she toys with."
Wang Yixin was infamous for playing with people's emotions; even her ex had fallen victim to her schemes.
Narrowing her eyes slightly, Chu Han smirked. "Maybe she's just saying hello. It doesn't mean anything serious. After all, even if Zhou Yi's gotten more attractive, deep down, he's still the same desperate guy chasing scraps of attention."
For some reason, the idea of Zhou Yi improving unsettled her.
She kept trying to convince herself that despite his new looks, he was still the same pathetic admirer from before.
Perhaps, deep inside, she hoped his feelings for her hadn't changed.
But that possibility felt slim. Ever since he blocked her on WeChat, things between them were irreparably broken.
"Chu Han, you're picky, so you think no one would give Zhou Yi the time of day. But do you know how many people are dying to add him on WeChat? The forums are blowing up with posts about him—thousands of comments piling up!"
"Yeah, I just heard something unbelievable too."
"What is it?"
"They say Zhou Yi scored full marks in both Chinese and Math today—and snagged the only spot in their department for the math modeling competition!"
Chu Han burst into laughter. "Impossible! Last year alone, he failed so many subjects. Full marks? That's ridiculous—it must be fake news."
Her friend immediately pulled out her phone and showed her the forum thread.
"Look, this is what a girl from Class 3 Visual Communication posted. Apparently, Zhou Yi got the only spot for the math modeling competition in their entire program."
Seeing the post, Chu Han froze.
How could this be? Zhou Yi scoring full marks? Competing in math modeling?
"I heard an even crazier rumor. Want to know what it is?"
"What?"