“Professor He Zhichu’s assistant?” Gu Nianzhi’s heart sank. “Is something wrong?”
She had only just secured an interview with Professor He Zhichu to take place the next morning. Had something gone wrong, so soon?
“Do you have time? Let’s go get a drink,” said Wen Shouyi in a gentle voice. She did not answer Gu Nianzhi’s question.
Her eyes were warm, and she looked at Gu Nianzhi with genuine interest. She turned and opened the car door as an invitation for Gu Nianzhi to get in.
Gu Nianzhi narrowed her eyes as she looked at Wen Shouyi. She remembered seeing this woman in the morning.
When Gu Nianzhi had called He Zhichu, this woman had come out from the room beside He Zhichu’s. She had watched as she knocked on his door and entered.
Mei Xiawen had told her that He Zhichu had a teaching assistant.
Was he referring to this woman?
What exactly did she want from her?
Gu Nianzhi’s top priority right now was the interview at eight o’clock the next morning. The last thing she wanted was to have her mood affected so close to the interview.
Gu Nianzhi politely refused her invitation by saying, “Assistant Wen, if you have something to say, please say it now. I have an interview tomorrow, and I would like to go over my notes again this evening before I turn in for the night.”
In actuality, a top student like Gu Nianzhi was already fully prepared for any interview. Only a lesser student would have to go over their notes again when the interview was taking place early the next morning.
Wen Shouyi looked at her in surprise, then smiled and said, “But what I’m about to tell you has to do with your interview tomorrow.”
“Really? So Professor He sent you?” Gu Nianzhi got out her phone and looked up the number for He Zhichu. “I’ll check with him, if you don’t mind.”
Wen Shouyi hastily stopped her, a wry smile on her face. “My dear girl, why are you so suspicious of me? I’m here to give you advice. Did you think I’m here to harm you?”
Gu Nianzhi’s finger slid surreptitiously over her phone. She smiled a gentle, angelic smile. “Oh no, please don’t say that, Assistant Wen. We barely know one another. Why would you want to harm me, when I’m practically a stranger to you? That’s such a crazy thought, and I would never think that.”
“Yet, you refuse to have a drink with me, and was quick to check with Professor He. You don’t trust me, anyone can see that.” Wen Shouyi sighed and shook her head as she looked at Gu Nianzhi. “It’s no use. No matter how hard you try, it’ll all be for nothing, in the end.”
The last thing Gu Nianzhi needed right now was for someone to extinguish her tiny flicker of hope.
Her face clouded over. “I’m not one to give up. If I come up against a wall, I’ll keep beating away at it, until one of us gives. So even if it all amounts to nothing, I don’t want to hear it from you. Not now. Feel free to gloat only after I’ve shattered my bones against the wall.”
“But I had a good feeling about you from the very moment I set my eyes on you. I like your character and your spirit, and I don’t want you to get hurt.” Wen Shouyi’s voice was full of sympathy. “Nianzhi—may I call you Nianzhi?”
Gu Nianzhi shrugged. “If you wish.”
“Nianzhi, you are talented. Exceptionally so. I just know you’ll become the best female lawyer the world has ever seen, one day. Your future is bright. You will accomplish many great things.”
“Thank you, I think so too,” said Gu Nianzhi with complete confidence. Deep down, however, she was trying to figure out what Wen Shouyi’s game was.
“My, aren’t you modest?” Wen Shouyi raised a brow. “But, you don’t understand. You’ve offended Professor He. I’ve been by his side for many years, and I’ve never seen anyone go up against him like this. You’re the first. I came here only to remind you: when someone has a bad impression of you, it doesn’t matter how hard you try, you’ll never be able to change their mind. He may offer you the opportunity to study under him, but there will be no future for you, none whatsoever. There are other roads, so why continue to insist on taking one that is already off to a bad start? You’re just driving yourself off a cliff at this point.”
Gu Nianzhi frowned at this. She did not appreciate Wen Shouyi’s metaphor. She held her phone tightly in her hand and crossed her arms. Her stance was assured and stubborn. “Assistant Wen, are you saying that Professor He is a hypocrite? Or that he is a liar?”
“What on earth makes you say that?” Wen Shouyi’s looked as though she had just been slapped in the face. “Professor He is a noble, upstanding gentleman. Why do you ask whether he’s a hypocrite?”
“If he’s noble and upstanding, and not some kind of petty back-stabber, then I don’t understand why you came to me to tell what you have,” Gu Nianzhi replied.
“I’m just telling you not to get hung up on being Professor He’s student. You’ve stepped on his toes! Angered him. There simply isn’t a future for you if you choose to study under him. Don’t believe me? Go ahead, ask your seniors in grad school; see how many of them crossed their mentors and actually got away with it.”
Gu Nianzhi gave a small laugh as she began tapping her foot impatiently. “You’ve been going round and round in circles, but basically what you’ve been trying to hint at is that Professor He is a petty, mean-spirited narcissist who absolutely won’t let go of a grudge. I honestly don’t know what I’ve done to deserve such kind attention from you. Why would you go so far as to vilify and slander your own employer, all for the sake of my future?”
“You just don’t believe me, do you?” Wen Shouyi stared at her. Her hand was reaching for her phone. The look on her face was one of heart-wrenching distress.
“You haven’t given me a reason to trust you,” said Gu Nianzhi without hesitation. “You have known Professor He far longer than you have known me, and you’re probably closer to him than anyone else, yet you seem not to care about his public image. Instead, you imply that he is dishonorable, and probably a degenerate. You barely know me, but you act all distressed and concerned about my future. Assistant Wen, please forgive my lack of civility but I truly cannot fathom why you are behaving this way.”
“In that case, I have nothing more to say. I just didn’t want to see someone with as much potential as you destroy their own future.” Wen Shouyi returned to her car. “If you don’t want to get a drink with me, fine. I’ve said everything there is to say.” With that, she started her car and sped off.
Gu Nianzhi stared at the back of the Beetle and snorted. “What a nutcase!” She stood outside for a bit longer before back to her room upstairs.
Her three roommates were out, and Nianzhi knew that they would only return late at night, minutes before the dorm lights were to be turned off.
Green Tea Fang had been admitted to grad school at the school of Political Science and Law, located in the Imperial capital; she had busied herself with networking with the upperclassmen over there. Lady Cao had joined the city’s biggest law firm, and was preparing for the bar exam. Little Temptress was also going to the Imperial capital; she would be working in the legal department of her family business.
Graduation day was coming up. Everyone was busy paving the way for what lay beyond graduation.
The four roommates had only time to exchange a few words of friendly ribbing before splitting up to shower and preparing for bed.
Gu Nianzhi was lying on her bed, fiddling with her phone. She had come up with a number of reasons for Wen Shouyi’s sudden visit earlier that night, but none of them seemed to make sense.
Luckily, she had been prepared: she had secretly recorded their conversation and saved it to her phone.
Just to be on the safe side, she had also uploaded a copy of the recording to the computer in her Fengya Precinct apartment.
Elsewhere, the object of Gu Nianzhi’s scrutiny, Wen Shouyi, was sitting in her room. She, too, was on her phone and transferring her recording of the conversation with Gu Nianzhi to her computer. Gu Nianzhi had not been the only one who had thought to record their conversation today.
The recording began to play over the speakers of Wen Shouyi’s laptop.
Wen Shouyi sat on the sofa and listened attentively to the conversation. She shook her head, closrd her eyes, and let out a small sigh.
Everything depended on the next morning.