Seeing the suspicion in Wendy's eyes, Shelia stiffened but quickly put on a look of grievance. "How could I ever lie to you? Why are you suddenly asking me this?"Touched by it, Wendy softened her tone. "I was just asking. Don't take it to heart."Seeing Shelia on the verge of tears, Wendy held her hand and said, "The three of us are good friends. You must never lie to us.""Of course, I would never lie to you." Shelia nodded."Let's go to class," Wendy said, leading her upstairs.From behind, Shelia stared cautiously at Wendy's back.No matter what, she couldn't let Wendy and Carrie find out about her lie before graduation. Otherwise, her school days would be over.Upstairs, there was a crowd gathered at the classroom door. Carrie was also there, but she couldn't push her way through due to her small stature."What's going on?" Wendy asked, stepping forward.Carrie gossiped, "I heard the inspection team from the Ministry of Education is here, and everyone is watching.""Insp
Shelia wondered what went wrong with Carrie and Wendy."If you don't want to leave, I will," she said, turning to leave.Just then, a student at the door called out, "Shelia! They are looking for you."Shelia's heart skipped a beat.A member of the inspection team came out and pointed at Shelia. "You, stop there."Shelia stiffened and looked back warily. "M-Me?""Are you from Dorm #317?"Shelia nodded, puzzled by the question."Is Carrie your dorm mate?""Yes, she is." Shelia instinctively glanced at Carrie, who was standing not far away.Carrie froze, and a staff member looked at her. "Carrie Cohen?"Carrie stiffly nodded.The staff member glanced down at the anonymous report in his hand. "Someone reported that you fabricated false information and circulated it on campus, severely affecting the atmosphere and infringing upon a female student's reputation."He then presented a flyer with doctored photos to Carrie. "Did you do this?"Carrie was dumbfounded and hurriedly de
"Who did this?" Debra wondered aloud.If anyone was to be targeted, it should've been Shelia, yet Carrie ended up taking the fall. Despite the uproar, Shelia had emerged unscathed.Seeing Randy pass by with a plate, Debra grabbed his sleeve. "Wait!"His mouth full, Randy turned and mumbled, "What's up?""Did you do it?" Debra asked."Do what?" Randy was puzzled."The inspection team," Debra hinted.Randy pondered. "It's probably Marion.""Would Marion bother with this?"Debra recalled the encounter with Shelia and the others earlier.Maybe it was Marion, after all.But another question surfaced, distracting Debra. "Are you so broke that you're eating here?"This cafeteria didn't seem like Randy's usual spot."Saving where I can," Randy replied tersely.No kidding. Marion had been throwing around billions and keeping the lights on in the entire office building all night. He had splurged on houses and lavish renovations, now planning to build a commercial street.In the la
Debra nodded. That was what Shelia had said when kneeling before her."When did she have a boyfriend?" Randy asked."How should I know?" Debra shrugged."She has a boyfriend and still clings to Juan. What a woman!" Randy snorted with disdain."She was just saying that for show. I don't believe she would date anyone other than Juan."Debra set down her fork and knife. "I'm done. Enjoy your meal."She stood up to leave. Jordan pushed his plate aside, saying, "I'm done too."Randy mumbled with a mouthful of food, "I'll be done in a bit!"In the evening, Shelia stared at her recent pop quiz results in her dorm, her heart heavy. She had always been a consistent top performer, but this time, her grades had plummeted.Her roommates exclaimed in astonishment, "Shelia, why are you ranking 9th this time? You've always been first. This drop is drastic!"Shelia folded up the report card, forcing a smile. "I wasn't feeling well during the test, so I didn't do so well. It's okay, just a
Shelia wanted to justify herself, but Juan added, "You're talented, but that doesn't mean you can slack off in your studies.""I'm sorry, I..."Tears welled up in Shelia's eyes, but Juan wasn't going to soften his stance again."You know the rules at Arcane Academy. If your grades continue to decline like this, and you don't make it to the top ten in the next exam, you'll lose your scholarship and have to pay your tuition in full."Shelia knew this rule, but she never expected to hear it from Juan's mouth.She stared at him in shock, unable to respond for a moment.Juan's message was clear. If her grades kept dropping, he wouldn't sponsor her anymore or help her stay at Arcane Academy. All expenses would be covered by herself."Mr. Nichols, I'm sorry. It won't happen again, I promise," Shelia pleaded.Currently, all her expenses at Arcane Academy were covered by Juan, who also gave her ten thousand dollars for allowances each month. She didn't need to work to support herself, f
"Undoubtedly, he suspects you of having an affair. Such a petty guy is not worth it."Erica wiped her mouth and said, "Just dump him and marry someone else.""Someone else?" Debra said."I think my cousin is not bad. Why don't you two give it a try?" Erica replied frankly.Debra almost spat out her bubble tea. "It won't work out.""Why not? Isn't Marion cute? He's way better than Juan!""I didn't say he's not cute.""In terms of money and power, Juan and he are evenly matched!""These don't matter." Debra shook her head. "Feelings aren't something you force.""Yikes, no hope for Marion!" Erica lamented and asked. "So, how do you feel about him? Don't you like him?""Not exactly liking. I think he is nice."Erica nodded. That meant Marion still had a chance.In her pocket, the screen of her phone flashed. Marion had been listening from the other end of the phone.Marion hung up the phone and furrowed his brow.Eating beside him, Randy asked, "Why the long face? What did Er
Inside the box lay six large, opened durians, emitting a pungent aroma."Whoa! Who the heck sent you a box of durians?" exclaimed Erica.She picked up one, sniffed it, and then nodded approvingly. "These durians are good!"Turning to the security guard, she asked, "Who sent these?""A gentleman asked me to deliver them," he replied."A gentleman?" Erica glanced at Debra and asked, "Someone else is chasing after you?"Debra shook her head, having no idea who could have sent these durians.In her previous life, she had few interactions with men, especially after marrying Juan.She wondered who the sender might be."Tsk, sending durians to a girl? What is he thinking?" Erica remarked. "Marion is different. He never does something so silly."Before Debra could respond, Marion called."Hello?""Did you get the stuff?" Marion asked in a serious tone.Debra glanced at Erica and then the durians in her hand, asking tentatively, "Are these durians from you?""Do you like them?" Ma
Erica's voice was loud. Randy scratched his head, opened the door, and grumbled, "Who's shouting at the door early in the morning? Don't you let people sleep?"Seeing Erica outside, he thought he was mistaken. He closed the door and reopened it before confirming what he saw. He stammered, "What brings you here?"Erica pinched Randy's ear and said, "Is this how you teach Marion how to pursue a girl? You know what? If you screw things up, I'll teach you a hard lesson.""Randy, what is going on, exactly?" Debra chimed in.She leaned against the wall and looked at him with her arms crossed.Following a glance at Erica and Debra, he swallowed nervously.These two ladies made such a big fuss early in the morning, which made Randy feel helpless.He quickly led Debra and Erica into his apartment. The decor was new, indicating that he had moved in only recently."Have a seat!" Randy gestured politely for them to sit on the sofa.The dignified CEO of the Osborne Corporation was now acti