Chapter-19
Yu Zhi — I Can Kneel
Beijing North University.
In the campus cafeteria, steam was still rising from the bowl of soy milk as Yu Zhi took big bites of her bun. Suddenly, her phone buzzed.
It was Pei Nian’an calling. Yu Zhi quickly picked up.
“Hello, Sister Pei!”
“Where are you?” Pei Nian’an’s voice came through the phone.
Mouth full of bun, Yu Zhi mumbled,
“At the cafeteria, having breakfast! Sister Pei, have you eaten? Want me to bring you something?”
“No need. When you’re done, head to the infirmary.”
Yu Zhi froze mid-bite.
Only then did she remember Gu Chengnian’s warning from yesterday: Pei Nian’an was supposed to apologize to Wen Ying today.
Yu Zhi hesitated.
“Sister Pei, are you really going to apologize to Wen Ying?”
Pei Nian’an let out a cold laugh.
“Me? Apologize to her? Not a chance.”
Then she added,
“But I can’t completely ignore Chengnian. So, I’ve decided — you’ll go apologize for me.”
Yu Zhi’s eyes widened.
“Me? Apologize for you?”
What kind of logic was that?!
In the car, Pei Nian’an fiddled impatiently with her freshly done nails.
“Yeah. Just say I’m busy, and you’re representing me. Simple.”
Then she blinked slyly and dangled the bait:
“Ten thousand yuan. Deal?”
Yu Zhi:
“Deal!”
Then she added,
“But I want cash!”
Pei Nian’an sighed.
“First you want cash, then WeChat… You’re so annoying.”
Yu Zhi grinned.
“Sister Pei, you’re the best!!!”
Pei Nian’an sighed again.
“Fine, I’ll give it to you tomorrow.”
Yu Zhi:
“Mmm okay~ Love you, Sister Pei!”
【Ding! Congratulations, Host — you’ve earned +5 villain favor points!】
Yu Zhi’s eyes sparkled. She asked the system:
“So that’s sixteen points total now, right?”
The system replied cheerfully:
【That’s right! Keep it up!】
After breakfast, Yu Zhi strolled leisurely toward the infirmary.
Outside the infirmary, Gu Chengnian stood in a crisp white shirt, beside Wen Ying, who was in a white gauze dress with a bandage wrapped around her head. From a distance, they actually looked like quite the couple.
At that moment, Gu Chengnian was speaking gently:
“Don’t worry. I’ve already talked to Pei Nian’an. She’ll definitely come to apologize today.”
Wen Ying lowered her head, fingers twisting the hem of her hospital gown.
“It’s okay… She doesn’t have to. I don’t care that much…”
“Of course it matters!” Gu Chengnian said righteously.
“She hurt you. She must apologize.”
Wen Ying nodded softly and said,
“Thank you, Chengnian-senior.”
Just then, Yu Zhi approached. Wen Ying looked up, surprised.
“Yu Zhi? What are you doing here? Are you feeling unwell?”
Gu Chengnian turned around at the sound of her voice — and his expression immediately hardened.
“What are you doing here? Where’s Pei Nian’an?”
Yu Zhi smiled.
“No idea.”
Then, looking straight at Wen Ying, she suddenly raised her voice:
“I’M SORRY, WEN YING!!!”
The moment the words fell, Yu Zhi bent forward in a deep 90-degree bow — her black ponytail swung forward and smacked Wen Ying’s shoulder.
Students passing by all stopped in their tracks.
Wen Ying and Gu Chengnian both froze.
Yu Zhi straightened slightly and continued brightly,
“On behalf of Pei Nian’an, I offer you our most sincere apologies!”
“She shouldn’t have hit you with that book yesterday! Does your forehead still hurt? Any concussion? Should we go get a CT scan?”
Wen Ying flushed bright red, stepping back in embarrassment.
“D-don’t do this…”
Yu Zhi shook her head.
“No, no, I must! Please, just forgive her! If you don’t forgive her…”
She started to bend her knees dramatically.
“I’ll kneel down right now!”
“Don’t!” Wen Ying cried out, panicking as she tried to stop her, almost in tears.
“I forgive! I forgive, okay?!”
Instantly, Yu Zhi straightened up, smiling like nothing had happened.
“Great! Then it’s settled!”
Turning to a thunderstruck Gu Chengnian, she said,
“You heard her, right? Wen Ying said she forgave Sister Pei.”
Gu Chengnian’s face darkened with fury.
“Yu Zhi, you really are Pei Nian’an’s loyal lapdog.”
Yu Zhi beamed proudly.
“That’s right! Birds choose good trees to nest in, and the wise choose good masters! Sister Pei is beautiful, kind, and generous — who else would I follow?”
The surrounding students burst out laughing.
Gu Chengnian’s chest heaved with anger. Wen Ying tugged on his sleeve, not wanting to stay there being gawked at.
She glared at Yu Zhi, suppressing her anger.
“Yu Zhi, how did you become like this? Just… take care of yourself.”
“Don’t waste your breath,” Gu Chengnian snapped. “Let’s go.”
He led Wen Ying away.
Yu Zhi stuck her tongue out at their retreating backs, then pulled out her phone to message Pei Nian’an:
【Mission complete, Sister Pei! Wen Ying said she forgives you — I heard it myself!】
That evening, a post blew up on the Beijing North University forum.
Thread title:
[Breaking!] Spotted School Heartthrob Gu Chengnian Outside the Infirmary! Who’s That Girl Beside Him? Also — what’s this “apologizing on someone else’s behalf” thing? (Video attached)
1st comment:
Watched the video. What’s going on here? Since when is “substitute apologizing” a thing? Anyone got tea?
2nd:
OMG, the girl with the bandage is Wen Ying from the Early Childhood Education department! She’s so pure! My goddess!
3rd:
Gu Chengnian’s so handsome 😍 But who’s that girl bowing like that? She’s hilarious!
4th:
That’s Yu Zhi — also from Early Childhood Ed. She’s Pei Nian’an’s number one lackey. Yesterday Pei Nian’an threw a book at Wen Ying and made her bleed. This video’s the apology scene!
5th:
Poor girl. Must’ve been forced to apologize for her boss. No dignity at all.
6th:
Nah, you’ve got it wrong. Yu Zhi’s notorious in our department. Everyone knows her!
7th:
For context: Pei Nian’an = heiress of Pei Group, Gu Chengnian’s childhood sweetheart, that girl who played piano at last year’s opening ceremony. But she’s super arrogant, and no one likes her — except her loyal cronies, of course~
8th:
Wen Ying’s the real victim here. First she gets hit, then publicly humiliated by that lackey. That bow was totally mocking!
9th:
+1! Didn’t Yu Zhi say she’d kneel? Why didn’t she? Such fake dramatics! Wen Ying was literally crying! 😡
10th:
Latest update! Apparently all this started because Gu Chengnian promised to attend class with Pei Nian’an, but ended up sitting with Wen Ying instead. Pei Nian’an flipped out~
11th:
So it’s a love triangle? Gu Chengnian × Wen Ying × Pei Nian’an? And Yu Zhi’s just the cannon-fodder sidekick?
12th:
Correction: Yu Zhi isn’t just a sidekick — she’s a super sidekick!
13th:
LOL this is pure drama! So the current cast lineup:
👑 Evil heiress Pei Nian’an: “I’m rich.”
💮 Pure beauty Wen Ying: “I’m gentle.”
🐶 Loyal sidekick Yu Zhi: “I can kneel~”
