Chapter 23 - Soft Red Lips [Part 2]

The two spent the night in a cold war.

Shen Man got up, had breakfast, and sat in the living room to read a book.

Lin Shu slept until almost noon before getting up.

She put on fresh and sweet makeup, wore a long-sleeved button down shirt, a white skirt on the bottom, and matching white sneakers on her feet.

The hem of her shirt was tucked in, revealing her slender waist. She looked lively and cute, full of youthful energy.

Shen Man looked her up and down carefully and smiled, "Shushu, are you going out with them again today?"

"None of your business!" Lin Shu replied as she gave Shen Man a sideways glance while leaving with arrogance.

Shen Man watched her white, slender legs disappear, then withdrew her gaze and continued reading.

Her phone rang, and a message popped up.

It was from their teacher.

Shen Man put down her book and opened the message.

"Shen Man, a girl named Xu Yimeng in your class has just experienced a breakup and it seems she's not taking the news well. Can you go and comfort her? I'm out of town and can't come back now."

"Okay, I'll go right now," Shen Man immediately replies.

She had the contact information and dormitory number of Xu Yimeng in her phone.

Shen Man picked up her phone, told Aunt He that she was going out and might be back very late, and quickly searched for Xu Yimeng's information.

Then, she changes her clothes, taking only her phone with her.

As she was changing her shoes at the entrance, she saw Lin Shu's car keys in a small compartment inside a glass cabinet.

Shen Man hesitated and picked up her phone to call Lin Shu.

The first time, no one picked up.

The second time, it went directly to voicemail.

Shen Man sent a message, "Shushu, I need your car for something."

Still, there was no reply.

Shen Man put on her shoes, grabbed the car keys, and just left.

She parked the car downstairs at the girls' dorm building for their department and called a female student from their class who dormed with Xu Yimeng.

"Is Xu Yimeng in her room?" Shen Man asked.

"Yes, she put her head on her desk and cried for a long time. I tried to talk to her, but she ignored me," the girl whispered.

"Okay, thank you." Shen Man hung up the phone and entered the dorm building.

She and Lin Shu also had a dorm in the school, but they hardly ever stayed there.

Shen Man soon found Xu Yimeng's dorm room.

She knocked on the door, and a girl came over to open it.

"Class monitor, please take a look. She's not in a good mood," the girl said softly, her eyes full of concern and a little fear.

Shen Man nodded and walked into the room, surveying it.

It was a four-person dormitory, with two girls from their class and two from other classes.

Now, only the girls from their class were present.

Xu Yimeng's desk and bed were tidy, and her clothes and hair were not messy.

She was at her desk with her head buried in her crossed arms, sobbing from time to time.

Her crying wasn't loud, but it was clear that she was very upset.

Shen Man stood there for a while and gently asked, "Xu Yimeng, what happened? You can talk to me."

Xu Yimeng didn't answer, but her crying grew louder.

Shen Man stood there patiently and pulled a tissue from the tissue box at the table, handing it over, "I'm the class monitor. If you encounter any difficulties, please tell me. I'll help you."

Hearing this, Xu Yimeng raised her head, revealing her red, swollen eyes. She looked at Shen Man, then put her head back down again and cried, intermittently sobbing.

Shen Man reached out and gently patted her back, her voice even gentler, "Don't keep it all in your heart. Tell us, we will all help you."

"Really?" Xu Yimeng asked with a sob as two streaks of tears rolled down her face. Shen Man nodded earnestly.

"He wouldn't..."

With that, Xu Yimeng couldn't control herself and started sobbing.

Then, her expression relaxed a bit, and she hesitated for a moment before whispering, "He took the necklace my mother gave me and I want him to give it back."

Shen Man understood what she was saying.

That "he" should refer to her ex-boyfriend.

Xu Yimeng was from a single-parent family and her mother had passed away, so that necklace must have meant a lot to her. If she didn't get it back, she would surely be very upset.

"Where is he now? I'll help you get the necklace back," Shen Man said.

Xu Yimeng froze in disbelief, hope rising in her red eyes, "Class monitor, can you really help me?"

Shen Man's gaze was gentle as she nodded affirmatively.

Xu Yimeng gained courage in an instant and wiped her tears, saying, "He's celebrating his new girlfriend's birthday at a hotel. I just came back from there..."

When she finished speaking, she couldn't help but cry again.

"Okay, let's go there now," Shen Man says.

Xu Yimeng stood up, holding her small bag.

Shen Man glanced at her and asked, "Do you want to wash your face first?"

Xu Yimeng subconsciously touched her face and said with embarrassment, "Class monitor, can you wait for me for a moment?"

Xu Yimeng quickly fixed herself up, touched up her makeup, and smiled a bit. Seeing that she was feeling better than before, Shen Man felt slightly relieved.

After experiencing the cruel workplace and looking back at innocent campus love, one might think it's childish to go through so much trouble for just love.

However, for those involved, it's an unforgettable experience. The blow of a breakup can easily make the once blue sky lose its color, and one may lose faith in life and their future.

It was obvious that Xu Yimeng still had feelings for that guy. When innocent young girls fall in love, they may find it hard to let go, even if they know the other person is a scumbag. They are simple and pure in their love but at times, pitifully foolish.

***

Shen Man asked for the address and searched the route on her phone. Xu Yimeng was surprised to see a luxury car and asked, "Class monitor, is this your car? I've never seen you drive it to school before."

"This is Lin Shu's car," Shen Man replied.

"Lin Shu's car?!" Xu Yimeng exclaims in disbelief, hesitating to open the door of the passenger seat.

Shen Man looked at her and said, "You can sit in the back."

Xu Yimeng nods and opens the back door to get in. Shen Man starts the car and, seeing the girl's attention drawn to the car, casually asks, "Did you two break up?"

Upon hearing this, Xu Yimeng showed a look of pain and her tears unconsciously flowed out.

"Sorry, I accidentally brought up a sensitive topic," Shen Man said softly. "If you don't want to talk about it, just forget I ever asked."

Xu Yimeng wiped away her tears and remained silent for a while. Then, she began to speak about her relationship in a soft voice.

Shen Man listened carefully. According to Xu Yimeng's description, the boy was from another school and they met during a meal. He was the one who pursued her at first, and they gradually fell in love. However, he became cold and distant, gaslighting her.

Xu Yimeng was a girl who lacked love, and the boy's sweet words made her infatuated. When he asked for her necklace, she gave it to him, but he then gave it to his new girlfriend and refused to return it to her.

Despite his scummy character of "liking the new and abandoning the old", along with his gaslighting, Xu Yimeng still held hope for him. As an outsider, Shen Man couldn't fully understand the emotions of the parties involved. All she could do was help Xu Yimeng get her necklace back.

They came to a red light, so Shen Man stopped the car and stared ahead. This was a bustling commercial street with shops on both sides of the road. Various sounds mixed together, creating a lively atmosphere. The place they were going to was two hundred meters ahead.

Lin Shu is walking out of a dessert shop with an ice cream in her hand, when a flash of red went past the corner of her eyes and stopped not far ahead. She squints and suddenly realized— it was her own car! Shen Man was driving, and there was another girl who she didn't know sitting inside.

"Damn it, she's driving my car around to take girls out!" Lin Shu's face instantly turned blue with anger and she almost dropped her ice cream on the ground.

She stormed over in that direction, but before she could take two steps, the traffic light turned green and the car drove off.

Glancing at the rearview mirror, Shen Man actually saw a figure walking towards them, but she didn't pay it much attention. It wasn't until the car had driven off that she realized that figure was Lin Shu.

There was no way to turn back since it was a one-way street, so Shen Man had to continue driving forwards.

Lin Shu chased after them for dozens of meters, then stopped as she gasped for air. She waved down a car on the side of the road and quickly got in. "Follow that red car in front and don't let them get away!", she fiercely demanded through gritted teeth.

"Miss, is that your boyfriend in front of us? You look like you just caught him cheating with another girl," the driver asked with an understanding look.

"What boyfriend? Don't talk nonsense!" Lin Shu retorted angrily. The movement of her finger caused her to accidentally drop her ice cream on her shirt, staining it.

She grew even angrier, and her eyes appeared as if they were about to shoot fire at the car ahead.

Seeing her expression, the driver became more certain of his guess. "Don't worry, this road is one-way. We'll catch up soon," he said with a smile.

"We will catch up, don't let them get away," Lin Shu wipes the mess off her shirt with gritted teeth.

The driver followed the red car in front, but constantly kept a safe distance to avoid being noticed.

Shen Man stops the car and looks at the hotel's entrance.

"Is this it?" she asked.

Xu Yimeng sniffled and nodded, looking as if she was about to cry. Shen Man handed her some tissues and encouraged her, "Wipe your tears and confront them in your best possible state. Don't cry, the less you appear to care about it, the greater our chances of taking back the necklace."

Xu Yimeng held back her tears and gave her a strong nod.

Shen Man waited for her to compose herself.

Then, the two of them entered the hotel.

At this time, Lin Shu had just finished paying and got out of the car.

"Miss, those are two girls, not your boyfriend," the driver said.

Lin Shu couldn't be bothered to explain and slammed the car door shut, entering the hotel. She went to the front desk and asked for the room number Shen Man had booked.

The receptionist saw her angry demeanor and politely responded with a smile, not willing to reveal private information. Lin Shu became even more furious and arrogantly demanded, "Bring the person in charge here. My dad owns this hotel, and I'm not even allowed one person's room number?"

Hearing this, the receptionist became flustered and quickly called her manager. In just two minutes, the manager arrived and said with a flattering smile, "Miss Lin, she's new here and doesn't understand some rules. I hope you can forgive her."

"How can I help you? Would you like to book a room, or have some afternoon tea?"

Lin Shu gave the receptionist a side eye. The receptionist immediately gave her the room number where Shen Man was staying and added, "It's a private room for a birthday celebration."

"Birthday celebration?" Lin Shu frowned.

"Would you like to go there now, or after a change of clothes?", the manager asked with a smile.

Lin Shu lowered her head and glanced at the ice cream on her clothes. "Help me open a room and bring me a new shirt, I want it in white," she said.

"Okay, Miss Lin," the manager respectfully answered and personally led her to a room.

"That person just now is an intern. If Miss Lin is not satisfied, I can fire her right now," the manager carefully said.

"No need," Lin Shu answers impatiently.

The manager breathed a sigh of relief and did not bring up this matter again.

***

Shen Man pushes open the door.

Laughter mixed with singing traveled out from inside

The first person to look over was a girl with delicate makeup and wearing a beautiful dress.

She was obviously the birthday girl of this birthday party.

Around her neck was a necklace.

"That's my necklace," Xu Yimeng said softly, tears welling up in her eyes. Even though she had prepared herself mentally for this moment, seeing it in reality still hit her hard.

Shen Man gave her a comforting look and turned off the flickering lights in the room.

Soon, everyone looked over.

Someone recognized Xu Yimeng and laughed, "Look, Sister Sisi, she's back again."

Jin Sisi sneered and deliberately played with the necklace around her neck, proudly stating, "He said that I look better with it than you do." Her friends laughed and clapped.

A boy sitting in the crowd had a smug smile on his face. Jin Sisi walked over and sat on his lap, kissing him in front of everyone and coquettishly asking, "Do you think I look better with it?"

"Of course baby, you look the best. Who can compare to you?" The boy praised her, hugging her intimately around her waist.

Xu Yimeng's body went cold.

She seemed to have lost her voice, not able to muster up a single word. The mocking eyes, the proud expressions of that girl, and the disdain in the boy's eyes— it all felt like needles piercing her body. She was in pain all over, but she had no ability to fight back.

Shen Man swept her eyes around the crowd and sneered, "Why are some people so petty? They like to use hand-me-downs, second-hand goods."

Seeing the person opposite show an angry expression, Shen Man slowly continued, "I misspoke, it's not second-hand. Definitely at least a few hands though, but no one knows for sure."

Hearing this, Jin Sisi couldn't sit still and immediately stood up to angrily curse at her. Her face was twisted into an ugly expression from anger.

"Class monitor, let's go... I don't want the necklace anymore..." Xu Yimeng cries with a trembling lower lip, her delicate body looking as if it would collapse at any time.

After speaking, she covered her mouth with her hands, feeling nauseous.

"Don't be afraid, I will help you get your necklace back," Shen Man comforted her, "Wait outside for me first."

"No..." Xu Yimeng tearily shook her head, pulling Shen Man's arm, "Let's just go..."

"Want to leave?" Jin Sisi coldly laughed, "Not that easy."

A guy quickly ran over and closed the door, guarding it. Everyone else stood up with an unkind smile.

Only that one boy remained seated with an amused expression, like he was watching a show.

Shen Man furrowed her eyebrows.

Xu Yimeng cowered behind her, pleading with the boy, "I don't want the necklace anymore, let us go, please..."

"It depends on what Sisi wants," he laughed.

Jin Sisi coldly sneered, "Since you're already here, you can stay and keep my bros company."

Hearing this, the other guys laughed and surrounded the two girls.

Shen Man remained calm.

Xu Yimeng, on the other hand, was trembling so much her face turned pale as she nervously grasped Shen Man's arm.

Suddenly, someone opened the door and Shen Man heard a very familiar arrogant voice.

"Shen Man, get your butt out here!"