Jiang Linyuan saw Wang Yun acting guilty and chuckled.
No rush. Let the bullets fly for a while.
Wang Yun knew perfectly well that the post he'd made on the campus confession wall was completely fabricated.
But he thought no one would know he was the one who'd posted it. Spreading rumors was practically free; behind a screen, all you needed was a story and a keyboard.
He'd originally just wanted to annoy Jiang Linyuan, but he hadn't expected the post to draw so much attention.
Wang Yun stole a glance at Jiang Linyuan, who was smiling. He felt a little uneasy, quickly looked away, and reassured himself.
It's fine. I only told Tingting about this. There's no way he could know. No way.
Jiang Linyuan watched Wang Yun squirm, grinning as he enjoyed seeing him so anxious.
Hey, I know you did it, but I'm not going to say it out loud. I'm just going to mess with you.
Before long, it was time for recruitment interviews, and a flood of students poured into the classroom.
After all, the Student Union was a university-level organization, and it offered quite a few benefits.
On the surface, members earned credits toward their comprehensive evaluation, which could help with graduate-school recommendations and scholarships.
As for the less obvious benefits, those depended on the individual: a broad network of contacts, access to information ahead of everyone else... It was up to you to make the most of them.
Recruitment soon got underway, and people came and went.
"Hey, junior. Which department of the Student Union are you interested in joining? Fill out this form first. Here, the pen's right here. If there's anything you don't understand, just ask me."
"Ah, uh, okay."
The freshman standing in front of Jiang Linyuan stared at his face, momentarily dazed. She hurriedly filled out the form, then gathered her courage and asked:
"Senior, could I add you on WeChat?"
"Sorry, no."
Jiang Linyuan turned her down flat. The girl he'd been interviewing looked crestfallen and awkward, clearly not expecting such a direct rejection.
"When it comes to adding each other on WeChat, it's better to let the guy make the first move, right?"
Looking at the girl, Jiang Linyuan smiled and said:
"Junior, could I get the chance to add you on WeChat?"
Her mood immediately brightened. Blushing, she added him on WeChat, then skipped out of the room.
"Tsk, tsk. Good thing Minister Shen isn't here. Otherwise, she'd make you pay for that."
The moment the girl left, a young man sat down beside Jiang Linyuan and greeted him familiarly.
"Hah. You think some nobody like you could drive a wedge between me and the department head?"
Jiang Linyuan gave him a little bee elbow strike.
"You two really need someone else to drive a wedge between you?"
He'd taken an elbow to the ribs, but that didn't stop him from running his mouth.
The guy's name was Zhang Shuo, Jiang Linyuan's childhood friend and the Academic Department's head. The two had been stuck with each other from elementary school all the way through college.
When you were in school, there was always a textbook example of a science whiz in your class.
Zhang Shuo was one: a buzz cut, a slender build, a piercing gaze, and square glasses. He looked like he'd stepped right off an answer key.
He was the sort of guy everyone would follow without hesitation if he picked C on ten multiple-choice questions in a row.
And he really was brilliant. A computer science major, he'd racked up medals across the board—Innovation Project, Challenge Cup, ACM... His GPA was rock-solid, too.
Unfortunately, he had the classic science-guy problem: he was hopelessly dense around women.
In high school, a girl liked him and used studying as an excuse to chat with him. A year went by.
Their relationship hadn't made any progress, but the girl's grades had soared.
Whenever he brought it up later, he'd lament with deep regret:
"Damn! She was using me as a free tutor! She didn't even pay!"
Anyway, although Zhang Shuo was dense around women, that was a good thing too. At least Jiang Linyuan didn't have to worry about him making a move on his girlfriend.
Zhang Shuo glanced toward the direction the girl who'd just added Jiang Linyuan on WeChat had gone, sounding envious.
"If only I could be like you."
Jiang Linyuan spoke earnestly.
"Shuo, you're different from everyone else. Love is to you what a fish is to a bicycle."
Zhang Shuo answered without thinking:
"What does a fish have to do with a bicycle?"
"Nothing."
Jiang Linyuan said:
"Just like love has nothing to do with you."
Zhang Shuo flew into a rage—and got himself even angrier.
As the two of them talked, a sharp, irritated voice suddenly rang out.
"You're asking questions like that right off the bat? Don't you know how to greet your seniors? Are freshmen really this rude now?"
Jiang Linyuan looked toward the voice.
Whose Cherry Bomb is this? It explodes at the slightest touch.
Oh, it's that jerk Wang Yun. Never mind, then.
"What do you mean, rude? Juntang didn't recognize the MBTI on this form, so she asked you about it. What's wrong with that?"
A girl with an angry expression shot back at Wang Yun. Beside her stood another girl with her head bowed.
The magical Binary Sister and the gullible—no, innocent—junior who could be tricked into buying a pen.
Jiang Linyuan looked at the two girls arguing with Wang Yun. One was Zhang Juntang, who'd helped him carry his luggage before; the other was Lin Yilin, who'd had a chuunibyou outburst at the elevator.
"You don't even know what it means, and you still came to apply? Hah. Freshmen like you are such a pain."
Wang Yun looked at them sidelong and spoke in a snide, sarcastic tone.
"Is that how a senior should act?"
"It's 'senpai.' And if you don't like it, you can walk right out. I'm begging you."
The argument quickly attracted everyone's attention. Most of the freshmen there to interview looked confused, while the Student Union members frowned.
"What's going on?"
At that moment, Jiang Zeyun, the Student Union vice chair, came over and asked in a grave voice.
"I asked what the MBTI on this form meant, and he acted like this. Is this how Star University's Student Union treats freshmen?"
Lin Yilin said furiously:
"Besides, why do we have to fill in something like this to apply to the Student Union?"
"You have a problem with filling out a form now?"
Wang Yun said dismissively.
Jiang Zeyun furrowed his brows and looked at Lin Yilin.
"We're conducting interviews here. Please don't disturb everyone else. Could you step outside first?"
His words practically branded Lin Yilin as a troublemaker.
Lin Yilin froze, then angrily asked:
"You don't do anything about his attitude, but you blame me, a freshman? Are you covering for him?"
"I'm not blaming you!"
Jiang Zeyun raised his voice, glanced at the growing number of onlookers, and continued:
"Whatever happened, we're conducting interviews here. Don't disrupt everyone else."
"Fine, then let him come outside with us, and we can talk it out."
Lin Yilin pointed at Wang Yun and spoke crisply.
"No. He still has to interview other students. Stop making trouble."
Jiang Zeyun said in a grave voice.
Lin Yilin's eyes widened in disbelief.
The Student Union members knew exactly what Wang Yun was like, so they could guess what had happened. But they pretended not to notice. It was better not to make trouble.
And with even the vice chair siding with Wang Yun, they had no reason to step in for a freshman they didn't know.
Lin Yilin looked around. Everyone avoided her gaze, and practically no one spoke up for her. Her heart sank.
She gritted her teeth, her eyes reddening, and prepared to leave.
She felt so wronged. So utterly wronged.
Jiang Linyuan shook his head.
Jiang Zeyun sounded righteous, talking about not disturbing everyone else, but really, he was just using moral pressure to make Binary Sister swallow her grievance.
He wanted her to take the loss in silence.
What a piece of crap for a vice chair. He hadn't even learned how to treat people, yet he was already putting on the airs of an official.
As one general had said, "The Student Union must have students in it!"
"What trouble? I think this is great. Freshmen don't know much about our Student Union yet, so why not let them get to know us? They can see how we handle things."
Jiang Linyuan stood up and strolled over to Lin Yilin.
"Junior, why did you have to go get interviewed by this guy named Wang Yun?"
He paused, then raised his voice:
"You don't know? Wang Yun's life is so miserable that he takes the opportunity to bully freshmen whenever he can."
"Don't take it personally, junior. Just think of him as a patient."
As Jiang Linyuan spoke, he watched Lin Yilin freeze, then lowered his voice and chuckled:
"Obliviate. Don't waste your time getting mad at a Dementor, junior."
Before you continue