Everyone in the interview room watched Jiang Linyuan step forward. No one said a word; their gazes shifted back and forth between him and Jiang Zeyun.
They looked like a bunch of spectators enjoying the drama.
"What do you mean by that, Jiang Linyuan?"
Jiang Zeyun's brow furrowed even more, and his voice dropped low.
"Heh."
Jiang Linyuan gave Jiang Zeyun a cheerful glance and launched right into it:
"Are you Wang Yun's dog? The guy himself hasn't even said anything, and you're already jumping in?"
At those words, Jiang Zeyun's face instantly darkened, as if it could drip water.
"If you're going to play favorites, then just play favorites. Don't pretend you're doing it for everyone's sake. Don't make your dad laugh."
Jiang Linyuan had hit the nail on the head, ripping away the flimsy moral cover.
This world was one giant folder of porn—some censored, some uncensored.
When it came to someone like Jiang Zeyun, who'd treat any gathering as a family reunion, Jiang Linyuan naturally had no moral qualms.
"What kind of thing is that to say? Do you have any awareness of your responsibilities as a Student Union member?"
Wang Yun had already been unhappy with Jiang Linyuan. Now that he had a chance to pounce, he naturally wouldn't let up. He glared and shouted.
"I almost forgot about you."
Jiang Linyuan turned to Wang Yun and raised an eyebrow.
"At first, I thought you were a rabid dog protecting its owner. Now I see you're protecting your food."
"After all, a piece of dog shit like you is pretty rare."
"Pfft."
Lin Yilin couldn't help laughing at that. Her brows lifted, and the bright light in her eyes stood out against their earlier redness.
Wang Yun and Jiang Zeyun, meanwhile, looked livid.
"That senior is so bold and handsome..."
"What kind of person is this Student Union vice president? Isn't he blatantly bullying a freshman?"
"This is disgusting. If the vice president acts like this, what kind of atmosphere can the whole Student Union possibly have?"
The room erupted in discussion. Hearing all those comments, Jiang Zeyun couldn't just sit there and do nothing.
"Whew. Wang Yun, go outside and talk things over with the freshman."
He turned to Wang Yun, then looked back at Jiang Linyuan.
"There. Are you satisfied now?"
"You're asking me? Do you have no sense at all?"
Jiang Linyuan said.
Jiang Zeyun was at a loss for words. He gritted his teeth, let out another breath, then turned to Lin Yilin and Zhang Juntang.
"Could you two step outside and talk? This is seriously disrupting the recruitment event."
Lin Yilin glanced furtively at Jiang Linyuan. Clearly, she wanted to know what he thought.
"Let's not just brush this under the rug."
Jiang Linyuan pointed at Wang Yun.
"Have him apologize to the freshman in front of everyone."
Lin Yilin had no intention of letting this go easily either. Since she agreed with Jiang Linyuan, she spoke up:
"A public apology isn't unreasonable."
Wang Yun looked at them, humiliated and furious. If he had to apologize in front of all these people, his reputation would be utterly ruined.
So he turned to Jiang Zeyun with a hopeful look.
"Apologize," Jiang Zeyun said impatiently.
He shouldn't have helped Wang Yun in the first place. He'd gone to all that trouble for nothing and ended up covered in shit.
"I..."
Wang Yun saw that even the only person on his side was telling him to apologize. His face flushed as he met everyone's eyes. Pride took over where reason should have been. The words he'd been about to say caught in his throat, then suddenly changed course. He shouted at the top of his lungs:
"Why should I apologize?!"
Damn, that was like turning on the light when you went to the bathroom at midnight—asking for shit.
Jiang Linyuan was stunned by Wang Yun's words.
At this point, he could've just kept quiet and refused to apologize. But instead, he'd actually talked back in front of everyone.
No leg to stand on, but plenty of nerve, huh?
"What are you talking about?"
Jiang Zeyun's eyes widened too. He hadn't expected Wang Yun to be this stupid.
"Apologize to her. Now!"
"Seriously, who even is this Wang Yun? He just won't admit he was wrong."
"Disgusting. This is just disgusting."
"Apologize!"
"How can someone like that be in the Student Union?"
As the voices around him kept coming, Wang Yun's face went deathly pale, and his lips trembled.
"Is apologizing really that hard?"
Jiang Linyuan walked over to Wang Yun, lightly patted his shoulder, and lowered his voice with a chuckle.
"If you don't apologize, I'll expose the fact that you spread rumors."
Wang Yun instinctively denied it.
"What are you talking about?! I didn't even—"
"Liu Tingting told me. I have the chat logs too. Want to see them?"
Jiang Linyuan cut him off and held up his phone.
At the mention of the girl of his dreams, Wang Yun looked utterly disbelieving.
"No way! Tingting isn't like that!"
This was hilarious. You'd think the two of you were close or something.
You weren't even qualified to get into Liu Tingting's pond of admirers.
Jiang Linyuan didn't waste any more words. He opened his phone and showed Wang Yun the chat logs.
Wang Yun's eyes widened. He stared at the messages on the screen without even blinking.
The screen's white glow seemed even more dazzling than the huge swathes of green light on his WeChat, sent to Liu Tingting.
After a long while, he looked away, unable to bear seeing any more. He seemed completely despondent.
What the hell are you moping about?
Jiang Linyuan patted his face and pointed at Lin Yilin.
"Go apologize. Loudly."
Only then did Wang Yun come out of his one-sided heartbreak. His expression twisted as though he'd wrestled with himself.
Before long, he stood in front of Lin Yilin, bent at a ninety-degree angle, and shouted with all his might:
"I'm sorry!"
Lin Yilin jumped at the sudden outburst.
From where she stood, she'd seen Jiang Linyuan whisper something into Wang Yun's ear. Wang Yun's face had then changed like a color wheel, going white, purple, then red.
Before she could even process what was happening, Wang Yun was standing in front of her, apologizing.
"Mm, okay."
Lin Yilin nodded and accepted Wang Yun's apology absentmindedly.
She might not have even realized it herself, but ever since Jiang Linyuan had stepped forward, her eyes had stayed fixed on him.
"Yilin?"
At that moment, Zhang Juntang, who hadn't said a word, tugged at Lin Yilin's sleeve and called to her softly.
"Sorry for getting you into trouble."
Lin Yilin came back to herself, looked at Zhang Juntang, and smiled as she hooked her arm around hers and rubbed her cheek against it.
"What are you talking about? That guy was the one with the problem."
"Let's continue recruiting. Wang Yun, go back and get some rest."
Seeing that things were more or less settled, Jiang Zeyun cleared his throat and said.
But just then, the classroom door suddenly swung open.
Two people came in. One wore a security uniform and belonged to the school's security department. Jiang Linyuan didn't know him well, but he certainly knew the other person.
Wasn't that their academic counselor?
"Jiang Linyuan, Wang Yun, come over here for a moment. I need to talk to you about something."
The counselor waved to the two of them.
Jiang Linyuan raised an eyebrow and glanced at Wang Yun. He looked just as confused.
"Counselor, what's up?"
Jiang Linyuan hurried over with a cheeky grin and greeted him.
The counselor looked at him and sighed helplessly.
"It doesn't have much to do with you, but it does have a little to do with you."
What was with all the cryptic talk?
Before you continue