Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Jiang Bai was one grade ahead of me. By the time I entered the school, he was already the famous campus heartthrob.

Too many girls were chasing him, using every trick in the book.

I spent my three years of high school studying hard and losing weight, but when I finally got close to him, I found myself losing my nerve.

The turning point in my contact with Jiang Bai happened in the cafeteria, when I was begging the lady behind the counter for an extra portion of gravy.

My mother is a ruthless woman. To force me to study abroad, she cut off my financial resources.

When I first started university, I spent money like water. In less than a week, I was so broke I couldn’t even afford meat.

I hadn’t noticed Jiang Bai standing right behind me while I was ordering.

By the time I had sweet-talked the lady into giving me a serving of braised pork gravy and turned around, Jiang Bai was right there.

My face flushed bright red instantly, and I nearly crashed into him.

Jiang Bai was quick to react, steadying me with a hand, and then he asked for my WeChat.

At the time, I thought Jiang Bai must have fallen for me at first sight!

But after I added him, he sent me information for part-time jobs-milk tea shops, convenience stores… I was stunned.

From then on, I followed Jiang Bai around, working various jobs.

It was also then that I realized how difficult Jiang Bai’s life was.

Every day, aside from classes, he was working. He had no entertainment or leisure activities at all.

The moment he received his wages, he would set aside a tiny bit for living expenses and immediately use the rest to pay off debts.

He owed money to my father and to others. He kept every bill meticulously organized and even paid back interest.

As I hung around Jiang Bai, I somehow accidentally ended up becoming his girlfriend.

Thinking about it now, I still feel a bit dazed, like I won the first prize in a lottery.

I was lost in thought when Mingzhu’s shout from the video call startled me.

“Go get him!” Mingzhu said with a mischievous grin. “I’ve already prepared the equipment for you. Money Leopard, you need to radiate your leopard charm. Make him lose his mind, make him crave you so much he can’t stop.”

Mingzhu is my childhood friend. We grew up together and know everything about each other.

I hid under the covers while talking to her, clutching that lace nightgown. I gritted my teeth and said, “What if Jiang Bai doesn’t fall for it?”

We’ve been dating for half a year, but Jiang Bai has always kept things strictly proper.

I wanted to use Jiang Bai’s birthday as an excuse to go all out!

Sometimes I can sense his reaction, but he always composes himself quickly and acts as if nothing happened.

Sigh, I’m starting to doubt my own charms.

“Then he’s not a man. You’re not that little chubby girl from back then; you’re curvy in all the right places now, firmly holding the throne as the number-one innocent-sexy goddess of the Art Department!” Mingzhu continued to encourage me. “I’m sending you 200 gigabytes of ‘study material’ right now. Study them well. You must take Jiang Bai down to make these six years of devotion worth it.”

“The way you put it makes it sound like I’ve spent these six years just to sleep with Jiang Bai,” I emphasized. “This is true love! True love, get it?”

Mingzhu burst out laughing. “It’s the same thing. Only with true love is it better to toss and turn and sleep with him to your heart’s content.”

I discussed the specific plan of action with her and simulated it in my head.

Then she asked me, “Leopard, when do you plan on telling Jiang Bai who you really are?”

I froze at her question and fell silent.

If she hadn’t mentioned it, I would have almost forgotten.

To Jiang Bai, I was Jinjin-a poor student who splits every penny in half, licks the foil lid of her yogurt, and licks the plate clean after eating braised pork.
The year I started university, I insisted that my dad change my name. In the end, he changed it from Jin Qianqian to Jinjin.

When I got my new ID card, I felt like it had been changed, but at the same time, it felt like it hadn’t changed at all…

We people of the Jin Family really are money-grubbers down to our very marrow.

“Forget it, forget it. With Jiang Bai’s personality, if he found out you’d been lying to him for three years, he’d probably cough up blood from pure rage.” Before I could even respond, Mingzhu answered her own question.

“You know that, yet you still asked! You’d better keep your mouth shut for me! If Jiang Bai ever finds out about my real identity, we’re all dead!” I gritted my teeth, deciding not to dwell on the problem for now.

Jiang Bai started a video call, so I quickly hung up on Mingzhu.

“It’s almost eleven. Not asleep yet?” On the screen, Jiang Bai frowned slightly.

I only just noticed the time and murmured softly, “I can’t sleep because I miss you.”

Last month, I stayed up late so often that my period stopped coming. My roommates even suspected I was pregnant, which left me completely speechless.

Jiang Bai took me to the hospital for a check-up. When the doctor said it was just from staying up late, the look on Jiang Bai’s face… if you didn’t know better, you’d think I’d had an unplanned pregnancy and the baby wasn’t even his.

Since we got back from the hospital, he’s been checking in on me at the same time every night.

Hearing my words, Jiang Bai’s expression froze for a moment before he said softly, “Alright, go to sleep.”

“Give me a kiss first.” I acted spoiled with him, my heart racing as I looked at his damp hair.

Sigh, how can he be this handsome? And this handsome guy is actually my boyfriend!

Jiang Bai quickly glanced around his surroundings before giving the screen a quick peck.

The tips of his ears turned bright red again as he urged me, “Go to sleep. I’ll call you at seven tomorrow morning.”

I hung up and lay back on the bed, feeling utterly satisfied and savoring the moment.

My roommate, Wang Xiaoxiao, rushed into the dorm just before the deadline. Her eyes were gleaming as she pulled me up. “Babe, where did you buy this Hermès? It really let me steal the spotlight today. It totally intimidated those look-down-their-nose snobs. This high-quality knockoff looks way too real!”

Xiaoxiao met a rich second-generation guy at a mixer a while back. I don’t know how much money that jerk actually has, but he talks big enough to swallow a whale. Today, Xiaoxiao said she wanted to show off a bit, so she took my “fake” Hermès with her.

I really wanted to tell her that it was real… but I didn’t dare. I was afraid she’d tear me apart. After all, over the past three years, my roommates have helped me out plenty, never forgetting to bring me a portion of whatever they were eating.

I really didn’t mean for things to get this far! Who knew it would backfire like this!

My mom had hardened her heart and cut off my allowance for three years. Since I followed Jiang Bai around doing part-time jobs, everyone thought I was dirt poor.

“I forgot…” I urged her, “Hurry up and wash up! The lights go out in ten minutes!”

Only then did she stop pestering me. I secretly broke into a cold sweat; I always feel like if the truth ever comes out, they’re going to beat me until I bleed.

I hid under my covers to study, which led to a series of erotic dreams that night. The next day, I even had a nosebleed!

Finally, Jiang Bai’s birthday arrived. I was raring to go and made a grand vow in our WeChat group.

Me: If I can take down Jiang Bai in one fell swoop, I’m willing to let Mingzhu gain ten pounds.

Zhu Yuan Yu Run: ?? Honey, take him down with what? If you can actually pull it off, I’m willing to gain twenty pounds.

Me: …Get lost!