Chapter 2 Read Again

Cheng Zhu could now be sure that he had indeed been reborn.

He couldn't figure out why, with so many people wanting a do-over, he, who didn't want one, was chosen.

He still had over six million in that card that he hadn't had time to spend.

If it had been him right after high school graduation, he probably wouldn't have had the guts to confront Class Leader Li, who was notorious for encroaching on other people's territories.

But the him now came from many years in the future.

Back then, he was akin to a lotus that went untainted through muddy waters, naturally having no respect for the so-called warm, lovable man Li Rui.

Why had the phrase "nice guys finish after dogs" become popular again recently?

Wasn't it because someone on TikTok had commented under a girl's near-the-knuckle video saying, "Stop that, you deserve to be loved"?

And she simply replied, "Nice guys finish after dogs."

Li Rui, with his excessively caring and considerate, omnipresent attitude towards other people's girlfriends, as dumb as it gets, the highest treatment he could hope for in legends was: Standing by the door for the sound, or using the condom he bought tonight, so he gets at least some involvement.

Cheng Zhu was in a good mood; he didn't even feel like he was insulting Li Rui, he felt like he was his living Buddha, giving him a wake-up call.

And deep down, he didn't like Li Rui one bit.

When everyone had just graduated from college, Li Rui, who had landed a cushy job thanks to his family's influence, had a bit of a bureaucratic air when he spoke.

Back then, Cheng Zhu was still struggling to find his way, constantly belittled and taunted by him.

Ultimately, Li Rui just couldn't get over the fact that his childhood goddess Chen Rongrong ended up with Cheng Zhu.

However, at subsequent class reunions, Li Rui stopped showing up, or rather, he couldn't.

After some incident, he landed himself another type of cushy job, eating prison meals.

At the moment, Li Rui's face was flushed red with anger, his fingers trembling with rage.

But for some reason, when he looked into Cheng Zhu's eyes, he felt somewhat intimidated.

Cheng Zhu figured it was probably because he was a young achiever, accustomed to higher standing, radiating an aura completely unlike that of a regular high school graduate; he saw Li Rui as nothing but a child.

But in Li Rui's eyes, Cheng Zhu, for some reason, really seemed like the, you know, the epitome of worldly, like some street-smart person!

Cheng Zhu's brows were naturally arched high, the corners of his eyebrows slightly upturned, and his face chiseled with a touch of roguish handsomeness.

Add to that his tall stature, and it was easy to be mistaken about him, making people think he might be one of those school tyrants.

Since middle school, if there was a standoff between two groups of boys, just standing on one side for show seemed like a show of force, and as soon as the fight broke out, the other side, abiding by the principle of "capture the leader first," would invariably target him, beating him within an inch of life.

During his school days, he never really got to enjoy being the big shot, but he did take quite a few beatings that were meant for one.

But funny enough, that kind of guy was actually pretty popular among students; he never lacked girls who took a liking to him.

Right now, Li Xinyue simply thought Li Rui couldn't hold a candle to Cheng Zhu.

But she still stood her ground, looking visibly upset, and said, "Fine then, I'm done dealing with you from now on!"

After that, she stormed off, prompting Li Rui and Chen Rongrong to quickly follow after her.

Wang Anquan, standing next to Cheng Zhu, asked, "Brother Zhu, are you really not going after her?"

"Why would I? The next one will be even better behaved." Cheng Zhu had no such intention.

Indeed, a first love is always unforgettable.

But Li Xinyue was the type of girl who taught Cheng Zhu a life lesson.

She was the one who pursued Cheng Zhu, always clinging to him, acting extremely invested in the relationship, and repeatedly told him, "We'll be at different universities, you better not cheat on me!"

But what about in reality?

There are such girls in the world, whose emotions run hot, act recklessly when smitten, but it's not necessarily only you they are smitten by.

Just a month into university, Cheng Zhu felt the full force of what they call the silent treatment.

It was only after they broke up that he learned Li Xinyue had fallen for a senior during the fresher's welcome party.

During the cold period, Cheng Zhu tried to engage her affectionately again and again, and right after breaking up, he did everything he could to win her back.

All he got in return was, "Stop texting me, stop calling me, please leave me alone."

At that moment, Cheng Zhu was stunned, recalling how she leaned into his embrace over the summer, whispering with care yet filled with fervent hope, "Once we're in university, you won't leave me, right?"

Later on, Cheng Zhu heard that Li Xinyue didn't have it too good.

The reason was simple: her college boyfriend, the senior she liked, was super-rich.

Some locks that have been opened by golden keys get a touch of the gold dust and start to think they're made of gold themselves.

That senior had a blast dating beautiful girls in college knowing there'd be no wedding at the end, the rest didn't matter.

But when it came down to marriage, suddenly matching doors and equal social rank became the mantra.

Leaving Li Xinyue high and dry, not fitting in anywhere.

Years later, at a small high school reunion, Cheng Zhu, who had made something of himself but still unmarried, didn't even know Li Xinyue would be there.

After dinner, Li Xinyue insisted on him taking her home. Dressed in a small suit jacket and black stockings, as soon as she got in the car, she "passed out."

Cheng Zhu immediately messaged Yiyi, the company's lead anchor, and asked the high performer to "take good care" of Li Xinyue at his house.

In the end, she left in embarrassment.

"If I really think about it, I was just too naive and low-level before, with poor skills to see through others," thought Cheng Zhu.

"Li Xinyue always had someone like Li Rui around her; maybe she wasn't intentional, but she definitely had her own pond."

"That's a bit telling."

"Also, this kind of person, when pursuing someone, is intensely passionate, but once in the relationship, becomes incredibly difficult to handle. From my later experience, a part of these women are very likely to be fickle."

Wang Anquan looked at his buddy, feeling that he had changed somewhat but couldn't quite put his finger on it.

But, for a student like him, Cheng Zhu's current air of nonchalance was really kinda cool; he felt overshadowed by him.

Cheng Zhu looked at Wang Anquan, whose skin was a bit dark and still had some acne, and couldn't help but pat his shoulder, giving him a heartfelt talk, "If I'm not mistaken, you like Li Xinyue's friend, Chen Rongrong, right?"

Chen Rongrong wasn't as pretty as Li Xinyue, but she knew how to dress up, had a bit of a lisp, and was quite adept at getting along with boys.

Hearing Cheng Zhu's words, Wang Anquan hung his head slightly and said, "Brother Zhu, you see I'm not good in studies, my family's just average, Rongrong doesn't even fancy a guy like Wang Kai, let alone me."

"I'm glad you have this self-awareness," Cheng Zhu said, nodding in approval.

"Brother Zhu, can't you just comfort me?" Wang Anquan sounded exasperated.

Cheng Zhu looked at him seriously and said, "You can be poor in your studies, you don't need to make money, you don't have to be good-looking."

"You can be average, lack ambition, you can even be not smart."

Listening to this, Wang Anquan felt like what would follow would surely be some comforting words.

Cheng Zhu continued, "But I can't be!"

As soon as the words dropped, Wang Anquan was first stunned, then fuming and ready to square off in a duel.

Wang Anquan was indeed quite sturdy, thick as a bull, and pretty strong. Cheng Zhu turned on his heels and ran.

He laughed as he ran.

What he had just said was truly how he felt: You can be ordinary, but I can't be; after all, I have to take you under my wing.

If there's a bowl of rice for me to eat, there'll be one for you to wash—that's a promise from a brother.

The two of them, with one chasing the other, eventually boarded the bus home.

On the bus, Wang Anquan still couldn't help but ask, "Brother Zhu, are you really just going to break up like this, not getting back together with Li Xinyue?"

Li Xinyue was the type who threw around breakups like confetti, always threatening to end things, but would agree to get back together once soothed.

"Of course, look Anquan, I'm telling you, you can't be a doormat in the future. Some people's hearts, I don't know what they're made of, the more you lick, the harder they get," Cheng Zhu said earnestly.

It was 2014 now, and the word "doormat" hadn't become very popular yet, but Wang Anquan could roughly grasp the meaning.

He chimed in, "But in the end, doesn't it soften?"

This made Cheng Zhu instantly worry for his little buddy; not only did he want to play the doormat, he was determined to stay the course, foolishly hoping to soften her up by persisting. Wouldn't he just end up wounded by love?

Seeing Cheng Zhu's furrowed brows, Wang Anquan didn't pursue the topic and instead said, "Brother Zhu, although Li Xinyue is a bit of a princess, you've broken up and gotten back together so many times, this one shouldn't make much of a difference, right?"

Gazing out the window, Cheng Zhu said with an air of nonchalance, "Reading the same book again may give you new insights, but it won't give you a new ending."