Han Siyang was baffled. “If Jiang Miao is friends with Han Shengnan, then shouldn’t Jiang Miao avoid liking the same person Han Shengnan likes?”
“And also, Yue Mingyuan is already married to Zhiqiu. So how can Han Shengnan and Jiang Miao still be carrying a torch for him?”
There were just too many issues here — she didn’t even know where to begin.
“Siyang, that’s how a normal person would think. But neither Han Shengnan nor Jiang Miao are normal.”
Fan Xue curled her lip. “Jiang Miao is pretty straightforward — you should be able to tell what kind of person she is just by looking at her.”
“As for Han Shengnan… I don’t even know how to put it. All I can say is, she and I don’t get along.”
Han Siyang and Fan Xue had been talking for quite a while when they noticed Ye Zhiqiu quietly focused on her meal off to the side. Han Siyang couldn’t help but ask, “Zhiqiu, don’t you have anything to say?”
“Other people’s mouths are on their own faces. I can’t control what they want to say.”
Han Siyang and Fan Xue nodded in agreement. “True.”
“There’s really no point wasting energy on people like that. Might as well go back and catch a nap instead.”
Fan Xue wrapped her arms around Han Siyang. “Siyang, can I come sleep with you later? Let me soak up some of that electric heater warmth.”
Han Siyang rolled her eyes. “Like you don’t sleep with me every single day anyway.”
Fan Xue wasn’t the type to suffer needlessly when she didn’t have to. Since Ye Zhiqiu had an electric heater, why would she go back to her own dorm and freeze? So lately, she’d been squeezing in with Han Siyang every night.
She’d heard that after the next round of eliminations, they’d be reassigning dorms. When that happened, she planned to slip a little “gift” to the lady in charge of dorm assignments and beg her to put her in the same room as Ye Zhiqiu and Han Siyang.
Even if she couldn’t room with both of them, she at least wanted to get away from Jiang Miao and Wen Shengnan. Just hearing their voices now made her irritable. Jiang Miao was both loud and unpleasant — the moment she opened her mouth, Fan Xue felt the urge to snap back at her.
And Wen Shengnan was all fake sweetness and snide remarks, which grated on her nerves like nothing else.
“Siyang, have I ever told you that you’re absolutely amazing?”
Fan Xue rubbed her cheek against Han Siyang’s shoulder. “If you were a guy, I’d totally want to marry you.”
“Oh? What about your dear Brother Li?” Han Siyang teased. “If you’re really over him, I could set you up with someone.”
Fan Xue blinked. “Are you serious?”
“Of course I’m serious.”
Han Siyang grinned. “I was thinking of introducing you to my cousin.”
“Wait, hold on!”
Fan Xue threw up a hand and leaned back. “Didn’t you say your brother’s already married? Last time you mentioned getting a photo of Yaya to show your sister-in-law.”
Han Siyang waved dismissively. “That’s my actual brother. I also have older cousins on my dad’s side and my mom’s side.”
“Besides, my real brother is kind of ugly. But my cousins are all really handsome — especially my second cousin on my mom’s side. He’s super good-looking. Not quite as handsome as Zhiqiu’s husband, but just a tiny bit shy of that.”
Fan Xue’s eyes lit up. “Got a photo?”
“If he’s really only a little less handsome than Yue Mingyuan, I might actually consider it.”
“Fan Xue, are you for real?”
Han Siyang’s expression turned serious. “If you mean it, I’ll get in touch with my second cousin for you.”
“First, give me a rough idea of his stats — how old is he, what does he do?”
Fan Xue said, “If it’s a good match, I’m genuinely open to it.”
“Han Li doesn’t like me, and now he’s got someone he does like. No matter how thick-skinned I am, I have to back off.”
Fan Xue gave a bitter smile. “I liked him for so long, and he still couldn’t feel the same. I guess it’s just not meant to be.”
“I can’t hang my whole life on one person who doesn’t want me back.”
“Fan Xue, I’m so glad you see it that way. I wanted to say this to you before, but I was afraid it’d upset you.”
Han Siyang knew that behind Fan Xue’s tough exterior, she was actually quite sensitive. When she’d heard her talk about all this the other day, her heart had really ached for her.
“I’m not someone who can’t tell good advice from bad. If you’re right, of course I’ll listen.”
“And you’re not the only one who’s told me to let go.”
Everyone around her could see how she felt about Han Li — except Han Li himself. She’d thought he genuinely didn’t notice, so she’d mustered up the courage to confess. Only then did she realize: he did know. He just didn’t like her back, and had been pretending not to notice out of consideration for her pride.
Turns out she was the fool all along.
Coming here for advanced training was her way of forcing herself to move on.
And she wasn’t the type to drag things out. If she said she was letting go, she meant it.
There were plenty of good men in the world. And even if she never found the right one, she could still live a perfectly good life on her own.
That afternoon, as usual, they practiced basic technique combinations.
Word was that after this round ended, the remaining dancers would finally start working on the ballet itself. Based on each person’s strengths, roles would be assigned.
This period was meant to evaluate not just their performance, but also their temperament.
Tang Xuejun and the other instructors were still narrowing down their choices.
“Professor, I have something to say.”
Just as Tang Xuejun walked in and was about to announce the start of training, Jiang Miao raised her hand and stood up, calling out loudly.
“What is it?”
“I want to know why Ye Zhiqiu hasn’t been punished for using an electric heater without permission?”
A few others chimed in one after another: “Yeah, why does she get to use one while the rest of us have to freeze?”
“Exactly! It’s so unfair.”
“I know it’s her own, but I heard that thing eats up a ton of electricity.”
Once the murmurs died down, Tang Xuejun scanned each of the girls who’d spoken, finally letting her gaze settle on Jiang Miao.
She could tell Jiang Miao was the ringleader — the others were just adding noise.
“The electric heater Ye Zhiqiu uses is her own. She informed us instructors beforehand, and she proactively paid a hundred yuan toward the electricity bill. After she leaves, we’ll refund her the difference based on actual usage.”
“If any of you want to use an electric heater, you can follow the same process and get approval.”
After Tang Xuejun finished, the girls exchanged glances, unsure of what to say next.
Jiang Miao glared at Ye Zhiqiu. “Professor Tang, even if Ye Zhiqiu’s using her own heater and paid for it, the rest of us are still freezing while she enjoys it every day.”
“That gives her a much better training condition than us, so naturally she scores higher. That’s still unfair.”
Tang Xuejun motioned for the instructor in charge of scoring to bring over the grade sheets.
She held them up and shook them lightly. “These are everyone’s daily scores and totals since you arrived.”
“The date Ye Zhiqiu started using the heater is recorded right here.”
“You’re welcome to come take a look for yourselves — compare your scores with hers from before she started using it.”
Tang Xuejun singled out the girls who had spoken, then handed the score sheet to the one closest to her.
“Here, start with you. One by one, read out your daily scores and Ye Zhiqiu’s. Tell us all — how many points behind her are you?”
