Frankly, Shen Chuchu was a nobody during those four years at university. She was very beautiful but had never received the treatment reserved for beauties. The reason was  Shen Chuchu had caused an uproar when she passed the university entrance exam for the Imperial Finance Department.

However, Shen Chuchu’s level was clearly not enough for a well-known university and major in the country. She even had a hard time coping with the usual exams. In the first semester, she failed four assignments out of ten. For one particular assignment, she had to seek help from her classmates and only managed to pass after two attempts.

Therefore, she spent all four years in books during university. Subjects that others could easily pass, she had to put a lot of work in order to pass. When others were dating, she was studying. Even when others were shopping, she was still studying. She had never been a bookworm in high school but became one in university. 

Naturally, Shen Chuchu extremely loathed the major she applied for that year. There was a time when everyone was hired one after another by well-known companies on the financial street, received offers from foreign countries or accepted into ivy league schools. Yet she trembled when only a small company hired her. God knows, they must have been attracted by her major and school, not because of her individual ability. In regards to financial knowledge, she knew a lot but did not know how to apply much of it. 

So from the moment, Xin Ming discovered her, she agreed without any hesitation. Afterwards, whenever others asked where she would be working, she would confidently reply: I am going to be a big star!

To put it plainly, this was actually an escape. At that time, even if it was not to become a star and someone directed her on another route, she would still choose it without any hesitation. As long as she could escape the financial circle and survive in a field then she would choose it!

Now that she had joined Diandi, Shen Chuchu had more confidence to face the current financial elites that were her former god-like classmates. However, she still had no current achievements to show so it would be better to not join in the fun. 

Unexpectedly, everyone mentioned her when she said no.

Wang Jing: I heard Shen Chuchu is now a celebrity, are you free?

Chen Can: Come? Just come. It would be a pity if the class beauty did not come.

Shen Chuchu had already muted the messages from the group chat long ago because she really did not want to make herself unhappy.  The discussion topics were familiar to her but she could not insert herself. Additionally, the distance between everyone felt bigger and bigger since graduation. 

This day, while Shen Chuchu was leg stretching in the dance room, Guo Tianyu called.

“Chuchu, do you have time to attend the class reunion this weekend?”

Shen Chuchu hesitated and replied, “I don’t think so. This week I still need to attend physique class and next month…”

Before she could finish, Guo Tianyu laughed, “Chuchu, it won’t take too much time. It’s just a meal with our classmates. There are not many classmates in the Imperial City so don’t skip out. There would not be more than ten people so let’s all meet. Also, Cheng Xun will be coming. He even asked if you would be coming and I already said you would. You must not let me tell a lie!” 

Shen Chuchu heard Cheng Xun’s name and her heart slightly fluttered. 

Cheng Xun was the dream guy in their class and even in their entire department. He was good looking, had great grades and his personality was also bossy. A proper male protagonist in a novel. Truthfully, Shen Chuchu had some feelings for him but even these faint feelings could not prevent her hatred towards studying.

Shen Chuchu thought back to her makeup exams and it was all due to Cheng Xun’s efforts that she passed and felt that she should not be too heartless.

“Then I will consider…”

Guo Tianyu quickly added as if he knew Shen Chuchu will make up an excuse, “ What is there to consider. It has been decided. I will tell Cheng Xun.” Afterwards, Guo Tianyu ended the call.

Shen Chuchu thought to herself, did you not just tell Cheng Xun I will go so why would you need to tell him?

Nevertheless, Shen Chuchu’s heart was slightly unsettled at the thought of meeting her university classmates again. That night back at the apartment, she started to pick out clothes for Saturday. Off-shoulder dress? No, a bit revealing. Red dress? No, too showy.  

On Saturday, after some back and forth, Shen Chuchu decided to wear a pair of denim shorts and a white t-shirt. She put on some light makeup and styled her hair into a ponytail. The look was very refreshing. She was usually a nobody in class so there was no need to be too eye-catching.   

Wang Qian looked at Shen Chuchu and praised, “Boss, you look so young like this. Like a high school student.”

Shen Chuchu was slightly nervous and asked, “Does it look good?”

Wang Qian nodded, “Of course, it looks really good.”

At this, Shen Chuchu relaxed.

Shen Chuchu rode a taxi to the meeting place and saw that Guo Tianyu was already waiting in the hall. 

Guo Tianyu’s eyes sparkled the moment he saw Shen Chuchu and walked forward, “Chuchu, you really are getting more and more beautiful. No wonder you are our class beauty.”

Shen Chuchu did not know how to continue this conversation.

Guo Tianyu seemed to see Shen Chuchu’s awkwardness and laughed, “Quickly go up. Some people have already arrived but we are still missing two so I will wait for them a bit longer.”

Shen Chuchu nodded and silently went upstairs.

The door was pushed open and the noise inside quietened down instantly. Those who were talking big also shut their mouths. Shen Chuchu faced towards the cold gazes and her heart somehow felt inexplicitly cold. 

The first person who spoke was female. Shen Chuchu remembered her, she was called Wang Jing and was pretty popular in class. 

“Ah, our big star has come. Quickly come here and sit beside me. It is just us two females here. The others did not come.”

Others heard this and began to greet her one after the other, “Long time no see, our class beauty is more and more beautiful now.”

Someone also said, “We’ve not seen each other in a long time but I can see you every day.”

Shen Chuchu heard this just as she sat down and curiously looked at the man who spoke. Truthfully, there were only eighteen classmates in total but there were few that Shen Chuchu could remember by name. In her heart, they were all known by one name: god-like classmates.

However, she could not recall seeing this classmate daily.

The individual saw everyone look over and laughed, “But the person I saw was not real, it was on the screen. Our company office is right opposite the central departmental store and there is an LED screen there. There was a time when a jewellery advertisement was showing every day, the one that Shen Chuchu endorsed.

The majority here did not follow media news and have only heard of the actors who frequently appear in films or whom everyone are familiar with. Very few of them would even be able to recall names.

Therefore, they did not know whether Shen Chuchu was popular or not, currently trending or what her status is in the entertainment circle. They have only heard she was in a jewellery advertisement and thought she was pretty amazing.

Wang Jing, in particular, smiled when she heard this and said, “Really? Chuchu you are so amazing. When I go and buy it, I will definitely tell people that it was my classmate.”

“That is for certain, I tell my colleagues every day that it was my classmate. My colleagues are all so jealous that I have such a beautiful classmate that is about to become popular.”

Shen Chuchu’s cheeks blushed slightly red when she heard the praises from her god-like classmates. She would have never expected that they would praise her because in her eyes, there was a great distance between them. 

She quickly and humbly replied, “Not at all. It’s alright, not that amazing. I am only a newbie so I don’t have any activities yet.”

Someone then inappropriately said, “Haha, it’s just an actor.”

As soon as these words came out, the room instantly became quiet again.

Shen Chuchu’s smile stiffened on her face. She knew she would be humiliated if she came today. This person had already humiliated her once before graduation and now again. She really could not figure out why Cheng Xun targeted her. During their first and second year, he had given her special treatment in assisting her makeup exams but out of nowhere, he started to coldly scowl at her from third year onwards.

Shame that she listened to Guo Tianyu’s words yesterday and was even a bit startled to hear he had asked for her.

Some people did not agree with what Cheng Xun said but they did not say anything. It was Wang Jing who saw Shen Chuchu’s unsightly facial expression and hurriedly said, “What brand is the jewellery. I will buy it another day and try it out.”

Shen Chuchu heard Wang Jing’s voice and gratefully glanced at her, “It’s a piece of jewellery belonging to the Han Group, called Earrings to Wait For.”

Once the Han Group was mentioned, everyone began to speak again. As they talked, the conversation went off-topic and it turned to the Han Group’s stocks and futures contracts etc. However, these things only brought Shen Chuchu back to those dark and painful student years. 

*TL-note: A futures contract is a legal agreement to buy or sell a particular commodity or asset at a predetermined price at a specified time in the future.

After this meal, Shen Chuchu felt both dizzy and pain starting in her stomach.

Those questions regarding stocks and futures contracts made her heart race as if the mountain that pressed on her those four years pushed down on her again. She decided to never attend a reunion like this again. 

Unable to add anything to the conversation, Shen Chuchu sat there and looked at her classmate’s marriage systems. Since she can only check out a few dozen each day, Shen Chuchu only picked out a few whom she was familiar with. 

The first system she looked at was Cheng Xun who had treated her badly. Shen Chuchu lost interest when she saw that Cheng Xun was already with his future wife and they would be married after three years. 

She then looked at Wang Jing who was beside her. 

Wang Jing’s marriage was a bit bumpy. She has two marriages in total and the first one could be considered a flash marriage. They met in May, married in August then divorced in October. The divorce reason was that her husband met his first girlfriend again.

Shen Chuchu looked at the marriage date on the system and was surprised to see that they were only three days away from her first marriage date.

Chapter 28 | Index | Chapter 30