When Wang Qiqi encountered this kind of problem, how could Zhu Lina, the party concerned, not be questioned? However, it was only after a classmate with whom she had a decent relationship spoke to her that Zhu Lina realized why so many people were staring at her along the way, and with such strange looks.

Although she knew why those looks were so peculiar, Zhu Lina would rather endure their strange gazes while walking across campus than be in her current state. She sighed, "Regarding this Deng Zhi you all speak of, I genuinely know nothing about him. I truly don't understand how I got entangled with him. Does merely speaking a few sentences to him constitute a relationship? In that case, I suggest that those of you with time on your hands should thoroughly investigate how many girls Deng Zhi speaks to on campus, and then analyze who the true object of his cheating is based on the content and volume of those conversations."

Shi Man also wore a look of utter dismay. Just a few days ago, everyone had been laughing at someone else's predicament, dissecting the latest gossip; who would have thought that so soon, this very gossip would involve someone so close to them, with their own good friend becoming a protagonist in the scandal? Regarding the source of this news, Shi Man suspected it was either Deng Zhi or Gong Yiying. The former likely intended to use this topic to smear Nana so he could find an opportunity, while the latter needed a chance to clear her own name, as the person who cheats later often receives more forgiveness. Shi Man could understand their motives, but the problem was getting dragged into it herself. "There is so much news these days. If we go by what this news says, coupled with the time Deng Zhi first came to ask Nana for help, it's only been about two months, and one of those months was the winter break. How could any kind of deep feeling develop? I truly can't understand why people shift the focus without choosing a more suitable target."

The people in the class had all witnessed the interactions between Deng Zhi and Zhu Lina to varying degrees. Every time, it was Deng Zhi seeking out Zhu Lina, and her response was invariably an impatient expression. "Exactly. I told you those people are being completely unreasonable. How could they talk such nonsense?"

"Right, why would Zhu Lina even look twice at someone who already has a girlfriend?" A certain admirer of Zhu Lina raised his voice, "Does he think forcing Zhu Lina to admit something will somehow make her accept him? He must think highly of himself to believe he can use this rumor to get her to agree to him! What a pipe dream!"

"Yes, yes. We cannot let his malicious scheme succeed."

Once someone proposed this so-called conspiracy theory, it immediately gained significant support from many in the class.

"Qiqi, you have no idea. I never imagined our Nana had such good standing in the class. I was worried about how to navigate this, and I barely brought up the topic before they automatically started brainstorming ways to help you, even saying they would investigate Deng Zhi's movements from the past few months."

Shi Man felt a surge of excitement inside, knowing that handling this situation was due to her quick wit and sharp reaction.

"Absolutely, absolutely. We have to thank you, Manman."

Although Zhu Lina maintained an outward demeanor at school suggesting she was above the scandal, that she wouldn't bother facing it or clarifying anything, she was actually quite panicked internally. It was such a relief that Manman managed to divert the topic. She hadn't expected so many classmates to rally behind her. Of course, a major factor was that Zhu Lina usually treated Deng Zhi coldly; otherwise, it would have been impossible to explain away, even if she had the words.

"I just told them to focus on investigating when Gong Yiying cheated—that would be much more interesting," Wang Qiqi recounted how she had handled the curious inquiries in class that day.

"I'm genuinely curious if they'll find out anything. But with so many people, their combined strength should yield results."

"I'm betting on October," Shi Man stated with certainty. "It couldn't have been later than the end of November at the latest."

Shi Man thought to herself that if Gong Yiying hadn't cheated around that time, she wouldn't have allowed Deng Zhi to pursue Zhu Lina. Previously, no matter how Deng Zhi treated Gong Yiying, she always appeared very obedient, seemingly devoted heart and soul. Her change in attitude must stem from having someone else on the outside.

Wang Qiqi nodded. "Yeah. We originally didn't intend to bring it up. But alas, those people are just too dense; they didn't think of that point." Wang Qiqi sounded genuinely disappointed. That was the most anticipated aspect of the whole affair.

What followed was a period of unusual quiet, giving the distinct impression of the calm before a major storm. Wang Qiqi and Shi Man were highly anticipating how things would unfold, though they had no real measure of how much information the others had gathered. What they did know was that the narrative suggesting Zhu Lina was the primary cause of Gong Yiying's infidelity had not resurfaced. "Those people are really letting us down," Wang Qiqi grumbled.

Wang Qiqi carried the freshly cooked dishes to the dining table, addressing Han Tao and Dai Lijun. "By the way, what about your woman? Why aren't you two going on a date?" Wang Qiqi had only expected Han Tao to drop by for a meal and had prepared enough for four people (with an extra portion saved for a late-night snack). She hadn't anticipated Han Tao bringing along a hanger-on.

Dai Lijun grinned as he helped bring dishes from the kitchen. "She has something going on at school today."

"Oh, Manman, dinner's ready! Stop fussing with your Lao Feng," Wang Qiqi called toward Shi Man’s room, seeing that all the food was served. Honestly, they had been huddled together intimately at lunch, and now they were on a long phone call again. Young love was certainly ** that way. Comrade Wang Qiqi completely overlooked the fact that she and Shi Man were the same age, and Feng Xuanxiang was older than her own man, Han Tao.

Shi Man responded from her room, "Qiqi, is there any food left over? I need to take some to Feng Xuanxiang later."

The food was already a bit scarce, and now there was an additional delivery order. "No, if you want to feed your man, you should make him a heartfelt lunch box yourself; that shows real sincerity."

Making it herself? Shi Man was certainly tempted by Wang Qiqi's suggestion, but the problem was, "I don't know how to cook. Besides, my cooking isn't nearly as good as yours." Shi Man was more worried that if her food tasted bad, she might leave Feng Xuanxiang hungry, or worse, give him an upset stomach. The moment Shi Man imagined her man suffering digestive issues because of her cooking, her expression changed. "Qiqi, sweet Qiqi, please make something for me? You know my skills; you wouldn't want our cash cow to get sick, would you?"

Wang Qiqi looked at Shi Man's pitiful expression and almost hardened her heart against helping. She couldn't keep cooking for them forever, especially since Shi Man was about to start a family and planned to go to the US to look after her man. But given her current situation, when would she ever learn to truly care for Feng Xuanxiang? "This time will be an exception. Once your man leaves, you need to seriously learn how to cook. Otherwise, I truly worry that when you get there, your man will be stuck eating nothing but hamburgers."

Even if Feng Xuanxiang could cook, would he have the time when he got there? Not to mention how high Shi Man's parents' standards were for a son-in-law. He was a self-driven man; if he spent excessive time cooking, it might be fine once or twice, but too often, wouldn't it bother him? "Exactly. Look at Han Tao; even though he can cook, isn't Qiqi still cooking often?" Dai Lijun looked up and stated very seriously, "You can call me old-fashioned, but as your friend and older brother figure, I'll tell you as a man: despite all the talk about gender equality outside, women's status is still generally lower than men's. As a man, you still hope to come home to a warm meal waiting for you, not to be burdened with washing vegetables and cooking."

Although Shi Man outwardly scoffed at Dai Lijun's words and seemed not to take them in, she had definitely heard them. "Got it, got it. I shouldn't have discussed this with you old fogeys." Shi Man knew they were only saying these chauvinistic things because they considered her a friend.

"Don't just know it; start learning to cook. Feng Xuanxiang is a good guy. By the way, has Zhu Lina been feeling any better recently?" Although Dai Lijun's relationship with classmates was mediocre, and he rarely paid attention to explosive news, this incident had blown up, and since Zhu Lina was one of the subjects of the rumor, he had inquired a little, but he felt awkward asking Nana about her mood directly.

"Much better, just a bit disgusted, really. I didn't expect this to blow up like this."

Shi Man almost teased Dai Lijun about suddenly taking an interest in gossip—he hadn't mentioned a word when the rumors first surfaced, and he hadn't shown any signs of being affected. The fact that he cared now struck Shi Man as odd.

Wang Qiqi listened to Shi Man and Dai Lijun discussing the event and the various rumors. She secretly chuckled to herself; Manman seemed to have found a kindred spirit, her mouth moving nonstop, completely failing to notice that Dai Lijun had stopped talking much, only offering occasional 'uh-huhs.' Han Tao, on the other hand, was keeping his head down and eating steadily, but the shaking of his shoulders clearly indicated he was stifling laughter.

Wang Qiqi quickly finished her meal and stood up, patting a certain person's thigh to remind him to behave. Manman was on a roll right now; if she suddenly stopped talking and needed a break, such an obvious action would immediately be noticed by Han Tao, which would be disastrous.

Han Tao found the whole exchange quite amusing, especially the helpless and regretful expression Dai Lijun kept throwing out; Han Tao thought that was particularly entertaining.

Wang Qiqi, still in the kitchen, could hear Shi Man's incessant chatter. She really wanted to slap her forehead. She truly should invite the people at school who called Shi Man an ice queen to witness what an ice queen really was—how could an ice queen be so talkative? She sounded exactly like a nagging old woman.

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