Qin Cuifen caught up to her. “Ninging, why didn’t you tell me you were back?”
Sheng Ning was forced to stop in her tracks. “I was too busy to find the time to.”
Qin Cuifen’s smile hardened for an imperceptible moment. “Where were you all this time? Were you off looking for Shen Jianguo?”
Sheng Ning suddenly whirled around and stared daggers at Qin Cuifen with unwavering calmness. “Qin Cuifen, how could you slander me like that?”
“I didn’t…” Qin Cuifen began to panic. “I just hadn’t seen you for so long and was worried about you.”
“But aren’t you slandering me by even asking such a question?” Sheng Ning demanded brusquely. “I’m just a newcomer. The union has a rule that we’re not allowed to date unless we’re of a certain rank. You know that, don’t you?”
Qin Cuifen never imagined that Sheng Ning would dare to talk to her like that, and she lost her temper. “I know that, Sheng Ning. And I tried to persuade you. You were the one who refused to listen to me and insisted on going after Shen Jianguo. Everything I’ve done so far has been for your benefit. I never expected you to accuse me like this.”
Aggrieved, tears began to stream down her cheeks.
“Qin Cuifen, you’re really good at crying. If you don’t stop, maybe we should go to the commander to sort this out?” Sheng Ning leaned forward and stared at her expressionlessly.
“Are… are you crazy?” Her fake tears had always worked in the past. How had they suddenly lost their effectiveness?
Qin Cuifen looked at Sheng Ning with a hint of fear in her eyes.
Sheng Ning stepped closer to her, and her eyes were piercing. “I’ll let bygones be bygones. But if you mention Shen Jianguo’s name to me one more time, don’t blame me for the consequences.”
Malicious hatred flashed across Qin Cuifen’s eyes. She never expected Sheng Ning to ever threaten her. In the future, this bimbo wouldn’t know what hit her.
“Sheng Ning, no matter how badly you treat me, I’ll never turn on you. After all, we’re close childhood friends! We grew up together!” Not only was she not going to get angry with her, but she was going to continue provoking her. Sheng Ning’s stupidity would provide the perfect backdrop to highlight her own intelligence and grace.
Most importantly, she would put up with this stupid woman as a friend for the sake of getting Shen Jianguo in the end.
During the month Sheng Ning was missing, Shen Jianguo had sought out Qin Cuifen. However, he didn’t notice her love and admiration for him at all. All his attention had been focused on finding out where Sheng Ning was.
This had infuriated Qin Cuifen to no end. While carefully putting her best foot forward in front of Shen Jianguo, she’d also spread rumors that Shen Jianguo and Sheng Ning were in an improper relationship together.
Her goal was for Sheng Ning to be universally hated and eventually dismissed.
“Since we’re close friends, could you return my silver bracelet to me?” Sheng Ning didn’t lose her temper either, and simply stared at Qin Cuifen’s wrist with a humorless smile.
“Stop teasing. This is mine.” Qin Cuifen panicked for a moment, and suddenly said with feigned urgency, “We’re going to be late! Let’s hurry.”
The both of them had dawdled for some time in the corridor, and by the time they reached the training room, everyone else was already there.
“Sheng Ning, over here!” Zhang Hongmei quietly waved her over, and Sheng Ning quickly ran over to stand beside her.
Likewise, Qin Cuifen ran over to Lu Xiaoshuang and fell into position beside her.
“Why did you come with her?” Lu Xiaoshuang asked in displeasure. “Haven’t you been hurt enough by her?”
Qin Cuifen had spent a whole month cooking up her side of the story and spreading it around. Right now, everyone was under the impression that Sheng Ning was the mastermind behind the sabotage of the performance…
…and that Qin Cuifen was the victim deserving of everyone’s sympathy.
“Team Leader, we grew up together. We’re friends. I’m not going to hold it against her,” Qin Cuifen said abashedly.
“Wow. You’re a really good person.” Approval was evident in Lu Xiaoshuang’s eyes.