Chapter 55 - You Are Not Honest At All

News spread fast. Li Caiyi initially did not want to make a big deal out of this, but the information traveled from one mouth to another, and in no time at all, Li Caiyi's reputation changed from a useless girl who leeched on her siblings to a not-so-useless girl.

By the time school ended, Li Caiyi had lost count of how many people had congratulated her. So many people paid attention to her, and although it made her feel slightly overwhelmed, she also felt happy inside.

"Li Caiyi, I did not know you are great at making stories!"

"You are usually so quiet, so we did not expect you to have that skill in you."

"Hey, I actually like writing too, but I am too shy to let other people read it. Can you give me some tips and tricks?"

Her classmates were the most enthusiastic. The questions kept coming, and Li Caiyi soon lost track of who said what. Thankfully, Zhou Ya came to her rescue.

"Okay, guys! Give the girl some space, will you? I know you guys are excited, but crowding around her won't do you any good!" Zhou Ya stood in front of her with her arms outstretched. From Li Caiyi's perspective, she looked like a gallant knight.

"That's right, that's right! It's not like you guys won't see her tomorrow, so save the rest for later." Feng Nian added.

The other classmates were embarrassed and apologized to Li Caiyi and dispersed one by one. Each of them said 'See you tomorrow' to her.

Li Caiyi felt so touched because such things never once happened to her in her previous life. Her classmates were not bad people, but they were not close to her, so they usually did not pay attention to her. No one ever said 'see you tomorrow' to her aside from Zhou Ya, Feng Nian, and Chen Ruolan. At first, she thought it was because she was not likable people would not talk to her.

Li Caiyi never thought it was this easy to talk with her classmates. She really made herself suffer in her past life. How foolish of her!

"Oh, that's a million yuan smile you had there," Feng Nian chuckled.

Zhou Ya also smiled at her. "No kidding. But I guess you are the type that would not quit when you put your mind to something. I'm very happy for you, Li Caiyi."

"Thank you. It was all thanks to your encouragement," Li Caiyi smiled shyly.

"Uhm…"

A small voice interrupted their conversation. The three looked to the side simultaneously and found Chen Ruolan, who stood stiffly there with her bag on her shoulder. Upon noticing the attention on her, she said hesitantly.

"Congratulations, Li Caiyi. I'm happy for you, too."

Chen Ruolan fell silent after that as if she had forgotten what she was trying to say. It was not like her at all, who usually liked to speak whatever was on her mind directly. Li Caiyi grabbed her hand and gave it a light shake.

"Thank you. It was all thanks to your encouragement, too."

"O-oh!" There was a hint of red on Chen Ruolan's cheek and the awkwardness surrounding her deceased. "I was so surprised when I heard the news. I know you are going to do a good job!"

Feng Nian looked at their interaction with a conflicted gaze. After their last argument, Chen Ruolan stopped hanging out with them altogether. Feng Nian was not stupid to notice how much Chen Ruolan wanted to join them again, but she was just too embarrassed to give in first. She knew that Li Chunhua must have predicted this as well, and as much as she hated dancing on her palm, she could not bring herself to forgive Chen Ruolan unless she apologized first. Her pride would never allow it!

Zhou Ya noticed Feng Nian's frown and sighed. She wondered how she could stand being friends with these troublesome girls? The problem would be solved immediately if one of them took the initiative, but they insisted on being stubborn.

Chen Ruolan was relieved that Li Caiyi did not appear repulsed and even smiled kindly at her. However, it did not mean Feng Nian also shared the same sentiment. Chen Ruolan always respected talented writers because good scriptwriting was essential for a good quality movie. That was why she wanted to congratulate her as soon as she heard the news, but she could not find an opening at all.

Now, she had congratulated Li Caiyi; there was no reason to stick around here anymore. But her legs were refusing to move as she wanted to.

"Ruolan, do you want to eat some ice cream with us? My treat!" Li Caiyi asked. Chen Ruolan was surprised but later smiled weakly.

"No, I'm fine. You should eat with Zhou Ya and Feng Nian instead."

"But I want to celebrate this good news with my good friends. You are one of them, too." Li Caiyi understood how hard it was to muster your courage to talk to people who probably did not like you that much. She could not force Chen Ruolan and Feng Nian to make up voluntarily, but she could create an opportunity for them.

Chen Ruolan did not know what to say. Of course, she would be happy to follow along, but….

She sneakily stole a glance at Feng Nian, making the latter harrumphed in annoyance. "Why are you looking at me? Let me clarify this to you; I'm not the one who invites you, okay? But it's a good day for Caiyi, so don't ruin the mood and just come if you want."

"You really are not honest at all," Zhou Ya chuckled.

Feng Nian harrumphed again before she hurried to the door. "What are you dilly-dallying around for? The ice cream parlor won't wait for us. Caiyi, I want a triple scoop, and nobody is going to stop me!" Then, she left the classroom while stomping her feet.

The remaining three exchanged glances with each other before they broke out in laughter.

Li Caiyi had never felt this happy before.