Can You Give Me a Chance

"What exactly does Long Aotian mean by that?" Wang Lijuan couldn't understand at all.

Mentioning this made Shen Mengjie a little angry—she had even been smacked on the head.

Amid her anger, a wave of panic suddenly rose in her heart. Could it be that Long Aotian had listened to Li Hao's words and now thought she was shameless, no longer willing to help her?

"Why don't you give Xu Shuai a call?" Zhang Mengmeng suggested softly.

Hearing this, Wang Lijuan's eyes lit up. "You're right, Xu Shuai would definitely know something."

Shen Mengjie also looked at Wang Lijuan then. Though she didn't say it aloud, she too wanted to know what Long Aotian's current attitude toward her really was.

Just as Wang Lijuan was about to call Xu Shuai, Shen Mengjie's phone suddenly rang.

She glanced at her phone curiously, then frowned slightly. "It's Huang Fei."

As she spoke, she answered the call.

"Huang Fei, what is it?"

"I'm waiting for you in the woods by the sports field. There are some things I'd rather discuss in person."

Before Shen Mengjie could refuse, Huang Fei had already hung up.

Shen Mengjie blinked in confusion, then turned to Han Xiaojing and the others.

"Go. Maybe he really has something important to say," Han Xiaojing said gently.

Wang Lijuan nodded in agreement. "I think Huang Fei has actually been really good to you. That day when he found out you hadn't returned to the dorm and couldn't reach you by phone, he was practically going crazy with worry..."

"He's a good person," even Zhang Mengmeng added.

After hesitating for a moment, Shen Mengjie pulled up her hood and left the dorm.

As she walked, memories of her first meeting with Huang Fei surfaced in her mind.

Back then, Shen Mengjie could have sworn with absolute certainty about the look in Huang Fei's eyes—it was pure lust.

She had seen that look far too many times, so many that she'd lost count...

She hated that look, hated it even more when it was directed at her...

But now... no, not just now, his gaze seemed to have changed somehow...

It made Shen Mengjie reluctant to face him, because she sensed that Huang Fei might actually be serious about her...

......

In the small grove, Huang Fei heard footsteps and stubbed out his cigarette before turning around.

Seeing her, a faint smile appeared on his face. "You came."

Shen Mengjie glanced around before finally lowering her hood. "What did you want to talk about?"

Hearing the coldness in her voice, Huang Fei scratched his head. "Is being around me really that stressful for you?"

Shen Mengjie let out a light laugh and met his gaze firmly, shaking her head. "Maybe I never should have gotten involved with you in the first place."

"Pretty sure I was the one who got involved with you first," Huang Fei replied with a grin, his eyes locked on hers.

Shen Mengjie shrugged, amused. "Who knows?"

"Can I at least ask why?"

"The world doesn't owe us explanations. If it did, things would be so much easier."

"And do you realize how many people would point fingers if we were together now?"

"What if I said I don’t care at all?"

Huang Fei stepped closer, staring straight at her. "What if I said I truly, genuinely don’t care even a little?"

Under the intensity of his gaze, Shen Mengjie suddenly found it hard to look at him directly.

Seeing her avert her eyes, Huang Fei gave a bitter smile. "Liking you is my business. You don’t have to feel any pressure about it."

The old Shen Mengjie wouldn’t have felt any pressure at all. Even after being scolded outright by Long Aotian, she had remained unfazed, even calmly keeping her appointment with Senior Wang.

But after everything that had happened, she was genuinely hesitating now.

"All I’m asking for is a chance."

"You don’t have a boyfriend right now, and I don’t have a girlfriend. Give me this one opportunity. I won’t interfere with your life. If, after a year, you still haven’t been moved by me, then I’ll give up for good."

Huang Fei laid his heart bare.

Letting go now would be unbearable. He wanted to try, to put in the effort. Only then, if he truly gave it his all, could he walk away without regrets.

The determination and sincerity in Huang Fei’s eyes sent Shen Mengjie’s thoughts into turmoil.

"A year?" She was certain that her feelings for Huang Fei didn’t extend beyond friendship.

Yet, faced with his earnest gaze, his actions for her sake, and his words—"I don’t care at all what others think!"—she found herself unable to outright refuse.

If, after a year, she still felt nothing for him, he would let go, wouldn’t he?

This was so frustrating...

"If you don’t refuse, I’ll take it as a yes," Huang Fei said, smiling. "So you don’t have to avoid me or feel pressured anymore."

Shen Mengjie rolled her eyes. "Who’s avoiding you? Who’s feeling pressured?"

The eye roll didn’t upset Huang Fei—in fact, it made him laugh even harder. This was the Shen Mengjie he knew.

Hearing his laughter, Shen Mengjie couldn’t help but chuckle softly too.

"If you called me here just to say all this, then I’m going back."

"Of course not." Huang Fei’s expression turned serious again.

He then repeated Long Aotian’s theory word for word.

After hearing it, Shen Mengjie didn’t want to believe it.

The person who had nailed her to the pillar of shame was actually one of her own roommates?

How could that be?

And yet, Long Aotian’s theory was the closest to the truth.

To obtain the chat logs of thirty-eight people at once—the simplest way would have been to access her phone.

And who else could have done that but one of her roommates?

Seeing the disbelief and conflict on Shen Mengjie’s face, Huang Fei added, "Long Aotian said that after telling you this, you’d have a suspect in mind. Whether you believe it or not, you can always test it out."

It was true. Even if she didn’t want to believe it, a name had already surfaced in her mind.

After a long silence, Shen Mengjie looked at Huang Fei. "Can you leave for a moment?"

Hearing this, Huang Fei knew she had made her decision.

He nodded and walked out of the grove.

Once he was gone, Shen Mengjie took out her phone and dialed a number...