Bad Apples and Rotten Strawberries

Xin Zhiyu wasn't the first person to realize the Chanel bag Qi Yan was carrying was fake. She was the first to realize Qi had gotten it by drinking with clients.

Driving her Panamera, Xin blocked Qi outside a nightclub. "Instead of drinking with old men and women, why not drink with me? Drive any of my cars you want, carry any of my bags you want."

Qi Yan: "I don't want secondhand things."

Xin laughed out loud. Qi couldn't even tell whether the bags her clients gave her were real or fake, yet here she was acting picky. Xin took her shopping for bags, buying her one from every brand so she could carry a different one each week. Later, she bought her a car, too.

Qi was very obedient. She accepted Xin's gifts and served her well, no matter how much Xin berated her.

They kept their relationship so well hidden on campus that no one even thought they knew each other.

That is, until Xin's ex-girlfriend exposed the truth.

In the classroom, she screamed at Xin, accusing her of never taking their relationship seriously and of breaking her heart. And now she was keeping a woman like that? It was an insult to her.

Xin didn't even flinch. In front of everyone, she replied, "What kind of woman? Qi Yan is more obedient than you. She lets me ride her like a dog. She's very good."

Qi said nothing. But when they got home, she cuffed Xin to the bed and tormented her relentlessly.

During it all, Xin received a call from her ex-girlfriend. Her voice came through, faint as a mosquito's, with a hint of pleading: "Zhiyu, I could... be your dog, too."

What a bunch of sluts, Qi thought. Every last one of them. But who could be more shameless than she was? She let Xin treat her like a dog and humiliated her in public, yet she still seemed to have fallen for her.

She would take this secret to her grave.

Little did she know, her secret was just like the fake bags she'd carried: some people could see right through it at a glance.

*

"You like me, don't you?"

"Did I hit you so hard you've lost your mind? I told you, I don't want secondhand things."

"Xiao Qi, I like you. Why don't you like me?"

"..."

Reader's Guide:

# Xiao Qi is vain and loves money. She likes putting on airs and lying, but she's also fiercely proud.

# At first, Xiao Xin is physically attracted to Xiao Qi but repulsed by her emotionally. She says some really nasty things, and that doesn't mean she'll stop later on.

# Xiao Qi puts up with things and acts obedient for the money. When she can't take it anymore, she turns the tables and gets on top of Xiao Xin.

# Neither of them is remotely perfect. Expect plenty of melodrama and explosive drama. Both are virgins, and they torment each other.

# Set at an elite university. Every plot point exists to serve their romantic push and pull, and should not be taken as a real-world endorsement.

Theme: Be honest with yourself about what you feel.