Campus Ace Girl-Chapter 313 - 314: Awesome! Gu Mingzhu is Beaten Up and Ignored!
But what stunned everyone the most was this: the beautiful and cool young lady was actually Rabbit! And she was the KO everyone had been talking about recently! The entire internet was in an uproar! The author of the heartwarming and healing ’Big Grey Wolf’ was this incredibly cool young lady. So incredibly Alpha!
Online comments exploded, and barely anyone even noticed this was Jia Ren’s dual-cover issue! In front of Miss KO, Gu Mingzhu, the ’Nation’s Sweetheart,’ was utterly overshadowed! Her charisma was simply crushing! "What was that saying? ’No comparison, no pain’?" It described this scene perfectly!
Also, the shirt the young lady was wearing—was it a man’s shirt? Was it Da Hui’s shirt? She looked amazing—so versatile, she could be fierce or gentle, edgy or sweet.
Netizens chimed in one after another:
"’This young lady, I’m so in!’"
"’She’s an impossible dream! I’m dead, I’m dead...’"
"’Please, Miss Rabbit, release a solo issue! Don’t let anyone drag you down!’"
"’Rabbit is truly rich, fair, and beautiful! Da Hui must be from a prestigious family, no doubt!’"
...
Meanwhile, Fang Ming was at home, reading these comments and looking at the photos. Finally, he confirmed that Gu Anxi was indeed Miss Rabbit, the author of ’Big Grey Wolf’. He silently opened his phone, found that one photo, and anonymously posted on Weibo: [’Da Hui and Miss Rabbit, as you wished!’] Attaching the picture!
He used a few tricks to give the post a small boost in popularity, but it was quickly traced back. Another firestorm of discussion erupted online:
"’Heavens, Da Hui is so handsome! So, so handsome! I’m dead, I’m dead!’"
"’Miss Rabbit looks amazing! She looks great in women’s clothes too!’"
"’Everyone, get on this ship! It’s full speed ahead and never stopping!’"
"’Da Hui is truly from a super-rich family! Aaaah!’"
...
In an instant, none of the results Tang Yuan had painstakingly schemed for materialized. Gu Mingzhu was completely overshadowed and ignored. She stared at the photos, muttering, "How is this possible? How can this be?" As much as she hated to admit it, she couldn’t deny that in their photos together, Gu Anxi’s aura was so powerful it practically leaped off the screen, while she herself looked like a lifeless accessory beside her. Gu Mingzhu had never suffered such a miserable defeat!
She locked herself in her room, switched off the lights, and wept. Her phone screen cast a dim blue light; it was open to the voting page for the Beicheng University campus poll. Tonight was the final night, and Gu Anxi had already secured the ’Campus Hunk’ title. But that wasn’t all. Some girls had been campaigning to vote for Fang Ming as Gu Anxi’s ’Campus Belle’ counterpart—or ’woman’ as they jokingly put it—and in just a few hours... Fang Ming had surpassed her! In other words, she, Gu Mingzhu, had lost to a man!
Tang Yuan knocked on the door. "Mingzhu, open up."
Gu Mingzhu wiped her tears. "Mom, I want to be alone. Please, leave me be."
Tang Yuan was still worried. After a quick discussion with Gu Yuanshan, she used the spare key to open the door and switched on the lights.
Gu Mingzhu was sitting by the edge of her bed, her face tear-streaked. Tang Yuan squatted beside her. "Mingzhu, this is just a small setback. You don’t need to take it so hard."
Gu Mingzhu dabbed her nose with a tissue, her voice thick with tears. "Mom, why did Gu Anxi have to come back? Weren’t we, as a family, perfectly fine without her? Ever since she returned, everything has changed."
Gu Yuanshan gently chided, "You mustn’t say such things. She hasn’t done anything to provoke you."
Tang Yuan, her heart aching for Gu Mingzhu, couldn’t help defending her. "Anxi is too shrewd. She deliberately hid her identity just to humiliate Mingzhu! Yuanshan, don’t you think she went overboard this time?"
Gu Yuanshan frowned. "If Mingzhu hadn’t tried to plot against someone else first, how could she have ended up being plotted against?"
Tang Yuan wanted to argue further but restrained herself.
Gu Mingzhu bit her lip, staring at her phone. A moment later, her eyes widened in disbelief.
"Mom, they even created a ’Beicheng University Star’ award and gave it to Gu Anxi with a unanimous vote!"
The ’Beicheng University Star’ description even specified it was a co-ed award, combining Campus Hunk and Campus Belle into one!!! This meant that in this campus poll, Gu Anxi had won an overwhelming victory. Fang Ming, despite being voted Campus ’Belle,’ was merely an accessory to Gu Anxi.
Gu Mingzhu was deeply wounded and stayed home from school for two days. She begged Tang Yuan to get the dual-cover issue withdrawn, but Jia Ren was no pushover. Did she think she could just demand a withdrawal, and they would simply comply?
The folks at Jia Ren were ecstatic. The photos from the previous night had generated massive buzz, and the issue went on sale today. It sold out almost instantly. Jia Ren was busy counting money until their hands ached; they couldn’t care less about Gu Mingzhu’s tears.
Gu Ning dropped by, ostensibly to show concern for Gu Mingzhu. Tang Yuan knew Gu Ning didn’t have good intentions but couldn’t say much.
Gu Ning settled on the sofa, listening to Gu Mingzhu play the piano. This niece of mine, she thought, is genuinely talented and good-looking. But Tang Yuan has spoiled her rotten, always needing to be number one in everything. How can one navigate this world without learning when to bow one’s head? When you’re not as good as others, just accept it gracefully. Why take it so hard?
Gu Ning said softly, "Mingzhu, dear, I’ve always told you not to write about those ’fleeting sorrows of youth.’ Now you’re feeling the sting yourself, aren’t you?"
Gu Mingzhu’s lips tightened, but she continued to play.
"Still not ready to admit defeat?" Gu Ning chuckled. "Does being first really matter that much?"
Tang Yuan bristled. Is Gu Ning trying to brainwash her? She realized Gu Ning was clearly siding with Gu Anxi and didn’t truly have Mingzhu’s best interests at heart.
Tang Yuan retorted, displeased, "Gu Ning, you watched Mingzhu grow up. Are you just going to stand by and watch her be bullied like this?"
Gu Ning remained on the sofa, perfectly composed. "Sister-in-law, are you mistaken? It’s quite clear you two were trying to bully someone else and ended up being outplayed. How does that translate to Mingzhu being bullied?"
Gu Ning gave a false laugh. "Do try to have some grace, Sister-in-law. Don’t teach your daughter such poor manners."
Tang Yuan was livid. Gu Ning, however, looked delighted. She slipped on her sunglasses. "Well, I’ll be going!"
Then she turned back. "Mingzhu, dear, stop with those ’fleeting sorrows.’ Change your tune—listen to your aunt, it’ll do you good."
Gu Mingzhu remained silent.
Tang Yuan was extremely worried and discussed with Gu Yuanshan how they might cheer their younger daughter up. Gu Yuanshan pondered for a moment. "We can’t be too obvious about it. How about this: next month, let’s host an exclusive banquet. It’s a grand event for the Four Great Families, isn’t it? Only members of the Four Great Families can attend. That child... she won’t be able to come. Mingzhu should feel a bit happier then."
Tang Yuan still felt a little uneasy. "Yuanshan, are you certain she won’t be able to attend?"
"It’s a long-standing rule of the Four Great Families, one that has never been broken. Unless Anxi marries Bo Xichen... but she isn’t of age yet, is she?" Gu Yuanshan mused.
After a moment, he sighed. "Doing this isn’t quite fair to that child. Yuanyuan, are we perhaps focusing too much on Mingzhu and neglecting the other girl?"
Tang Yuan replied gently, "I’ll compensate her in other ways, Yuanshan. Don’t you worry."
Gu Yuanshan patted her hand. "I trust you to handle it. Just don’t treat that child too poorly. After all, one shouldn’t favor one child over the other. If it weren’t for her unfortunate birth chart, she would be living happily under our care right now..."
He sighed again, a note of regret in his voice.
