Rebirth

"I believe Lan Zhou must've misunderstood him—that's why he said those hurtful things. If Luo Jialin really is a hypocrite, the truth will come out eventually. When that happens, I definitely won't like him anymore."

Dong Anlan looked around at the others. "Don't worry, I'm not that foolish. I won't keep going down the wrong path blindly."

It seemed changing Dong Anlan's fate wouldn't be so easy after all.

Shu Lanzhou thought to herself, the best course of action now was to help Dong Anlan see Luo Jialin's true colors—before Lin Muyao set her sights on her.

"How about I go with you to confront him?" Shu Lanzhou knew full well Luo Jialin would likely never admit anything, but she still wanted to try.

But Dong Anlan shook her head, rejecting the offer. "No need. I believe you didn't lie to me. A confrontation isn't necessary."

"Aren't you even a little curious why Luo Jialin said those things?" Zhang He asked, looking up from Shu Lanzhou's diary. After reading it, she was already convinced Shu Lanzhou had told the truth.

Shu Lanzhou had never hidden her diary from them. It chronicled everything from the moment she moved into the dorm—entries made over time, not fabricated all at once.

No one could be so devious as to plan something like this years in advance and predict everything that was happening now. If someone could, that person definitely wasn't Shu Lanzhou.

Zhang He was burning with the desire to expose Luo Jialin for who he really was—to avenge the humiliation Dong Anlan had suffered.

But Dong Anlan wasn't ready for that. She liked Luo Jialin too much and didn't have the courage to question him. She was afraid the truth might be more than she could handle.

"No, I don't want to know," Dong Anlan replied, her face going slightly pale. "I already said, this is in the past. I misunderstood Lan Zhou, and I've apologized. From now on, we're still good friends."

Ding Yuejiao and Zhang He exchanged a glance, then both turned to Shu Lanzhou. Only she had a shot at getting through to Dong Anlan now.

But Shu Lanzhou knew her words might not matter. Deep-seated impressions—good or bad—were hard to change. To truly wake Dong Anlan up, only cold, hard truth would do.

"Luo Jialin already rejected you. That means he doesn't like you. If you still want to like him, none of us can stop you," Shu Lanzhou said, gripping Dong Anlan's hand and looking her straight in the eyes. "But you have to promise me—don't tell anyone else you like him. Don't confess to him again. Unless he chases after you."

Dong Anlan froze, visibly embarrassed. "Lan Zhou, I…"

"I support Lan Zhou," Zhang He cut in. "No matter the reason, he had no right to humiliate you like that. If you can forgive him, that's your business. But we can't stand by and watch you get hurt again. Anlan, please. Just promise her."

Dong Anlan closed her eyes briefly, then nodded. "Fine. I promise. I won't let anyone else know I like him. I won't confess again either."

Shu Lanzhou let out a small sigh of relief.

As long as Dong Anlan didn't reveal her feelings, Lin Muyao wouldn't find out—and if she didn't know, she wouldn't target her.

At least for now, Dong Anlan was safe.

According to how things had gone in her previous life, the incident where Dong Anlan was harmed hadn't happened until years later. As long as she could expose Luo Jialin before then, she was confident Anlan wouldn't fall into the same trap again.

"All right, we've finished reading your diary. Are you going to tear it up now?" Ding Yuejiao's voice pulled Shu Lanzhou out of her thoughts.

Shu Lanzhou took back her diary. "Yeah. It's time I let go of the past."

"You should've done that long ago," Zhang He stuck out her tongue. "Honestly, people think leaving Professor Han's team was your downfall, but I think it was the best thing that could've happened to you."

"Think about it—how were you even living these past few years? Did you ever eat a proper meal? You were still working when we were getting ready for bed! I've never seen a college student work harder than you. You weren't even studying for yourself, it's like you were studying for your seniors!"

"I don't know what was going through your head—how could you let them exploit you for so long without complaint? If it were me, I would've bailed ages ago."

Zhang He had always been blunt. She used to lecture Shu Lanzhou too, but back then, Lanzhou was too far gone—she hadn't listened. Worse, she'd seen Zhang He's concern as interference.

Once, twice, over time, Zhang He had stopped trying. Eventually, Shu Lanzhou had been completely isolated.

Looking back now, the first time she reconnected with them was after she was reborn—when she needed them to pass a message to the seniors on her way to the hospital, and later when she texted Ding Yuejiao.

After she quit Professor Han's team, it was Ding Yuejiao who reached out first.

Now she realized, even when they had distanced themselves, they had never truly stopped caring. When she was in trouble, they were the first ones to worry about her.

Shu Lanzhou's eyes reddened.

"I'm sorry. I was wrong. I used to think being accepted into Professor Han's team was the greatest fortune of my life. I didn't want to disappoint my seniors or teachers, so I gave it everything I had, trying to please and obey them."

"But thinking back now, I've lived these past years without a single ounce of my own will. Like a tool, running errands for the professors and seniors. They told me to do something, and I did it."

"I lost myself, lost my friends, lost my dreams. But today, I'm drawing a line with my past. I want you all to be my witnesses—I'm saying goodbye to the old me."

"I won't ignore my friends anymore. I'll reclaim the dreams I used to have. From now on, I'll live with courage and integrity."

"Good!" Zhang He pulled out a lighter. "We'll help you do it. Just promise us—don't throw away our friendship again over someone else."

Shu Lanzhou took the lighter. "I won't. I swear. If I do, you can all cut me off forever!"

"That's not enough!" Ding Yuejiao reached out and poked her on the head. "Get ready for a beating if you dare!"

Zhang He and Dong Anlan nodded fiercely. "Exactly! If you bail on dorm events again, we will come after you!"

Laughter rang through the room. In the midst of it, Shu Lanzhou lit her diary on fire, and one by one, threw the once-cherished gifts into the flames.

When everything had burned to ashes, it felt as if her broken heart had grown new flesh.

She was alive again.

———

Fang Ruoshi trudged back to the lab, arms full of snacks, looking defeated. Before he could even enter, he ran into Lin Muyao.

The moment she saw the snacks in his hands, her heart sank—Shu Lanzhou had refused them. If she wouldn't even take snacks, there was no way she'd agree to help Fang Ruoshi.

"Senior Fang, is she still mad at everyone?" Lin Muyao asked, her face full of remorse. "It's all my fault. She's only ignoring everyone because of me."

Yes, Shu Lanzhou was definitely being heartless. He had only asked a small favor, and she'd turned him down without a second thought!

Fang Ruoshi clenched his jaw.

"It's not your fault. We just misjudged her. Who knew she'd be so ungrateful? She turned her back on us without hesitation—after everything we did for her!"

Lin Muyao's suspicions were confirmed—Shu Lanzhou's success had only come from the support of her five seniors. Now more than ever, she was determined to ruin Shu Lanzhou's reputation.