Chapter 11: Stunning Reversal

“Want to have a match?”
“Sure. Loser kneels and kowtows.” Yu Ruonan declared triumphantly, her gaze lingering on Li Jiuwei’s radiant face, her dislike deepening.
She smiled maliciously. “You can admit defeat now, it’s not too late. Otherwise, you’re bound to lose today.”
Two beautiful women were about to compete in billiards.
Everyone in the billiards hall gathered to watch.
Many eyes were fixed on Li Jiuwei; it had been ages since they’d seen such a striking and elegant woman.
“Sister, do you need a cue? You can use mine.”
“Mine too.”
“Sister, let me fan you.”
“Sister, I’ll pour you water…”
…
They were all exceedingly attentive.
Yu Ruonan saw it all, jealousy simmering within her. It was always like this—wherever Li Jiuwei was, others never noticed Yu Ruonan’s presence.
She sneered inwardly. Just wait, Li Jiuwei will soon make a fool of herself in front of everyone.
Yu Ruonan was confident.
Among the crowd, Feng Su gazed at Li Jiuwei holding the cue, a smile flickering at his lips.
But as Li Jiuwei began the game with practiced ease, Yu Ruonan’s expression darkened.
“Do you want to break, or shall I?”
“I will,” Yu Ruonan replied.
Li Jiuwei didn’t care. She and Yu Ruonan had been university roommates; Yu Ruonan had always disliked her, but Li Jiuwei never minded.
Meeting Yu Ruonan again today was indeed unexpected; it had been three years since graduation.
Li Jiuwei broke the rack and cleared the table in one go.
Yu Ruonan’s face grew uglier by the minute.
She stared in disbelief at Li Jiuwei’s smiling face; she couldn’t afford to lose.
In the final round, Yu Ruonan’s hand holding the cue trembled slightly; the crowd’s enthusiasm soared.
She attempted a flashy 360-degree trick, but her cue accidentally jabbed a spectator in the waist.
“Beauty… are you messing around?”
“Hahaha…”
The crowd erupted in laughter.
Yu Ruonan’s cheeks flushed with embarrassment; she bit her lip, mortified. Li Jiuwei, of course, was laughing as well.
With everyone watching, Li Jiuwei sunk the ball with a single shot, drawing cheers from the crowd.
She won!
Yu Ruonan lost!
Applause thundered in her ears.
“Jiuwei, you’re amazing!”
Fang Tiantian looked at her with admiration, and their classmates who came along were equally excited.

Beautiful and skilled at billiards—truly impressive.
Feng Su gazed at Li Jiuwei with deep affection. She was a bright star, so perfect, and she belonged to him. Feng Su’s heart thundered with pride.
He felt an overwhelming sense of honor!
“Beautiful, you lost the bet—kneel now.”
“That’s right, you must play by the rules.”
“Don’t tell me you’re going to cheat…”
Everyone chimed in, and Yu Ruonan glared at Li Jiuwei in humiliation and anger.
She shouted, unwilling to accept defeat, “You knew how to play. Why did you lie to me?”
“Did I ever say I didn’t?” Back when their dorm went out to play, Yu Ruonan had snatched the cue from Li Jiuwei, hinting that someone from the countryside wouldn’t know such sophisticated entertainment.
Now, Yu Ruonan was reaping what she sowed.
Everyone demanded she kneel.
Li Jiuwei was unmoved.
If she had lost, Yu Ruonan would never let her off.
“Kneel.”
Yu Ruonan swept her gaze around.
Today’s humiliation would be repaid someday.
With a thud, Yu Ruonan knelt on the spot.
Whistles sounded from the crowd. As Li Jiuwei left the billiards hall, Feng Su followed closely, his eyes burning. “Jiuwei, come to my place.”
His meaning was unmistakable.
“No, I have other things to do.”
“You…”
“Su, hurry up!”
Fang Tiantian’s voice called out.
Li Jiuwei urged, “Go on, your classmates are about to light candles.” She had learned from Fang Tiantian they were celebrating a friend’s birthday.
A birthday party at a billiards hall—typical of young and playful people.
Feng Su said, “Jiuwei, don’t forget the day after tomorrow.”
With that, he turned and left.
The day after tomorrow?
What day?
Li Jiuwei pondered deeply.
She had no clue.
“Li Jiuwei—”
Yu Ruonan caught up from behind.
She stopped in front of Li Jiuwei, sneering. “I lost to you today, but I won’t always lose.”
“Oh.”

Her response was indifferent.
That feeling of being ignored and overlooked washed over Yu Ruonan again.
She glared at Li Jiuwei. “What’s so special about you? You just got lucky being born into a good family. But even if you got lucky, so what? Your fiancé doesn’t love you!”
Yu Ruonan’s smugness returned.
Li Jiuwei gazed deeply at Yu Ruonan.
Her engagement to Jiang Huaiting was known only to those closest to her.
So—
How did Yu Ruonan find out?
“You’re awfully concerned with my private affairs. Could it be you have some special feelings for me?” Li Jiuwei pressed her hand to her chest, feigning surprise.
Unexpectedly, Yu Ruonan snapped, “You’re insane—not everyone loves you.”
“Who’s insane, you know best. Take care of yourself.”
Yu Ruonan kept staring at Li Jiuwei’s back as she walked away, stomping her foot in frustration.
But instead of leaving, Yu Ruonan hurried after her, shouting, “Don’t you want to know what happened that night?”
Li Jiuwei stopped abruptly.
She turned, her gaze deep and cold.
Seeing her so affected, Yu Ruonan suddenly smiled, stepping forward. “You care so much.”
“What do you know?”
“I know quite a bit. The night of the graduation party, so much happened—Li Jiuwei, I just wonder which incident you care about most?” she said carelessly.
Li Jiuwei’s face darkened.
Her gaze was icy. “I’m not interested in hearing about messy affairs.”
“Li Jiuwei, don’t you want to know who that man was?”
Yu Ruonan watched Li Jiuwei with relish.
The shock in her eyes delighted Yu Ruonan.
“What do you know?” Li Jiuwei’s fists clenched, anxiety and urgency flickering in her eyes.
Yu Ruonan savored her shifting expressions, saying nothing.
The more Yu Ruonan withheld, the more desperate Li Jiuwei became to know.
She grabbed Yu Ruonan’s collar, her voice cold. “Tell me, who was that man?”
After the university graduation party, she’d gotten drunk.
Upon waking, she realized she had lost her virginity. Terrified and panicked, she had never discovered who had taken it from her.
That memory was buried deep within her, a wound she refused to expose.
“Why should I tell you?”
“Yu Ruonan, do you want your parents to know your whereabouts?” Li Jiuwei threatened, her gaze icy.
Yu Ruonan stared at Li Jiuwei in alarm, biting her lip in frustration. “That night, I saw three people enter and leave your private room.”