Chapter 172 Extra Story Two

Chapter 172 Extra 2

A hundred grand was no small sum back then—enough not just to build a study room but even an entire teaching building. This had been all over campus lately.

On one hand, many were interested in Tang Ruomei’s guest lecture.

Though Tang Ruomei wasn’t widely known in the country, those who had studied at Peking University over a decade ago were well aware of her reputation. She'd moved south back then precisely because she'd gotten too famous.

Chen Ze had connections and had secured tickets for the lecture early on. Her circle of friends were from out of town and, impressed by her influence—having joined the student council as a freshman—gradually saw her as a central figure. When Chen Ze said jump, they asked how high.

Wang Jiahui said enviously, "Chen Ze really has connections. The student council gets its own tickets, but for the rest of us, getting even one is nearly impossible. I wonder if Professor Tang will give more lectures and release more tickets."

She was closest to Chen Ze and, noticing Xu Meng’s odd glance at the two of them, added smugly, "Some people shouldn't get their hopes up. Tickets are really hard to come by."

Xu Meng bit back what she was going to say.

The group then began discussing Tang Ruomei. Honestly, they seemed to know more about her mom than Xu Meng herself knew—details and anecdotes even she hadn’t heard. But she decided not to dwell on it. Xu Meng had also gotten a ticket, naturally handed to her directly by her mother.

Tang Ruomei had been quite active in the country lately, making moves that suggested a permanent return.

The university had even organized a small donation ceremony for the occasion, and Tang Ruomei had wanted Xu Meng to attend.

Xu Meng refused. "You're too high-profile at school right now. It wouldn’t help my studies—people would just say I rely on connections for everything. I’m applying for scholarships and don’t want the teachers giving me extra points just because of this."

Tang Ruomei knew her daughter could be stubborn but respected her reasoning.

Xu Jibai, even more approving, praised, "Mengmeng is right. She wants to make it on her own—she's got more backbone than we did at her age."

Lately, he often said things like, "She’s better than we were back then."

In his eyes, Xu Meng could do no wrong. Even her rejections brought him joy and pride.

Tang Ruomei shot him an exasperated look. He wasn't always this way—he used to say it was fine if their daughter didn’t excel academically, but deep down, he clearly wanted her to surpass them in every way. Men could be such hypocrites.

There were only five lectures total, all covering the same material, but that didn’t stop students from flocking to them. The auditorium, which could seat four to five hundred, was standing room only. The university had even issued tickets, but only a fraction of students managed to get them. When Chen Ze and her friends saw Xu Meng not only attending but seated in a better spot than them, they couldn’t help but frown.

No one could figure out how Xu Meng scored her ticket, and she'd kept quiet about it.

It wasn’t just them—several other students noticed too.

Xu Meng herself was surprised by how good her seat was. She had two tickets and had brought a close friend along, who exclaimed,

"This spot is amazing! Whoever gave you the tickets must really have pull."

"Yeah, I didn’t expect the seats to be this good either."

Some professors had also pulled strings to attend, and Xu Meng recognized quite a few familiar faces among them.

Shortly after Xu Meng arrived, several guys came over to say hi, one of them turning beet red after being egged on by his friends. Tang Ruomei happened to glance their way and shot Xu Meng a knowing smile.

The moment Tang Ruomei entered, the room went dead silent.

Even the professors came armed with notebooks and pens.

Xu Meng’s friend sighed, "Thank goodness you reminded me, or I would’ve forgotten mine."

She fished out her notebook and pen from her bag and kept elbowing Xu Meng when she noticed her still frozen.

Xu Meng finally snapped out of it and dug out her own paper and pen from her bag.

The lecture ran for a full hour—unusually long—before wrapping up. For the first time, Xu Meng listened to her mother's lecture from a student's perspective, and she realized just how amazing her mother was, filled with pride and admiration.

Tang Ruomei spotted her daughter sitting in the front row as soon as she entered, holding paper and pen, her eyes shining brightly as she watched. Tang Ruomei couldn’t help but smile faintly.

She looked beautiful when she smiled, adding an intellectual charm to her elegant presence.

A friend leaned in and whispered to Xu Meng, "I think you look a bit like Professor Tang, especially when you smile."

Xu Meng panicked. "No way!"

Her friend eyed her and Tang Ruomei, looking suspicious.

While packing up after class, Xu Meng overheard people talking:

"I heard Professor Tang returned to China for her daughter. She was up for tenure at Peking University, yet she still chose to come back. Her daughter is so lucky."

"Professor Tang is incredibly knowledgeable, but this lecture was so advanced. I wonder if there’ll be another chance to hear her speak."

"Word is she might stay in China. If she remains at Peking University, maybe we can attend more of her lectures. But I doubt it—she’s doing so well abroad, making bank in dollars. Why would she come back for no reason?"

The gossip didn’t bother Xu Meng.

But soon, rumors about her having some shady connection with a guy at school spread everywhere—all because of that front-row ticket.

A friend quietly warned her, "Watch your back lately."

Xu Meng, too busy keeping up with the overachievers, was oblivious to the malice. She was preparing for the CET-4 exam in her sophomore year.

Yes, she started earlier than most.

The CET-4 and CET-6 were still new, rolled out just a few years earlier. They weren’t that hard yet, and there were no clear study materials. Xu Meng reviewed based on the exam outline, jotting down detailed notes along the way.

These notes were crucial for Feng Yanwen, who was involved in test prep training.

For decades to come, the CET exams would be a nightmare for grads. A CET-4 certificate was essential for undergraduates to obtain their degree. Where there was demand, there was a market—and these notes might prove very useful to Feng Yanwen in the future.

By the time Xu Meng heard the rumors, they had already spread like wildfire.

A fed-up friend finally clued her in, suspecting that Chen Ze was behind it.

"That day after class, I saw Chen Ze eyeballing us forever," the friend said. "It must’ve been her."

Chen Ze and Xu Meng were the top students in their class—archnemeses by default.

Their paths might diverge in the end. Chen Ze preferred participating in school activities to pad her résumé, while Xu Meng focused on exams. Once, when Xu Meng studied with Huang Xiaoying in the library, Chen Ze snitched to the counselor. Since Chen Ze was close to the counselor, Xu Meng was called in for a talk.

Now, even Huang Xiaoying steered clear of the Peking University library to dodge drama.

Xu Meng figured laying low would keep her safe, but some people lived for the mess.

She decided to confront Chen Ze.

Lately, Chen Ze left early and returned late, so they rarely crossed paths.

One morning, when Chen Ze was running late, Xu Meng cornered her. "Are you the one spreading those rumors?"

Chen Ze naturally denied it. "What rumors? You giving them something to talk about?"

Xu Meng sized her up. She knew Chen Ze came from a privileged background, always the center of attention. People like her, used to getting their way, might believe in a "cross me and you’re dead" attitude.

But she had no reason to put up with Chen Ze's nonsense.

"It doesn’t matter if you don’t admit it, but don't let me catch you slipping. And about the incident last time when I brought my cousin to the library—wasn't it you who snitched to the counselor? But didn’t the school clarify? As long as a temporary access pass is obtained and library regulations are followed, the school allows outsiders to study or visit. Now, do you still have any objections?"

Chen Ze's face turned beet red. Because of this, the counselor had even been reprimanded, criticized for being overly rigid. No one knew how Xu Meng had managed to bring the issue to the school leadership—she's such a snitch.

Chen Ze, who condemned Xu Meng for being a tattletale, naturally didn’t consider that her own actions were also a form of tattling.

After the talk with Chen Ze, Xu Meng dove back into her studies without a second thought. Life was pretty low-key—just studying and occasionally going on dates with Han Jiming.

Sometimes, Zhang Mingqing would take advantage of her proximity to visit Xu Meng.

Her shop was right outside the school, so she could swing by easily. Every month, Xu Meng received a nice chunk of change from the hot pot restaurant, so she also devoted some time to managing the factory.

As Zhang Mingqing put it, having a college student like Xu Meng in the factory made a difference. In its first year of operation, the factory had already established standardized management, which greatly benefited the training of new employees. As long as they followed the training manual and operational standards, new hires rarely encountered major issues.

With so many meaningful things to do, why would Xu Meng waste much time on petty conflicts?

Soon, Huang Xiaoying’s family sitcom began casting.

To everyone’s surprise, the production team chose the second child.

The second child’s performance on stage that day had caught the producers’ attention, so they were the first young actor selected.

The three kids were overjoyed, especially the eldest.

The second child had always been the weakest academically, looked like they were headed for flunking out. Nobody saw this coming.

That evening, the three children treated everyone to a lavish meal.

Even Xu Meng made a special trip back to join the celebration before leaving.

Filming officially began in December. At first, the TV station wasn’t sure if the audience would like it, so they shot three trial episodes.

The first episode got mediocre ratings, but by the second, ratings had slightly improved. By the third episode, viewership shot past a 2—an excellent number at the time. The production team quickly ramped up filming, setting a demanding schedule of at least two episodes per week. Huang Xiaoying, the screenwriter, had initially only signed on for 20 episodes.

The TV station urgently called a filming meeting, locking everyone down for marathon filming. Huang Xiaoying was also locked in, stuck in the studio for a month, completely off-grid.

As Feng Yanwen put it, "If the show weren’t still airing, I’d think Huang Xiaoying had been dragged off to work in a mine."

Huang Xiaoying wasn’t mining, but she did become famous.

She made a cameo as a minor character in the show and was instantly recognized—first by Chen Ze and her close friends.

The series had become so popular that pretty much every TV in town was tuned to it. Even small restaurants outside the school would flip to the reruns the moment they came on. The moment Huang Xiaoying’s cameo appeared, people recognized her.

Chen Ze’s friend tugged at her sleeve, "Isn’t that Xu Meng’s cousin? She’s an actress?"

Back then, acting was still a big deal.

Another chimed in, "I remember Xu Meng saying her cousin was writing a script in the library. I thought she was full of it—turns out it was true."

Chen Ze's face fell even harder.

What made her even more unable to keep her composure was when someone spotted Xu Meng and Professor Tang Ruomei chowing down on hot pot at a spot off campus—Xu Meng calling Tang Ruomei "Mom."

Suddenly, the mystery of how Xu Meng scored those primo seats and why Tang Ruomei had made that suspiciously specific donation for a study lounge was solved.

Talk about spoiling your kid rotten!