Oops, I’m the Scumbag Ex in Her Storyline - Chapter 24
For two days, Xin Yan had been on edge, but to her surprise, Bei Lanlan’s attitude toward her remained exactly the same.
It was as if that soft “thank you” from the other night had been nothing more than her own imagination.
Still, Xin Yan felt quite happy. Even the mountains of work waiting for her at the office seemed somehow more manageable.
By now, she’d more or less adapted to her simple routine—commuting between two fixed points. No matter how much Assistant An Zhiyuan loaded her schedule, as long as she insisted, she could always carve out time for the things she really wanted to do.
Like today—she had skipped an afternoon meeting. The company was in the process of selecting a new brand ambassador. Their previous long-term spokesperson had recently been exposed for juggling multiple romantic relationships, sparking outrage across the internet. After the scandal, the company hastily replaced him, but the new choice didn’t perform as well, and the shareholders weren’t too pleased either.
They still preferred the original approach: signing a long-term contract with a high-profile celebrity who had a clean image—ideally for five years or more. A stable ambassador meant a stable corporate image.
Xin Yan had already sat through two of these meetings. She honestly didn’t get it—why was everyone being so picky? One star didn’t have a long enough career trajectory, another charged too much… In the end, it was just a spokesperson. Did it really warrant so much discussion?
Before leaving, Xin Yan told An Zhiyuan to let the VP chair the meeting. “Pick anyone, I don’t care who. Just don’t bother reporting it to me again.”
As for herself, she headed off to a lively university campus, cheerfully ready to explore.
She had timed it so that Bei Lanlan had just finished class. The two of them had lunch together, and when class was about to start again, Xin Yan walked her back to the lecture hall before heading over to the university president’s office.
Though it had been Xu Suyu who’d helped Bei Lanlan return to school, Xin Yan still wanted to thank the university as well. After all, the only thing she had in abundance… was money.
—
As soon as Xin Yan explained her intentions, the balding middle-aged university president nearly lit up with excitement as he rushed toward her.
Xin Yan blinked in surprise—it was hard to imagine a university president grinning with such obvious flattery.
Then again, she felt a pang of sympathy. Wasn’t she the same way around Adubo? All cowering and sycophantic?
The president didn’t waste much time on small talk. He personally brewed tea for Xin Yan, then immediately launched into his sob story. The physics lab’s equipment was outdated, the law school building hadn’t been renovated in two decades, the microelectronics department still shared space with the cyber security institute, and the campus river had been murky for eight years due to lack of funding for water purification…
Xin Yan felt a headache coming on. She was here to make a charitable donation—not to become an ATM. If she were to fund everything the president mentioned, the shareholders would probably slap her into orbit.
She raised a hand to signal him to stop. “Tell me which one is your most urgent need.”
The president responded without hesitation, “We need all of them!”
“…Right.”
She held back a retort. “Let’s put it this way—what’s most relevant to Lanlan’s major? She’s doing really well in school and might go on to do her master’s or even a PhD. If I help upgrade the infrastructure now, it’ll benefit her in the future too.”
Though slightly disappointed, the president warmed up again and began detailing the status of Bei Lanlan’s program. The university ranked in the top 10 nationwide, and her department was ranked #1. In fact, it was already the best-funded program on campus—but then again, who would turn down more money?
As he went on, Xin Yan’s attention gradually wandered. Realizing this financial patron might lose interest and walk away, the president quickly sent his secretary to summon the top professor from Bei Lanlan’s program.
When Xu Suyu entered the office, the first thing she saw was Xin Yan lounging casually on the couch.
The president, usually stern-faced, was grinning like a stuffed bun. He practically shoved Xu Suyu forward. “President Xin, this is Professor Xu, the expert I mentioned. We brought her in with a generous salary.
She holds dual PhDs in Cybersecurity and Electronic Information, is a doctoral supervisor, and also a researcher at the National Big Data Tech Lab. She’s the real authority in the field. Professor Xu, please share with President Xin some of the projects you’re working on.”
Xu Suyu: “…”
Xin Yan remained silent at first, quietly enjoying the constipation-like expression on Xu Suyu’s face. When she had her fill, she stood up and said, “Professor Xu and I already know each other. Don’t we, Professor Xu?”
Xu Suyu: “…”
The president beamed even more. He enthusiastically instructed Xu Suyu to give Xin Yan a tour of her office. As Xu Suyu was leaving, he whispered in her ear, “Win her over, and I’ll install central heating in your building this year!”
Xu Suyu: “…”
Swallowing her silent scream, she exited the office.
Xin Yan had been waiting for her with a cheerful expression. “Which way?”
—
Ten minutes later, they arrived at Xu Suyu’s office.
It was extremely minimalist. Apart from the essential work items and a few unidentifiable pieces of computer equipment, the space was practically empty. Not even a potted plant to freshen the air.
Xin Yan looked around a few times. Xu Suyu, on the other hand, didn’t find anything wrong. She just wanted to finish the president’s task and send Xin Yan on her way.
Not expecting Xin Yan to understand her research anyway, she casually introduced one of her ongoing projects:
“Most scholars agree that hybrid human-machine intelligence is the inevitable future of AI development. I personally believe it’s also its final form after social integration. To realize this concept, I’ve been working on multipath routing in AI-controlled systems—specifically, how to optimize path scheduling. The aim is to improve data collection and feedback mechanisms in the big data era. This is a simulation model I’ve developed.”
She clicked the mouse, and a complex array of numbers and letters appeared on the screen.
Xin Yan glanced at it and asked, “Are you using the branch-and-bound method?”
Xu Suyu blinked in surprise. She turned to her. “You understand this?”
Xin Yan gave a modest nod. “A little.”
Only she knew how much of that “little” was exaggerated. After reading so many documents recently, she’d at least retained the name of the branch-and-bound method. Barely.
As the saying goes—never stop learning. You never know when you’ll need to bluff convincingly.
—
So far, the bluff worked. Xu Suyu looked at her in surprise. Her expression finally changed—more serious now, and less dismissive than before.
She was starting to realize Xin Yan wasn’t as useless as she had assumed.
“You studied Electronic Information?”
“No,” Xin Yan admitted honestly this time. “But in my position, I have to know a little bit of everything.”
Xu Suyu nodded, accepting the explanation. “That’s what Song Xizi said too.”
Xin Yan froze. “You know Song Xizi?”
“Not personally, but she graduated from here. She comes back sometimes to give lectures,” Xu Suyu replied. Then as if remembering something, she added, “In fact, she’s giving one today at the School of Information. You two know each other, right? You didn’t know she was on campus?”
Xin Yan: “…”
Of course she didn’t know! Just because they knew each other didn’t mean they were close! Why did everyone keep assuming they were friends?
People you “know” aren’t necessarily friends.
They might also be backstabbing rivals waiting to steal your thunder.