Twist of Fate (GL) - Chapter 27

Because she frequently traveled between the north and the south, Xie Jing often fell ill.

Her equipment couldn’t keep up with the main server, so she simply quit gaming altogether—a rare moment of dedication, and she began to seriously focus on her studies.

After the incident with the guy from the campus radio station who brought her milk tea, she also quit the station.

Nowadays, Xie Jing was practically living the idle life—quietly following Qin Ning around, spending long hours in the library every day.

“Qin Ning, are you thinking about going to graduate school?” Though they were only sophomores, many students had already started preparing for the entrance exams. Their dormmate Chen Yuan, for example, was always one step ahead.

“Do you want to?” Qin Ning asked in return.

“I’m not really cut out for academics. I probably wouldn’t pass,” Xie Jing said honestly. She knew herself well.

Qin Ning replied lightly, “Oh, then I won’t take the exam either.”

Xie Jing’s eyes widened in disbelief. “You clearly want to!”

“I don’t.”

“I saw your browser history.”

Qin Ning paused, silent for a few seconds before saying, “If I take the exam, I’d have to be apart from you.”

“It would only be a temporary long-distance thing—not for long.”

“Three years is a long time.” She had already waited three years through high school. That time had been agonizing—Qin Ning could only numb herself with relentless studying. If she had to endure another three years like that, she feared she’d go insane.

Xie Jing hesitated for a moment before saying, “Then I’ll take the exam with you. Which school are you aiming for?”

“Our current university.”

Xie Jing immediately regretted her bold declaration. Getting into this university for undergrad was already a miracle. Did she really have what it took for grad school? If she donated a building to the school, maybe she’d get a recommendation—honestly, that might be more likely than passing the exam herself.

But to motivate Qin Ning, Xie Jing could only grit her teeth and nod. “I’m going to get into our school’s grad program with you—no matter what!”

To honor that promise, Xie Jing picked up her neglected studies starting in sophomore year.

Truthfully, she was smart—just lazy. But once she made up her mind, with Qin Ning by her side and top students in the group chat to guide her, she gradually moved from scraping by to mastering her coursework with ease.

During this time, Zhou Yan was stunned by the transformation. This was the same person who used to boot up her laptop straight into a game. Now, she had deleted all her games, buried herself in the library with

Qin Ning, listened to English vocabulary with earbuds even while walking, and carried a small notebook to jot things down.

Was this really Xie Jing? Had she been possessed?

Was love really so powerful that it could make someone fall for something as dull as studying?

Zhou Yan suddenly wanted a girlfriend, too.

And yes—a girlfriend, not a boyfriend. In her opinion, dating a guy only led to ruin, so she was more than willing to play the “top” for love.

But where was she supposed to find a girlfriend like Qin Ning, who could actually motivate her to study?

She used to feel fine slacking off when at least one person in the dorm was slacking with her. But now, Chen Yuan, Qin Ning, and Xie Jing all seemed like they’d never seen a textbook in their past lives and were now obsessed with catching up. Meanwhile, Zhou Yan could barely stomach another melodramatic romance drama.

Even slacking off felt guilty now—so eventually, Zhou Yan joined the grad school prep crowd too.

By their junior year, the university arranged for students to intern off-campus.

Originally, Madam Xie Ruzhuo had planned for Xie Jing to intern at her own company, with the idea of stamping a form and calling it a day. But Xie Jing, under the noble guise of “wanting to learn something real,” refused and opted to intern at a major tech firm with Qin Ning.

They rented an apartment near the company and started their cohabitation life early.

Qin Ning cooked delicious meals, and Xie Jing washed the dishes. Their days were sweet and cozy. If the internship didn’t only last a year, Xie Jing might’ve wanted to live like this forever.

“Qin Ning, we’ve been together for almost three years now.” Xie Jing felt like the past three years had flown by in a dream. She had never imagined her university life could be this fulfilling. She’d thought she would waste four years gaming, barely graduate, and then go home to inherit her family’s business. But now she was on a completely different path.

She was interning outside, preparing for grad school, and living with Qin Ning.

It was beyond surreal.

Qin Ning asked, “What do you want for our anniversary?”

“I’m not asking for a gift. I’m just marveling at how fast three years have gone by. Just one more, and we’ll graduate.”

“I know,” Qin Ning said softly. “But I still want to give you something.”

“Then… get me a ring,” Xie Jing said with a smile. “In return, I’ll give myself to you.”

True to her word, Qin Ning bought the ring immediately, spending all her internship savings. The moment she slid the ring onto Xie Jing’s finger, she felt their relationship had entered a new chapter.

“I love you,” Qin Ning whispered.

“I love you too,” Xie Jing replied.

The mood was just right. Qin Ning held Xie Jing’s hand and kissed her. They tumbled onto the sofa, accidentally knocking over a cup on the coffee table. But no one cared about such details now. Xie Jing wrapped her arms around Qin Ning’s neck, tilting her chin high, while Qin Ning kissed her from her neck down to her collarbone.

“Qin Ning.”

“Hmm?”

“You didn’t take the ring off.”

“No need.”

Xie Jing’s right hand had been pinned above her the whole time. Ring on or not, it made no difference—it wasn’t exactly being used.

“Where’d you learn all this, anyway?” she asked, panting.

“I took a biology elective in freshman year.”

“Before we even got together?”

“Mm-hmm.”

“You were already… planning for this day?”

“Always good to be prepared.” Qin Ning grinned. “Learning is an investment.”

Xie Jing almost fainted. “You were that sure you wouldn’t need it for yourself?”

“?” Qin Ning raised a brow. Then, her fingers curled deliberately. “With you, I’ve never had a doubt.”

Xie Jing: “……”

What the hell!

Qin Ning seriously underestimated her! Fuming, Xie Jing tried to lift herself and bite her girlfriend’s chin, but her legs gave out, and she nearly fell off the sofa.

Qin Ning swiftly caught her calf. “Sit still.”

Ugh!

She was no match for Qin Ning—completely overpowered.

When Qin Ning went to wash up, Xie Jing stared into space. Her body ached worse than an 800-meter sprint. She hadn’t expected it to be so exhausting. If she’d known, she wouldn’t have messed around on the sofa. But they had been so eager earlier that even walking to the bedroom felt like a waste of time.

They’d held back for three whole years. Even though they shared a bed every night, Qin Ning had always stopped at kisses—maybe a bit of touching at most.

“Qin Ning.”

“What is it?” Qin Ning walked over and gently held her hand. “Are you uncomfortable?”

“No. I was just thinking… It’s hard to believe we’ll be moving back to campus soon.” When they first moved in here, there had only been one bed and a few pieces of furniture. But after living together for so long, every corner of the place held memories. She could still vividly recall them decorating the apartment together. They’d even assembled Qin Ning’s desk themselves.

Qin Ning said, “We could apply to live off-campus.”

“No… it’s too far from school. It’d be inconvenient.”

It was drizzling the day they moved back. As Xie Jing rolled her suitcase down the road, she suddenly heard a cat meow.

“Qin Ning, look! Isn’t that Little Guai?” They hadn’t seen the cat in ages since moving off-campus. It had gotten chubbier too.

“It’s him,” Qin Ning confirmed.

Xie Jing used to feed the cat often. Their university had a shelter for strays, so Little Guai had been well taken care of—its fur was glossy and soft.

“Let’s adopt him after we graduate,” Xie Jing said as she stroked the cat’s head, looking up at Qin Ning. “Then we’ll be a family of three.”

Qin Ning smiled. “Okay.”

But plans never keep up with change.

On the day of the exam, Qin Ning was suddenly taken away by a group of men in black. Xie Jing only found out after her test—Qin Ning had been taken back to the Fang family.

The head of the Fang family had passed away unexpectedly, leaving behind a vast fortune. Qin Ning, as the sole bl00d heir, inherited a large portion. But the young lady who had been switched at birth with Qin

Ning seemed unwilling to give up the things that should’ve been hers. The Fang family soon split into two factions: one supporting Qin Ning’s inheritance, the other backing the other girl.

Qin Ning was dragged into the chaotic power struggle and even changed her surname back to Fang.

The next time Xie Jing saw her, graduation was near.

Qin Ning returned to take graduation photos and strolled through the night market with Xie Jing once more.

The grilled skewers still tasted the same, the oranges were still sweet—but somehow, they no longer carried that same flavor of the past.

A bitter ache welled up in Xie Jing’s chest. She looked up at Qin Ning and asked, “So you really don’t plan on going to grad school with me?”

Qin Ning had missed the exam. Ironically, Xie Jing had passed and been accepted into the university’s graduate program.

She had never expected things to turn out this way.

It was supposed to be Qin Ning who wanted to go to grad school.

“I’ll always be by your side, Xie Jing.” Qin Ning pulled her into a hug, gently running her fingers through her hair. “Once you graduate, we’ll go abroad and get married.”

Let the whole world know—they were together.

“But three years… that’s such a long time.” Xie Jing’s voice trembled with insecurity. To her, it felt terrifying.

She could no longer relate to the version of herself from three years ago who had urged Qin Ning to pursue grad school.

“I’ll visit you at school often,” Qin Ning promised.

But after that day, Qin Ning got increasingly busy, and Xie Jing began a brand new chapter as a graduate student.

She moved into the graduate dorm, left 211 behind. Zhou Yan and Chen Yuan hadn’t stayed at their undergrad school, so Xie Jing walked into the dorm alone—instantly overwhelmed by a sense of isolation.

She thought to herself, If I had known… I wouldn’t have taken the exam at all.