CHAPTER 4 — The First Deviation
The hallway didn't return to normal.
Not completely.
People moved, talked, laughed—but the tension from earlier still lingered faintly in the air, like something unresolved.
Zhang Xiao Qi walked calmly, her steps unhurried, her expression unreadable.
Behind her, Su Melling hesitated before catching up again.
"Xiao Qi… wait."
Zhang Xiao Qi stopped this time.
Slowly, she turned her head.
"What?"
Her tone wasn't cold.
But it wasn't warm either.
Just distant.
Su Melling bit her lip. "You really won't help me?"
There was no accusation in her voice—just confusion.
That made it worse.
Zhang Xiao Qi looked at her for a moment, then said calmly,
"Why should I?"
Su Melling froze.
"I… I thought…"
"You thought I would step in," Zhang Xiao Qi finished for her.
Her gaze sharpened slightly.
"That I'd speak for you. Protect you. Fix things for you."
Silence.
Su Melling couldn't deny it.
Because that was exactly what had always happened.
Zhang Xiao Qi tilted her head slightly.
"That's your mistake."
She turned away again.
"I don't do things for free."
The words were light.
But they landed heavily.
Su Melling stood there, stunned.
"…You've changed."
Zhang Xiao Qi didn't respond.
Because that much was obvious.
---
"You're not wrong."
A calm voice entered from the side.
Zheng Meng Ying.
He had been standing there longer than expected.
Watching.
Analyzing.
His gaze was cold, sharp, almost dissecting.
"But people don't change this much without a reason."
Zhang Xiao Qi glanced at him briefly.
"And?"
"And I don't trust it."
Direct.
Blunt.
Exactly like him.
She smiled faintly.
"You don't have to."
"I won't."
There was no hesitation in his reply.
Zheng Meng Ying didn't like people who used influence to control others.
And Zhang Xiao Qi—
In his eyes—
Had always been that kind of person.
Whether she acted or not didn't change that.
---
"Well… this is interesting."
A new voice slipped into the conversation.
Gu Yichen.
He leaned casually against the wall, arms folded, watching them like it was entertainment.
His smile was easy.
Too easy.
"You didn't step in back there," he said, looking at Zhang Xiao Qi.
"That doesn't match your reputation."
Zhang Xiao Qi met his gaze.
"And what is my reputation?"
Gu Yichen chuckled softly.
"Someone who doesn't like losing control."
A pause.
Then—
"So why give it up?"
Zhang Xiao Qi's expression didn't change.
"I didn't give it up."
Her voice was calm.
Measured.
"I just chose not to use it."
That answer made him pause.
Just slightly.
---
Footsteps approached.
Light. Even.
Familiar.
Pei Ruoxi.
She stopped near them, her presence quiet but impossible to ignore.
For a moment, no one spoke.
Then she said simply,
"You're blocking the way."
Zhang Xiao Qi looked at her.
For a second too long.
It's not the first time she had said
"…Are we?"
Pei Ruoxi didn't answer immediately.
Her gaze settled on Xiao Qi.
Calm.
Clear.
Observant.
"Yes."
It wasn't about the hallway.
They both knew that.
Zhang Xiao Qi stepped aside.
Not yielding.
Just moving.
Pei Ruoxi walked past her.
Close enough to feel her presence—
But not touching.
Never touching.
As she passed, she spoke quietly,
"You're making yourself noticeable."
Zhang Xiao Qi smiled faintly.
"That's the point."
A pause.
Pei Ruoxi didn't stop walking.
"Then make sure you can handle it."
And just like that—
She was gone.
---
Silence lingered for a moment.
Then Gu Yichen exhaled lightly.
"…Yeah. Definitely interesting."
Zheng Meng Ying said nothing.
But his gaze remained on Zhang Xiao Qi.
Unmoving.
Unconvinced.
Zhang Xiao Qi didn't stay either.
She continued walking.
Unbothered.
Unhurried.
---
But this time—
Everyone was watching.
---
And for the first time—
She wasn't reacting to the story.
She was changing it.
Deliberately.