Prince charming, your persona has collapsed!
Chapter 854 - 353 Qi People's Fortune Progress +1_2

At that moment, Zheng Yanyan's phone rang.

When Zheng Yanyan saw the caller ID, she immediately panicked and glanced at Su Qing, who was sulking nearby. Su Qing didn't understand why Zheng Yanyan was looking at her, but she acted all high-and-mighty and snorted.

Zheng Yanyan bit her lip lightly, knowing it was absolutely impossible to ask Su Qing for help now.

So, she decided to go to the balcony to answer the call on her own.

Honestly, from the expression Zheng Yanyan had while taking the call, Zhou Yuwen and Su Qing were both quite curious.

After Zheng Yanyan went to the balcony, Su Qing even walked over to Zhou Yuwen and quietly asked, "Whose call is that?"

Zhou Yuwen replied, "How would I know?"

After eavesdropping for a while, they finally figured out—it was Zheng Yanyan's mother calling.

From their conversation, they learned that Zheng Yanyan had indeed snuck out of her house without her family's knowledge. She was bold enough to claim that she was staying overnight at a high school friend's house and would return in a couple of days.

But then, Zheng Yanyan's mother wanted to be polite and suggested she would reach out to the friend's family as a courtesy.

When both parents connected, they discovered that none of this was true.

At this point, Mrs. Zheng's face was extremely grim. With a cold tone, she demanded on the phone, "Where exactly are you?!"

Now Zheng Yanyan was panicking inside, explaining softly, "I went to a college roommate's hometown to hang out."

"Xu Huai?"

"The Xu Huai that's over a thousand miles away from here?"

Mrs. Zheng insisted, "That doesn't add up. If you really went, why are you hiding it from your father and me?"

"Are you dating someone?"

"No! I'm not!" It wasn't that Zheng Yanyan didn't want to admit it, but since she and Zhou Yuwen were technically broken up at the moment, if her mom found out she not only had a boyfriend but also spent the New Year's holiday at his house, she'd definitely get in the car with her dad and drive over to bring her back.

If that happened, she'd be utterly humiliated.

So there was no way Zheng Yanyan could admit it.

She insisted, "I'm just staying at my college roommate's house! Really."

"Why would I lie to you?"

Mrs. Zheng's voice remained low as she said, "Then let me talk to your friend."

"She's… in the shower. It's inconvenient now." Zheng Yanyan stammered.

Zhou Yuwen and Su Qing couldn't hear Mrs. Zheng's voice, but they could piece together most of it from what Zheng Yanyan was saying.

Su Qing, standing beside Zhou Yuwen with her arms crossed, even had a smug look on her face, as if enjoying the drama.

Zhou Yuwen, however, lightly slapped her on the butt, gesturing for her to go help.

Su Qing immediately shook her head, refusing outright.

She whispered to Zhou Yuwen, "Let her get busted and driven away."

Zhou Yuwen scolded, "Stop messing around."

"Go help her out. Didn't you need her help earlier?"

Previously, Su Qing had been afraid that Zheng Yanyan might spill the beans at Zhou Yuwen's house, but now there was an opportunity. If Su Qing helped Zheng Yanyan, she could temporarily get Zheng Yanyan to keep quiet about her and Zhou Yuwen.

But Su Qing argued instead, "Just drive her away, then there'd be no risk of exposure."

Zhou Yuwen wasn't happy with this response and told her not to act so cruelly.

"If you don't help her, what will she do when she goes back?"

A girl running away from home for two days, with no plausible excuse, would surely raise her parents' suspicions.

Zhou Yuwen said, "If you don't help, then I'll have no choice but to step in myself."

"I'll tell her parents I'm her boyfriend, and then I'll have to take responsibility for her afterward." Zhou Yuwen sat there, looking seriously at Su Qing.

Su Qing, hearing this, immediately panicked a little.

"Are you going or not?" Zhou Yuwen asked.

Su Qing hesitated.

Seeing this, Zhou Yuwen didn't hold back anymore and stood up, ready to step in.

"Don't!"

At the last moment, Su Qing finally relented.

She cast a grudging glare at Zhou Yuwen.

"Humph!"

Then, pouting angrily, she walked over.

At that moment, Zheng Yanyan was overwhelmed, busy explaining her whereabouts to no avail. No matter what she said, her mom simply wouldn't believe her.

Mrs. Zheng said, "If your friend is in the shower, then wait until she's done and have her call us."

"Zheng Yanyan, I'm giving you one last chance. Where are you right now? Don't force me to contact your school." Mrs. Zheng was genuinely furious now. Calling her daughter by her full name, she made it clear—if Zheng Yanyan didn't clarify, she would call the student counselor and ask her roommates one by one.

"I!" Hearing this, Zheng Yanyan's nose stung, knowing her mom was absolutely capable of doing just that.

Thankfully, Su Qing showed up at this moment.

Seeing Zheng Yanyan's anxious state, she reached out her small hand and motioned for the phone.

Looking at Su Qing's confident demeanor, truthfully, Zheng Yanyan wasn't sure if she could trust her.

But in this moment of crisis…

Seeing Zheng Yanyan still hesitating, Su Qing didn't waste time. She grabbed the phone directly.

"Hello, Auntie! I'm Yanyan's roommate. Sorry, I was just in the shower," Su Qing quickly adjusted her tone.

On the other side of the line, Mrs. Zheng had built up a lot of anger already, keeping her tone icy until Su Qing spoke. Only then did her voice soften slightly: "Oh, Yanyan's roommate? And you are?"

"I'm Su Qing."

"Oh. Yanyan has mentioned you before."

Her tone softened further, and she asked Su Qing, "Is Yanyan at your house right now?"

Su Qing maintained a friendly tone, saying yes repeatedly.

This, however, made Zheng Yanyan incredibly nervous.

Honestly, watching Su Qing talk on the phone, Zheng Yanyan's small hands were clenched tight, unable to relax for even a second.

Especially when Su Qing said, "You'd like to video call me?"

At that moment, Zheng Yanyan's heart jumped into her throat.