Shen Shuang gave a helpless grunt and immediately fired her next question: "Where do you live?"
Jiang Cheng answered unhurriedly, "In the Rear Sea area."
At that, Shen Shuang let out an exaggerated gasp of envy. "Wow! That's prime real estate."
She pressed on. "Judging from your accent you're not a local, yet your plates are Beijing and you live in Rear Sea—so why are you off to Demon City for college?"
Jiang Cheng came clean. "I'm not from Beijing; this is my first time here. The car and the house are both from my grandpa."
His explanation finally let Shen Shuang piece the whole puzzle together.
So Jiang Cheng wasn't a Beijinger—he didn't have the slightest local accent.
But his grandfather must be a native of the capital.
In the capital's social circles, the gap between tiers is enormous.
And like people anywhere, the locals have an inborn exclusiveness; their scorn for outsiders is barely disguised.
Among Beijing's Second-generation rich, this attitude is even more pronounced.
Even if a tycoon's kid from another province is stronger, locals only choose not to provoke them.
Going out of their way to befriend or hang out with such people is as rare as phoenix feathers.
After all, Beijing's own web of big and small cliques is already enough for them.
Besides, this is Beijing—what provincial network could ever trump the capital's?
So most insiders never bother to branch out to other regions.
Yet now it seemed that, although Jiang Cheng was from elsewhere, his grandfather wielded serious clout in Beijing.
Still, perhaps because of her personality, Shen Shuang had been deliberately polite when they first met.
But as time passed and she learned his background, she relaxed and spoke normally.
As a Beijing girl, Shen Shuang was always direct.
She said bluntly, "No wonder you offered us a ride—you don't know Beijing at all. Our Dance Academy is already outside the Third Ring, nowhere near your place."
Jiang Cheng couldn't help laughing.
He glanced at her Character Scanning System: her favorability value toward him was only 78. Jiang Churan's was even lower at 60.
Still, compared with girls who start at 80 or 90, these two were refreshingly normal.
They'd only known each other three hours, after all.
In truth, Shen Shuang's 78-point score existed because Jiang Cheng wasn't on her radar.
As a local, her family was fairly well-off.
Though not on the level of a conglomerate heir like Wang Congcong, she was far above ordinary folk.
Even so, she knew her background couldn't compare with that tier.
Yet asking her to throw away her pride and curry favor like those Internet Celebrity girls tonight was impossible.
With her family's status she could marry an equal match in the future.
There was no need for messy games.
Thus, when she hung out with Wang Congcong and company, she never fawned or schemed; she kept her dignity and bottom line.
Play when appropriate, refuse when necessary.
That's why she'd turned Wang Congcong down the moment they met in the bar.
Jiang Cheng figured her 78-point score stemmed largely from sensing he wasn't interested in her, so she'd ruled out romance.
Because of that, raising the score would probably be hard.
As for Jiang Churan's favorability, it was absurdly low.
A man whose looks and bankroll were both maxed out held no attraction for her?
Honestly, such a girl either had rock-solid principles, had been badly burned, or had physical issues.
Of course, Jiang Cheng hoped she was the first type.
Though he could easily splash cash on some second-hand model or influencer to blow off steam,
that was only momentary pleasure; it couldn't fill the real void inside.
Occasional bites were fine, but a steady diet would be hard to swallow.
At his age he still believed in words like beauty and butterflies.
Especially the journey of exploring a fruit's blush with a girl he admired—wasn't that worth chasing?
Jiang Cheng shook his head. "It's not about the route. It's nearly 1 a.m. You said yourself Chu Ran is a top dancer—how could I let her go home alone?"
Shen Shuang drawled, "All right, spare me. I shouldn't be in this car—I should be under it."
At that, the quiet Jiang Churan couldn't hold back.
"Sister Shuang, he's just using me as cover—don't fall for it."
Yet even as she spoke, her favorability ticked up another five points.
Jiang Churan: "Favorability +5!"
Seeing the score rise to 65, Jiang Cheng's lips curved in a faint, almost invisible smile.
Victory always favors the scumbag or scumbagette who best exploits human nature's gaps.
best friends may seem inseparable, but girl-on-girl competition is an instinct.
Praise a girl as pretty and she's pleased;
praise her as prettier than the girl beside her and the effect doubles.
Shen Shuang clicked her tongue in sudden insight and glanced at Jiang Cheng. "You're right—we almost fell for it. Sisters of one mind, that's us."
Under their twin stares, which felt like a scumbag trial, Jiang Cheng could only roll his eyes.