Chapter 25

The military training for freshmen lasted a total of one week. He Xi never went to the playground on purpose, but he had to listen to He Xu's complaints every day after returning home.

"It's finally over! The countdown to escaping the sea of ​​suffering has begun!"

He walked in shouting, threw his hat on the sofa, and then slumped down next to He Xi in a nonchalant manner.

"Stay away from me."

He Xi couldn't stand his ruffian behavior, so he punched him and moved to the side.

"Lululu...I just won't do it, what can you do to me?"

The person in front of her was always asking for a beating. She closed her eyes to suppress her rising anger and picked up her phone to refresh the message.

"I met a new friend!"

She stared at the pictures and messages sent by Yang Jia for a long time without reacting.

"Xixi, do you want to come over? I'm at the Qing Bar in Mingde Lane right now."

What's going on? He Xi's brain suddenly short-circuited, and he was a little dazed looking at the photo of Zhuang Yufei smiling brightly.

"Hey He Xixi, what are you doing mysteriously?"

He Xu stared at her with a wicked smile, as if he was determined to find something from her expression.

"Get out of the way."

The buzzing sound in her ears made her extremely irritated, so she quickly stood up and walked out of the yard.

He Xu curled his lips at the sight and lazily plucked a grape from the fruit bowl and stuffed it into his mouth. "Tsk, who knows!" He spit out the grape skin with a grin, picked up his phone, and started playing a game.

He Xi walked out of the alley quickly and then his pace gradually slowed down.

She hesitated for a moment, then opened her phone and paused for a moment on the chat screen before deciding to call and explain.

"You shouldn't get involved."

A sudden voice came from behind her. She shuddered and turned around to see the boy half a step away.

The two haven't met since that day, but in this situation, He Xi is inexplicably less wary and resistant than before.

"How...how do you know what I'm going to do?"

"Don't you know that I am part of her plan?" Zhao Lin said, staring at the person in front of him with a self-deprecating smile.

She was nailed to the spot by his inexplicable words. Recalling Yang Jia's determined look, she opened her mouth but didn't know what to say.

"Whether it was four years ago or now, all you have to do is...stay away from them."

After the words were spoken, there was a moment of silence.

Zhao Lin stared at her without blinking, his dark eyes reminding He Xi of the sketchbook she saw in his bedroom that day. He had captured the subtle details of her expression just right.

She thought he really had the ability to make people fear him.

"Why should I listen to you?"

He Xi met his gaze, tilting her head back as she spoke each word with a serious expression. The two of them were so close, she could see a hint of embarrassment gradually forming in his eyes.

She wasn't surprised that he knew about the previous incident, but she didn't understand why he was bringing it up now. She ignored him, changed her mind, and headed towards Mingde Lane.

Zhao Lin watched her walk for a long distance, and finally couldn't help but quickly stepped forward and pulled her back.

"Do you think she transferred to another school because of Tan Zheng's bullying? Perhaps the truth is far more cruel than you know."

He held his cell phone in front of her. Yang Jia in the photos in the album seemed like a different person. Her bold hair color and exaggerated clothes all showed the girl's rebelliousness.

He Xi pursed her lips and scrolled back until her eyes fixed on the image of Tan Zheng putting her arm around a girl.

"Have you never doubted where Tan Zheng got the photos she distributed?"

She bit her lips tightly, trying hard to suppress the tears in her eyes.

The second year of junior high was a turbulent time for He Xi. First, he was frequently harassed by several boys from other classes after school. Not long after, Tan Zheng came to the classroom during recess and verbally humiliated him.

That period was like a nightmare. She thought it would pass if she endured it, but who knew that the gang would become more and more violent and even involved Yang Jia.

"I lost my phone."

Seeing the person in front of him about to cry, Zhao Lin couldn't bear to say anything more. He reached out and pulled her sleeve to lead her back.

He Xi's feet felt weak, and her head felt like someone had slapped her. It hurt dully, and the piercing sound in her ears made her feel so uncomfortable that she wanted to die.

She let the people around her do what they did until she was pushed into a seat by a strong force.

"She willingly went along with the corrupt, and you shouldn't be kept in the dark."

"How do you know this?"

He Xi held the warm cup in both hands and looked up into Zhao Lin's eyes.

"Taking risks with one's own body, haven't you seen it?"

He spoke a little frivolously, and the two looked at each other. She recalled the times when she had caught him doing something "good", and her face couldn't help but feel hot.

It was the first time they sat together calmly, but they were all silent.

He Xi stirred the coffee in his hand and stared at the ripples in the cup in a trance.

The person opposite her raised his hand to support his chin and watched her movements silently, as if they were very interesting.

*

He Xi has been in a bad state recently and his monthly exam results are not very good, especially in math.

Before school was over on the weekend, the math teacher called her to the office for a private talk, and gave her earnest advice on everything from learning methods to learning attitudes.

She lowered her head and listened carefully. She had a feeling that it was almost over when someone shouted "report" and knocked on the door.

Looking up, she saw Jiang Yue coming in with an exercise book, and she carefully moved aside.

"Okay, you guys go back."

The teacher opened the booklet he had just placed on the table and waved at the two of them.

He Xi started walking towards the classroom almost as soon as she finished speaking, but someone took bigger steps than her.

"Let's go together after school." Jiang Yue stepped in front of her.

"Sorry, I'm busy."

"Did something happen? I feel like you've been avoiding me lately."

He Xi staggered as he took a step forward, and then continued to walk back calmly.

"fine."

Jiang Yue stubbornly stopped her and said, "Let me help you sort out your math test paper. You missed a few questions this time."

He stared at He Xi's expression, hoping to see some different emotions in her eyes.

"The teacher has already explained it, I will summarize it myself."

The two men were in a stalemate in front of the corridor. He Xi felt a warm feeling in his heart when he saw the frown on the man in front of him.

Since junior high, she'd had almost no friends besides Xiang Yuzhi, so she was genuinely happy to see Jiang Yue at the start of high school. But she was very different from when she was little, burying herself in her studies, not talking much... and not paying much attention to herself.

It was not until the evening after self-study that Jiang Yue rushed through the crowd and dragged her out of the teaching building, and later took her to the hospital. He Xi was really grateful to him.

But she didn't want to cause him any harm because of herself.

She wasn't stupid. She knew all too well how many times Zhuang Yufei had looked at her with hostility. Knowing that this person was involved with Tan Zheng, she didn't want to risk the one in ten thousand chance.

Therefore, returning the relationship with Jiang Yue to the way it was before should be the best choice.

"Then I'll lend you my notes. If you have any questions, feel free to ask me."

Jiang Yue stuffed the notebook into her arms and walked away quickly without waiting for anyone to react.