Chapter 46 The child on the rooftop longed to get closer to him. ...

The fight was chaotic and no winner was decided in the end. All three were injured, and Xing Lan and Qi Bo's parents were called in.

Qi Bo, with a bruised and swollen face, was carried to the infirmary by several male classmates. Xing Lan didn't want to see him there any longer, so she went to the rooftop of the school building alone.

Li Baidong kept his head down and remained silent, habitually following closely behind him.

This rooftop is very dilapidated and rarely visited. Xing Lan used to apply medicine to Li Baidong's injuries here, and she hid some gauze and medicine in a corner.

The weather was warm in the afternoon, with the blazing sun still shining overhead. Xing Lan decisively took off the shirt that had been completely torn during the fight, bent down slightly, and the long, shocking scar on her fair back was striking.

He bit his lower lip, turned his head to look at the wound on his back, frowned and hissed softly, enduring the pain to disinfect and bandage himself.

Because the wound was located on her back, it was very inconvenient to treat, and Xing Lan's movements were slow and her demeanor somewhat labored.

Li Baidong walked up to him, looking timid, and said cautiously, "Brother, let me help you?"

Xing Lan glanced at him but did not answer.

Li Baidong squatted down beside him and reached out to take the gentian violet from the cardboard box, but Xing Lan immediately slapped his hand away.

"Go wait over there." Xing Lan glanced casually at the mess of injuries on his face, her tone flat and devoid of any emotion. "I'll come over and apply the medicine for you after I stop the bleeding."

Li Baidong was very flustered. Although Xing Lan hadn't said anything yet, his expression was noticeably colder than before. He was afraid that Xing Lan was angry because of what had just happened and would stop liking him from then on.

Somewhat at a loss, he could only purse his lips and silently shrink into a corner of the rooftop, hugging his arms, staring down at the dusty ground, trembling with fear, squatting there without saying a word.

After a while, slow footsteps sounded in front of them.

"Why were you fighting just now?" Xing Lan skillfully poked Li Baidong's swollen eye with a cotton swab soaked in medicine, her eyes lowered as she calmly asked, "Didn't you say you hate fighting the most? Were you lying to me?"

Li Baidong looked up and quickly defended himself: "I didn't want to fight. He was the one who said..."

"What did he say?"

"..." Li Baidong was silent for a moment before stiffly speaking, uttering three words in a defiant manner, "He said you."

"Talking about me?" Xing Lan paused, casually raising an eyebrow. "What did he say about me?"

“He said you are…” Li Baidong, with his face swollen like a pig, stammered and hesitated for a long time, unable to say the word he had just heard to Xing Lan in its entirety.

"He said you are a god, a god..."

Xing Lan slowly put down the cotton swab in her hand and chuckled softly, "What, did he say I'm a god?"

"no……"

Seeing Li Baidong's troubled frown, looking like he was deeply troubled and unable to speak, Xing Lan stopped pressing the poor child for answers. She raised her hand and gently rubbed his head: "Alright, no matter what, don't fight next time, okay?"

"Aren't you a good kid? Fighting isn't something a good kid should do."

“But he said you…” Li Baidong raised his eyes slightly, looked at Xing Lan in front of him, made up his mind, and finally said, “He said you are a god… a lunatic.”

Xing Lan lowered her eyes, and paused slightly in her gesture of touching his head.

"He said I'm crazy?"

"Hmm..." Li Baidong's breathing quickened, he lowered his eyes and secretly clenched his fists.

After a long pause, Xing Lan gently curved her lips into a smile.

"So do you think I'm crazy?"

Li Baidong quickly shook his head and decisively denied it, saying, "Of course not!" Then, frowning, he muttered under his breath, "He's the one who's crazy. I think his whole family is crazy."

Even now, Li Baidong still hasn't vented all his resentment.

He was only thirteen years old, too small, and at a disadvantage in a fight. Not only did he lose the fight, but he also caused Xing Lan to be injured for no reason.

Li Baidong clenched his fists tightly, his nails digging deep into his palms.

He secretly vowed that no matter how many years passed, one day he would beat Qi Bo to a pulp and avenge himself and Xing Lan.

No matter how long it takes, one day.

"Alright, how old are you? Don't just swear at people."

After treating their wounds, Xing Lan clapped her hands hastily.

His body and hands were now covered in the strange smell of medicine, but Li Baidong found it very pleasant and wanted to get closer to him.

He sniffed hard, and after calming down, the tears he had been holding back finally overflowed from his narrow eyes, splashing into a few tiny droplets on the dusty ground beneath his feet.

"elder brother……"

"sorry."

"It's all my fault. I'm so useless. I caused you to get hurt too."

Li Baidong let out a low whimper and couldn't help but rush over and hug Xing Lan's waist. He buried his little black head in Xing Lan's chest in a clumsy manner, like a little dog begging for comfort from its owner after losing a fight.

Xing Lan looked at the child who had just been putting on a serious face and pretending to be mature, but now completely broke down and revealed his vulnerable true self. She reached out and pinched his ear comfortingly, and said softly, "Don't cry, you're all covered in tears, you're not handsome at all."

Li Baidong was most afraid that Xing Lan would think he wasn't handsome anymore, so he quickly raised his hand to wipe away his tears, bit his lip tightly, and held back from crying out loud.

Xing Lan looked at his lips, which had turned white from being bitten, and thought to herself, "This kid really loves to show off."

He quickly straightened Li Baidong's school uniform and casually complimented him, "Your junior high school uniforms are quite nice. I really like blue."

Li Baidong looked down at his clothes, then looked at Xing Lan with a puzzled expression, and carefully said, "Brother, but my school uniform doesn't have a blue one, it's pure green."

"Green?" Xing Lan narrowed her eyes slightly and said casually, "Isn't it blue? It looks blue to me."

Li Baidong looked bewildered and suddenly began to doubt his own existence.

Although he unconditionally believed every word Xing Lan said, he did remember that the school uniform order form at the beginning of the semester clearly stated: lake green summer uniform set.

Even the school badge on the chest of the uniform has a delicate lotus flower sewn on it, which matches the lake-like green color below perfectly. This design wouldn't be appropriate for a blue school uniform.

"So what color is your school uniform?" Xing Lan asked, patting Li Baidong on the shoulder as he seemed to be in a daze.

Li Baidong hesitated for a moment, then said, "Green."

Xing Lan nodded, her tone casual.

"You only need to know what color your clothes are. What others say or think is none of your business."

"Who you are or what color your clothes are won't change because of what others say, so you don't need to care about what others think."

He gently patted Li Baidong's cheek, his usually cool voice becoming very gentle and patient: "Do you understand, kid?"

Li Baidong looked up, seemingly understanding but not quite. In the strong sunlight on the rooftop, he saw Xing Lan's fair and delicate face, with a gentle smile on her lips.

Although she had two abrasions on her face and a faint bruise on her forehead, her face was still delicate and beautiful, with long eyelashes that did not cover her bright, dark pupils.

His heart suddenly started racing, as if it had turned into a little dog rampaging through his thin chest, unable to calm down.

He was young then, and all he knew was to stare blankly into Xing Lan's eyes, not daring to blink for even a second. Little did he know that this undercurrent, like an electric current, flowing through his body, was called liking someone.

As the two walked down from the rooftop, Xing Lan casually tossed Li Baidong a piece of candy.

Li Baidong held it in his hand for a long time, reluctant to eat it. Until Xing Lan turned around on the steps ahead and glanced at him slightly: "It'll melt if you don't eat it soon."

Li Baidong pursed his lips, carefully unwrapped the candy, put it in his mouth, and instantly grimaced.

It's so sour.

He instinctively wanted to spit it out, but remembering that it was given to him by Xing Lan, he forced himself to hold it in. He stood there, licking his teeth from the sourness, and even tears welled up in his eyes.

Xing Lan watched him from the shadowy corner, a slight smile playing on her lips.

-

Dining room.

Xing Lan wasn't very familiar with her classmates, so she sat alone in the corner of the private room, not saying much and not eating much. Except when everyone toasted the teacher, she stood up and said a blessing. She was practically invisible, as if she hadn't come at all.

Occasionally, a few people would ask about his recent situation, but he would always brush them off with a few words. After three years of being classmates, most of his classmates knew his personality and didn't force him to talk much.

Even though Xing Lan was rather reserved, the dinner was still quite lively overall. A group of old classmates chatted about their school days, reminiscing about their younger selves, complaining about the terrible food in the cafeteria, and joking about the couples who had dated back then.

When talking about student days, it's inevitable to mention the grades that were the most important thing at that time.

A female classmate smiled and said to Xing Lan, "Xing Lan, do you know? I was so envious of you in high school. Your grades were so good, unlike us, who stayed up all night studying and got dark circles under our eyes, and in the end we only got such low scores."

The girl who said this was the female classmate that Qi Bo had a crush on back then. She studied very hard and did well in the college entrance examination. After graduation, she rejected Qi Bo's confession and was admitted to her ideal university in another province.

Qi Bo snorted coldly and retorted disdainfully, "What's the use of good grades? In this day and age, the most important thing is whether you can make money. How many graduates from prestigious universities can't find jobs? In the end, they still have to work for entrepreneurs like me."

“Brother Qi is right, academic qualifications really don’t mean anything.” A male classmate chimed in, “Hey, Brother Qi, I heard your clothing business is quite successful? That’s impressive. Business is tough these days, it’s not easy to succeed in starting a business.”

Qi Bo tossed his hair triumphantly and said with a chuckle, "Oh, not at all, we're still a long way from true success. My current goal is for the company to go public successfully, to make our local brand a top global brand, and to strive to have foreigners wearing our clothes and carrying our bags in the future! Hahahahaha."

"Who'll carry an LV bag anymore? Everyone'll carry our BBV! Hahaha."

Immersed in his vision of a bright future, Qi Bo became increasingly happy and excited as he spoke.

He stood up, raised his glass to toast everyone, and said with a radiant smile, "Since everyone is here today, I'd like to share some good news in advance. Our store plans to open its third branch in Hengsheng Shopping Mall next month. As the saying goes, 'Three Yangs bring good fortune,' so please come and support us when you have time! Well then, I'll drink this first!"

To express his warm welcome, Qi Bo drank one cup after another until he could no longer maintain his balance and began to sway.

A boy next to him quickly helped him up: "Hey, Qi, you've had too much to drink! Are you alright?"

"N-nothing." Qi Bo waved his hand at him, his face flushed. "I was happy today, so what's wrong with me having a few more drinks? It's just... hiccup, I just need to pee a little."

"I'm going to the restroom. We'll drink again when I get back!"

A male classmate turned and glanced at him, seeing his exaggerated posture and how he almost bumped into a wall while walking, and shouted at him, "You can manage on your own? You really don't need anyone's help?"

"No need!" Qi Bo groped his way to the door of the private room, opened it, and muttered, "You guys keep eating, I'll be right there."

"Alright then, be careful when you walk." Seeing that he insisted on refusing, the male student who was about to get up sat back down in his seat and continued to chat and laugh with the person next to him.

However, no one expected that Qi Bo would not return until the dinner was almost over and the dishes on the table were almost completely eaten.

The group ate and chatted animatedly, gradually forgetting all about Qi Bo, who had just drunkenly gone to the restroom alone.

It was that same male classmate who had just casually mentioned him who suddenly remembered and, looking at the empty seat, asked in bewilderment, "Hey? Where's Qi? Didn't he go to the restroom? Why hasn't he come back yet?"

“Yes…” Hearing him say that, everyone belatedly realized, “It’s been so long, it’s really strange.”

"Wow, he just drank so much in one go, could something have happened to him?"

The male student stood up, looking towards the door, and patted the shoulder of the person next to him: "Xiao Yang, come with me to take a look?"

Xiao Yang nodded in agreement. He glanced at everyone and suggested, "Why don't we all go together? We've been eating for so long, it's good to get some fresh air."