Chapter 26 is exactly the same as when I was touching tadpoles...
From the first moment Ji Jingyu saw Jiang Sui, she knew she was unhappy.
Even though she greeted him as usual when she left.
As soon as they got on the bus, Jiang Sui leaned on Xia Fan's shoulder.
Xia Fan patted her head and asked with concern, "Sui Sui, are you feeling unwell?"
Jiang Sui shook her head, "It's nothing, I just didn't sleep well last night."
"Then you go to sleep. I'll wake you up when we get to school."
"Mmm." Jiang Sui gently nuzzled Xia Fan's shoulder, as if trying to hide herself away.
Xia Fan looked up and met Ji Jingyu's gaze.
He didn't know when he turned around, and the worry in his eyes hadn't even had time to disappear when Xia Fan caught him.
"Brother Ji," Xia Fan called out to him, "why don't you want to touch Sui Sui? I can't tell if she's sick."
Xia Fan had just touched Jiang Sui's forehead, but unlike Gu Ci, she wasn't as experienced and couldn't immediately tell if the other person had a fever.
A cool touch landed on Jiang Sui's forehead, and the other person seemed worried, pressing it several times.
"I don't have a fever, I'm not sick, I'm just a little sleepy."
Jiang Sui opened her eyes listlessly, her long eyelashes gently brushing against Ji Jingyu's hand, bringing an indescribable tingling sensation.
"Hmm." Ji Jingyu withdrew her hand and didn't ask any more questions.
But he unconsciously clenched his hands on his lap.
—
Jiang Sui spent the whole day slumped over her seat, her beautiful shoulder blades creating a lovely curve in her school uniform.
Ji Jingyu had no interest in appreciating her, because Jiang Sui looked too much like a sick kitten, listless and without any energy.
"Is it a stomachache?" He lowered his voice and cautiously voiced his guess.
Jiang Sui slowly opened her eyes.
Because of the redness at the corners of her eyes, she looked at people with an inexplicable air of grievance.
She seemed a little confused, blinking several times before she understood what Ji Jingyu meant.
"If it really is a stomachache," she said, resting her chin on her hands as she looked at Ji Jingyu, her lowered eyelashes trembling slightly, "what are you going to do?"
Although boys have taken sex education classes in junior high school and know that menstruation is a normal thing for girls, talking about it still carries a bit of an awkwardness.
Ji Jingyu lowered her dark eyes and looked intently at Jiang Sui. Her gentle voice flowed in the small space, "The school supermarket should have brown sugar ginger tea. I looked it up online and it said that massaging the Hegu acupoint between the index finger and thumb can also relieve pain."
Fearing that Jiang Sui wouldn't be able to find the spot, Ji Jingyu demonstrated with her own hand, pointing out the acupoint to her, "It's said that massaging this spot will make you feel much better."
Finally, he said, "If the pain is really bad, I'll help you ask for leave and we'll go to the infirmary."
Jiang Sui, who had expected to hear "drink more hot water," finally showed her first smile of the day.
"It's not a stomachache," she said, lying back down. "It's just that I'm in a bad mood."
Can you tell me about it?
Ji Jingyu rarely had such a helpless moment.
Jiang Sui's low mood came for no reason. Everything was normal when they parted last night. This feeling of being completely confused made him feel frustrated.
"I don't want to talk about it."
Jiang Sui had often shown a strong dependence on Ji Jingyu, but this was the first time she had so clearly rejected him.
The surroundings were unusually quiet.
Jiang Sui couldn't help but turn her head to look at Ji Jingyu.
Ji Jingyu was staring intently at her, his dark pupils seemingly containing a continuous galaxy, making Jiang Sui feel as if he would indulge all her behavior.
After a long eye contact with him, Jiang Sui finally gave in, saying, "I don't want to talk about it now."
Aside from Ji Jingyu, she really couldn't find another person in Xunning with whom she could confide without reservation.
"Okay." Ji Jingyu nodded slightly. "I'm available anytime."
—
"Ji Jingyu".
Jiang Sui stood at the door but didn't use her key to unlock it. Instead, she called his name softly.
"Um?"
Are you in a hurry to get home?
No rush.
"Talk to me for a while, I don't want to be alone."
Su Yinian hadn't returned yet; the house was empty, and she was all alone.
Jiang Sui doesn't like it.
Especially today.
"good."
But Ji Jingyu still went home first.
As soon as he entered the house, Tadpole jumped down from the cat tree and begged to play with him.
“Your sister is in a bad mood today, why don’t you go and keep her company?” Ji Jingyu squatted down and rubbed its little head. “If you cheer her up, I’ll give you a reward when we get home.”
The tadpole tilted its head, looking at Ji Jingyu, its large amber eyes clearly reflecting his image. "Meow~"
When Ji Jingyu reappeared, he was carrying a big, chubby orange cat with a round head.
As soon as the tadpole saw Jiang Sui, it immediately jumped down from Ji Jingyu's arms.
The little guy's beautiful big tail stood upright, its snow-white tail tip swaying slightly from side to side. It meowed around Jiang Sui's legs, occasionally scratching her trouser leg with its little paws, as if asking for a hug.
"Tadpole." Jiang Sui called the kitten's name affectionately, bent down to pick it up, and kept kissing its little forehead. "Did you miss me?"
"Meow meow meow~"
"Yes, I miss you too."
The person and the cat were very affectionate.
It made Ji Jingyu seem a bit superfluous. "If your brother hadn't disagreed, I would have taken you to school."
As she spoke, Jiang Sui glanced back at Ji Jingyu, as if she really blamed him for stopping her.
Jiang Sui complained, but she looked much better than she had during the day.
Ji Jingyu breathed a barely perceptible sigh of relief.
—
Neither Jiang Sui's house nor his house was a suitable place for chatting.
After thinking for a moment, Ji Jingyu led Jiang Sui to the top floor, where there was a spacious open-air platform with long tables and chairs.
On pleasant evenings, they often gather here.
At this moment, this place has become a private and safe place.
The moon hangs high in the night sky, its light serene and gentle, with countless stars twinkling around it, foreshadowing another bright and sunny day tomorrow.
The night breeze carried the sound of air conditioner units turning on, but it wasn't noisy or bustling; instead, it had a tranquil quality that transcended worldly concerns.
Jiang Sui sat in a chair, with Tadpole obediently lying on her lap. The two of them intently looked down at the small town of Xunning.
"Jiang Sui".
In the open space, Ji Jingyu's originally deep and clear voice inexplicably gained a touch of doting and languidness.
But it was quickly blown away by the evening breeze.
Jiang Sui was so close that she didn't even have time to notice the anomaly.
"Um?"
"I have a gift for you."
"Gift?"
Jiang Sui, holding the tadpole, couldn't help but move closer to him. Her eyes, under the warm light, were clear and bright as if they were filled with water, and her beautiful face was filled with doubt because of his words.
Ji Jingyu's fair palm faced upwards, upon which lay a small sachet.
The design features a blue and white color scheme, with matching tassels hanging from the bottom.
Jiang Sui stared curiously at the small thing in Ji Jingyu's palm. "What is this?"
"Grandma made you a mosquito repellent sachet. You can hang it on your schoolbag so you won't have to worry about being bitten by mosquitoes when you pass by that alley."
Once bitten by a mosquito, you'll be afraid of alleyways for ten years.
Since then, every time Jiang Sui passes through that alley, she wishes she could become a sprint champion.
Jiang Sui took the sachet, and before she even got close, she could smell a scent that was a mixture of mugwort and mint.
"This smells so good."
She held the sachet to her nose and smelled it for a while before putting it down.
When the tadpole saw the swaying tassel, it instinctively reached out its claws to touch it, but Jiang Sui quickly put the sachet into her schoolbag.
She reached out and pointed at the tadpole's tiny claws, saying childishly, "These are mine, you can't play with them."
Seeing this, Ji Jingyu curled her thin lips and said, "The Chinese herbs in the sachet can be replaced. The effects will last for about two to three weeks. I will replace them with new ones after that time."
"Please thank Grandma Ji for me." She paused, then continued, "And thank Brother Ji too."
Why thank me?
Jiang Sui tilted her head to look at him, "If you hadn't told Grandma Ji, she definitely wouldn't have known about this, and she wouldn't have thought of making me a sachet, so I should also thank Brother Ji."
"I'm glad you like it."
"I absolutely love it."
Fearing that Ji Jingyu wouldn't believe her, she nodded heavily as she spoke.
“Now…” Ji Jingyu suddenly leaned down, the distance between the two getting closer and closer, his cold breath hitting Jiang Sui’s ear.
She instinctively hugged the tadpole in her arms tighter, but never thought of standing up and getting away from Ji Jingyu.
Can you tell me why you're unhappy?
Ji Jingyu finished speaking the second half of the sentence very slowly, and looked at Jiang Sui with restrained and gentle eyes.
Jiang Sui blinked, and after a while, nodded.
She had originally planned to tell Ji Jingyu.
“I heard my parents arguing last night.”
She choked back tears, "Because of me."
—
Su Yinian thought Jiang Sui was asleep.
Otherwise, she wouldn't have made that call, much less let herself lose control of her emotions.
Even though she had made up her mind to sever ties with her ex-husband, Su Yinian still had to dial the number that she remembered perfectly no matter how many years had passed, all for the sake of Jiang Sui.
"Year after year!"
Jiang Yunzhao's tone was filled with disbelief and ecstasy. Apart from the initial address, he didn't dare to speak anymore.
He feared that this was yet another luxurious, fleeting dream.
For some reason, upon hearing Jiang Yunzhao's voice, Su Yinian could no longer suppress his anger.
"Jiang Yunzhao, how exactly have you been educating your children all these years?!"
Before going to bed, Su Yinian had a brief conversation with Jiang Sui.
She knew that Jiang Sui had done poorly on the mock exam, so she originally went to comfort her. However, Jiang Sui's indifferent attitude towards studying greatly disappointed her.
Su Yinian suppressed his emotions, neither lecturing Jiang Sui nor getting angry at her. He simply said "Goodnight" to her and left her room.
But how could Jiang Sui not notice her abnormality?
After tossing and turning and failing to fall asleep, Jiang Sui got up to go to the living room for a drink of water, but unexpectedly heard Su Yinian's voice.
The living room lights were off.
Su Yinian sat on the sofa, the silvery moonlight shining on her through the large glass window of the balcony.
Jiang Sui didn't know what her father said on the other end of the phone. She only knew that her mother replied to her father in a tone that could be described as disgust, "Is your so-called 'as long as you're happy' just like you, being ignorant and incompetent, like a piece of trash when someone trips you up, completely powerless and at the mercy of others?"
Su Yinian's words deeply hurt Jiang Sui's heart. She quietly closed her bedroom door, no longer daring to eavesdrop.
—
Jiang Sui buried her face in her palms, stubbornly refusing to let Ji Jingyu see her disheveled expression.
Her voice was muffled and sad, "I'm not the child my mother wanted at all. She wanted a child as outstanding as you."
She should have noticed it on her first day in Xunning.
After all, Su Yinian liked and trusted Ji Jingyu so much.
As the person Jiang Sui said was more favored by Su Yinian, a ripple crossed Ji Jingyu's originally calm face.
After thinking for a moment, he said to Jiang Sui, "I think what Teacher Su really cares about is not your grades, but that she doesn't want you to waste your time. She hopes that you can have the ability to protect yourself and not repeat the mistakes of the previous generation. Of course, your father's idea is not wrong either, but their positions are different, so their expectations for you are also different."
If he were Jiang Yunzhao, he would also hope that Jiang Sui could always be a carefree little princess.
"Really?" Jiang Sui suddenly looked up at Ji Jingyu, her eyes filled with tears, and she bit her lower lip hard to keep from crying.
“It’s true.” Ji Jingyu reached out and patted Jiang Sui’s head. “There’s a saying, ‘The onlooker sees more of the game than the player.’ As an onlooker, I can feel that Teacher Su loves you very much.”
His voice was deep and magnetic, as gentle as the moonlight streaming down.
Jiang Sui looked at him and gradually felt at ease.
“I believe you, but my dad is really amazing. He’s not a good-for-nothing.”
To Jiang Sui, Jiang Yunzhao is the most amazing person in the world, and she doesn't want anyone to misunderstand him or look down on him.
“I know.” Ji Jingyu nodded in agreement. “But Teacher Su doesn’t know that they have been separated for so many years, so don’t take what she said to heart.”
Changing Su Yinian's opinion of Jiang Yunzhao might not be easy, but Jiang Sui knew how to make Su Yinian happy.
Since Su Yinian wanted a child with excellent grades, she would try her best to be a good child. However, improving grades is not like buying something, which can be easily obtained as long as you have money.
"Brother Ji, can you tutor me?" Jiang Sui's face showed a hint of unease. "I can pay you for the tutoring."
Ji Jingyu instantly understood Jiang Sui's meaning, and he replied succinctly, "Yes, no need."
Jiang Sui was self-aware; Ji Jingyu's good grades did not mean she could take his private time for granted.
Therefore, Jiang Sui was still trying to persuade him, "Tutoring me will probably take up a lot of your time..."
Ji Jingyu lowered his eyes slightly, a faint smile appearing on his handsome face. "Tutoring you is a process of repeatedly reviewing the knowledge points, which is also beneficial to me, so it's a win-win situation. You don't need to feel embarrassed."
Seeing that Jiang Sui wanted to say something more, he continued, "If you pay me, we'll have an employer-employee relationship, which will put a lot of pressure on me. Besides, it's normal for friends to help each other, unless you don't consider me a friend."
In the end, Jiang Sui was naturally the one who was persuaded.
"It's getting late, let's go back."
"good."
Jiang Sui followed him downstairs, carrying tadpoles.
Suddenly, she stopped in her tracks.
"Ji Jingyu".
Why aren't you calling me Brother Ji anymore?
Ji Jingyu stopped in her tracks. "What's wrong?"
"Did you just mistake me for a tadpole? The way you touched my head was exactly the same as when you touch a tadpole."
Jiang belatedly asked him.
Ji Jingyu: "..."
—
The Ji family's living room.
Grandma Ji discovered that the sachet she made for Jiang Sui was still sitting properly on the table, but the blue and white sachet that Ji Jingyu had copied was missing.
"Didn't you say you were going to give the sachet I made to Sui Sui? Did Xiao Jing take the wrong one?"
Grandma Ji murmured to herself.
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