Ruan Bei went to school with the injury on his face, and was surrounded by his classmates.
People wouldn't believe he was fighting, perhaps because he had been protected and pampered by his older sister and childhood friend since he was a child. Young Ruan Bei was gentle and simple-minded, and he didn't even swear, let alone fight with others.
Since he had saved Song Jiaxi, he didn't even want to mention it, so he made up an excuse, saying that he had fallen accidentally.
He would rather his classmates laugh at him than have anything to do with Song Jiaxi again.
After his sister arrived at school that day, she sent him a message to let him know she was safe. He then made a point of thanking Yin Zhuo.
The next day, Yin Zhuo brought him a bottle of medicinal wine. At that time, Ruan Bei was still at school, and it was Ruan's mother who received it.
When Ruan Bei returned home, he was surprised to find that his mother called Yin Zhuo "Little Zhuo" affectionately, clearly having a very good impression of him.
Besides the bottle of medicinal wine, Yin Zhuo also brought gifts from Madam Ran.
None of them were expensive items; they were the family nanny's specialty snacks, incense to help with sleep, crystal hair clips for young girls, and a home-use auxiliary therapy device for treating lumbar disc herniation—these were specially prepared after Ruan Bei casually mentioned that Ruan's father had some problems with his lumbar spine.
Regardless of their monetary value, these gifts were clearly made with great care. If an expensive gift had been given directly, Mrs. Ruan would have refused it without hesitation, but these items clearly contained the giver's good intentions.
Ruan Bei wasn't there at the time, and Yin Zhuo said many good things about him. For the Ruan couple, being praised was nothing; it was praising their child that made them happy.
Yin Zhuo had accepted a mission before he came. Ran Yusheng wanted to befriend Ruan Bei and hoped that he could help take care of his wife after he left.
So, at the employer's behest, Yin Zhuo casually mentioned that the Ran family had no children, and that Mrs. Ran took an instant liking to Ruan Bei, adding that he and Mr. Ran looked somewhat alike when they were young.
Through both explicit and implicit suggestions, Ruan's mother finally understood Yin Zhuo's meaning.
So this wealthy lady has taken a liking to their son, Xiao Bei! She wants to adopt him as a son. No wonder she gave him a watch on their first meeting, and now she's sent another gift.
My own child is indeed lovable.
Mrs. Ruan was secretly pleased, thinking that Yin Zhuo and that Mrs. Ran were really good at judging people.
However, the two families are quite different in terms of financial situation, and they don't know each other's circumstances. Also, they haven't asked Ruan Bei's opinion.
In the end, Mrs. Ruan didn't give a definitive answer. She only said that since they were destined to be together, they should treat each other as close friends for now. If fate brought them together in the future and both sides agreed, then they could discuss the future.
Having achieved his basic objective, Yin Zhuo happily took his leave and returned to report.
When Ruan Bei returned, he learned about the situation from his mother. He felt that the Ran family was indeed a kind family. He had only helped with a small favor, but they had been thinking about it ever since.
For the next week, Madam Ran was busy accompanying Ran Yusheng through his final moments; the two, one human and one ghost, were unwilling to be separated for even a moment.
With no distractions, Ruan Bei focused all his attention on his studies.
His process of relearning was smooth in some ways, but of course there were also difficulties.
Some simpler concepts can be picked up by reviewing them and doing more practice problems. However, more difficult concepts definitely require a teacher's guidance and explanation.
Unlike a few years later, online video courses were not readily available at that time, and the software for learning was not yet fully developed.
Sometimes when I encounter a problem I can't solve, I want to ask the teacher for help, but he's still recalling and reviewing previous lessons. Once or twice is fine, but if it happens too often, the teacher will find it strange.
Ruan Bei thought about hiring a tutor. He was rich now, and he had earned two bundles of pocket money in exchange for calling someone "auntie." He secretly counted them several times under his blanket, and they amounted to 100,000 yuan.
Find a tutor who can provide weekend tutoring; he can teach all day and help as much as he can.
"I wish I had a personal tutor who could answer my questions anytime, anywhere. I also want someone who can point out anything I don't understand!"
In order to find a suitable tutor, Ruan Bei even asked his sister for advice.
He had considered attending tutoring institutions before, but those are all cram schools. His situation is quite special; he doesn't have a specific weakness or a weakness in any subject. Attending classes would be a waste of time and inefficient.
Therefore, it is best to find a private tutor. In terms of cost-effectiveness, it is most suitable to find a college student majoring in science and engineering, as the time is flexible and the price is not too expensive.
He can accumulate the difficulties he encounters during the week and solve them all at once on the weekend.
Ruan Bei asked on behalf of a classmate, and Ruan Xi, always concerned about her younger brother's affairs, immediately helped to find out more.
As for why he didn't get tutoring from his sister, Ruan Xi was a liberal arts student who was terrible at physics and chemistry. After the subject selection, his ranking in the grade suddenly soared by several hundred points.
I can still help Ruan Bei with his English, but I really can't help with his science subjects.
However, this week is definitely out of the question. Ruan Bei remembers that Ran Yusheng's time is approaching. No matter what happens, he will definitely go and see Uncle Ran off.
He had already arranged with Yin Zhuo that he would come to pick him up.
Ruan Bei didn't wait for Yin Zhuo. On Saturday, he met Madam Ran at the school gate.
However, after only a few days, Madam Ran's complexion had deteriorated significantly; her face was pale, and her lips were dull and even had an unhealthy bluish-purple tinge.
Her eyes were red and swollen, and even with careful grooming, her haggard appearance was still evident.
Ruan Bei called his mother and said that something came up at noon, so he would stay at school for lunch. Then he and Mrs. Ran went to a private room in a restaurant to talk.
"Uncle Ran, he..."
"Yusheng left last night."
Madam Ran forced a smile, but it was only a half-hearted one: "I knew he was leaving. I was terrified all day yesterday, and I wished I could just slit my throat and go with him."
Ruan Bei was so frightened that her mind went blank. She said anxiously, "Aunt Ran, please don't do anything foolish! Uncle Ran would be so heartbroken if he knew!"
"Hey, don't worry, I won't commit suicide."
Madam Ran wiped her face and covered her eyes with her hand: "Yusheng said that he saw a ghost who committed suicide and dared not be reincarnated, saying that he would be punished. I am not afraid of being punished, but I still want to ask Yusheng for a next life, for all eternity. If I am punished to be an animal, how can I continue my good relationship with Yusheng?"
This was the first time Ruan Bei had heard of such a thing. He figured Ran Yusheng knew he was afraid of ghosts, so he hadn't told him. Or perhaps he had simply made it up to deceive his wife, hoping she would live on and not take her own life.
However, Ruan Bei felt that it sounded somewhat real, so he decided to take it as a true story for the time being.
Madam Ran was probably too heartbroken and had no one to talk to, so she ignored Ruan Bei's opinion and poured out her heart to him: "Yu Sheng, promise me that you will wait for me on the Bridge of Helplessness. Even if we die, we will be a pair of ghost lovers in the underworld. If we have to drink Meng Po's soup, we will drink it hand in hand. Even if we forget each other, when we see that we are holding hands, we will know that we are the ones who love each other the most..."
The so-called underworld was just a guess by Ran Yusheng and Ruan Bei. Ran Yusheng's words were more to reassure his wife.
It can't be said that this was his true feeling. He had told Ruan Bei long ago that he hoped there really was a Bridge of Helplessness, so that he could wait for his wife.
"Xiao Bei, have you ever seen a ghost messenger? Could you ask him if I could meet Yu Sheng if he stays in the underworld to wait for me? Even the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl can meet once a year..."
Ruan Bei felt both sad and amused, but she really couldn't say anything to upset Madam Ran right now, since Uncle Ran had gone to great lengths to appease her.
So Ruan Bei thought about it seriously and said, "I've only seen Uncle Ran, no, I've only seen two ghosts. I haven't seen any ghost messengers yet. If I ever do, I'll ask them for you."
His words were truly meant to comfort Madam Ran. He was so afraid of ghosts that he never wanted to see a third one in his life, let alone go and question the ghost messengers.
Madam Ran felt much more at ease after hearing his words. She was a simple person; as long as there was hope, she could persevere. If there was no hope at all, she would lose all her spirit.
"By the way, Xiao Bei, Yu Sheng asked me to tell you something."
"What's up?"
Madam Ran looked slightly confused, clearly not quite understanding either. She was just a messenger: "He said that the resident upstairs from your house is not simple. The day he first met you, he followed you upstairs, but was stopped outside that house."
“It’s different from the Buddha statue in my house. He can sense that the function of the Buddha statue is similar to warding off evil spirits and protecting peace. But there’s something very scary to him upstairs in your house, a kind of hidden killing intent that is specifically aimed at ghosts and can make his soul disappear.”
Mrs. Ran was still shocked when she talked about it. She was startled when Ran Yusheng told her about it.
"Upstairs from my house?" Ruan Bei was completely bewildered. Wasn't upstairs Kun Kun's house? Grandpa He had passed away several years ago, leaving Kun Kun all alone.
“Yes, Yusheng told me to tell you that if you encounter an evil spirit, you should hide in that house.”
Ruan Bei hadn't come to his senses yet, and casually responded twice, wondering to himself if Kun Kun had unintentionally collected some strange and unusual things, like the Buddha statue in the Ran family's house, the kind that could kill ghosts.
But he didn't know exactly what it was. It would be such a waste if he accidentally threw it away later.
As for Ran Yusheng's claim that the upstairs residents were not simple, Ruan Bei didn't take it to heart at all.
You're kidding. He's his childhood friend, he even knows Qin Gu's bank card password, how could he not know him?
It's obvious that Kunkun is afraid of ghosts just like him. When his older siblings watched horror movies when they were little, only the two of them were afraid to watch them. Could Kunkun possibly be some kind of ghost hunter?
Author's Note:
About ghost movies.
When Ruan Xi was little, she would say, "Come on, let's watch a horror movie!"
Ruan Dong: Sit up straight.
Ruan Nan: Whoa, that's scary!
Ruan Bei: I'm scared, I don't dare to look QAQ
Qin Gu: This is so fake, it's an eyesore. I could wipe them all out by myself :)
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