Chapter 10 Turning Point: No boy likes a fierce, shrewish woman! ...
The campus paths were fresh with dew in the early morning. Yu Wu and Ji Lingwei walked through the paths to their classroom, ready to start their morning self-study.
The classroom was still noisy, with students copying homework, chatting, and the buzzing sound of eating breakfast filling the air.
Yu Wu sat in her seat, opening her water glass as usual, intending to go outside to get more water, when she smelled a pungent chalk dust odor. She looked down and saw that someone had stuffed chalk dust into her water glass.
She looked up at the class; everyone was busy with their own things. Only Jian Mengyu met her gaze and turned her head away in a slightly flustered manner.
Yu Wu walked straight to her table with her water glass and calmly asked, "Is it you?"
Jian Mengyu suddenly raised her head and shouted shrilly, "Yu Wu, are you sick in the head? What makes you suspect that I threw chalk in your water glass?"
The sound was loud, immediately attracting the attention of the students around.
Yu Wu simply stared at her and said calmly, "I haven't even mentioned that there was chalk dust in my water cup, and you've already confessed."
Quiet murmurs arose from the surroundings.
Jian Mengyu's eyes darted around nervously, her grip on the pen tightening. Thinking of all the people around her laughing at her, she roared angrily, "It wasn't me! Don't try to frame me!"
“Let’s talk.” Yu Wu looked at her quietly.
......
The two were in a corner of the classroom corridor, with students rushing past them on their way to early morning self-study.
"I don't understand, why?" Yu Wu stared at her, her tone sincere, hoping to resolve the issue peacefully.
Jian Mengyu snorted coldly, scrutinizing her from head to toe with disdain. "I really don't understand what Ke Yanchen sees in you? He's never accepted a love letter from any girl before! Why would it be someone as ordinary as you!"
Yu Wu rubbed her temples, feeling somewhat helpless. "This is pointless of you."
Jian Mengyu lost her temper and shouted, "What do you mean? What do you mean? What do you mean? You think you're the winner now? You think we deserved it and it's ridiculous that we fought so hard for his little bit of love?"
Her shout drew the attention of the students in the corridor. Her chest heaved as she gasped for breath, turning her head to the side, her voice low and inexplicably tinged with a hint of grievance and a sob.
“I work so hard, I wash my hair twice a day to maintain my image. I give him a different gift every day, but he never even glances at it.”
"But you, you did nothing, yet you easily obtained everything I had ever dreamed of."
"I just feel you're not good enough for me."
The morning air was slightly cool, and a gentle breeze was blowing. Yu Wu sighed, her gaze filled with reluctance, unsure of what to say.
"Say something! Can you stop bothering him? Can you stop acting all innocent and pitiful? What extraordinary methods did you use to seduce him? Tell me!" Her eyes reddened as she roared at Yu Wu.
"First, that's my business, and I have nothing to say to you. Second, if you continue to act like a madman and make unreasonable demands against me, I will not let it go." Yu Wu gave her a deep look, then turned and left.
"What are you so arrogant about! What makes you so great!" came her angry, resentful roar from behind.
Yu Wu returned to the classroom, and Ji Lingwei went up to ask if Yu Wu was alright. Yu Wu gave her a reassuring look and said, "I'll tell you after class."
Ji Lingwei looked at her with concern, nodded, and returned to her seat.
After finishing morning self-study, Jian Mengyu got up and walked out. Some mischievous boys in the class joked with her: "Hey, Chalk Sister!"
Jian Mengyu glared at the boy, then gave Yu Wu a fierce look.
Yu Wu withdrew her gaze; she knew that this feud had been formed.
Thinking about Jian Mengyu's motives, Yu Wu found it somewhat amusing, yet also felt a pang of pity. Her feelings for Ke Yanchen were truly beyond her control.
After morning self-study, Ji Lingwei learned about Jian Mengyu's actions and joined Yu Wu in scolding her.
"Are you crazy? You're ugly and incompetent, and you're blaming it all on me!"
"This kind of person deserves to be taught a lesson; he's a complete idiot!"
"Alright." Yu Wu patted Ji Lingwei's arm. "Let's not talk about this anymore."
Ji Lingwei glared at her, annoyed. "You think you're so good-tempered!"
*
It seems like Ke Yanchen's birthday is coming up soon.
Ever since receiving Ke Yanchen's letter and learning of his deep and sincere feelings, Yu Wu has vowed to treat him well.
She is a very pure person. If someone is kind to her, she will repay them fivefold; if someone is kind to her fivefold, she will repay them tenfold.
Isn't that how relationships between people work? Sincerity begets sincerity.
Ke Yanchen is a fan of basketball star LeBron James, but Yu Wu doesn't quite understand why. However, one day on her way home from school, she passed a basketball store with a sign that read, "LeBron James autographed basketballs have arrived! A rare opportunity!"
She went into the store to inquire.
The owner, a young man, warmly greeted Yu Wu, explaining that basketballs signed by LeBron James are very rare, and that he had worked very hard to collect them, making them highly sought after. The price was 1,200 yuan.
Yu Wu silently noted down the price, then went back and carefully calculated her allowance.
She has 700 yuan a month for living expenses, and she currently has 400 yuan saved. Yu Wu was conflicted and conflicted, and finally took out the only valuable thing in the family, the little gold lock that her grandmother gave her when she was born.
Over the years, no matter how dire the family's circumstances, Yuwu's parents never allowed her to sell the gold lock.
"But autographed LeBron basketballs are really in high demand. Grandma, he's helped me so many times, and he even fought for me, so I should do something in return. When I have the money, I'll definitely buy it back."
"Grandma, you'll understand me, won't you?"
The little gold lock was small and sold for 1,000 yuan. Yu Wu took the money and immediately bought the autographed basketball, then carefully placed it at home.
She also wanted to give him the warmth of the whole world.
He'll be really touched if I give it to him on his birthday.
*
On Monday at dinner time, Yu Wu went to the convenience store to buy a pen. When she returned to the classroom, it was almost empty. Only two mischievous boys from her class were standing on either side of the classroom, tossing a pack of sanitary napkins between them.
Yu Wu glanced at them, sat down in her seat, and then realized that the sanitary napkin in her desk drawer was gone.
She immediately panicked: "Hey! Give it back to me!"
The two boys ignored them and instead became even more enthusiastic, grinning as they teased Yuwu, who was running back and forth, filled with shame and indignation.
"It was just a joke, why are you in such a hurry?" One of the boys had barely finished speaking when he threw the sanitary napkin into the trash can with a thud.
"Hey, hey, it wasn't me! He started it first!" Realizing he had caused trouble, the boy quickly tried to shift the blame with a laugh.
Yu Wu stood there, seething with anger. She glared at him, her eyes slightly red, and suppressed her temper as she walked to the back row and retrieved the sanitary napkins from the trash can. The packaging was broken, and several pads had fallen into the trash can, covered in a thick, white liquid; they were unusable.
A pack of sanitary napkins costs fifteen yuan, which is not a small amount for Yuwu, whose family is struggling financially.
Two boys were already standing at the front door of the classroom, laughing and shoving each other as they tried to run away, shouting, "It's not me anyway!"
"It's just a pack of sanitary napkins, hahaha, anyway, it's going to get in your stuff, it's as dirty as a trash can!"
Without saying a word, Yu Wu slammed the sanitary napkin in her hand hard at the boy who had spoken.
The boy chuckled and turned his head away. "Oh, why are you angry?" He glanced at the door and grinned. "Ke Yanchen was outside the window just now. He saw you acting like a shrew! No boy likes a fierce, shrewish woman! You're doomed!"
"That's right! That shrew! Let's go, let's go! Otherwise, she'll come looking for trouble again!"
Yu Wu turned to look at the door, just as Ke Yanchen coldly looked away.
The classroom was completely silent; she was the only one standing there. She suddenly felt an urge to cry, but she forcefully held it back.
No girl wants the boy she likes to see her as such a fierce and shrewish woman.
She was filled with fear and unease, but dared not disturb him.
Yuwu remembers clearly that many things started to change from here.
*
The following morning, during PE class, Yuwu went to the equipment room to get her badminton racket as instructed by the teacher.
The equipment room was dimly lit, the air was damp, and dust particles floated in the air.
She sniffled as she took out her badminton racket; the court was already open for free play.
Yu Wu picked out a pair of rackets and went to find Ji Lingwei. Her gaze swept over them and she noticed that Ji Lingwei and Jian Mengyu were sitting in the shade of the playground, seemingly having a pleasant conversation.
How did they become so close all of a sudden?
Before she could think further, Ji Lingwei clearly noticed Yu Wu not far away and waved to her.
Yu Wu walked over with her racket, and Ji Lingwei smiled and pressed her down to sit.
“Jian Mengyu said she can buy ‘Shanfu’ bread, which is hard to find in the city! She can bring us tiger-skin seaweed rolls, shanfu bread, and egg tarts tomorrow. Yu Wu, do you want some?” Ji Lingwei’s eyes sparkled. She really liked Shanfu, this popular bakery, but it only sold a limited number of items each day, so there was often a queue to buy it, and it was hard to get any.
"I don't need it, thank you." Yu Wu forced a smile.
Jian Mengyu chimed in enthusiastically, "Oh, Yu Wu, don't be so polite!"
Yu Wu stared at her, and she smiled back at Yu Wu, showing no fear whatsoever, appearing open and generous, as if she were genuinely just trying to help her classmate. However, this "openness" went a little too far; a hint of provocation lurked in her eyes.
"No need, thank you."
Ji Lingwei turned to Jian Mengyu: "Hey, if she doesn't want it, I will! Bring it to me tomorrow, and I'll pay you then!"
Jian Mengyu said with a reproachful look, "We're all classmates, why would I need money? Do you think I'm that stingy?"
Oh, you!
The two were having a pleasant conversation, completely ignoring the presence of the gloomy fog.
"Lingwei, do you play badminton?" Yu Wu waved the badminton racket in her hand.
"No, I'm on my period." Ji Lingwei pouted. "Sorry, I can't stay with you."
Yu Wu pursed her lips, gave a soft greeting, and got up to leave.
She walked to the badminton court and turned around to see Ji Lingwei and Jian Mengyu still chatting happily, laughing and patting each other intimately.
She had a vague sense of foreboding.
Why would Jian Mengyu suddenly be so kind and attentive?
Moreover, how could Ji Lingwei accept her so easily?
To be honest, she felt a little uncomfortable. But then she realized that there was something wrong with her mindset.
......
Those who played badminton had spontaneously formed teams, making Yu Wu's extra presence redundant. So she didn't play, but sat there watching them play badminton for the entire class period.
After class, Yu Wu returned her badminton racket. As she walked out of the equipment room, Ji Lingwei and Jian Mengyu were waiting for her hand in hand outside the door.
Ji Lingwei spoke up: "Would it be alright if Jian Mengyu had lunch with us today?"
Yu Wu held her hand and whispered in her ear, "She said she can get milk tea from outside the school at noon! Don't you love milk tea the most?"
Yu Wu looked at Ji Lingwei, hesitant to speak. Jian Mengyu was also there, and there were some things she couldn't say.
"You guys go at noon, I have something to do."
Ji Lingwei let out a disappointed sigh and tried to speak, but Yu Wu pursed her lips and shook her head in refusal.
The three of them walked towards the classroom together, with Ji Lingwei in the middle and Yu Wu and Jian Mengyu on either side.
Yu Wu felt a little awkward holding hands with the three of them, so she broke free from Ji Lingwei's arm and walked side by side with her to the classroom.
"Oh, Yuwu!" Ji Lingwei stomped her foot and tried to link arms with Yuwu again, but Yuwu said it was inconvenient for the three of them to walk together and refused again.
Ji Lingwei sighed and didn't press the matter further.
Throughout the entire process, Jian Mengyu watched without offering any opinion. When Yu Wu met her eyes, she maintained a polite smile.
Yu Wu sensed that beneath that surface of politeness, there was something she couldn't see through.
The person who was making a fuss about making things difficult for you a few days ago has suddenly become friendly, saying that she has no ulterior motives, which is simply impossible.
At lunchtime, Ji Lingwei came to persuade Yu Wu to go to the cafeteria together, but Yu Wu kept her head down and did her homework, saying that she had something to do and told them to go first.
Ji Lingwei left with Jian Mengyu in the end.
They left, and Yu Wu put down her pen, letting out a soft breath. Just a few days ago, during morning self-study, Ji Lingwei was calling Jian Mengyu an idiot behind her back, and now they've become so close again.
Something feels off.
Yu Wu was conflicted. She didn't want to stay with Jian Mengyu, but Ji Lingwei seemed to like her a lot. She couldn't quite accept that her best friend was friends with someone she didn't like.
*
Yu Wu ate dinner alone and returned to her dormitory quite late.
When they arrived at the dormitory, Ji Lingwei was joking and laughing with one of her roommates. When she saw Yu Wu, she quickly took out a cup of milk tea from the cabinet and handed it to her.
"I saved this especially for you! Try it!"
Yu Wu declined, "Really, it's not necessary."
"Oh, Yuwu!" Ji Lingwei was almost in tears. "Try it! Are you angry?"
"No." Yu Wu pursed her lips and said, "I just feel a little uncomfortable."
"I know." Ji Lingwei quietly pulled Yu Wu outside the dormitory door and whispered to her, "I'm setting her up! Didn't you notice? This is subtly getting revenge for you!"
“This isn’t a good idea.” Yu Wu frowned and said sincerely, “Thank you for your kindness, but I don’t think this is a good idea.”
"What's wrong with that?" Ji Lingwei pouted. "Who told her to debase herself like that? She's rushing to give me money, why not take it!" Her eyes darted around. "Yu Wu, you don't look down on me, do you? I'm doing this all for you!"
“I…” Yu Wu was speechless, and for a moment she didn’t know how to answer her.
"Okay, I won't think about it anymore. Anyway, I'll do my own thing, you don't need to worry about me." She pushed Yuwu into the dormitory room. "Take a nap! You have two math classes this afternoon!"
Yu Wu hesitated, wanting to say something but stopping herself, while Ji Lingwei had already swiftly gotten into bed.
A note from the author:
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