Chapter 34 Chapter 34
The lights on campus are off. I stayed out for too long today.
It was the first time she stayed at school so late. Ren Li looked around and felt a little worried: "Should we leave now? Is it really okay to stay here at this time? Will the teachers from the Political Education Department see us?"
She had heard Zhang Xintong mention before that teachers from the Political Education Department would catch young couples on campus after dark.
Wen Shuo: "What did you see? Did you think we were in love? If that's the case, then congratulations! You'll be famous throughout the school tomorrow."
"Oh, thank you. I want to live two more days." Ren Li said, "Or we should take a taxi back."
Wen Shuo glanced at the time: "It's still early. Let's go eat something nearby before going back."
Since she had chosen to rebel today, Ren Li felt that perhaps she could experience the feeling of rebelling to the end.
She followed Wen Shuo to the back of the school, acting sneaky all the way, fearing that someone would suddenly jump out of the woods.
Fortunately, I didn't meet any teachers from the political education department until I saw the school wall.
Wen Shuo seemed a little regretful: "I wanted to take you to experience what it's like to be the 'top star' on campus. What a pity."
Ren Li curled her lips and decided not to pay any more attention to him.
The back door of the school is connected to a residential area. In the quiet night, there are few pedestrians on the wide road. Only the street lights cast their light quietly, outlining deep and shallow shadows on the ground.
"Is there really anything to eat here?" A huge question mark gradually rose in Ren Li's heart. She had seen it when passing by, and this seemed to be an upscale community. There was not even a convenience store, so where was Wen Shuo going to take her?
"You'll know when you get there." Wen Shuo kept it a secret, and Ren Li had no choice but to believe him. She quickly took a few steps forward and caught up with him.
As I crossed an intersection, the surroundings suddenly became bustling. Trams whizzed by, and people walking home from work were laughing and joking. Not far away was a pedestrian street. It was night market hours, and the air was filled with the ordinary atmosphere of fireworks, which was the most soothing to ordinary people.
"How did you find this place?" Ren Li asked in surprise, standing at the entrance of the pedestrian street.
Wen Shuo shrugged. "This place is only a few hundred meters away from the school. You're probably the only one in the school who doesn't know about this."
Ren Li seemed to be thinking: "Oh, no wonder you rarely attend evening self-study classes, it turns out you come here often."
Wen Shuo: ...
He didn't go to evening self-study because he wanted to go exercise and play basketball, which had nothing to do with this place. Last time, he saw Ren Li like eating spicy hot pot so much, and he had a hunch that she would like this place, so he brought her here.
The night market was ablaze with lights and bustling with people. There were many small shops along the street, and plenty of food to eat. Ren Li walked and looked, wanting to eat everything, and even reached the end of the night market, she still hadn't made up her mind.
They walked back, looking at all the food again. When they got back to where they started, she decided to go get some oden. She wasn't sure if Wen Shuo would like it, but since there was a table available, she pulled him over and sat down.
As it turned out, Wen Shuo didn't seem to like it very much. Judging from the way he took out a tissue and carefully wiped the table and stool in front of him twice, he was already giving Ren Li face by being able to sit here.
Wen Shuo ordered a bottle of soda, and Ren Li didn't hesitate to order a lot of food. Evening study had consumed a lot of her energy, and she needed to replenish it urgently.
After a while, the boss brought the food over. She broke off a pair of disposable chopsticks and clasped her hands together reverently. Wen Shuo sat silently beside her and watched her eat.
Being stared at was a strange feeling. Every time Ren Li put food into her mouth, she felt like an animal being watched in a zoo.
The phone continued to vibrate, a call came in. Ren Li knew who it was without even looking. She put down her chopsticks, took out her phone, and hung up.
Although she had just sent a message to Lin Yuan, saying that she would be back later and asked her not to worry, her phone still continued to vibrate.
There was only one meatball left in the lunch box. Ren Li finally took out her cell phone with a dull look and decided to call Lin Yuan back. Just then, another call came in - it was an unfamiliar number.
Puzzled, she pressed the answer button and heard Lin Jiacheng's voice: "Where are you? I heard from my aunt that you haven't come home yet. She's very anxious. Tell me, I'll go find you now—"
Before she could answer, her hand suddenly loosened and the phone was taken away by Wen Shuo.
Wen Shuo's face was hidden in the shadow cast by the light, and his expression could not be seen clearly: "She is with me now. I will take her home."
Ren Li was so shocked that she didn't know what expression to make. Her intuition told her that this was her own business and Wen Shuo couldn't get involved. It would be troublesome if Lin Yuan found out.
"Give me your phone." She stood up and tried to take her phone back, but Wen Shuo was taller than her and easily avoided her.
Lin Jiacheng was still talking on the other end of the phone, and Wen Shuo's expression was serious: "You don't need to worry about what our relationship is. I say again, don't come to her again."
He hung up the phone and handed it back to Ren Li.
Ren Li was angry and felt she needed to show some attitude: "You can't do this. It's very rude to answer someone's call without their permission."
Wen Shuo didn't feel sorry at all: "Even if Lin Jiacheng didn't call you, I would still go to him."
Ren Li: "Why are you looking for him? Wait, that's not the point. The point is that you can't touch other people's things without their permission."
"Have you finished eating?" Wen Shuo stood up, seemingly not intending to continue discussing this topic with her. "If you're done, I'll call a taxi."
Ren Li felt like she was hitting cotton, unable to dispel the depression in her heart. She thought that things could have been simple. After returning home, she would explain to Lin Yuan that she was tired from studying and went to the snack street for a late-night snack after school. But somehow, Wen Shuo also got involved.
She didn't want Wen Shuo to have any conflicts with Lin Jiacheng, especially things related to her.
The taxi they called soon stopped at the entrance of the pedestrian street. After getting in the car, Wen Shuo took Ren Li home first as usual.
Along the way, Ren Li kept thinking over and over about what had just happened. When she thought about what would happen after she returned home, she instinctively didn't want to face it.
She remained silent, and Wen Shuo didn't say much either. Later, the car stopped downstairs of the apartment building in the community. Ren Li picked up her backpack, said "goodbye", and turned around and went upstairs without looking back.
She hid in the corridor, watched the cars outside drive away, and sighed silently.
She turned around and walked into the elevator, pressed the button, and after a while, the elevator came. She walked in and looked at the rising numbers. Only then did she feel a headache.
A senior high school student, who didn't go home after school at night and hung out with boys, and didn't answer the phone... Ren Li felt that if any of these things were singled out, Lin Yuan would criticize her endlessly.
When she opened the door, the lights were on in the living room. Lin Yuan was sitting on the sofa waiting for her as usual. As expected, his expression was unusually serious.
Seeing Ren Li come in, Lin Yuan said, "Li Li, Mom wants to have a good talk with you."
What is meant to come will eventually come. Perhaps it was because the rebellion of adolescence came a little late. Ren Li, who had always obeyed Lin Yuan, felt resistance for the first time.
She didn't feel like she had done anything wrong today.
"Let's talk another day. Mom, I'm sleepy. I'm going to bed."
After she finished speaking, she walked straight back to the bedroom and closed the door.
It was also the first time that Lin Yuan saw Ren Li like this and was stunned.
Ren Li had just finished washing up in the bathroom when there was a knock on the door.
She knew it was Lin Yuan, so she quickly grabbed a book, propped up her pillow, leaned on the bed, and pretended to be busy.
Lin Yuan pushed the door open and walked in. Looking at Ren Li lying silently on the bed, he sat down beside her.
"Lili, I just talked to Lin Jiacheng." Unexpectedly, her tone was somewhat calm.
Ren Li continued to pretend to read, as if refusing to communicate.
"He said you didn't come back with him tonight and went out with a boy. Mom called you not because she doesn't trust you, but because she's worried about you. Tell me the truth, are you in a relationship?"
Being with a boy means being in love. This is the second time Ren Li has heard this term today.
She put down the book in her hand, feeling very incredible: "We are not in a relationship. We just went out for a midnight snack with classmates after school. Mom, don't you think you are making a big deal out of nothing? I don't want to report everything to you. I also want to have my own space occasionally."
Lin Yuan knew her daughter. She knew that her questioning made her uncomfortable, and she also knew that Ren Li was not lying this time - she really just went out for a midnight snack with her classmates.
She knew she was being a bit too extreme, but she still added, "Really?"
Ren Li nodded.
Lin Yuan finally breathed a sigh of relief and reached out to touch Ren Li's hair: "Mom doesn't doubt you. You are my precious daughter, and I always wish you the best. But I also know your character. I'm just afraid that you will be deceived by a boy with bad intentions."
Ren Li instantly thought of Wen Shuo: "How could I be deceived? We are really just ordinary friends."
Lin Yuan: "Mom has been through this before, and I just want to tell you the truth. There's no such thing as pure friendship between boys and girls. I know very well that at your age, due to chemical changes in hormones, you might have some heart-throb feelings - this is a very normal phenomenon, and you don't have to feel ashamed, but it doesn't mean you have to take that step."
Ren Li remained silent, and Lin Yuan continued, "Don't think I'm nagging. I'm actually a relatively open-minded parent. But you're in your third year of high school now, at a crucial juncture. If that person truly likes you, they'll definitely prioritize your future. You can wait until college to start again. By then, you'll be more mature and able to take full responsibility for your own actions."
I'm not saying this to blame you, I'm just trying to protect you. Men and women are not equal. If a momentary impulse leads to irreversible consequences, you'll be the only one to bear the consequences. Remember what Mom said. If something ever has to happen between you, always use a condom. It's to protect you..."
"Mom, what's going on..." Ren Li's face was about to burn.
She truly couldn't listen any longer. It was like she was back in Lin Yuan's "sex education" class all those years ago. And yet, every word Lin Yuan said today, she inexplicably thought of Wen Shuo. She'd just gone out for a late-night snack with some boys, and yet, in Lin Yuan's eyes, it had become a "level one alarm."
"I don't mean to be mean. I just think your reaction is a bit too much. We are really just ordinary friends. Besides, I am not a child anymore, and I don't want to be treated like a child by you all the time. I know you are worried about me, so I promise you that I will take the school bus home on time from now on and will not leave without saying hello again."
Lin Yuan: "You don't want to go to school with Jiacheng?"
Ren Li shook her head: "No."
"Okay." Since Ren Li didn't like it, Lin Yuan didn't force it any further. "Then you can take the school bus from now on. I'll go talk to your Aunt Zhou. I won't disturb you anymore. Go to bed early."
She walked to the door and paused. "Lili, don't think I'm nagging. I'm doing this for your own good. I know the popular educational philosophy now is to be friends with your children, but some things can't be solved just by being friends. I'm also worried about you, so I keep nagging you like this."
"I know." Ren Li nodded.
Lin Yuan went out, and Ren Li lay on the bed, looking at the ceiling, feeling a little complicated.
In just a few months at No. 4 Middle School, she felt like she had become a completely different person.
In the past, I was always carefree and had no worries. I never made Lin Yuan angry or worried. But now, I often feel troubled by things and am too embarrassed to tell Lin Yuan. She would be sad all day because of a quarrel with Wen Shuo, and become rebellious, but she could also be happy all night because she was friends with Wen Shuo again.
Ren Li felt that perhaps her puberty came too late, so she was not able to accumulate enough experience to face the current situation.
She knew that this was a normal adolescent phenomenon that she shouldn't be ashamed of, but she didn't know what to do.
She turned over and took out her cell phone from under the pillow, but after opening it, she didn't know what to do.
There is a message from Zhang Xintong above.
Xiao Wutong [How are you guys doing today? ]
Ren Li unlocked the screen and typed a reply.
Pear [What's going on...]
Xiao Wutong [You and Lin Jiacheng, stop pretending]
As she was speaking, a message popped up on her phone screen. Ren Li returned to the homepage list and saw Lin Jiacheng's name.
She had forgotten when she added Lin Jiacheng, but after that, the two of them never chatted with each other, so that sentence seemed a bit abrupt in the dialog box.
Lin Jiacheng [Auntie said you're home, right?]
Ren Li didn't want to reply, but avoiding the issue wouldn't solve the problem. After thinking about it, she decided to send a message back.
Pear [Um, what's going on?]
Zhang Xintong's message came at the right time:
Xiao Wutong [Did he confess his feelings to you today?!]
Combined with these words, a huge sixth sense suddenly appeared in Ren Li's heart.
She didn't want to go on like this. Even with Zhang Xintong's unfounded words, Ren Li began to panic.
She typed quickly to Lin Jiacheng.
Pear [Sorry, I'm a little tired today, I'm going to sleep first, bye]
She exited the chat interface with Lin Jiacheng almost in an instant, turned around and buried her head in the quilt, listening to the ticking of the wall clock, and let out a silent breath.
Today has been a really long day.
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