Chapter 38: All Glory Without You [VIP]
The longer time passes, the less I dare to face you.
——"Chronological Diary"
One day, a week before the final exam, Zhen Hao received a strange text message that frightened her so much that she trembled all over.
From the moment she saw the first line of words, her feet couldn't help but feel cold. After she finished reading all the contents, she had only one thought in her mind - if this matter was brought to the attention of her parents, she would be doomed.
Strictly speaking, she knew the person who sent the text message. He was Lin Mian's brother Lin Hai.
He wrote in a long and eloquent message: "You are the girl my brother has liked for many years, right? My brother ran away from home, and my family and I are very worried about him. I'd like to ask if you know where he went. If you do, please let me know. Thank you."
Lin Hai's tone and words were not tough, but Zhen Hao just shrank back for no reason, at a loss.
She wanted to ask how the other party knew her mobile phone number. She had never told anyone except those close to her.
One morning after class, she was walking back to her dorm alone. As she passed the small basketball court next to the banyan tree grove, a student known for being a problem student in her grade stopped her and asked, "Classmate, can you give me your phone number?"
She held Yu Ji tightly in her school uniform pocket, and her face quickly turned red.
This was the first time a boy had asked for her contact information, but she suppressed the urge and lied, "Sorry... I don't have a phone number."
After saying that, she lowered her head and trotted quickly towards the dormitory.
Zhen Hao stared at the text message, and the more he read, the more panicked he became.
If the school and her parents found out, she didn't know what would happen to her. Others would definitely misunderstand her as being in a premature relationship, or even think she was promiscuous. If that happened, she might not even be able to continue her studies...
She was lost in thought, and layers of sweat broke out on her forehead.
After thinking it over, she replied to Lin Mian's brother: "Brother Lin Hai, Lin Mian didn't contact me. I don't know where he went. I'm sorry."
She is telling the truth.
After sending the message, she was in a state of anxiety for the rest of the time.
I received Lin Hai’s reply again after evening self-study.
The vibration of the machine made Zhen Hao stiffen instantly.
Even the carefree Zhou Chunrui noticed her abnormality: "Okay, are you okay?"
Zhen Hao's face and lips were a little pale, but he still shook his head and said, "I'm fine."
She only took a glance at the letter and saw that the sender was Lin Hai, then hurriedly put Yu Ji back into her pocket, not daring to open it to read the content. Her heart had been pounding from the moment she received the text message to the moment she returned to the dormitory.
In the end, she hid in the bathroom to read the message.
"If anything happens to my brother, it's because of you. You better pray he comes home safe and sound."
After reading it, Zhen Hao felt as if all the blood in his body had frozen and his feet were so heavy that he couldn't move at all.
If someone hadn't knocked on the door and asked her if she was done, she wouldn't know when she would remember to leave the bathroom.
Zhen Hao's mind went blank, not knowing how to deal with this matter.
She really wanted to seek help from Zhou Chunrui and Yan Yunshu, but they were only first-year junior high school girls. What could they do?
This patience lasted for three days.
She was afraid every day of suddenly receiving a text message from Lin Hai, and even felt guilty when she saw her class teacher, fearing that she would be called to the office for a talk.
Fortunately, nothing happened in the past few days, but she still couldn't let go of her worries completely.
It wasn't until Friday afternoon after school that she received another unexpected text message from Lin Mian.
He said, "I'm sorry, Zhen Hao. I didn't know my brother would look for you. I apologize to you on his behalf. I'm really sorry. I won't bother you again. I wish you all the best."
After reading the text message, her heart, which had been hanging in the air, finally settled down, but she couldn't help but worry about the other party.
She hesitated for a while, but still replied to Lin Mian: "Are you okay?"
There was no news of Lin Mian anymore.
But Zhen Hao finally breathed a sigh of relief and a relieved smile appeared on his face.
Later, she heard that Lin Mian had dropped out of school.
Time never stops for anyone. Zhen Hao was soon promoted to the third year of junior high school and became a prospective high school entrance exam candidate.
Time is like water falling into the sea, disappearing without a trace in her life.
The night after the final exam, she rarely dreamed of Nian.
In the dream, there is a field of golden rice flowers, a moon like a jade plate hanging in the dark blue sky, the wind has the fragrance of peaches and freedom.
Nian stood on the other side of the terraced field, looking at her from afar.
She seemed to see a gentle smile on his face, and seemed to hear him say something, but the wind was too loud in her ears and she couldn't hear a word.
But in the blink of an eye, the fields of rice flowers suddenly turned into a raging flood, rushing towards the two of them.
It became Ling Huan's face that always had a slight smile on it.
A huge wave hits,
"Huanhuan——" Zhen Hao called out softly.
When she woke up, she subconsciously touched her cheek - dry.
She didn't cry.
She thought she would cry.
Although Zhen Hao still often sees her in his dreams at midnight, he still remembers the past of Ling.
"Huanhuan, have you been blaming me all the time?" Zhen muttered to himself as if he had lost his soul.
, maybe Ling Huan wouldn’t be in trouble.
It was only midnight and everyone in the dormitory was sleeping soundly.
Zhen Hao was gasping for breath in the darkness, like a drowning man desperately trying to grab a piece of driftwood.
Zhou Chunrui's dazed voice rang out in the silence: "Okay, what's wrong with you? Did you have a nightmare?"
Worried about waking up his roommates, Zhen Hao lowered his voice and said, "I'm fine. Go to sleep. We'll talk tomorrow."
"Okay, then you should go to sleep too." Zhou Chunrui said, turned over and fell asleep again quickly.
Zhen Hao couldn't fall asleep and stayed awake almost until dawn.
That nightmare seemed like an illusion. When I woke up, I had to continue running towards the busy reality.
The high school entrance examination came as scheduled. Zhen Hao and Yan Yunshu both achieved good results and were directly admitted to the high school department of Annan.
Although Zhou Chunrui's results were not as good as theirs, she was lucky enough to stay in Annan with the last-place results.
After Zhen Hao received the admission letter, Zhen Wenrou, who had been away somewhere, returned to the Zhen family and prepared two large tables for Zhen Hao, saying that it was to celebrate for her.
All the people who came were relatives of the Zhen family. In addition to two tables of adults, Zhen Wenrou also considerately reserved a table for children for Zhen Hao.
However, Zhen Hao only invited Zhou Chunrui and Yan Yunshu, and she was embarrassed to let other classmates come.
But as she sat at the table, she couldn't help but think, it would be nice if Shixu was there too.
During the meal, Zhen's good aunt Zhen Wenwan walked to the children's table with juice.
She first congratulated him, "Ah Peng is really amazing. He got into the best high school here."
Zhen Hao frowned when she heard this. Even though she knew it would be a bit of a letdown to contradict her elders on such a happy day, she couldn't help but correct them, "Aunt, don't call me by my nickname."
Because of this nickname, she was ridiculed by many people since she was a child, but only she knew about it.
She hated this derogatory nickname.
"How come you can't even call me by my nickname after getting into a good school?" Zhen Wenwan said a little unhappy.
Seeing that the smoke was about to rise from the dinner table, Zhen Mei said coquettishly, "Godmother, please try this dish, it's delicious."
Zhen Wenwan had been married for many years but still had no children. After Zhen Mei was born, she adopted her as her goddaughter.
"Our Xiaomei is so well-behaved." Zhen Wenrou smiled happily, completely shifting her attention to Zhen Mei. She repeated the words Zhen Hao had heard countless times, "Look at Xiaomei's little face. Her nose is so beautiful, it looks like it was made. Her cherry lips are really beautiful, and her skin is so white and tender. She's much prettier than her sister."
Just then, another relative walked over and, upon hearing Zhen Wenwan's words, chimed in, "That's right. Little Sister Zhen has inherited all the best qualities from her parents. She's a true beauty. If only your sister's eyes were a little bigger."
Zhen Hao clenched the hand on her knee into a fist and bit her lips tightly.
She had endured these words for many years, but never had the courage to refute them.
Because it is true, in every aspect, Zhen Mei is really more beautiful than her.
As the saying goes, three women make a drama. The third relative also joined the conversation: "Sister Zhen's skin is so good that it makes people envious. I wish it were a little whiter..."
Just when Zhen Hao finally couldn't stand it any longer, Zhou Chunrui slammed the table and stood up, "Have you guys said enough? Is it fun to criticize and compare like this in front of other sisters?"
Zhen Wenwan frowned: "How can you talk like that? Is it wrong for us to praise Xiaomei for her beauty?"
"That's right." Another relative chimed in, "How can you be so disrespectful? What's your business when adults say something?"
"Of course there's nothing wrong with praising Xiaomei for her good looks, but praising her by belittling her is a huge problem!" Even when facing three adults, Zhou Chunrui was not afraid at all.
An older relative felt embarrassed upon hearing this and said bluntly, "Zhen Hao, look at the kind of friends you've made! They have no manners!"
"That's enough!" Zhen Hao stood up with his fists clenched. Finally unable to bear it any longer, he said, "Rui Rui is my good friend. Please respect me and her as well!"
As she spoke, she pulled Zhou Chunrui and Yan Yunshu away from the unhappy banquet, completely ignoring the three people behind her who were so angry that their faces were red and their necks were thick.
Zhen Hao stopped only after running a long way.
God knows how nervous she was just now. Not only was her heart wet with sweat, but her back was also covered with a thin layer of sweat.
That was the first time she stood up to years of adults attacking her appearance.
She simply remembered what she had said to herself when she was little: "When you encounter oppression, you must know how to resist. Just enduring is useless."
It was this sentence that gave her unlimited courage at that moment.
That night, Zhen Hao wrote in his diary: "What a pity! At this moment of glory, you are not by my side."
She had just closed the diary when Zhen Mei peeked in at the door, looking cautious.
"Why don't you come in?" Zhen Hao was at a loss whether to laugh or cry.
"Sister, aren't you angry with me?" Zhen Mei was still brooding over what happened during the day.
"Do you want to hear the truth?" Zhen Hao beckoned at her, "Come in first."
Zhen Mei nodded slowly: "Yes, I want to hear the truth."
She did not go into the house, but stood at the door, keeping her head sticking out and looking at Zhen Hao with an innocent face.
"The truth is—" Zhen Hao smiled, "I'm not angry."
She was really not angry, she was angry at the adults.
If she were a little more petty, the two sisters would become enemies.
"Really?" Zhen Mei finally stepped into the room after hearing this, her face beaming with joy. "Auntie Wenrou is so amazing. She told me not to hold back on anything and to tell that person. Sister, I want to tell you, I'm very happy to have you as my sister."
Zhen Hao raised her head and ruffled her ear-length hair, saying something irrelevant: "Amei, grow your hair longer. I'll braid it for you."
Her pretty sister would look better with long hair.
If He Yunlian doesn't help Zhen Mei tie her hair, then she will do it instead.
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