Chapter 8 Eight Bamboo Star Sleep, I'll Cry and Kiss You Again
Like a flash of lightning in a clear sky, the boy froze, unable to believe what he was hearing.
That beautiful Ms. Xu has a boyfriend...
That beautiful Ms. Xu has a boyfriend...
Ms. Xu has a boyfriend.
Ms. Xu, do you have a boyfriend?
Is it true?
You have a boyfriend.
You also make him delicious pancakes, right?
A wave of bittersweet emotion washed over him. His thumb traced the thick stack of shopping bags from Tiantianlai Supermarket tucked tightly in his desk. These were 254 bags he had collected over four months and seven days. He changed the style of the bags every month, and on each bag he wrote the date and a message from his heart that he wanted to say to her.
Upon hearing Shang Qi's words, he felt as if the paper bags had transformed into 254 blades, scraping his fingertips until they bled profusely.
Without a word, the boy suddenly stood up, grabbed his backpack, and left without looking back.
Watching his friend's resolute departure, Shang Qi realized that the kid seemed very serious, and he began to feel a little flustered.
Is this guy going to cause trouble?
The idea popped into Shang Qi's head, but he immediately shook his head and dismissed it.
Lin Baobei is so quick-witted, she would never do anything impulsive... right?
"Hey, are you going to the supermarket?" he shouted after him.
The person in front stopped in their tracks. "I'm not going." They were never going again.
The setting sun cast a long shadow in the school corridor. Shang Qi watched his lonely figure recede into the distance, unsure whether he should breathe a sigh of relief or go to the supermarket to stand up for his good friend.
.
"Ding ding ding..."
"Oh!" Hearing the wind chimes at the door, Boss Xu exclaimed in surprise and hurriedly put on his shoes and stood up from the sofa.
"What's wrong?"
Li Jiajing looked at the joy on Zhizhi's face that he had never seen before, and wondered who had come to the door that made her so excited.
It's not hard to guess. It's probably the "kid" she mentioned on the phone. Just an hour ago, Uncle Xu, Zhizhi's father, came to the supermarket to deliver dinner to her. Since the three of them had made plans to have barbecue at Jiangnan Square tonight, Xu Zhizhi had to ask her father, who was on vacation today, to cook dinner for the "kid".
It seems that Zhizhi's family is quite warm-hearted. Uncle Xu just brought over the food and said that he also had other dinner and card games tonight. He originally wanted to take the opportunity to get closer to Uncle Xu and curry favor with him, but he could only meet him briefly and would have to wait for the next opportunity.
Xu Zhiyu heard Li Jiajing's question, but she didn't have time to respond. She just smiled and ran downstairs.
"You're finally out of school! I've been waiting for you... I'm busy tonight and can't cook, but I asked my dad to make it! My dad's a chef, and his skills are top-notch. You're in for a treat tonight!"
Before anyone even got close, a melodious voice, like that of a nightingale, drifted out from behind the shelves.
"Hey? Why are you carrying a backpack? Aren't you going to evening self-study tonight? Oh! How could I forget, today is Friday!" Xu Zhiyu saw the familiar figure at the door from afar. He had a bag slung over one shoulder and was holding his denim jacket in the other hand. Every inch of the air around him seemed to express his unhappiness.
The boy watched silently as a cheerful pink cotton candy bounced and hopped in front of him. His clenched fist loosened, and his eyes reddened.
As she got closer, Ayu was surprised to find that the boy's eyes were red. She moved even closer and tilted her head to check carefully whether he had been crying.
"What's wrong?" Ah Yu asked patiently, her eyes crinkling. "Did you get sand in your eyes?"
The sweet scent of the woman instantly made his ears turn red. The boy turned his face away, lowered his eyelids, glanced at the second floor, then lowered his eyes again, gritting his teeth: "No, I thought... you forgot."
Upon hearing this, Ah Yu's chest softened, and she sighed inwardly.
A child like that must be terrified of being forgotten.
She suddenly stood on tiptoe, reached out and wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him close to her neck. She patted the back of the boy's head and soothed him gently:
"Silly child, are you overthinking again? I haven't forgotten, I won't forget. I was going to close early today to go out with my friends, and look, those two older brothers are still upstairs with me waiting for you to come over for dinner. Don't be so sad, okay? Seeing you sad makes me sad too..."
Ah Yu's parents loved her the most. She couldn't imagine how a child without parental protection could grow up, how much effort they would have to work and how much hardship they would have to endure to grow into the tall and healthy person they are today.
The boy was stunned. His cheek was pressed against the girl's earlobe, his hands and body were stiff, and he dared not move. His heart was pounding.
The girl's unique fragrance wafted into his nostrils. At this moment, he had no other thoughts. He was only worried that the thin layer of sweat on his body might dirty her, or that she would find it disgusting. He should have asked the nanny to put more fragrance beads on the white short-sleeved shirt when she washed it... So, can I hug her a little longer?
So... those two are just friends, right?
Fortunately, he didn't believe it from the beginning.
Two people on the second floor, curious about the commotion downstairs, stood by the railing with their coffee cups, intending to get a closer look.
Just as his vision cleared, Li Jiajing accidentally dropped the cup from his hand—
His pupils trembled as he saw Zhizhi downstairs holding a handsome, unfamiliar young man in her arms, comforting him with gentle words. The sight of her choking him up choked him up.
"Wow! Watch out!"
As the ceramic cup plummeted from the second floor to the first floor, Zhang Zhi was the first to react. He immediately shouted downstairs!
"Ah—" Just as Ayu heard the reminder and was about to turn around, a force pulled her into her arms.
The boy reacted quickly. He looked up, his brows furrowing in alarm. He instinctively wrapped his arms around Ms. Xu's waist and spun her around, switching positions. He held her protectively in his arms, and the ceramic cup behind them fell to the ground with a loud, crisp crash! Shards and coffee splattered everywhere!
Ah Yu covered her ears and huddled in the boy's arms. He anxiously examined her exposed arms and legs from head to toe: "Does it hurt? Are you hurt?"
She was somewhat dazed, then shook her head in lingering fear.
The boy closed his eyes, took a breath, and then turned to glare fiercely at Li Jiajing on the second floor: "Are you fucking crazy??"
The person on the second floor naturally sensed the strong hostility emanating from the boy. He sneered, deliberately ignoring the boy, and asked Xu Zhiyu downstairs, "Zhiyu, I'm sorry, I didn't hold it properly. Are you alright? Do you need to go to the hospital? I'll come down and check on you right away."
However, the striking red gradually blurred in Xu Zhiyu's eyes. She bent down, looking somewhat helplessly at the wound on the boy's arm:
"Don't move, don't move, you're bleeding..."
She was anxious, but afraid that her anxiety would make things worse, so she forced herself to calm down.
"I have iodine in my shop, don't be afraid, don't be afraid, don't move, don't be scared..."
In reality, the boy wasn't afraid at all. It was as if Boss Xu was saying this to herself. Not only was he not afraid, but he also obediently stayed where he was, patiently waiting for her to rush off to find iodine.
Zhang Zhi and Li Jiajing came downstairs. Zhang Zhi enthusiastically stepped forward to check on the boy's injuries, but the boy was completely unappreciative and showed them no kindness whatsoever.
Li Jiajing: "Kid, kid, this high school student is the kid Zhizhi was talking about."
The boy gritted his teeth again and ignored him.
Li Jiajing tilted his head and looked at his wound: "Oh my, such a big wound, Zhizhi, if you had come any later, it would have healed by now."
Xu Zhiyu: "No, how come Li Jiajing never noticed you were this kind of person before? You did something wrong and you're still making sarcastic remarks. You hurt someone the first time you met and you didn't apologize, and you're even so hostile towards them. What's wrong with you?"
She came out of the warehouse with a first-aid kit and gave Li Jiajing a good scolding.
Zhang Zhi: "Ayu, you only realized this today? Li Jiajing is that kind of person!"
Zhang Zhi didn't mind making things worse. He was also dissatisfied with Li Jiajing's attitude, but he deliberately joined A Yu in criticizing his friend to give him a way out and turn Xu Zhiyu's accusations into a joke.
He patted him on the shoulder and saw the girl he liked hugging another man. Then she even defended that man and lectured Li Jiajing. Li Jiajing probably felt bad about it.
"Just kidding," Li Jiajing said palely. Xu Zhiyu walked past him with a first-aid kit, her eyes fixed on the boy.
How could he, an adult, hold a grudge against a student?
"I'm so sorry, Zhizhi, I've made a mess of your shop. Where's your mop? I'll clean it up for you. Be careful not to step on any of the broken pieces."
Xu Zhiyu shook her head helplessly: "Alright, it's really not a big deal. We're all friends, so let's be friendly. The mop is in the warehouse, you might not be able to handle it. I'll take care of it later. Don't worry, the two of you tall guys are just making the corridor narrow. Let's go upstairs and sit down first. I'll treat his wound, and then we'll go up."
“Alright, we’ll wait for you upstairs. Let us know if you need any help.” Zhang Zhi nodded and dragged Li Jiajing upstairs.
"Fine," Li Jiajing said dejectedly.
.
Ms. Xu led the boy to a chair at the cashier's counter. She took out cotton swabs and alcohol and bent down to clean his wounds.
"It's probably going to hurt a lot. There are lollipops on the counter, do you want one?"
"No."
“Brother didn’t do it on purpose. He accidentally made you like this. Your sister has already told him off. He was just joking when he said those things. He didn’t mean anything by it. Don’t be angry with him.”
"……"No.
The cotton swab was gently applied to the torn and bleeding wound. Her palms were sweating; it was the first time she had done something like this, and she asked cautiously:
Does it hurt?
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