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With Mu Mu not by her side, Xu Li became less talkative. Zhou Chen was hospitalized during the holiday, and Lu Yi visited him many times. Fortunately, he is back now.
When Mu Mu was around, Xu Li and she often bought things at the convenience store next to the school. Now that Mu Mu is no longer by her side, she rarely goes to the convenience store anymore.
Fortunately, she made a new friend – Tan Yuqi, who is Tan Yuze's younger sister.
That day, Xu Li was smoking in the alley when she turned around and saw Tan Yuqi being cornered. "Hey, what are you doing! What kind of skill is it to bully a girl!"
She was slender but stood ramrod straight, her long, jet-black hair cascading casually to her waist, and a small school badge pinned to the collar of her uniform, exuding an undeniable aura.
The underling next to her recognized Xu Li, the school bully from No. 1 High School, and exclaimed, "Sister Li, I didn't know she was one of yours!"
Jiang Heng, who was leading the group, said, "She calls herself a school bully? Believe me or not, I can beat you to death right now." Xu Li, on the other hand, looked disdainful and beckoned to him, "Come on."
"Big brother, you can't beat her. She's too good at fighting, and besides, she has Tan Yuze protecting her," the henchman beside him reminded him. Jiang Heng thought about it and decided against it. "Let's go then."
Xu Li exhaled a puff of smoke. "I've got this guy under my protection. If you know the truth, play dumb and get lost."
Jiang Heng became increasingly angry and turned back.
Huang Mao was the first to make a move. He suddenly reached out and grabbed Xu Li's shoulder, trying to give her a hard time.
Xu Li nimbly dodged to the side, then grabbed his wrist and twisted it forcefully. The blond-haired man winced in pain and blurted out, "Ouch, you're pretty strong, but..."
Before he could finish speaking, Xu Li used the wrist twisting motion to push him forward forcefully. The blond-haired man staggered a few steps and bumped into his companion behind him. The two of them fell to the ground together, making a loud noise.
Seeing this, the other thugs immediately became enraged and rushed towards Xu Li. Xu Li remained calm. She first dodged one of the thugs who was charging at her, then bent down and gently nudged his knee. The thug instantly lost his balance, fell to the ground, and crashed heavily onto the stone pavement with a muffled groan.
Immediately afterwards, she grabbed another thug by the collar and pulled hard, causing him to miss. Then she quickly dodged to the side, causing him to collide with another thug who had just stood up. The two instantly became entangled in a ball, rolling on the ground, cursing and unable to break free.
However, the thugs outnumbered them and quickly regrouped, surrounding Xu Li. Tan Yuqi, standing behind Xu Li, trembled with fear upon seeing this, but tried her best to calm herself down.
She suddenly remembered that she had the campus emergency number saved on her phone. Trembling, she took out her phone and nervously pressed the button several times before she was able to successfully dial the number.
Just then, hurried and powerful footsteps came from deep within the alley. The thugs were startled and turned around to see several uniformed campus patrol officers running towards them, their faces serious.
It turns out the school had been aware of reports of thugs harassing students in this alley for some time, but lacked sufficient evidence to conduct a thorough investigation. Upon receiving Tan Yuqi's report today, the patrol team immediately arrived.
The group left, and Xu Li approached the girl. "What's your name?" she asked lazily. "Tan Yuqi," the girl replied softly. Then she added, "Thank you, sister, for saving me from this predicament."
Xu Li gently patted her back and comforted her, "Don't be afraid, it's alright now. They've been arrested and won't bully you anymore."
She took out tissues from her schoolbag and carefully wiped the bloodstains and tear stains from Tan Yuqi's face. "So that's your name, little one."
"Tan Yuqi".
"Tan Yuqi? Don't you have an older brother? Tan Yuze?" She looked at Tan Yuqi and asked. "Yes, do you know my brother?" she suddenly asked, her eyes lighting up.
Xu Li gave a perfunctory "hmm," and then pulled the person up.
"Sister, how did you meet my brother?" the girl asked inquiringly.
"Don't call me sister, I'm not that much older than you. Just call me Ali."
She walked straight ahead, saying, "Classmate."
At this moment, Xu Li felt a mix of emotions. She never expected that the girl she had saved was actually Tan Yuze's younger sister.
She tried to suppress the turmoil in her heart and said softly, "So you're Tan Yuze's sister. If you ever run into any trouble again, just come to me. I'll protect you."
Tan Yuqi wiped away her tears, looked at Xu Li gratefully, and nodded heavily: "Thank you, sister. I will remember this. I will learn to protect myself in the future and not let bad people bully me."
Xu Li smiled gently, helped Tan Yuqi to her feet, and the two slowly walked towards the school.
The next day, the campus was in an uproar, with everyone talking about how Tan Yuqi from the Fifth Middle School was bullied by thugs and was bravely rescued by Xu Li from their school.
Tan Yuze also learned the news immediately. He believed it from the beginning. After all, in his impression, Xu Li was a different girl inside and outside of school. Although she had excellent grades, the connection between her and the words "heroic act" still surprised him.
However, when he saw his younger sister Tan Yuqi return home safely, holding Xu Li's hand, he was overjoyed.
As she recounted the events to him with a face full of gratitude, Tan Yuze was deeply moved. His gaze towards Xu Li gradually became more complex.
Xu Li didn't think it was a big deal. She simply believed that this was a way to protect girls, which wasn't wrong.
Tan Yuze smiled slightly, his eyes showing appreciation: "But you still have courage. I was worried that something would happen to my sister. Thank you for standing up for me."
After that, Tan Yuze's attitude towards Xu Li changed noticeably. The two were classmates, but because Tan Yuze liked Xu Li, they interacted quite a lot.
After this incident, he started talking to Xu Li more and more often, frequently showing concern for her studies and life, and even taking the initiative to discuss problems with her during breaks.
Xu Li could clearly sense that Tan Yuze treated her differently. Every time he got close, her heart would beat faster uncontrollably, and her face would inexplicably burn.
Tan Yuze's feelings for Xu Li deepened, and the little flame hidden in his heart burned brighter and brighter. One day after school, Tan Yuze suddenly stopped Xu Li, who was about to go home: "Xu Li, come to my house tonight. I have a math problem I can't solve, and I'd like you to help me with it, okay?"
Xu Li stood there, stunned, her heart pounding like a drum. Without thinking, she nodded and said, "Okay, I'll go in a bit." Tan Yuze waved to her, then casually got on his bicycle and set off first.
When Xu Li arrived at Tan Yuze's house, Tan Yuze was already sitting at his desk waiting for her. On the desk was an open math book, covered with circles and markings, and many formulas had been written over and over again.
When Tan Yuze saw Xu Li come in, his eyes lit up and he greeted her warmly: "You're here! Come and take a look at this question. I've been trying to figure it out for a long time but I still can't understand it."
Xu Li walked to the other side of the desk, looked at the question carefully, analyzed it carefully, picked up a pen and began to write and draw on the draft paper, patiently explaining the thought process to Tan Yuze.
Tan Yuze listened intently, his brows furrowing and relaxing intermittently, and occasionally he would raise his own thoughts and questions. Xu Li realized that he wasn't actually incapable of learning; he just had some misconceptions about key steps. With a little guidance, he could quickly grasp the concepts.
After explaining the problem, Tan Yuze stretched with satisfaction and said to Xu Li with a smile, "You're really amazing. I didn't understand it before, but after your explanation, it all makes sense now."
Xu Li blushed slightly and replied softly, "You're very smart too, it's just that you've been too busy lately and haven't had time to think about it."
Tan Yuze scratched his head, looking a little embarrassed: "Yeah, the basketball tournament is about to start again, and I'm busy with training every day, so I don't have much time to study. That's why I got stuck on this question."
Xu Li recalled Tan Yuze's heroic figure on the basketball court, and a glint of light flashed in her eyes: "You will get good results in the basketball game, I believe in you."
Tan Yuze felt a little embarrassed by her gaze, but also warmed his heart, and his smile widened: "That's not necessarily true, but with your encouragement, I have more confidence."
The two chatted back and forth, and before they knew it, evening had arrived. Xu Li looked at the darkening sky outside the window, quickly got up and said, "It's getting late, I should go back."
Tan Yuze also stood up and saw her to the door: "You've had a hard day. Shall I take you home?" Xu Li hurriedly waved her hand: "No need, no need. My home is nearby. I can go home by myself." Tan Yuze was worried and insisted on taking her home.
Xu Li couldn't persuade him otherwise, so she had no choice but to agree.
Just as she stepped out of her house, she bumped into Tan Yuqi, who was returning home. "Hey, Ali, what are you doing at our house?"
“Explain the problem to him.” Xu Li was also unhappy with her directness. “Ah Li, are you free tomorrow afternoon?”
Xu Li thought for a moment and it seemed there was nothing wrong. "No." "Then let's arrange a place tomorrow afternoon!" Tan Yuqi said again. "Okay." Xu Li readily agreed.
Along the way, the two walked side by side, occasionally exchanging quiet conversations. Tan Yuze told Xu Li about the interesting things that happened during basketball training, as well as the unforgettable moments of fighting alongside his teammates. Xu Li also shared some of her own insights into studying.
The streetlights around them lit up one by one, and the soft light stretched their shadows, then shortened them again.
Xu Li felt as if time had slowed down, and she was filled with joy as she walked.
From then on, Tan Yuze's feelings for Xu Li quietly grew. He found himself enjoying his time with Xu Li more and more; her kindness, courage, intelligence, and the way her eyes crinkled when she smiled all captivated him.
He began to pay attention to her every move, would be happy for a long time over a single word she said, and would be the first to stand up and help her when she encountered difficulties. And Xu Li, under Tan Yuze's care, seemed to have not changed much.
Her smile grew brighter and her eyes became more determined, just like when she saved Tan Yuqi in the alley, brave and powerful.
In the evening, Tan Yuqi added Xu Li on WeChat. "Li, are you free tomorrow at 5 pm? If not, is that time okay?" Xu Li thought the little girl on the other end of the line was cute. "I'm fine with anything, you can decide."
a long time.
Tan Yuze finally couldn't sit still any longer. "I didn't even call her Ali, so why are you calling her that? What kind of spell did you cast on her?"
Tan Yuqi felt that her brother was being petty. "Were you dreaming? Saying whatever you dreamt about." Tan Yuze was about to explode with anger. "You... I don't want to talk to you."
"My sister might like me. You're such a big idiot." He then left.
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