Chapter 74 Repay Because I Cherish You
"This is for daytime use, this is for nighttime use, this is the extended nighttime version, and these are sleep pants..." Zhu Zhiwei picked up the dazzling array of sanitary napkins on the shelf and introduced them to Zhu Yingning one by one, meticulously explaining, "Sanitary napkins are used in private areas, so don't skimp on them. Buy good quality ones, not cheap brands."
She listened carefully, and after understanding the length, she started to choose a brand. She picked a more affordable one among the big brands, and went to the front desk to check out with Zhu Zhiwei.
"Thank you for coming with me, Sister Weiwei." After paying the bill, she picked up the bag in her hand and turned around to thank him.
After school, she usually came to Zhu Zhiwei's shop to work for an hour or two before returning home to eat and study. Today was no different. But while she was busy in the shop, Zhu Zhiwei discerningly noticed she was feeling unwell and asked if she was on her period. Unaware of the obviousness, she lifted her sleeve and sniffed, worried she might be stained with the scent of blood without realizing it.
"There's no smell," Zhu Zhi reassured her with a smile. "But a woman, holding her belly and bending over, is most likely menstruating."
Zhu Zhiwei put her work aside temporarily and took her to the supermarket in the department store to buy sanitary napkins.
After paying the bill, she was about to walk back when Zhu Zhiwei fell a few steps behind her. She stretched out her finger, adjusted the school uniform at the back of her waist, and asked, "Is it Xu Sirui's?"
Zhu Yingning turned around and saw her eyebrows curved softly with a smile.
She didn't feel ashamed when Shao Yanjun asked her about it, but when Zhu Zhiwei pointed it out so casually, and she watched him with a smile, she suddenly felt a surge of heat rising from her feet. She felt like an active volcano, her blood boiling like magma. She opened her mouth and stuttered, "Yes..."
Fortunately, Zhu Zhiwei didn't say anything that would make her even more embarrassed. Instead, she told her how to wash the blood stains off clothes.
After returning home, Zhu Yingning changed her clothes.
The washing machine rolled up her school uniform pants and Xu Sirui's school uniform. Their clothes were tangled together and floated in the foamy ocean current.
She squatted before it, watching the tiny machine work its magic.
**
The midterm exam was scheduled for after Halloween. After the exam, Zhu Yingning asked Wu Bo if there were any restaurants nearby that were suitable for students.
"There's a Western-style fast food restaurant that's been very popular recently." Wu Bo said as he wrote the restaurant's tongue-twisting English name on a piece of paper.
Zhu Yingning carefully put away the note: "Thank you."
"Who are you going to have dinner with?" Wu Bo asked, curious as he was.
She smiled generously and said, "Yes, invite a friend."
**
The studio recently received a new order, an advertisement for a sports drink, and they need to find a campus couple to shoot the film.
The girl has been confirmed, it is Guo Yingying. Jiang Ruifeng selfishly wants to give the male role to Xu Sirui, but it is also his own fault for not being able to drink. A few days ago, he went out for a drink with Feng Da, and he got drunk and talked without restraint. Feng Da coaxed him into a happy mood, and he put his arm around Feng Da's shoulders and called him brother, and bluntly said that he wanted to make him the male lead. Only when he woke up did he suddenly remember what stupid thing he had done.
If he went back on his word and removed Feng Da, it would affect their relationship. If he didn't, it wouldn't meet his expectations. Jiang Ruifeng racked his brain for a few minutes, then immediately made the decision: "You two can come on the day of the shoot and see who looks better on camera."
After he said this, although Feng Da was still smiling, his face was inevitably a little gloomy. Jiang Ruifeng pretended not to see it and looked for Xu Sirui out of the corner of his eye. Finally, he found that Xu Sirui was still huddled on the tattered sofa in the corner playing his broken game console. He didn't know whether he heard what he had just said.
Jiang Ruifeng walked over and repeated it for emphasis.
Xu Sirui finally raised his eyes lazily: "When?"
"November 5th."
He yawned and looked away again: "You go find Feng Da, I have something to do that day."
"Are you talking nonsense? What happened to you that day? What trivial matter did you have?" Jiang Ruifeng got angry when he heard it.
Xu Sirui's face is indeed impeccable. He looks great in all angles on camera, and has a strong sense of fashion expression. He exudes an indescribable temperament wherever he stands. When other people stand crookedly, passers-by will suspect that they have scoliosis, but when Xu Sirui stands crookedly, people can't help but comment on his relaxed look.
The problem was, he was completely free-spirited and didn't take modeling seriously at all. He wasn't short of money, nor did he crave fame; it seemed like he was here simply to kill time. Jiang Ruifeng racked his brains to keep him, but Xu Sirui remained indifferent, a fleeting, half-hearted pursuit. To Jiang Ruifeng, it was like the gods were feeding him, only to have him pee in their mouths.
He pressed, "What's the matter with you?"
"Nothing, just having a meal with someone." Xu Sirui was lying on the sofa with his legs resting on the armrest, playing while answering.
Jiang Ruifeng was furious: "Who needs to eat a whole day to eat a meal?! What does eating a meal have to do with your filming? You have to come on Saturday!"
"No, I'm tired."
"Why are you tired?" Jiang Ruifeng was puzzled. "You are 16 years old, not 61. Can you show some youthful vigor?"
"cannot."
“…”
"It's tiring dealing with the guy I eat with," he added, adding fuel to the fire.
In the end, Jiang Ruifeng was furious for half an hour, but he had to accommodate Xu Sirui and postpone the shooting time to Sunday.
Upon hearing this, Feng Da's smile faded a bit. At this point, if he still couldn't see that Jiang Ruifeng had already decided on Xu Sirui, then he'd truly lived in vain. But what could he say? He pursed his lips, paused, and put on his perfect smile again. When Jiang Ruifeng asked him, "Then let's change it to Sunday, Feng Da, is that okay with you?" he nodded and replied, "Of course, I don't mind."
After Jiang Ruifeng turned around to contact other staff members to arrange the filming on Sunday, Feng Da walked over to the sofa where Xu Sirui was lying, leaned on the armrest on the side that he hadn't abused, and asked, "Sirui, who did you meet?"
Xu Sirui's eyes were still glued to the game screen, and he said vaguely, "People."
"Zhu Yingning?"
His fingers paused on the keys.
Feng Da knew he had guessed right, so he smiled, stood up and said, "Say hello to her for me."
**
To be precise, Zhu Yingning came to ask him out specifically before the midterm exam. Seeing her walking towards his class at such a special time, Xu Sirui subconsciously thought that she was going to repay him with evil just like she did in the last monthly exam. However, she didn't nag him to take the exam. Instead, she asked him if he was free on Saturday after the exam.
"What are you going to do? Ask me out?"
He asked this deliberately, intending to tease her, but she nodded and said, "Yes, I want to invite you to dinner, just you and me, no one else."
The honesty left him speechless for a long time. Finally, he stared into her eyes and said slowly, "Oh... okay."
**
Saturday came quickly, and in the morning Xu Sirui went to Zhang Lin's house to play with him.
Zhang Lin had poor grades and attended a vocational high school. His parents, fully aware that their son wasn't cut out for academics, had completely given up on nurturing his academic career. Their only requirement was that he finish high school, earn a diploma, and start a business right after graduation. Consequently, his parents ignored his computer activities and even gave him pocket money, allowing him to tinker with his own gaming room.
When Xu Sirui didn't know where to go, he would wander around among his friends' homes, and Zhang Lin was naturally one of them.
He stayed at Zhang Lin's house until the afternoon. As the evening went on, he became more and more distracted and could no longer concentrate on the game.
I looked at my phone and saw that there was still an hour until the agreed time, and it would only take half an hour to get there from Zhang Lin's place.
Xu Sirui didn't want to go there right now, didn't want to arrive even a minute early, didn't want to appear to value this dinner too much.
Isn’t it just a meal?
In order to create a nonchalant feeling, he stayed at Zhang Lin's house until only half an hour was left before he leisurely left.
Then, unexpectedly but not surprisingly, we were stuck in traffic.
**
The restaurant was packed on a weekend evening, but luckily Zhu Yingning followed Wu Bo's advice and made a reservation.
She was sitting on the second floor, with a floor-to-ceiling window next to her. Looking down, she could see the main entrance downstairs.
The agreed time had passed and she was getting a little sleepy from waiting, but Xu Sirui still didn't show up.
Is he coming or not? Could he have forgotten?
While Zhu Yingning was thinking, she scooped up the free ice cream brought by the waiter with a spoon and put it into her mouth in small bites.
The ice cream is sweet and delicious.
She raised her hand to call the waiter and ordered some snacks first. She thought Xu Sirui might be stuck in traffic during the evening rush hour, so it would be inconvenient for her to order a staple food for him. She simply ordered some snacks so that he could fill his stomach when he arrived.
Not long after ordering, I looked down and saw Xu Sirui running towards me on the road on the first floor.
He ran in a panic, his jacket unzipped and blown to the sides by the wind, resembling a superhero's cape, a sparrow's wings, the remains of a nymph's exoskeleton. He ran hurriedly and hurriedly to the restaurant entrance. Just when Zhu Yingning thought he would dash into the restaurant and rush in front of her, he suddenly braked, stopped outside the French window on the first floor, and began to pose in front of the window—playing with his hair and adjusting his clothes.
Then he walked in casually with his hands in his pockets.
God knows how much effort she put into holding back her laughter, especially when two minutes later, Xu Sirui casually staggered up to the second floor. He was obviously so tired that his chest was still heaving violently, but he forced himself to pretend to be calm.
He saw her, quickened his pace, strode to her, pulled out the seat opposite her and sat down.
"The road is a bit congested," he said.
Zhu Yingning nodded and said nothing, just pushing the menu to him. It wasn't that she didn't want to talk, she was just worried that she would burst out laughing as soon as she opened her mouth.
Xu Sirui didn't even open it. He often ate at this restaurant. When the waiter came over to take the order, he said, "Creamy mushroom pasta."
The waiter turned to Zhu Yingning.
She held the menu upright to cover her face, adjusted her expression behind the menu, and answered in a normal tone: "I'd like a spaghetti with tomato and meat sauce, thank you."
The waiter left, and she finally suppressed her urge to laugh. She put down the menu and looked at Xu Sirui who was sitting opposite her.
He was drenched in sweat from running, and even though he'd deliberately fluffed his hair downstairs, the sweat still stuck to his cheeks, making his dark hair seem even paler. He leaned back in his chair, his gaze first out the window, gazing at the night for a moment before slowly turning his head and fixing his gaze on her, his pupils appearing dark and intense under the restaurant light.
He stretched out his hand and gently stroked the rim of the glass of iced lemon juice in front of him, his slender knuckles getting a few drops of clear ice water.
The water droplets made his smooth fingernails glisten with a crystal-like luster.
Tick.
dripping.
Zhu Yingning looked at his eyes and fingers, and for some reason, her mood, which had just wanted to laugh, became strange.
She felt that the air was a little sticky.
But she quickly attributed the strange atmosphere to the fact that she hadn't eaten alone with Xu Sirui for a long time. She straightened her face and pushed an envelope she brought in front of him.
Xu Sirui lowered his brows and looked at the envelope on the table. He had now learned to be highly wary of anything that Zhu Yingning brought that seemed to be related to a confession. He asked suspiciously, "What is this? Study materials?"
While this seemed like the most fitting answer, what kind of study materials could possibly fit inside that envelope? Had she printed out the rankings and stuffed them inside, deciding to use them to humiliate him and provoke him?
"Money," she corrected.
"Money?" He blurted out, deeply confused. His fingers reached for the envelope, but just as he was about to touch it, he suddenly realized what was happening and retracted his fingertips. An unreadable expression crossed his face. "Down jacket? Three hundred yuan?"
She nodded and then shook her head: "Strictly speaking, it's not three hundred yuan, because there is interest."
“…”
Xu Sirui closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He felt like he was going to vomit blood if he opened his mouth. What left him speechless was her next words: "As for the money your family spent on my brother's sneakers, the money for your watch, and the money Uncle Xu gave me, I will pay it back slowly. Although I can't pay it back now, I will definitely pay it back with interest later..."
Xu Sirui couldn't understand at all and interrupted her: "Why?"
He knew she was working, and that the money she earned was needed to pay for her father's medicine and provide food and clothing for her family. Under such circumstances, she was still thinking about paying off the money for that insignificant down jacket. Why?
Zhu Yingning was stunned by his question: "It's only natural to pay back debts."
He sneered, leaned back in his chair, and said, "This is the first time I've seen someone thinking about repaying the grant right after receiving it. In our area, if you repay so quickly, you're usually in a hurry to distance yourself from others. Do you think I and my family are unhappy?"
She was shocked. "No! Why would you think that? How could I possibly mean that?"
"What do you mean?" he scoffed in a deliberately provocative tone.
At this point in the conversation, it actually has some hint of a quarrel. As long as you and I go back and forth for a round, and both of you speak louder and with a harsher tone, even if there is no intention to quarrel at the beginning, it will naturally turn into a quarrel in the end.
Isn’t this how many arguments start?
Xu Sirui crossed his arms, prepared to deal with her anger.
In reality, Zhu Yingning wasn't angry at all; she was merely surprised. After the shock wore off, she began to reason clearly. In a calm and gentle voice, she said, "I want to return the money to you because I value our relationship, because I value you. I hope we can just be pure friends, without any mixed-up titles of sponsor and sponsored. I hope that when you think of me, you'll only think of me, not about how my family was poor and I couldn't go to school... or anything like that."
After she finished speaking, Xu Sirui opposite her seemed to freeze.
He remained with his arms folded, the sneer on his face, meant to counter her anger, gradually fading into a darker, more indistinct expression. He stared at her in silence for a long moment before leaning forward and whispering, "Zhu Yingning, do you speak to everyone like this?"
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