Chapter 26 Just for Fun
Waking up in the soft, comfortable bed, Lian Yi scratched her messy hair, yawned, got out of bed, and casually shook the bell hanging by the bed.
Before long, the door to the room was politely knocked on, and the courteous butler was followed by several well-trained servants who filed in. While Lian Yi was still brushing her teeth with her eyes half-closed, someone in the bathroom adjusted the water temperature and filled the bathtub with hot water, and someone else lit aromatherapy.
No one made a sound during the entire process.
"Miss, would you like a car prepared?" The butler stood a few steps behind Lian Yi, his tone neither humble nor arrogant, and his volume just loud enough to be heard.
"The master and madam have instructed that you return to the old house tonight, so you don't need to go to school. A helicopter has been arranged to take you back to the old house at 5 pm."
Lian Yi paused while brushing her teeth, then lowered her head to rinse her mouth and took a towel from the maid to wipe her mouth.
"Tell them that I have final exams coming up and I need to study hard."
She was unbuttoning her pajamas, her face expressionless.
The servant, having finished her task, lowered her head and quietly left the room.
As Lian Yi touched the bathroom doorknob, she glanced back at the butler who was still waiting for her to finish speaking, her eyes curving slightly. "I'm going to a classmate's house for tutoring tonight, and besides, I'm not interested in something as boring as having dinner at the old house."
"Yes, Miss." The butler nodded slightly.
"Tell the driver to wait; he'll take me to school later."
Lian Yi closed the bathroom door and casually tossed her pajamas aside.
The bathroom was filled with a rich, warm floral fragrance. She stepped into the bathtub, which was about the same size as Meng Er's rented room, and let out a comfortable sigh as most of her body was soaking in the hot water.
This dull and boring life of a rich heiress—
In less than two years, we'll be saying goodbye.
-
After taking a shower, Lian Yi finally smiled, looking refreshed. She sat down at the dining table and glanced at the time; it was only a little before ten o'clock, still early.
After finishing the cooked cod that had been airlifted in early morning or even earlier, the Lian family driver finally greeted the young lady and smoothly drove her to the entrance of Wanghai Middle School.
The security guards were already used to Lian Yi appearing at this late hour.
Lian Yi strolled leisurely through the quiet campus until she arrived at the teaching building, where she heard the familiar sounds of lectures.
When she entered Class A5, she still gave a polite "Report!" without pausing her steps. The teacher nodded, and the lecture continued without interruption.
Lian Yi's appearance still caused quite a stir in the entire A5 class.
These past two days, rumors about her and Xie Ling have been circulating like wildfire behind her back.
Although one of the main characters had been missing from school for two days, the students' curiosity was still strong.
The private discussions have progressed to the point that the two had actually been secretly dating for two years, and with graduation approaching, they simply stopped hiding it!
Early romantic relationships are a topic that is forbidden by schools and most people have never experienced, but it is a topic that people can't help but pay attention to and gossip about, especially since Xie Ling and Lian Yi are both popular figures in school.
Despite their completely different styles, no one had ever imagined that there was any possibility between them before.
Everyone may enjoy studying, but life always needs some variety.
Now that everyone's finally here, even a brief distraction is enough to provide plenty of gossip after class.
After Lian Yi sat down in her seat, her deskmate sat up straight, looking like she was listening attentively to the lecture. Her expression remained unchanged on her cold face, truly oblivious to everything around her.
She didn't bother him; she simply propped her face up with one hand, tilted her head, and stared at the boy's handsome face.
Even if I didn't say anything, is it a crime to look?
Lian Yi became increasingly self-righteous as she watched.
Until the boy, who was sitting upright, tall and slightly thin, suddenly lowered his eyes, quickly wrote a line in his notebook, tore off the page, and then looked back at the podium.
But she pursed her lips tightly, her fingertips sliding across the paper with writing on it on the desk before pushing it in front of Lian Yi.
Lian Yi glanced down at the paper, then looked up and raised her eyebrows in confusion.
The boy's pale ears turned slightly red, which, compared to his indifferent expression, made her want to laugh. So, she took pity on him and lowered her eyes to see what Xie Ling had written.
"Don't disturb others like that. Listen to the lesson carefully."
Lian Yi's lips curled up slightly. She was about to find a pen to reply when she realized that there was no pen in her desk except for brand-new books. So she simply took a pen from Xie Ling's desk.
After writing the reply, I pushed the paper in front of him again.
Xie Ling frowned slightly, initially not wanting to pay attention, but Lian Yi's gaze remained fixed on him with a smile, as if it were tangible, making it impossible for him to concentrate.
Finally, he glanced down at her, paused slightly, and stared at the podium with a cold expression, showing no intention of paying her any attention.
"Hey—a good student passing notes in class!"
When Lian Yi saw his reaction, she almost burst out laughing. She took the note and wrote another sentence.
But this time, when the note was pushed in front of Xie Ling, he ignored it completely. Even when he was working on a problem, he would turn a page in his notebook and the note would be hidden from view.
Lian Yi blinked. How come she got so angry just from being teased?
She leaned on the table, looking up at Xie Ling's cold face. His gaze was very serious as he pondered, as if everything around him had lost its presence.
Even for a problem that is not difficult for him, he still has the habit of writing out several solutions.
A few minutes passed, and the classroom remained silent as students pondered, with only the occasional scratching of pens on paper.
Xie Ling had already put down his pen when he caught a glimpse of the girl lying on her desk, looking at him without any regard for her image. Her slightly curly long hair was draped over her cheeks, and her round eyes curved into a smile when she saw him looking over.
He mouthed to him, "Look!"
"..."
The teacher on the podium was asking if any students had finished solving the problem. Xie Ling paused in her gesture, then felt a poke through her clothes on her arm.
The girl's fingertips continued to poke him stubbornly in small, persistent motions, as if she wouldn't give up until he ignored her.
Xie Ling frowned slightly. He was even secretly relieved that Lian Yi had only gone this far and had not disrespected the class. Fearing that she might lose patience and do something else without restraint, he had no choice but to turn back to that page in his notebook.
I'll eat lunch with you in the cafeteria, and I won't bother you.
Xie Ling instinctively wanted to refuse, but when he saw Lian Yi's smiling eyes, he suddenly understood.
Lian Yi wasn't asking for his opinion; she was issuing a notification.
【Um. 】
After passing the note, Xie Ling finally gained some peace for the rest of the time by having lunch with her.
Seeing that the first stage of today's task was completed, Lian Yi picked up the paper, tore it into small pieces, crumpled it into a ball, and poked at it with the tip of her pen out of boredom.
When it comes to studying, Meng Er is enough. If she didn't want to experience being kicked out of the house before the plot even started, she wouldn't even want to go to school.
Especially in monthly and final exams, it's not difficult to get a perfect score, but how do you manage to leave most of the questions blank while still controlling the error rate on the remaining parts to ensure the final result looks genuinely 'dumb'?
It's been a series of tests.
As Lian Yi was idly lost in thought, she suddenly felt a gaze fixed intently on her from behind.
She had been glancing over here and there ever since she entered the classroom and took her seat.
"Tsk."
Lian Yi wanted to see who had the courage to keep staring at her.
Suddenly turning her head, Lian Yi saw a familiar face among the crowd who were stunned and then instinctively avoided her gaze. Her self-proclaimed aggressive expression relaxed slightly, and she returned to her bored look, turning back to continue poking at the paper ball.
Just as Xu Qingyao was about to smile at Lian Yi, the resentment she felt for Lian Yi not giving her a single glance since her return was instantly overshadowed by the joy she felt at Lian Yi looking at her.
Just as she was about to put on a smile, the shyness on her lips suddenly froze.
Lian Yi glanced at it briefly, then turned away with an almost indifferent and cold expression in Xu Qingyao's eyes.
Her already delicate and innocent face became even more vulnerable as her smile froze at the corners of her mouth.
The surrounding classmates naturally noticed this scene, their gossip radars went off like crazy, and they exchanged glances, conveying their unspoken thoughts through their eyes like telegrams.
It wasn't until the teacher tapped the blackboard on the podium that they began to concentrate on listening to the lecture.
"The final exams are just a few days away! This question type is the one you're most likely to misjudge. I'll only explain it once. If any of you still fall into the trap, it just means you weren't paying attention..."
Xu Qingyao bit her lower lip lightly, silently watching Lian Yi's back, and glared hatefully at Xie Ling.
Seeing this, her deskmate felt sorry for her and leaned closer, whispering, "Qingyao, don't be sad. If you're scared, you can call me wherever you need to go at school."
After her deskmate finished speaking, Xu Qingyao, who looked at her with a somewhat blank expression, nodded affirmatively and then looked at the podium to listen to the lesson attentively.
Xu Qingyao: "..."
ah?
…
The bell finally rang, and the familiar voice, which had taken five minutes to explain the problem, rang out. The students in Class A5 did not react at all.
As soon as the teacher finally picked up the test papers and teaching aids from the table and announced the end of get out of class, the sound of desks and chairs dragging on the floor rang out, and a group of students rushed out of the classroom like a race.
"Why don't you go to the cafeteria first, and I'll come over after I deliver the papers?"
When Xie Ling met Lian Yi's slightly round eyes, she paused for a moment, "I need to take the test paper that Teacher Huang asked me to do yesterday to him for grading. It will take about ten minutes. If I go to the cafeteria any later, there might not be any food left."
"It's okay, I'll wait for you in the classroom." Lian Yi smiled. "If there are no dishes, you can order stir-fries. Hurry up and come back."
Somewhat surprised that Lian Yi had become so agreeable, Xie Ling took out the test paper, lowered her eyes, and said, "Hmm."
As he walked out of the classroom, for some reason, he suddenly remembered what Lian Yi had said last night before getting off the bus, and her incredibly serious expression at the time.
The boy, who had repeatedly told himself not to overthink, seemed unaware that sometimes, the more he suppressed his thoughts, the more likely he was to overthink.
Lost in thought, Xie Ling brushed past a group of students who looked rather intimidating, paying no attention to them as he walked toward the teachers' office.
He naturally didn't notice the curious glances that followed him as the group of people turned to look at him.
In the classroom, Xu Qingyao had already eagerly walked to Lian Yi's desk.
“Miss Lianyi…” she said weakly.
Without even looking up, Lian Yi pulled out a doll keychain from her pocket. She had gotten it from Chen Jingze at an arcade yesterday afternoon. It cost her over twenty coins.
By the end, Lian Yi could no longer laugh, but Chen Jingze, who was still suppressing his laughter, grabbed two keychains in a row.
"This is for you."
Lian Yi naturally snatched both. Seeing Xu Qingyao's expression, she didn't know why the other girl always looked like she was about to cry, but she figured she could just give Xu Qingyao anything—
She then fell silent.
Sure enough, Xu Qingyao, who was about to say something, took the keychain. Her beautiful face, which had been filled with sorrow just a second ago, blossomed into a faint smile the next second.
"Is this really for me?!" Xu Qingyao couldn't contain her surprise and joy as she held the keychain in her hands and whispered.
"Yeah, yeah," Lian Yi replied perfunctorily. "You've worked hard these past two years helping me with my homework, so consider this a thank you gift."
Xu Qingyao pursed her lips, pinched the keychain, and rubbed the plush toy hanging on it with her fingertips, whispering, "It's not hard work..."
"Oh, I see. They just handed out several test papers these past few days, right? You did them all, didn't you?" Lian Yi said, resting her chin on her hand.
"good."
Xu Qingyao didn't force the issue at all, but noticed the pen Xie Ling was idly twirling in her hand—it belonged to Xie Ling.
She hesitated before saying, "This Xie Ling..."
"Xu Qingyao." Lian Yi sighed, drawing out the last syllable as she interrupted her.
"The grand plan, do you remember it?"
"But……"
Lian Yi looked at her and sighed inwardly that she was becoming increasingly difficult to fool. So she lowered her voice slightly and said, "I'm planning to ask my family for some money to start a business, but you know, if I don't do well on the final exams, they'll definitely use that as an excuse not to give me the money."
“So…” Xu Qingyao suddenly realized, then lowered her voice with slight excitement, “I understand! I will definitely not let anyone else know about this.”
She rubbed the keychain plush toy, glanced at Xie Ling's seat, and snorted coldly in her heart.
He's just a tool.
"Lian Yi! I've finally caught you!"
Suddenly, a loud shout, accompanied by laughter, came from outside the classroom.
Then three girls who looked to be around the same age as Lian Yi walked in.
The rest of the students were blocking the classroom door. Although they were all wearing Wanghai's school uniform, most of them had a few buttons undone on their jackets. They casually lingered by the door talking, and they all had an air of being someone not to be trifled with.
They were the kind of people that would make ordinary students lower their heads and give way when they saw them on the street.
The girl who had just spoken had delicate features, and the fitted school uniform she wore looked like a princess's dress. The two girls standing next to her, although they did not look the same, had a very similar aura.
That kind of pride and magnanimity can only be cultivated by those who have been raised in luxury from a young age.
"I heard you've gotten involved with Xie Ling?" She leaned on the desk, speaking to Lian Yi in a very familiar tone.
Looking at the three people who had taken her place among her cronies, Lian Yi smiled slightly and readily admitted, "Yes."
Li Xilai's eyes widened in surprise. "What?! I thought it was just people spreading rumors out of boredom. You..."
She looked at Lian Yi with a hesitant expression, her tone extremely conflicted.
"You're really interested in him?"
"What a pity." Another girl with striking features and a somewhat arrogant demeanor sighed, "I was hoping to find an opportunity to confess to him, but you got there first."
"But how did you come to like him? Seriously?"
What she was curious about, the other two girls were equally curious about.
After all, having known each other for so long, they couldn't really imagine what Lianyi would be like in a relationship. Lianyi had always been a tyrant since she was little. As they grew up, they were all at the age when their hearts were beginning to flutter, and it was inevitable that ambiguous feelings would arise between young men and women.
In particular, many families have been tacitly agreeing to match up their children's generation, and quite a few have already made their marriages a reality.
Lian Yi is the most unique case. In her eyes, there is no distinction between men and women. It's not that no one in the circle has ever had feelings for Lian Yi, but unfortunately, this person's thought process is just not on the same wavelength.
They had all witnessed the young master of a family that ran a shipbuilding business, blushing and mustering up the courage to corner Lian Yi and confess his feelings.
This method was actually suggested by a group of their friends: go straight for the ball, you have to go straight for the ball.
Then Lian Yi smiled and beckoned her bodyguard over. She didn't do anything to the person, but just glanced at them up and down, even speaking with a smile.
"Wasn't smashing your car last time enough? Now you want to block me, huh? Don't let me see you playing with cars in Yunhai again, I'll smash it every time I see you."
This bizarre thought process is somehow connected to Xie Ling, who comes from a poor family and is at most good-looking and academically outstanding. It seems that she took the initiative. Who wouldn't be curious!
Lian Yi glanced at their expressions, which clearly screamed gossip, and hummed in agreement.
"You're really serious, can't you tell? You're really following along."
Upon hearing this, their expressions changed slightly, and Xu Qingyao's already fair and delicate face became even paler.
Li Xilai gasped, frowning, "You're not serious, are you? That ginger..."
"Hey, did you spend your whole adolescence being single and now you want to be love-struck?" She changed her tune very quickly, and the unmentioned name was simply ignored by everyone.
Li Xilai hadn't taken the matter too seriously at first, but seeing Lian Yi's reaction, as a friend, she couldn't help but want to offer some advice.
The idea of a rich heiress falling in love with a poor boy is fine to watch as a melodramatic soap opera, but if it actually happens to someone you don't know well or even someone you dislike, it's just something to laugh about and talk about.
But if it's Lianyi, then it's different.
The other two had the same expression, clearly showing their disapproval.
Lian Yi tilted her head slightly and smiled at them, "What is it—"
"I'm just really bored lately and want to do something interesting."
"Don't you guys think it's a very interesting pastime to get your hands on someone as aloof as this and then dump them?"
Her nonchalant tone and harsh words surprised the girls, who then secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Li Xilai laughed, "Just don't play around and cause trouble."
"How could that be?"
Lian Yi's eyes curved slightly as she glanced towards the classroom door. The tall, slender figure of the boy was faintly visible behind a group of people. She smiled and said, "Why don't you guess how long it will take me to win him over?"
“You really know how to play the game.” Another girl with delicate features laughed. “However, someone like Xie Ling is definitely worth putting some effort into; it’s quite challenging.”
"...I guess I can manage to finish this winter break."
Li Xilai glanced at Lian Yi, and after the arrogant girl guessed it would take three months, she lowered her voice and said, "I believe Lian Xiaoyi, at most one month!"
"When you break up with me, remember to invite us to watch the show together."
Lian Yi smiled sweetly, "Of course."
She didn't really expect to catch up with Xie Ling. After all, it was a fishpond for a rich girl, not something she could easily lay her hands on. But given his grateful nature, if she treated him well, he would think she was a good person.
Destroy his understanding and trample on his trust.
Lian Yi was very confident about this. She didn't believe that Xie Ling would still be able to appreciate this kindness that had been worn away to the point of almost nothing by then.
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