Chapter 19 Gold Coins Falling from the Sky
Meng Yanxi's father, Meng Shixu, and Lu Jingyue's mother, Meng Shijin, are siblings. Meng Yanxi is Lu Jingyue's cousin, three months older than him.
Unlike ordinary families where cousins are not close, the Meng family places great importance on blood ties. Meng Shixu and Meng Shijin, siblings, have been close since childhood. In addition, their father, Meng Huaijian, is still alive and in charge of the Meng family. He is the absolute patriarch and head of the family. Therefore, the grandchildren are naturally even closer. Meng Yanxi and Lu Jingyue, cousins, are even closer than brothers in ordinary families.
But Lu Jingyue felt that lately his cousin's gaze towards him had been somewhat ambiguous, his eyebrows and eyes looking neither like eyebrows nor like eyes.
To others, Meng Yanxi was a cold and aloof guy who was often a jerk, but he was really capable. But Lu Jingyue didn't see it that way. He didn't think his cousin was a jerk at all; he was just normally capable, maybe a little silly at most.
For example, she was occupying his seat and looking at him with a provocative gaze.
What's the point of him occupying a seat?
Lu Jingyue stood in front of the table and stared at Meng Yanxi for three seconds. Meng Yanxi didn't react at all; he neither spoke nor stood up. So Lu Jingyue took the initiative to hand him the unopened bottle of water, saying in a tolerant and friendly manner, "This is for you."
Lu Jingyue's brotherly demeanor made Meng Yanxi's gums ache.
"No." He frowned in disgust, and finally got up and left Lu Jingyue's seat.
Jin Zhao, who witnessed all of this, was completely bewildered.
Lu Jingyue sat down calmly, unscrewed the bottle cap, tilted his head back, and took a swig of ice water. His composed demeanor only made her more confused.
She felt her intuition was being challenged; those two people were clearly acting strangely.
"Don't you think..." she couldn't help but say, then immediately realized it was inappropriate; her current behavior resembled gossiping behind someone's back.
Lu Jingyue turned his head to look at her, waiting for her to continue.
Jin Zhao shook his head: "It's nothing..."
"That's weird?" Lu Jingyue said at the same time, finishing her sentence for her.
Jin Zhao looked up in surprise. So he could sense it. She had thought her deskmate, who was secretly afraid of birds, had an extraordinary level of insensitivity.
Lu Jingyue chuckled calmly: "That's just how he is. He goes through periods of being a bit of a chuunibyou (a person with delusions of grandeur). Just ignore him, he'll get over it on his own."
Chuunibyou (middle school syndrome)? Meng Yanxi?
It's difficult for Jin Zhao to connect these two words.
Moreover, based on her unintentional observation, Lu Jingyue, though saying he was ignoring Meng Yanxi, was actually becoming even more enthusiastic. One minute he was asking him if he wanted to play basketball, the next he was asking him if he wanted to go horseback riding with Zhou Huaichen tomorrow, Sunday.
Meng Yanxi remained cold and aloof, not even raising her head.
"I'm not going."
"I'm busy."
Even the thick-skinned Luo Heng noticed something was off about this aloof attitude and whispered to Meng Yanxi, "Brother Yan, did Brother Yue offend you?"
"Yes, did I offend you?" Lu Jingyue looked at him with a smile.
Lu Jingyue's smile is sometimes more annoying than his cold face.
Meng Yanxi raised her eyelids and glanced at him: "No."
Luo Heng breathed a sigh of relief; otherwise, being caught between his two good brothers would have been too difficult. Upon hearing Meng Yanxi's denial, he immediately burst into laughter: "That's right, we're all brothers—"
Meng Yanxi stared at Lu Jingyue and continued in a measured tone, "But perhaps you could reflect on what you've been doing lately."
Luo Heng's laughter abruptly stopped.
Huh?
What does that mean?
Lu Jingyue remained calm and collected, and actually pondered Meng Yanxi's words for a few seconds before saying innocently, "Apart from falling in love, I didn't do anything else."
Meng Yanxi's face turned completely sour at this point.
Luo Heng: "?"
Luo Heng: "!"
Luo Heng's pupils dilated, and he almost shouted. Remembering they were in a classroom, and that puppy love shouldn't be publicized, he tried to lower his voice, but that suppressed tone instantly transformed into a gossipy glare: "What? Yue-ge, you're dating?!"
Lu Jingyue turned his head to look out the window, thought for a moment, and said modestly, "Not really, I'm still in unrequited love."
Jin Zhao, who happened to be sitting by the window, was shocked to hear such a big secret and couldn't help but look at Lu Jingyue.
"Smack!"
Meng Yanxi slammed her textbook shut, got up, and left the classroom.
*
Lu Jingyue invited Zhou Huaichen to go horseback riding at the horse farm over the weekend, which caused Meng Zhuxi to burst into tears again.
The little girl wanted to go horseback riding with Lu Jingyue, but she probably didn't really want to ride horses. She just didn't want to dance. She'd do anything, except do her homework. She'd probably hesitate a bit between doing homework and dancing. But her brother insisted she go dancing. She didn't want to, and she argued with Meng Yanxi. The siblings had a love-hate relationship, and the younger sister gave in, sitting on the ground and wailing.
After she finished crying, Meng Yanxi still ruthlessly picked her up and threw her into the car.
That's how dance is. At first, you might be captivated by the stunning beauty of the body, but before that, you have to endure a lot of hardship.
Actually, Meng Yanxi also couldn't stand it anymore.
While Meng Zhuxi went to the dressing room to change, he said to Teacher Yu Yu, "Give her some water, teach her a dance she likes, don't force her to focus on the basics."
Teacher Yu Yu said with some regret: "I thought you wanted to pursue the path of professional dancers."
“She probably won’t become a professional dancer.” Meng Yanxi knew her younger sister’s personality very well.
She doesn't have that ambition, nor can she endure that hardship.
Teacher Yu went easy on Meng Zhuxi, and she was able to breathe a sigh of relief in this class. Without the dreaded basic skills training, the little girl's interest returned considerably.
Meng Yanxi watched her sister, who was unusually enthusiastic, for a while, then turned and went to the front desk.
Teacher Feng was supposed to be off today, but a major client notified him in advance that they were coming, so he very professionally took the initiative to change his day off.
In the meeting room where VIP clients were being entertained, Teacher Feng led Meng Yanxi to sit down at the table and then went to close and lock the door herself.
Turning around and sitting opposite Meng Yanxi, Teacher Feng explained Jin Zhao's situation to him: "Her family situation is a bit special. She was sent to learn dance by her mother when she was seven years old, initially as an extracurricular interest. At that time, her academic grades were not very good, but her dancing was outstanding. All the teachers here thought she was a good prospect for dancing. Her mother also wanted her to pursue the path of an art student, so she changed the small group classes to one-on-one private lessons. When she was in the sixth grade of elementary school, her mother got sick. We all thought she might have to take a break for a while, but her mother signed her up for 300 private lessons indefinitely."
Meng Yanxi looked up: "Why?"
Teacher Feng smiled and said, "Since ancient times, a stepmother has always been followed by a stepfather. It's good to make some plans for your daughter in advance. You're too young to understand these things; it's the inherent weakness of men."
Meng Yanxi remained silent.
Teacher Xiao Feng: "But it was no use. She was only in sixth grade at the time. If she really wanted to pursue a career as a dance student, 300 private lessons would definitely not be enough. She would still need her father's support later on."
Meng Yanxi: "Her father did not support her."
Teacher Feng: "Judging from the results, that's how it is. Actually, even if her father were willing to support her, her stepmother wouldn't have been. After all, it's a new family, a new mistress of the house, and she also has to plan for her future children. Besides, raising a child to dance is incredibly expensive. To be honest, there are very few saints in this world; most people have their own selfishness. So, Jin Zhao came to school less and less later on, but her academic performance improved more and more. She probably gave up on being an art student and focused on the academic path."
The dance studio's meeting room wasn't large. Bright white lights overhead shone on the simple tabletop, while dance music and the teacher's calls for rhythm drifted in through the door.
Meng Yanxi looked at Teacher Feng and said, "Call her dad."
Teacher Feng actually wanted to say that calling wouldn't make a difference, but since the big client had made a request, he still did as he was told, took out his phone, and turned on speakerphone.
The phone rang for a while, and just when Ms. Feng thought the other party wouldn't answer, the call finally connected, and a deep, steady middle-aged male voice came through: "Hello?"
Teacher Feng has a natural salesman's enthusiasm; she immediately put on a smile and said, "Hey, Brother Hui, I'm Teacher Feng from Jinghong Dance Studio. Do you remember me?"
"Hello, Teacher Feng."
Teacher Feng glanced at Meng Yanxi across from her: "It's like this, did you see the WeChat message I sent you earlier? We're having a 30th anniversary celebration, and we're having a lucky draw to thank our loyal customers. Your Jinzhao has won 30 free private lessons."
"Yes, I know."
Teacher Feng asked tactfully, "It's been a month already, why haven't we seen Jin Zhao come to class?"
"She's in her second year of high school now, and her studies are her priority, so I didn't tell her."
“It’s alright, of course you should focus on your studies.” Teacher Feng responded quickly and continued enthusiastically, “But I think we can still tell her that this course has no time limit, so even if she goes to university in the future, she can still come and take the course if she wants to.”
"No need."
"This is free; there will be no charge whatsoever."
The other person repeated, "No need, thank you."
Teacher Feng glanced at Meng Yanxi, whose expression was cold and serious, and continued to communicate: "Is there any difficulty? Jin Zhao came to us to learn dance when she was seven years old. Teacher Yu Yu and I have watched her grow up. Jin Zhao is really very talented. We are very happy to have her selected for this event. If there are any difficulties at home, we can solve them together."
There was a moment of silence on the other end, then someone suddenly said, "Teacher Feng, can I ask you for a favor?"
"Yes, please go ahead!"
"Stop praising Jin Zhao. Whether she's pretty or outstanding, I don't want to hear it anymore. Do you know that every time you praise her, no, even just when she comes home from your classes, my family has a fight?"
Meng Yanxi frowned.
"Arguing?" Teacher Feng was also caught off guard. "How could they be arguing? She just came to dance, she didn't do anything else."
“I know, what I mean is that I have a new family now, and I need to consider my wife’s feelings more. For me, family harmony is the most important thing, and I hope you will stop calling me.”
Teacher Feng: "?"
No, what does your wife's feelings have to do with other people praising Jin Zhao? So because of your wife's ridiculous feelings, Jin Zhao doesn't even deserve a word of affirmation?
"Harmony in the family brings prosperity in all things"? Such high-sounding words, but isn't it just that the wife can't stand seeing her ex-wife's daughter excel, and gets jealous and starts making trouble when she sees her daughter succeeding?
At this moment, even the professionalism of a top salesperson could no longer keep him smiling.
After hanging up the phone, Teacher Feng wanted to vent to Meng Yanxi, but when she looked up, she saw that the boy had already gotten up with a cold face and left the meeting room.
"Shall I return that money to you?" Teacher Feng quickly turned around and asked.
Meng Yanxi didn't turn her head back; her aloof figure walked into the corridor filled with the cacophony of dance music and drumbeats.
"No need, give it to her."
Teacher Feng: "?"
No, how do I give it to him? What's the reason? What should he say?
Hello Jin Zhao, did a gold coin fall from the sky and hit you?
*
On Sunday, Wu Nian invited Jin Zhao to her home.
The two lived in the same neighborhood; Wu Nian's home was in the building opposite Jin Zhao.
Wu Nian recovered and returned the money she borrowed from Jin Zhao with interest.
Jin Zhao didn't charge interest, only taking back the initial two thousand yuan she had lent out. Wu Nian insisted, but she still refused, only asking softly, "Are we still friends?"
Wu Nian was taken aback, then smiled and said, "As long as you don't keep asking me to go back to school, we can still be friends."
Jin Zhao laughed.
She was in a hurry to go to the library to study and didn't stay long. When she left, she ran into He Yu in the hallway, who was looking for Wu Nian. He Yu was accompanied by his inseparable friend, Yu Lei.
Yu Lei was the same age as Wu Nian and He Yu, and they were both studying at a vocational high school. Last year, on Wu Nian's birthday, he went to a bar with He Yu. Later, when the incident happened in the alley next door, he and He Yu went to pick up Wu Nian together.
In the hallway, Jin Zhao walked past them with his head down.
Yu Lei whistled behind her: "Little beauty!"
Jin Zhao pretended not to hear and quickened his pace downstairs.
Behind him, He Yu laughed and pulled him back: "Don't be a toad trying to eat swan meat. Have you forgotten whose woman she is?"
Yu Lei didn't care at all, his eyes fixed on the girl's back as she went downstairs: "I've found out everything. She and Meng Yanxi are in the same class. There's nothing going on between them. Meng Yanxi was just giving her a ride that night."
The two discussed her without any restraint, their voices echoing in the empty hallway. Jin Zhao felt a chill run down his spine and quickly ran out of the hallway.
Jin Zhao thought this chance encounter would pass quickly, after all, she lived a simple life, focused on her studies, and had no chance to get involved with these people. Little did she know, it was just the beginning of her being targeted.
On Monday evening, after self-study, Yu Lei waited for her at the school gate on his motorcycle.
An eighteen-year-old boy, just over 1.7 meters tall, with dyed blond hair, leaned back on the motorcycle behind him, a lit cigarette between his fingers, its crimson glow flickering in the dark night. He stood out conspicuously among the well-behaved students of the affiliated high school.
From afar, some students avoided him, while others were bold enough to approach and stare directly at him, their eyes filled with a longing and excitement for breaking the rules.
Jin Zhao didn't dare to go out, so she hid in the security room. Only after the security guard left and chased Yu Lei away did she quickly run to the bus stop across the street.
But the next day, the third day... the other party appeared again. She didn't dare to bother the security guards too often, so she would wait for Lu Jingyue and Si Tian to walk together after school in the evening, hiding behind them as they left the school gate.
It just so happens that Lu Jingyue and Meng Yanxi seem to have had some misunderstanding recently, and the two are no longer inseparable. Lu Jingyue usually walks with Si Tian after class. Boys are always more intimidating in this regard, which coincidentally helped her.
But amidst the monotonous homework and exams at school, rumors always spread exceptionally quickly. Soon, Jin Zhao heard that a girl from the affiliated high school was dating a boy from the vocational high school, and that he would pick up his girlfriend every night, though he didn't know which girl it was.
Jin Zhao is now feeling troubled and confused.
There was no evening self-study on Saturday. After school in the afternoon, Lu Jingyue went to play basketball, while Si Tian was called away by her English teacher. It was still evening when Jin Zhao, having grown a bit bolder, walked out of the school gate alone and ran into Yu Lei again.
Without the darkness as a backdrop, the other person didn't seem so scary anymore. Although she didn't like blond hair, that was just her personal preference. She told herself not to be stereotypical and that things should be clarified.
Jin Zhao took a deep breath and walked towards the boy across the street.
Seeing that she had finally stopped avoiding him, Yu Lei got off his motorcycle and asked bluntly, "How about we become a couple? I'll pick you up from school every day, bring you breakfast, take you out to play if you're upset, and I'll spend my money on you."
Jin Zhao also bluntly rejected her: "I don't like you."
"Why?"
Jin Zhao used the least likely condition the other party could meet as an excuse: "I like boys who are good at studying. I don't need him to pick me up or give me money. He just needs to be able to explain problems to me."
"A good student? The top student in the grade? Meng Yanxi?" The blond boy laughed disdainfully. "But you're not good enough for him. Even your dad doesn't like you, and your family looks down on you. How could someone like you possibly be worthy of Meng Yanxi? We're from the same world."
He pointed to himself, then to Jin Zhao.
He did indeed have a very bad, greasy habit; while speaking, he even tried to touch the girl's face.
But before he could touch Jin Zhao, a boy suddenly appeared and grabbed his hand forcefully.
"Crack!"
Meng Yanxi appeared out of nowhere, grabbed his wrist, and twisted it downwards forcefully.
Before Yu Lei could react, Meng Yanxi grabbed him again, pulled him up, and delivered a powerful blow to his abdomen with her knee.
"Ouch—" Yu Lei cried out in pain, clutching his lower abdomen. Meng Yanxi then punched him in the face.
Throughout the entire process, he remained silent, his face cold, focusing solely on inflicting heavy damage. It was as if he had been suppressing his anger for a long time, with nowhere to vent it, and today he finally found an outlet.
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