Chapter 20 Scar
Yu Lei was punched to the ground, clutching his face with one hand and his stomach with the other, curled up on the ground.
Meng Yanxi was about to make a move when Jin Zhao reacted and quickly stopped him: "Meng Yanxi!"
At dismissal time, the school gate was crowded with people, immediately attracting the attention of the students. The security guard at the gate also noticed them and shouted sternly, "What are you doing! No fighting!"
Two security guards ran over from the opposite side, one on each side, blocking Meng Yanxi and Yu Lei respectively.
Meng Yanxi stood rooted to the spot, her wrist held by Jin Zhao. Yu Lei, lying on the ground in pain in his face and stomach, was forcibly pulled up by the security guards. He cursed angrily, "What kind of fight is this! This is a one-sided assault! Assault! I'm calling the police!"
Everything happened so fast that the students passing by didn't even have time to react. When they heard the keywords "beating" and "call the police," someone secretly took out their phone from their bag to take pictures.
The school's security guards are specially trained in public opinion control and have excellent sensitivity. One guard immediately shouted: "You're not allowed to bring your cell phone to school. Which class are you in? Hand over your cell phone!"
The two students who had just taken out their phones turned and ran away.
Another security guard, staring at Yu Lei's blond hair, preemptively demanded, "Which class are you in? Who told you to dye your hair like that? You're ignoring school rules, aren't you? Come here, come with me to the security office, and I'll have your homeroom teacher come and get you!"
Without thinking twice, he grabbed the person and dragged them toward the security room.
Yu Lei had just been beaten and nearly dislocated his arm; he was so angry he felt like he was going to die, and he screamed, "I'm not from your school!"
Unfortunately, the other party wouldn't listen and dragged him into the affiliated high school.
Meng Yanxi and Jin Zhao were not spared either, and returned to the security room together, though they left on their own, which was somewhat more dignified.
Today is Saturday. Chen Shu had already finished get off work when he was called back to school by the security department.
Although the students in Class A were mischievous, they still followed the general rules. This was the first time Chen Shu had received such a call, and he even suspected that a student had given false information about the homeroom teacher. The security guard countered, "Isn't Meng Yanxi your student?"
"Who? Meng Yanxi?!" Chen Shu thought to himself, "Oh no!"
The school's security office was right next to the main gate; once the door was closed, it blocked any curious glances from outside. Chen Shu pushed the door open and heard a gruff voice shout, "I'm calling the police!"
Meng Yanxi leaned against the table, nodded, and pointed to the blond-haired boy opposite her: "The phone is over there."
He said he had a headache.
Fighting at the school gate and wanting to take it to the police station—what grudge do they have against her?
She coughed lightly, trying to get everyone's attention and ease the tense atmosphere, but no one noticed her.
The blond-haired boy's left cheek was swollen and congested, making his already unclear eyes appear even smaller. He pointed at Meng Yanxi and cursed, "You just wait!" before rushing over to grab the landline.
The security guard immediately went up and pulled him aside, his tone much gentler: "Sit down first, let's talk properly—"
Jin Zhao, who had been standing quietly behind Meng Yanxi, suddenly stepped forward and said in a low voice, "If anyone should call the police, it should be me."
Perhaps because Meng Yanxi had been protecting her behind her, she hadn't spoken and even Chen Shu hadn't noticed her presence. But when she suddenly spoke, she immediately attracted everyone's attention.
The sixteen or seventeen-year-old girl had soft, jet-black hair tied in a ponytail, fair skin, and a sweet, gentle appearance—the kind of face that could scare a bad student into tears. She stood beside Meng Yanxi, her back straight, staring intently at the blond-haired boy opposite them.
“You’ve been harassing me at the school gate for a week straight. If anyone should call the police, it’s me.” Jin Zhao glanced at the surveillance screen next to him with a clear mind. “Look, your motorcycle is still there.”
*
Finally, because Jin Zhao was determined to check the surveillance footage and hold Yu Lei accountable for harassing her, the other party's arrogance immediately weakened, and he rubbed his stomach and slunk away from the security room.
As soon as he stepped outside, he noticed the stares of several students around him and snarled, "What are you looking at! I'll gouge your eyes out!"
He then limped away from the high school. Soon after, the noisy roar of motorcycles could be heard.
As the homeroom teacher, Chen Shu stayed behind to ask Jin Zhao what had happened, and Jin Zhao gave a brief account. Actually, there wasn't much to say. She had been hiding in the crowd to avoid it before, and today was the first time they had actually crossed paths. But after only a few words, Meng Yanxi suddenly appeared and beat her up.
Chen Shu thought about her family situation, and it was no wonder that she was targeted by thugs. They obviously thought she looked gentle and obedient, guessed that she was weak and easy to bully, and were sure that she wouldn't dare to tell her teachers or parents anything. He never expected that she would be so strong-willed, speaking out about this in front of everyone and even threatening to call the police.
Chen Shu dared not take it lightly. He wrote his number on a piece of paper and handed it to her, solemnly instructing her: "Memorize it. If anything happens, tell the teacher immediately, or call the police immediately."
Jin Zhao accepted it with both hands and whispered, "Thank you, teacher."
Chen Shu said gently, "Let's go back."
She glanced at Meng Yanxi again. The seventeen-year-old boy stood not far away, carrying his schoolbag in one hand, his dark eyes and sharp aura exuding confidence. She had intended to stay and give him a lecture, but fearing that the blond-haired boy hadn't gone far, she waved him away to leave with Jin Zhao.
After the two left, Chen Shu turned back and said a few words to the security guard.
She was just a teacher, not a leader, and couldn't directly instruct people to do anything. She could only do her best, smiling apologetically as she asked the security guards to keep a close eye on whether any delinquents were loitering around the school, and to report any such activity promptly. She also asked them not to talk about what happened today, since nothing actually occurred, and talking about it would only create gossip and, if it became rumors, cause harm.
Both security guards on duty have daughters, and they both expressed their understanding and said they would pay more attention to the students' safety in the future.
Jin Zhaohe Mengyanxi walks towards the bus stop.
After May Day, the temperature really rose, and it's been above 30 degrees Celsius for the past few days. The early summer sunset painted the sky orange-red, and the hot wind brushed against my face.
Jin Zhao stared at the long shadow at his feet, without saying a word.
She didn't know whether she should say thank you first or embarrass him by making him witness her vulnerability once again.
The bus stop wasn't far, only about a hundred meters away. But perhaps Meng Yanxi had never taken the bus before and didn't recognize the stop sign, so she walked past it with an air of self-righteousness.
Jin Zhao followed his footsteps with her head down, but by the time she realized it, she had already missed him. She had no choice but to continue walking to the next bus stop, which was only a few hundred meters away from the next stop.
"Why don't you say?" Meng Yanxi finally spoke.
The area within a kilometer of the school is filled with restaurants, and the aromas of all kinds of food are mixed with the bustling noise of people.
Jin Zhao knew what he was asking and honestly said, "At first, I was a bit flustered. I had never encountered anything like this before, and my first instinct was to run away. But then I thought about it and realized that the other person didn't seem like a bad person. He just had some misunderstandings about me, so I thought I could just talk to him and make things clear."
Meng Yanxi: "Has it been explained clearly?"
"……No."
Meng Yanxi looked at her without saying anything, but her eyes clearly said: I knew it, a beating would be the best way to clear up this kind of person.
Jin Zhao paused for a moment, then changed the subject: "Does it hurt?"
The boy raised an eyebrow.
Jin Zhao pointed to his hand: "His face is so swollen, are your hands okay?"
She thought Meng Yanxi would say it didn't hurt, after all, he could pretend nothing was wrong even when his foot was so swollen last time. Unexpectedly, Meng Yanxi raised his hand, looked at it, and readily said, "A little."
Jin Zhao immediately leaned over nervously to take a look.
Meng Yanxi's hands were beautiful, with long fingers and clearly defined knuckles. Because she loved sports, her body fat percentage was low, and the veins on the back of her hands were prominent, making them look very sexy. At this moment, her hands, which were originally pale, were now red around the metacarpal joints.
Jin Zhao moved even closer, trying to check if there was any swelling.
Meng Yanxi looked down at her.
The girl tiptoed closer to his chest, her dark hair tinged with a warm gold by the setting sun. A summer breeze, carrying the heat of early summer, blew by, and he caught a faint, delicate scent of gardenias.
Jin Zhao's fingertips reached out to touch him, but she stopped herself in time and looked up at him.
Caught off guard, their eyes met. Meng Yanxi felt as if a gardenia had gently bumped into her chest, and her breath hitched.
“Let’s go put some medicine on,” she said, looking at him.
Their direct and sincere gazes were so close.
"No need." He looked away, simultaneously turning his palm away from her gaze.
This action allowed Jin Zhao to see the mark on the inside of his wrist. Previously, he had only caught a glimpse of a deep red mark from afar, which looked like a mole or a birthmark, and he wasn't sure what it was. Now, up close, he could finally see it clearly: about three to five millimeters in size, deep red, and shaped somewhat like a butterfly wing.
"Is this a birthmark?" she couldn't help but ask curiously.
Meng Yanxi glanced at it: "No, a scar."
"A scar?" Jin Zhao asked in surprise.
How can someone have such a beautiful scar?
Meng Yanxi: "It was from a spider bite."
"spider?"
"Um."
Meng Yanxi met her eyes, paused for two seconds, and then suddenly asked out of the blue, "You noticed that Lu Jingyue is afraid of birds, but you didn't notice that I'm afraid of spiders?"
Jin Zhao: "?"
Jin Zhao looked at him, completely bewildered.
Meng Yanxi probably realized that she was being unreasonable, so she withdrew her hand and walked forward.
Jin Zhao quickly followed, thought for a moment, and tried to explain, "I didn't see any spiders in the school."
Meng Yanxi: "Yeah, I bit it when I was little."
"No, I mean..."
Because Si Tian brought a bird, she had the chance to notice that Lu Jingyue was afraid of birds. But there were no spiders at school, so how could she know he was afraid of spiders?
She was trying to organize her thoughts when Meng Yanxi, who was walking ahead, suddenly stopped.
Jin Zhao followed his gaze and saw Yu Lei riding a motorcycle across the street, looking at them with a bruised and swollen face.
He was accompanied by two companions who looked much older than him and had the same brightly colored hair. A cigarette was burning between their fingers. One of them took a puff and slowly exhaled a smoke ring. Two girls passing by covered their noses and ran away quickly.
"Wait here."
The light turned red, and the continuous flow of cars seemed to be paused, neatly stopping behind the zebra crossing. Meng Yanxi slightly turned her head and tossed a sentence to Jin Zhao before striding across.
The three people opposite also got off their motorcycles at the same time.
Meng Yanxi was born with an air of superiority, which gave him a disdainful look in his eyes even when he was fighting three against one. His eyes clearly said: I'll beat you up every time you come.
This naturally made the other party even more unhappy with him.
Both sides were filled with hostility, much like the dark alley that night, where a chaotic battle was about to erupt.
Meng Yanxi clenched his fist, gathering his strength, and was about to throw his schoolbag when a soft, warm hand pressed him down.
"Meng Yanxi, don't do it."
Jin Zhao hurriedly caught up and pressed his palm firmly against Jin Zhao's wrist bone.
He then looked at Yu Lei across from him and said, "I actually had something I wanted to tell you earlier."
Yu Lei's face was even more bruised and swollen than before, making his eyes look even smaller. He glanced at Meng Yanxi and asked Jin Zhao, "What did you say?"
"You said we're from the same world." Jin Zhao, fearing Meng Yanxi might take the opportunity to attack, still held down his wrist and turned to look at Yu Lei. "Why do you think that?"
Yu Lei countered, "Isn't that right?"
Jin Zhao honestly said, "I don't know what kind of person you are, but I can tell you what kind of person I am."
What kind of person are you?
Jin Zhao: "I will never give up on myself, I will never give up on becoming better, I will always strive to become better and stronger, and I will never stop."
The face opposite him froze.
Jin Zhao looked at him and continued, "I will not covet fleeting companionship, comfort, and affirmation, even if I am in trouble and helpless. Because I know how wonderful and precious I am, even if no one else can see it, it doesn't matter, I know it myself."
"Is that how you are?" she asked softly.
*
With the roar of motorcycles, Yu Lei and his two friends, both from outside the community, sped away across a red light.
Jin Zhao turned her head to look at Meng Yanxi, the setting sun reflecting a bright, smiling light in her eyes.
"You see, we can actually communicate, so it's not too bad, is it?"
"Running a red light isn't considered bad?"
Meng Yanxi glanced indifferently in the direction where those people disappeared, and walked in the opposite direction.
“That is indeed true.” Jin Zhao nodded readily and followed him.
Meng Yanxi stopped again after taking only a few steps.
This time, Lu Jingyue stood across the street, holding a basketball, waving at Meng Yanxi with a brotherly and respectful expression.
Meng Yanxi's expression was no better than before; he didn't even bother to look at him.
Turning her head to look at Jin Zhao, Meng Yanxi was silent for two seconds before suddenly saying, "Lu Jingyue is not the top student in the grade."
Jin Zhao: "?"
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Author's note: Meng Yanxi: Come find me to discuss your problems.
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