Mu Yang glanced at him, then turned his face to the window without saying a word.
"You were looking for me? Is the party over?" Su Ming looked at Yan Shu, who was looking down. Hearing his question, she nodded gently.
"Your friend is calling you so urgently, something must have happened."
"It's nothing. Why didn't you tell me your family is very rich?" Yan Shu kept her head down, making it impossible to see her expression.
"Oh, you found out?" Su Ming expressed a slight surprise. "It's okay, isn't it? Our relationship is between the two of us; it has nothing to do with my family. I really like you."
"But...but, I decided to be with you because...I thought we were alike...Why did you lie to me!" Yan Shu finished speaking haltingly, and finally shouted almost hysterically.
But all that was heard was Su Ming's soft sigh, "Yan Shu, I've never lied to you. You're the one who thinks so. If anyone's been deceived, it's you who's been deceiving yourself."
Yan Shu suddenly looked up and saw Su Ming's expression, which was different from usual.
Really? Who is this person in front of her? Did she even manage to see this person clearly at all?
who is he?
"Let's break up." She heard her own emotionless voice.
"Hey, you're here?" A-Dai, who had just returned from cramming in the study room, turned on the light and was startled to find Yan Shu in the room: "You scared me to death! Why didn't you turn on the light?"
"I don't want to." Yan Shu reached out and shielded her eyes; she wasn't used to the light, and her eyes hurt a little.
His voice was hoarse. Adai thought.
She walked over and sat on Yan Shu's bed, where Yan Shu was alone, hugging a quilt and huddled in a corner.
"What’s wrong with you?"
What’s wrong with you?
Yan Shu suddenly felt her eyes well up with tears: "A-Dai--" She hugged A-Dai and started to cry.
"Don't cry." Adai sighed and gently patted Yan Shu. "It's okay. Are you alright now?"
"Don't cry, don't cry." Yan Shu hugged A Dai and cried loudly.
Don't cry, don't cry. It's okay, she thought.
It must be very cold outside. Snuggled under the covers, Yan Shu thought to herself as she opened her eyes. She didn't want to get up at all; it was such a cold winter.
"Get up, Xiao Shu." Her mother's voice came from the bedroom door.
"Just a little longer," Yan Shu called out, shrinking even deeper into the covers. She really didn't want to get up. She'd been home for so many days, and it was like this every single day. How decadent!
"You're going to get fat." This voice startled Yan Shu; it was Xiao Wei!
She immediately sat up, quickly put on some clothes, opened the door, and found Xiao Wei standing in the doorway with her arms crossed.
"How dare you make me wait so long?" Xiao Wei looked at her, her tone as usual.
Yan Shu smiled sheepishly.
"Hurry up and finish washing." Xiao Wei said and then walked out.
Yan Shu hurriedly went to the bathroom to wash up. When she came out, Xiao Wei was already sitting there eating breakfast.
"Auntie, your crispy cucumber is so delicious!" Xiao Wei praised as always.
"Really?" Mrs. Yan smiled happily. "Would you like me to take some back with you later?"
"No need, no one in our family eats breakfast," Xiao Shu said casually. Yan Shu and her mother were quite embarrassed; how could they have forgotten?
"Oh, Xiao Wei is here." Yan's father got up and saw Xiao Wei when he walked into the dining room.
"Hello, Uncle." Xiao Wei took a bite of porridge.
"Xiao Shu, sit down and eat too. Don't keep Xiao Wei waiting too long."
"Oh." Upon hearing this, Yan Shu served herself a bowl of porridge and sat down to eat.
"This cucumber is a bit salty." Dad took a bite.
"Who said that? Xiaowei said it's delicious." Mother Yan simply pushed the plate of cucumber next to Xiaowei. "If you don't like it, don't eat it—Xiaowei, eat more."
Here we go again. Yan Shu thought. Her mother hated it when people said her pickles weren't good. She and Xiao Wei exchanged a smile and started eating again.
Winter is deep, and people exhale puffs of white breath whenever they open their mouths. Similarly, the New Year is almost here, and the few people walking by are always carrying various kinds of New Year's goods, as well as bright red lanterns.
"Look, it's strange, hanging lanterns is all the rage this year." Xiao Wei, who was walking ahead, suddenly stopped and said, "Did your family buy any?"
"Ah, I'm not quite sure." Yan Shu thought for a moment, "Probably not yet."
She followed behind Xiao Wei on the road leading to the basketball court. The lush sycamore trees of summer were now bare, their branches sparse. Fallen leaves still clung to the ground. Xiao Wei walked confidently ahead, her back straight.
"Look, we're here." Yan Shu looked and realized they had arrived at the basketball court. This basketball court... she'd gotten quite a tan from it that summer!
"I remember we met Yang Sen because of playing basketball, right?" Xiao Wei looked at the basketball court through the wire fence.
"Nothing has changed at all, has it?" Yan Shu added.
"Has nothing changed?" Xiao Wei looked at it and suddenly said, "Are you really tired, so you don't want to be with us anymore?"
I… Yan Shu didn’t know what to say for a moment. She looked at Xiao Wei’s back. Yes, Xiao Wei was strong, but how could she forget that she was also very sensitive? Those words must have hurt her. Yan Shu and Xiao Wei were good friends. They shared a small snack in their childhood, collected the most colorful crayons to draw different pictures, and Yan Shu held Xiao Wei’s hand as they walked through the fearful darkness… How could she forget all of this? She and Xiao Wei were good friends.
"sorry."
"Is Xiaowei the only person you've wronged?"
Yan Shu turned her head and saw Mu Yang walk up to her, holding a sketchbook in his hand.
"Who else should you apologize to? Do you even know what you've wronged?" Mu Yang looked at her, a cold smile suddenly flashing across his face. "Do you really understand?"
Yan Shu lowered her head.
"Xiao Wei, you go first. I have something to say to Xiao Shu," Mu Yang said calmly, causing Xiao Wei and Yan Shu to look up at him.
Xiao Wei frowned: "You still have to make a move." The smiling man finally couldn't hold back any longer.
Mu Yang suddenly laughed, but his gaze towards Yan Shu was like that of a cheetah eyeing its prey: "Yes, this idiot needs to be dealt with seriously."
"Xiao Wei!" Yan Shu nervously grabbed Xiao Wei's hand. "I'll go with you." Xiao Wei smiled at her, gently pushed Yan Shu's hand away, and said, "Xiao Shu, you can't hide forever. You should face reality sooner rather than later. Although, I have to say, this is an unfortunate thing." Poor thing, prey targeted by Mu Yang. After saying that, she gave Yan Shu a "good luck" look, and walked away unethically, disappearing unethically.
The two people left behind remained silent.
A cold wind blew by, swirling up fallen leaves that then drifted down again. Yan Shu huddled deeper into her coat.
“Mu Yang…I…” Yan Shu looked at him, but Mu Yang didn’t speak. He just stared at her. She panicked. “I’m sorry.”
"Do you really understand? Do you really know what you've wronged?" Mu Yang looked at her and sighed. "Do you know... when I saw you with him... that day, I really wanted to kill him."
Yan Shu couldn't help but take two steps back, but unexpectedly bumped into the barbed wire behind her. When she turned around, she found herself trapped between Mu Yang's arms and the barbed wire.
Mu Yang looked at her, his eyes filled with hidden anger. After a while, his gaze softened and became extremely gentle. This girl in front of him, he had protected for so long.
"Mu... Mu Yang, what are you saying?" Yan Shu panicked. Mu Yang's eyes were unlike anything she had ever seen before, as if a secret was about to be revealed. She didn't want that!
"I don't understand at all."
"Don't you understand?" Mu Yang gave a bitter smile. Was he the only one bearing this pain? Could this little fool be so carefree?
"Do you really not understand, or do you simply not want to understand?"
“Mu Yang…” Yes, call her stupid or selfish, she doesn’t understand, and she doesn’t want to understand, because she and Mu Yang are from completely different worlds.
"Don't you understand?" Mu Yang suddenly smiled. "Then let me tell you clearly. That day, I gave up the exam for you."
Yes, she needs to know.
"Then fill out this form first." The teacher smiled and handed the form to Mu Yang. "Don't forget the exam next Sunday."
Mu Yang took it and nodded.
"Your teacher has a lot of faith in you, and so does your dad. Keep it up!"
Mu Yang smiled as usual and said, "Thank you, teacher." Then he walked out of the office.
Gently closing the office door, Mu Yang walked towards his classroom, smiling and greeting his classmates on their way home. He knew he was well-liked, and that it was essential to him.
However, I've been feeling very restless and inexplicably annoyed these past few days.
"How can you be so stupid! You can't even do such a simple problem!" Yan Shu heard the teacher's angry scolding coming from the classroom door, and he stopped.
Yan Shu stood at the classroom door, head down, listening attentively to the teacher's instructions.
Poor thing. The teacher's blood vessels must be about to explode.
Yan Shu's head drooped lower and lower with each increasingly louder scolding from the teacher. For every octave the teacher raised their voice, Yan Shu's head would drop an octave, almost reaching her knees.
"How pitiful," Mu Yang thought. He walked over to the teacher, smiled, and said, "Hello, teacher."
Upon seeing that it was his prized student, the teacher's anger immediately subsided by half: "Muyang, haven't you gone back yet?"
"Yeah, something came up." Mu Yang nodded, then suddenly noticed Yan Shu on the other end of the line, barely daring to breathe, and he had to suppress his laughter.
"Look, we all listened to the same lectures, so how come Mu Yang got such a good score? And you, you only got such a low score." Yan Shu's bright red test paper was swished around by the teacher with a "swish, swish" sound.
Yan Shu lowered her head even further. Mu Yang thought to himself with amusement: Are you sure Yan Shu is listening to your lecture and not sleeping? But considering how pitiful this idiot is…
Mu Yang said with a smile, "Yan Shu, didn't your aunt tell you to go home early today?"
“Oh right.” Yan Shu’s head immediately returned to normal height. “Yes, teacher. I remember now.”
The teacher glanced at her, then at Mu Yang's smiling face, and waved her hand impatiently, "Go back, go back. Learn from Mu Yang, okay?"
"Definitely," Yan Shu assured with a smile. She had it, but she really didn't have Mu Yang's talent. Watching the teacher walk away, Yan Shu couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. She turned around and said to Mu Yang, "Thank you."
Mu Yang smiled at her: "You're really stupid!" He waved the bright red test paper in his hand and said expressionlessly, "Big idiot."
The completed recommendation form lay quietly on the desk, while its owner, Mu Yang, sat on the bed, pretending to be asleep.
"When are your exams?" After dinner, Mu Yang's father called him into the study.
"Sunday."