Along the way, Xi Ruohui and Shen Congrong strolled leisurely. Shen Congrong carried a skewer of grilled sausages, while Xi Ruohui held a piece of duck neck, eating as they walked. After finishing the duck neck, Ruohui licked her fingers contentedly: "Mmm, this place near the school gate is the most authentic; no other place can compare!" She accurately tossed the packaging into the nearby trash can. "Looks like my dad was somewhat prescient in forcing me to attend this school—" Shen Congrong asked, somewhat puzzled: "Oh, by the way, Ruohui, why did you absolutely refuse to come to F University in the first place?" It was close to home and a prestigious university, but Ruohui had always refused until her parents secretly changed her application. Under the shock of the situation, seeing that the die was cast, she had no choice but to come. Ruohui made a big face: "I just didn't like it here, I didn't want to study here—"
Hehe, if the meticulous Congrong knew everything, wouldn't that give her another handle to use against me?
She won't do it!
However, these past two days, she just felt something was off about her. She frowned. Of course, she knew that someone who hated her to the core and whom she really didn't want to see was also still stuck at F University, not yet graduated. But one was in medical school, and the other was in finance and economics. They were separated by a great distance, and she had only been at the university for a month. There was no reason for her to run into him so soon!
She must be overthinking it!
Two days later, she clearly realized:
First, she didn't think far, far enough;
Secondly, although sincerity is important in worshipping Buddha, the saying "money can make the devil turn the millstone" is an irrefutable truth.
Right now, she was huddled in a small corner, staring intently at the person diagonally in front of her who was listening attentively and admiringly to the student council president's welcoming speech.
Zhang, Zhao!
That good-for-nothing sissy! She covered her face and sighed. How could she have grown up with such a scoundrel, and still be classmates with him all this time! Not only did he take it upon himself to register her, but he also maliciously tricked her into attending the first meeting of the semester while she was half-asleep. This is the tragedy of pitying the weak; she felt sorry for herself!
As soon as she entered, she was horrified to find a familiar face—someone she absolutely hated and wished she'd never see again—sitting leisurely in the center seat, staring at her with a half-smile. She was instantly filled with a sense of despair, like a lamb entering a tiger's den. As time passed, this despair deepened. Not only did his gaze sweep over her throughout his speech, but even as everyone began introducing themselves, his eyes subtly followed her. When she finally spoke, "Hello everyone, my name is..." he interrupted her seemingly casually, "A junior from the same school as me," he said, looking at Ruohui with a half-smile, "you're acquaintances, aren't you?"
Ruohui sighed helplessly, "Uh..." She lowered her head, feeling guilty and resigned. Could we... not calculate it?
No one paid any attention, and after a few jokes, it was over.
But Ruohui knew that things were far from over. Sure enough, after discussing all the arrangements for welcoming the new students, the meeting ended. Taking advantage of Zhang Zhao's tall but not very strong appearance, she was about to sneak out when suddenly, a voice that was both heavenly and nightmarish rang out again: "Xi Ruohui, don't rush off. There are still some things to do for the welcome party that I need you to handle."
Ruo Hui's mind went blank for a moment. She looked up quickly and saw the envious and jealous expressions on everyone's faces, especially the girls', as well as Liang Yiqun's slightly amused gaze as he looked at her, and the calm face of the person still sitting at the table.
Zhang Zhao was somewhat surprised: "Ruohui, do you want me to stay and help you?" Ruohui blinked: "No need." He would only make things worse if he stayed; she shamelessly assumed that the person was probably after her. Zhang Zhao was still worried: "Then I..." He glanced at Feng Jiayue with some apprehension, "I'll wait for you outside." She was someone's best friend; if anything went wrong, that person would definitely kill him! Ruohui secretly glanced over and saw that the corners of that person's mouth were already beginning to curl into a mocking smile. She couldn't help but feel annoyed: "I said no need, you can go now!" Liang Yiqun walked over, put his arm around his shoulder, and walked out: "It's just a small work arrangement. What, you're worried about your little girlfriend?"
There were only two people left in the room. They looked at each other.
Feng Jiayue observed her thoughtfully for a while, then frowned slightly and asked, "Was that... your boyfriend?" Ruohui was stunned, almost choking on her own saliva. "Wh...wh-what?" She gestured outside. "He's my boyfriend?" She burst into laughter several times. "Zhang Zhao? Hahaha, that's hilarious..." She tried to hold back her laughter, but couldn't help it. "Please, just say it here. Don't go around telling everyone, or else..." Although Cong Rong had never commented on Zhang Zhao's flirtatious behavior since high school, she was certain that if Zhang Zhao were to stage a coup, the outwardly gentle but inwardly strong Cong Rong would definitely grab a knife and kill Zhang Zhao first, then come after her!
Seeing her unabashedly cheerful demeanor, Feng Jiayue couldn't help but smile: "Really?" Ruohui immediately stopped smiling and looked at him warily: "Didn't you have something to do?" Feng Jiayue smiled slightly again: "No rush, just making a shopping list and helping with the venue setup." Ruohui breathed a sigh of relief. A piece of cake. She sat down with a sigh of relief and took out a pen: "Oh, let's begin then, I'll take notes."
Feng Jiayue raised an eyebrow inscrutably. "I said there's no rush." He then stared at her silently. Ruohui's scalp began to tingle, and her neck felt a chill. Feng Jiayue stood up, walked to Ruohui, and leaned slightly forward.
Ruo Hui stared in disbelief as his face gradually loomed larger before her eyes, her heart beginning to pound uncontrollably.
Oh God, oh God, oh God, oh God, she's going to die!
Sure enough, Feng Jiayue's elegant and slightly magnetic voice rose again: "What I'm more interested in now is, what kind of big bets did you win from others the second and third time you racked your brains and went to great lengths to invite me out?"
CHAPTER 2 The Feud
Two years ago, in early summer.
At dusk, Feng Jiayue walked out of the gymnasium. The eighteen-year-old boy, tall and straight, wore a dark blue tracksuit, his hands in his pockets, walking at a leisurely pace. He strolled along a narrow street, admiring the scenery in the park, and unknowingly reached a fork in the road, where he bumped into a young couple.
He glanced over casually and saw a boy with a baby face, still looking quite young, and… He paused slightly, slightly taken aback. If the girl from that day was the number one McDull, then this girl was number two. He watched the young couple run off, playfully bickering, and couldn't help but smile faintly, the radiant smile from that day flashing through his mind. Her name is Xi—Ruohui, right? He'd never met such an interesting girl before.
He frowned slightly. Hmm, he remembered that girl inviting him to a movie. He subconsciously reached into his pocket—where were the tickets? He seemed to have lost them somewhere long ago. He frowned again and continued walking.
He had only walked a short distance when he heard a clear, melodious voice, like a nightingale's song: "Feng Jiayue—" He turned around instinctively. It was the girl from that day. She ran happily to him, her eyebrows curving into a smile: "You really came—"
Feng Jiayue looked behind her, puzzled, then seemed to understand something. Usually concise, he now chose his words carefully, afraid of causing any misunderstanding: "I was just..." passing by. Ruohui blinked, unconcerned: "Ah, is there anything else?" For some reason, facing that bright, unabashed smile, Feng Jiayue hesitated for a moment. Ruohui continued to grin: "No problem, no problem. If you have something to do, go ahead, I won't keep you." She even waved her chubby little hand haphazardly.
Huh? Now it was Feng Jiayue's turn to be slightly stunned.
Three days of free travel, oh yeah!
A month of free lunches, oh yeh-yeh-yeh-
A month and a half of free PS games, oh yeh-yeh-yeh-yeh-
That's right, in Xi Ruohui's eyes, Feng Jiayue was a fragrant, juicy, top-quality roast duck, and all these benefits were generously bestowed upon her by this roast duck. After all, this roast duck was always in high demand at school! So, before April Fool's Day, someone in the class, bored out of their mind, made a bet with her, one of the most daring students in the class: if she could get Feng Jiayue to go out with her, even just to have him show up at the movie theater, she would win. After all, it was unprecedented! Originally, it was just a few close boys and girls joking around, but later, as more people found out, more and more people got involved, and in the end, everyone in the class was hooked.
Do you know what it means to be caught in a dilemma?
But now, hehehe, despite the luck, we still won! So Ruohui couldn't wait and rushed over, pulling out the class monitor, who was representing the boys, and Congrong, who was representing the girls, from the shadows.
"Lost, huh?!" The victorious little girl knew nothing of restraint, instead swaggering with smug pride. The class monitor looked at her, utterly dejected. Even horses stumble, and people make mistakes. Who would have thought this tomboy could actually get a date with the school's famous Prince Charming? At this rate, he'd never find his dream wife.
The little man continued arrogantly, "Tch, betting with me is a death sentence, you know?" His tone was exactly like Uncle Benshan's. Suddenly, she noticed Congrong's face twitching, his eyes twitching as he winked at her. Ruohui scoffed, "Congrong, are you dizzy from losing?!" A faint voice came from behind, "Oh, what did they all lose to you for?" Ruohui swallowed involuntarily, "A lot!" Uh, should she tell her story one by one? Suddenly, she quickly stopped talking. Wait, that voice sounded very, very unfamiliar, and it sounded really eerie.
Turning around, she saw Feng Jiayue standing coldly behind her, looking at her.
Although all the spoils were delivered to Ruohui, they left her with a lingering problem. Whenever she saw a boy who was about 1.8 meters tall, had a decent appearance, and wore light-colored clothes, she would quickly walk around him. Fortunately, Feng Jiayue graduated not long after, and Ruohui could finally breathe a sigh of relief.
However, at the graduation ceremony, after Feng Jiayue finished speaking as a representative of outstanding graduates and stepped down from the podium, Ruohui, who was sitting in the audience, saw a very gentle and beautiful long-haired girl with a very romantic and melodramatic appearance handing him a bottle of purified water with a smile, which he accepted calmly.
Cong Rong quietly leaned closer: "Ruo Hui, did you see that?" Ruo Hui was a little confused: "Saw what?" Cong Rong pointed: "That beautiful woman, we don't know her at all, we don't know who she is." Ruo Hui just glanced at her perfunctorily and continued to watch "Ghostbusters" with her head down.
Just kidding, the proprietress over there is incredibly stingy and inflexible; she charges an extra dollar for each day you're late.
Moreover, the roast duck was delicious, but unfortunately she was a vegetarian.
My second year of high school has begun.
For the habitually lazy Ruohui, the road was bumpy. Her father, who had high hopes for her, confiscated her novels, cut off her internet access, and forced her to attend evening self-study sessions at school, even though she didn't live on campus. To prevent his daughter from sneaking out to play games again, her father would pick her up from school at 10 pm every night, precisely on time.
Even the most meticulous plans can have flaws. At eight o'clock in the evening, Ruohui, with her sharp eyes, spotted her homeroom teacher's plump figure swaying as he turned the corner. She immediately darted to a large, chubby boy: "Old Jin—" Old Jin looked up: "Busy? Go take a break, wait until I finish this problem!" Ruohui rolled her eyes: "I'll treat you?" In a flash, her vision blurred, and Old Jin had already dragged her out the door: "Why didn't you say so earlier?!" Ruohui sighed: "I said, you should at least have some restraint—"
After a fierce battle, it was already past ten o'clock. The two left the arcade, still feeling unsatisfied. Seeing that it was getting late, Lao Jin hesitated: "Ruo Hui, we take the subway in opposite directions, what should we do?" Ruo Hui cupped her hands in greeting: "Take care, don't bother seeing me out."