Chapter 09

“I don’t have QQ.”

Repeating the girl’s response in his mind, Yan Yangcan found her obvious evasive and perfunctory attitude both helpless and amusing.

Did he look like a bad guy?

The first time he asked a girl for her contact information, he was actually rejected. Wait, no—that time he borrowed money from her and asked for her contact information to return it, that was the first time she rejected him.

He used Alipay to transfer the money back to her and learned her name: Xiaoxiao.

He tried to add her as an Alipay friend but didn’t get approved.

Recently, Yan Yangcan often visited the bookstore where he first met her.

Even he himself wasn’t sure what was driving him.

All he knew was that he wanted to get to know her, and wanted to be closer to her.

That graceful figure quickly disappeared around the corner of the street. Yan Yangcan looked up at the clear sky, then carried the randomly purchased book home.

…

“Xiao ah, do you know what you’ve done?” Yang Min wailed in anguish. “You hurt a handsome guy!”

Qin Xiaoxiao was a bit speechless. “Hurt?”

“Yeah! That handsome guy probably mustered up all his courage to strike up a conversation with you, and then you crushed him with such a lame excuse… Damn it, he’s probably suffering internal injuries by now.”

Qin Xiaoxiao: “…”

“Damn, I just remembered what he said to greet you in the bookstore. What was it again?” Yang Min, unable to get a response from Qin Xiaoxiao, continued talking to herself. “This wasn’t your first encounter, was it?”

“And he even knows you’re at Second High School! Be honest with me—what kind of connection do you two have?”

“Still the same answer: I don’t know him.” Qin Xiaoxiao pointed to the item attached to Yang Min’s backpack. “Second High School emblem.”

Yang Min was half-convinced. “Is his eyesight that good?”

Qin Xiaoxiao had no interest in continuing the topic. She lowered her eyes and flipped through the various small bookmarks on the shelf. “How about this one?”

“This one? Too plain. The one with cherries on it looks nicer…”

Effortlessly, she shifted Yang Min’s focus.

The shop sold items that were either fresh or cute—light-colored planners, ins-style stickers, canvas bags with simple patterns, and more—all appealing to most girls’ inner sense of girlishness.

Even Qin Xiaoxiao was no exception. Even if she didn’t buy anything, just browsing was quite enjoyable.

Yang Min took a phone call and, after asking for Qin Xiaoxiao’s opinion and getting her agreement, their small group gained another girl a few minutes later.

The girl was named Dong Yunfang. She was tall, had short hair, and slanted eyes that gave off an overall impression of being aloof and unapproachable.

Dong Yunfang was from Class 8 and shared a dormitory with Qin Xiaoxiao.

In most dormitories, there’s always one or two girls who are considered “big shots,” and Dong Yunfang was that figure in their dorm. However, the inherently proud original owner of “Qin Xiaoxiao” didn’t quite agree with that assessment.

Even though they shared the same dormitory, the interaction between Qin Xiaoxiao and Dong Yunfang was nearly nonexistent.

So, when Dong Yunfang and Yang Min were chatting, Qin Xiaoxiao didn’t try to force herself into the conversation.

However, Dong Yunfang was secretly paying attention to Qin Xiaoxiao.

“It’s mealtime! What should we eat?” Yang Min complained about being hungry and listed several dining spots. “Dong Yunfang, which one?”

“Anything.” Dong Yunfang paused briefly, her voice lowering, “Ask Qin Xiaoxiao.”

“Xiao ah, what do you want to eat? You can’t just say ‘anything’!”

Qin Xiaoxiao replied decisively, “Sanpinji.”

“That place?” Yang Min turned to Dong Yunfang. “What do you think?”

“No objections.” In truth, Dong Yunfang was surprised that Qin Xiaoxiao had chosen an ordinary rice noodle shop.

Yang Min had listed several options, and Dong Yunfang assumed Qin Xiaoxiao would go for the Japanese restaurant or the Korean barbecue place—after all, those seemed more upscale and aligned with her usual style.

If Qin Xiaoxiao had known what Dong Yunfang was thinking, she would have honestly told her the real reason for her choice: among Yang Min’s options, it was the cheapest.

Yang Min came from a well-off family, so her usual spending habits were higher than those of ordinary students. As a result, most of the places she suggested were relatively expensive. It wasn’t that Qin Xiaoxiao couldn’t afford to eat at those places—she could manage a meal—but she felt it wasn’t necessary. Considering that the original owner’s family was of average economic standing and she herself was a high school student with no income, it seemed pointless to visit places that, in her view, weren’t particularly special.

She thought it would be better to save that money for buying stationery and study materials, to lighten the financial burden on Father Qin and Mother Qin.

After entering the restaurant, Dong Yunfang and Yang Min sat facing each other, while Qin Xiaoxiao sat next to Yang Min, leaving the seat across from her empty.

They each ordered their meals. Yang Min ordered the most—a set meal with the signature rice noodles, vegetables, and a braised egg, plus an extra portion of grilled pork trotters. Qin Xiaoxiao ordered the least, just a single serving of the signature rice noodles.

“Xiao ah, you’re so easy to take care of,” Yang Min remarked casually.

Qin Xiaoxiao smiled faintly.

Sharp-eyed Yang Min noticed the lack of interaction between Dong Yunfang and Qin Xiaoxiao. Worried that her desk mate might feel awkward being left out, she alternated between chatting with Qin Xiaoxiao for a while and then pulling Dong Yunfang into conversation. This way, she talked separately to both of them, from waiting for the food to halfway through the meal.

Yang Min silently smacked her forehead in frustration: It’s all your fault for not thinking this through. Inviting Dong Yunfang to join the shopping trip has led to this awkward situation…

She could only lament her inability to split herself in two and chat with both of them at the same time.

Where was the conversation again? Oh, right. Yang Min brought up an interesting topic: “Xiao ah, I heard someone in your dance club is dating a really impressive person. Is it your president? Has she started dating?”

“Not sure.” Qin Xiaoxiao wasn’t close to the current president, Fu Chunying. Back during the club’s leadership transition, the original owner and Fu Chunying had openly and secretly competed against each other, leaving lingering tensions between them.

Yang Min’s small talk skills were truly impressive. “Do you know who that really impressive person is?” Her tone was blatantly hinting, “I know, so come and ask me!”

Qin Xiaoxiao shook her head. “No idea.”

“Here’s a hint: you know this person.”

Yang Min wanted to build some suspense, but she quickly realized her desk mate showed absolutely no interest.

Feeling defeated, she blurted it out directly, “It’s Ji Wenchen. I heard the school bully is dating someone, and his girlfriend is your…” Seeing her desk mate’s beautiful eyes widen in surprise, Yang Min felt a bit triumphant. “Ah, I knew there wasn’t a single person at Second High School who wouldn’t be interested in this news.”

“Uh…” Qin Xiaoxiao was simply caught off guard by Yang Min’s earlier statement, “His girlfriend is you.” After thinking it over, she realized Yang Min probably meant to say, “His girlfriend is someone from your dance club,” not the meaning her subconscious had jumped to.

“But the school bully doesn’t seem to hang out with any girl normally, does he?” Yang Min asked curiously. “Xiao ah, have you ever seen him getting close to any girl in your club?”

“…No,” Qin Xiaoxiao replied, inexplicably feeling a bit guilty as she lowered her head to eat her rice noodles.

“It definitely won’t be Fu Chunying.”

Dong Yunfang’s comment made Yang Min pause for a moment. However, her surprise wasn’t because of what Dong Yunfang said, but rather because Dong Yunfang had joined the conversation between her and Qin Xiaoxiao. As a result, she missed the fleeting glance Dong Yunfang shot at Qin Xiaoxiao.

“Ji Wenchen isn’t into Fu Chunying’s type.”

“Huh?” Yang Min sipped her soy milk. “Then what type does he like?”

Dong Yunfang stayed silent.

“Damn it, you definitely don’t know either.”

Dong Yunfang shrugged. “Are we heading to Chaoyang Square or Wanda later?”

The topic was immediately shifted to their upcoming plans. Yang Min didn’t notice a thing. “I pick Chaoyang. A new Yi Fang (A popular Taiwanese bubble tea chain shop) just opened there; let’s check it out.” She looked at Qin Xiaoxiao. “Where do you want to go?”

“I want to go home.”

“Huh? So soon?”

Qin Xiaoxiao wiped her lips and said, “You guys go ahead.” With Dong Yunfang accompanying her, Yang Min probably didn’t need her around anymore.

“Don’t leave…”

“Come with us,” Dong Yunfang said.

It was rare for Dong Yunfang to ask her to stay, but Qin Xiaoxiao still declined, “You two go. I have something to take care of at home.”

With things said to this point, Yang Min had no choice but to let Qin Xiaoxiao leave.

In truth, there wasn’t anything urgent at home; Qin Xiaoxiao just felt that shopping with people she wasn’t close to wasn’t particularly enjoyable. She’d rather go home to read or work on some problems.

Her father, who worked the night shift, was at home in the afternoon. Seeing his daughter return so early and practically empty-handed, he was first surprised and then a bit distressed—he naturally assumed that his daughter was short on money.

After taking a shower and returning to her room, Qin Xiaoxiao noticed a red banknote that had mysteriously appeared on her desk. She blinked, quickly understanding what her father meant. A warm feeling surged through her heart.

That day, Feng Xiuling had unusually sold out her fruit in the afternoon, allowing her to close up early and come home for dinner.

Under the warm yellow light, the family gathered around the modest dining table to share a meal.

“By the way,” Qin Xiaoxiao said to her parents, “the teacher posted the midterm exam results in the class group today. I ranked 22nd in the class and 276th in the grade.”

She had always been like this—never needing her parents to ask, she would consciously report her exam results.

“276th place?” Feng Xiuling paused mid-action as she was picking up food, excitedly praising, “Xiaoxiao, that’s amazing!”

Qin Feng also proudly chimed in with his praise.

Qin Xiaoxiao’s cheeks felt a little warm. These results were just average, weren’t they? Especially since she was essentially someone repeating high school.

After the excitement settled, Feng Xiuling remembered the request her daughter had made before. She gritted her teeth and said, “Xiaoxiao, this weekend Mom will buy you a phone.”

Huh? It only took a few seconds for Qin Xiaoxiao to understand. The original owner had never been a strong student. Qin’s parents had gently encouraged her to improve her grades, but the original owner had been impatient and once confidently made a demand: if she ranked within the top 300 in the grade, they would have to buy her the latest model of an iPhone.

The price of the latest iPhone was nearly ten thousand yuan—a significant sum for her parents, equivalent to three months of her father’s salary.

Qin Xiaoxiao couldn’t bring herself to accept such a reward with a clear conscience. “No need to buy it.”

“But Mom promised…”

“It’s okay.” Qin Xiaoxiao looked at her mother. “My phone still works perfectly fine. There’s no need for a new one.”

“This…” Feng Xiuling and Qin Feng exchanged glances.

“Thank you, Mom and Dad.”

“Ah.”

Their daughter had truly become more sensible. Feng Xiuling sighed inwardly once again. She could see the same sense of relief and pride in her husband’s eyes.

The dining table was filled with warmth and harmony.

“Is Maoxing,” Feng Xiuling carefully chose her words, “is he often seen walking with a female classmate?”

Feng Maoxing, the original owner’s maternal cousin, was a first-year student at Second High School.

Qin Xiaoxiao replied honestly, “I don’t know. I haven’t seen him much.”

Feng Xiuling nodded and didn’t ask further, only letting out a silent sigh. Xiaoxiao and Maoxing used to be so close. Don’t know what happened, but after she started middle school, she grew colder and more distant toward her cousin.