Chapter 15  : Let’s Play Together Next Time

“Pua!”

Lu Chao spit out the milk he had just drunk. “What did you say you wanted to buy?”

Confused, Xue Xi looked at Canine Teeth and did not understand why he overreacted. Yet she still explained it seriously. “It’s the balloons that were on the shelves when I came by that first day.”

What balloons? Those were clearly…

Canine Teeth had wanted to speak, but he choked on himself and began to cough violently.

Xue Xi looked at Xiang Huai perplexedly.

The man placed his hands in his pocket and walked to the counter. He sat down lazily on the chair before asking, “You’re buying that to play on your own?”

She paused for two seconds before replying, “…Yes.”

Xiang Huai leaned back as he hid himself in the dark corner of the store. Then, he said with a hint of laughter in his voice, “How boring it is to play alone.”

Xue Xi gave it a thought. “That’s true, too. Then I’ll buy them and leave them here so we can play together next time.”

“Pua!”

Just as Lu Chao had had a mouthful of water to suppress his cough, he spat it out again.

She noticed that something was off, and just as she was about to ask Canine Teeth why he was being so agitated, the sound of fingers knocking against the table was heard. Xiang Huai’s mesmerizing voice rang. “Little kid, you’re gonna be late soon.”

Late…

She anxiously looked at the clock in the store and saw that there were five more minutes before the bell was to ring.

She picked up her school bag in a hurry and ran outside. “I’ll go for now.”

Looking at the girl’s back, Lu Chao slowly turned to look at his boss. The man was calmly hidden in the corner and reading his book.

Lu Chao walked over and leaned on the counter. “Boss, when are you going back?”

He replied, “We’ll talk about it another time.”

Lu Chao nodded. “Right, when I got the tea from Old Gao yesterday, he obliquely tried to know your whereabouts. He sent a message today to ask what the tea was for. How should I reply?”

Xiang Huai kept quiet for quite some time.

Lu Chao thought the man’s silence meant that he did not need to reply. However, Xiang Huai suddenly chuckled. “Betrothal present.”

“Huh?”

Lu Chao was stunned, but he quickly became excited.

If Old Gao were to know that Boss, who had been single for 25 years, has finally gotten a fiancée in Bin City, his jaw would probably drop, wouldn’t it?

After replying to the message, he walked to the dining table and picked up the hundred yuan bill that Xue Xi left behind. Just as he was about to put it in his pocket, he heard Xiang Huai knocking his fingers against the table again.

He froze as he turned around and saw Xiang Huai staring straight at him.

Lu Chao gave the hundred yuan bill to the man out of instinct. The man opened his wallet and placed the bill alongside the two hundred yuan bills from yesterday before reading his book composedly again.

Lu Chao: “…”

…

…

After two periods of physical education where Xue Xi did her exercises, she came back. Seizing every minute and second, she kept doing the Olympiad questions that Old Liu had assigned for her to do.

At this moment, the sound of deep breaths being drawn was suddenly heard in the class and a complete silence ensued.

Xue Xi did not take notice until someone pulled the chair in front of her and hit her table as the person sat down. She slowly lifted her eyes to take a look.

What she saw was thick, black hair.

Qin Shuang?

Xue Xi blinked and felt unknown joy tingling in her heart.

Nonetheless, the usual chatterbox looked depressed as she lay on the table halfheartedly. The people beside her quickly pulled their tables away as though Qin Shuang, who had dyed her hair black, was carrying a virus in her…

The fourth class today was mathematics class. Old Liu entered the classroom, and when he saw Qin Shuang, his face lit up. “Student Qin’s performance is not bad!”

It was rare that Qin Shuang did not talk back to him. She dipped her head as though something was weighing on her mind.

Xue Xi noticed that ever since Qin Shuang had entered the classroom, there had been a looming atmosphere. There were several students discussing softly and gesticulating at Qin Shuang, but nobody dared to speak a word to her.

Back then, when Qin Shuang still had pink hair, she loved to bicker with their classmates but she also had great relations with them.

When the fourth period ended, everyone started to head out and was preparing to eat at the canteen.

After completing the last question, Xue Xi saw that Qin Shuang was still lying on the table. She stood up and asked, “Do you want to eat?”

“…”

There were some students who had not left the classroom yet. They all turned to look at Xue Xi with shock in their eyes.

Qin Shuang did not expect Xue Xi to dare to speak to her. Feeling baffled, she lifted her head. “You…”

She suddenly remembered that Xue Xi was a transfer student, and so, having no idea about her matters, she dared to be so reckless.

Qin Shuang smiled bitterly. “I’m not hungry, you go ahead.”

Being in such a situation herself, she had better not implicate a good student like her.

Xue Xi replied, “…Oh.”

Since she was unemotional, she did not insist and went to the canteen on her own.

After returning from lunch, she saw Qin Shuang, who said she was not hungry, lying there while eating biscuits and drinking milk. It was as if she dared not step out of the classroom.

Xue Xi: “…”

More periods had passed in the afternoon and only self-revision classes were left. Xue Xi packed up her items and was prepared to head to Olympiad classes when someone shouted, “Qin Shuang, someone is looking for you.”

Qin Shuang shivered but she went out eventually. By the time she was back, her face was as pale as a sheet and she appeared deeply terrified.

Xue Xi wanted to ask her what was wrong and if she needed help. However, Qin Shuang did not give her the chance to ask and simply lay on her desk and appeared to be sleeping.

Xue Xi shut her mouth and carried the books as she headed for class.

The two periods of classes ended in a blink of an eye. School was over, and Xue Xi felt that she barely finished any questions. Just as she was packing her papers helplessly, it turned dark right before her eyes.

Fan Han stood in front of her and there was a look of hesitation in his eyes. He lowered his voice and warned, “Stay away from Qin Shuang.”

Xue Xi looked perplexedly at him.

Fan Han appeared awkward. He then lifted his head slightly and said arrogantly, “She isn’t a good girl and has created huge trouble after dying her hair back. Anyways, just don’t get too close to her.”

After saying that, he saw the girl looking at him with huge, watery eyes. For some unknown reason, he was flustered and left the classroom in a hurry.

Xue Yao was already outside of the classroom. Upon seeing that, she frowned and asked, “Fan Han, what did you say to her?”

Fan Han had a slight guilty conscience and his mind was in a mess as well. “Nothing much.”

The girl was stunned as she did not expect the boy to answer her so perfunctorily. Balling up her fists, she shot Xue Xi a menacing stare.

Xue Xi did not understand why Fan Han would warn her. Nonetheless, she did not think much of it and returned to her classroom to find that Qin Shuang was no longer in her seat.

Only the students on duty were left cleaning and they were creating a dust storm in the classroom. She picked up her school bag and left the school gate. Just as she was going to get in the car, she saw a silhouette flash across and go into the alley nearby.

It’s Qin Shuang!

Xue Xi frowned.

She had always been unemotional and would not meddle into others’ affairs.

However, at the thought that it was Qin Shuang… she did not hesitate and went there straight.

She wanted to see what on earth had happened!