After finishing their meal, Zilan and Wen Yuluo took a walk around the campus to digest their food. During dinner, Wen Yuluo’s expression was not very good. Zilan did not dare to ask, but after wandering around for a little while, she finally asked, “Yubao, is it because Qi You is not playing the prince, so?”
Wen Yuluo marched forward blindly and said with sorrow, “I was just pierced by Qi You’s cold gaze. It turns out that being stared at with that kind of look by the person you like is so painful. If Qi You will never like me, then getting close to him will be completely meaningless. Zilan, I do not want to like him anymore. It is too exhausting. Having your heart led around by someone else is just too exhausting.”
Zilan had never liked anyone before, so she could not empathize with Wen Yuluo’s situation. She could only try to comfort him with what she thought made sense: “How do you know Prince Qi does not like you? How long have you even known each other? It is not that he looked at you with a cold gaze; he looks at everyone like that.”
“In Prince Qi’s eyes, you must be a little special, right? For example, at the welcome party, out of so many tables, he did not go to any of them and chose to sit right next to you. Out of so many people giving him water, he did not drink any of it, and instead snatched the one from your hands. Come to think of it…”
“Does he want to be bros with me?” Wen Yuluo said despondently, “Just like he is with Lu Baihai?”
“…”
Zilan was temporarily at a loss for words.
As the two walked, they suddenly realized that the path was getting darker and darker. Just as Wen Yuluo was about to turn Zilan around and head back, a series of miserable cries rang out from the flowerbed behind them.
“Fuck! Fuck! It hurts like hell! Which blind idiot put such a huge rock right here?”
Finding the voice familiar, Wen Yuluo peered over the flowerbed and saw Qi You holding his arm, looking down condescendingly at Lu Baihai who had fallen to the ground, a smile still hooked at the corner of his lips.
“You are still laughing! You damned bastard, did you do this on purpose? Why on earth did you make me look up at the sky?”
Qi You had originally intended to help him up, but hearing him say that, he paused his movement. His gaze casually flicked upward and caught sight of Wen Yuluo, who was surrounded by the plants and flowers of the flowerbed.
His pair of pretty eyes were exceptionally bright in the dark. Once discovered by Qi You, Wen Yuluo panicked and subconsciously tried to use the foliage to block his face. The tree branch he was pulling on slipped, and before he could dodge, his face was heavily lashed.
A loud crack drew Lu Baihai’s attention. Looking toward the sound, he saw Wen Yuluo touching his face, his eye rims red.
“Yubao? Are you all right?”
Zilan hurriedly went over to check on Wen Yuluo. After pulling his hand away, she saw a clear, red imprint on his fair right cheek.
Wen Yuluo wanted to dig a hole in the ground and crawl inside again. Why was he always so humiliating every time he ran into Qi You?
“Go to the infirmary and get it checked, so it does not leave a scar,” Qi You said from across the shadows of the trees.
Wen Yuluo did not reply, just nodded slightly, unsure if Qi You could see him by moonlight alone. Just as he was about to leave, Qi You added, “Let us go together. As it happens, I need to send this idiot to the infirmary anyway.”
With that, Qi You squatted down and hoisted Lu Baihai onto his shoulder.
“Aiyo, be gentle! Yubao, Yubao, come help support me!”
At this point, Wen Yuluo could not sneak away even if he wanted to, so he had no choice but to ask with a hypocritical air, “Senior Lu, are you all right?”
“It hurts to death, Yubao. I think my leg must be broken.”
Zilan pulled Wen Yuluo across the flowerbed and said with annoyance, “Stop calling him Yubao every other word. Is that something for you to call?”
Lu Baihai was displeased: “What, you can call him that, but I cannot?”
“Just you are not allowed to call him that!” Zilan hung Lu Baihai’s other arm over her own shoulder, gave a fierce yank, and pulled him right off Qi You.
Qi You was a bit dazed.
Zilan dragged Lu Baihai forward, trying to keep a distance from him. “This lady will send you to the infirmary. What kind of status do you think you have? You even dare let Yubao support you?”
“Hey! Hey! This is murder, is it not? Miss, you and I have no grievances or enmities! Let me go! I will not let your Yubao support me anymore, okay? Ah! It hurts!” Lu Baihai struggled to no avail, dragging one leg on the ground until his pants were shredded. “Qi You! Save me!”
“Shut up!” Zilan pinched Lu Baihai’s arm and threatened, “If you say one more word of nonsense, do you believe I will let go of you right now?”
Their receding figures gradually faded into the distance, leaving Wen Yuluo and Qi You staring at each other in bewilderment.
Qi You asked, “What is going on here?”
Knowing that Zilan was creating an opportunity for him to be alone with Qi You, Wen Yuluo could not possibly tell the truth. He said dryly, “Zilan is usually very helpful to others.”
Qi You watched Lu Baihai struggle painfully in the crook of her arm and nodded. “I can see that. A very kind little girl.”
“…”
Qi You turned his head and noticed that the red mark on Wen Yuluo’s face had become even more obvious. “Let us go, to the infirmary.”
Wen Yuluo hurriedly waved his hand. “No need, this minor injury does not require going to the infirmary.”
However, Qi You grabbed his arm with irresistible force. “How precious is a princess’s face? How could she get hurt?”
“…”
Wen Yuluo’s pinky finger trembled slightly. He followed behind Qi You, lowering his gaze to look at Qi You’s warm hand.
The lawn outside the experimental classroom was planted with sunflowers. Whenever he daydreamed in class, he would always stare at them, and after looking for a long time, he noticed a withered, yellow weed right beside the sunflowers.
The weed was very inconspicuous, but he had seen it. For reasons unknown, he poured the rest of his drinking water over the weed.
When he looked again the next day, the weed had taken on a completely new lease of life, sprouting new leaves.
Wen Yuluo thought to himself, how was he any different from that weed? A heart that was just about to wither, as long as it received a tiny bit, just a tiny bit of water, would be enough to support it in reigniting once more.
He secretly curved the corners of his lips and said, “The one who is precious is the princess in the book, not me.”
Qi You’s hand gripping his arm paused. They had already walked into the light, and he carefully examined Wen Yuluo’s face.
His entire half-face was red just from being whipped by the momentum of a tree branch, and yet he was not precious?
From the bottom of his heart, Qi You said, “You are equally precious.”
Wen Yuluo’s mind was sent spinning by these words, and he still had not recovered by the time they reached the infirmary.
Qi You watched as the duty doctor finished applying ointment to Wen Yuluo before asking, “Teacher, where is the male student that a girl was dragging just now?”
The school doctor pointed casually. “In that ward. He needs a plaster cast; the infirmary cannot handle that. Take him to the hospital tomorrow.”
“That serious?”
Wen Yuluo followed Qi You into the ward. Lu Baihai looked at his leg with a look of utter despair, his lips puckered out several inches.
“Zilan, how is Senior Lu?”
Zilan first looked at Wen Yuluo’s face, and seeing that he was fine, she replied, “Minor fracture, nothing major.”
After speaking, she impatiently gave Lu Baihai a shove. “Aiyo, all right, stop puckering your broken mouth. People came to visit you, so give them a smile. An alpha acting so cowardly.”
Lu Baihai sighed. “I am not worried about my leg; I am worried about our play. With my leg looking like this, how am I supposed to play the prince?”