“Isn’t it perfectly normal for classmates to have a meal together?!”
Zhang Chen looked at Duan Chenxu and Li Junhao, spreading his hands with a dead-serious expression.
“If you said that about any other classmate, there’d be no problem.” Duan Chenxu pouted and shook his head.
“But if it’s you, Brother Chen, it’s a huge problem.” Li Junhao nodded with a furrowed brow.
The two of them traded remarks back and forth, both feeling like Zhang Chen had suddenly become a completely different person.
Even the way he played ball had changed a lot!
And now, not only was he not going to lunch with Su Yu, he was also going to bring Bai Xiruo, who didn’t get along with Su Yu, to eat with them?
Especially Li Junhao… he had only just knocked over Bai Xiruo’s lunch box yesterday!
“Perfect timing for you to apologize to Bai Xiruo. Lunch is on you today.” Zhang Chen made the decision for Li Junhao on the spot. “Hand over your meal card.”
“Wait, what? Brother Chen?” Li Junhao hurriedly covered his pocket.
Zhang Chen widened his eyes, his tone carrying a hint of threat. “Hmm?”
“Here, Brother Chen.” Under Zhang Chen’s overwhelming pressure, Li Junhao had no choice but to hand it over with both hands…
Zhang Chen took it and fanned himself with it, asking, “How much money is on here?”
“Should be a little over 100.”
“Pretty well-off, huh? Perfect. The doctor said Bai Xiruo is a bit malnourished, so order her two extra chicken drumsticks at lunch and help her build herself up.” After saying that, Zhang Chen waved the meal card and headed toward Bai Xiruo.
“Bro? Chicken drumsticks are 5 yuan each! I can’t even bear to eat them!!” Li Junhao chased after him.
Before the first lunchtime bell after school had even rung, there were already scattered students on the road to the cafeteria, getting there a step ahead.
Most of them were students who had PE class, while the classmates sitting in class inside the teaching building could only watch helplessly.
The group arrived at the cafeteria window.
Zhang Chen didn’t even ask Bai Xiruo what she wanted to eat and directly ordered for her.
Two meat dishes, one vegetable dish, plus two large chicken drumsticks… he swiped a full 23 yuan from Li Junhao’s card!
Li Junhao, standing off to the side, only felt a stab of pain in his wallet.
“Come over and carry it.” Zhang Chen turned and shouted to Bai Xiruo. “What’s with the lack of basic awareness?”
Only after hearing him call her did Bai Xiruo timidly step forward, holding the generous tray and standing to the side with some trepidation.
Head lowered, she still didn’t dare look at Li Junhao standing beside Zhang Chen even once.
Seeing that, Zhang Chen then ordered his own meal. It was also two meat dishes and one vegetable dish, but this time he used his own card.
He handed the meal card back to Li Junhao, then carried his tray and said to him, “I’ll go sit with her first. You and fatty come over later.”
“Okay.” Li Junhao took the meal card and nodded with relief.
Then Zhang Chen led Bai Xiruo to a random corner of the cafeteria and sat down, while Li Junhao turned and headed toward another cafeteria window where Duan Chenxu was.
After sitting down, Bai Xiruo only dared to raise her head and speak to Zhang Chen once she saw Li Junhao wasn’t there: “Th-this is for me?”
“What else?” Zhang Chen was already shoveling rice into his mouth without any restraint. “Hurry up and eat. You’re malnourished.”
Hearing that, Bai Xiruo’s already rigid body grew even more uneasy, and she didn’t dare move her chopsticks at all.
“What’s wrong?” Zhang Chen asked in confusion. “Don’t worry, I won’t make you pay me back.”
“Wasn’t it him who knocked your food over yesterday? This is him paying you back. Eat in peace.”
Bai Xiruo lowered her head. After hearing Zhang Chen’s words, she gripped her school uniform tightly with both hands, and thinking about what happened yesterday, she felt both wronged and sad.
Of course she knew Li Junhao would never voluntarily make it up to her for lunch.
Behind all of this, it could only be Zhang Chen’s doing.
But she didn’t understand why Zhang Chen would do this.
Clearly, before, like most people, he had only bullied her. So why was he suddenly being so good to her now?
Seeing that she still wasn’t moving her chopsticks, Zhang Chen could guess what was on her mind.
Even a kitten or puppy would stay wary after being mistreated by people, let alone a human being.
He wasn’t in a hurry to make Bai Xiruo change her opinion of him. Just like when he was in front of the teacher and Nan Xingwan, the original body’s fixed impression had to be corrected little by little, slowly.
“If you don’t eat, you won’t have the energy this afternoon. If you faint in class again this afternoon, no one will take you to the infirmary.”
Zhang Chen said again, deliberately making it sound more serious. “If you end up getting sick…”
Bai Xiruo didn’t like troubling others, especially not with something as burdensome as being sick.
She still had her grandmother back in the countryside, who needed caring for. Getting sick was absolutely not allowed!
As expected, those words worked very well. Bai Xiruo’s body finally moved, and she reached out for the chopsticks…
But just as she touched them, Li Junhao and Duan Chenxu, who had also finished getting their food, walked over. That immediately scared Bai Xiruo, who had only just built up her courage, into pulling her hand back again…
Seeing that, Zhang Chen let out a deep sigh…
“Brother Chen, window 3 over there has your favorite spicy rabbit!” Duan Chenxu said excitedly to Zhang Chen, then sat down across from the two of them.
“Spicy what? Spicy rabbit? All you know how to do is eat!” Zhang Chen snapped at him irritably. “Shut up!”
Duan Chenxu: “???”
Li Junhao, who had also been about to speak: “???”
The two of them immediately shut their mouths wisely…
Glancing at Bai Xiruo, who was once again sitting upright like a stone statue, Zhang Chen coughed twice and calmly looked at Li Junhao across from him.
He nudged his chin and signaled, “Speak.”
Li Junhao still couldn’t quite let go of his pride. After all, he was a person who cared about face.
Only after Zhang Chen widened his eyes and kicked him under the table did he finally have to give in.
“Um… that… Bai Xiruo, I, this, um…”
Zhang Chen: “Tch, did you leave your vocal cords at home? Can’t you speak properly?”
Bai Xiruo sat rigidly, listening to Li Junhao speak with all her nerves on edge.
But at the same time, hearing Zhang Chen openly scold Li Junhao with obvious dissatisfaction… standing up for her in a sense… her face immediately flushed red.
It was just hard to tell because of her hair and the fact that she was looking down.
“I’m sorry. I apologize for what I did yesterday, and for bullying you in the past.” Only after being scolded by Zhang Chen did Li Junhao manage to apologize to Bai Xiruo somewhat normally.
Bai Xiruo didn’t dare make a sound, but her body had already begun trembling.
Seeing that, Zhang Chen clicked his tongue again in dissatisfaction. “Tch, who are you apologizing to? Say it properly!”
Hearing that, Li Junhao looked at Bai Xiruo and said earnestly, “I’m sorry, Bai Xiruo. I shouldn’t have bullied you… Please, please forgive me…”
Bai Xiruo kept her head down even after hearing that, but tears had already welled in her eyes. Drops of grievance dripped onto the back of her tender hands one after another.
Sitting beside her, Zhang Chen saw that sparkling drop fall from her hair onto her hand, and he felt a stabbing pain in his heart.
Being bullied was, of course, awful. So when facing the bully’s apology, she couldn’t help but cry instead.
Zhang Chen frowned tightly and looked again at Li Junhao across from him, his face full of anger.
These bastards!
Li Junhao could also tell that Bai Xiruo seemed to be crying. He glanced timidly at Zhang Chen, only to meet a look that seemed to want to carve him alive.
Bro, wait? Didn’t we all have a part in bullying her? And you were the mastermind…
Zhang Chen said in a deep voice, “And after this? What about after this!”
Li Junhao was like a machine that had just been prompted: “After this, I definitely won’t bully you anymore!”
“Who!? Won’t bully who!?”
“Bai Xiruo, Bai Xiruo, I promise, this kind of thing will absolutely never happen again!” Li Junhao clasped his hands together and pleaded for forgiveness with sincerity.
“What if it does happen?”
Li Junhao looked at Zhang Chen, licked his lips, and asked a little blankly and tentatively, “W-what should I do?”
“If she gets bullied again, then however she’s bullied, that’s how you’ll be bullied in return!”
“…”
Li Junhao swallowed hard and kept nodding. “Okay, o-okay, Brother Chen…”
Though he felt wronged, under Zhang Chen’s threatening gaze, he didn’t dare say anything more.
He could only obediently take on this suddenly assigned new task from Zhang Chen…
On the other side.
Su Yu and Jiang Minghua’s group arrived slightly later than Zhang Chen and the others.
Jiang Minghua very gentlemanly asked Su Yu what she wanted to eat and proactively helped her swipe her card.
But seeing Su Yu staring in one direction without reacting, he followed her gaze too…
He saw Zhang Chen and the other three eating happily together, and Zhang Chen even took a large chicken drumstick from Bai Xiruo’s tray beside him…
Seeing that, Jiang Minghua didn’t forget to glance at Su Yu’s reaction, then smiled with a hint of sarcasm:
“They really do get along well…”