Early the next morning, Zhang Chen arrived at the classroom.
“Brother Chen’s here~” Ever since yesterday’s math class, Duan Chenxu’s tone had become oddly sarcastic.
“Can you be normal for once, damn it?” Zhang Chen slapped his school bag straight into his face.
Then he sat down, first looking toward Luo Hao’s seat; the desk had already been put back. He then looked at Bai Xiruo, who was currently reading intently.
“Everything okay now?” Zhang Chen asked Duan Chenxu with a tilt of his chin.
Duan Chenxu rummaged through Zhang Chen’s school bag. “Relax, it’s fine. Yesterday Haozi dragged Luo Hao into the grove and beat him up. It’s all taken care of.”
As he spoke, he pulled out Zhang Chen’s math workbook. Seeing that it was filled out completely again, gratitude instantly overflowed from his heart…
Zhang Chen’s mouth twitched when he heard that Li Junhao had even beaten Luo Hao up.
Was he trying to avoid being blamed?
“As long as it’s resolved…”
“Here, Brother Chen, have some breakfast.” Duan Chenxu took a bag of buns from the drawer and said generously, then started making up his homework.
“I already ate.”
That’s what Zhang Chen said, but his hand still reached toward Duan Chenxu’s bag of mini steamed buns.
He took one out to taste it. Mmm, delicious!
“How is it? Good, right? A new bun shop opened near my place. They’re freshly made!” Duan Chenxu said with a raised eyebrow.
Zhang Chen gave an appreciative thumbs-up, then looked toward Bai Xiruo.
She was probably eating steamed buns again, right?
Then he looked at Duan Chenxu’s hefty, well-fed build…
He suddenly reached out and snatched the bag of buns. “I’m taking these.”
Duan Chenxu, still eating while copying at the same time, had his buns suddenly robbed away: “???”
Zhang Chen: “I’ll treat you to the school store after morning self-study.”
After saying that, he took the mini steamed buns and walked toward Bai Xiruo.
Watching his beloved buns being carried off by Zhang Chen just like that, Duan Chenxu was heartbroken…
“Could Brother Chen have fallen for Bai Xiruo?”
Bai Xiruo saw a bag of buns suddenly drop in front of her. Looking up, she realized it was Zhang Chen.
“I don’t need them. I’ve already eaten…”
“Take them.” Before she could finish, Zhang Chen cut her off expressionlessly.
Startled by Zhang Chen’s fierce tone, Bai Xiruo immediately didn’t dare say anything.
“Eat.”
Bai Xiruo lowered her head, pouting in grievance, and obediently took a bun from the bag, taking a careful bite.
Seeing that she was being obedient enough, Zhang Chen raised an eyebrow and asked casually, as if it were nothing: “Lunch today won’t be steamed buns again, will it?”
“N-no, it isn’t.” Bai Xiruo swallowed the bun in her mouth. “I brought food today.”
As she spoke, she tilted her body slightly, revealing the corner of a lunch box from her drawer as if to prove it to Zhang Chen.
“That’s good.” Zhang Chen let out a sigh of relief. He turned to leave, but before going, he didn’t forget to warn her, “Remember to finish it. I’m watching you.”
“W-wait a second.” Seeing that he was about to leave, Bai Xiruo spoke up.
“What is it?”
“Um, last night… thank you.” Bai Xiruo nervously clenched her fists, trying hard to say what she wanted to say.
“No need.” Faced with Bai Xiruo’s thanks, Zhang Chen didn’t keep a stern face this time. He answered calmly instead.
This was something he should have done in the first place.
Afterward, he thought about it carefully. Maybe it was precisely because the original body had bullied Bai Xiruo before that even classmates who wanted to help her didn’t dare step forward.
In last night’s situation, perhaps only he, the class bully, could help her.
Now he was, in a sense, paying for the original body’s sins…
Seeing that Bai Xiruo still looked like she wanted to say more after thanking him, Zhang Chen asked, “Anything else?”
“Um… I want to thank you.” Bai Xiruo said sincerely.
“Haven’t you already thanked me?” Zhang Chen frowned.
“I want to treat you to… a meal.” Bai Xiruo blushed bright red and forced the words out one by one.
“…”
Zhang Chen froze for a couple of seconds after hearing that.
If he remembered correctly, she hadn’t even had money for food yesterday, right?
And now she was boldly saying she wanted to treat him to a meal?
What a bold claim!
“Do you have money?” Zhang Chen didn’t refuse the idea of eating together. Instead, he was concerned about whether she had the money.
“Yes… yesterday Luo Hao compensated me… with money.” Bai Xiruo was still stammering from nervousness. This was the first time she had ever offered to treat someone to a meal.
And the person she was inviting was a notorious bully like Zhang Chen. It was hard not to feel nervous…
As she spoke, she took the crumpled banknotes that Luo Hao had shoved at her yesterday out of her pocket…
“Oh.” Zhang Chen suddenly understood. There had indeed been such an incident yesterday.
Looking at the money Bai Xiruo took out, it was probably around thirty yuan.
But with so little money, he still hoped she would keep it for herself. He didn’t want her paying for him.
She already had almost no money, ate steamed buns every day, and now that she had suddenly come into a “small fortune,” the first thing she thought of was…
Repaying him?
“Sure, that works. But didn’t you bring food today?” Zhang Chen pretended to frown.
“I’m treating you to lunch. I’m not eating.” Bai Xiruo shook her head honestly.
“…”
Zhang Chen was suddenly choked up and, for a moment, had nothing to say.
He looked back and forth at Bai Xiruo a couple of times, unable to keep his heart calm.
Some people were just like that. If they received even a tiny bit of kindness from others, they wanted to repay it with everything they had…
Bai Xiruo was clearly that kind of person. No wonder, in the original novel, the readers who liked Bai Xiruo were by far the most numerous…
So kind-hearted…
After a while, Zhang Chen finally waved a hand, looking as though he had reluctantly agreed. “Fine… at noon today?”
“Mm!” Hearing Zhang Chen agree, Bai Xiruo’s eyes beneath her bangs seemed to sparkle, and she nodded quickly.
“Okay, come with me at noon.” Zhang Chen said briskly, then walked back to his seat without looking back.
Bai Xiruo looked relieved and happily turned back around, only to suddenly see Su Yu standing at the classroom door, looking at her expressionlessly…
She quickly averted her gaze and lowered her head to look at her book.
Su Yu looked at her coldly, then at Zhang Chen, who had returned to his seat. She only found out about what happened last night after coming back to class from the restroom.
Zhang Chen had actually stood up for Bai Xiruo, and even flipped Luo Hao’s desk over.
And now, first thing in the morning, she saw the two of them talking, with Bai Xiruo actually wearing a rare happy expression!
She had never seen Bai Xiruo smile in this class before!
She had thought Bai Xiruo only ever buried her head in her books and never smiled at all!
Su Yu walked past Bai Xiruo with a cold face and returned to her own seat by the window.
She felt that she absolutely had to talk to Zhang Chen!