“What kind of person is that!”
[Exactly, what kind of person!] 166 chimed in.
[Hey, why didn’t you go in just now?] 166 couldn’t help asking.
She had rushed over in such a hurry by taxi, only to stop at the entrance. What was the point of all that effort?
Jiang Qiao rubbed her chilled arms and spoke with profound wisdom: [You just don’t get it, do you? He resigned because he had no other choice. Think about it—why was Peng Yang targeting him? It’s because of me. I should be avoiding him, so why would I bring this up with Lu Xun? Do I want him to hate me even more?]
Put that way… it seemed quite reasonable. 166 was convinced.
Jiang Qiao breathed a sigh of relief.
The rain was getting heavier, and the weather was turning colder. She needed to find somewhere to take shelter from the rain, she thought.
A gust of Demon wind blew, causing her umbrella to sway. Jiang Qiao exclaimed “Aiyai” twice and gripped the umbrella handle tightly, pulling it downward.
The next moment, a strong hand reached out from behind her and grasped the umbrella handle, steadying it.
Warm body heat pressed against her side, and Jiang Qiao felt the contacted side go numb and weak. The familiar scent of soap spread through her nostrils.
In her dazed moment, Lu Xun had already taken the umbrella from her hand, his movements natural.
Lu Xun had rushed out in a hurry. His black short hair was damp from the rain, and he frowned, his tone less than pleasant: “It’s raining. Why did you run out? Trying to perform some behavioral art?”
Some non-mainstream girl getting sentimental in the rain.
Jiang Qiao shuddered in disgust—she wanted no part of that persona: “You’re the one doing behavioral art.”
Lu Xun didn’t bother arguing with her. He grabbed her wrist and pulled her under the bus stop shelter, then asked: “Did you just go to the coffee shop?”
“Nope,” Jiang Qiao denied.
Lu Xun stared at her quietly.
Ten seconds later, Jiang Qiao deflated: “Fine, I did go.”
“You looked busy with work, so I didn’t want to disturb you…”
Lu Xun didn’t accept this excuse. He didn’t believe Jiang Qiao could be so considerate and wanted to question further.
But Jiang Qiao stood on her tiptoes and noisily ruffled his hair: “Aiya, you rushed out! Why didn’t you bring an umbrella? Were you afraid I’d run away?”
Jiang Qiao blinked mischievously: “Lu Xun, admit it—you’re quite taken with me too~”
You couldn’t find someone this narcissistic in eight hundred years.
166 angrily spouted gibberish.
Lu Xun was momentarily stunned, his gaze flickering almost imperceptibly. He maintained a stern expression: “What nonsense are you talking?”
In broad daylight… under a big bus stop shelter.
Distracted by Jiang Qiao’s interruption, Lu Xun couldn’t continue his questioning.
The autumn air was fresh and clear. The school had arranged a university tour for the senior high school students, visiting two top universities to experience college atmosphere and stimulate students’ enthusiasm for learning.
“7 AM tomorrow morning, gather at the south gate of the school,” the homeroom teacher announced.
Jiang Qiao woke up early. By the time she finished washing up in a daze, it was already past 6:40. She didn’t even eat breakfast, just had the driver take her to school.
Arriving at the school gate, she barely caught the last group of students boarding the school bus. Jiang Qiao followed behind them onto the bus.
The bus was almost full. She immediately spotted Ye Qingqing waving at her, then noticed Lu Xun sitting by the window in the back row.
The seat next to Lu Xun was empty.
Since she liked Lu Xun so much, she naturally wouldn’t pass up this opportunity. She decisively abandoned Ye Qingqing and headed toward the back row.
From the moment Jiang Qiao ran onto the school bus, Lu Xun had spotted her. Out of the corner of his eye, he watched her approach until a light breeze brushed past as she took the seat beside him.
“Lu Xun, did you save this seat for me?”
“No,” Lu Xun replied without changing expression. “It was just empty.”
The boy in front of him couldn’t help turning around: “Straight-A student, didn’t you say this seat was taken?”
Lu Xun: “……………………”
Jiang Qiao: “Hahahaha, really? Lu Xiao, did you actually say that?”
Nothing is more awkward than being caught in a stubborn lie, especially for someone like Lu Xun—it was a devastating blow.
One moment of openness, a lifetime of social withdrawal.
Lu Xun wasn’t that extreme, but throughout the next two hours of the bus ride, no matter how Jiang Qiao teased him or acted coquettishly petty, he didn’t utter a single word.
When she grew tired of talking, she opened a bottle of water to drink. After scanning the bus, she asked 166: [Where’s Song Qingying?]
How come I don’t see her.
[Look behind you,] 166 said sarcastically.
Following its suggestion, Jiang Qiao turned her head and came face-to-face with Song Qingying’s furious, red-rimmed almond eyes. She nearly choked on her water, coughing several times while trying to suppress it.
[How long has she been staring at me like that?] Jiang Qiao felt a headache coming on. [Oh my god, why didn’t you warn me?]
If she’d known, she wouldn’t have flirted so boldly with Lu Xun.
[You didn’t ask,] 166 replied matter-of-factly.
Jiang Qiao’s face turned red from coughing. Lu Xun frowned, and thinking she was disturbing him, she immediately covered her mouth, tilting her head to continue coughing.
The muffled coughing sounds were irritating to hear.
Lu Xun pulled her hand away: “Are you trying to suffocate yourself?”
His tone was cold, carrying a hint of inexplicable emotion. Startled by this, Jiang Qiao—hey—stopped coughing.
Jiang Qiao’s eyes darted around. In this situation, it’d be a waste not to take advantage.
She suddenly pointed behind her: “Song Qingying, why are you everywhere!”
“I…”
“You what you! If you hadn’t been staring at me, would I have choked on my water?!”
Wow, she can even blame others for that… the surrounding onlookers thought.
Song Qingying felt a flicker of guilt but quickly recovered, biting her lip: “You’re the one who turned around…”
This inevitably reminded people of that classic line—”If you weren’t looking at me, how would you know I was looking at you?”
A counterattack, logical and justified.
Jiang Qiao made a speechless expression, eyes wide open—truly ridiculous.
Someone nearby chuckled softly, mocking Jiang Qiao for failing to bully others and getting exposed instead.
“Miss Jiang, why are you always targeting Qingying?” The girl sitting next to Song Qingying spoke up indignantly—she’d been holding back for a long time. “Could it be jealousy?”
She was close with Song Qingying, who had confided many things about Lu Xun during her distress.
She knew Jiang Qiao was a shameless “other woman” who stole someone else’s boyfriend.
Though Qingying didn’t want to embarrass others, she wasn’t so kind-hearted. Under the confused gazes of other classmates, she deliberately spoke ambiguously: “Some things aren’t yours. No matter what methods you use, they’ll never be yours in the end.”After saying this, she smirked provocatively at Jiang Qiao.”
Jiang Qiao: “…………………”
[She called Lu Xun a ‘thing’,] Jiang Qiao tattled.
166: [……………………]
A small group of people who knew the “inside story” immediately turned their gazes toward Lu Xun, who stood nearby with a frosty expression, only to quickly look away as if chilled by his demeanor.
Amid the hushed discussions around them, Lu Xun noticed Jiang Qiao’s eyes subtly reddening.
The flicker of irritation that had just surfaced vanished completely, leaving him with nothing but helplessness and an unconscious pang of tenderness he hadn’t even recognized in himself.