6 – She is an Irresistible Addiction
His eyes widened in astonishment as he stared at her, his handsome face frozen in bewilderment.
Jiang Yuxing cupped his face, her gaze exceptionally bright, her soft voice clear and straightforward, “You’re so beautiful, just like the Moon Goddess that Zhu Bajie liked in Journey to the West!”
Jiang Yubai: ?
Wasn’t the word “beautiful” used to describe girls?
Besides, he was covered in dirt from head to toe—how could he possibly be associated with beauty at all?
She must be teasing him.
Jiang Yubai pushed her hand away with a cold expression, “Stop lying, I’m not…”
“I’m not lying at all!”
Jiang Yuxing humphed, raising three fingers, her childish face filled with seriousness, “If I’m lying to you, my stupid brother at home will immediately turn into a three-hundred-pound fatty!”
Jiang Yubai: ?
He looked at the quirky little girl before him and suddenly found himself at a loss for how to handle her.
“Hmm? Little brother, are you all alone?” Jiang Yuxing glanced around the empty surroundings in confusion, “Where are your friends?”
Jiang Yubai’s expression shifted slightly.
His eyes darkened, as if abruptly awakened from a beautiful dream and pulled back into harsh reality. He immediately shrank back with self-consciousness, creating distance between them.
No friends.
Not a single one.
All the children his age excluded him one by one, always giving him various unpleasant nicknames behind his back.
Like little pauper, little trash picker, unwanted little bastard, and so on…
And he didn’t need any friends anyway.
Having his grandmother was enough.
Jiang Yubai pressed his thin lips together, his young face showing a gravity that didn’t match his age.
He silently picked up the money, put it in his pocket, and was about to stand up and leave this place.
When suddenly a cheerful, sweet voice rang in his ears, “It’s okay if you don’t have friends. From now on, I’ll be your first good friend.”
Jiang Yuxing curved her beautiful eyes into crescents and reached out her hand to him, “My name is Jiang Yuxing—Jiang as in gingerbread, Yu as in giving, Xing as in stars.”
Jiang Yubai stared blankly at the little girl’s outstretched hand, his gaze momentarily dazed.
He knew that warmth.
He instinctively wanted to reach out, but remembering his hands had just been picking through trash, afraid of dirtying her, he tried to pull back.
But the next moment, the hand he was about to withdraw was suddenly grasped by hers.
Jiang Yubai’s breath hitched slightly as he let her pull him up from the ground.
“Pinky promise, a hundred years no changes.”
Jiang Yuxing hooked his pinky finger and shook it, her smiling eyes sparkling brilliantly, “From today on, I’m your good friend! I’ll come play with you every day from now on, okay~”
Gentle sunlight finally broke through the thick clouds.
Warmly enveloping her figure, making her already bright eyes and brows even more radiant.
Jiang Yubai gazed at her transfixed, his desolate heart feeling as if it had been filled with warmth.
A seed that had long been cold and dormant seemed to awaken, beginning to sprout tender shoots.
So, this is what light feels like?
From that day on, a bright little figure began appearing by his side.
“Little brother~”
Every day at this time, when he finished his work and reached the small empty lot he passed on his way home, that familiar childish voice would ring in his ears.
Jiang Yubai looked up to see the exquisitely pretty little girl, looking like Santa Claus carrying a bulging sack, swaying as she ran tap-tap-tapping toward him.
“Little brother~ you’re here~”Jiang Yuxing rushed over to him excitedly, opening the burlap sack in her hands like she was presenting a treasure. “Look what fun things I brought for you~”
As if performing magic, she skillfully pulled out one item after another from the sack.
A brand-new set of Transformers, thrilling and visually appealing shonen manga, expensive remote-controlled cars, model toys, and more…
Jiang Yubai lowered his long lashes, watching her quietly and silently.
Every time she came to find him, she would bring along many fresh and interesting things he had never seen before.
Although these were all items he normally couldn’t access, just by looking at the brands, he knew they were all expensive—far beyond what someone from a poor family like his could afford.
She brought him into another vibrant and beautiful world.
But he… had nothing to give her in return.
“Ding ding ding~”
Jiang Yuxing excitedly handed him a red transformation device. “Look! This is the latest model Masked Rider transformation device! I thought you’d definitely like it, so while my silly big brother wasn’t paying attention, I secretly brought it to you…”
“Enough.”
Before she could finish, the boy who had been silent all along lowered his head and suddenly spoke up.
He clenched his fists tightly, his slightly long bangs obscuring his shadowed eyes. “I don’t need your pity, and I certainly don’t need your charity!”
Huh?
Jiang Yuxing held the transformation device, staring at him in a daze.
Jiang Yubai pressed his thin lips together and was about to turn and run away when, the next second, the little girl stepped in front of him again, her pink cheeks puffed up as she confidently corrected him, “It’s not charity at all! This is clearly a dowry!”
Do… dowry?
His foot, which had just lifted to leave, abruptly stopped. A deep blush instantly spread across his jade-like face.
This is too absurd.
How could her little head be filled with so many whimsical ideas!
Jiang Yubai looked at her earnest expression and, for the first time, showed a flustered look that matched his age. “You…”
Before he could finish, Jiang Yuxing suddenly remembered something and leaned in close to him, her starlit eyes bright. “Oh, right, little brother, you still haven’t told me your name~”
Don’t tell her.
Don’t get involved with her anymore.
You’re not from the same world; you shouldn’t form unnecessary bonds.
The voice of reason in his mind screamed at him relentlessly.
But the moment he met her clear, radiant gaze, as if bewitched, he couldn’t help but tell her, “Jiang… Jiang Yubai.”
“Jiang, Yu… which Yu?” Jiang Yuxing, who had always been academically challenged, furrowed her delicate brows. “Is it the Yu that you can eat?”
She grinned and stretched out her hand toward him, her sweet, milky voice cooing like a spoiled child, “Brother, can you teach me?””
Jiang Yubai let out a soft sigh.
He had always been helpless when it came to her.
Gently and carefully, he took her warm little hand and earnestly traced the characters stroke by stroke on her palm.
“Hmm…”
After staring for a long time, the academically challenged Jiang Yuxing still shook her head. “It’s so complicated.”
She lifted her delicate little face and suddenly flashed him a bright, dazzling smile. “Even though I can’t understand it, I’m sure it’s a really beautiful name~”
Jiang Yubai’s breath hitched. His gaze, fixed on her, unconsciously took on a fascination he himself hadn’t even noticed.
This little girl who had suddenly barged into his life carried not a single trace of a rich young lady’s airs.She was fervent and straightforward, warm and kind, like a rich and vibrant splash of color, forcefully and overwhelmingly painting over his monotonous and dull black-and-white canvas.
He couldn’t refuse her.
Nor did he want to.
Jiang Yubai stared fixedly at her, his dark pupils reflecting her figure, as her name echoed softly in his heart.
An addiction named Jiang Yuxing had quietly taken root within him.
And this addiction was destined to last forever.
“Little brother, you have to wait for me, okay.”
Taking advantage of his distraction, Jiang Yuxing grabbed his wrist, pulled him down, and planted a loud kiss on his cheek. “When I grow up, I’ll definitely marry you and bring you home!”
……
“Class Representative?”
“Class Representative?”
A female voice suddenly sounded beside him. Jiang Yubai’s eyelashes trembled slightly as he snapped back to reality, his gaze coolly following the sound.
Lin Xuexuan smiled, her tone naturally familiar. “I’ve never seen you space out for so long in the classroom. Are you feeling unwell?”
“No.”
Jiang Yubai glanced at her without a trace of emotion. “What is it?”
“Here.” Lin Xuexuan handed him an application form. “Your financial aid application has been approved. The teacher asked me to give it to you.”
She knew Jiang Yubai’s family situation was different from others.
Both his parents had left, and he could only rely on his grandmother, who had limited mobility.
Although they had moved out of the slums and into an old, cheap rental apartment, the financial burden of the family still fell entirely on him.
Besides attending classes every day, he also worked part-time at a convenience store after school.
Thinking this, Lin Xuexuan tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear and deliberately said, “Class Representative, if you ever have any difficulties, you must tell me. I’ll help however I can.”
Most boys couldn’t resist a girl as warm-hearted as her.
The Class Representative, knowing how kind she was, would surely be moved and eventually fall for her.
Just as Lin Xuexuan curved her lips into a smile, eagerly anticipating that the handsome, refined boy in front of her would show her some favor—
Jiang Yubai simply took the application form from her hand, his handsome face indifferent, his clear voice polite yet thick with detachment. “Thanks.”
And that was it.
Lin Xuexuan: ?
What was going on?
Why was this different from what she had imagined!
She bit her lip, secretly clenching her fingers.
Jiang Yubai was perfect in every way—except for his lack of wealth and the fact that he was a walking, unapproachable iceberg.
But Lin Xuexuan was confident.
She would surely be the first to melt his heart.
“Class Representative, what was wrong with you earlier?”
Lin Xuexuan glanced in Jiang Yuxing’s direction, assuming it was that clingy girl again who had upset him, and deliberately put on a well-meaning facade. “Was it Jiang Yuxing bothering you again? Ah, she doesn’t really mean any harm—she’s just too spoiled. Everything she says is just for fun, so don’t take it to heart, Class Representative.”
Jiang Yubai’s hand gripping the form tightened abruptly.
A flicker of irritation crossed his dark eyes.
He was truly sick of these self-righteous girls who understood nothing and loved to speak ill of her.
In his heart, Jiang Yuxing was his unspeakable, haunting secret.
She was the brightest, most unattainable star in the vast Milky Way.
The most radiant, noble, and passionate rose in a garden of flowers.
The first dazzling, brilliant light in his dark and hopeless life.
What could they possibly compare to her?
“Are you done?”Jiang Yubai cast a cold glance at her, all the previous distant politeness vanished, leaving only stark gloom. “You’re not even worthy of tying her shoelaces.”