Shen Lishu blinked innocently, but her gaze involuntarily fell on the girl trapped between Xie Siran and his lackeys.
The girl’s skin was a healthy wheat color, her hair as messy as weeds and tied up haphazardly with a black rubber band, yet her eyes were filled with wildness.
“Did you hear everything again?” Xie Siran asked warily.
Shen Lishu hesitated, then nodded, adding, “I won’t report you to your teacher.”
When it came to Pei Yu, that madman, Xie Siran was always cautious.
Xie Siran’s face stiffened. “You’d better not.”
“Then I’ll be going now. Pei Yu will worry if he can’t find me later,” Shen Lishu said, blinking again.
Xie Siran remained silent.
Shen Lishu walked out, not heading back to the classroom but straight toward the teachers’ office at the far end of the corridor.
Coincidentally, Shen Lishu’s homeroom teacher was just about to leave, bag in hand.
“Shen, is something the matter?”
Shen Lishu spoke in a crisp, clear voice as she began to report: “Teacher, there are a few male students bullying a female student in the restroom area.”
Upon hearing this, the homeroom teacher was immediately alarmed!
Several other teachers were also in the office. Regardless of whether Shen Lishu’s claim was true, they all felt they had to check it out.
The teachers hurried off.
Shen Lishu rubbed her nose and turned to walk back toward the classroom.
As soon as she stepped into the classroom, Pei Yu rushed over, his expression anxious and his voice trembling. “Sweetie, where did you go just now?”
At that moment, Xie Changyan also returned, panting heavily.
Only when he saw Shen Lishu did Xie Changyan’s heart, which had been lodged in his throat, finally settle back down.
It was good that she was safe.
Shen Lishu calmly and clearly recounted what she had just witnessed to the two of them.
After listening, Pei Yu and Xie Changyan exchanged a knowing glance.
It seemed Xie Siran still hadn’t learned his lesson!
Shen Lishu felt she had been quite principled. Since she had said she wouldn’t report the incident to Xie Siran’s teacher, she had indeed kept her word.
She had only told her own teacher.
As it was getting late, the three of them packed their bags and prepared to go home.
While descending the stairs, they happened to run into Xie Siran and his group, accompanied by several teachers. One stern-faced teacher was on the phone, likely contacting the parents of both sides.
With teachers and Pei Yu present, Xie Siran didn’t dare do anything to Shen Lishu, only glaring at her angrily from the shadows.
At the Monday assembly, Xie Siran and his group took turns stepping onto the stage to deliver self-criticisms and bow in apology to the victim.
To avoid any negative impact on the victim, the school did not disclose their identity.
A few days later, Shen Lishu encountered the girl again.
Her hair was still a messy, unruly high ponytail, her clothes worn, and despite the bitter cold of winter, she wore a pair of dusty sandals.
She sat on a stone pillar by the school gate, as if waiting for someone.
Before long, Shen Lishu saw several children suddenly appear and surround her.
As if they had found something amusing, they encircled her and began singing loudly:
“Class 1-7, Wen Zhenzhu, your name is so plain and dull, your hair’s a mess every day…”
Hearing these malicious chants, Wen Zhenzhu swept a cold gaze around the circle, her fists clenched tighter and tighter at her sides.
After singing a few rounds, the children scattered again, still muttering as they ran.
“Hurry, hurry, Wen Zhenzhu is going to hit someone again!”
“Hahaha, I really don’t know how her name was chosen. Who still uses such an old-fashioned name these days?”
Shen Lishu, who had witnessed the entire scene, frowned deeply.
“Sweetie.” Pei Yu, who had gone to buy candied hawthorn nearby, returned. “What are you looking at?”
Just as Shen Lishu was about to say something, she turned around and realized that Wen Zhenzhu, who had been sitting on the stone stool earlier, was already gone.
“Nothing.”
Pei Yu peeled off the rice paper before feeding Shen Lishu a candied hawthorn.
The thin sugar coating was sweet and crispy, while the hawthorn inside was both sour and sweet.
Shen Lishu’s eyes sparkled. “It’s delicious!”
However, Pei Yu only dared to feed Shen Lishu one. Her stomach and spleen were weak, so she couldn’t eat too much hawthorn.
Even with just one, Shen Lishu was satisfied. She obediently didn’t ask Pei Yu for more, just watched longingly as he quickly finished the rest.
“Shall I buy you another one next year?” Pei Yu couldn’t help but coax her, seeing how pitiful she looked.
Shen Lishu was filled with anticipation. “Okay, thank you, Pei Yu.”
Because of Pei Yu’s promise, Shen Lishu looked forward to the arrival of winter every year.
It wasn’t until Pei Yu bought her the third candied hawthorn that a joyous event occurred in the Pei family.
—Pei Yu’s mother, Ms. Yu Qingqing, was about to return home.
As a researcher, Ms. Yu Qingqing hadn’t returned home for a full six years.
Long before Ms. Yu Qingqing’s return schedule was confirmed, the Pei family’s old residence had already begun discussing the family banquet with Father Pei.
The Pei family in the capital was divided into two branches: the main branch and the collateral branch.
Most of the family’s influence was held by the main branch, which was under Father Pei’s control.
Due to certain reasons, although Pei Yu’s grandfather and grandmother were still alive, Father Pei only allowed Pei Yu to visit the two elders at the Pei family’s old residence on the first day of the Lunar New Year each year.
In the end, Father Pei agreed to hold the family banquet, scheduled for the evening of Pei Yu’s mother’s return.
.
Evening.
The driver took Pei Yu and Shen Lishu to the Pei family’s old residence.
The journey was quite long, and by the time they arrived, it was already dark.
Pei Yu held Shen Lishu’s hand as they got out of the car.
The Pei family’s old residence was a traditional Chinese courtyard. The color palette was somber, the decor understated, and everything was rigidly square, creating an inexplicable sense of oppression.
A servant led Pei Yu and Shen Lishu through twists and turns, eventually crossing a long corridor to reach the main hall.
An elegantly dressed old lady saw the two and immediately came forward to greet them.
Her eyes filled with tears, her voice choked with emotion. “Xiao Yu, this must be Lili. I am your grandmother…”
Although the other party continuously expressed genuine emotion, Shen Lishu couldn’t feel any warmth.
Instead, an inexplicable chill crept up her back.
There were quite a few people from both the main and collateral branches of the Pei family present tonight.
Shen Lishu and Pei Yu arrived relatively late.
As soon as Pei Yu entered, many people crowded around him, all speaking to him softly with warm smiles.
They nearly pushed Shen Lishu aside.
Pei Yu flew into a rage.
In the end, Old Madam Pei intervened, taking Pei Yu and Shen Lishu to a side hall to play with their peers for the evening.
The main branch of the Pei family was sparse in numbers, but the collateral branch was the complete opposite.
“Shall we go home?” Pei Yu keenly sensed Shen Lishu’s unease.
As long as Shen Lishu said yes, Pei Yu would take her away without hesitation.
Shen Lishu thought for a moment, then shook her head and whispered, “I have to wait for Uncle and Auntie.”