“I heard you got married, and I didn’t even go see you.”
The words made Li Qinqin stand there awkwardly, her dark eyes full of apology toward Ye Shizhi. Her hands fidgeted together unconsciously, betraying her nervousness.
“It’s nothing, it’s my fault. The wedding was so rushed back then, many details were overlooked.”
Hearing this, Ye Shizhi quickly waved her hand.
She knew it wasn’t Li Qinqin’s fault.
At the time of the original story, after that incident and the hurried marriage, Li Qinqin, being the original protagonist’s closest friend, had stayed by her side.
But back then, the original protagonist had no school, had lost her virginity, and her scandal was everywhere. She assumed everyone was laughing at her—even Li Qinqin—and treated her sarcastically.
On the eve of the wedding, Li Qinqin even arranged to meet the original protagonist and handed over some money. She said if the protagonist didn’t want to marry, she could escape, and that was all the help she could offer.
At that moment, the original protagonist, hurt that even her best friend looked at her that way, angrily waved the money away and ran off crying.
Since then, the two hadn’t met or contacted each other for a long time.
“Qinqin… thank you for that day,” Ye Shizhi spoke on behalf of the original protagonist. It wasn’t her fault—the outcome had been a twist of fate after all.
“It’s nothing, I’m just happy you’re doing well.”
“By the way, if you want newspapers, you’ll have to go to school,” Li Qinqin said. “Try asking a teacher.”
“Okay.”
Ye Shizhi smiled faintly and expressed a concern. “Shouldn’t you be at school right now?”
“I’m not going anymore.”
Li Qinqin raised her head. Her clean eyes were glistening with tears, and her red-rimmed eyes blinked rapidly to hold them back. She forced a smile.
“That crappy book isn’t worth reading. I’d rather go out and earn money.”
Her words carried both grievance and pride. “Xiao Ye, I’ve invested the money I earned. Even if I don’t go to school, I’ll be fine!”
Ye Shizhi remained silent, unsure how to respond. She saw, in Li Qinqin’s desolation, the light that belonged to her—her hope for life.
“Come see me often. I’ll be here.”
Li Qinqin, knowing her emotions might falter if prolonged, and sensing Ye Shizhi’s need to leave, spoke words of parting.
Before Ye Shizhi could reply, arrogant voices came from outside, stirring a feeling of disgust.
“Hey, little black girl! Heard you dropped out. So that’s why you’re here!”
Several people came in. Their clothing and accessories were mismatched, bright colors clashing, ugly to behold.
Ye Shizhi glanced once and was already irritated. She stood silently, casually twirling a wooden stick through her hair, exposing her pale neck. Her chin slightly raised, she looked like a proud swan.
Her almond-shaped eyes, clear and gentle even without speaking, softened her proud aura. One could mistake her for a calm, gentle person at first sight.
“Who are you?”
The one at the front had messy hair, similarly mismatched clothing, small eyes, and an ordinary face, yet carried a condescending attitude that immediately repelled people.
“Li Meimei!”
During the silence, Li Qinqin was the first to shout angrily. Her eyes reddened, the book in her hand crumpled from her grip, showing the force she had used.
“What are you shouting for! Think you’ve grown up? Dare to raise your voice at me?” Li Meimei, distracted, forgot about Ye Shizhi and went straight for Li Qinqin.
Seeing the book, she smiled maliciously and snatched it from Li Qinqin, throwing it to the ground with a loud thud.
The atmosphere instantly tensed.
“Li Jie is awesome!”
“Hit her! I want to see her head busted…”
“Hahaha…”
The people following Li Meimei cheered, clapping at the scene.
Li Meimei grabbed Li Qinqin’s collar with force, making her face turn red from strain. She struggled.
“You dog! Reading books again after you ran off here? You think you can escape me?”
She squeezed and held Li Qinqin, as if wanting to kill her.
“What, still hoping to use your lousy grades to be precious? Who cares?” Her eyes full of hatred. “You should die out here, and ugly too, otherwise it’s unlucky for me!”
Li Qinqin’s struggling hands slackened at this, her eyes filled with sadness.
“Ah!”
“Li Jie…”
“Jie…”
The chaos lasted only a moment, with the only calm person being Ye Shizhi, who stepped back after taking action.
Xiao Liu facepalmed: “I told you to stop them, not beat them!” Just looking at the purple marks forming on their faces was scary enough.
Ye Shizhi raised an eyebrow, ambiguous: “Did I misunderstand your meaning?”
When Li Meimei grabbed Li Qinqin, Ye Shizhi had felt the urge to smash her. She guessed it was the original protagonist’s suppressed emotions acting up. At first, she tried to restrain herself.
But the random task had appeared, so she used it as an excuse and struck.
She punched directly toward the eye—carefully, to avoid real damage—likely to hurt for a few days.
“Run!”
Li Qinqin, nearly coughing up her lungs, reacted and tried to drag Ye Shizhi away.
But this shout drew attention—many eyes turned hostilely toward them.
“Block them! Beat them till they’re done!”
Li Meimei screamed in pain, covering her eye, her dark gaze seeming to want to tear Ye Shizhi and Li Qinqin apart to vent her hatred.
“Don’t run. Just stand still.”
Ye Shizhi stopped Li Qinqin from fleeing.
Xiao Liu screamed in the system space: “Host! Task completed! Run! Suian is still in your belly! Be careful!”
Ye Shizhi had no time for it. Amid the crowd attacking, she struck at weak points, sending them down with groans.
She was careful not to damage the shop’s property, but the space was too small. She ended up piling them up, one on top of another, blocking the threshold.
After taking down the last one she could hit, Ye Shizhi dusted off her nonexistent dirt and looked at Li Meimei, who was dumbfounded.
“There’s still one left!”