CM - 60

Zhou Shuirong walked to the bleachers on the sports field and sat down, watching the couples discreetly walking around. The school strictly prohibited dating, and if students were caught, their names would be announced to the entire school, and they would be sent home for reflection. But what was the point? They still dated anyway.

It was the same with fights. Fights still happened.

The couple seemed to be arguing. The boy was trying to console the girl, giving her a bottle of soda. He looked around as if to see if anyone was watching them. When he saw no one, he quickly touched her face.

The girl covered her face and looked down, then stomped on his foot playfully and ran off.

The boy chased after her. When no one was looking, he grabbed her hand and quickly kissed it under his lips.

The girl smiled, appeased.

Zhou Shuirong felt a headache coming on from watching them. Was it too much for her to be the one avoiding Shen Tingwen, but still expect him to come and console her?

She rested her head on her knees, feeling terrible.

Suddenly, she heard footsteps. She looked up and saw Zhao Guqing, all by herself.

Zhao Guqing was always cautious and nervous when talking to her, often looking a little embarrassed. It was the same this time. She didn’t dare to get too close to Zhou Shuirong and sat far away, saying, “Liang Jifan said you seemed unhappy.”

Zhou Shuirong asked her, “Are you worried about me?”

Zhao Guqing immediately shook her head, then, thinking that was wrong, slowly nodded, “A little.”

“I’m fine.”

Zhao Guqing didn’t have anything else to say. She was just a little worried after hearing what Liang Jifan said and came over. She didn’t even know what she was supposed to do.

After more than five minutes of silence, Zhou Shuirong stood up and said, “Let’s go.”

Zhao Guqing immediately stood up. “Where?”

Zhou Shuirong said, “You go back the way you came. I’m going back to class, too.”

“Oh,” Zhao Guqing said softly.

Zhou Shuirong saw how naive she was and handed her the bottle of Vitamin water she was holding.

Zhao Guqing was stunned, waving her hand and shaking her head. “I’m not thirsty.”

Zhou Shuirong just pressed the cold bottle against her face and then placed it in her hand.

Zhao Guqing looked at the water in her hand, then at Zhou Shuirong walking away. Her heart suddenly started to race. When Zhu Jiayi found her, she still hadn’t recovered. After being called a few times, she grabbed Zhu Jiayi’s arm and said, “I want to go to the same university as Zhou Shuirong.”

“Huh?”

“I want to be a person like her.”

Zhu Jiayi touched her forehead. “Is this a side effect of having a crush on Shen Tingwen for three years?”

Zhao Guqing took her hand off. “I’ve been thinking about the time Zhou Shuirong was framed. If it were me, what would I have done? I think I might have gotten very sick and then transferred schools. I don’t know if she was sad, but her actions are very worthy of my admiration. I want to learn from them.”

Zhu Jiayi now agreed with her. “Yes, but Qingqing, you’re also someone others want to be like. You don’t have to be so hard on yourself. There are still many people who like you and many who are jealous of you.”

Zhao Guqing knew that everyone could be a precious existence to another person, and everyone was the protagonist in their own life.

“Actually, I like Zhou Xiyou more than Zhou Shuirong. She’s sick but still comes to school every day with a smile. I know I couldn’t do that,” Zhu Jiayi said.

Speaking of Zhou Xiyou, Zhao Guqing received a message from her inviting them to dinner. “Let’s go buy her a present this weekend.”

“Sounds good!”

________________________________________

A Farewell Dinner

On the weekend, Zhou Xiyou was going to be hospitalized, so she invited everyone to dinner beforehand. The location was a Japanese restaurant with a diving theme in Shuangjing. They ate sukiyaki in a bubble room that Zhou Xiyou had reserved in advance.

Everyone else came on their own, but Zhou Shuirong was personally escorted in by Zhou Xiyou, who had her sit next to her. She leaned on Li Gun’s shoulder, then on Zhou Shuirong’s shoulder, saying, “Boyfriend on my left, girlfriend on my right. I’m at the peak of my life.”

Liang Jifan glanced at her. “Is she your girlfriend? The young master hasn’t said a word. Young master, come on, say something. Whose girlfriend is Brother Zhou?”

He liked to use the word ‘young master’ to tease Shen Tingwen. Just like when he was a freshman, some seniors used to call him “Chicken Boss.” In a flash, he was a senior himself. How could he not give others nicknames?

Zhou Xiyou also glanced at him. “You talk less! I didn’t even ask Zhao Guqing if she wanted you to come, you bastard.”

Zhao Guqing flinched a little. “He’s shameless. He insisted on coming, saying the meal wouldn’t be as good without him.”

Liang Jifan smacked his lips. “If someone’s treating, why wouldn’t I come?”

Zhou Xiyou ignored him, turning to Zhou Shuirong. “Come on, my dear husband, Zhou Shuirong, you order. Pick the most expensive stuff. Shen baby’s paying the bill.”

Zhu Jiayi was curious. “Why is it Shen baby?”

Zhou Xiyou put down her water glass and cleared her throat, as if she were about to say something very important. “Don’t you know? I’ll tell you. His Aunt Wen Huo nicknamed him ‘Shen baby.’ He later changed it to Shen Tingwen when they registered his name, but at home, he’s still called ‘baby.’“

Shen Tingwen wasn’t in the mood to listen to their nonsense. He wouldn’t have come if Zhou Xiyou hadn’t been going to the hospital and Tang Jun’en hadn’t told him not to be too rude to her. Now that he was here, he had to look at Zhou Shuirong’s cold face again. Was he not in enough pain?

Zhou Shuirong didn’t hear a word either. Shen Tingwen didn’t even look at her, just played on his phone. When Liang Jifan called him, he didn’t respond. He looked like he was tired of this whole situation and tired of being in the same room as her.

Every minute that followed was torture. Zhou Shuirong didn’t want to make Zhou Xiyou sad, so she forced herself to smile. Zhou Xiyou was going to be hospitalized, and her invitation to dinner was certainly because she wanted everyone to get together and have a good time.

But Zhou Shuirong didn’t know that her smile was like a knife, scratching at Shen Tingwen’s heart. In his eyes, he was the only one who was sad.

Halfway through the meal, Shen Tingwen received a phone call. He looked very tense, and the caller seemed to be so important that he had to go outside to take the call.

Zhou Shuirong couldn’t stand it anymore and said she was going to the restroom, but before she left, she squeezed Zhou Xiyou’s hand to let her know she was fine.

Zhou Xiyou smiled at her. “Hurry back! I’ll save all the meat for you!”

Li Gun next to her wasn’t mad about what she said. He even used the serving chopsticks to separate the vegetables and meat for her. He was so kind, it felt a little unreal.

Zhou Xiyou thought that no one could be a better boyfriend than him.

But she also thought that relationships shouldn’t be like this. How could they never have a single fight? Everything he did was for her, and this made the whole experience suddenly feel dull.

She took a bite of the meat Li Gun had picked out for her, smiled at him, and then, in front of everyone, gave him a kiss, getting sauce all over his face.

Li Gun’s ears turned red. He looked down and whispered to her, “There are people here!”

Zhou Xiyou raised her chin. “So what? We’re not having a secret affair. We’re a couple out in the open. What’s wrong with a kiss? What’s wrong!”

Liang Jifan said, “Nothing, it’s just a little nauseating.”

“You have no right to say that!” Zhou Xiyou glared at him. She never liked anything Liang Jifan said.

Liang Jifan took a sip of his wine and said, “I hope you can stay this nauseating forever.”

Zhou Xiyou didn’t argue back because she understood the hidden meaning of his words. He hoped she would get well and live a good life.

Zhao Guqing poured Zhou Xiyou a glass of water. “You’ve had enough soda, Youyou. Drink more water.”

Zhu Jiayi also said, “Their soda isn’t even that good. Tomorrow we’ll buy you the kind we used to drink as kids. It’s so much better.”

Zhou Xiyou looked at them and suddenly remembered the day she created the group chat and they all introduced themselves. It was the first time they had officially gotten to know each other.

There were dramatic relationships between them—he liked her, she liked him, and he liked her—but the moment they decided to be friends, all those messy relationships became unimportant. The only thing that mattered was, “We are friends.”