Chapter 82: 82. The Trampled School Bully (12) Part 2

Cai Xixi didn’t chat for long. When she hung up and came back in, Bai Qian had just finished paying.

She spotted the two pairs of bracelets, each now packed into their own bags, and exclaimed in surprise, “You bought bracelets too? Couple ones!”

Bai Qian wasn’t as tsundere as Jiang Yusheng. She admitted it straightforwardly. “Yeah.”

Human nature was nothing if not nosy.

Cai Xixi immediately linked arms with her. “You’re not in a rush to head home, right? Come on, my treat—milk tea and dessert. You’ve gotta spill about your significant other! How could you keep this from me? If I hadn’t dragged you out today, were you planning to wait until the wedding?!”

“She’s not my significant other. We’re not together.”

“No way!” The girl looked her up and down in disbelief. “With your looks, there’s someone you can’t land? Are you the one chasing her? Who is it? Our Year Group Hunk confessed to you just last week, didn’t he? You even turned him down. Wait—don’t tell me you like some sophomore or junior guy?”

“Not a senior.”

Cai Xixi was even more shocked. “Not a senior?! Oh, oh, from another school? A guy from middle school?”

Bai Qian didn’t want the conversation veering further off course, so she came clean. “It’s a senior sister.”

“A senior sister?!! Oh! You mean Jiang-senpai, the one who’s been eating lunch with us every day this week? That makes sense—she’s just as gorgeous as you, and her personality’s great too. Tons of people must be after her. Hey, did you confess to her? Did she turn you down? What was the reason? I’ve been thinking… it doesn’t add up. She’s been the one initiating lunch every day lately, right? Always grabbing your hand too. Did she tell you she doesn’t like you?”

The girl replied earnestly, “No. She likes me too.”

Cai Xixi: ? How do I solve this one???

As if reading her mind, Bai Qian gave a faint smile. “Just because you like each other doesn’t mean you have to get together, does it? For me, keeping things as they are feels pretty good.”

“Huh? Okay, I’m lost. But when did you fall for her? Have you known each other long?”

The girl’s lips curved up. “Does liking someone really depend on how long you’ve known them?”

She didn’t even know exactly when she’d fallen for Jiang Yusheng.

Just as Jiang Yusheng had silently confessed her feelings last night—known only to herself—Bai Qian had only just realized, in that same moment, that her heart had fallen without her even noticing.

Many times, realizing that you like someone is actually pretty simple.

She wasn’t exactly the most even-tempered person.

At the very least, she had a short fuse in the mornings.

But when someone suddenly woke her up in the middle of the night, her first reaction wasn’t anger at all. Instead, it was just a mix of helplessness and indulgence.

The moment she realized that, the name quietly etched into her heart sometime without her noticing became crystal clear.

But so what if she liked that girl?

That little rabbit was all tough talk, wasn’t she? Fine, let her keep it up then. She deserved it!

~~~

Jiang Yusheng approached her studies with genuine seriousness.

She had set her phone aside and silenced it on purpose.

Halfway through, the screen lit up. She caught it out of the corner of her eye but ignored it, refocusing her gaze as she dove back into reviewing first-year high school material.

A little while later, Zhao Lanzhao pushed the door open. Seeing her diligently working on homework, she walked over with a glass of juice and clucked her tongue. “The power of love really is something else. How long have you been at it? Take a two-minute break. I know you’re trying hard, but you still need to balance work and rest, right?”

At those words, Jiang Yusheng immediately set her pen down.

She had been holding the same position for nearly an hour, and her shoulders were starting to ache. As she gently rubbed them, she picked up the juice and took a sip.

“Find me a few tutors—one for each subject.”

“Why waste money on that? Just ask Qianqian. She’s a free tutor, and it could help you two build your relationship. All upside, no downside.”

Jiang Yusheng didn’t tell her the real reason. “She’s got the College Entrance Exam too. She can’t pour all her energy into me—doesn’t she need to study herself? Besides, I’m in second year, and having a first-year tutor me? That’d be way too embarrassing.”

“Oh? Feeling embarrassed now? Back when your scores were always at the bottom of the class and your homeroom teacher kept calling me in for talks every time, how come you never worried about making your mom look bad?”

The little rabbit flushed with a mix of shame and embarrassment. “It won’t happen again! Can you stop bringing up the past? Are you gonna help me find them or not? If not, give me the money and I’ll do it myself!”

“Alright, alright. I’ll find some for you this week. Oh, right—Little Qing’s grades aren’t much better than yours, are they? Now that you’re getting tutoring, she’ll probably want in too once she hears. Why not do it together?”

“I don’t care. Ask her yourself.”

With the tutoring plan settled, Jiang Yusheng shooed the annoying Zhao Lanzhao out the door.

She was just about to pick up her pen again when she remembered the phone notification she’d ignored earlier. She grabbed it for a quick look.

The moment she saw the message from Bai Qian, sent just over ten minutes ago, her guts twisted with regret.

She hadn’t replied instantly!

This was unacceptable!

After mentally scolding herself a few times, the little rabbit hurriedly typed out a response.

Bai Qian replied right away, asking if she wanted to head to the library that afternoon.

Jiang Yusheng was about to say yes when she remembered that she’d only just confessed the night before—and sneaked a kiss, too. What if her nose betrayed her again? What if seeing Bai Qian made her remember that moment in the darkness and—

Drip.

She had only just recalled the scene from last night when the all-too-familiar liquid started trickling from her unreliable nose.

Jiang Yusheng: “…”

Things had gotten this bad, so there was no way she could get near her right now.

She needed at least two days to cool off!

The little rabbit snapped a photo of her workbook and sent it over, adding a note below: “I’m studying at home for the next couple days. Let’s go together next week.”

Bai Qian quickly replied with an okay.

Feeling wronged, the little rabbit cursed her nose a few times under her breath, then channeled her frustration into motivation and dove back into her studies.

~~~

Jiang Yusheng had accurately gauged just how much of an effect Bai Qian had on her body.

Two days later, the nose that had been restlessly agitated from that nighttime stolen kiss had finally calmed down.

Even when she went to lunch with others, she no longer got nosebleeds. She could stay as cool and collected as she had been before the confession.

But the little rabbit couldn’t shake the feeling that Bai Qian’s friend was looking at her a little strangely.

Her intuition proved right the very next day.

Waiting at their usual spot, Jiang Yusheng spotted the girl slowly making her way through the crowd toward her. But unlike before, she was alone this time.

Jiang Yusheng figured her friend was running late, so she stayed put, planning to wait a bit.

“Senior Sister, aren’t you going?” Bai Qian took a couple of steps before realizing her hand wasn’t being pulled like usual. She turned back and called out.

Jiang Yusheng asked, “Hasn’t your friend shown up yet? Aren’t you going to wait for her?”

“She won’t be eating with me anymore.”

The little rabbit panicked a little. “Did you two fight? Is it because I’ve been eating with you these past few days and she doesn’t like it?”

“No, she just thinks she’s too bright.”

“Ah? Too bright?”

The girl shook her head. “It’s nothing. The monthly exam is coming up soon, right? She wanted to study a little longer in the classroom before heading to eat, so she told me to go on ahead.”

Only then did Jiang Yusheng relax.

If Bai Qian had gotten upset because of her spat with a friend, how could she ever muster the courage for a second confession?

~~~

Zhao Lanzhao proved quite reliable after all. The moment Jiang Yusheng mentioned wanting a tutor, she immediately found one for her.

The woman told her that she’d asked around and secured a highly recommended tutor. Gu Wanching had agreed, and they’d arranged for lessons to start tomorrow. All Little Rabbit had to do was get ready.

Jiang Yusheng caught the odd note in her tone. “Weren’t you supposed to find me a teacher for every subject? You don’t mean this one tutor handles them all, do you?”

“That’s right. This teacher’s a freshman at Rongcheng University. You know Rongcheng University, don’t you? It’s the top university in the country.”

Jiang Yusheng was speechless. “You always call me stupid, but I think you’re even denser. Who in high school second year could tutor every subject? And she’s just a part-time college freshman. I’m telling you, I’m serious about studying this time. I’m already in second year, so rebuilding my first-year foundation from scratch is going to be way harder than for others. Sending some scam artist college kid to ‘tutor’ me is just a total waste of my time.”

Zhao Lanzhao shot back, “You think your mom’s an idiot? Of course I’ve checked her out. This tutor’s famous in our local tutoring scene. If I wasn’t friends with her mom and hadn’t begged for the recommendation, I couldn’t have hired her at all! She’s a total academic prodigy—never placed second her whole life. She aced the College Entrance Exam and became our city’s top science scorer. Isn’t that enough to convince you?”

Jiang Yusheng scoffed. “You said it yourself—that was back then. Now she’s in college; she’s probably forgotten all her high school stuff. And she wants to teach every subject? Even scammers aren’t this brazen.”

“She’s been tutoring underclassmen nonstop since the exam ended. No way she’s forgotten anything. Quit nitpicking. This is the tutor you’re getting. Either buckle down and learn, or I’ll call Qianqian over to teach you myself.”

“Zhao Lanzhao!”

The woman was dead set on using that threat. After a silent standoff, Jiang Yusheng caved. “Fine, fine. Let her come. But I’m warning you—if she’s terrible, you have to switch her out.”

“Deal. But heads up: I already paid the deposit for the trial lesson, non-refundable. Unless her style really doesn’t suit you, don’t mess around. You might not care about the money, but your mom does!”

Jiang Yusheng was at a loss for words. And this wasn’t a scam? She started worrying about Zhao Lanzhao’s retirement years.

With the private tutor issue settled, Jiang Yusheng suddenly remembered the promise she’d made to Bai Qian last week—to study together at the library.

After some hesitation, Little Rabbit decided to tell her the truth.

At the end, she timidly added: “You’re not mad, are you?”

Bai Qian didn’t type back. Instead, she sent a voice message.

The girl on the other end chuckled lightly. “If Senior Sister’s willing to study properly, that’s great news for me. Just listen to the teacher and improve your grades.”

Little Rabbit chatted with her in a trembling voice for a few moments. When she hung up, she bolted out of her room.

Zhao Lanzhao was watching TV when she came charging at her like a maniac.

She couldn’t dodge in time and got enveloped in an excited hug from Little Rabbit.

“She likes me too! Zhao Lanzhao! She likes me too!”

“Huh?”

Once the excitement faded, Jiang Yusheng let go. Her fair cheeks were flushed red, like she’d downed some cheap booze. “She told me to study hard and get good grades! What else could that mean but that she likes me!”