Chapter 32

The blaring loudspeakers across the sports field finally quieted down at noon.

Under the azure sky, red brick and white tile gleamed. Gentle breezes rustled through the blooming forsythia, filling the campus with fragrance.

The midday campus returned to its usual tranquil peace.

Except for the west wall corner, where the school piled damaged desks and chairs.

“Yu Mo, are you down yet?” Feng Ruoyu called out in a hushed voice, keeping watch, toward the other side of the wall.

“I’m down! Next, hurry!” Yu Mo dusted off her clothes and urged.

“Shuyu, you go.” Li Qingqing saw the opportunity and encouraged Shen Shuyu to climb over second.

Shen Shuyu understood Li Qingqing’s intention, nodded, and stepped onto the discarded desks and chairs stacked against the wall.

Wei Lai and the others had initially thought they’d need to help her, but just as they rolled up their sleeves and looked up—

Shen Shuyu swiftly stepped onto the highest chair, leaped lightly, and sat perched on the top of the wall.

Agile as a cat.

Wei Lai’s jaw dropped. “The Academic Rep can climb walls?”

“No,” Shen Shuyu answered truthfully, slightly breathless.

Her heart felt like it contained a bouncing ball, thumping against her chest.

This was Shen Shuyu’s first time ever climbing a wall to skip class. She’d managed it solely through a surge of reckless courage.

And the knowledge that Yu Mo was waiting for her on the other side.

Protecting her skirt, Shen Shuyu carefully shifted to the side facing Yu Mo.

In Yu Mo’s line of sight, a pair of shapely, snowy-white legs descended the red wall.

White shirt, tan plaid skirt.

Shen Shuyu cautiously moved her body, arms braced against the red wall. A delicate gold bracelet adorned her slender forearm, exceptionally pretty.

The wind atop the wall gently blew a few strands of hair across her face, breaking her cool aloofness and adding a touch of boyish, dashing spirit.

Sunlight blended warmly. Shen Shuyu’s clear, lively eyes inadvertently met Yu Mo’s.

Yu Mo’s throat bobbed.

“Can you catch me?”

Shen Shuyu’s voice drifted lightly into Yu Mo’s ears.

She looked at Yu Mo expectantly, hoping for a confirmation.

But Yu Mo stood rigidly under the parasol tree, hands in her tracksuit pockets, unmoving.

She didn’t particularly want such close contact with Shen Shuyu.

She wanted to refuse.

Shen Shuyu moistened her dry lips lightly. She didn’t want to be refused.

She tried to show weakness to Yu Mo. “Yu Mo, I’m scared.”

Shen Shuyu’s voice trembled on the last syllable.

Yu Mo’s heart trembled in response.

With a cough that betrayed an attempt to deceive herself, Yu Mo pulled her hands from her pockets and stood beneath the wall with a hint of impatience. “Fine, come down quickly.”

Shen Shuyu looked at Yu Mo’s arms slowly extending towards her. Despite the fear the great height difference stirred within her, she pressed her skirt with her hand, lightly pushed off with her legs, and jumped.

As long as Yu Mo was below, Shen Shuyu had boundless courage to plunge recklessly toward that open embrace.

Shen Shuyu felt a moment of weightlessness, as though her soul was being drawn up to the top of her head.

Her legs hit the ground heavily, a sharp, numbing pain shooting through them.

Then warmth.

She tumbled into Yu Mo’s arms.

Two hearts, beating at different, frantic rhythms, collided.

Shen Shuyu’s lips were near Yu Mo’s ear.

Her warm breath puffed against the sensitive skin in intermittent waves, scorching heat and numbing tingles intertwining.

Under the dense leaves of the parasol tree, light and shadow dappled.

All the sunlight in Yu Mo’s vision seemed to fall on Shen Shuyu’s youthful, girlish face.

Shen Shuyu was as beautiful as Yu Mo remembered.

But more spirited than in her memories.

Like an exquisite doll granted human emotions.

“Yu Mo! Is the Academic Rep okay?!” Wei Lai’s voice came from the other side of the wall.

Yu Mo snapped back to reality and pushed Shen Shuyu away stiffly.

Deliberately avoiding the figure at the edge of her vision, she raised her voice. “She’s fine! Next!”

“Then catch me a bit!” Wei Lai’s head popped over the wall.

As before, Yu Mo stood under the wall and extended her arms to Wei Lai.

A dull ache and numbness slowly spread through Shen Shuyu’s body.

She had been abandoned by Yu Mo, left to the side.

.

It was only a fifteen-minute walk from A University Affiliated Girls High School to Yu Mo’s home in Lower City District C.

The group split into pairs and trios, chatting and laughing along the way without feeling tired.

This was Shen Shuyu’s first time in District C, where Yu Mo lived.

It lacked the bustling, even luxurious, high-rises of District A. As the scenery progressed, the tall buildings of District B gradually gave way to shorter ones.

Old-style houses and apartment buildings, street-front shops, large supermarkets, small to medium-sized hotels.

The aesthetic here was like the vintage paintings Shen Shuyu had seen in art exhibitions.

Beneath the old age was a rich charm accumulated over time.

Following Yu Mo through several streets, they reached a pedestrian overpass. Yu Mo looked into the distance at a large entertainment plaza opposite and excitedly pointed. “That’s the New Sea Road Entertainment Plaza I mentioned. There’s some big event going on there recently—food, drinks, games. It’s especially lively.”

Wei Lai followed Yu Mo’s pointing finger, peering through layers of obstructing leaves and branches. A large plaza surrounded by various buildings appeared in her view.

Though it was the sort of amusement area they’d imagined, it was bustling and full of people.

As soon as the group arrived at New Sea Road Entertainment Plaza, they were stunned by the scene inside.

Makeshift booths serving as snack kitchens, portable amusement rides, and ear-splitting music from all directions.

Though Yu Mo hated to admit it, she saw the surprise and hesitation on their faces, just as she had expected.

She knew this scene was worlds apart from the neon-lit glamour of Upper City District A where they lived.

Though Yu Mo had mentally prepared herself for their shock, actually seeing their expressions still brought a touch of disappointment.

She smiled, trying to break the momentary awkwardness. “You Upper City folks probably haven’t seen a scene like this, right? Should we go somewhere else?”

“No need. This is fine.”

To everyone’s surprise, the first person to voice willingness to enter this place was Shen Shuyu.

Standing farthest from Yu Mo, Shen Shuyu was the only one who had glimpsed the fleeting disappointment in her eyes.

She was willing to accompany her to a place like this.

Just like she had accompanied her long, long ago.

Yu Mo looked at Shen Shuyu in surprise, hardly believing her ears.

She had thought Shen Shuyu would be the least likely person to follow her in.

Shen Shuyu met Yu Mo’s gaze calmly and countered, “Weren’t you saying the whole way here how fun this place is and how much you wanted to come? Why are we leaving without going in to have a look?”

“Right.” Wei Lai chimed in after Shen Shuyu.

She had quickly digested the initial shock and casually slung an arm over Yu Mo’s shoulder. “Come on, show us sisters the sights!”

“Yeah!” Feng Ruoyu and Zhou Qin quickly caught on as well. The group clustered around Yu Mo and followed her into the entertainment plaza.

Although the plaza appeared unassuming from the outside, once inside, the Upper City girls discovered it had its own hidden wonders.

Numerous stall games they’d never seen before offered a mix of novelty and joy that filled the entire plaza.

Shen Shuyu actually found some of these things rather childish. Hands in her school uniform pockets, she silently trailed at the back of the group.

She quietly watched Yu Mo, despite being mentally an adult in her twenties, still act like the fifteen-year-old girl her body was, weaving and playing among the crowd with Wei Lai and the others. Her lips unconsciously curved upward.

It had been a long time since Shen Shuyu had seen Yu Mo smile so brightly.

She remembered that Yu Mo used to smile a lot, like a never-setting little sun following her around every day.

But at some point, Yu Mo stopped smiling often.

Slowly, she stopped smiling altogether.

In the past, Shen Shuyu hadn’t understood, assuming Yu Mo had simply changed.

Now Shen Shuyu knew: it was she herself who had worn away Yu Mo’s light, her smile, the deep affection in her eyes.

Shen Shuyu lowered her lashes slightly. Amidst her desolation, her gaze fell upon a goldfish scooping game at a stall they passed.

“Would you like to try, classmate?” The old man running the stall noticed Shen Shuyu and perceptively offered her a paper net.

Shen Shuyu watched the goldfish still desperately flicking their tails in the simple plastic basin. Just like every time she passed an aquarium in her past life, she felt an urge to take them home.

Elegantly crouching down by the stall, Shen Shuyu took the net from the vendor.

Yu Mo, noticing the two couples around her pairing off to play stall games and unwilling to be the third wheel, shoved her hands in her pockets and turned, intending to replay the shooting game she hadn’t gotten enough of earlier.

Turning her head, however, she saw Shen Shuyu crouching by the goldfish stall not far away.

A single, crude light bulb hung directly above her.

The daylight was fading into dusk; only her vicinity shimmered with light.

Amidst the surrounding clamor, she alone was serene.

Ethereal and isolated, frozen in time on the flagstone path amidst the crowd.

Shen Shuyu’s head was lowered. Under her long lashes, a pair of bright eyes were intently focused on the plastic basin.

Yu Mo sensed she was stuck in some difficulty. Her fair face was like crumpled satin, rippled with a faint distress that lingered.

Just as Shen Shuyu failed to scoop a goldfish for the umpteenth time, she suddenly realized a shadow had fallen over her head.

Taking the fresh paper net the vendor handed her, she looked up.

Yu Mo stood beside her, lips pressed tight, hands in her pockets.

Her posture was straight, her gaze detached.

The harsh, garish light shone behind her, blurring her expression.

Shen Shuyu’s heart skipped a beat.

Why was she here?

Had she seen all of her clumsy fumbling just now?

Shen Shuyu was as nervous as any girl whose crush suddenly appeared beside her, feeling at a loss.

A rare hint of dazed clumsiness showed on her usually astute face.

Her heart was a mess, beating wildly.

“Does the Academic Rep like these goldfish that much?” Yu Mo’s gaze swept over the dozens of broken paper nets piled at Shen Shuyu’s feet, and she couldn’t help but comment.

“Mhm…” Shen Shuyu nodded, holding the net in her fingers. She then asked, “Does Yu Mo like them?”

Yu Mo looked at the fish swimming in the plastic basin and frowned. “I hate fish the most.”

Shen Shuyu’s already flustered heart felt like it had been brutally wrung out.

She knew why Yu Mo hated fish.

Because she, Shen Shuyu, liked fish.

“What are you doing?! Let go!”

Before Shen Shuyu could attempt further conversation, Li Qingqing’s voice suddenly tore through the air from nearby.

Shen Shuyu and Yu Mo simultaneously looked towards the sound.

At a basketball toss stall, a few thuggish men were trying to harass Li Qingqing. Wei Lai tried to pull Li Qingqing away, but one of the men shoved her to the ground.

“Hey! What do you think you’re doing?!” Yu Mo abandoned Shen Shuyu, shouting as she ran over. Catching the man off guard, she punched the one who had pushed Wei Lai.

Stunned by the blow, the man clutched his nose painfully. When he pulled his hand away, it was covered in blood.

He swore under his breath, instantly releasing his inferior, low-grade pheromones. “Fck, what’s your problem?!”

“I should ask you that! What do you think you’re doing?!” Yu Mo met the man’s gaze unflinchingly while simultaneously helping the fallen Wei Lai up. “Luring girls! Don’t you know this is against the law?!”

“Ooh, I’m so scared! Little sister, you haven’t even differentiated yet, and you’re this bold?” The man smirked at Yu Mo, eyeing up and down this girl who hadn’t yet differentiated.

“If you know what’s good for you, you’ll leave, now!” Yu Mo shielded Li Qingqing and Wei Lai behind her, intimidating the men while looking for a chance to pull them away.

But Yu Mo had overlooked one thing: Li Qingqing and Wei Lai weren’t her former bodyguard team members.

Though beside her, they couldn’t act as her eyes.

And at that moment, one of the thugs, a blond man, had already circled around Yu Mo unnoticed.

“Yu Mo, watch out!” Zhou Qin, running over, saw the blond man swinging a wooden stick and screamed in terror.

But it was too late. By the time Yu Mo realized, there was no time to dodge.

In that split second—

Yu Mo felt a force push her backward.

Shen Shuyu lunged forward, wrapping her arms around Yu Mo’s shoulders, and took the brunt of the stick aimed at Yu Mo’s head.