You Must Be Good 49

Chapter 49

This was the first time Qiao Xiaoxiao had helped someone find a house. She had only heard about it before. The various types of apartments, locations, and prices made her dizzy.

In the end, she squatted by the side of the road and called Wang Tiantian.

“Do you really have to have this fight with your dad?”

Wang Tiantian was still sobbing on the other end. “I told you, I don’t want to go abroad. I’ve listened to him my whole life. I’m so grown up now, can’t I make my own decision for once?”

Qiao Xiaoxiao sighed and looked at the contract in her hand. “Then let’s go with the one in Orchard Community. It’s not that far from the school, and it’s considered a prime location in this area. You can run to school every day. I also saw that it’s south-facing, so there’s no lack of sunlight. Most importantly, the agent said the property management is very responsible. You can call them if you have any problems. It’s just a little small, less than twenty square meters, and you have to use the public kitchen for cooking.”

“Small is fine. A bed and a private bathroom and toilet are enough.”

She actually didn’t have high hopes for Wang Tiantian’s running away from home this time. This “little princess” was spoiled. What experience did she have of living independently?

But she was a new youth of a new era.

When she saw Wang Tiantian lying in bed, her butt facing her, playing on her phone for a whole half-day without even moving, Qiao Xiaoxiao was enlightened. Her previous worries were all a waste.

At noon, the two of them were staring at each other over instant noodles. Wang Tiantian suddenly looked up. “Are you and your sister still having a tiff?”

Qiao Xiaoxiao slurped her noodles and frowned. “Who told you we’re having a tiff?”

Wang Tiantian had a knowing look on her face. “Only she can make you so emotional. And it’s a Saturday. If you weren’t fighting, would you be cooped up here with me?” She knew Qiao Xiaoxiao’s stubborn personality. “How about you stay here with me too? Run away from home too?”

Qiao Xiaoxiao sneered and looked at the box of instant noodles piled on the floor. She said fiercely, “I can eat eight bowls at once!”

Wang Tiantian immediately stood up and made an elegant “please” gesture at the door. “This way, distinguished guest!”

Of course, Qiao Xiaoxiao didn’t dare to easily run away from home. She knew Chu Xinrou’s personality. That would be dancing on her minefield.

Before she left.

Wang Tiantian saw her off. After all, she was someone who had never left home for so many years. After only a few hours of being gone, her phone had been blown up by her parents. After answering a call from her mother, her eyes turned red.

Qiao Xiaoxiao glanced at her. “It’s still okay if you go back now. There’s a seven-day rent-free period.”

Wang Tiantian bit her lip and looked down, kicking a small stone on the ground with her foot, clearly wavering.

Qiao Xiaoxiao: “It’s scary to sleep alone at night.”

Wang Tiantian suddenly looked up, looked at her, and asked seriously, “These conditions, are they similar to where you used to live?”

Qiao Xiaoxiao was stunned for a moment, then smiled. She shook her head and sighed in her heart, why not eat meat porridge? Where she used to live? How long ago? The cowshed or the woodshed?

“Alright, stop it. Hurry up and go home. You don’t have much money on you.”

Wang Tiantian lifted her phone. “I have the New Year’s money my grandparents and maternal grandparents gave me in here, over ten thousand.”

Qiao Xiaoxiao sighed. “Then you’re really not going to care about your parents anymore? They…” she had her hands in her pockets, “love you very much.”

She had never felt such “love.” Those beautiful childhood memories had gradually been “erased” with age.

Wang Tiantian pressed her lips together and was silent for a while, her eyes fixed on Xiaoxiao. “I… just can’t bear to.”

Not far away.

The moonlight was hazy.

Yang Feitang held a large leaf in front of her face and sneakily observed her brat and Wang Tiantian’s reluctant farewell. She took out her phone and sent a message to Chu Xinrou.

[Found them. They’re renting in Orchard Community.]

[Yes, they’re safe. They look very safe.]

[And they’re not renting alone—]

[They’re flying together.]

It was past ten when Qiao Xiaoxiao got home. Usually, at this time, her sister would have already gone to bed, only leaving a dim little lamp on in the living room for her.

She gently pushed open the door. The room was pitch black.

Just as her fingers touched her phone to turn on the flashlight, with a click, the living room was suddenly bright. The sudden light made Qiao Xiaoxiao squint and subconsciously raise her hand to shield her eyes.

Chu Xinrou was sitting upright on the sofa, her face expressionless. “You’re back?”

It was clearly the same question as usual.

But Qiao Xiaoxiao’s nerves inexplicably tensed up, her gaze wandering to avoid eye contact. “Yes, the track and field team had a gathering… we went to sing, and we played a little late.”

The air was stagnant for a few seconds. Chu Xinrou’s gaze was as calm as water, but it sent a chill down Qiao Xiaoxiao’s back. She twisted her fingers anxiously and, after a long while, stammered, “…I’m hungry.”

Qiao Xiaoxiao stood at the kitchen entrance, looking at Chu Xinrou’s back. Her slender fingers held a pair of chopsticks, stirring the noodles in the pot, her movements a little heavier than usual.

The water in the pot was bubbling, and the noodles were tangled together in the boiling water, clearly overcooked. Chu Xinrou raised her hand and sprinkled salt into the pot. Qiao Xiaoxiao clearly saw her wrist tremble, and she added twice the usual amount.

Qiao Xiaoxiao opened her mouth and then closed it again.

Chu Xinrou served the noodles into a bowl. There was very little broth, and the noodles were sticky and clumped together. She brought it to Qiao Xiaoxiao, her voice calm. “Eat.”

Qiao Xiaoxiao took the chopsticks and hesitated.

Chu Xinrou asked in a voice tinged with a faint sense of death, “Is the food outside better than the food at home?”

Qiao Xiaoxiao immediately picked up a large clump of noodles and stuffed it into her mouth. The salty and bitter taste instantly exploded in her mouth. She didn’t even frown and ate one mouthful after another.

Looking at Chu Xinrou’s eyes, Qiao Xiaoxiao knew that even if it were arsenic now, she would have to swallow it.

The inexplicable “pressure” made Qiao Xiaoxiao’s survival instincts kick in. “Jiejie, you should go to bed. I’ll clean up after I’ve eaten.”

Chu Xinrou said lightly, “I can’t sleep.”

Qiao Xiaoxiao pressed her lips together and asked, “What’s wrong?”

Chu Xinrou’s gaze narrowed and fell on her. “I’m angry.”

As she spoke, she stood up, took away the half-eaten bowl of noodles from Qiao Xiaoxiao, and floated away.

Qiao Xiaoxiao: ???

Just those two words, half-hidden, half-revealed, made Qiao Xiaoxiao toss and turn all night.

What does that mean?

Who made my sister angry?

Sister Yang? That sponsored student??? Or… her?

When she thought of herself, Qiao Xiaoxiao shook her head and “passed” it. It couldn’t be her. She was so sensible. No matter how upset or in pain she was, she had endured it and hadn’t said a word!

The next morning was a Sunday, and she had to go out to set up her stall.

Qiao Xiaoxiao woke up with dark circles under her eyes. Just as she was packing, Chu Xinrou suddenly appeared behind her.

With a shiver, Qiao Xiaoxiao turned to look at her sister, her eyes guilty.

Chu Xinrou leaned against the doorframe and slowly gathered the collar of her nightgown. In the morning light, a gentle curve appeared on her lips. “What was the track and field team’s activity tonight? Was it a dinner? A party? Or…” she tilted her head, “karaoke?”

The terrified Qiao Xiaoxiao shook her head, a cold sweat instantly breaking out on her back. “I can go home early from school today.”

“Oh.”

Chu Xinrou replied and then floated away again.

Qiao Xiaoxiao felt awkward all over. This morning, she had specially made her sister’s favorite congee.

Usually, Chu Xinrou would chat with her during breakfast. But for some reason, today, she had started to listen to an audiobook.

And she had turned the volume up very loud, just like the little speakers of the old men and women who practiced boxing in the park.

Qiao Xiaoxiao pricked up her ears. The words from the audiobook drilled into her heart, one by one.

—CEO Shen had raised Huo Ying for twenty years, giving her food and shelter, giving her everything good. But he had never expected that in the end, he had raised an ungrateful wretch. The moment Huo Ying’s wings were strong, she couldn’t wait to fly out of the house and become a phoenix on a branch!

Qiao Xiaoxiao looked up and saw her sister staring at her.

The moment their eyes met, Qiao Xiaoxiao wiped her mouth. “I’m full!”

She immediately walked out. Before she left, she inexplicably turned to Yang Feitang’s music room.

The Sunday sun was just right, streaming through the floor-to-ceiling windows onto the black and white piano keys. Yang Feitang, in a simple long dress, was wiping the piano with her head down. Her hair fell over her neck, and her profile, plated in a golden light, was particularly gentle in the morning sun, if you ignored her next words.

“Oh,” she said without looking up, her fingertips sliding across the piano keys with a light sound. “Our busybody actually has time to visit my humble abode?”

The corners of Qiao Xiaoxiao’s mouth twitched. She stood at the door, her voice muffled. “Sister Yang, I’ve been listening to sarcasm since I woke up.” Her fingers unconsciously picked at the doorframe. “If you don’t want to see me, I’ll leave now.”

Yang Feitang’s wiping motion paused.

Well, this is what happens when you get snubbed by Chu Xinrou. You come to me to vent.

She slowly closed the piano lid, the sunlight casting a small shadow under her eyelashes. “Spit it out. How did you piss off that ancestor of yours again?” Her tone was knowing, yet also held a hint of amusement.

Qiao Xiaoxiao poured out her troubles from the past two days to Yang Feitang in a few words. Sister Yang, who would usually be on her side, this time stared at her for a long time and suddenly asked, “Xiaoxiao, how does it feel to not be direct?”

This sentence was like a thorn, stuck in Qiao Xiaoxiao’s heart.

It wasn’t until she was sitting on a small stool on Fumin Street, the red strings in her hand arranged over and over again. The sun was so hot it made her dizzy, but it couldn’t dispel the gloom in her heart.

—Of course it’s not good.

She would rather her sister get angry at her, rather be scolded, than be treated with such a hot and cold attitude. That indescribable feeling of suppression was a hundred times more uncomfortable than a direct argument.

But…

“Sister Xiaoxiao!”

A cheerful voice suddenly interrupted her thoughts. Qiao Xiaoxiao looked up and met a pair of astonishingly bright eyes. Yuan Lu was standing in front of her stall, so excited she was almost jumping. “I finally found you!”

She had a high ponytail, the ends of her hair dancing with a golden light in the sun. She had her hands on the stall, her whole being glowing. “I specially asked around to find out you were setting up a stall here!”

Qiao Xiaoxiao was frozen on the spot.

What she feared most had come. This “culprit” who had kept her tossing and turning these past two days had appeared before her so unexpectedly.

“I’m Yuan Lu, the one who came with Village Chief Song Qiu!” Seeing Qiao Xiaoxiao’s indifferent expression, Yuan Lu thought she didn’t remember her and specially introduced herself.

Qiao Xiaoxiao pressed her lips together. Just as she was a little moved, Yuan Lu added, “I also went to Sister Chu’s house a few days ago. You weren’t there!”

After a long silence, Qiao Xiaoxiao looked up, glanced at her, and asked, “What do you want to buy?”

Yuan Lu: ???

They were both from poor backgrounds.

But there was a clear difference between the two of them.

Yuan Lu didn’t care about Qiao Xiaoxiao’s cold attitude and just kept chattering beside her. “I live in the third red house in Wuliu Village. I used to live with my parents in Xiawa Town. Later, my parents divorced, and I came here with my mother. Wuliu Village is so beautiful.”

Qiao Xiaoxiao smiled at the child who was buying a popsicle. “There’s a promotion now. Buy five, get one free, and you can also draw a red string.”

“Then I’ll have ten. So I get two free?”

As she was getting a bag, Yuan Lu beat her to it and held the bag open. “My stepfather is a nice person, just a little poor. He’s an authentic farmer. I heard that last summer, the oranges were unsalable, and it was Sister Xiaoxiao who helped to sell them.”

Qiao Xiaoxiao was stunned for a moment. She looked at Yuan Lu. “You mean… Uncle Song?”

Yuan Lu nodded vigorously. “Yes, that’s him!”

Qiao Xiaoxiao: …

If it’s Uncle Song, then he’s really poor, so poor that he’s been a bachelor for half his life and has never married.

Qiao Xiaoxiao pressed her lips together. Yuan Lu seemed to be able to see through her thoughts. “My stepfather is very good to me. Most importantly, he and my mother are in true love. I’m very happy for them.”

Everyone really has a different way of looking at and dealing with things.

Yuan Lu had been with Qiao Xiaoxiao from when the sun was high in the sky until it set, and she didn’t say she was tired, just helped with the work.

At first, she just clumsily helped to organize the goods. Later, she was already able to shout to attract customers, “Handmade hair accessories, buy three, get one free!”

When it was time to close up the stall, Qiao Xiaoxiao looked at the girl’s flushed cheeks and felt a trace of guilt. “I’ll pay you.”

Yuan Lu shook her head, her eyes looking at Qiao Xiaoxiao with great sincerity. “Sister Xiaoxiao, I don’t want money.”

Qiao Xiaoxiao frowned. Then what does she want?

She suddenly straightened her body and tried her best to flex the pitiful muscle lines on her arms. “I want to work out. My dream is to be a small-town female fitness expert!”

Qiao Xiaoxiao: …

At that moment, she inexplicably felt that the girl in front of her was a bit like Nuonuo.

Qiao Xiaoxiao was a person with a cold exterior but a warm heart. On the way back, Yuan Lu helped her carry the goods, and her expression was no longer so gloomy. Qiao Xiaoxiao went to the stall next door and bought some rice balls. They were large and filling, and she always ate them. Today, because she was buying for Yuan Lu, she had specially asked for roasted sausage and meat floss.

When she came back with the rice balls, she saw Yuan Lu secretly swallow her saliva and then immediately lower her head.

Qiao Xiaoxiao paused for a few seconds. She walked over to Yuan Lu and handed her the rice ball. “Eat.”

Yuan Lu took it a little embarrassedly. She opened the bag, looked at the rice ball wrapped in seaweed, smelled the fragrant aroma, and then looked at Qiao Xiaoxiao.

Qiao Xiaoxiao pressed her lips together and looked down. “Like this, you bite and eat.”

After Yuan Lu knew how to eat, she was happy. She took a big bite. When the sweet rice with sauce fell into her stomach, she exclaimed with excitement, “Delicious, Sister Xiaoxiao, so delicious! Can rice be eaten like this?”

Qiao Xiaoxiao was silent. The moment the wind blew past her face, she suddenly thought, how can I be so childish, so lacking in perspective?

Isn’t the current Yuan Lu just her from last year?

She was also a child who had suffered, and her heart must also be lonely and helpless. Her sister, perhaps, was also her last straw.

Completely unaware of Qiao Xiaoxiao’s guilty conscience and the turbulent waves in her heart, Yuan Lu was still chattering like a kingfisher.

“This city is really different. The TV can only show six or seven parts of it.”

“I went to the school yesterday. The buildings are so tall. Everyone wears a school uniform. Hehe, I’m happy.”

She didn’t have to feel sad about not having clothes anymore.

Qiao Xiaoxiao glanced at her. “On Pinduoduo, it’s ten yuan a piece. You can wear good quality and high-end clothes.”

“As expected of a sales expert!” Yuan Lu flattered. “What’s Pinduoduo? Did she give her sister an endorsement fee?”

Qiao Xiaoxiao: …

This damn innocence always manages to kill her without her knowing.

“Sister Xiaoxiao, can I work with you during the summer vacation?”

Qiao Xiaoxiao glanced at her. “What do you want to sell? I can provide the supply.”

Yuan Lu shook her head vigorously. “I’m not cut out for business. I’m a liberal arts student and not good at dealing with numbers and stuff. And, my own dad calculated for me back then that my brain is only suitable for being a second-in-command.” As she spoke, she looked at Qiao Xiaoxiao with a smile. “So, you’ll be the first-in-command, and I’ll be the second-in-command. Perfect, right?”

Follow the big sister and you’ll have meat to eat!

Qiao Xiaoxiao’s head was buzzing, as if she had heatstroke.

She hadn’t given Yuan Lu a good face all day, but as a “fan,” Yuan Lu was very understanding. As a big sister, you have to have some personality. Otherwise, how can the little sisters under you be willing to follow you?

As they were about to get home, Qiao Xiaoxiao suddenly stopped. She asked Yuan Lu, “Where are you living now?”

As she said this, her heart beat uncontrollably faster.

In fact, the moment she had seen Yuan Lu today, she had wanted to ask, but she felt that it would be too despicable of her, so she had held it in.

Yuan Lu had no ulterior motives and answered straightforwardly, “I’m renting with a friend from our village who works at a factory in the city.”

Qiao Xiaoxiao frowned slightly.

Seeing the big sister’s expression, Yuan Lu quickly added, “Before we came, the village chief specially called Sister Chu. Sister Chu said that there’s a particularly jealous child at home, so I can’t stay there. She explicitly refused.”

As she spoke, Yuan Lu looked at Qiao Xiaoxiao curiously and asked, “Sister Xiaoxiao, where is Sister Chu’s child? She’s so young and already has a child? Why didn’t I see her last time I went?”