novelraw Chapter 28
Chapter 28
Chapter 28 Bullying“You think that returning the water I gave you will make everything even?”
His voice was tinged with a slight coolness—
“Especially when you haven’t even drunk it?”
“…”
Qin Qing stared blankly at the boy leaning down from above, her slightly curved eyelashes fluttering as she blinked once, then again.
She thought she must have misheard him.
Maybe she imagined hearing the word “not”?
—Could it be that he mistakenly thought she had drunk it?
With this thought, Qin Qing snapped back to reality, suddenly realizing just how close they were standing. So close, in fact, that she could distinctly feel the lingering warmth from his recent exercise.
Hurriedly, she raised the bottle of mineral water between them, trying to create some distance and dispel the ambiguous atmosphere.
“I’m not lying, I really didn’t drink it.”
His gaze fell on the bottle she had placed between them, blocking his view. Wen Yufeng glanced coolly at the bottle, then slightly curled his thin lips.
He lifted his left arm, propping it against the wall behind Qin Qing, while his right hand casually pushed the water bottle aside, removing the obstacle from his sight.
Their eyes met once again.
Wen Yufeng’s gaze settled on her slightly dry lips, his expression deepening.
—
“Then take a sip.”
“…What?”
Qin Qing’s beautiful almond-shaped eyes widened in confusion.
Wen Yufeng, his expression unchanged, repeated himself, his eyes flickering slightly as he looked into hers.
“Take a sip, and I’ll let you go.”
“…”
Qin Qing’s eyes grew even wider.
This time, she was certain she hadn’t misheard. As she pieced together his words, even though she still couldn’t fully grasp Wen Yufeng’s intentions, her cheeks began to feel a little warm.
Qin Qing shot a slightly annoyed glance at Wen Yufeng, her delicate eyebrows furrowing.
“Wen Yufeng…!”
She bit her lip, unable to utter anything harsh, and in the end, she just called out to him softly.
“The more you call me like that, the less I want to let you go.”
Wen Yufeng leaned in a little closer, shortening the already minimal distance between them.
A few students, laughing and chatting, entered the building from the back door, and one of them, with sharp eyes, noticed the figures in the dim corner—
“Tsk, so there are people having a rendezvous here at school? Noted, this is a good spot!”
“…”
Qin Qing’s already flushed cheeks grew even hotter. Instinctively, she tried to slip away through the gap under Wen Yufeng’s arm.
But before she could move, the boy, seemingly anticipating her action, grabbed her slender arm and pressed it against the wall.
At the same time, Wen Yufeng straightened up, moving his upper body closer.
After shielding her from view, he looked back coldly.
His gaze was as sharp as a blade, and wherever it swept, it seemed to slice through the air—
“Get lost.”
Without any extra words, just that one command, the students who had caught a glimpse of his face immediately froze in place.
A few seconds later, they snapped out of it, hurriedly apologized, and quickly left.
Once again, it was just the two of them, breathing in the quiet.
Qin Qing, still struggling, looked up at the boy in frustration.
“Wen Yufeng, let me go.”
“…Now you want to run?”
Wen Yufeng slowly shifted his gaze back to her. “Why didn’t you realize this when I warned you before?”
Qin Qing clenched her slender fingers, her large almond eyes filled with a mix of emotions. “I didn’t see it then…”
Halfway through her sentence, she bit her lip and refused to say more.
“Ah, because you saw that magazine.”
Wen Yufeng finished her sentence for her.
His lips curled up slightly. Although his features remained sharp and handsome, his dark eyes held a cold and deep-seated aggression.
“So, now you think I’m no good, and you want to stay as far away from me as possible?”
“…”
Qin Qing bit her lower lip until it turned pale.
…That wasn’t it.
That wasn’t what she was thinking.
She just couldn’t accept…
She just couldn’t accept that the boy who smiled so cleanly and comfortably, making everyone feel like they were basking in warm sunshine, would flip through such a magazine and even look at it with those kinds of eyes…
But before Qin Qing could finish her thoughts, the dark emotions in his eyes seemed to overflow, as if they could no longer be contained.
“What do you think I’m like? Studious, motivated, obedient, attending classes on time, following the rules?”
The curve of his lips grew even more pronounced, the cold light in his black eyes shining brighter—
“Sorry to disappoint you, Qin Qing, but I’m not. I never was, from the very beginning.”
The girl froze in place.
She looked up, staring blankly at him.
This was the first time he had ever called her by her full name so directly.
There was an emotion in his eyes that she didn’t dare to meet.
“Skipping class, fighting, smoking, clubbing—unfortunately, that’s who I really am.”
Wen Yufeng lowered his eyes, staring expressionlessly at Qin Qing. “From the first time you saw me, you should have known. Now that we’re at this point, you have no choice but to accept who I am.”
“…”
The girl lowered her gaze, and after a long silence, she finally spoke in a soft voice, “I don’t like it.”
“…What?”
The boy’s eyes narrowed slightly.
Qin Qing slowly lifted her face, her clear eyes gradually settling with determination.
“What you’re doing is wrong… it’s wrong, I don’t like it, so I won’t accept it.”
Her voice remained gentle, but it carried a resoluteness that she wouldn’t waver from.
Wen Yufeng’s expression faltered for a moment, as if something had pricked him, and a brief flash of pain crossed his eyes.
After a moment, he suddenly straightened up, taking a step back with a light laugh.
His laughter carried a chill that bordered on indifference.
“What does it matter whether you like it or not?”
“…”
“You think it’s wrong, but I don’t.”
He turned and started walking up the stairs, his voice echoing behind him.
“If you don’t want to accept it, that’s fine. From today on, we have nothing to do with each other—when you see me, just walk by as if you don’t know me. I’ll do the same.”
“…”
After a long time, the staircase was left in silence, with only one person’s breath remaining.
Qin Qing clutched the water bottle in her hand and slowly lowered her head.
A few seconds later, she blinked softly.
She drove away the inexplicable sting in her eyes.
…
The next day, Qin Qing woke up very early.
Her grandmother, who was making breakfast in the kitchen, was quite surprised.
“Tian Tian, why are you up so early?”
Qin Qing glanced at the clock on the wall.
After roughly calculating the time, she headed toward the bathroom.
“Grandma, I need to go to school early this morning.”
Grandma Qin acknowledged her but complained from the kitchen, “What kind of school is this, getting stricter by the day?”
“…”
Qin Qing, busy with her morning routine, didn’t respond.
She couldn’t possibly explain that she wanted to leave early to avoid running into someone…
After finishing breakfast early, Qin Qing began to pack her things.
Grandma Qin was still sitting at the dining table, and the house was quiet.
Qin Qing paused as she was gathering her belongings. After a few seconds, she couldn’t help but ask,”Grandma, do you think… there are people who know they’re wrong but refuse to admit it?”
Grandma Qin, who had been reading the newspaper with her reading glasses on, paused and turned with a smile.
“Of course, there are.”
“…”
Qin Qing turned around, puzzled, and looked at her grandmother.
Grandma Qin shook her head with a smile.
“Your grandfather passed away before he could even meet you. So you never got to know his personality.”
Lost in memory, Grandma Qin remained silent for a moment, the light reflecting softly off the edges of her reading glasses.
She smiled and spoke softly.
“Some people, asking them to admit they’re wrong is like asking them to roll in hot oil. Not everyone can learn to lower their head.”
She thought for a moment and then shook her head, contradicting herself.
“It’s not that they can’t learn; it’s just that for them, it’s too difficult.”
Qin Qing only partially understood. Afraid of bringing up sad memories for her grandmother, she didn’t press the matter further.
After a while, she finished packing, said goodbye to her grandmother, and left.
In the now quiet house, it was a long time before Grandma Qin let out a sigh.
After sighing, she slowly came back to herself and casually glanced at the sofa, exclaiming,”Oh no!”
—
“I told her last night it would get colder, and it’s so chilly this morning—
how could she forget her coat?”
…
As Grandma Qin had feared, as soon as Qin Qing reached the classroom, she suspected she was coming down with a cold.
—At the end of September in Qingcheng, the temperature difference between morning and noon could be like two different seasons.
With today’s temperature drop and leaving nearly half an hour earlier than usual, by the time Qin Qing arrived at the classroom, shivering in the chilly wind, she already felt a bit lightheaded.
After setting down her backpack, Qin Qing got a cup of hot water and returned to her seat, immediately laying her head down.
Throughout the morning reading session and most of the morning classes, Qin Qing was in a daze, unaware of when he arrived in the classroom.
As the morning classes neared their end, the last period arrived.
By now, it was almost noon, and the last of the summer heat lingered in the classroom, unrelieved by the lack of air conditioning. The fan above Qin Qing’s head had already been turned on by Fang Xiaojing.
The cold from her developing cold, combined with the breeze from the fan above, repeatedly eroded Qin Qing’s awareness from inside out and vice versa.
Finally, after enduring the third period, Qin Qing saw Fang Xiaojing and the other students leave the classroom and forced herself to get up to turn off the fan.
On the way, she nearly bumped into someone, mumbled an apology in her dazed state without even seeing who it was, and then returned to her seat.
As soon as she got back, she laid down again, futilely pulling her school jacket closer around her.
Wen Yufeng, who was the one she had nearly bumped into, stood expressionless for a moment. Seeing that the girl who had been lying there didn’t even acknowledge him, he glanced away coldly and walked back to his seat.
Before he reached his seat, his expression darkened even more.
—
He raised his eyes slightly, his gaze falling on a tall girl standing beside Li Xiang and Zhao Zirui’s desks.
Qi Lulu.
Wen Yufeng was in an extremely bad mood and didn’t even want to speak.
He glanced coldly at Li Xiang and Zhao Zirui.
Li Xiang, who was having an animated conversation with Qi Lulu, perked up when he finally saw Wen Yufeng appear. He even gave Wen Yufeng several exaggerated winks and gestures toward Qin Qing.
—
Yesterday, when he saw Yu-ge return to the classroom with a cold expression, he had already guessed that the two of them had reached an “unrelated” conclusion.
Bringing Qi Lulu into the classroom now was clearly up to no good.
However, Wen Yufeng was in no mood to argue. After a brief pause, he walked back to his seat without even lifting his eyes.
Seeing that Wen Yufeng wasn’t cooperating, Li Xiang didn’t get discouraged. He raised his voice even higher, as if he wished he had a megaphone to shout into.
—
“Haha, of course, our Yu-ge is single now… What? Pushing a girl against the wall? That’s just a rumor, come on… Is there a chance? Of course there is, who doesn’t… Haha, don’t worry, it’s all fair competition…”
“…”
Seeing Li Xiang’s voice growing louder and the topic getting closer to his limit, Wen Yufeng finally lifted his eyes impatiently.
But before he could say anything, a female voice complained from the front of the classroom—
“Who turned off the fan again!?”
Fang Xiaojing, who had just returned to the classroom, walked over to the fan switch with an unpleasant expression and turned the fan above their heads to the maximum setting.
Papers on the desk flew everywhere.
Qin Qing, half-asleep, let out a low groan and slowly lifted her head, her eyes dim.
“Sorry… I think I’m coming down with a cold. Could you…”
“If you have a cold, why didn’t you wear more?”
Fang Xiaojing snapped.
“If you’re cold, wear more. I’m hot; what am I supposed to do? Should I strip down to my shirt?”
“…”
Although her tone was harsh, what she said made sense. Qin Qing sighed inwardly, regretting not bringing an extra coat, and managed a small, apologetic smile before laying back down.
Her slender figure looked pitiful.
Li Xiang hesitated, glancing to the side—
The boy was leaning back on his light gray cushion, seemingly indifferent to everything happening in front of him.
…It really seems like they’re not involved anymore.
Thinking this, Li Xiang felt a strange sense of relief, as if a weight had been lifted from his chest.
Unfortunately, that sense of relief didn’t last long before Wen Yufeng, whose back had been tense, finally couldn’t hold it in anymore.
He suddenly stood up, startling Qi Lulu beside him.
When she recovered, Qi Lulu smiled and stepped forward, “Yu-ge, you—”
“…Don’t bother me.”
His voice carried a deep, cold pressure.
It was as if some beast, poised to devour, lurked behind those pitch-black eyes. A single glance from him was enough to freeze the expression on her face.
Fortunately, that gaze didn’t linger long. After a moment, Wen Yufeng grabbed his school jacket from the side and strode toward the front of the classroom.
When he reached the first desk, Wen Yufeng abruptly stopped.
He had walked to Qin Qing’s side but first directed a cold glare at Fang Xiaojing, who had just lifted her head—
“Hot?—Do you want me to help you take it off?”
The words he used were ambiguous, but his tone and expression only made Fang Xiaojing feel a chill in her bones, as if she wanted to shrink into a corner and disappear.
After a few seconds of stunned silence, she quickly got up and rushed to the wall where the fan switch was located.
Meanwhile, Qin Qing, who had been lying on her desk, vaguely recognized the familiar voice.
That cold tone seemed to mix with the words he had said yesterday, words that had been circling in her mind.
The bitterness she had pushed down yesterday rose again, and Qin Qing slowly lifted her small face, her almond-shaped eyes dimly red.
“…”
As Wen Yufeng met those eyes, filled with unspoken grievance, he felt all his resolve crumble, even forgetting the words he had prepared as an exit.
After a brief pause, he lowered his gaze and held out his school jacket in front of the girl.
“Put it on.”
His voice was low and hoarse.
“…”
So fierce.
A dazed Qin Qing frowned, feeling wronged.
…She was already sick, and he was still so fierce.
Just as fierce as he was yesterday.
Thinking this, Qin Qing’s natural vulnerability in her illness surfaced, amplifying her emotions.
She shook her head, her voice soft and slightly hoarse, with a hint of a sob.
“You said yesterday… that I don’t know you.”
She shrank into her cold clothes, biting her lip. “I don’t know you, so I won’t wear a stranger’s clothes.”
“…”
Wen Yufeng looked at the girl, who appeared so fragile and ill, and his heart clenched in a painful knot.
He couldn’t hold back any longer.
Finally, disregarding everything else, he bent down and scooped the small girl from her seat, lifting her up.
In one smooth motion, he placed her gently on the desk.
His actions and demeanor were so careful that it felt strange to everyone watching.
Then, with a swift flick, he spread out his jacket and was about to put it on her.
The girl, now somewhat alert, weakly pushed back, but he quickly pinned down her slender arms—
“…I was wrong.”
His voice was deep, with a hint of helplessness, but mostly it was filled with tenderness.
He lowered his eyes as he carefully draped his school jacket over the girl, who was several sizes smaller than him, then guided her delicate arms into the sleeves, one at a time. Finally, he fastened the jacket from top to bottom, button by button.
From start to finish, his movements were as delicate as if he were handling a precious, fragile treasure.
“I was wrong.”
After adjusting her clothes, he looked up at her, his voice hoarse as he repeated himself.
The girl, startled, looked up and saw his dark eyes, shimmering faintly as if holding the vastness of the stars.