novelraw Chapter 36
Chapter 36
Chapter 36 Do You Hate MeUpon hearing the door, Grandma Qin glanced toward the entrance and saw her little granddaughter standing there, her face as red as a small tomato.
Startled by the sight, Grandma Qin quickly set down what she was holding and hurried over.
“Sweetie, what’s wrong with you?”
“…”
Qin Qing snapped out of her daze at her grandmother’s call, finally managing to recover from the embarrassment she had just experienced.
“I’m fine,” she said slowly, shaking her head.
Though she said that, the blush on her face hadn’t faded in the slightest.
When they sat down at the dining table, and Grandma Qin kept pressing her about it, Qin Qing had no choice but to explain.
“Grandma, I just got scared, that’s all.”
Grandma Qin’s expression turned to surprise. “What scared you?”
Qin Qing stirred her congee with a spoon and hesitated for a couple of seconds before looking up.
“Do you think it’s really possible for someone to climb up a 12-story building with their bare hands? That’s terrifying, isn’t it?”
“…”
Grandma Qin paused for a moment, but then she laughed.
“Of course, there is!” she said, smiling as she pointed to the home theater system in the living room. “I’ve been watching a lot of TV and movies these past couple of years, and those specially trained elite soldiers in them—they could probably climb even double that height with no problem!”
“Oh…” Qin Qing’s almond-shaped eyes widened slightly, and she nodded. “So, his uncle is a special forces soldier, huh.”
“His uncle?” Grandma Qin picked up on the term immediately from her granddaughter’s quiet voice.
Curious, she asked, “Whose uncle?”
Qin Qing pointed toward the door across the hall. “His uncle. I saw him when I took over the congee. He said he had something to do and went into the kitchen… but then I didn’t see him again, just the wide-open window.”
This time, Grandma Qin was genuinely taken aback.
“…Well, I’ve never seen anything like that in real life.”
Qin Qing nodded vigorously.
“Now that I think about it, the fact that he made no sound while walking must also be related to his profession… I thought I had encountered a ghost.”
At first, Grandma Qin didn’t react much, but when she heard Qin Qing mumble the last sentence, she couldn’t help but laugh.
“With that little bit of courage you have, no wonder your face was so red from fright.”
“I… I’m not that scared,” Qin Qing said, defensively, though it was clear she was trying to convince herself.
“Not scared? Remember when we were watching Young Justice Bao? There was that old monk whose head was cut off by a giant pair of scissors from the skylight, and someone—I’m not saying who—was so scared that they didn’t dare go to the bathroom alone. They even cried and begged me to cover the bathroom window!”
“…”
Hearing Grandma Qin bring up this old story, Qin Qing shrank back in embarrassment.
Honestly, even now, just thinking about that TV show made her a bit scared… it was definitely a childhood trauma.
After Qin Qing finished her congee, Grandma Qin cleaned up the dishes.
“It’s getting late. You should wash up and get some rest,” Grandma Qin advised.
Qin Qing froze in mid-movement at the mention of “wash up,” but after a couple of seconds, seeing that her grandmother hadn’t noticed anything unusual, she bowed her head and headed to her bedroom.
The more she tried not to think about that moment, the more that scene replayed in her mind.
Again and again, she recalled the image of him turning away after explaining: his sword-like eyebrows, starry eyes, high nose, thin lips, wet black hair, and the smooth, beautifully defined lines of his muscles… it was as if it was etched into her memory.
…But tonight, it seemed she had really made Wen Yufeng angry.
She clearly saw that when he left, his left hand was clenched tightly at his side, veins bulging on the back of his hand, and his posture was stiff…
But Qin Qing couldn’t figure out what she had done to make Wen Yufeng so upset.
…………
The next day, when Qin Qing went to school, she noticed that Wen Yufeng still hadn’t shown up. By noon, their homeroom teacher, Shen Liang, announced that he had taken a two-week leave.
Qin Qing, who had received no prior notice from him, felt a rare flicker of irritation.
——
Yesterday, she had taken the risk of getting scolded by her brother, maybe even having him tell their parents. She had even defended Wen Yufeng, adding fuel to the fire. No matter what she had done to upset him, couldn’t he at least explain it to her clearly?
As she thought about the scolding she was likely to face from her brother later, Qin Qing’s already poor mood worsened.
Meanwhile, after giving the notice, Shen Liang walked out of the classroom, feeling a bit helpless.
——It turns out that Wen Yufeng knows how to take a leave of absence.
He was beginning to wonder if pairing these two kids at the same desk had been a good idea or a mistake.
When lunchtime arrived, Qin Qing sluggishly walked out of the classroom, mentally preparing herself for the storm she expected to face.
But to her surprise, something unpleasant happened before she even reached the school gate.
——
“Are you Qin Qing?”
As Qin Qing stepped out of the classroom, an unfriendly voice came from her left.
“…”
Qin Qing was startled and looked up.
Three girls, dressed in modified school uniforms, were gathered in the corner of the hallway, walking toward her.
Sensing the hostility in their eyes, Qin Qing instinctively became wary.
She took a step back. “Do you need something from me?”
“Oh, nothing much. Just delivering a message for someone,” the leading girl sneered, looking her up and down with disdain.
After sizing her up, the girl exchanged a mocking glance with one of the others. “I don’t see what Yufeng sees in her. Other than having a somewhat pretty face, she’s as thin as a bean sprout. Could it be that he likes her because she’s good at studying?”
The other two girls chuckled along, their eyes filled with mockery as they looked at Qin Qing.
Despite the scrutiny and ridicule, Qin Qing’s face remained calm, showing no signs of anger, as if she was unaffected.
After a while, the girls found it boring and stopped laughing.
The leader stepped closer again.
“I’m here to deliver a message: you’d better stay away from Wen Yufeng.”
“…”
Qin Qing’s almond-shaped eyes narrowed slightly. “Was it you who left that note on my desk telling me to ‘stay away from him’?”
“You’re not as dumb as you look,” another girl chimed in.
Qin Qing’s gaze lowered slightly.
“Whether I’m smart or not, I don’t think you’re qualified to judge.”
The three girls were taken aback.
If it weren’t for the fact that the soft voice unmistakably belonged to the girl in front of them, they would have doubted their ears.
How could this delicate, obedient-looking girl, who seemed like a little white rabbit, dare to talk to them like that?
The leader of the group recovered quickly, ready to lash out as she stepped forward with a fierce glare.
But before she could act, Qin Qing raised her hand, revealing the phone she had been holding.
“If you did your research on me, you should know that my brother comes to pick me up from school every day. I already told him to meet me outside the classroom.”
With a face as emotionless as a doll’s, but with an exquisite beauty, Qin Qing raised her chin slightly and looked at the three girls with a cool gaze. “I definitely can’t fight you. But my brother has a bad temper. When he gets here, I guarantee you’ll regret coming here today.”
The leader’s expression changed, and the hand she had raised fell back to her side.
She hesitated, asking the girl next to her, “…Is it true that someone comes to pick her up?”
The other girl’s face was also dark as she replied in a low voice, “He’s there every evening, for sure. I’m not sure about lunchtime… Otherwise, I wouldn’t have told you not to deal with this outside of school.”
“…”
The leader’s face shifted through several emotions before she finally gritted her teeth and sneered.
“Fine. It looks like Yufeng hasn’t shown up since yesterday, anyway. Maybe sitting next to you was just a passing whim… If nothing’s going on, I can’t be bothered to waste my energy on you!”
With that, the three of them hurriedly walked away.
As their footsteps faded down the hallway, Qin Qing stared after them, keeping her eyes on their retreating figures.
Only when they had completely disappeared from view did she finally exhale deeply, her legs giving out as she leaned against the wall for support.
She repeatedly patted her chest with her small hand as if trying to keep her frightened heart from leaping out.
“So… it was just a bluff.”
Just as Qin Qing’s breathing began to calm down, a voice with a hint of laughter suddenly echoed in the quiet corridor.
“…”
Qin Qing was so startled that she barely managed to suppress the scream rising in her throat.
She looked cautiously in the direction of the voice.
——
The sound came from the back door of the classroom next to theirs, Class Five.
After a moment, a tall boy emerged, dragging a broom. He was wearing the standard uniform of Yishi High School, his face clean and fair, with short cropped hair.
He had a smile on his face from the moment he came out, his eyes slightly curved in a way that made it impossible for anyone to dislike him.
Qin Qing’s guard relaxed a little, and her tense expression softened.
“…Do you know me?” she asked cautiously.
“Is there anyone at Yishi High School who doesn’t know you?”
The boy’s smile was warm, but there was something ambiguous in his words. “But today is the first time I’ve really gotten to know you, Qin Qing.”
“…”
Remembering her earlier bluff, Qin Qing couldn’t help but blush.
After a moment, she cleared her throat. “Well… you should continue cleaning. I’ll be going now.”
With that, Qin Qing turned to leave, but just as she reached the staircase, the boy called out to her.
“I’m about to leave too. Do you mind if we go together?”
“…Huh?”
Qin Qing was taken aback and turned around. Seeing that the boy was serious and not joking, she felt a bit awkward. “I have something urgent to attend to, so I…”
The boy didn’t seem surprised by her answer. Instead, he leaned on the broom with a smile.
“They might be waiting for you downstairs or somewhere else.”
Qin Qing: “…”
Seeing the girl freeze up slightly in fear at his words, the boy’s smile grew wider.
He turned back to the back door of Class Seven, put the broom back in its place, and then walked out.
“I’m ready,” he said, walking up to the still-stunned Qin Qing. “Shall we go?”
“…Thank you.”
After hesitating for a couple of seconds, Qin Qing decided to follow the boy’s suggestion, at least until they reached the main road outside the school.
If they did run into any trouble, at least she might have a better chance to escape.
With this in mind, she started down the stairs.
The boy from the neighboring class followed immediately.
Though they were “walking together,” Qin Qing instinctively kept at least a meter’s distance between them.
The boy seemed to notice her discomfort and didn’t try to close the distance. He simply walked beside her, neither too close nor too far.
The two of them walked quietly to the school gate, with Qin Qing feeling awkward the whole way.
Finally, when she saw the school gate ahead, Qin Qing let out a sigh of relief. She managed a slight smile and was about to say goodbye to the boy.
But before she could speak, the boy spoke first.
“My name is Lin Wentao.”
As he spoke, his eyes quickly scanned her face. Seeing no recognition in her expression, he smiled with a hint of regret.
“When the classes are divided into arts and sciences, I believe we’ll be in the same class. See you then.”
“…”
Qin Qing’s eyes widened in surprise.
Before she could say anything, Lin Wentao waved casually at her and walked away.
Arts and sciences division…
Qin Qing lowered her gaze.
Like many other schools in the province, Yishi High School has a tendency to prioritize science over the arts. The school even has a special preparatory class for the top science students. Every year, most of the students in the preparatory class are guaranteed admission to top universities. Even those who aren’t guaranteed often choose not to use their guaranteed spots, opting instead to apply to even better schools.
With Qin Qing’s grades, choosing science would undoubtedly place her in the preparatory class.
Some students around her had already started debating whether to choose arts or sciences, but no one had ever asked her that question.
It made sense—she had perfect scores in math, physics, and chemistry, so it was only natural for her to choose science.
But why should it be so “natural”?
Qin Qing unconsciously clenched her fists, until she was suddenly snapped out of her thoughts by a voice in her ear.
“Xiao Qing, what are you doing standing here?”
Qin Qing was startled back to reality. Recognizing her brother Qin Hao, she sighed in relief.
“Big brother.”
Qin Hao nodded.
“Come on, get in the car. I’ll take you home.”
Remembering what had happened the previous night, Qin Qing could only wrinkle her nose and nod as she prepared herself for the “storm” to come.
As the car pulled away, the interior remained silent for a long time.
Qin Qing sat in suspense until finally, Qin Hao broke the silence.
“I thought about it for a long time last night.”
“…”
Qin Qing was confused and turned to look at him.
“There are some things I really can’t control, and it’s not my place to try.”
Qin Hao sighed.
“But Xiao Qing, I just hope you’ll remember—no matter what the situation is, no matter how much you care about someone, you need to remember to protect yourself first. Don’t do anything foolish, especially if you know it’s dangerous.”
The car fell silent again for a long time.
After a while, Qin Qing slowly nodded.
“Okay, I understand.”
…………
As it happened, Wen Yufeng’s leave of absence perfectly coincided with the first monthly exam for the second-year students.
The exam was scheduled for Wednesday, and the entire second year took a whole day off from classes to take the test.
By the end of the day, the students felt like they’d been through the wringer, and the entire second-year building was filled with groans of exhaustion.
In Class Six, many students who admired the “little prodigy” swarmed around Qin Qing before and after evening study sessions, bringing their test papers to her to compare answers.
Since Qin Qing wasn’t good at refusing requests and always helped those who asked, she quickly became everyone’s go-to reference for answers.
By the next day, some students from Class Six had even compiled a “Little Prodigy Edition” of the math, English, science, chemistry, and biology answers, which spread quickly through all the classes.
The detailed reference answers brought joy to some and despair to many more.
Quite a few students found themselves hoping the grading of the monthly exam would be delayed until after Friday, so at least they could have a peaceful weekend at home.
But the diligent teachers were not about to let that happen.
By Friday morning, the ranking list for the entire second year had already been posted.
Qin Qing ranked first in the entire grade, with top scores in math, English, physics, and chemistry.
As soon as the results were out, the second-year teaching building was abuzz with excitement.
Naturally, Class Six was the most lively.
“Qin Qing, you’re amazing!”
“Yeah, first place in four subjects. I can’t even imagine having such grades…”
“How do you study? Do you have two extra brains or something?”
Surrounded by a crowd of classmates, everyone was busy showering her with praise. But the girl in the center of the attention looked down, feeling a bit overwhelmed.
In fact, she had never been good at handling situations like this and had no idea how to respond.
“Didn’t someone say before that Qin Qing was neck-and-neck with Lin Wentao from Class Seven? But except for a three-point difference in math, Lin Wentao couldn’t match Qin Qing in any of the other subjects.”
“But Lin Wentao is really impressive too. Since the first year, no one has been able to take the top spot from him, except for Qin Qing.”
Hearing the familiar name, Qin Qing paused and looked up.
“…Lin Wentao?”
The girl who first mentioned Lin Wentao quickly replied, eager to keep the conversation going.
“Yeah, Lin Wentao from Class Seven. He’s really smart. Before you came, he was the shadow looming over our entire grade. But now, haha, you’ve taken his place!”
Qin Qing nodded slightly.
So, he was the original top student in the grade?
No wonder that boy had mentioned meeting again after the arts and sciences division.
…………
The first weekend after the monthly exam, right after lunch, Lin Manxue dragged Qin Qing out of the house.
Fortunately, since there wasn’t much homework over the weekend, Lin Manxue took Qin Qing to an amusement park, where they had a blast. It wasn’t until nightfall that she brought her back home.
“Let’s do this again tomorrow!”
As she closed the taxi door, Lin Manxue lowered the window and waved enthusiastically at Qin Qing.
Qin Qing rolled her eyes helplessly. “Manxue, you’re like a little ball of endless energy!”
“Is this your first time meeting me?” Lin Manxue was not the least bit ashamed, but rather proud. “And since we only get to see each other every so often, what’s wrong with going a little crazy for two days? Or… be honest, do you have someone else to hang out with?”
“…”
Unable to keep up with Lin Manxue’s wild antics, Qin Qing could only smile and repeatedly concede, “Okay, okay, you win. We’ll hang out again tomorrow, okay?”
“Now, that’s more like it.”
Satisfied with the promise, Lin Manxue instructed the taxi driver to drive off.
Watching the taxi disappear from view, Qin Qing let out a sigh of relief, smiling as she headed back inside.
Qin Qing took the elevator straight to the 12th floor.
When the elevator doors opened, she stepped out, but as soon as she rounded the corner, she stopped in her tracks.
In the center of the T-shaped corridor, a tall boy was leaning against the wall, eyes downcast. It was unclear how long he had been waiting there.
Given that there were only three residents on this floor, it was obvious that this person was either waiting for her grandmother or for her. Although Qin Qing hesitated due to the irritation she had felt earlier, she eventually walked over.
Then she stopped and looked up to ask.
“Wen Yufeng, were you waiting for me?”
“…”
Having been standing outside for nearly four hours since the girl had left home, Wen Yufeng lifted his eyes, his dark gaze cool and icy.
He stared at the girl’s innocent expression for a couple of seconds before averting his gaze and giving the object in his left hand a little shake.
“I came to return the thermos.”
Which, roughly translated, meant, “I wasn’t waiting for you; it just happened by chance.”
Qin Qing: “…”
She had been planning to ask what she had done that night to upset him, why he had been sulking afterward, and why he had taken a leave of absence without telling her.
But seeing his attitude now, Qin Qing couldn’t bring herself to ask. She swallowed her words.
Thinking back to how she had been inexplicably threatened by three girls because of him, Qin Qing felt a wave of frustration.
After a couple of seconds, seeing that he still had no intention of speaking, Qin Qing lowered her eyes, mumbled an “oh,” and turned to walk toward her door.
She had only taken two steps when his voice stopped her.
“Where did you go this afternoon?”
Qin Qing paused.
She stood still, not turning around. “To the amusement park.”
Wen Yufeng raised an eyebrow, frowning slightly.
“Who did you go with?”
“…None of your business.”
Qin Qing mumbled.
As soon as the words slipped out, Qin Qing herself was taken aback. Her pretty almond-shaped eyes widened slightly.
——
As far back as she could remember, she had never spoken to anyone like that.
Embarrassed, Qin Qing turned around, wanting to explain but unsure of what to say.
But when she looked up, she saw that the boy, though his eyes were downcast, had a faint smile on his lips, looking rather pleased.
“…”
Qin Qing scrunched up her face.
——This person is just too unpredictable.
As she thought this, she lowered her eyes and noticed the thermos in his hand.
So she took a couple of steps closer and reached out her hand.
“Just give me the thermos and—”
Before she could finish, the boy, who had been standing still, suddenly stepped back as if avoiding the plague.
——
Not long ago, that same night, it had been this close…
As if something had just occurred to him, Wen Yufeng’s eyes darkened, almost turning black as ink.
Qin Qing, meanwhile, blinked in confusion.
After a couple of seconds, she looked up, as if realizing something.
Her hand, which had been hanging in mid-air, dropped to her side.
Frustration, anger, sadness… a mix of emotions flashed through her eyes.
She bit her lower lip and, after a long while, clenched her small fist and looked up at him with teary eyes.
Her eyes were like two pieces of the purest black amber.
“Do you… hate me?”
Wen Yufeng: “…”