novelraw Chapter 54
Chapter 54
Chapter 54 When suddenly enveloped by a warm and familiar presence, Qin Qing was momentarily stunned before looking up with tear-streaked cheeks.
Through her blurry vision, she could still see the familiar, sharp features of the person in front of her.
Only his star-like eyes held a depth of emotion that could make someone feel deeply immersed.
Seeing who it was, Qin Qing felt the tears, which had just begun to dry, threatening to flow again. The grievance buried deep in her heart surged to the surface as she looked at him, bubbling up like soda in her aching chest.
“Wen Yufeng…”
The girl lowered her head, shrinking her body in distress, snuggling closer to the boy’s chest without leaving any gap.
Hearing the sobbing tone in her voice, Wen Yufeng felt as if something hard had viciously twisted in his chest, the pain causing him to furrow his brows tightly.
If someone else had made his little girl this upset, he would make them pay the price.
But the ones who had hurt his little girl weren’t strangers—it was her own family.
“…”
Wen Yufeng let out a long breath, releasing the frustration in his chest.
He bent down, holding her tighter, and with a bit of force, began to lift her off the cold floor.
But Qin Qing suddenly reached out and pressed down on his arm.
Wen Yufeng stopped immediately, his brows furrowing as he hurriedly lowered his gaze—
“Where do you feel uncomfortable? Is it your ankle?”
“…No.”
Qin Qing shook her head. “I just want to stay here for a while… I don’t want to go back.”
Wen Yufeng hesitated, looking at her thin body wrapped only in a cardigan and her exposed hands and feet that had turned red from the cold.
He frowned, released her, and stood up.
“Wait here for me.”
Qin Qing nodded slightly.
When Wen Yufeng quickly returned a minute later, he was holding a light gray down coat and a thick square sofa cushion.
Pushing open the door and seeing Qin Qing still sitting on the cold tiles, Wen Yufeng frowned, placed the sofa cushion to the side, and then bent down to pick her up in his arms.
He took a couple of steps toward the stairs and stopped at the bottom step.
Then he lifted his leg, placing his foot on the third step from the bottom, and set her down on his outstretched leg.
Qin Qing was still in a daze when she suddenly found herself at eye level with him.
“Hold on tight.”
Wen Yufeng spoke, his voice low and hoarse, carrying a hint of darkness.
As he made a move to release her, Qin Qing was startled and instinctively wrapped her arms around his neck.
A faint smile of helplessness flashed in Wen Yufeng’s eyes.
He flicked the light down coat around, wrapping her up entirely.
Then he lowered his gaze, carefully buttoning up the coat for her, one button at a time.
After completing everything meticulously, Wen Yufeng raised his eyes again.
His dark eyes stared at her unblinkingly. “Didn’t I tell you not to put weight on your foot until it’s fully healed?”
“…”
Feeling guilty, Qin Qing pursed her lips but said nothing.
Her tear-stained face looked even more pitiful, crumpled up like a little rabbit that had just been toyed with by a tiger.
Seeing her expression, Wen Yufeng couldn’t bring himself to utter another word of reproach.
He could only sigh inwardly, reaching out to lift her chin, forcing her to meet his gaze.
“Do you still want to stay outside to calm down?”
Qin Qing hesitated for a moment, then slowly nodded.
Wen Yufeng lowered his eyes and looked at her feet dangling in the air.
Her fair, jade-like skin had turned red from the cold.
He sighed, then gently set her down, placing the cushion on the third step of the stairs before sitting her on it.
“Put your hands in your pockets.”
He said as he crouched down, lifting her small legs, and then opened the down coat, cradling her bare feet in his arms.
He then closed the coat over her feet.
When he looked up again, Wen Yufeng met her slightly dazed eyes.
“Does your foot still hurt?” he asked, frowning.
“…”
Qin Qing opened her mouth but quickly closed it again.
She was afraid that if she spoke, she’d start crying again.
…That would be too embarrassing.
So, she only shook her head, her eyes reddened.
Wen Yufeng finally sighed in relief and said, “What happened today, don’t let it happen again.”
Qin Qing looked at him, confused.
“Using your body to express resistance—I can tolerate it this once, but don’t let it happen again.”
Qin Qing remained silent for a moment but eventually nodded.
“The next time you don’t want to go home, come to me,” Wen Yufeng said. “Got it?”
“Mm,” Qin Qing nodded firmly. “Got it.”
Seeing the girl being so obedient and compliant, Wen Yufeng’s lips curled slightly.
He reached out and ruffled her hair. “Now that you’re calm, will you come home with me?”
“…”
Qin Qing felt her cheeks warm for some reason and responded with a quiet “Mm.”
Then she was picked up by the boy and taken back to his home.
As the door closed, Wen Yufeng placed Qin Qing on the sofa and then turned to go into the other room, seemingly to fetch something.
A small white cat, hearing the noise, poked its head out from its cat house and cautiously approached the sofa.
Recognizing Qin Qing, it ran over, and when Qin Qing picked it up, she widened her eyes in surprise.
At that moment, Wen Yufeng returned.
He heard the girl on the sofa ask, “How has it only been a little over a week, and it seems to have gotten rounder?”
“It’s growing,” Wen Yufeng glanced at the well-fed, shiny-coated little white cat and then at the girl holding it.
“If you grew as fast as it does, that would be great.”
Qin Qing: “…”
The little white cat, as if sensing it was being praised, meowed twice.
Qin Qing was amused by the kitten’s cute behavior, her eyes curving into crescents as she smiled. “Wen Yufeng, have you given it a name?”
Upon hearing this, Wen Yufeng’s expression shifted, and a trace of unease seemed to flicker in his deep, dark eyes.
Qin Qing, focused on petting the cat, didn’t notice and asked again. Only then did the boy, standing there, bend one knee and squat down.
“Tiantian.”
Qin Qing was startled and instinctively wanted to look up, but before she could say anything, the little white cat in her arms suddenly leaped to the floor and dashed toward Wen Yufeng.
Qin Qing: “…”
As Qin Qing blushed, unsure of where to direct her gaze, Wen Yufeng sidestepped the kitten and walked toward her.
When he stopped in front of her, Wen Yufeng reached out, a keychain dangling from his long index finger.
Qin Qing blinked, looking up at Wen Yufeng in confusion.
“This is the key to my house.” The boy placed the key firmly in her hand, leaving no room for refusal.
He crouched down, bringing himself to eye level with her.
“No matter when, you can always come. Just like today, don’t let me see you looking like a stray kitten abandoned by the roadside again…”
His dark eyes flickered, and his voice turned low and hoarse.
“Otherwise, I can’t guarantee what I might do next time.”
…
As November quickly approached mid-month, the division between humanities and sciences for the second year of high school finally concluded.
There were two incidents regarding this division that spread throughout the entire school.
The first involved Wen Yufeng.
After the class placement exams, when the results came out, Wen Yufeng’s ranking shocked many teachers.
From previously being at the bottom or even turning in blank papers, to now scoring in the top 40% of the entire grade, it was enough to make Director Sun Xing personally go to the monitoring room to check the surveillance footage of Wen Yufeng’s exam room.
Once the results were confirmed to be legitimate, the teachers of the second-year cohort started celebrating the “prodigal son returning to the right path.”
However, only Shen Liang, whom Director Sun Xing deemed the “greatest contributor,” knew the real reason.
In the humanities, unlike in the sciences where there are preparatory classes, students were divided into first-class and second-class classes. The top 50% of students entered first-class, while the remaining 50% went to second-class. The specific class assignments within these groups were based on order of priority.
This meant that as long as a student worked hard enough to place in the top 50% of humanities students, they would inevitably be in the same class as the other students from Class 6 who entered the first-class humanities.
The motivation was clear and undeniable.
The second incident, which also caught Director Sun Xing’s attention, occurred a few days after the submission of the division preferences.
Starting with Director Sun Xing storming into Shen Liang’s office, a well-informed student spread the news throughout the school—
The top student in math, English, physics, and chemistry in the second year had astonishingly chosen the humanities over the sciences on her division preference form.
This news shocked everyone, especially the students from Class 6, who were all eager to verify it with Qin Qing.
Unfortunately, their attempts were thwarted before they even began—none of them could withstand the death stare from the person sitting next to Qin Qing, and they retreated in defeat before even approaching her.
When Director Sun Xing, having just been rebuffed by Shen Liang, arrived at Class 6, he was similarly blocked by Wen Yufeng, who had already been waiting by the back door.
“Director Sun, I heard you used to be a Chinese teacher—I’d like to ask you something.”
Director Sun Xing, feeling an ominous premonition, couldn’t refuse and nodded, “Go ahead.”
Wen Yufeng chuckled lightly.
“Regarding the word ‘preference’ on the preference form, how is it usually interpreted?”
“…”
Director Sun Xing was at a loss for words.
Leaning against the door frame, Wen Yufeng continued in a lazy tone, “And, whose preference does it refer to—the student’s, or the teacher’s and parents’?”
Director Sun Xing opened his mouth to respond, but Wen Yufeng cut him off.
“If it’s the teacher’s and parents’ preference, why doesn’t the school just fill it out for us? You could assign us to whichever class you think we belong in. Wouldn’t that save everyone time and effort? Don’t you think so, Director Sun?”
“…”
Each of his polite “you”s and the underlying meaning behind his words made Director Sun Xing break out in a cold sweat. Standing in front of this student, who was several years his junior, he inexplicably felt a sense of guilt and trepidation.
Realizing that both Wen Yufeng and Shen Liang were determined to protect Qin Qing, Director Sun Xing could only sigh and walk away, even though he was reluctant.
—After all, the top student in humanities or sciences would contribute equally to the school’s reputation… right?
Meanwhile, as soon as Wen Yufeng walked into the classroom, the low murmurs immediately quieted down.
He ignored this and headed straight back to his seat.
However, before he could sit down, Li Xiang appeared out of nowhere, rushing into the classroom.
“Yu-ge, I heard the new student chose humanities? You didn’t choose humanities too, did you?”
Li Xiang, known for his loud voice, caused the entire classroom to fall into an even deeper silence as everyone perked up to listen.
Wen Yufeng, however, remained indifferent, his tone calm as he responded without even looking up.
“What do you think?”