Translator: Atlas Studios  Editor: Atlas Studios

While Ye Chen had his imagination running wild, the room door was pushed open and Chuzheng brought two pieces of clothes in. “Change into the new clothes.”

Ye Chen looked at the clothes.

“Whose clothes are these?” She was a girl so how would she have a boy’s clothes?

“I bought it.”

“…” When had she bought it? Had she gone out just now?

Ye Chen glanced at the price tag on the clothes which were not ripped off.

No one wore these clothes before.

Ye Chen looked at his clothes which were stained with bubble tea and blood. It was quite dirty and uncomfortable when worn.

He hesitated before accepting it and dryly squeezed out two words. “…Thank you.”

Ye Chen proceeded to the bathroom to bathe and changed his clothes before walking out. When he passed by the bedroom, he saw Chuzheng sitting by the window.

He hesitated for a moment before knocking on the door and entering the room.

The city outside the window was sparkling with lights and it was Ye Chen’s first time standing on such a tall place admiring the city’s nightscape.

The darkness did not seem that scary anymore.

His hands slightly clenched into a fist and he said, “I can give you tuition for your poor results.”

Tuition?

For her?

Were her results poor?

She was just too lazy to do her homework…

Before Chuzheng rejected him, King whose heart had broken stopped her.

[Little miss, agree to it! Let him see your change and understand that you are a positive thinking and studious friend!]

Chuzheng was stunned. “…”

Chuzheng’s fingers pinched her wrists several times before she coldly replied. “Okay.”

Ye Chen unknowingly heaved a sigh of relief and clasped his hands before realizing his hand was sweaty.

–

With tuition, Chuzheng and Ye Chen naturally got closer.

They entered and left the school together.

Ye Chen had not ridden on the bicycle Chuzheng gave him, otherwise, there would be rumors of him being a sugar baby.

The rumors between schoolmates spread as though it was true that both of them had something going on with each other.

“Tongtong, is Ji Chuzheng really dating Ye Chen?” Yang Qianqian’s tone was filled with curiosity as she pulled Ji Tongtong along. Didn’t she like Meng Ran?

“I don’t know.” Ji Tongtong smiled and shook her head. “Maybe big sister is just playing around.”

“Playing around?” Yang Qianqian could not understand.

“Big sister is a player.” Ji Tongtong spoke softly. “She’s always like that. She has a short attention span. Big sister should still like brother Meng Ran more.”

“…She is snatching senior Meng Ran with you yet you can still smile? Are you not concerned?”

Yang Qianqian expected better from her and jabbed at her two times.

“Who brother Meng Ran likes… It’s not in my control.” Ji Tongtong weakly defended. “My teacher just called me, I’ve got to go.”

As Ji Tongtong left, Yang Qianqian stared at her and her lips immediately curled as her eyes were filled with jealousy. Who did not know Meng Ran liked her?

Ji Tongtong purposely told Yang Qianqian those words as she knew Yang Qianqian would definitely tell others.

As expected, in just two lesson’s time.

The words reached Ye Chen’s ears.

“Ji Tongtong actually looks not bad when she doesn’t style herself weirdly.”

“Exactly! She’s even prettier than Ji Tongtong.”

“Ye Chen, that little brat, is so fortunate. I don’t even know how he hooked up with Ji Chuzheng? Could it be he’s eyeing Ji Chuzheng’s money?”

“Chey! Didn’t you hear? Ji Chuzheng likes Meng Ran, as for Ye Chen… she’s probably playing around with him.”

“No matter what, Ji Chuzheng is still from a rich family, how could she like Ye Chen who doesn’t have anything good other than his grades?”

Bang!

The cubicle door slammed open and the students who were discussing outside immediately became silent.

Ye Chen walked towards the sink with a dark expression and washed his hands. “Shoosh…” The sound of the water made those few students back down slightly.

Ye Chen glanced at them before he walked out of the washroom without a sound.

Those few students subconsciously rubbed their arms.

The originally gloomy and cold washroom became even colder in that instant.

In the afternoon lessons, Ye Chen felt unsettled and frustrated as the words those few people said earlier kept repeating in his ears.

Indeed, she treated him so well because he was her plaything.

He spent so much effort…

‘After experiencing so much, did anybody treat you with sincerity? They would only laugh at you! Ye Chen… Wake up!’

Ye Chen gripped his pen tightly as gloominess pooled under his eyes. He lowered his eyelashes and covered up the emotions in his eyes before he took out his exercise book and calmly solved two questions.

School ended.

Ye Chen packed up his things and left. When he walked out of the classroom, a person bumped into him before softly speaking after noticing it was him. “Ji Chuzheng is waiting for you at the rooftop of the science laboratory block.”

With that said, the person ran away.

Ye Chen looked towards the science laboratory block and furrowed his brows slightly before walking towards the school gate.

–

“Chuzheng, you came back?”

Once Chuzheng entered, she saw a beautiful woman who happily welcomed her.

She had been here for so many days, but this was the first time she saw her stepmother.

Her stepmother was slightly astonished at her changed look but she quickly reverted to normal and continued speaking. “Our Chuzheng looks great like this. Changing your image changes your mood too.”

“We can start dinner soon. Go and wash up.” Her stepmother had a tender smile as her eyes and brows brought about affection.

Chuzheng was stunned. “…”

Well, well, well. Would you look at that?

There was another drama queen in the family.

Could she get rid of her?

[…]’No! No! No!’

Ji Tongtong was sent home by Meng Ran. It was unknown how her knee got hurt, but with that small wound, Chuzheng felt that pasting the band-aid was redundant.

But the two people continued to conduct a performance of expressing affection to each other in front of Chuzheng.

Chuzheng expressionlessly went up the stairs and handed over the stage to them.

When Meng Ran left, Ji Tongtong immediately pulled her mother over for a chat.

“Mom, did you see that? It was as though she became a totally different person.” In the past, if she saw Meng Ran and her coming back together, she would have made a ruckus.

“Hmm.” The stepmother nodded her head. “If you hadn’t sent me pictures before, I wouldn’t have recognized her when she entered the house today.”

“I don’t even know why she changed so suddenly… In the past, she was so dumb and would take the bait the moment I agitated her… Mum, could it be she found out something?” Ji Tongtong had a worried tone.

Stepmother furrowed her brows. “Your dad is going on business trips and would only return after a while. Let’s just observe her for the time being.”

Ji Tongtong nodded her head in agreement.

The pair of mother and daughter talked in the room for a while and when Ji Tongtong was leaving, the stepmother held her back and asked, “How is it going for you and Meng Ran?”

Ji Tongtong had a smug look. “Relax, Meng Ran is now at my beck and call.”

“That’s good.”

Ji Tongtong talked on the phone while walking back to her room and bumped into Chuzheng on the way. Ji Tongtong was stunned for a moment before she quickly lowered her head and squeezed her phone as she ran back to her room.

The corridor was silent and when Ji Tongtong walked through it, Chuzheng heard Ye Chen’s name.

After school ended today afternoon, she waited at the school gate for close to half an hour yet Ye Chen never appeared.

He had no cell phone thus Chuzheng made San Mao find him in the school until a student on duty said Ye Chen had left long ago.

The school had a back gate thus Chuzheng thought he had something on and left from the back gate so she went straight home.

However…

Chuzheng took back her hand from the door handle and looked towards Ji Tongtong’s room.