Book Synopsis
Book Tags
Donation Rankings
Comment
0 Comments
You May Also Like
墨書 Inktalez
Jiang Wen snatched the phone away, saying, "Xi Gaoyuan, you have a problem with your brain. Just ignore him." As he spoke, he turned his head and pulled away the hand that was resting on him.
Xi Gaoyuan exchanged glances with Zhao Binlin beside him. The two adopted a theatrical posture, making exaggerated expressions and gestures, sharing an unspoken understanding.
After hanging up the phone, Jiang Wen maintained a completely expressionless face.
Xi Gaoyuan smirked lightly, continuing to provoke him, "Are you scared or not?"
Jiang Wen remained silent.
"You think we can't tell you like Feng Ning? Remember that time we went drinking? She got drunk, and you panicked like crazy." Xi Gaoyuan exaggeratedly clicked his tongue twice. "And just now, you were in such a hurry to grab your phone. Afraid of being rejected?"
He remained indifferent, responding with only a few words: "Don't worry about my business."
"What’s wrong? If you don’t let us help, are you just going to wait around for someone to fall in love with you? A man should take the initiative; what kind of nonsense is this?"
"Exactly, exactly," Zhao Binlin chimed in enthusiastically. "We’re asking you, handsome and wealthy and still young—over time, which girl could resist?"
Jiang Wen felt a surge of frustration on his forehead. "Is this ever going to end?"
"Alright, alright, we won't say more. If we talk too much, you'll just get angry."
Xi Gaoyuan relaxedly added, "If you really can’t win her over, then learn how to be a qualified Campus Heartthrob. Don’t hang yourself on one tree; it’s embarrassing."
Ignoring their teasing, Jiang Wen looked down at his phone again.
No new messages had come in.
He opened the chat interface; the last reply was one he had sent.
After watching for a few more seconds without receiving any news, Jiang Wen turned off WeChat and placed his phone face down on the table.
The weather was unusually nice during the sports meet these two days. On the afternoon of the second day, Feng Ning returned to her seat, panting after finishing the semifinals of the 100 meters. As she was tying her shoelaces, an anxious voice called out, "Ning Ning!"
Feng Ning turned her head to see Shuang Yao. Confused, she asked, "What’s wrong?"
"Who did you offend?" Shuang Yao said with a strange look in her eyes, handing her something.
On several sheets of A4 paper was printed an acrostic poem:
"Encountering their anger, Ning goes to the Xiang River.
A brief stay in Jinghua, March 7."
"Where did this come from?" Feng Ning was taken aback and flipped it over to see that there was still some wet glue on the back.
"I found it when I went to the restroom," Shuang Yao whispered. "Who did you offend? Why are you being implied as a mistress?"
Feng Ning pondered for a moment and asked, "Which restroom?"
"The one on the first floor of Building South 2."
"Just these few sheets?"
"Yeah."
Feng Ning maintained a calm demeanor. "Alright, it's nothing. I'll explain it to you another day. You can head back to class now."
If one restroom had been posted, there were surely more.
===Gentle and Tender, Section 26===
Feng Ning went to the teaching building near the playground. She wandered around the first, second, third, and fourth floors, tearing down the posters one by one until her hands were full of scraps of paper. When she reached the experimental building, she found several more posters in the hallway.
There was also one in the women's restroom.
As Feng Ning pondered over the instigator of this incident, she had just thought of a target when she heard a sound behind her as a door clicked shut.
Turning around, she saw a figure flash past before the door was closed.
Feng Ning walked over to pull the door but after twisting it for a while, she couldn't get it open; pushing it didn't work either. She couldn't tell if it was locked from the outside or if something was blocking it.
In these past few days, Sophomores had been busy with sports events, so there were few people around. Feng Ning shook her head, almost laughing in frustration. Checking the time, she realized there was about an hour left before the 1500-meter event would start.
These idiots, don't they know they can use their phones to call?
Fortunately, the signal here was decent. Feng Ning called Shuang Yao to instruct her to come and open the door.
However, after following her directions for a while, Shuang Yao still couldn't find the exact location. Finally, Feng Ning cursed and sent her a shared location via WeChat.
Shuang Yao was outside using scissors to pry at the wire wrapped around the doorknob and shouted anxiously, "Feng Ning, are you okay?!"
"What could possibly happen to me!" Feng Ning shouted back with full vigor from inside.
Shuang Yao, sweating profusely after struggling for a while, finally managed to open the door. "This is too scary. Who is so malicious?"
Feng Ning clapped her hands and said, "You were quite clever this time, bringing scissors. Your intelligence has leveled up!"
"Still in the mood for jokes!"
Feng Ning straightened her face and replied, "I know who it is."
"Who?"
Feng Ning grabbed her hand and walked quickly ahead. "Jiang Wen's ex-girlfriend."
Shuang Yao, feeling weak, was being dragged along. "I told you not to mess with others. You still acted recklessly, and now you've been punished by someone else's girlfriend."
"Damn it," Feng Ning cursed. "These women really have pig brains; they must have gotten their inspiration from watching too much Meteor Garden."
Shuang Yao chased after her. "Hey, hey, hey, where are you going?"
"To settle the score."
Walking briskly to the gymnasium, Feng Ning calculated that there was still half an hour until registration. She casually grabbed a passerby and asked, "Do you know which class Cheng Jiajia is in?"
Cheng Jiajia was quite well-known in the grade, and it didn't take long before someone pointed her in the right direction.
Feng Ning headed straight to Class 12's territory.
Cheng Jiajia was under a sun umbrella, chatting on WeChat with friends on her phone. Suddenly, a pair of white sneakers appeared in front of her, and someone tapped the umbrella above her head twice.
"Are you Cheng Jiajia?" Feng Ning smiled and bent down.
She wasn't particularly tall, wearing loose sports shorts, with long and straight legs. Her high ponytail gave her a fierce beauty.
Students from Class Twelve nearby turned to look, whispering among themselves.
Cheng Jiajia felt a bit nervous and asked nonchalantly, "Yes, I am. What's the matter?"
"Do you know me?"
Cheng Jiajia shifted slightly to the side and remained silent.
Feng Ning calmly said, "You're the one who set me up?"
"I don't understand what you're saying. Please don't act like a shrew," Cheng Jiajia disliked the feeling of being laughed at in public. She stood up to leave but was held back.
Feng Ning leaned closer and whispered in her ear, "Don't understand?" She shoved a pile of scrap paper into Cheng Jiajia's arms. "You owe someone for this, right? What’s wrong? Afraid to confront Jiang Wen after breaking up? Picking on the soft targets?"
In the next moment, a girl nearby couldn't hold back any longer. "How can you even mention Jiang Wen, stealing someone else's boyfriend? Do you have no shame?"
Feng Ning glared at her. "And who are you?"
The girl held her head high, looking disdainful and disgusted. "What does it matter who I am? But you, your desire to climb the social ladder is so obvious. What era are we in that you're still dreaming of being Cinderella? Aren't you embarrassed?"
There are plenty of wealthy young men in Qide, but the Jiang family’s status in South City is well-known. Many were waiting to see the fallout from Jiang Wen and Cheng Jiajia's relationship. After their breakup happened at lightning speed, gossip spread quickly. There were all sorts of rumors, with many mentioning Feng Ning. Cheng Jiajia and her friends had long been dissatisfied.
"This classmate," she said, "I don't think dreaming of being Cinderella is embarrassing at all. In fact, mocking others for their dreams is much more shameful."
Feng Ning stared at her, a mix of seriousness and disdain in her expression. "Those who are lewd see lewdness. I see you're not young, yet your class consciousness is quite severe. Since you think being with Jiang Wen is climbing the social ladder, you've inadvertently exposed your inner thoughts—you place yourself in the lower ranks. You're just a loser."
The girl, infuriated by her cold mockery, shot back, "You're the one who's low-class! You're the loser!"
Feng Ning couldn't be bothered to argue with her. She turned back to Cheng Jiajia and squeezed out each word through clenched teeth: "Taking your anger out on unrelated people is foolish and useless. Especially with your low-level tactics, you can't hurt me at all. Besides 'childish,' I can't think of another word to describe it."
Her expression turned a bit fierce. "This time I'll let it go, but if you provoke me again next time, don't blame me for being rude!"
After saying that, Feng Ning smiled gently at Cheng Jiajia and walked away.
*
After the argument, Feng Ning acted as if nothing had happened and went to the registration area for the 1500-meter race to collect her gear. Once she put it on, she let out a long breath, twisted her waist from side to side, and began warming up, stretching her legs.
Shuang Yao stood nearby holding her jacket, genuinely admiring her good mindset. "I've never met anyone with a stronger mental fortitude than you. One moment you're locked in a small dark room, the next you're arguing, and now you're here running without a care in the world. I'm really impressed."
"If I could be intimidated by such petty tricks, would I still be your idol?" A proud and self-satisfied expression returned to her face.
"Yes, yes, yes! You are my lifelong idol."
There were very few students signed up for the 1500 meters; barely one from each class. The school only arranged one session, combining the semifinals and finals into one race. This was the last event of the day, and many spectators gathered around to watch.
After the gunshot sounded, a boy ran alongside a girl, making quite a commotion.
As they approached four laps, Feng Ning continuously adjusted her breathing and relaxed her facial expressions. After the second lap, she felt exhausted; each step grew heavier beneath her feet. She wiped away sweat and focused intently ahead.
The class monitor organized a "medical team" waiting at the finish line to assist Feng Ning after she completed the long run. Zhao Binlin forcibly brought Jiang Wen along as well.
"Wow, Feng Ning is really impressive."
Xi Gaoyuan was in awe. "This girl can drink brandy and run 1500 meters. I truly respect her."
In the third lap, sweat dripped continuously, gradually blurring her vision.
No matter how tired or how difficult it became, she would definitely, absolutely push through to the end. That's just who she was.
Feng Ning turned the corner, counting down in her heart: three, two, one.
The class monitor jumped up excitedly. "Wow, Feng Ning is actually picking up speed!"
She was like a gust of wind. This wind carried a fierce spirit as it swept past the stands of Class Nine, igniting a wave of cheers.
One hundred meters left.
Feng Ning sprinted with all her might, overtaking one girl after another. In the end, she surged forward alongside the first place runner.
The sound of wind roared in her ears. The moment she crossed the finish line, Feng Ning couldn't help but lurch forward for several meters before gradually coming to a stop.
She leaned on her knees, struggling to catch her breath.
Someone stumbled over to her.
Feng Ning glanced up slightly and saw Jiang Wen.
He had clearly been pushed over by some well-meaning classmates; those boys wore expressions full of gossip, grinning like flowers. Jiang Wen looked a bit uncomfortable, fidgeting for a couple of seconds before handing her a bottle of water. "This is from the class monitor."
Meng Taoyu was so surprised, both happy and excited, that she wanted to rush over, but Zhao Binlin pulled her back, saying, "Hey, hey, hey, what are you doing? Can't you see what's going on?"
After a long run, one shouldn't sit down immediately; it's important to walk slowly and let the body recover gradually. With the 1500 meters completed, today's events were basically over. As the crowd dispersed, each class began to pack up and head towards the exit of the gymnasium.
At the strong insistence of the class leader, medical team member Jiang Wen was reluctantly forced to accompany the heroine Feng Ning as she walked laps around the playground.
For a long time, he couldn't find his voice; his throat felt like a broken wind instrument. Feng Ning silently drank some water, and when she spoke again, her voice was still a bit hoarse: "Jiang Wen, did you break up with Cheng Jiajia?"
He snapped back to reality, feeling a bit confused: "What?"
She looked him over and asked directly: "Is it because of me?"
Jiang Wen replied, "...No."
Walking on the left side, Jiang Wen had cut his hair a bit shorter, and his neck was very pale. He wore a denim jacket that blocked out the dim orange light of the sunset.
Feng Ning still felt a bit weak: "So how long did you two date?"
"I don't know."
"Was it even a week?"
Jiang Wen's expression remained indifferent: "No."
"You don't like her?"
"Mm."
"But she likes you, you know?"
Jiang Wen frowned at her, "Her liking me has nothing to do with me."
"Then why are you with her?"
Jiang Wen was at a loss for words.
"You agreed to be with her; that was your own choice. Breaking up is also a matter between the two of you."
Feng Ning, both arrogant and malicious, said, "Everyone has a dark side and a taste for the sinister. So my point is, it's fine to toy with someone else's feelings, but first, you must ensure that it won't affect others while doing so."
He reacted quickly, "Did Cheng Jiajia give you trouble?"
She displayed her signature arrogant expression, "I've already dealt with that; you don't need to worry about it. Just take care of yourself." Jiang Wen stopped, "What about me?" Feng Ning smiled enigmatically, "I hope you can figure out your love life."
"......"
Jiang Wen looked at her.
"What kind of expression is that?" Feng Ning asked pleasantly.
Jiang Wen's face was expressionless as he self-deprecatingly said, "I toyed with her feelings; I will apologize to her." He emphasized the word "toyed," "What about you?"
"What about me?"
Jiang Wen was unaware that his speech had gone off-key. "Am I also your guilty pleasure?"
As soon as he finished speaking, the broadcast suddenly came alive with the clear and gentle voice of the announcer: "Today's last song, requested by an anonymous person, is dedicated to Jiang from Class Nine of Sophomore..."
Then, the entire playground was filled with:
"How can I not feel sad? You advise me to extinguish the fire in my heart."
...
"Behind every expression and gaze, who knows how much sorrow there is?"
...
Two people walked by, and one asked, "What song is this?"
The other replied, "I think it's 'How Should Love Be Spoken?'"
They walked away, but the last sentence floated back with the wind: "So funny, Jiang can't express who he loves!"
Feng Ning choked on a sip of water.
Jiang Wen felt all the blood rush to his head.
Comment 0 Comment Count