Chapter 27: Whispers in the Wind
April Fool’s Day. Lu Li always thought April Fool’s Day was the most unwelcome holiday. It was full of self-righteous humor and unrestrained lies, like a public restroom for people to relieve themselves in broad daylight. Yet, this holiday was surprisingly popular among students. Perhaps it was their childlike innocence, their carefree nature. On his way to school, Lu Li had already heard no less than seven April Fool’s Day pranks. Students walked around the campus in groups. Suddenly, someone would say there was a surprise exam today, then someone would claim there was a holiday the day after tomorrow, and then someone would spread a rumor about someone’s girlfriend running away with someone else. Truth and lies mixed together, a testament to the boredom of youth.
An Baili loved April Fool’s Day, not because she enjoyed tricking others, but because it gave her an excuse to interact with Lu Li in a playful way. In his past life, she loved to provoke him on April Fool’s Day, just to be “punished” by him. Lu Li even suspected that she might have a masochistic streak.
Silly Goose, seeing An Baili teasing Lu Li repeatedly, felt a strange urge to join in. Her big eyes blinked as she looked at An Baili with a hint of admiration.
An Baili put her arm around the Class Monitor and whispered conspiratorially, “Baili, do you want to try it? You don’t usually have the chance to tease Lu Li.”
That was true. Whenever Silly Goose saw Lu Li, her soul seemed to be tethered to him. She had never tried to take the initiative. An Baili’s words made Silly Goose even more tempted. She glanced at Lu Li, who was walking behind them, and whispered, “Th-then what should I say?”
“Silly, haven’t you heard any April Fool’s jokes?”
“I… I don’t know…”
“Just say something impossible, and Lu Li will usually play along and pretend to believe you. Then you jump out and shout ‘Happy April Fool’s Day!’” An Baili proudly shared her expert advice.
Lu Li had been listening to their whispers. It wasn’t intentional eavesdropping. He couldn’t help but want to flick An Baili’s forehead. Only he, Lu Li, would play along with such childish games, and she was treating it like some precious secret to share with Yi Bao.
“Can I really do that?” To Lu Li’s surprise, Silly Goose actually asked seriously. He facepalmed. One clueless girl and one silly girl together, how would they survive in this world?
The girls whispered for a while, and then Chu Jingyi finally gathered her courage and walked towards Lu Li, her face filled with anticipation and mischief.
Looking at Silly Goose’s delicate face, Lu Li suddenly realized that this might be the essence of love, simple and pure. Just for a bit of fun, not caring if it was childish or not, just to make her beloved happy, she was willing to show her silly side.
Thinking of this, Lu Li smiled and put on a confused expression. “Jingyi, what’s wrong?”
For some reason, seeing Lu Li smile at her made Chu Jingyi blush, the crimson spreading across her cheeks like dye in water. She instinctively stared at him, then suddenly realized what she was doing and lowered her head shyly. Lu Li couldn’t help but pinch her earlobe gently. “We’ve known each other for almost two years, why are you still so shy? Aren’t you usually very confident when you’re running the class meetings?”
Silly Goose pouted. It was just how she was. No matter when, as long as she was near Lu Li, she would feel a little nervous, a little shy. She would subconsciously adjust her clothes, worried about having eye boogers from not washing her face properly in the morning…
“Lu Li, I don’t like you anymore.” She said with her head lowered.
Lu Li put on a sad expression. Before he could even speak, the Class Monitor quickly added, “It’s just an April Fool’s joke. Don’t take it seriously.”
Hearing this, An Baili couldn’t help but burst out laughing. What April Fool’s joke? This was clearly just flirting! Jingyi was sometimes surprisingly clever, and sometimes incredibly silly.
Lu Li also laughed and took Chu Jingyi’s soft hand. “Jingyi, I like you.”
The Class Monitor looked up. “Is that an April Fool’s joke too?”
“I’m not telling you.”
Chu Jingyi snapped out of her shyness. She looked at Lu Li and suddenly smiled brightly. “You’re still the biggest bad guy in the world.”
“Am I? Baili, am I a good guy or a bad guy?”
“You’re a pervert. Jingyi, let’s stay away from him. Look at him, trying to hold a girl’s hand in broad daylight… I don’t even want to imagine what he does at night…”
Lunch break. As the Class Monitor, Chu Jingyi always had endless class duties. After finishing lunch with Lu Li and An Baili, she rushed to the logistics office to register for the new school uniforms.
An Baili was feeling poetic today. She said she wanted to go to the rooftop and be closer to the sky.
A gentle spring breeze ruffled An Baili’s hair, making her look like a dreamy figure from an Impressionist painting. Her figure in her school uniform stood out against the clear blue sky. She held her hands behind her back and bowed slightly. “Pervert, why are you spacing out?”
“You’re so beautiful, Baili.” Lu Li said sincerely.
“I’m not like Jingyi, blushing and running away just because you complimented me.” An Baili giggled.
“Why is our little village girl feeling so poetic today, coming up to the rooftop to enjoy the breeze?”
“Who’s a village girl? Say that again and I’ll bite you.”
Lu Li chuckled appeasingly. Perhaps because it was so close to the sky, rooftops were always associated with melancholy, suicide, freedom, and the wind. They had naturally become a symbol of romanticism. Lone wolves preferred secluded corners, and rooftops were their sacred ground.
An Baili, however, had nothing to do with rooftops. She was the type of girl who would just sleep at her desk.
“The view is so vast.” An Baili spread her arms in the wind, striking a classic Titanic pose. “I feel so free and unrestrained. No wonder you love the rooftop so much.”
Lu Li wrapped his arms around her waist from behind. “Something on your mind?”
An Baili was silent for a moment, then nodded slightly.
“Honey, I feel like everything is so surreal now.” She looked at the students on the playground with a dazed expression. “The price is gone, the barrier between us is gone, and I even have Jingyi, a kindred spirit, as my sister. And your career is thriving. It’s all… it’s all…”
Her voice choked with emotion. Lu Li held her tighter. “It’s all what?”
“…I just can’t believe it. Just two months ago, I had nightmares every night, waking up once at eleven, once at three in the morning, and then again at dawn.” Her lips trembled. “Every night, I felt so cold, even though I was wrapped tightly in the blanket, my whole body felt like it was submerged in ice water. Whenever I closed my eyes, I would think, what if I really die alone, what if I never see Lu Li again? That was more terrifying than death itself. But if I didn’t close my eyes, my body would tremble and cough uncontrollably, like a broken machine, I couldn’t even see how many fingers I had.”
Listening to her words, Lu Li held her even tighter. Yes, during that time, he only knew that Baili had a price to pay, but he didn’t know how she felt. Did he really think this girl had come to terms with it? Did he really think An Baili was a fearless girl? She was clearly a timid little girl, clutching an aquarium flyer and afraid to go home.
“Baili, I’m sorry, I neglected you during that time.”
“Don’t apologize… Honey, you’ve done enough.” An Baili smiled faintly. “I was struggling between life and death during those days. Every day, I wanted to see you the moment I opened my eyes, afraid that if I missed a single glance, I would never have the chance again. Those days of despair were just two months ago, but now, now everything has changed, everything is filled with hope, it’s so beautiful, like a dream.”
“I’ve been thinking a lot these days. Don’t laugh at me, I’m not stupid. They say that people often have epiphanies after experiencing life-or-death situations. I don’t have the ability to achieve enlightenment and become a Buddha, but I’ve realized that I was too selfish before…”
“That’s not true…” Lu Li said instinctively, trying to comfort her.
“Don’t coax me anymore, or I’ll lose myself again.” An Baili puffed out her cheeks. “I was too selfish before, forcing my love onto you. I was the one who trapped myself. Wen Hupo was right, she was always right…”
What did Wen Hupo say? Lu Li was confused. An Baili didn’t explain. She faced the wind and shouted softly, “I love Lu Li so, so, so much!”
The wind howled, swallowing her small voice. Lu Li couldn’t help but laugh. “Is that an April Fool’s joke?”
“You guess.” An Baili winked.
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