Chapter 19: Are You Hiding Something From Me?
“How is she? Is Jingyi badly hurt?” As soon as they returned to the gymnasium, An Baili asked anxiously. Besides Lu Li, An Baili probably cared about Chu Jingyi the most. That silly and innocent girl had somehow managed to soften An Baili’s “witchy” heart. Lu Li suspected that Silly Goose’s increasing indulgence towards him might have something to do with An Baili’s “instigation.” Girls’ whispered secrets often held more weight than men imagined.
“It’s just a sprained ankle, don’t worry. The school nurse said she just needs a good rest. I’ve already withdrawn her from this afternoon’s competition.” Lu Li instinctively wanted to put his arm around An Baili, but noticing the gazes of the other students, he coughed lightly and refrained. “Let’s go, let’s pack up and go home.” The sports meet was no different from a holiday for Lu Li. If it weren’t for watching Silly Goose’s high jump competition in the morning, he wouldn’t have even bothered coming to the opening ceremony.
An Baili didn’t care about the other students’ gazes. She leaned against Lu Li. “Wen Hupo has a competition this afternoon, aren’t you going to watch?”
Lu Li gently patted her back. “Everyone’s watching.” As someone who had lived two lifetimes, Lu Li knew the power of rumors. People wouldn’t hesitate to use words to destroy what they couldn’t have, especially when it came to women. And once such labels were attached, they might never be removed. They would only condemn An Baili for being indecent and unfaithful, not considering the deep affection between her and Lu Li. They would only revel in their self-righteousness, finding an isolated island and declaring it the center of the world.
This was also the reason why Lu Li hadn’t publicly acknowledged his relationship with Chu Jingyi. Before he became so successful that most people would feel inferior, he wouldn’t let the girls he loved bear the pressure of public opinion.
The labels of “Lu-dog,” “Old Dog,” and “Lu the Pervert”… It was enough for him to bear them alone.
“Let them watch, I just want to be close to you.” An Baili snuggled closer.
Lu Li was touched, he just hummed in response and didn’t say anything more.
“Lu Li.”
“Hmm?”
“You still haven’t answered my question. Are you going to watch Wen Hupo’s competition or not?”
“I don’t think so. Otherwise, a certain jealous girl will get angry again.”
“No way! I’m very open-minded now!” An Baili puffed out her chest, and Lu Li carefully compared. Jingyi’s were definitely bigger than Baili’s by more than a size. “Don’t you think I have the aura of a ‘first wife’ now?”
Lu Li looked her up and down. He didn’t see any “first wife” aura, just the petty jealousy of a small-minded girl.
“You are more dignified than before.” Lu Li was always generous with his compliments to them.
“So, so let’s go watch Wen Hupo’s competition.”
Lu Li said suspiciously, “Baili, why do I feel like you’ve been trying to get me closer to Wen Hupo lately? Are you experiencing some aftereffects of the price? Are you still trying to set us up?”
Baili bit her lip, her eyes tearing up. “Why are you being so mean to me?”
“I’m not being mean…”
“You are!”
“I… Okay…”
“Let’s go watch Wen Hupo’s competition, okay?” She took Lu Li’s hand and swayed it gently.
“Okay, okay, let’s go, let’s go.” Lu Li nodded repeatedly, completely whipped.
This girl’s way of thinking was always strange and unpredictable, with an innate stubbornness. Perhaps it was a result of her lonely childhood… Thinking of this, Lu Li tightened his grip on her hand.
In the afternoon, the badminton players entered the gymnasium one after another. The blonde foreign girl was among them.
Speaking of loneliness, he, Lu Li, was also a lonely person. He disliked crowds, preferred quietness, and loved rainy days – very similar to Wen Hupo. But Wen Hupo wasn’t just lonely, she was aloof, deliberately keeping her distance from others, looking down on the world with disdain. Lu Li wondered, how did he win over Wen Hupo in his past life? Would a woman like her really fall for an ordinary man like him?
Lu Li wasn’t familiar with badminton, but he could tell that Wen Hupo’s grip on the racket was awkward.
When it was Wen Hupo’s turn to play, she unsurprisingly lost her first match. Her clumsy movements drew murmurs from the audience. As Lu Li expected, Wen Hupo was terrible at sports. Among the girls he knew, Zou Yameng was the most athletic, followed by Chen Jianing. That annoying girl, despite her small stature, was surprisingly fast… Then it was Silly Goose and An Baili.
Speaking of which, what was Chen Jianing up to lately?… Why hadn’t she contacted him?… He hadn’t heard her sarcastic remarks in a while and kind of missed them. Should he visit Mulan City during the summer break?
Just as Lu Li’s mind was wandering, a wave of sighs came from the audience.
Wen Hupo had lost another match. Her stiff movements even made some of the girls who were jealous of her secretly laugh.
Lu Li frowned. “What is she doing? Doesn’t she care about her image and reputation? Why is she losing so badly?”
An Baili looked at the solitary figure on the court, then said after a moment of silence, “Because she’s also lost…”
“What?…”
Just as Lu Li spoke, the referee announced that Wen Hupo was eliminated, receiving a consolation prize – a clear humiliation. Wen Hupo wiped the sweat from her neck and walked towards the exit with a blank expression. Suddenly, she seemed to sense something and looked up abruptly, her eyes meeting Lu Li’s.
Lu Li saw it clearly. Wen Hupo instinctively smiled, but the smile only lasted for a fraction of a second. She then quickly suppressed it, her lips turning downwards. But after another moment, she couldn’t contain her smile anymore.
Lu Li and An Baili walked towards her. Wen Hupo’s gaze instinctively fell on their intertwined hands. She stared for a moment, then looked away unnaturally.
“You did your best, you did great,” Lu Li said, trying to comfort her.
“…I wasn’t prepared enough.” Wen Hupo said. “…I still have to prepare for tomorrow’s competition. If there’s nothing else, I’ll be going…”
With that, she turned and left as if trying to escape.
Strange.
Not just An Baili, but Wen Hupo too.
Even with his two lifetimes of experience, Lu Li couldn’t understand the complexities of a teenage girl’s heart. Not long ago, she had enthusiastically asked him to practice and compete with her, and now she was suddenly distant, her behavior as unpredictable as a girl in the early stages of a relationship… Hmm? Lu Li felt like he had grasped something, but also nothing at all.
He turned to An Baili. “Are you hiding something from me?”
An Baili’s heart skipped a beat. “No, no, I don’t think so? What could we possibly be hiding from you?”
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