Chapter 5
Jiang Siyi, despite appearing prickly, was more insecure than anyone.
Lying on the top bunk, she turned on her side, her voice muffled. “So what?”
“I’ve always been a problem student. If you don’t want to deal with me either, you can say so now.”
Shen Shiwu looked at the back of her head and gently shook her own.
She’s bristling.
It reminded her of a cat she once had, equally mischievous. But when it was unhappy, a cat treat would always do the trick.
She rummaged in her bag and found a piece of candy.
“If I really didn’t want to take care of you, I would have left already.” Shen Shiwu tapped the wooden railing of the bed with her knuckles.
Jiang Siyi slowly sat up.
“Open your mouth.”
The next second, the sweet scent of grapes filled the air.
Only when the hard candy landed on her tongue did she react.
Looking up, she met Shen Shiwu’s gaze, filled with amusement.
“Now that you’ve eaten my candy, you’re stuck with me.”
“So no matter what, I won’t abandon you.”
She stroked the girl’s head. “Remember that?”
Actually, Shen Shiwu hadn’t intended to say those words.
No one could predict the future. Life was long, and at some turning point, even if they parted ways, it would be normal.
But looking at Jiang Siyi’s slightly curled-up form, lonely and stubborn, a part of her heart softened.
Forget it, what turning point?
Since this child is under her care now, she had to take responsibility.
If Jiang Siyi felt insecure, she would provide that security.
Crunch.
The girl bit down on the candy.
The sweetness spread, and she heard herself softly reply, “Mm.”
“I’ll remember.”
***
Now that everything was unpacked, Shen Shiwu really should leave.
Before getting into the car, she told the girl, “Use your words, not your fists. And if you do fight, be careful not to get hurt.”
Jiang Siyi wanted to say she had been quite well-behaved recently; it had been a while since her last fight.
But after thinking about it, she simply said, “Oh, I know.”
Shen Shiwu got into the car and rolled down the window. “Try to be good. I’ll be the first one here to pick you up on Friday.”
The latter half of the sentence sounded like she was coaxing a first-grader leaving home for the first time.
Jiang Siyi looked away, touching her nose. “I can take the bus home myself.”
That’s how she had always done it before.
“That won’t do. What if you get lost?”
“…Get out of here.”
Shen Shiwu couldn’t help but laugh again.
Jiang Siyi watched, complaining inwardly:
Why are you always smiling at me? Be careful you’ll get laugh lines.
Only after the Mercedes-Benz disappeared from sight did Jiang Siyi head towards the classroom building. Soon, a figure rushed up behind her. “Jiang Siyi!”
Xu Yuan hadn’t finished breakfast yet, still chewing on a custard bun.
“Why are you here so early today?”
Jiang Siyi thought for a moment. “Someone gave me a ride.”
The other girl’s expression immediately turned curious.
“Tell me, are you dating someone?”
“No.” Jiang Siyi smiled.
Chatting away, they walked towards their classroom, neither paying attention to the time.
“Late on the first day of school? Both of you, stand outside in the hallway for ten minutes before coming in!”
This class was their homeroom teacher, Fu Jing’s. She taught Chinese, and everyone liked to call her “Sister Bao” because she loved steamed buns (baozi).
Jiang Siyi and Xu Yuan stood side by side, the latter quickly finishing her breakfast.
She nudged Jiang Siyi’s arm, whispering, “Hey, do you think if I give her a custard bun, she’ll let us off?”
Kids this age often found humor in the simplest things when talking with friends.
So Jiang Siyi couldn’t help but laugh. “Sister Bao will kick you out along with your breakfast.”
Xu Yuan also found her own idea silly and chuckled a few times.
“What’s going on? What’s so funny?”
Fu Jing had silently approached them without a sound.
“I just collected everyone’s summer homework. Where’s yours?”
Xu Yuan panicked. She had done the homework, but she had only written down the answers, skipping all the steps and processes.
Figuring something was better than nothing, she quietly opened her schoolbag.
Jiang Siyi, on the other hand, appeared much calmer.
She didn’t even remember having any homework.
Fu Jing, seeing her unfazed demeanor, said knowingly, “You didn’t do it again, did you?”
Jiang Siyi stared straight ahead, silent.
The homeroom teacher sighed and started her usual lecture about the importance of studying.
Jiang Siyi’s ears were numb from hearing it so many times. She tuned out the noise, lost in her own thoughts—
What was Shen Shiwu doing now?
With so many companies under her name, she must be busy.
When she was at home, Shen Shiwu didn’t go to the office that often. Now that she was back at school, wouldn’t she be spending all her time there?
“Jiang Siyi!” The woman’s voice boomed like thunder.
Jiang Siyi, whose name had just been called, was still lost in thought.
That rainy night, Shen Shiwu had called her name like that too…
Only much more gently.
“Your ability to daydream is getting more and more impressive.” Fu Jing, exasperated, started scolding her again.
Jiang Siyi finally snapped back to reality, responding halfheartedly with phrases like, “Yes, teacher,” and “Understood, Sister Bao.”
It was blatant perfunctoriness.
After an unknown amount of time, Fu Jing’s throat was dry, and she finally let them into the classroom.
Because Jiang Siyi and Xu Yuan were a bad influence on each other, their seats had been drastically changed since last semester.
One on the far left, the other on the far right.
Usually, during breaks, they couldn’t be bothered to walk across the classroom to talk, resorting to making faces at each other from across the room.
Like now.
As soon as they sat down, the bell rang. Sister Bao made a few final announcements and then clicked-clacked back to her office in her high heels.
Xu Yuan slumped in her seat, holding a stack of what looked like over ninety worksheets. “Sister Bao told me to redo them!”
Since the student next to her was still working, she considerately mouthed the words, making no sound.
Jiang Siyi twirled her pen, mouthing back, “She’s given up on me.”
As they were silently communicating, someone called from the back door, “Jiang Siyi, someone’s looking for you!”
She turned around and saw a few girls standing there.
The girl at the front had a round face and was quite cute. She called out, “Hello, Senior!”
Jiang Siyi was puzzled. “Do we… know each other?”
The round-faced girl’s voice lowered. “That day during PE class, I had low blood sugar, and you gave me two pieces of candy.”
Jiang Siyi finally remembered. She said casually, “No problem, it was nothing.”
She occasionally had low blood sugar herself, so she always carried candy with her.
The round-faced girl blushed and then mustered her courage. “Senior, can I treat you to lunch today?”
Xu Yuan, leaning against the window watching the scene unfold, yelled, “Yes! She’d love to!”
Then she saw Jiang Siyi glare at her.
The round-faced girl quickly said, “Great! I’ll wait for you at Cafeteria One!”
With that, she ran off like a rabbit, scurrying upstairs.
Jiang Siyi, who was about to decline, was left speechless.
I’m going to kill you, Xu Yuan.
“Why? If you don’t want a free lunch, I’ll take it.” Xu Yuan, after her mischievous act, said cheerfully, grabbing her cup to get some water.
Jiang Siyi accompanied her to the water dispenser and finally said, “Being associated with a failing student like me has only downsides, no benefits.”
Xu Yuan almost spat out her water.
“What about me?”
“You’re different. We’re birds of a feather, in this together.”
“…”
Cafeteria One was usually the most crowded, not because the food was particularly delicious, but compared to the other cafeterias, it was at least edible.
The round-faced girl’s eyes were sharp. As soon as she saw Jiang Siyi arrive, she waved.
She handed her meal card to Jiang Siyi. “Senior, swipe as much as you want, eat whatever you like.”
Jiang Siyi was about to say, “Really, there’s no need…”
When Xu Yuan pushed her forward along with the card, not forgetting to call out, “Okay, I’ll come find you after I buy my food!”
The round-faced girl nodded repeatedly, hiding her excitement as she returned to her seat.
“Save a meal when you can, especially since you deserve it.” Xu Yuan knew that Jiang Siyi earned her own money through part-time jobs, so she was always considerate of her.
Jiang Siyi remained silent for a moment. Holding her meal card, she thought of the money Shen Shiwu had loaded onto it, and her mood improved.
“By the way,” Xu Yuan finally asked after holding it in for a long time, “Who was that person with you at the arcade the other day?”
Jiang Siyi paused for a few seconds. “I guess you could say she’s my older sister.”
“You have an older sister?” She, as a good friend, hadn’t known.
“No, not biologically.”
Seeing the long line, Jiang Siyi briefly explained the whole story.
After she finished, Xu Yuan’s expression was a mix of emotions.
“What kind of novel plot is this?”
Jiang Siyi wanted to hit her with both meal cards. “What are you thinking? She’s using my mother’s money, so she should take care of me.”
“Then why didn’t she just give you all the money?”
“Having money and no restrictions, complete freedom, that’s the ideal life!” Xu Yuan felt relaxed just imagining it.
The surroundings were noisy. Jiang Siyi pretended not to hear her and nudged her with her elbow. “It’s almost your turn. Think about what you want to eat.”
“Let me see.”
Watching the person in front of her crane their neck and stand on tiptoes to choose dishes, Jiang Siyi thought to herself,
Being taken care of by Shen Shiwu is pretty good.
At least, I don’t have to talk to the walls anymore.
In the end, Jiang Siyi still used her own meal card. She felt it was unnecessary to exchange two pieces of candy for a meal.
The round-faced girl took the card, oblivious, and gestured for them to sit down.
It was Jiang Siyi’s first time experiencing being surrounded by people while eating.
The round-faced girl had many friends and brought five or six of them along. They were all very friendly, the kind who would chime in whenever someone spoke.
It wasn’t exactly noisy, but Jiang Siyi, usually only accompanied by Xu Yuan, wasn’t used to it.
“Senior.” The round-faced girl suddenly leaned closer.
“Hmm?”
Jiang Siyi looked down and saw a small, pale pink letter being handed to her.
The others were still chatting away, oblivious to what was happening.
The round-faced girl could barely speak, her voice soft. “Senior, this is for you.”
For Xu Yuan, this meal was incredibly enjoyable.
“Those juniors are so cute. They responded to everything I said.” She looked at Jiang Siyi’s distracted expression. “What’s wrong? Are you miles away?”
“Nothing. We have a dictation test this afternoon, I’m thinking about how to cheat.”
“Oh, don’t you usually just sleep through it and not hand it in? Becoming a good student now?”
Jiang Siyi put her hands in her pockets and told her to get lost.
But when she touched the letter, she felt it was hot, her fingers recoiling slightly.
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