Chapter 25: Protected
Poisonous!
Not only were the chopsticks poisoned, but Ji Lianbing herself was also poisonous, in a double sense!
“Where’s the basic trust between people…”
“Oh, I didn’t deceive you, did I? I only said I didn’t poison the bento, I never said I wouldn’t poison other things.”
“A textual trap like this?!”
You really can’t let your guard down!
“Besides, it’s not a highly toxic poison. It’ll just give you symptoms similar to food poisoning~ I just wanted to try taking care of Jun Cheng…”
She put on an expression of near tears, as if deeply in love with her boyfriend. Just by looking, you couldn’t tell if it was an act or genuine.
Even so, the fear in my heart didn’t decrease one bit.
Because with a little thought, I could deduce the following progression:
Abdominal discomfort -> Ask teacher to go to the infirmary/nurse’s office -> Rest in the infirmary/nurse’s office -> Ji Lianbing visits -> Killed in the infirmary/nurse’s office -> dead ending
It was clearly a one-way ticket to death if I took even one wrong step!
“Stop it.”
Jiang Xueqing, who had been silent the entire time, spoke.
Stop it… Did she know Ji Lianbing was a murderer too? Or did everyone else know, and I was the only one clueless?
“Oh, isn’t this Jiang Xueqing? You were so quiet, I thought you didn’t exist~”
Ugh, she starts off with personal attacks. Just by looking at her appearance, you wouldn’t guess this woman had such a wicked personality.
“Leave.”
Jiang Xueqing walked in front of me, placing a hand in front of me like she was going to protect me.
“Oh my, oh my… I’d say, shouldn’t *you* be the one leaving?”
That smile!
Ji Lianbing was angry again!
It wasn’t a fake smile, but a natural, perfectly measured one. It could almost serve as a model of ‘smiling’ for all the poker-faced people who don’t know how to smile.
But in this atmosphere, at this moment, this smile didn’t feel like ‘friendliness’ but was full of ‘malice’… a dangerous smile!
Her lips were smiling, her eyes were smiling, but because the smile was too perfect, it put an invisible pressure on you.
If someone with a weaker spirit might have already knelt before her, kissing her feet and saying ‘Lady Ji Lianbing, please spare this humble servant!’ in a pathetic manner.
Honestly, I was already struggling…
“Rudely barging into the harmonious and beautiful world of a boyfriend and girlfriend, and deliberately interrupting our intimate moments, don’t you think you’re being a bit too nosy? Jiang Xueqing, classmate.”
Um, I don’t think a beautiful and harmonious world of a boyfriend and girlfriend would include insidious traps, would it? It definitely wouldn’t involve a girlfriend poisoning her boyfriend!
This is worse than her making me dark cuisine!
“Could it be that Jiang Xueqing also likes Jun Cheng? Or are you one of those anti-romance types who can’t stand seeing others show off?”
Every sentence was filled with hostility. Although not a single curse word was used, each one hit the nail on the head, attacking others’ weaknesses.
How could this person wound others with a smile?
It’s too terrifying!
I’m sure if anyone were to negotiate with Ji Lianbing in the future, they would be squeezed dry until they burst into tears on the spot.
However, Jiang Xueqing remained silent… Since her back was to me, I couldn’t see her expression. But anyone would feel uncomfortable hearing such words. In the spirit of peaceful coexistence, I tried to intervene and mediate between the two.
“Hey, hey, that’s enough, it’s too much…”
“Don’t speak, Jun Cheng.” “Shut up.”
“Uh…”
When faced with strong women, I always get a little timid… Facing two of them made me even more cowardly.
Do men have no say in times like these…
“I like it.”
She suddenly uttered these three words. It took me two seconds to realize Jiang Xueqing was answering Ji Lianbing’s previous question.
I think Jiang Xueqing meant not that she liked *me*, but rather ‘I like doing this, and what are you going to do about it?’. Don’t ask me how I know; I’m just good at deciphering the true meaning behind the words of people with blank expressions.
Ji Lianbing’s smile vanished, and she gazed at Jiang Xueqing, her eyes sharp as if they could shoot out light.
“I see, so you’re also one of my ‘kind’.”
“…I’m not the same as you.”
“I had my eyes on him first. Are you going to interfere?”
“…Not interested.”
I couldn’t get a word in… Is this what you call a conversation between women? (Not really)
I felt like I was being treated as prey, or some kind of bargaining chip… I felt the sadness of my status diminishing.
“Then why…”
“But.”
Her clear voice, though not loud, reached my ears distinctly, with a clear sense of transition.
“He’s a friend.”
He’s a friend, so I can’t watch you hurt him.
Looking at her small back blocking my path, a sense of security arose from deep within my heart.
In just one day, I had gained two friends!
Wow, a new personal record… I’m so moved!
“Oh… a friend?”
The oppressive feeling disappeared.
“Hehehe, you’re quite popular… Then I’ll take my leave for now. Let’s go home together tonight, Jun Cheng~”
Ji Lianbing elegantly gathered her skirt, gave an angelic smile, picked up her lunchbox, and left the pavilion.
That Ji Lianbing actually retreated… A miracle!
I wiped the non-existent sweat from my forehead.
“Phew~ You really helped me out a lot, Jiang Xueqing.”
This was practically a life-saving favor!
I couldn’t find the words to express my gratitude.
Jiang Xueqing turned around, looked up at my face, and extended a hand towards me, saying.
“Payment.”
What? She wants payment?
Hmm, well, there’s no such thing as a free lunch in this world (only poisoned ones). Since she helped me, I should indeed give her something in return.
“Here, how much do you want? To be upfront, I don’t have much money…”
I said before, all the money I have combined probably isn’t even three digits, and that’s when I have a lot of money. Normally, it might just be a few coins.
But this was a life-saving favor. If I measured it with money, wouldn’t that imply my life is cheap?
My emotions were complicated.
Fortunately, Jiang Xueqing soon gave me the answer I desired.
“I don’t want money.”
“Then what do you want?”
Like, for me to do something for you?
“…Hair.”
Jiang Xueqing shook her head and made a strange request.
Slightly confused, I pointed to my hair and asked.
“Hair?”
Nod.
It was indeed hair.
Although I wanted to ask why hair, I quickly held my tongue.
Jiang Xueqing, as a member of our class and with that nickname, was already a bit of a strange person. So it wasn’t strange for her to make odd requests.
In any case, she wasn’t going to ask for my hair to curse me, right?
“It’s strange, but if you want it, it’s fine… Wait, how much do you want? You don’t want all my hair, do you?”
Hmm, if she really wanted all my hair, I’d be willing to shave my head!
Jiang Xueqing put her book aside and leaned in close to me. Uh, this is too close… our noses are almost touching.
“What is it?”
“… (whispering) … (whispering) … (whispering) … (whispering) …”
It sounded like she was saying something, but her voice was too quiet!
Even though she was this close, her voice was like a radio with weak signal, I couldn’t hear a word.
“Wait, I can’t hear you. Just tell me how much hair you want!”
Jiang Xueqing tilted her head for a moment, then extended both hands from her sleeves, spreading her fingers in front of me.
“Ten strands?”
“Mm.”
This time, Jiang Xueqing gave a proper answer, and her voice was not quiet for such a brief response. It seemed Jiang Xueqing’s speaking length and volume were inversely proportional.
Just ten strands wouldn’t even hurt. I shed more than that naturally every day.
I casually ran my hand through my hair, counted the strands that fell onto my hand, exactly ten, with a few white hairs mixed in.
I looked up at Jiang Xueqing and asked.
“Is white hair okay too?”
“Yes.”
Jiang Xueqing’s expression changed less than Xinran’s. Perhaps most people wouldn’t be able to discern her emotional changes. However, perhaps because I was already accustomed to dealing with people with more reserved personalities, I could sense from the atmosphere that Jiang Xueqing was in a good mood.
“Is really just hair enough? That’s a bit…”
“It’s enough.”
She seemed very happy.
I don’t quite understand what’s so happy about getting hair.
After taking the hair from my hand, Jiang Xueqing took out a transparent storage bag from her pocket, carefully placed it inside, and then hid it in her cloth bag.
Speaking of which, the last time I saw her, she collected her fingernails too… What a strange hobby.
Well, as long as she’s happy, there’s no problem. I wouldn’t discriminate against my friends because of their hobbies!
Speaking of which, if it’s just hair, I can definitely afford it. Maybe I should just hire her as my bodyguard?
However, hiring such a small Jiang Xueqing as my bodyguard feels a bit embarrassing…
Well, I’ll figure something out for now. If all else fails, I’ll ask for help from my dear friend, Jiang Xueqing!
At this time, I hadn’t realized that the initial payment of just hair would eventually escalate into a price I couldn’t afford…
There’s no such thing as a free lunch in this world!
