In the end, Xiao Xinan did not force Pei Ruoqing. Even though she did not become the class monitor, Xiao Xinan had forcefully made her the Chinese class representative.
She had already rejected him once, so Pei Ruoqing was too embarrassed to reject him a second time. She could only agree to Xiao Xinan's request. Fortunately, the class representative did not have to spend too much energy, so he did not have to worry too much.
However, Pei Ruoqing had completely underestimated Xiao Xinan's ability to exploit him. Even if it was just Chinese, Pei Ruoqing was not as easy as he had imagined.
After school on Friday, Pei Ruoqing was not in a hurry to go home. She took a taxi to South Street alone. This street was filled with all kinds of entertainment stores, game cities, bars, and KTV.
Pei Ruoqing got out of the car, took out a black mask from her bag, and put it on. She walked into a bar with a clear target and reported the number of the private room. She was led to a private room by the waiter. Just as she walked in, a young man in black pants and a red shirt grabbed Pei Ruoqing.
"Little Ruo Ruo, it's getting harder and harder to ask you out now. Don't you love me anymore?”An Su pretended to complain.
Pei Ruoqing rubbed her head helplessly and pulled An Su's arm away." Stop fooling around. We just met two days ago. It's for your image. Also, can you not call me Little Ruoruo?"”
An Su touched his nose and pulled Pei Ruoqing to sit down." What's wrong with Little Ruoruo? She sounds so good."”
Pei Ruoqing was helpless. She had protested many times against the title Little Ruoruo. She was not even as good as Ah Ruo, but An Su still liked to call her that. Forget it, Little Ruoruo was Little Ruoruo. She took out a box from her bag and handed it to An Su." Happy birthday, open it and see if you like it."”
An Su took the box and opened it. Inside was a watch from the Ocean Universe Deep Sea Black series. An Su took out the watch and put it on, raising his hand in front of Pei Ruoqing." The size is just right. My Ruoruo baby has good taste."”
An hour later, Pei Ruoqing walked out of the bar and took a deep breath. The early autumn wind was less hot and dry than the summer wind. It was a little cool.
Pei Ruoqing did not take off her mask immediately. Instead, she continued to walk towards the main road with it.
At this moment, there was a KTV not far from Pei Ruoqing. He was about to enter with the others when he saw a figure on the street and stopped in his tracks. Her beautiful brows furrowed in confusion.
"Senior, let's go. We must have fun tonight.”A delicate female voice kept urging Shi Yunshu.
Shi Yunshu retracted his gaze and smiled at the girl. He suppressed his thoughts and entered the KTV with them.
What Pei Ruoqing did not know was that his brother was already suspicious of his whereabouts.
Shi Yunshu was already in his fourth year of university. Shi Yihong had relaxed his control over his time. As long as he did not return home at midnight, he would not mind.
That night, Shi Yunshu returned home at around 11 pm. After washing up, he went to Pei Ruoqing's room. However, he realized that the careless child had not locked the door, and the person who should have been sleeping was still busy with her homework. His expression turned cold." Is there a lot of homework?"”
Hearing Shi Yunshu's voice, Pei Ruoqing jumped in shock. She hurriedly covered the things on the table and turned around to look at Shi Yunshu's emotionless eyes. She panicked." Brother…"
Shi Yunshu looked at him, his initial gentleness gradually fading away. The child's act of pretending to cover up just now seemed to have pricked a thorn in his heart, making him feel extremely uncomfortable. Ruo 'er also had her own secret…
Shi Yunshu lowered his eyes and said lightly," Go to sleep.”
After she finished speaking, she did not care about what was happening behind her. She turned around and left. Pei Ruoqing's heart palpitated for no reason. She shouted anxiously," Brother, wait."”
Shi Yunshu stopped in his tracks and turned around to look at him.
Pei Ruoqing took a deep breath and hesitantly took away the exercise book on the table, revealing the unfinished chessboard on the table. There were also wooden shavings left behind by carving knives of various sizes.
Pei Ruoqing lowered her head." It's my birthday in a few days. I want to give you something special. Since you like chess, I wanted to make one myself.”
"Come here." Shi Yunshu sighed. After hearing his answer, his heart was filled with mixed feelings. His jade-like heart seemed to have fallen into a sea of fire.
Pei Ruoqing almost moved in front of him." Brother, I'm sorry. I shouldn't be doing this at this late hour…"
After interacting with him for so long, Pei Ruoqing undoubtedly understood Shi Yunshu. She knew what he cared about and what he was angry about.
Shi Yunshu rubbed his head as usual and said gently," Brother doesn't need any gifts. Having you guys accompany me is the best gift."”
"It's different." Pei Ruoqing shook her head.
Shi Yunshu looked at him in amusement and asked," What's the difference?”
Pei Ruoqing was speechless.
Pei Ruoqing did not know how to answer. How could he say such a selfish thing?。
Shi Yunshu looked at the perturbed child and shook his head in amusement, no longer teasing him. Recalling the figure he saw on South Street in the evening, he asked again," Where did you go after school in the afternoon?”
Pei Ruoqing's face stiffened. She lowered her eyes to hide the emotions in them." Brother, can you not ask about this?”
Shi Yunshu did not say anything and just stared at him. Shi Yunshu, who was about to turn twenty-one, had a hint of dignity compared to three years ago. Under his gaze that could see through people's hearts, Pei Ruoqing lowered her head in embarrassment, not daring to look him in the eye.
After a long time, Shi Yunshu sighed." You've grown up. You don't need me anymore."”
"No." Pei Ruoqing blurted out without thinking," I need it." Moreover…it's a need that you can't imagine.
In this life, I can abandon many people and things, but you are the only one I want.
His eyes were filled with a burning passion, as if he wanted to burn his soul. Shi Yunshu was flustered by his gaze. Something was about to gush out. It was a strange feeling, as if he was in a furnace, and his heartbeat was out of his control.
Shi Yunshu's eyes suddenly turned cold. He quickly turned around and almost fled.
Pei Ruoqing looked at Shi Yunshu's pathetic figure and a bitter smile appeared on her lips. So you understand everything. It's just that…I forced you.
In the days that followed, Pei Ruoqing still had that cold look on her face. There was nothing unusual about her. She did things flawlessly and did not show any abnormalities in front of Shi Yunshu. Shi Yunshu also heaved a sigh of relief and changed back to his elder brother identity during the lecture.
However, Pei Ruoqing still realized that the number of times he saw Shi Yunshu at home was decreasing.
Thursday, the 17th night of the 9th month of the lunar calendar. The silver moon was like a hook, and the galaxy was dazzling. It got dark early in Beijing, but it was already dark at seven o'clock.
Shi Yihong and Lin Xiran had already arrived. There were only four of them, so they didn't specially book a private room and sat in the cubicle upstairs like most people.
Pei Ruoqing communicated with the waiter as she looked at the stairwell. They had already arrived half an hour ago, but Shi Yunshu, the main character of the day, was nowhere to be seen. With Shi Yunshu's polite upbringing, it was impossible for his parents to have arrived but he had not. He could only be held up by something.
Pei Ruoqing hesitated for a moment, but she still gave Shi Yunshu a call." Brother, you…"
Before she could finish her sentence, the person opposite her spoke. However, the moment she spoke, Pei Ruoqing's heart was drenched in cold sweat.
"Oh, are you looking for Senior Shi? He can't answer the phone right now. If you have anything to say, you can tell me. I can forward it for you.”The beautiful female voice had a pleasant smile, and her words showed her intimacy with Shi Yunshu.
Pei Ruoqing suppressed the surging emotions in her heart and tried her best to use a calm tone to ask," Why is my brother's phone on your phone?”
"Wow, you're Senior's younger brother. Oh, Senior is busy now and it's not convenient for him to answer the phone, so he handed the phone to me for safekeeping.”
"Can you tell me where you are?”Pei Ruoqing regained her calm.
The girl on the other side seemed to be stunned for a moment before she said hesitantly," It's on the third floor of Ling Yue near Yun Hua University. Room 309."
Pei Ruoqing thanked him coldly and hung up. He returned to Shi Yihong and his wife's cubicle." Teacher, Mistress, I'm stuck on the third floor. I'll go take a look."”
"Alright, come back quickly." Shi Yihong didn't ask any further and only instructed.
Pei Ruoqing went all the way up to the third floor and found room 309. She knocked on the door and was stunned the moment she opened it. She saw Shi Yunshu dressed in a moon-white ancient costume with bamboo scattered in the hem of his clothes. There was a jade belt on his waist and white jade beads hanging from his forehead. His long hair reached his waist like a waterfall of pearls. He did not look like an ordinary person.
He sat cross-legged on the stage, his fingers dancing on the Jiao Wei Zither. A zither tune came out from his fingertips, flowing like water in the mountains.
Pei Ruoqing was stunned on the spot. This scene seemed to have returned to her previous life. The first time they met, they were dressed the same way. The difference was that the person in front of her was even clearer.
Shi Yunshu stopped playing and looked at the stunned child. He said helplessly," Why are you here?”
Pei Ruoqing still did not understand the situation in front of her. Hearing Shi Yunshu's question, she could only say," Have you forgotten what day it is today? Teacher and Mistress are still waiting for you to eat.”
Shi Yunshu rubbed his forehead and remembered that he had been too busy these past few days. He had actually forgotten about the family banquet that had been arranged a few days ago. He flicked his sleeves and stood up." I'll go change and go with you."”
Shi Yunshu walked up to a girl and took his clothes from her. He thanked her before entering the bathroom.
The private rooms were very large, and each private room had a cubicle and a bathroom. The private room that Shi Yunshu and the others were in was even more special. It was a performance room with a stage.
When Shi Yunshu came out, he saw that the girl who had helped him take his clothes earlier was staring at Pei Ruoqing with shining eyes. Her expression seemed to be getting more and more satisfied as she looked at Pei Ruoqing. In her excitement, she went forward and hugged Shi Yunshu's arm. She said to Shi Yunshu," Senior, senior, don't you think he looks like the Nine Abyss Pavilion Master? Cold and otherworldly, a gentleman like the moon, cold with warmth, elegant and noble, as if nothing was in his eyes.”
Not to mention Shi Yunshu, the others present were also speechless. The little kid's gaze was on his brother the moment he came in. The others didn't even look at him. How could he see so much?
That girl, Qiao Yuwei, did not notice the cold expression on Pei Ruoqing's face. Pei Ruoqing looked at Shi Yunshu indifferently.
Shi Yunshu pushed Qiao Yuwei away without batting an eyelid and rejected her tactfully." He's not suitable. Besides, he has a lot of learning to do. He doesn't have time to rehearse with us.”
However, Qiao Yuwei did not look disappointed at all. She said excitedly," It's okay, it's okay. It's fine as long as you can come every Saturday night.”
She had spent too much effort on this script and had mixed many elements to achieve the effect she wanted, especially in the selection of roles. She did not want to compromise at all. Just as she was worrying about where to find a younger actor, someone happened to come knocking on her door.
Pei Ruoqing watched as Shi Yunshu pushed the girl away before she retracted her gaze. She took two steps forward and carefully pulled Shi Yunshu's hand." Brother, I don't want to go. Please reject it for me."”
Shi Yunshu patted his head, indicating for him to calm down. He looked at Qiao Yuwei." I'm sorry, Yuwei. My brother is unwilling.”
Without waiting for Qiao Yuwei to say anything, Pei Ruoqing said," Brother, let's go. Teacher and Master's wife must be waiting anxiously.”
"Yes." Shi Yunshu nodded to the people present to bid farewell and followed Pei Ruoqing downstairs.
Staring at their departing figures, Qiao Yuwei rolled her eyes and hooked her finger at the boy beside her." Since when did senior have a younger brother?”
The boy's lips twitched." How would I know? Senior Shi has always kept a low profile.”
Qiao Yuwei clicked her tongue. The Qiao family was also a large family in the capital. She was one of the few people who knew that Shi Yunshu was the son of the headmaster of Yun University, so she naturally knew about the population of the Shi family. She had never seen the child who came today before, but it did not stop her from having designs on Pei Ruoqing.
From Pei Ruoqing's respect for Shi Yunshu, this child was very obedient to his brother. In that case…Qiao Yuwei touched her chin and smiled cunningly.
Downstairs, when Shi Yunshu saw that all the dishes had been served and that his parents were still waiting for him, he could not help but blame himself. She walked across Shi Yihong and Lin Xiran and bowed to them." Dad, Mom, I'm sorry. I forgot the time."”
Shi Yihong looked at him expressionlessly." We'll talk about it when we get home."”
"Yes." Shi Yunshu knew very well what to say at home. He should not have done what happened today. He had nothing to feel wronged about, even if it was his birthday.
Lin Xiran glared at Shi Yihong but did not say anything. She quickly pulled Shi Yunshu to sit beside her and gestured for Pei Ruoqing to sit down. Beauty Lin looked at her son from head to toe with a satisfied expression. Then, she said seriously," I didn't prepare a gift for you this year. How about a hug?"”
Looking at his mother's childlike attitude, Shi Yunshu was amused and touched at the same time. He did not need any gifts. As long as his parents and relatives were by his side, he was satisfied.
Shi Yunshu opened his arms and hugged Beauty Lin. He even deliberately rubbed against her neck." Mom, thank you."”
He had been plagued by all kinds of trivial matters these few days and had been so tired that he had not had a good rest for several days. His eyes were filled with fatigue, and the peace at this moment inevitably made him crave for it.
Pei Ruoqing also looked at them with a smile. After Lin Xiran was Shi Yihong. Principal Shi raised his eyebrows and handed over an old yellow book.
Shi Yunshu did not ask what it was and thanked him with a smile. It was a single ancient book, and it was like this every year. His father's style of giving gifts had never changed.
Finally, it was Pei Ruoqing's turn. Shi Yunshu already knew what Pei Ruoqing was going to give him, but he still looked at him expectantly. Pei Ruoqing took out the packaged chessboard and the matching chess pieces." Brother, happy birthday.”
"Thank you." Shi Yunshu rubbed his head out of habit. He knew how much effort was needed to carve this chessboard without affecting his studies. He was touched by the child's efforts.
Just as Shi Yunshu was about to announce that they were going to start eating, Pei Ruoqing called out to him," Brother, wait. I…still have a gift for you."”
As he spoke, he took out a long gift box nervously and handed it to Shi Yunshu." Brother, I didn't have the chance to spend time with you in S City in the past. I'll give you an extra gift this year."”
Shi Yunshu looked at him in confusion. He took the gift and opened it. What entered his eyes was a pendant carved from jade. Whether it was the quality of the jade or the carving, it proved that it was expensive.
When Shi Yihong saw the second gift, his expression immediately turned cold. Shi Yunshu's expression did not look good either. He recalled the figure he saw on the south street that day and was certain that it was Pei Ruoqing.
That was South Street, also known as the 'Street of Death'. Every day, there would be drunkenness, trouble, and armed fights. If one was not careful, the innocent would be hurt. A 15-year-old high school student actually dared to run there without anyone to guide him. Did he think he had lived too long? He didn't know why, but he was terrified when he thought of the consequences.
Shi Yunshu pursed his lips, his expression so dark that it could drip water. Before he could say anything, Shi Yihong asked," Where did you get the money?”Although Pei Ruoqing had living expenses, she did not use them.
"Don't worry, I've saved these for myself. I didn't do anything illegal.”Pei Ruoqing saw that Shi Yihong's expression was not right and quickly explained.
"Did you save it yourself to go to South Street?”Shi Yunshu's cold voice was like thunder that exploded in Pei Ruoqing's mind. He looked at him in shock.
Shi Yihong was also shocked." You said he went to South Street alone?”
South Street used to be a gathering place for hooligans, but at the same time, it was also a concentration camp for wealthy families. Almost all the famous families in the capital had a foot in the business of South Street. It could be said that the entire South Street was quite chaotic. The number of police officers on duty every day could not be counted on both hands.
The hooligans were only slightly more peaceful after Ji Linyuan's forceful suppression, but it did not mean that they were safe.
Although South Street was chaotic, it was the place where money came in the fastest in the capital.
Hearing Shi Yihong's question, Shi Yunshu lowered his eyes." I'm not sure. Last Friday, Uncle Qiao's daughter invited us to the World Fragrance Pavilion for her birthday. We saw a person wearing a black mask on the street…"
There was no need to say who this person was. Pei Ruoqing's face was a little pale.
"Little Ruo, what do you have to say?" Shi Yihong put down his crossed legs and tapped his fingers lightly on the table. It was hard to tell whether he was happy or angry.
Pei Ruoqing could no longer sit still. She moved the stool away and stood up." I did go to South Street, but money has nothing to do with me going to South Street…"
He still thought they were suspecting him of getting the money in the wrong way.
Shi Yihong did not have any reaction. Pei Ruoqing looked at Shi Yunshu and he stared at him as if he was the only one in his eyes. As long as Shi Yunshu believed him, he could ignore everything else.
However, Shi Yunshu did not look at him. He lowered his eyes and pushed the pendant in front of him with one hand. The other hand that was hanging by his side clenched tightly. His tone was indifferent." Take it back. I can't afford this gift."”
"Brother, this is me…"
"Take it back. I can't take it."
Disappointment would wear down a person's feelings. When disappointment accumulated bit by bit to a point, all the love would be worth mentioning, right?
I'm sorry, Ruo 'er. I've disappointed you. It's not that I don't believe you, but this kind of relationship is ultimately not the right path.
Pei Ruoqing's face was slightly pale. Her fingers trembled slightly as she took the pendant. Her other hand was clenched tightly. Her joints were pale from the strength she used. With Shi Yunshu's personality, he would naturally not take the topic in that direction. The reason why he did this was to make her misunderstand his meaning. There was only one reason for this. He could tell that he was saying this to make her disappointed and give up.
"It was me that big brother saw at South Street that day. It was also a friend of mine's birthday that day. My friend has some connections there, so my safety will be fine.”
Pei Ruoqing smiled faintly and said in a gentle tone," Zhi Pendant, Teacher, you know that I have a small treasury. Furthermore, I know some foreign languages, so I usually do some translation.”
Speaking of the foreign language that Pei Ruoqing knew, Shi Yihong wanted to call her a pervert!
Pei Ruoqing knew a total of 13 languages, not including Chinese. Every language was at a professional level or above. Even the locals from various countries could not hear any problems with her grammar and accent.
Lin Xiran glared at Shi Yihong and Shi Yunshu." We just came out for a meal, but you guys ruined the good atmosphere."”
Pei Ruoqing smiled and lowered her head without saying a word. Her mother had passed away and her father had been alienated. There were many rumors around her. Even if Pei Ruoqing's determination was far superior to her peers, she was only eight years old at that time. It was never empty talk that she would be injured when she reached the peak of her intelligence. She had depression, insomnia, anorexia, and she had to force herself to not let the people around her see any clues. At that time, the night seemed to be especially long. Only Pei Ruoqing herself knew how much effort she had used to get herself to immerse herself in her studies. Even if she had survived later on, Low blood sugar, stomach problems would probably never get rid of.
Wisdom will hurt, love will not live long. These two sentences were very similar. They were tailor-made for Pei Ruoqing in her previous life.
It seemed that she had to reduce her chances of meeting a psychiatrist in the future. Pei Ruoqing's eyes were gentle and there was nothing unusual about it.
Shi Yihong smiled at Lin Xiran and looked at Pei Ruoqing." Sit down and eat."
Pei Ruoqing had just sat down when her phone rang. She took out her phone and saw that it was An Su. She swiped the answer button and An Su's clear and gentle voice entered her ears, calming Pei Ruoqing's chaotic mood." Little Ruoruo, what are you doing?”
Pei Ruoqing was speechless.
"I'm eating."
"Are you alone? I'll accompany you and treat you to delicious food, okay?”
"Not alone. Maybe next time."
"Ah, Ruoruo baby, it's fine if you don't ask me to eat with you now, but you don't even want to eat with me.”
An Su's pretentious voice made the veins on Pei Ruoqing's forehead pop up.
Feeling the surprised gazes of Shi Yihong and the others landing on her, Pei Ruoqing pressed her forehead helplessly.
"If you have something to say, just say it."
"Hehe! Nothing much. I just signed you up for a dance competition.”
Pei Ruoqing's expression was indifferent." I know. How long is the competition?”
An Su was stunned for a moment, as if she did not expect Pei Ruoqing to have such a reaction. After all, they expected Pei Ruoqing to be very angry and not so calm.
"Next November, there's still a year to go. You don't have to participate in the preliminaries.”
An Su answered subconsciously and asked carefully," Ruoruo, aren't you angry?”
"Didn't you guys already help me sign up? If you're angry, you can choose not to participate.”
An Su didn't say anything. I thought you would be angry. I already thought of how to persuade you.
"Ruo Ruo, are you in a bad mood?”
An Su had always been sensitive to his emotions, so it was not strange that she would ask him this.
Pei Ruoqing's fingers paused." No.”
"If you don't like it, I…"
"No."
It was clearly a random word, but An Su understood what Pei Ruoqing meant.
"I'm still outside. Let's talk about it when you have time to have dinner together.”
" Okay," An Su replied. Since Ruoruo didn't want to talk about it now, he wouldn't ask. When Ruoruo wanted to talk about it, she would tell him.
Dancing was like not practicing for a day. Although he did not give up, there were times when he did not practice. In fact, even if An Su did not secretly help him sign up, he would not have refused. This competition was very important. It did not matter if he participated or not, but in the eyes of many people, he was Teacher Liang's disciple. If he did not show up, it would definitely affect Teacher Liang. Teacher Liang had helped him a lot, so he would not let this happen.
Pei Ruoqing hung up the phone and stuffed it into her pocket. When she looked up, she saw Shi Yihong and the others looking at her.
Shi Yunshu lowered his head with a complicated expression. Shi Yihong raised his eyebrows. Was his little disciple's expression that rare 'interesting' An Su? He had a good relationship with Little Ruo. He actually came to force Little Ruo to do things without making her angry. He wanted to get to know her.
Lin Xiran looked at Pei Ruoqing with a gossipy gaze and said," Little Ruo, are you in love? What's the girl's name and how old is she?"”
Pei Ruoqing almost choked on her saliva when she heard that." Masteress, I'm not in a relationship. The person who called me just now was my friend.”
Lin Xiran smiled and said," Your teacher and I are not the kind of parents who are not open-minded. Isn't it just puppy love? I heard her call you Ruoruo."”
Pei Ruoqing said helplessly," I'm really not in a relationship. We've known each other for eight to nine years and we're quite close. We're just fooling around in private.”
"Oh! Oh, then hurry up and eat. Have you lost weight again? You should eat more. Look, you eat less than a cat.”As she spoke, she placed some food into Pei Ruoqing's bowl.
"Thank you, Masteress. Did I lose weight? Why do I feel like I've gained weight?”
Shi Yunshu lowered his eyes. He was sitting beside Pei Ruoqing, so he could hear her more clearly. Little Ruoruo, An Su? He was the only one who could make Ruo 'er show such an expression. They had known each other for so many years, and it was normal for them to have a good relationship. However, why did she feel so upset?
This book is provided by FunNovel Novel Book | Fan Fiction Novel [Beautiful Free Novel Book]