Chapter 2
Chapter 2
On our way downstairs, Li Yuwei and I drew quite an audience.
Li Yuwei had already slipped into her role as the long-suffering female lead of a wife-chasing story.
She looked at me, eyes brimming with tears: “Xu Jiajia, I’m sorry. I was rude to you. Please forgive me.”
I, too, slipped into my role as the spiteful supporting female character and gave a cold, scornful laugh.
“Now that you know your attitude was bad, you’d better be nicer to me from now on. Tch, all this bickering with you made me skip breakfast. Go to the cafeteria and get me some: two meat buns, a bowl of soy milk, and a tea egg. And don’t put sugar in the soy milk.”
Li Yuwei glanced at Lin Xiyan, her lips pressed into a pout, her eyes red, sniffling as she shuffled off downstairs to buy my breakfast.
Lin Xiyan craned his neck to watch her leave, then leaned in to whisper in my ear.
“Awesome, how did you do that? She didn’t cause a scene?”
I leaned in and whispered back.
“Cause a scene? Oh, she tried. But would I let her get away with that? I grabbed her by the hair and said, ‘If you make a fuss again, I’ll have Lin Xiyan set you straight. I’m the woman he loves now. If you know what’s good for you, you’ll behave!’ And just like that, she shut up.”
Lin Xiyan looked at me with a mix of reverence and awe.
He remarked, “So the queen was right beside me all along.”
Our hushed exchange only further cemented my identity as his “sister-in-law.”
Back in class, my deskmate voluntarily wiped clean the desk I’d scribbled insults on, and even helped throw away my tea egg shell.
Sipping from my straw, I asked, “Do I still need to swap shoes?”
My deskmate immediately said, “I’ll swap, I’ll swap! These genuine ones are really chafing my feet. Yours look so comfortable-you’ve got great taste.”
Hah, so this was the power of being the sister-in-law!
No wonder male celebrities’ girlfriends can’t resist flaunting their status.
I slurped down my soy milk and spent the morning immersed in studying, feeling utterly refreshed.
However, before lunch break, the homeroom teacher called me in for a talk.
The bullying clique in our class was led by my deskmate, and the homeroom teacher was a distant relative of her family.
It was said that he got his teaching position here thanks to her family’s connections.
So he’d always acted as their protector, turning a blind eye to my mistreatment.
“Xu Jiajia, you’ve really done it now!” The homeroom teacher banged his stainless steel thermos on the table. “Openly dating a boy? And making a spectacle of it? I used to think you were an honest kid, but it turns out your morals are completely crooked! Call your parents-I must see your parents!”
I put on a troubled expression. “My parents can’t come.”
“Can’t come? What do you mean, can’t come?! Get your parents here right now, or you’ll be suspended and forced to reflect at home!”
His booming voice echoed down the hallway.
Dejected, I left the office. My deskmate and a few eavesdroppers scurried away.
Left with no alternative, I sent a message to my brother, asking if he was busy.
My brother is three years older than me and attends university in this city.
People say an elder brother is like a father, but mine isn’t just good at being a dad-he’s also a pro at being a mom.
My mother died early, and my father was a scumbag who got himself locked up and still hasn’t gotten out.
When we were kids in the countryside, we were pariahs because of our father.
I was constantly bullied by other kids, sniffling and crying all day.
Back then, my brother, just stepping into adolescence, took me away from our hometown to study in the county seat.
I was too young to understand; I complained that our rented place in the county leaked rain, crying and begging to go home.
Mopping the floor, my brother would stop to wipe my nose and say, “From now on, this is our home. I’m here, don’t cry.”
Later, as we moved from the county to the city for school,
my brother’s mother-hen traits became even more apparent.
He juggled part-time jobs and studies while taking care of me.
Luckily, both of us had good heads on our shoulders, and our scholarships eased many burdens.
Even so, my brother worked himself to the bone, and I really didn’t want to add to his troubles.
Just as I was thinking this, my brother’s reply came through.
Ge Mi: [A bit busy. Missing your bro? I’ll come see you when I’m free. Take care of yourself.]
Ge Mi: [My part-time pay just came in. I transferred 500 yuan to your card. You mentioned wanting new shoes, right? If you like them, buy them. Don’t be too hard on yourself.]
I covered my face in despair.
My brother hates to complain about being tired or overworked.
So saying “a bit busy” means he’s so slammed he doesn’t even have time to sleep.
How could I burden him at a time like this?
Just as I was fretting, Li Yuwei sneakily crept up beside me.
“Hey, Xu Jiajia, how about this: at lunch, you go sit with Brother Xiyan. I’ll walk by with a bowl of soup. You purposely push me over and warn me to stay away from Brother Xiyan. What do you think?”
I gave her a deadpan look. “Is that shit?”
Li Yuwei: ?
“Slip of the tongue. I meant, what’s that?”
Li Yuwei blinked her big, watery eyes, all innocence. “The classic wife-chasing crematorium, duh.”
Fed up with the whole “call parents” mess,
a lightbulb went off in my head. I grabbed her hand excitedly.
“Forget that! Have your mom take me in as her goddaughter! I’ll steal all the love, leaving you to lick your wounds alone in a corner. If Lin Xiyan has any shred of humanity, he’ll definitely go comfort you!”
Li Yuwei was stunned.
“Whoa, no wonder you’re an honor student-your brain is amazing. What layered plot!”
“Yeah, yeah, hurry up and get your mom to come to school and deal with the homeroom teacher for me.”