Zhuang Zi'ang took three steps at a time, rushing to the corridor outside the classroom: "Why are you here?"
Su Yudie pulled out a tube of medicine from behind her: "This is for you. The doctor said it can treat nosebleeds."
Zhuang Zi'ang reached out and took it. It was an ordinary hemostatic medicine.
Of course he knew that this medicine couldn't cure his illness.
But he still smiled faintly: "Thank you."
"It's still early for class. Do you want to come sit over there with me?" Su Yudie pointed to a flower bed not far away.
"Of course." Zhuang Zi'ang nodded quickly.
In the flower bed, there were calla lilies, hyacinths, wisteria, and more.
Colorful and vying for beauty.
Several butterflies fluttered and lingered among the flowers.
Su Yudie straightened her skirt, bent her knees, and sat on the edge of the flower bed.
"Did your parents like yesterday's strawberry cake?"
Zhuang Zi'ang's heart tightened at her words.
He didn't dare to say that the exquisite strawberry cake was overshadowed by Zhuang Yuhang's massive birthday cake, making it seem worthless.
His experience returning home was also not pleasant.
Such a pure and innocent girl must believe that the world is beautiful everywhere.
So, he decided to fabricate a lie.
"Thanks to your idea, my younger brother really liked that cake. His mouth was covered in cream from eating it."
"Father was also very happy. He asked about my studies, and when he learned that I had come in first again, he gave me a big hug."
"Auntie made a big table of delicious food and kept putting food on my plate, praising me for being smart and sensible."
A gentle breeze blew, bringing a faint scent of flowers.
Su Yudie hugged her knees, slightly raised her head, blinking her lively eyes, and quietly listened to Zhuang Zi'ang's narration.
The sound of playing ball on the playground, the noise from the teaching building, and the chirping of birds in the woods all seemed to have disappeared.
The whole world was left with just the two of them and the blooming flowers behind them.
The scene Zhuang Zi'ang described had appeared countless times in his dreams.
He thought he could tell it flawlessly, but his heart felt tightly clenched.
The smile he forced onto his lips was incredibly stiff.
He had been a good child since he was little, so he was naturally not good at lying.
"Zhuang Zi'ang, you are a Big Idiot." Su Yudie suddenly spoke.
"Why are you scolding me?" Zhuang Zi'ang was taken aback.
"You're lying to me. Friends should tell the truth." Su Yudie gently bit her lower lip.
"I'm sorry..." Zhuang Zi'ang apologized in a low voice, his voice a little hoarse.
Many times, the truth is cruel.
He didn't want to pass his sadness on to his friend.
"Zhuang Zi'ang, are you still very sad?" Su Yudie asked softly.
Zhuang Zi'ang nodded, then shook his head.
"Then after school at noon, I'll take you to eat something delicious again. You wait for me here."
"Ah? Okay!"
It was almost time for class. Su Yudie stood up, waved to Zhuang Zi'ang, and then skipped away.
That vibrant peach blossom also bobbed up and down in Zhuang Zi'ang's line of sight.
In a blink of an eye, the girl's figure disappeared into the crowd.
Zhuang Zi'ang held the medicine tube in his hand, its touch warm and smooth.
Back in the classroom, Li Huangxuan immediately leaned over: "Son, who was that girl?"
Zhuang Zi'ang replied: "I told you last night, she's the girl I met under the ginkgo tree. You didn't believe me then."
"I believe it now. No wonder you skipped class for her."
Li Huangxuan deliberately raised his voice: "Compared to that girl, Lin Mushi is really too ordinary."
Lin Mushi had been listening in, with one ear perked up.
At this moment, she turned around and gave Li Huangxuan a murderous look.
She then gazed deeply at Zhuang Zi'ang again, her mood exceptionally complex.
It seemed she was genuinely a tiny bit jealous.
Zhuang Zi'ang was handsome, had good grades, and a gentle personality.
Such a good boy was hard to find, even with a lantern.
The class bell rang. This was homeroom teacher Zhang Zhiyuan's Chinese class.
After the students stood up and greeted him, he waved for everyone to sit down.
"Before class, let me say one thing. Student Zhuang Zi'ang resigned from his position as class monitor this morning, and I have approved it."
The students immediately began to whisper.
"He really resigned? No one in our class is more suitable to be class monitor than him."
"That's right, Zhuang Zi'ang has done a lot for everyone in the past two years."
"Speaking of which, he has always been the pride of our class."
Xie Wenyong was extremely shocked. He had thought Zhuang Zi'ang's talk of resigning just now was merely a joke.
Unexpectedly, it was true.
Was the class monitor position he had yearned for truly just a dead mouse in his eyes?
Zhang Zhiyuan said emotionally: "Classmates, let's all applaud and thank Student Zhuang Zi'ang for his past contributions to the class."
Led by him, thunderous applause echoed in the classroom.
Zhuang Zi'ang looked around, gazing at the familiar faces, and a wave of reluctance surged in his heart.
In three months, he would never see them again.
His classmates were all very lovely. He thanked them for accompanying him through his youth.
The class monitor's resignation, with the vice class monitor taking over, was a matter of course.
Xie Wenyong got his wish and became class monitor, but he couldn't be happy at all.
He could only get what Zhuang Zi'ang didn't want.
Jealousy made him somewhat distorted.
Zhuang Zi'ang had no time to bother with others and began to focus wholeheartedly on what to eat for lunch.
School ended at twelve o'clock and resumed at half past two, with the time in between for lunch and a nap.
During this period, students could come and go freely, with no curfew.
He finally endured until twelve o'clock, and the bell for dismissal and lunch rang.
Li Huangxuan clapped Zhuang Zi'ang on the shoulder: "Son, are we still eating at the cafeteria today?"
"I have something to do. You find someone else!" Zhuang Zi'ang peered out the window at the flower bed.
"What do you have to do? Don't we usually eat lunch together?" Li Huangxuan wondered.
"I'll explain later, I'm leaving now." Zhuang Zi'ang hurriedly packed his school bag and rushed out of the classroom.
Li Huangxuan's eyes widened, feeling abandoned.
When he saw Zhuang Zi'ang by the flower bed, waiting for the girl with the peach blossom tucked behind her ear, he felt like his lungs were about to explode with anger.
"Damn it, he's got a girl and no humanity, he's an animal, an animal!"
As soon as Zhuang Zi'ang saw Su Yudie, his smile broadened, and he tentatively asked: "Which floor is your class on? You came down quite fast."
"Fifth floor! I ran down because I wanted to see you." Su Yudie panted slightly.
A glimmer of light flashed in Zhuang Zi'ang's eyes.
Am I also worth someone running to meet?
"What do you want to eat? I can treat you to anything." Zhuang Zi'ang said.
"Let's have a small hot pot. It has so many dishes."
When food was mentioned, Su Yudie looked like she was about to drool.
"Eating a small hot pot at noon, aren't you afraid of smelling like it?"
"Why worry so much? Just eat what you want to eat!"
This girl was truly carefree. Being with her made him feel much more cheerful.
She was clearly so beautiful, yet she refused to be a quiet beauty.
She skipped when she walked and chattered when she spoke.
Just like a happy Xiao Hudie.