Green Plum, Green Plum (22)
“Has the rose bloomed?”
“Wait.”
Shen Yelan’s voice carried a smile: “Then Sister Xu Jiao, you’d better hurry up. My patience isn’t very good, and—”
“In ten minutes, it seems the security guard will come up again.”
……
“Has Sister Xu’s rose bloomed?”
“…”
“Why aren’t you saying anything? Should I just come over and take a look?”
“No! Don’t! It… it has bloomed…”
……
The chair, due to the excessive movement, accidentally bumped into the table, causing Xu Jiao to immediately tense up with nervousness.
Before she could exhale the breath she was holding, a strong light from outside shone through the transparent glass on the classroom door. She bit so hard on her right hand that marks were left on her fingers and the back of her hand. Her eyelashes trembled, and a crystal-clear drop slid down her cheek—it was unclear whether it was a tear or sweat.
Hearing the sound of leather shoes “da, da, da” walking past the door, Shen Yelan sensed Xu Jiao’s tension. She raised her left hand, intending to hold her and calm her down, but as soon as her hand was raised, it was misunderstood. Xu Jiao grabbed it and bit her wrist.
Xu Jiao didn’t hold back her strength—
Shen Yelan felt a sharp pain, and her right hand’s strength slipped out of control. Instantly, she heard a stifled groan escape from Xu Jiao’s mouth.
Shen Yelan kissed Xu Jiao’s earlobe soothingly, letting her bite, her eyes filled with deep emotions. Only her actions of kissing Xu Jiao were extremely gentle, filled with endless tenderness.
……
The sounds of people gradually disappeared from the campus at night.
So, the birds and frogs would occasionally let out a loud cry, then quickly hide in another place.
Xu Jiao followed Shen Yelan, stumbling along the way, heading towards the outside of the campus. At this hour, except for the self-study rooms that were open all night, the dormitory buildings and teaching buildings were already under curfew. To avoid disturbing the dormitory supervisor auntie’s rest, they could only go outside to stay at a hotel.
The two climbed out of a window on the first floor of the old teaching building. At that time, it was very quiet around, not a single person in sight, and no surveillance cameras to record their midnight escapade.
This was because this teaching building had always been considered eerie within the school. It was said that the feng shui wasn’t good when it was built. If any students broke the curfew and stayed inside for too long, they would always end up seeing something they shouldn’t while studying at night.
Even the surveillance cameras installed around the area would develop various issues every couple of months. Over time, without the security guards’ reminders, students who were studying in this old teaching building would automatically start packing up their things and head back when the curfew time approached.
After all, the ghost stories were still freshly circulating around the campus.
Xu Jiao walked much slower than usual. From behind, her movements seemed almost hesitant, as if she didn’t really want to move forward. Sure enough, she stopped near the grove just outside the school gate.
Shen Yelan, who had been walking ahead, heard her stop and also paused, turning back to look at her.
Tonight, the moon was especially round and bright. The tall trees in the nearby grove cast layered shadows that swayed with the varying intensity of the wind along the roadside.
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Xu Jiao squatted on the spot, her face flushed red, even her ears were the color of ripe tomatoes. Clenching her fist marked with teeth imprints, she whispered to her, “N-no, I’m not going.”
Shen Yelan walked back to stand beside her. After a while, Shen Yelan half-squatted down, and in an unprecedentedly gentle tone asked, “Why?”
She reached out to move a strand of sweat-dampened hair from Xu Jiao’s face, her dark eyes showing a hint of playful amusement. Like someone who is particularly reasonable, she said unhurriedly:
“Sister Xu Jiao, you can’t go back on your word.”
“Earlier, you said you didn’t want to continue, and I agreed with you, so now we’re going to the hotel to continue. Why are you backing out again?”
Xu Jiao: “…”
She looked at Shen Yelan’s shameless appearance, her cheeks tightened, and after a while, she finally said, “I can’t walk anymore.”
Shen Yelan extended her hand to her. Just when Xu Jiao thought she was going to let her go, before she could even let out a breath, she heard Shen Yelan say, “Then I’ll lead you by the hand.”
Xu Jiao looked at the outstretched palm in front of her, fell silent again, and seeing no one around, squeezed out from between her teeth, “No need! Just stop that thing, and I can walk by myself.”
She could still hear the buzzing sound from somewhere that was shaking her entire rationality to the point of disintegration. (LP: Ahem… a thing that is *vibrating*)
She was already almost unable to squat anymore, how could she still walk?
Who would have thought that Shen Yelan, this little rascal, who usually looks so proper, would have so many tricks up her sleeve when it comes to this kind of thing… It’s like an old sow wearing a bra—one set after another!
She never stops!
Upon hearing Xu Jiao’s words, Shen Yelan remained silent, not saying a word. The smile in her dark eyes gradually faded. Seeing that Shen Yelan was unmoved, Xu Jiao couldn’t help but soften her voice, coaxing her as if she were placating a child:
“Shen Yelan, don’t bully me.”
Seeing the tears glistening in the corners of her reddened eyes, Shen Yelan was indeed moved by Xu Jiao’s soft plea.
Xu Jiao saw that Shen Yelan responded better to softness than to hardness, so she immediately had an idea. She raised her hand to tug at Shen Yelan’s trench coat sleeve and looked up at the person in front of her. Because she was squatting down, she appeared very short, making her seem even more weak and helpless in Shen Yelan’s eyes, pitiful and vulnerable.
“I want to change the form of compensation now, is that okay?” she asked Shen Yelan.
Shen Yelan looked at her quietly, waiting for her to continue.
Xu Jiao sighed, “If you keep being so unkind, if you do this ten times, I’ll be dead. Your future partner probably wouldn’t be able to stand this kind of treatment from you either.”
Shen Yelan slowly repeated, “Kindness?”
Xu Jiao saw that there was hope, so she paused her voice, regained her composure, and earnestly coaxed, “Right, do you have someone you like? How about I teach you how to pursue your crush, and we can consider it a trade-off for one time, okay?”
Shen Yelan looked straight into her eyes. When Xu Jiao was waiting so anxiously that her body almost trembled, Shen Yelan finally nodded slowly and replied, “Okay.”
Xu Jiao tentatively asked, “So, about the hotel…?” Not going, right? Please say we’re not going!
Shen Yelan saw her unconsciously trembling and thought for a moment, then asked, “How about I carry you on my back?”
Xu Jiao: “…”
Shen Yelan patiently added, “Or I can carry you in my arms.”
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Xu Jiao: “…”
Kids these days are getting harder to fool.
……
Like a pancake being flipped over and over again on the big hotel bed for half the night, Xu Jiao felt a long-lost all-over muscle soreness when she got up the next day.
Dazed and confused, she cursed Shen Yelan in her heart as a little pervert.
What she said last night was indeed not wrong: if it had been a girl with a weaker constitution or more sedentary lifestyle, after being tormented by Shen Yelan once, she wouldn’t think about getting out of bed for a week.
Fortunately, this time, this person surnamed Shen, with a bit of conscience, not only helped her bathe but also ordered breakfast for her, and sat beside her to check her temperature, his voice as always hoarse, sounding raspy.
“Sister Xu Jiao, you don’t have any classes this morning, sleep a little longer.”
Xu Jiao was so exhausted that she couldn’t open her eyes. Her lips moved slightly, and she couldn’t help but ponder in her heart: Did this little bastard plan this?
Just like last summer vacation and also last night, she seemed to have aimed for the times when she had nothing to do the next day, so she could torment her to her heart’s content.
But she was too tired and didn’t have the energy to think too much. Her consciousness became hazy again, and suddenly, the system’s voice abruptly sounded: “Congratulations to the host, successfully reducing the female lead’s blackening value. Currently, Shen Yelan’s blackening value: 75.”
Xu Jiao was instantly shocked.
Almost lost half her life last night, and it only dropped by five points?
That means the remaining eight times at most could only reduce the blackening value by another 40 points—no matter how she calculated, it was a huge loss for her.
She couldn’t keep going like this.
Xu Jiao thought, once she wakes up, she must make a good plan.
……
“Sister Xu Jiao, are you free on Saturday? Can you accompany me somewhere?”
After returning to school from the hotel, Xu Jiao received a text message from Shen Yelan.
Thinking about Shen Yelan’s blackening value and the promise she made to the system, Xu Jiao typed on her phone and replied: “Sure.” As long as she doesn’t drag her to bed, she can agree to anything.
……
B City Impression Clay Museum.
Xu Jiao adjusted her sunglasses and looked up at the name. Standing in the morning light, she couldn’t help but squint her eyes, effectively hiding the confusion in her heart.
Why did Shen Yelan ask her to come here?
At that moment, a husky, slightly raspy voice came from beside her: “Sister Xu Jiao is here.”
It was Shen Yelan’s voice.
Perhaps because the two of them had been too intimate, Xu Jiao found that just hearing the other person’s voice made her ears feel a bit warm. Feeling somewhat uncomfortable, she raised her hand to pinch her ears and nodded at Shen Yelan: “Hmm, why did you ask me to come here?”
Shen Yelan led her inside without rushing to speak, waiting for someone to guide them through the process of making clay crafts.
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Xu Jiao inexplicably spent the whole morning playing with clay.
When the experience was over and they had left, she finally turned to Shen Yelan and asked, “Can you tell me now why we came here?”
Shen Yelan looked at her deeply. After a moment, Xu Jiao heard her say, “Didn’t you want to use something else to offset the previous compensation?”
Xu Jiao realized belatedly: “You want me to learn this to offset it? Sure, what do you want me to do?”
Shen Yelan looked her up and down, pursed her lips, and said, “I want you to use clay to sculpt a miniature version of me, exactly like me in every detail.”
“This can offset one instance of compensation.”
Xu Jiao was momentarily stunned.
Shen Yelan lowered her gaze and asked, “Do you agree?”
To sculpt a lifelike version of herself, Xu Jiao would have to keep her eyes on Shen Yelan constantly, memorizing every detail of her features. Even when she closed her eyes, her mind would be filled with Shen Yelan’s image.
She wanted Xu Jiao to remember her completely, in a different way.