Chapter 21: A Ripple Appeared In Wei Qingyu's Eyes
This translation was originally posted on https://love4baihe.blogspot.com please read it there. and check out other stories too.
The night breeze gently brushed the girl's skirt, creating curves reminiscent of tea flower petals.
Wei Qingyu's gaze fell upon Ji Xiao's eyes, which shone even more brightly than starlight. Her hand, hidden behind the skirt, awkwardly gripped the fabric.
"Why are you standing there? Come over and eat," Ji Xiao said, noticing Wei Qingyu standing in the doorway. She quickly gestured and took the main seat, adding, "Aren't you hungry?"
Wei Qingyu calmly withdrew her gaze when she heard this, played with her skirt, and sat in the vice seat to Ji Xiao's left.
Ji Xiao looked at this full table of delicacies and said, "How is it? Isn't it very rich?"
Those eyes sparkled, and for the first time, the golden-orange color did not have an intimidating aura, but filled with intense anticipation.
Wei Qingyu's eyes blinked unnaturally twice, instantly shifting her gaze to the dining table.
She was surprised that she actually made a positive evaluation of Ji Xiao in her heart, nodded her head, and said, “Mm."
Ji Xiao smiled after receiving Wei Qingyu's affirmation.
She rolled up her sleeves, took the knife and fork, and said, "Let's start eating, no need for too many rules tonight. It's a festival, do as you wish. I won't argue with you!"
After saying that, Ji Xiao didn't wait for Wei Qingyu to pick up the knife and fork; she eagerly started with the Australian lobster in front of her.
She had been in high-intensity activity all day, and her wrist still hurt from swinging the bat at Ji Qingyun. While instructing Aunt Wu to arrange dinner just now, her stomach couldn't resist protesting the tempting aroma.
If it weren't for the survival instinct and conscience holding her back, Ji Xiao even contemplated not waiting for Wei Qingyu and devouring the whole table of dishes alone, leaving her, who arrived late, with leftovers.
She has to admit, Aunt Wu's character may be questionable, but her cooking skills are exceptional.
The lobster meat is tender and flavorful, and the milky fragrance perfectly blends with the charcoal-grilled taste, masking the salty seafood flavor and creating a wonderful burst of delicious texture on the tip of the tongue.
Ji Xiao enjoyed devouring more than half of the lobster, tactfully leaving Wei Qingyu's portion untouched and silently shifting her gaze to other battlegrounds.
From Wellington steak to marinated abalones, from Western cuisine to Chinese dishes.
Ji Xiao, this Alpha, was like a whirlwind, devouring everything with fierceness, showing no trace of being a young lady.
Wei Qingyu looked at Ji Xiao's bulging cheeks and took a sip of her drink.
This appearance was exactly like the hamster she had once raised, which crazily hoarded nuts and bread crumbs.
The lychee-flavored sparkling water slowly blossomed on Wei Qingyu's taste buds, leaving a gentle tingling sensation in her mouth.
She remembered coming to the Jis’ house often when she was a child, playing with Ji Xiao and that little hamster.
Back then, they had no concept of life and death, thinking that the little hamster would be a part of their lives forever.
Yet, in just a few years, the little hamster was frightened to death on a stormy night, much like their friendship.
"Hey, what are you thinking? Your brows are furrowed."
Ji Xiao's voice suddenly sounded next to Wei Qingyu's ear, and a delicately wrapped square box approached her line of sight.
Wei Qingyu quickly caught it, and on the golden packaging box was printed a puppet bunny.
As one side of the intricately carved box was opened, the little bunny's pink and fluffy ears would twitch, looking exceptionally cute.
"I heard that these were mooncakes that were specially supplied to the palace in the past. Let me give you a try." Ji Xiao appeared by the wooden flower bed behind at some point, sitting, and had a carefree demeanor.
Wei Qingyu was already accustomed to Ji Xiao's mannerisms, so without much surprise, she opened the packaging and took a bite of this exquisite mooncake.
Although it was said to be specially made for the palace, the taste wasn't much different from regular mooncakes.
Wei Qingyu chewed gently, the dense yolk flowing on her taste buds. Though the filling was finer, it couldn't compare to the mooncakes from the old shop on South Street.
Wei Qingyu looked at the box in front of her that was printed with "Made in the Palace".
Sure enough, after all these years, this person's taste still hasn't improved at all and is just superficial.
Wei Qingyu thought about it and looked up at the moon in the sky, and couldn't help but think of a poem...
"Today's people can't see the ancient moon—"
Ji Xiao recited Li Bai's poetry with a distinctive tone.
She wondered if her parents and friends in another world were also admiring such a beautiful moon.
A ripple appeared in Wei Qingyu's eyes.
Just a moment ago, the poem she was about to recite in her heart was indeed the same line.
Wei Qingyu looked at Ji Xiao in surprise, listening to her slowly recite the second half of the verse: "Today's moon has once shone on ancient people!"
The night breeze gently caressed the surrounding leaves, stirring the pure moonlight.
Ji Xiao finished speaking and stepped onto the wooden surface. Her long, black hair lifted with the wind, and every corner of her eyes and brows exuded an elegant and extraordinary charm.
The aroma of peach brandy lingered in the night sky, sprinkling faintly on Wei Qingyu's heart like scattered stars.
She had to admit that she had a narrow impression of Ji Xiao.
….
This translation was originally posted on https://love4baihe.blogspot.com please read it there. and check out other stories too.
Yellow maple leaves rustled down from the trees, covering the path between the teaching building and the basketball and volleyball courts in a blanket of golden color.
The autumn sports meeting of the Affiliated High School will also come as scheduled this October.
In the first year, most are grouped without distinguishing gender, and there is enthusiastic participation.
By the second and third years, with classmates mostly having differentiated, the sports festival added Alpha, Omega, and Beta groups. Those who actively participated and won before differentiation often became Alphas. Convincing the physically weaker Omegas to join sports events became a nightmare for every sports committee member in the second and third years.
Especially for the experimental class that usually focuses on studies, every sports festival becomes a countdown.
With Director Liu being dismissed and the new director yet to take office, this time the sports festival is personally supervised by the principal. There is an active call for Omegas to participate, with the requirement that each class must have at least one person participating in each Omega event.
For this, Feng Ming specifically assigned the task of signing up for the sports festival events in the class to the small sports committee and the troublemaker Ji Xiao from the previous grade.
"How about trying the 1500 meters? I think it suits you."
"In fact, 1500 meters is not tiring at all. I'll be with you the whole time, cheering you on."
"Just give it a try, just in case."
….
Wei Qingyu had just come out of the office and walked to the door of the class with her math paper in hand. She saw Ji Xiao in the class standing in front of the desk of an Omega classmate, saying something sincerely.
"Qingyu, is this your math quiz from last week? Can I borrow it to look at during the sports period later? I won't disturb you while you're working on problems."
At that moment, a girl walking from the direction of the boiling water room stood beside Wei Qingyu and cautiously asked.
Wei Qingyu hesitated for a moment.
Because Ji Xiao, a math genius and an Alpha, joined the class, most of the Omega students in the class usually asked her to borrow papers.
Why did she suddenly abandon Ji Xiao and come to borrow papers from her this time?
However, Wei Qingyu didn't want to speculate on others' thoughts. Without asking anything, she just agreed, "Okay."
The girl looked at the paper handed to her by Wei Qingyu with sparkling eyes, "You're really nice; I don't dare ask Ji Xiao for it now."
Wei Qingyu didn't show dissatisfaction with the girl's somewhat resigned tone. Instead, she asked, "Why?"
The girl sighed, waving the 1500 meters registration form that Ji Xiao had stuffed into her hands, "It's all because of the Omega 1500 meters. No one in the class signed up, and Ji Xiao is worried. I'm afraid if I go to her, she'll drag me into running the 1500 meters..."
After hearing this, Wei Qingyu shifted her gaze to Ji Xiao, who was still tirelessly persuading the class, with a complex expression.
Agreeing to the task assigned by Feng Ming is one thing.
Persisting and overcoming the tough parts is another.
How could someone who has been accustomed to being praised not give up after being rejected so many times?
Even if Ji Xiao is determined to make this succeed.
Given her past personality, she would usually randomly pick an unlucky person in the class, forcefully make them fill out the registration form, and submit it.
Why is she now patiently persuading Omega classmates like this?
"Hey, I remember you won the 1500 meters last year, right? Why don't you go? Winning another first place would be impressive!" the girl urged.
Upon hearing this, Wei Qingyu calmly shifted her gaze away from Ji Xiao in the classroom and said casually, "She didn't ask me."
The sunlight filtered through the thick clouds, concealing the depth of the girl's eyes.
She walked into the classroom and found a deliberately forgotten registration form on her own bookshelf.
….
After persuading for a while, Ji Xiao sat on the steps outside the corridor, feeling parched.
Though it was partly cloudy, she found the sunlight particularly glaring.
Qi Qi and Fang Yiming's class walked by, each carrying three cups of milk tea. From a distance, they could see Ji Xiao sitting by the pillar, looking distressed.
"What's wrong, you look so worried?" Qi Qi handed her milk tea, saying, "Your favorite Taro Pearl and Herbal Jelly."
Ji Xiao thanked her and took a big sip of the milk tea.
After the sweetness of the taro pearls eased her inner distress, she said, "It's all because of the sports festival."
Fang Yiming sat beside Ji Xiao and asked, "Why, haven't you settled the list for your class' sports festival? It's already in the afternoon, and other classes have submitted theirs."
"We've sorted out everything else. I'll take the Alpha's 1500 meters, but for the Omega's women's 1500 meters, I've tried to persuade, and not a single person volunteered," Ji Xiao said sadly.
"I don't know who the hell came up with the idea of having Omega run the 1500 meters. Why hasn't this event been removed?" Ji Xiao complained, taking another strong sip of her milk tea.
Qi Qi shrugged, "There's nothing we can do. After all, the new women's Omega world record for 1500 meters was set by our country this year. The school naturally pays more attention to this event."
Fang Yiming nodded in agreement.
Suddenly, she slapped her thigh, "Hey, why not just pull one of the Omegas from your class to deal with it?"
Ji Xiao knew this was a trick often used by the original owner, but she refused to go along with it now. She immediately rejected, "This is a society governed by law now; we can't coerce someone, okay?”
Ji Xiao continued, "Omegas naturally have weaker physical abilities. If you forcibly push someone in, and something happens, won't your conscience be uneasy?"
"Well, you're right... let's forget about it," Fang Yiming sighed and gave up on the idea.
"I remember that last year, the women's 1500 meters for your experimental class was won by Wei Qingyu, right? And she even got first place," Qi Qi suddenly recalled. "Is she not participating this year?"
"I didn't look for her," Ji Xiao shook her head, making an excuse for Wei Qingyu, "Her health isn't great, so I excluded her from the 1500-meter preliminary list."
"Oh? Is this considered abusing your power for personal gain?" Qi Qi teased, giving Ji Xiao a playful nudge.
"What abusing power for personal gain? She's not the only Omega with health issues I excluded in our class," Ji Xiao denied the accusation, looking at Qi Qi who had a teasing expression.
Although every slot needed to be filled, it was inappropriate to force someone into it. In case something happened, it wouldn't be good.
As a reserve teacher, she felt it was necessary to have this level of consciousness.
Moreover, considering how long it took for Wei Qingyu to recover from the torment by the original owner, she didn't know if her body had fully recovered from the damage yet.
Although Wei Qingyu usually had good physical performance, Ji Xiao didn't want her to take this chance. If something went wrong, she would only blame herself and it would be a big loss.
"Wei Qingyu's hand injuries haven't fully healed yet. Don't you Alphas understand the concept of compassion?" Ji Xiao added.
"But what's the problem with running if it's a hand injury?" Fang Yiming pondered.
"That's right~" Qi Qi chimed in.
Ji Xiao couldn't stand the teasing looks from the two and exclaimed, "Hey, what do you think of me? Just look at Wei Qingyu's petite frame; it's not suitable for her. If something happens, I'll have to take responsibility! It's so annoying!"
"Ji Xiao."
A soft call sounded after Ji Xiao's high tone.
Under the greenish-yellow tree shade, a neatly filled-out registration form with personal information fell from above Ji Xiao's head.
The sunlight highlighted her focus on that hand in the center of her vision, smooth as jade, fair, and delicate. The index and middle fingers, pressed by the signing pen, still retained a faint red imprint on the side.
Ji Xiao turned to look at the person standing behind her, the white shirt outlining the girl's usual aloofness.
Wei Qingyu's thin lips parted as she said, "This is my registration form for the 1500 meters."
Author's Note:
Coward Ji: This article is also called "About the fact that every time I say something bad about the heroine, the heroine hears it."
Cold Wei: Then I'll blacken.
