A Cold and Aloof Top Student Is Relied Upon - Chapter 31

Chapter 31: Downpour

◎On the Eve◎

The music studio wasn’t far from the county library. Early in the morning, Gu Zhu saw Gu Baozhi off, got herself ready, and headed out with her pipa.

The weather wasn’t great today. The sky was gloomy and overcast, and the air was heavy and stifling. She had only walked a short distance when a thin, sticky layer of sweat coated her skin.

On the way, she got messages from Li Jiajia and Chang Xiling. Li Jiajia shared a new set of practice questions and told her that the province had released an announcement. In mid-July, students who had passed the city selection would have to attend a summer camp for centralized training. The province hoped all schools would give strong support and have students prepare.

She said the exact time and place would be announced later and to keep it in mind so she could discuss it with her family. Gu Zhu replied with a “received, thank you, Teacher” and, after thinking for a moment, chose a cute cat heart emoji from her collection of emojis she’d gathered while chatting with Bai Tan and sent it.

She then tapped on Chang Xiling’s chat box. The child said a guest had come to her house, and her plans had changed, so she couldn’t come play. Her tone sounded a little gloomy. Gu Zhu said it was okay and comforted her with a few words.

Li Jiajia quickly replied with an emoji as well, saying not to feel pressured and to just keep preparing with a normal mindset. She was busy and didn’t say much more after that.

Gu Zhu put her phone away. She first went to the self-service printer on the first floor of the library to print out the questions, then found a corner seat in the study room on the second floor. She set a vibrating alarm and buried her head in her books.

Suddenly, there was a commotion in front of her. She took off her headphones to look and saw a girl carrying a stack of books who had accidentally bumped into the corner of a table. The books hit the floor with a loud thud.

The girl apologized to everyone in a panic and then knelt down to pick up the books. She didn’t look very old. She was wearing a very plain gray T-shirt and washed-out jeans. She wasn’t very tall, and her face was pale, making her look quite frail.

There weren’t many people in the study room. There were all kinds of people, from students to working adults. The people in front of her glanced up and then went back to what they were doing. Gu Zhu pursed her lips, walked over, and quietly knelt down to help her clean up.

The girl looked at her with a bit of surprise, then thanked her in a very soft voice. “Thank you, student.”

Gu Zhu shook her head and whispered, asking her where the books needed to go. At her gesture, she followed the girl out of the study room.

Outside, the girl was clearly more relaxed. She let out a breath and led the way with the books. “I’m so sorry, I had to trouble you to help me. I must have disturbed your studying.”

“It’s okay.” Gu Zhu followed her and carried the books to another storage room. She listened as the girl said these were all old books, and the ones in the study room were changed regularly, so she would have to go get new books later. She asked Gu Zhu if there were any books she wanted, and she could set them aside for her.

Gu Zhu watched her panting slightly as she leaned on the books. She was clearly tired, but she insisted on talking to her. All the way there, she spoke a lot, as if she would feel awkward if she didn’t say anything. There was a water dispenser by the storage room door, but there were no staff members there at the moment. Gu Zhu walked over, got a cup of water, and handed it to her. “Do you have low blood sugar?”

The girl was stunned for a moment. She took the cup with a trembling hand and drank it all at once. The warm water made her feel a little better, but her head was still a little dizzy. “Wow, are all top students as smart and perceptive as you are? I’m sorry to ask this, but can you please buy me some candy?”

Gu Zhu froze in the middle of pulling a piece of chocolate from her pocket. For a moment, she couldn’t remember where she had seen her before. She wasn’t sure if the other girl was allergic or liked the bitter taste of pure chocolate, so she asked, “Is chocolate okay? It’s a little bitter.”

“If it’s not expensive, it’s okay,” she said. She seemed genuinely embarrassed, propping herself up on a bookcase, her eyes half-closed, and her head bowed in awkwardness.

Gu Zhu peeled the wrapper off the chocolate and held it up to her mouth. Only after she ate it and recovered did Gu Zhu learn who she was. The girl went to the same school and was in the same grade, just a different class. She occasionally worked here part-time.

“Sometimes, when the library needs to reorganize or change the books, they don’t have enough staff, so they’ll hire people. My neighbor’s sister is a purchasing manager here, and she’ll call me when there’s an opportunity.” With the sugar, she felt much better. She stood up straight and smiled at her. “Thank you so much today. When I have time next, I’ll buy you a bubble tea!”

Gu Zhu waved her hand, indicating it was no problem, and returned to her seat to continue the questions she hadn’t finished. When the time was up, she left with her pipa. As she went downstairs, she glanced at the girl, who was still busy. As she left the main entrance, a little wind began to pick up. Before the downpour, even the wind felt hot.

She bought a box of hard candies from a convenience store and went back to the library, asking the security guard downstairs to give them to the girl. Without bothering her further, Gu Zhu left again.

She had lunch at a fast-food restaurant near the music studio. When she arrived early, her teacher hadn’t come yet. After saying hello to the front desk, she went to the practice room and began to attach the fake nails to her fingers, getting herself ready.

When the teacher arrived, he didn’t disturb her. He stood by the door, closing his eyes to listen carefully to her playing. Only when she finished did he speak and walk in. He picked up the pipa, demonstrated where she had made a mistake, and began to correct her.

“The time for this year’s exam is already open. The exam date will likely be the same as in previous years, in mid-to-late August. If you keep practicing at this level, passing should be no problem. If you don’t have any other concerns, the studio will register you.”

The summer camp was in July and usually lasted two weeks, ending in early August. The only thing to worry about was the early start of the third year of high school, which might conflict, but she could always ask for a leave of absence, so there was no need to worry too much. Gu Zhu nodded. “No problem. Thank you, Teacher.”

After confirming the next lesson time with her teacher, she signed the lesson sheet at the front desk and got ready to go home. She texted Gu Baozhi to let her know her schedule, but surprisingly, her mom didn’t reply to any of her messages.

This was extremely rare. Gu Baozhi always carried her phone, and she had set Gu Zhu’s messages as a special contact with a unique ringtone. Even when she was busy, she would make time to reply.

She’s probably just really busy today, Gu Zhu thought. She turned off her screen and got on the bus. The bus was crowded, so she stood and carefully tightened the strap of her pipa case to avoid bumping into anyone.

Her phone suddenly vibrated. It was a message from Bai Tan. The other girl seemed to be busy today, too, as she had been messaging less frequently, and the time between replies was longer.

She opened the message. It was a picture of a living room filled with fresh flowers. The red screen had a theme of cranes and pine trees, and on a mahogany table, there was an enlarged family photo of three generations.

CatLovesNoFish: “Was busy all day today, and now I’m at a birthday banquet tonight. It’s a little boring >.<.”

It was only then that Gu Zhu realized Bai Tan was also at the Lin family’s birthday banquet. She finally felt the reality of Bai Tan being Lin Ye’s cousin. She pursed her lips, her hand gripping her phone. Will she run into Mom? Will Gu Baozhi recognize Bai Tan?

She hadn’t forgotten Gu Baozhi’s aversion to Bai Tan. If her mom knew she was a rich girl, she would probably try to make her stay even further away from Bai Tan.

It wasn’t that she hated the rich, but the existence of a class gap would make Gu Baozhi instinctively feel that they were a mismatch. If they were good friends, others would think she was trying to climb the social ladder, making her lose her dignity and become a target for gossip. Her mom might even think that Bai Tan was just toying with her, and once she was done having fun, she would cast her aside.

After a long time, Gu Zhu finally replied. “When will it end? You can get some rest tonight.”

The reply came quickly. “I won’t stay for long. I’ll eat and then leave. Probably around 9 PM.”

Nine o’clock. Plus cleanup, her mom would probably be back around eleven. With a clear time in mind, Gu Zhu went home, cooked some noodles for dinner, tidied up the house a bit, and set a new alarm.

At 8 PM, the windows in her room vibrated slightly. The heavy wind and rain had started. The metal roof above her rattled loudly. She was brought back from her studies and quickly ran to the balcony to bring in the clothes, making sure to close all the windows in the house tightly.

Suddenly, she remembered the pot of jasmine at her dorm window. Summer downpours always came out of nowhere, and it had been a clear, sunny day when she left school.

I should have brought it back, she thought regretfully, her brow furrowed in worry.

After Bai Tan got home, she sent another message, letting her know she was home safely. She chatted about a few things that had happened today, mentioning that Lin Ye’s family had a little boy who was so spoiled he was a law unto himself. He openly threw a tantrum at the banquet and got scolded by Lin Ye, but then Lin Ye got scolded in return.

CatLovesNoFish: I was originally going to teach her a lesson today, to tell her not to go too far, but then I felt bad and didn’t have the heart to let her get scolded anymore. But if she starts something next time, I won’t be so nice.

CatLovesNoFish: Banquets are so boring. So many people came, and lots of them were trying to suck up. Luckily, I acted super cool, so no one bothered me.

…

Gu Zhu saw her childish words and knew that a rich girl like her wouldn’t be as simple as she was making it sound in such a situation. She had seen her ease and powerful presence when talking to others. She knew Bai Tan was just acting cute to win her affection, and her heart softened a little.

Knowing that she had a long day, Gu Zhu chatted with her for a while and then said goodnight. Time passed without her noticing, and soon the alarm she had set went off.

But Gu Baozhi still hadn’t come back.

Maybe the rain outside is too heavy and she’s stuck.

She pulled open the window and reached out her hand. The heavy rain had passed, and only a fine drizzle remained. Her phone still hadn’t been answered, and her heart felt like it was being squeezed, a sudden feeling of dread.

The incandescent light in the living room was harsh. Some small insects that had flown in from the rain circled the light bulb. The two-bedroom apartment felt especially empty and lonely without one person.

She changed her clothes, grabbed her phone and keys, and got ready to go out to find Gu Baozhi.

Just as she was about to leave, the profile picture that hadn’t moved in a long time finally sent her a message.

“The family I work for is having me stay the night. I can’t come back. It’s raining a lot, so make sure to close the windows and go to bed early.”

With her rain jacket half-on, still hanging from her arm, she quickly replied, asking Gu Baozhi what time she would be back tomorrow. She received a reply saying, “I’m not sure yet,” and a message telling her to rest quickly.

Gu Zhu let out a sigh of relief. She took off her rain jacket and went back inside. She left the nightlight on in the living room and tossed and turned in bed. She didn’t know when she finally fell asleep. She woke up once in the middle of the night, and it was raining again. It would probably be another rainy day tomorrow.

The next day, she woke up early and waited for a message from Gu Baozhi.

Gu Baozhi still hadn’t returned. Gu Zhu waited for a long time, but she didn’t get a message from Gu Baozhi. Instead, she got a call from an unknown number.

Lin Ye’s voice came through.

“Looking for your mom? She’s probably not free to answer you right now…”

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