Diagnosis: Friend [Rebirth] - Chapter 32.2

Chapter 32.2

“Jiang Qing.”

The next instant, Jian Wenxin saw a small head pop up from behind the fourth row of seats. “Don’t you get motion sickness? Come sit up front.”

The front row seats were usually reserved for teachers. Sometimes two teachers would board the bus together, but since the Class 2 headteacher had boarded the Class 2 bus, a seat happened to be vacant.

Wang Jiexiao’s face turned various shades of red and white. As he stood up to let Jiang Qing out, he muttered under his breath, “I’m sorry…”

Whether his voice was too low or Jiang Qing simply didn’t hear him, she gave no reaction, walking straight toward the front of the bus.

“Thank you both.” Seeing Yang Lei stroking Zhang Zixi’s back to calm her down, Jiang Qing said with a light smile, “Don’t be angry anymore. Keep a good mood for the hike.”

Zhang Zixi pouted, unafraid of being overheard: “They just annoy me. Truly shameless.”

Yang Lei looked up and smiled at Jiang Qing. “It’s fine. You know what she’s like; she’ll definitely forget all about it once we get off the bus. Alright, alright, we’re about to move. Go to Ms. Jian.”

Jiang Qing nodded and walked back to the first row of the bus.

Knowing Jiang Qing was prone to motion sickness, Jian Wenxin let her take the inner window seat. Catching a glimpse of what the girl was clutching, Jian Wenxin asked curiously, “What are you holding in your hand?”

Jiang Qing opened her palm to reveal a fresh piece of orange peel. “For the motion sickness.”

A strong citrus scent, carrying a hint of bitterness, wafted out. The vibrant freshness dispelled the stale air inside the bus.

Jian Wenxin leaned down to sniff it and raised her eyebrows in praise. “It actually seems to work.”

The bus drove for twenty minutes before stopping at a park parking lot at the base of a small mountain.

Just as Yang Lei had predicted, once they got off the bus, Zhang Zixi completely put the unpleasantness behind her.

The sky was vast, the wilderness boundless; the wind blew through the grass, revealing small flowers. Zhang Zixi was in high spirits, acting like a wild horse as she dragged Yang Lei on a frantic run across the meadow.

Several teachers followed behind the students at a leisurely pace, unable to help sighing about how good it was to be young.

Sunlight spilled over the lush green slopes. As the wind bent the grass, various wild flowers poked their heads out. The girls gathered in small groups, arm in arm, their light figures leaping across the grass. At some point, they suddenly began to compete, charging toward the summit with full momentum and fighting spirit.

Gu Xi had poor physical stamina, and Wen Tao was also quite delicate. Falling behind wouldn’t have mattered normally, but when Gu Yining dragged Jiang Qing past her with a mocking expression, Gu Xi couldn’t stand it. She yelled, “Gu Yining, you wait!” and pulled Wen Tao along, quickening her pace.

The higher they climbed, the broader the view became and the better the scenery. The sky was a deep blue, and the pale green ridges rolled into the distance.

Gu Yining spread her arms, letting the wind blow through her. Her dress billowed out. She gently closed her eyes, feeling the breeze carry the slightly bitter scent of leaves.

And the particularly lovely scent of Jiang Qing’s shampoo.

She looked at Jiang Qing, who was sitting under a tree.

Today, Jiang Qing wore a milky-yellow sleeveless loose dress, her long hair braided behind her head—refreshing and beautiful. After walking for so long, a thin layer of sweat had formed on Jiang Qing’s face. While Gu Yining stopped to frolic, Jiang Qing took the opportunity to rest on a rock under the tree.

The sky was very clear. The cries of large birds drifted from the distance. Sunlight filtered through the leaves, casting dappled shadows; the light falling on her face made her look like a piece of warm, polished jade.

Gu Yining pursed her lips and smiled. Slowly lowering her gaze, she plucked a dandelion from near her feet and tiptoed toward Jiang Qing.

As she drew closer under the bright sunlight, Gu Yining noticed that specks of light seemed to hang on Jiang Qing’s eyelashes, like a row of tiny, glowing candles. Gu Yining froze for a moment, then reached out and tapped Jiang Qing on the shoulder.

Jiang Qing looked up at the sky, not turning around. “What is it?”

Gu Yining said, “Turn around.”

Jiang Qing helplessly turned her head. Before her gaze could land, a flurry of tiny sensations hit her skin. Immediately after, snow-like fluff rushed her face. Her eyes snapped shut at the sudden “attack,” and several strands of fluff caught on her eyelashes.

Gu Yining was very close; her breath seemed to land on Jiang Qing’s face along with the dandelion seeds. Jiang Qing saw Gu Yining’s curving eyes and the bright pupils beneath her dark brows. Her own reflection and the sky were mirrored in those pupils.

Belatedly, Jiang Qing shrank back, raising a hand to block the incoming fluff. The next second, Gu Yining pulled her palm down, and her smiling face appeared in view once more.

Gu Yining reached out to flick the fluff from Jiang Qing’s hair and face, her lips turning up in a smile. “Jiang Qing, your reflexes are too slow.”

Jiang Qing was dazed. It took a long while before she managed a soft “Mhm,” and then she pulled her left hand out of Gu Yining’s grasp.

More people began to arrive at the top.

“Gu Yining!”

Gu Yining turned at the sound. Gu Xi’s face suddenly enlarged before her eyes. Gu Yining thought “Oh no” and tried an emergency retreat, but she was a step too late—dandelion fluff covered her entire face.

Seeing her plan succeed, Gu Xi quickly grabbed Wen Tao and ran further up.

Gu Yining pouted and blew the fluff off her face. Looking down, she saw Jiang Qing pursing her lips to hide a smile. She suddenly felt that being pranked by Gu Xi was worth it. She started laughing too, not forgetting to shout a threat at Gu Xi, who had run ahead to make a face at her: “Gu Xi, you just wait!”

Gu Xi glanced at Jiang Qing, who was still sitting on the ground, and didn’t care at all. Since Jiang Qing hadn’t planned to move yet, it was impossible for Gu Yining to catch up. Considering Gu Yining’s speed, Gu Xi pulled Wen Tao and ran further ahead.

Under the tree, Jiang Qing looked up at her, her eyes flickering. She pursed her lips and asked, “Should we go now?”

“Whenever—” Before Gu Yining could finish, her shoulder was tapped. She turned around.

A repeat performance: dandelions flew into her face. Because Gu Yining’s mouth was open, she swallowed quite a bit. This time, the culprit ran off before she could even see their face clearly; she could only identify them by the manic “Hahahaha” and the strange running style—it was likely her roommates, Chen Yiyi and Sun Zhu.

Gu Yining wiped her face and spat out the dandelion seeds.

“Gu Yining.” Jiang Qing suddenly called her.

“Huh?” Gu Yining looked up.

For the third time, soft dandelion fluff landed on her face. With white fluff already stuck in her hair, Gu Yining was becoming a literal dandelion herself, as if she might drift off to wander the world with her seeds at any moment.

Shallow dimples appeared beside Jiang Qing’s upturned lips as she laughed softly. “Others learn from their mistakes. You just make them over and over until you’re full.”

Jiang Qing’s voice was very light, landing on Gu Yining’s heart like a piece of dandelion fluff, making it itch. Gu Yining rubbed her uncomfortable chest, patted the fluff off her head, and set off to chase Gu Xi and Chen Yiyi. After a few steps, she doubled back and pulled Jiang Qing along to join the chase.

The youths ran across the grass. The wind rushed out from the distant woods, making their shadows on the grass rustle. The sky was as bright as a sea, and the youths were explorers at the bottom of the ocean.

Her gaze followed those running figures. After a long while, Tan Baozhu slowly lowered her eyes and leaned down to pluck a dandelion.

The weather was beautiful today. She was still wearing a uniform dress that looked quite warm—a shirt underneath with a navy blue uniform dress over it. The boy beside her also leaned down to pluck several flowers.

Seeing his actions, Tan Baozhu pulled her hand from his palm and ordered expressionlessly, “Turn your face here.”

The boy obeyed. Tan Baozhu added, “Open your mouth.”

She leaned in close to the boy with a light smile; she could hear his panicked breathing. Some of the dandelion fluff had been blown away by the wind, but it didn’t matter; it still looked like a rounded, translucent little ball. She held the dandelion in front of her mouth, as if to blow it, but didn’t. Instead, she pushed the dandelion forward, right into the boy’s open mouth.

She coaxed him in a gentle tone: “You’re not allowed to spit it out.”

The boy was very obedient and didn’t resist at all. Only when the yellow-green stem of the dandelion was pushed into his mouth did Tan Baozhu laugh again. She said, “How boring.”

At the summit was a BBQ campsite. The shop provided the space and ingredients, and customers grilled for themselves. It was exactly 4:00 PM when they reached the top—just in time for the students to get hungry.

Gu Yining came out of the restroom after washing her hands and bumped into a boy. Her instinctive “I’m sorry” was cut short halfway. She narrowed her eyes and stood squarely in front of him. “Let’s talk.”

Wang Jiexiao took a step back. “I…”

He had nothing to talk about with Gu Yining. Since last semester, every time Wang Jiexiao saw Gu Yining, he could feel her undisguised loathing. It was fine when Jiang Qing was there, but when she wasn’t, Wang Jiexiao suspected Gu Yining might rip him to pieces the next second.

Sure enough, once they moved to a secluded spot under a tree, Gu Yining got straight to the point: “Wang Jiexiao, if you’re even a decent human being, stop harassing Jiang Qing.”

Yang Lei had mentioned what happened on the bus to Gu Yining. Gu Yining had thought that after all this time, Wang Jiexiao would have backed off, especially since Jiang Qing had told him more than once that she didn’t like him. She hadn’t expected him to be so thick-skinned as to still harbor such thoughts.

Having his hidden intentions exposed, Wang Jiexiao became defensive and stared at Gu Yining. “I wasn’t harassing Jiang Qing.”

Gu Yining couldn’t help but laugh out loud; this person’s level of shamelessness was beyond imagination. “You really are so shameless.”

To her surprise, the shamelessness went further.

“As for ‘harassment,’ it’s only harassment if the person involved feels harassed.” The boy puffed out his chest. “I don’t think she hates me, and she doesn’t find it harassing. Even if the jokes go a bit too far sometimes, overall, she doesn’t reject my closeness.”

“On the contrary, Gu Yining, I don’t know why you’re always trying to get between me and Jiang Qing, when clearly—”

Gu Yining interrupted him: “Clearly, Jiang Qing has told you more than once that she doesn’t like you, but you act like you’re deaf.”

The boy said, “That was before. It’s different now. I can feel the change in her attitude toward me. And she was having a great time after we got off the bus today.”

“She was having a great time because being out is fun. Who do you think you are, taking credit for that?” Gu Yining couldn’t stand a person like this and sneered. “Are you trying to say she kind of likes you? Hah, she likes you?”

“Does she like that you’re ugly? Does she like your thick skin? Or does she like that you don’t bathe and jump around like a monkey? Student Wang, don’t you have any friends who will tell you the truth? Even if you don’t have friends, you must have a mirror at home. If you don’t have a mirror, you certainly have urine; can’t you take a piss and look at your own reflection?”

Gu Yining grew angrier as she spoke: “What kind of ugly thing are you, to think you’re worthy of pursuing her?”