Green Tea Top Student Falls in Love with Me - Chapter 15

The next day, Shi Wangui was awakened by a tantalizing aroma. With only her and Wen Youren at home, it was clear that Wen was cooking outside.

Rubbing her bleary eyes, Shi Wangui went downstairs in her pajamas, curious to see what Wen Youren was up to and, of course, to snag a meal. No matter how strained their relationship, Wen’s cooking was undeniably good.

“You’re awake,” Wen Youren said, just as she set the dishes on the table. Seeing Shi Wangui in her bunny pajamas lifted her spirits a little. “Go wash up and come eat.”

Shi Wangui craned her neck to see what Wen had made: egg-fried rice, braised shredded potatoes, poached shrimp, and lettuce in oyster sauce.

Not bad, really not bad but who in their right mind eats such a lavish spread first thing in the morning?

Unusual, truly unusual, but she could live with it.

Shi Wangui rushed through her morning routine, changed into a tracksuit, and tied her hair into a quick ponytail before heading back down. She usually preferred leaving her hair down, but today she happened to spot a hair tie on her wrist and decided to use it.

She sat directly across from Wen Youren, picked up her chopsticks, and dug in. So delicious! Honestly, having a live-in helper wasn’t so bad. The previous housekeeper hadn’t been hired just for her, and their schedules rarely aligned but this one was perfect, completely in sync with her own rhythm.

Wen Youren ate quietly, her eyes glued to her phone as she scrolled up and down, though it was unclear what she was doing. Shi Wangui, however, was brimming with curiosity.

“Hey, when did you learn to smoke?” she blurted out. She was genuinely curious, how could the teacher’s pet secretly be into smoking and drinking? How thrilling! And judging by her posture, it definitely wasn’t her first time.

Wen Youren’s scrolling paused. She slowly looked up. “Yesterday.”

Shi Wangui rolled her eyes and jabbed the bottom of her bowl with her chopsticks. “I’m not joking with you.”

“Neither am I,” Wen replied without looking up. “Don’t poke your bowl with chopsticks while eating.”

Shi Wangui instinctively replied, “Oh.”

Oh? Oh, my foot.

“Then when did you learn to drink?” Shi Wangui’s curiosity flared up again.

Wen Youren set down her phone, smiled at Shi Wangui, and casually tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “Tomorrow.”

“Really? Take me with you!” Shi Wangui perked up. She didn’t have any bad habits herself but had always wanted to try some, never quite knowing how to start.

Wen Youren picked up a shrimp with her chopsticks and stuffed it into Shi Wangui’s mouth. “Kids should focus on studying so they can support themselves in the future. Don’t waste time thinking about useless things.”

Shi Wangui retorted, “Aren’t you a kid too? What were you doing yesterday?”

Stop acting all mature, pfft.

“But I study hard,” Wen Youren said, propping her chin in her hands and staring straight at Shi Wangui. “What about you?”

“Shut up and eat your food.” Shi Wangui grabbed a large portion of vegetables with her chopsticks and lowered her head to eat.

She wasn’t the type to make bold claims. If it were anything else, she might have stood up and declared she could do it but this was about academics. That was a different story. She couldn’t boast, because chances were, she wouldn’t be able to deliver.

After finishing her meal, Shi Wangui went to the balcony. The trash can was already empty Wen Youren had cleaned it up. She was clever; smoking on the balcony wouldn’t leave any lingering smell. But upon closer inspection, the flowers were gradually withering, and the tender green stems bore faint traces of damage something that couldn’t be concealed.

“I knew you’d be here.” Wen Youren pushed open the balcony door and walked directly to Shi Wangui’s side, speaking calmly.

Shi Wangui leaned against the balcony railing, ignoring Wen Youren, and simply gazed at the scenery around her. The weather was beautiful today blue skies and white clouds, like a standard elementary school student’s drawing.

Only a little over two years remained of her time living here. Would she miss it? No, there was nothing to miss. A dead mother, a useless father this family bore the surname Shi, Shi Qin’s Shi.

After a moment, Shi Wangui asked, “What are you doing here?”

Then she instinctively glanced at Wen Youren’s pocket. “Smoking?”

Wen Youren grabbed Shi Wangui’s hand and placed it directly into her own pocket before pulling it out again. “I don’t smoke.”

“If you don’t smoke, then why grab my hand?” Shi Wangui hadn’t reacted immediately. She had only asked casually, so why had her hand been shoved into someone else’s pocket?

It was kind of embarrassing.

“I was afraid you wouldn’t believe me. Isn’t letting you catch me red-handed more convincing?” Wen Youren tilted her head and smiled. “Do you believe me now?”

“Tch.”

After leaning there for a while, Shi Wangui went back inside. She hadn’t worn much when she came up, and the sudden breeze made her feel a bit chilly.

Shi Wangui returned to her room, burrowed under the covers, and opened her phone to analyze her recent life. Sun Yi’s life was still as exciting as ever she had gone out to have fun again. The class monitor was still as passionate about studying as always. Wang Hu, just like before, had gone back to his hometown.

As she scrolled, Shi Wangui suddenly wondered about Wen Youren’s life. What had she been like before? Quiet, only studying at school, but like a different person outside. Her hair had grown a bit longer now, reaching past her chin, but the ends were still curly, like a Western noble’s doll.

With such a hairstyle, if left untended, it might look messy, but Wen Youren was different. On her, it always seemed like she was an exquisite princess, crafted with unique styling into something extraordinary.

Shi Wangui stepped out of her room and peeked downward. Wen Youren wasn’t downstairs, so she must have been in her room. She walked to Wen Youren’s door and paused just as her hand touched the doorknob.

What was she doing? Why was she coming to her room?

Wait since when was it her room? This wasn’t even her home. At least for now, it was still my home, right?

What would she say if Wen Youren asked why she was here? That she was hungry? That would be ridiculous, she had just eaten not long ago.

Forget it, no use overthinking.

Shi Wangui knocked on the door.

“Come in.” Wen Youren heard and let her in.

“What’s up?” Wen Youren was sitting at her desk doing homework. Even though she was only a freshman in high school, her desk was already overflowing with various study materials. Her slender frame was squeezed in the middle, barely revealing her face.

Is she insane? Studying at the cost of her health?

“Let me copy your homework.” Shi Wangui glanced around before finally blurting out the words.

“You can try writing it yourself,” Wen Youren said patiently.

“I don’t know how.”

“I’ll teach you.”

Shi Wangui fell silent. They had just gone from enemies to strangers they weren’t nearly close enough for “I’ll teach you.” Teach me, my ass. I’m not learning.

“Just let me copy it. Why do you have to talk so much?” Shi Wangui grumbled impatiently.

Wen Youren looked up, her emotions hidden behind her glasses. Her slender fingers twirled a pen, and a slight smile touched her lips. “Sit next to me while you copy. And try to use your brain a little exams are coming up soon.”

Shi Wangui: “…”

???

What is she even saying?

“If not, then don’t copy my homework,” Wen Youren added, noticing Shi Wangui standing there neither agreeing nor protesting.

“Fine, I’ll sit.”

Shi Wangui went back to her room to get the assignment. Wen Youren’s room used to be a large study, and the desk was bigger than those in the other rooms, it could easily fit three people side by side.

Once she had the homework, Shi Wangui started copying. But as she went along, she began imitating Wen Youren’s handwriting. Their writing styles were completely different, though Shi Wangui still thought her own was better.

Imitating slowed her down. By the end, she realized the characters she copied most accurately were her own name.

“Very similar,” Wen Youren remarked suddenly.

Shi Wangui jumped, instinctively clutching the paper in front of her. She glared at Wen Youren and snapped, “Were you spying on me?”

“Not spying.” Wen Youren propped her head on one hand and tapped the homework notebook with the other. “I just wanted to tell you I finished another assignment. Didn’t expect to find a certain minor fooling around.”

“I was writing carefully, okay?” Shi Wangui felt a twinge of guilt. Everyone gets curious Wen Youren was pretty outstanding, so it was only natural she’d be a little curious.

“Thanks for the compliment,” Wen Youren said with a laugh. “Now I know my handwriting is worth practicing seriously in your eyes.”

Shi Wangui snatched the notebook away and turned her head. “Shut up.”

So damn chatty. How can a grown woman talk so much? People like us who live by our wits should talk less and act more. What kind of villain talks this much when dealing with others? That’s just asking for trouble.

Shi Wangui had a bad habit: whenever she looked at books, her eyes would eventually close, as if they were more effective than sleeping pills. Sure enough, before she finished copying, she fell asleep.

If she’d been racing against the clock in class, she might have stayed awake. But here at home, with only Wen Youren around, the small window open, and the air fresh everything was perfectly conducive to sleep. Once she was out, waking up was nearly impossible.

She had no idea how long she slept, only that her face felt stiff and uncomfortable no matter how she moved. When she opened her eyes, she was alone in the room.

A white jacket Wen Youren’s was draped over her. Wen Youren was gone, no idea where. But the completed homework was neatly placed beside her, with a sticky note attached.

The note read: I don’t recommend copying homework. If you really don’t understand, you can review the first-year material. Take it slow you might even solve a few problems on your own.

“…”

Damn it.

Shi Wangui crumpled the sticky note and tossed it into the trash bin. She had initially thought about throwing her homework in as well, but since she hadn’t finished it herself, she figured skipping a few Sunday evening self-study sessions to catch up might actually feel pretty good.

So, Shi Wangui went back to copying homework. After finishing, she carefully separated their assignments. To avoid any mix-ups, she checked each notebook one by one, worried that her own work might accidentally include Wen Youren’s.

As Shi Wangui stepped out of Wen Youren’s room and opened the door, a fragrant aroma wafted up from the kitchen to the second floor, making her pause in her tracks. She found a suitable angle to peek into the kitchen and could faintly make out Wen Youren’s silhouette from behind.

It’s actually quite nice to have someone at home who cooks.

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