How I Accidentally Bent My Best Friend - Chapter 62

Lu Wei smacked her lips, put down the plate with an air of pride, crossed her arms, leaned back in her chair, and snorted through her nostrils. “I said the cake was delicious.”

“Oh.” Chen Yushu raised an eyebrow slightly and turned her gaze back to the stage.

So mad, so mad! Why didn’t she come to complain to me about that guy? Why didn’t she scold him?!

Lu Wei glanced at Chen Yushu’s profile, her frustration growing even more intense. She then shifted her glare to the guy, shooting him several fierce looks.

A moment later, she regretted not acting sooner, which only added to her irritation.

Soon, the performances ended amidst laughter and cheers. Everyone seemed satisfied except for Lu Wei, who still wore a sour expression.

After a short break, the volunteers moved to the main hall to make dumplings with the elderly for dinner.

“What’s wrong with you?” Chen Yushu asked, puzzled, as she looked at the person beside her.

Lu Wei was aggressively kneading the dough, her expression dark as if the dough had some deep-seated grudge against her. Yet, her tone was light as she replied, “Nothing.”

Hearing this, Chen Yushu didn’t press further and continued rolling out dumpling wrappers.

This only made Lu Wei more uncomfortable. A vat of vinegar seemed to be churning in her stomach she was filled with resentment but had nowhere to vent it, leaving her utterly stifled.

Once the preparations were done, the volunteers and the elderly began wrapping dumplings together. Aside from meat and vegetable fillings, some dumplings contained coins as symbols of luck and happiness.

Lu Wei, still in a gloomy mood, focused solely on her task. Chen Yushu gave her several odd looks, hesitating to speak.

The more this happened, the more Lu Wei doubled down, deliberately keeping a stern face and avoiding Chen Yushu’s gaze.

Hmph, she wasn’t over it yet!

Soon, the wrapped dumplings were boiled and served plate by plate, steaming hot.

Chen Yushu fetched the condiment dishes and, after finishing her tasks, casually took an empty seat. The moment she sat down, she felt someone drag a chair heavily next to her.

The melody of the song still echoed in Lu Wei’s mind, making her so agitated she felt like banging her head against the wall. Her irritability was completely unconcealed.

Chen Yushu glanced at her, picked up a bottle of light soy sauce, and poured some into her dish. “Why the long face? Who owes you money?”

“No one.” Lu Wei’s reply was filled with reluctance, her heart still unsettled.

Chen Yushu frowned in confusion, put down the soy sauce, and turned to reach for the vinegar.

Seeing this, Lu Wei pressed her lips together, snatched the vinegar bottle first, and poured a large amount into her own dish.

Chen Yushu waited beside her, watching her actions with surprise. As Lu Wei finished, she reached for the bottle, but Lu Wei snatched it away again and poured a full dish of vinegar.

“How are you going to eat with so much vinegar?” Chen Yushu asked, frowning.

Lu Wei silently placed the vinegar bottle in front of Chen Yushu, but the moment she reached for it, Lu Wei grabbed it back again.

Chen Yushu’s pupils contracted slightly, her face clearly saying, “Are you out of your mind?” She gritted her teeth and held back, wanting to see what this person was up to.

Her dish was already full. Lu Wei glanced down and then proceeded to pour vinegar directly onto the plate of dumplings.

Chen Yushu could no longer hold back. She grabbed Lu Wei’s hand holding the vinegar bottle and lifted it. “What are you doing? Who’s going to eat dumplings with this much vinegar?”

“I am,” Lu Wei shrugged, wearing an indifferent expression.

Chen Yushu pursed her lips, rolled her eyes in exasperation, and said, “You’d better finish it all.”

“Fine, eat it all then.” Lu Wei said irritably, dumping a large amount into the plate as if venting her frustration.

“Are you done yet?” Chen Yushu grew impatient and reached directly for the vinegar bottle. “Let me pour some first.”

Lu Wei immediately dodged her hand and said sarcastically, “You already have your honey, why do you need vinegar?”

“What?” It took Chen Yushu a moment to process Lu Wei’s words. She paused, tilting her head as she carefully studied Lu Wei’s expression before suddenly understanding. Tentatively, she asked, “Are you jealous? Because I was with.”

Lu Wei wanted to deny it, but she wasn’t one to hold back her feelings. She let out a heavy snort.

“Is that all?” Chen Yushu gave her a meaningful look, though her tone remained indifferent.

“What do you mean, ‘is that all’?” Lu Wei moved the vinegar bottle far away, her temper flaring. She wanted to vent, but the next moment, she found herself at a loss for words.

Chen Yushu took in her expression, her heart tightening slightly. She pretended to be casual as she asked, “It was just singing. Why are you so jealous?”

“I, ” Lu Wei opened her mouth but her mind went blank. Suddenly realizing she was being too obvious, she panicked and tried to recall how she would normally react. Putting on a bold front, she said, “Of course I’m jealous! You were singing so sweetly with him right in front of me!”

Chen Yushu closed her eyes, hiding a faint trace of disappointment, and said impatiently, “There’s nothing between us. Do you have to be so petty?”

Though she meant every word, it came out sounding insincere. Using the excuse of friendship to mask her jealousy, Lu Wei suddenly felt annoyed. This wasn’t what she truly wanted to express.

The atmosphere grew silent, and Lu Wei’s mood worsened. She picked up a dumpling and stuffed it into her mouth, only to be immediately overwhelmed by the sharp, sour taste of vinegar, her face scrunching up in distaste.

“Serves you right,” Chen Yushu mocked unkindly. “Remember to finish it all.”

Lu Wei felt like she had no way to defend herself, unable to voice her grievances. She couldn’t help but retort sarcastically, “What do you know? Vinegar makes it taste amazing! Way better than your honey!”

“You! Are you seriously not done yet?” Chen Yushu gritted her teeth, glared at her, then reined in her anger and looked at her with amusement. “Fine, if it’s so good, keep eating. Don’t stop.”

Lu Wei scowled. “I will!”

After finishing a plate of vinegar-soaked dumplings, Lu Wei felt her tongue go numb from the sourness. Every exhale carried the strong scent of vinegar. Unable to bear it any longer, she stood up and went to the kitchen to rinse her mouth with a large glass of water.

Once the vinegar taste had faded slightly, Lu Wei turned to go back and saw Chen Yushu standing at the doorway.

Chen Yushu sighed and pulled a carton of milk from behind her back, handing it over. “You brought this on yourself. Here, take it.”

“I don’t need it,” Lu Wei said, glancing at it and deliberately acting petty. “Besides, you already have your honey. Why bother with milk?”

The atmosphere shifted abruptly.

Chen Yushu’s grip on the milk carton tightened, her anger skyrocketing.

Lu Wei’s confidence instantly deflated. She swallowed nervously, wondering if she had gone too far.

After staring at her for a few seconds, Chen Yushu threw the milk at her and turned away sharply.

Lu Wei instinctively caught it. Watching Chen Yushu’s retreating figure, a mix of emotions surged within her, clogging her chest and making it hard to breathe.

A few seconds later, a sour ache welled up in her eyes. Lu Wei tilted her head back to look at the ceiling, desperately holding back her tears, but a wave of immense grievance and indignation quickly washed over her. Sniffling, she thought angrily:

So what if I’m jealous?

How outrageous! It’s one thing to happily sing a love song with that guy, but to not even react at all am I not allowed to be angry?

The more she thought about it, the sadder Lu Wei became. Her tears suddenly overflowed, and she soon began to sob. The jealousy in her stomach churned violently, intensifying her misery.

She had no idea how long she had been standing in the kitchen when footsteps approached. Lu Wei quickly turned around, turned on the faucet, and splashed water on her face.

Jiang Yunxi: “So you’re here. It’s time to go.”

Lu Wei hummed in response, casually wiping the water off her face. “Let’s go.”

As she stepped out of the kitchen, she happened to see Chen Yushu packing her things. Perhaps sensing her gaze, Chen Yushu looked up the next moment, their eyes meeting.

Lu Wei froze on the spot. She opened her mouth, about to call out to Chen Yushu, when the latter swiftly averted her gaze and strode away with the others.

Lu Wei stared blankly as her figure brushed past, her heart sinking as panic began to set in.

Oh no, is Chen Yushu really angry? But I didn’t even do anything!

Watching Chen Yushu gradually walk further away, Lu Wei bit her lip in frustration and hurried after her. Just then, she suddenly heard her grandmother call out, “Weiwei, you forgot your bag.”

Lu Wei skidded to a halt and turned back to retrieve her bag. The old lady picked it up and handed it to her, not forgetting to gloat, “Hehe, you made her angry, and now she’s ignoring you, huh?”

“What do you know?” Lu Wei retorted indignantly, slinging the bag over her shoulder and stubbornly insisting, “Don’t talk nonsense! We’re perfectly fine!”

After saying goodbye to the elderly woman, Lu Wei hurriedly boarded the bus. She saw Chen Yushu sitting by the window, holding a small notebook, her expression far from pleasant.

When Lu Wei realized what the notebook was, her heart skipped a beat.

Ahhh! Why is Chen Yushu flipping through that little notebook again?

Lu Wei stared intently at the notebook in Chen Yushu’s hand, desperate to know what bad things had been written about her this time.

Jiang Yuran, sitting nearby, noticed Lu Wei hesitating and tactfully stood up, intending to move to the back row, but Chen Yushu immediately pulled her back.

Jiang Yuran glanced at her in confusion, then at the frowning Lu Wei, her eyes shifting between the two a few times before she decisively said, “Senior Jiang is in the back. I’m going to find her.”

“Hey, you ” Chen Yushu looked up at her, speechless, and could only wave her hand helplessly. “Go ahead.”

As the seat emptied, Lu Wei suddenly grew nervous. She took a deep breath before slowly walking over and sitting down, then leaned closer to Chen Yushu, straining her eyes to see the contents of the notebook.

However, before she could catch even a glimpse, Chen Yushu snapped the notebook shut with a thud.

Lu Wei pouted in dissatisfaction and asked casually, “What were you reading?”

Chen Yushu shot her a sidelong glance, then leaned her head against the seat and turned to look out the window.

Once everyone was on board, the bus started moving, the scenery receding behind them. Lu Wei fastened her seatbelt but couldn’t seem to get comfortable, fidgeting incessantly.

Beside her, Chen Yushu showed no reaction, as if Lu Wei weren’t even there.

“Ahem.” Lu Wei shifted her bottom slightly in that direction, composed herself for a moment, and then casually remarked as if nothing had happened, “Today was pretty fun, don’t you think?”

Chen Yushu closed her eyes, pretending not to hear.

“Hey.” Lu Wei turned sideways to face Chen Yushu, speaking with a hint of grievance, “Why are you ignoring me?”

Asking the obvious. Chen Yushu scoffed inwardly but still didn’t respond to her.

The atmosphere fell into silence. Lu Wei stared at the reflection of Chen Yushu’s profile in the car window, and the pent-up frustration inside her began to slowly rise. The events of the day replayed in her mind, and her resentment and hurt gradually intensified.

But deep down, she was still afraid afraid to confront Chen Yushu outright so she repeated in a muffled voice, “Why are you ignoring me?”

Taking pity on her, Chen Yushu spared her a glance and retorted, “Don’t you know yourself?”

Lu Wei gritted her teeth and let out a huff, straightening her back as if to project confidence. “It’s because you sang with someone else!”

As soon as she spoke, her voice trembled with tears.

Chen Yushu rolled her eyes in exasperation. “Are you crazy? It’s not like I wanted to go up there.”

“If you didn’t want to, why didn’t you refuse?” Lu Wei argued, convinced of her own logic.

“I refused many times, but he insisted I go up,” Chen Yushu fired back, growing agitated. “Grandma and Grandpa were watching—how could I make a scene?”

Unable to win the argument, Lu Wei slumped back into her seat, breathing heavily in frustration.

After a moment, Lu Wei burst out petulantly, “I don’t care! I’m unhappy that you sang with someone else. Singing is one thing, but you stood so close to him and even smiled at him. It’s so annoying! So annoying!!”

Words alone couldn’t convey her displeasure; as she spoke, she squirmed restlessly in her seat.

Chen Yushu clicked her tongue in irritation and couldn’t resist swatting Lu Wei’s arm. “Because you’re being unreasonable!”

“You’re saying I’m unreasonable?!” Lu Wei froze, staring at Chen Yushu with wide eyes. “Can’t I be unhappy? You’re the one who did something wrong, why can’t I”

“What do you have to be unhappy about?” Chen Yushu suddenly lifted her head, locking eyes with her. “Even if there really was something between me and him, you don’t need to act like this.”

In an instant, Lu Wei felt as if a fine needle had pricked her heart. Tears welled up in her eyes, pooling as she stared fixedly at Chen Yushu with a peculiar sorrow.

Unintentionally revealed emotions collided in the air, and the atmosphere between them began to grow subtly charged.