The School Beauty from the Next Class Insisted I Confess - Chapter 52

It took half an hour for Old Xu to finish his phone calls, during which he seemed to have made a few more. A few minutes after Old Xu’s room finally quieted down, Xu Qingfeng uncharacteristically went over to have a heart-to-heart with him.

Under the night sky, the window of Old Xu’s bedroom was half-open, and a dim, orange-yellow table lamp was on. Having finished his calls, Old Xu was now smoking by the open window.

Old Xu seemed to have aged a lot.

Xu Qingfeng noticed more scattered grey hairs on Xu Zhenzhong’s head and his skin was reddish-dark, no longer as firm as when he was young.

“Dad, were you talking about Gao Zhi’s matter?” She could communicate well with Ms. Yan, but every time she was alone with Old Xu, Xu Qingfeng always felt a strange sense of awkwardness; calling him ‘Daddy’ was clearly impossible.

Old Xu put out his cigarette. “That’s right. Just now, your Uncle Gao called, saying they’ve already reported it to the police.”

They dealt with it so quickly? But is reporting it to the police useful for this kind of thing? Xu Qingfeng muttered in her heart.

Seeming to notice Xu Qingfeng’s confusion, Xu Zhenzhong said, “Little Gao was stabbed; this is intentional harm, and to put it more seriously, attempted murder.” A hint of ruthlessness flashed in Xu Zhenzhong’s eyes. He despised those hypocritical cowards the most.

“We’ve already investigated. That young man surnamed Wen is over 18 this year and can be held criminally responsible. Furthermore, your Uncle Gao’s stance is very firm; a settlement is out of the question.”

Xu Zhenzhong’s expression softened a bit. “I just spoke with your Uncle Liu. The impact of this incident is very bad. Don’t worry, the school will also actively cooperate.” Uncle Liu was the police chief from last time.

Old Xu rarely showed this kind of superior’s authority in front of Xu Qingfeng. He hoped to be a normal father when he was home.

“Mhm,” Xu Qingfeng replied.

“By the way, the lawyer from the Xia Corporation proactively offered to help. Was that the young girl named Xia Yiqiu?” Old Xu had a deep impression of this very noticeable friend of Xu Qingfeng. Not just anyone was worthy of his daughter’s embrace.

His face showed kindness, different from his usual nagging, and his tone was gentle.

“It was her. She’s very kind and always considerate of me.” Xu Qingfeng thought of Xia Yiqiu’s “Don’t think about it” from the evening.

So, you’ve arranged everything. Xu Qingfeng’s heart felt enveloped by a furnace, warm and cozy.

A cold wind struck, making Xu Zhenzhong, who was by the window, uncomfortable, and he immediately closed the window.

Winter had arrived.

“It’s cold. Remember to wear more clothes.” Xu Zhenzhong looked at Xu Qingfeng in her school uniform, unable to tell how many layers she had on; it still seemed too thin. “Make sure you cover yourself well with the blanket, understand?”

Xu Zhenzhong recalled Xu Qingfeng when she was little. Although she usually acted like a miniature adult, she was very childish when asleep.

Children have a lot of body heat and often kick off their blankets at night. Old Xu wasn’t home often, but when Xu Qingfeng was by his side, he would definitely go into her room every night after she fell asleep to check if the little one was tucked in.

“I know.”

Xu Qingfeng turned to leave, feeling a bit unaccustomed to Old Xu’s care.

A few days passed, and the verdict for Wen Kangshi was handed down. After the legal procedures were completed, he would spend several years in prison. However, Weicheng No. 1 High School had already expelled him the day after the incident.

“Did you know? This Wen Kangshi confessed, saying his parents pushed him too hard with his studies, and coupled with the great pressure of his final year, he wanted to do this. Bah!” Gao Zhi grabbed an apple from Xu Qingfeng’s desk and started eating it.

Today was Christmas. Gao Zhi remembered since elementary school that on Christmas Day, he always had enough apples to eat, all by taking them from Xu Qingfeng.

“Why are you saying ‘bah’?” Han Feng stared at Gao Zhi and asked. After all, as the victim, although her father was mostly involved since she was a minor, she knew the general verdict process better than any other student in the school.

Gao Zhi looked at Han Feng’s curious eyes, showing off, and said in an infuriating tone, “Guess!”

“You, Gao Zhi, just you wait! I’m going to smash you with an apple.” Han Feng had already taken a gift box from Xu Qingfeng’s desk. Standing up and unwrapping the package took a bit of time, which gave Gao Zhi a moment to beg for mercy.

It wasn’t that she didn’t want to tell, but she was just trying to be mysterious. Han Feng never showed any tenderness, so she could definitely smash her with an apple. Little Gao is young and beautiful and has a girlfriend, so I can’t keep arguing with crazy Han.

If she got hit, she’d be the one losing out, and Sweetie would be distressed. Last time, when she showed her scar in a video call, she got the expected concern, which made Gao Zhi very happy. But now, she didn’t want to worry the other person again.

“Han Feng, sit down. I, the Emperor, will tell you.” Han Feng didn’t feel anything was wrong at first and obediently sat down.

Xu Qingfeng stopped writing her test paper, turned her head, and her eyes curved upwards. “Oh? The Emperor?”

“Holy cow, you’re taking advantage of us! Lin Bei Kao Bei La (meaning ‘I swear’ or ‘damn it’ in a local dialect).” Han Feng was accidentally reminded and was about to burst into anger again, adding a local dialect phrase she had just learned.

Xu Qingfeng understood the first half of the sentence, but the second half didn’t sound like a good thing.

“Alright, listen to me. This Wen Kangshi, he was never a good kid since he was small. He pretended to be nice in front of outsiders, but he actually abused and killed small animals since childhood, from insects to frogs, and then to cats and dogs.” The more Gao Zhi spoke, the more he wanted to hit him.

“That day, he heard the rumors spreading widely and planned to just get rid of Little Orange Cat directly. After all, he often did this before. His roommate even said he was usually loving and fed the cats. I think he was just using these tricks to lure in the little cats.”

Gao Zhi grew more and more indignant. This kind of demon shouldn’t have been born.

“Exactly, exactly.” Han Feng was convinced by Gao Zhi’s words and started agreeing.

“Heaven will punish him,” Xu Qingfeng sighed.

Not far away, on Fengqing Mountain, a lamp in front of the statue flickered close to going out, blown by the wind. The now-free Daoist Sun shielded it with his hand, and the flame stopped trembling.

This noon was Xu Qingfeng and Xia Yiqiu’s duty time.

“Ha—” Xu Qingfeng blew on her hands. They were quite cold after she had repeatedly washed and scrubbed them under the faucet after moving the desks.

In another month, the winter break would begin, which also meant the final exams were approaching. For the sake of the club members’ studies, no one would be scheduled for duty after today. Of course, anyone with psychological distress could directly contact Teacher Du.

Although it was said that all club activities would be canceled until the winter break, the members were so accustomed to helping others. All the students in the school knew that if anything made them unhappy, finding a member of the Psychology Club was a sure bet—professional counseling at a free price, who wouldn’t like that?

However, the task of moving desks and chairs fell to the two unlucky club presidents. Teacher Du seemed to need the club space for something during the winter break, and since the room would be closed after today, the task of moving things naturally fell to the last people on duty.

Seeing Xia Yiqiu busy, Xu Qingfeng was full of motivation, and they finished the task in half the estimated time.

After washing their hands, they sat in the chairs. Xu Qingfeng still felt a bit tired and planned to close her eyes for a rest. But the person beside her didn’t let her.

“I heard that many people gave you Christmas apples?” This casual sentence made Xu Qingfeng break out in a cold sweat.

How did Yiqiu know? No, I’m not a flirtatious person.

Xu Qingfeng was startled and sat up straight. “I don’t know how that happened; I didn’t even see who gave them.” Xu Qingfeng explained.

“Is that so? Are you very eager to know who sent them?” Xia Yiqiu’s teasing didn’t go as planned.

“Gao Zhi ate them all. So, don’t you have one to send me, Miss Xia?” Xu Qingfeng took out her carefully wrapped gift box from her backpack and placed it in front of Xia Yiqiu, hinting that it was her turn.

The jealousy was real, but saying she wasn’t surprised was false.

Xia Yiqiu took the box and also pulled out an equally thoughtful item from her own bag.

It was chocolate!

Xu Qingfeng could see the contents through the packaging.

Does Yiqiu not know what sending chocolate means?

Looking at the stunned idiot opposite her, Xia Yiqiu thought, You can go ahead and think about it. If you figure it out, great. If not, keep thinking. She wouldn’t admit anything.

“Do you like it? Sending apples is too old-fashioned. If I send something, I’ll send something delicious.” Xia Yiqiu said with a tone of certainty. If the other person dared to say they didn’t like it, they’d be in trouble.

Of course, Xu Qingfeng, the person who was “old-fashioned” herself, had enough situational awareness. “I like it. I like chocolate the most.” Liking it is a lie, Xu Qingfeng didn’t like sweets, but she could try.

“I made it myself. You’re not allowed to waste it.” After saying this, Xia Yiqiu put on her hat and didn’t wait for a response, her covered face flushed pink.

The proud Miss Xia thought, It must be too stuffy.

Xu Qingfeng laughed foolishly, holding the chocolate. Now, her favorite thing in the world was chocolate.

That night, on the way home while driving Xia Yiqiu, someone suddenly grabbed her jacket.

“What is it, Yiqiu?” Xu Qingfeng didn’t turn around.

“Can’t I grab it for no reason? Are you saying no?” Xia Yiqiu felt a little embarrassed about what she was about to say next. So, it was all this slow-witted idiot’s fault; why couldn’t she be more proactive?

“Yiqiu, I was wrong. Go ahead and speak.” Xu Qingfeng was always quick to admit her mistakes.

The cold wind howled, and the quiet words were lost in the empty street. The ginkgo trees had long dropped all their leaves, offering no romance.

But the passion of youth would break through everything.

“What are you doing for New Year’s Day?” Xia Yiqiu asked.

Xu Qingfeng pondered slightly. “Let me think. I’m going to the City Library to read, then read at home, and finish my homework when I get home that day.” Xu Qingtian could only think of this for now.

“So you’re just reading those three days?” Don’t you want to go out? Don’t you want to see me? Don’t you want to ask me out?

Xia Yiqiu was fuming internally.

“Wait, I have something else,” Xu Qingfeng suddenly said.

“What else?” Xia Yiqiu’s eyes showed anticipation, looking at the other person’s back, her tone excited.

“I also need to research New Year’s Day recipes!” Xu Qingfeng was extremely proud. In their Old Xu family, the best cook now was none other than Xu Qingfeng.

“Heh, well, I wish you a pleasant meal,” Xia Yiqiu said coolly.

Why does that feel a little strange? Unable to decipher Xia Yiqiu’s thoughts, Xu Qingfeng watched Xia Yiqiu mechanically say goodbye and then leave.

Over the next few days, Xu Qingfeng felt that Xia Yiqiu wasn’t as enthusiastic toward her.

What is it? She recalled their conversation that night. It seems like Yiqiu has been off ever since then.

She really didn’t know the reason, so she decided to ask the almighty netizens.

A post titled “What should I do if my friend suddenly stops talking to me?” connected people from different places, and everyone was discussing it fiercely. In the post, Xu Qingfeng meticulously documented the detailed conversation from that night.

LittleTyrant: So, Blogger, you really don’t understand?

Understand what?

Support The School Beauty from the Next Class Insisted I Confess