Xue Rui had his family order patient's meals—three a day—so he didn't have to go to the cafeteria for the rest of the week. Every mealtime, he just had to return the old container and pick up a new thermal case.
The only thing was, Lin Ruoxi only got one IV drip a day, which meant she only ate one meal in the school infirmary. Xue Rui found this a bit of a shame.
Xue Rui wanted to go to the school infirmary to enjoy the air conditioning and watch cartoons.
'It definitely wasn't because he could see her black stockings.'
...
During the school's dinner hour, Xue Rui picked up another patient's meal.
Inside the thermal case, a wooden rack held an assortment of colorful dishes.
Xue Rui first casually picked out two dishes and gave them to Lin Ruoxi, then carried the thermal case to find Gu Muxue.
He was going to eat with Gu Muxue, as they had planned.
In his mind, memories of Gu Muxue grew clearer. The snot-nosed little girl had gradually transformed into the graceful young woman she was today. A girl really does transform as she grows up.
As luck would have it, he and Gu Muxue seemed truly fated to be together. They went to the same elementary school, the same middle school, and now they were even classmates in high school.
But back in elementary school, Xue Rui loved to bully Gu Muxue, scaring her with caterpillars or stuffing his cold hands down her collar to warm them up in the dead of winter...
It wasn't until middle school that Xue Rui saw another boy confessing his feelings to Gu Muxue.
In that very moment, he had a sudden realization: if Gu Muxue got together with another boy, he wouldn't be able to bully her anymore.
So, he decided to strike first. Emulating her other suitors, he began to frantically pursue Gu Muxue.
At first, it was born from a little boy's competitiveness.
It was like a meaningless comparison, along the lines of, "The grasshopper I caught is bigger than yours."
But later, Xue Rui came to his senses. He found he genuinely wanted to win Gu Muxue's heart.
Maybe it was because of hormones, or maybe... it was because Gu Muxue was just so indescribably beautiful.
To put it bluntly, he was just after her body.
He and Gu Muxue had arranged to meet today in the empty classroom at the end of the hall. The room was so remote that almost no one ever went there, so they wouldn't be gawked at.
The door to the empty classroom was locked, but the back window was broken; you could just climb through.
Occasionally, a couple would be in there, secretly holding hands or sharing a kiss.
But the students had an unspoken agreement: if you saw someone inside, you wouldn't go in.
This was his first time on a private rendezvous with Gu Muxue in such an intimate setting. 'His heart itched with anticipation, hoping something would happen that 'hadn't existed' in his memories.'
"Huh? Third wheel, what are you doing here?"
The sight of Mei Lili instantly soured Xue Rui's mood.
He moved nimbly, hoisting the thermal case and hopping inside.
"If you're not excited to eat, you must have a screw loose."
"Muxue, I got this especially for you."
Acting all mysterious, Xue Rui took out a pile of plates from the thermal case, filling the entire table.
Although he had asked for a three-person meal, his family was cooking for their own, so the portions were naturally larger. And since girls ate less, this "meal for three" was more than enough for four or five people.
Gu Muxue's beautiful eyes couldn't hide her astonishment. She thought Xue Rui was just going to grab something simple, not expecting such a sumptuous feast.
"Did you buy this from Qunfang Tower? Is this what you asked me for money for?"
There was a hint of blame in Gu Muxue's voice.
Normally, she wouldn't have said anything if Xue Rui had bought a few extra dishes.
But if it was from Qunfang Tower, then it was incredibly expensive. She felt that they were still students, and Xue Rui's behavior was no different from those boys who put up a front to look rich.
She didn't want Xue Rui to take on a heavy financial burden just to pursue her.
"What's Qunfang Tower? Is it very expensive?" Mei Lili mumbled while chewing on a large shrimp. She thought the food was delicious, and the plates looked quite high-end.
Gu Muxue sighed. "Very expensive. It's one of the priciest restaurants in Hedong City. During the holidays, a single table can go for five or six thousand."
When Mei Lili heard "five or six thousand," she suddenly felt like the shrimp in her hand was glowing gold. Her parents' entire monthly salary was only enough for a single meal there.
"Holiday prices are double, so you can't count it like that," Xue Rui said cheerfully.
"You're full of twisted logic. Who goes to such an expensive restaurant when it's not a holiday?"
Gu Muxue picked up her chopsticks and noticed that all the dishes were very light and mild. This was highly unusual.
Xue Rui had a preference for strong flavors, especially spicy food, and her tastes were quite similar to his.
Seeing Gu Muxue hesitate, Xue Rui grew tense. 'Don't tell me she's figured something out.'
This was the patient's meal he had gotten under Lin Ruoxi's name. He quickly came up with an excuse:
"I saw you weren't looking well, so I ordered light dishes."
Gu Muxue's cheeks flushed. Xue Rui was still so considerate; he had even kept track of her "visitor's" schedule so precisely.
Yesterday, he'd specially bought her hot milk tea, and today he'd ordered such suitable food.
A warm current rose in her heart and spread through her entire body. The discomfort in her lower abdomen seemed to lessen.
"Thank you, but I'm not going to say yes. At our age, our studies are the most important thing."
Gu Muxue's tone was tinged with helplessness. Xue Rui's grades were just too poor.
However, she had already forgiven Xue Rui in her heart.
She had been fuming for a while, especially after Xue Rui had declared in front of everyone in the cafeteria that she was "unworthy."
"We're eating, so let's just eat. Why do you have to say things that make me lose my appetite?" Xue Rui grumbled.
Having Mei Lili here as a third wheel was annoying enough. Now Gu Muxue had not only rejected him again but also brought up his grades. Wasn't she just trying to make him miserable?
"Anyway, don't let this happen again. Don't order such expensive food in the future," Gu Muxue instructed.
"I've already booked Qunfang Tower for the whole week. Two meals a day."
'He still had to eat a meal alone with Lin Ruoxi in the infirmary, after all.'
So he had reduced the three daily meals to two.
"Where did you get the money?" Gu Muxue asked, shocked. How much would that cost for a whole week? Even her own little purse would have trouble covering that.
Let alone Xue Rui, this poor kid who was always mooching snacks off of her.
"Oh, right. Here's your two-fifty back. I didn't use it." Xue Rui returned the money to Gu Muxue.
For one, a few hundred yuan wasn't of much use.
For another, he wasn't in the habit of carrying cash; it would just get lost in his uniform pocket sooner or later.
He never carried cash—except when he was getting a foot massage.
"Where did this food come from?" Gu Muxue was even more bewildered. Xue Rui hadn't spent any money.
"My family owns Qunfang Tower. We've known each other for so many years, how did you not know that?" Xue Rui looked at her with disbelief.
But on second thought, he didn't know what her family did either, only that she had a car and driver taking her to and from school every day, so her family was very well-off.
He smiled, thinking it wasn't that strange, since their families didn't know each other.
"You used to tell me your father was a chef who was too busy to ever come home."
"That your mother was a jobless housewife who had to do manual labor late into the night, until her fingers blistered."
"That your grandparents barely scraped by as farmers."
With every sentence Gu Muxue spoke, her tone grew colder, until finally, her voice carried a slight tremor.
Gu Muxue's face was flushed with anger.
Xue Rui had deceived her so completely!
And to think she was always finding ways to help him financially, trying to be subtle so he wouldn't notice.
She had been so afraid of accidentally hurting the pride of this "tough on the outside, fragile on the inside" boy.
She had never doubted Xue Rui before. Because whenever it was her birthday, among all the gifts she received, his was always the shabbiest.
Others gave her Swarovski; Xue Rui gave her cartoon stickers, claiming it was to "keep her inner child alive."
Others gave her large stuffed dolls; Xue Rui gave her a keychain, saying something about their "hearts being linked."
She refused to believe that a boy who cared so much for her would give such perfunctory gifts. She was convinced it was only because of his financial struggles.
And Gu Muxue also believed that it was the thought that counted. Even if Xue Rui's gifts were cheap, their symbolism was often on a higher level than the others. She had carefully saved every single one.
But today, she finally learned that this shameless, brazen jerk was actually a rich heir!
In truth, you couldn't completely blame Xue Rui. His family subscribed to the philosophy of "raise boys poor, raise girls rich," which meant Xue Rui had almost no pocket money.
He barely had enough money for internet cafes, so how could he possibly spend money on special gifts?
He had swiped the cartoon stickers from his younger sister.
As for the keychain...
That was a free toy from a KFC meal.