As luck would have it, their seats on the plane were next to each other.
Su Qing didn't know whether to be angry or upset.
Su Qing took the phone Jiang Sui had given her and tucked it away in her pocket with a humble look. She turned it off and muttered a sweet "thank you."
Little did she know that Jiang Sui was not only grateful but also asked Su Qing to give him a leg and shoulder massage.
The whole journey was a whirlwind. Only after getting off the plane and arriving at the hotel did Su Qing breathe a sigh of relief.
This time, everyone had a private room, and an entire floor was occupied by students from the school.
The hotel had a restaurant, so they could go eat at scheduled time. The exams lasted three days, and to help the students relax, Li Ran brought the team in a day early, letting them experience the atmosphere of Jiangcheng and taking them to the school's exam hall for a tour.
But by some strange coincidence...
It turned out to be Jiangcheng No. 1 Middle School.
Su Qing looked a little dazed when she heard these words. She returned to her room, her eyes numb, and she rested her head on her knees.
Her eyes obscured all emotion.
If you looked closely, you could see the girl's shoulders trembling slightly, uncontrollably.
Until the doorbell rang.
Su Qing slowly raised her head, shuffled to the door, and opened it with a dazed look on her face.
She had thought it was the teacher...
She hadn't expected it to be Jiang Sui.
The young man sidled in, and Su Qing suddenly regained consciousness. She watched him enter and closed the door.
She was stunned.
"Jiang Sui, you, you, you!"
"Get out!"
Su Qing frowned, staring at Jiang Sui nervously. He just walked in like that, with the whole floor full of classmates... ahhh
The boy seemed not to hear her, but seeing that Su Qing still had the backpack on her shoulders, he couldn't help but frown as well.
"Why haven't you taken your backpack off yet?"
"I just called you several times and couldn't get through."
Su Qing leaned over and put the backpack down, still vigilant, looking a little tired.
"I haven't had time yet."
"Phone? I turned it off."
The girl pulled her phone out of her pocket, only to discover it was off. She then turned it on.
"Aren't you going to call home?"
Hearing Jiang Sui's reminder, Su Qing didn't even think twice before dialing Su Rao to let her know she was safe.
She trusted Jiang Sui so much.
Jiang Sui's worried expression shifted to Su Qing's obedient, yet a smile flashed across his face. He took Su Qing's bag and placed it on her chair.
Seeing the girl finish her call, he was about to ask if she wanted to go to dinner...
The doorbell rang again...
Ding-dong, ding-dong.
Like a death warrant.
After hanging up, Su Qing batted her eyelashes, looked at Jiang Sui, then at the door.
She was momentarily flustered. Biting her lip, she stood on tiptoe, quickly covering Jiang Sui's mouth, and pushed the boy into the bathroom.
She forced a panicked yet friendly smile and mouthed,
"If you dare make a sound, you're dead!"
Her heart was pounding, and Su Qing opened the door, trying to appear calm.
The door was only slightly open.
"Su Qing, are you going to dinner?" The speaker was a student named Tian Shasha, another of the students competing in this competition. Perhaps because she and Su Qing were the only two girls in the group, she came to find Su Qing at lunch time. The girl smiled shyly, wearing a pair of black glasses and a few tiny freckles on her nose.
Su Qing wanted to refuse out loud, but after pinching her fingers, she nodded in agreement.