"No, Mom, I'm just not familiar with her."
Su Qing tried to dispel Su Rao's worried look, feigning a casual air.
"Qing Qing, if anything happens, you must tell Mom."
For some reason, ever since meeting Su Qing's classmate, Su Rao's eyelids had been twitching non-stop. She wasn't superstitious, but she was still feeling uneasy.
"Nannan, did something happen to you at school? I heard that girl say something like, 'Don't be depressed, and be in a good mood.'"
Sensitive Su Rao still took Tian Shasha's words to heart.
"Mom, you're overthinking it. It's really nothing. I just lost my scholarship and I'm just in a bad mood."
Su Qing pursed her lips, trying not to reveal any flaws. She was still wondering if Tian Shasha's encounter with them at the hospital today was truly a coincidence. It was Friday, and they still had classes.
But Su Qing hadn't mentioned her hospital visit to anyone, except for the text she sent to Jiang Sui at lunch time when they left.
It seemed like a complete coincidence, but Tian Shasha's ulterior motives made it impossible for Su Qing to believe it was anything but.
"Lost the scholarship?"
Su Rao suddenly realized. No wonder her daughter had seemed so down these past few days, yet she'd said she was fine when she asked.
She sighed deeply, wondering if it was because of her illness that made Su Qing to take leave, but she didn't want to burden her.
"Qing Qing, you know where Mom's box is, right? The money in there isn't much, but it's enough for you to go to college."
Su Rao suddenly realized something and decided to tell Su Qing about their family's financial situation, just in case anything unexpected happened. After all, she was having health problems.
She always had a negative streak, or perhaps a certain mentality, always preparing for the worst.
"Mom!"
Su Qing's voice was unusually high-pitched, clearly displeasing her.
She simply saw Su Rao's expression and, without revealing something, felt she couldn't trust her. But she also didn't want Su Rao to worry.
"Mom, things will be much better for us after I go to college."
Su Qing took a deep breath. Everything would soon be over, the truth would be revealed, and she would leave Jiangcheng and Wuzhen. She would then be free to bask in the sun in both places.
A dazzling gaze instantly illuminated Su Rao, who nodded, repeatedly saying "Okay."
——
Su Qing returned to her room, took out her phone, and checked it. Indeed, there was a call log, also from a Wuzhen number.
It was an unfamiliar number. Su Qing wanted to delete the call log, but when she touched the delete button, her finger paused, leaving it.
After putting her phone away, Su Qing felt a little annoyed. She felt like she'd overlooked something, but she had no idea what was going on.
In the afternoon, she received a call from Jiang Sui.
She knew about Su's mother's check up today, so he felt relieved when he heard she was recovering well.
Su Qing sat by the window, listening to the boy's voice.
"Qing Qing, I'm off today."
The calendar on her desk showed Friday, and Su Qing instantly understood what the boy meant: he wanted to see her.
It was the weekend, so Su Qing didn't need to explain her leave, nor did she need to lie. But after the weekend, Su Qing pursed her lips.
"Is the flight tonight?"
"I haven't booked the ticket yet. Pei Dai said he wants to go with me."
Come together, there must be some breakthrough, Su Qing responded, thinking about the meeting with Tian Shasha today, she didn't know whether to say it. After thinking about it, she decided not to say it for the time being.
"About tomorrow, around noon or afternoon, I'll see you."
Jiang Sui's voice was a touch impatient. He hadn't seen her for a week, and she was in a bad mood. He wanted to fly to Su Qing's side in an instant.
She muttered a low "hmm."
"Did you miss me?"
The boy's voice was deep and a little hoarse.
Su Qing pursed her lips as she listened, her heart throbbing. She stared at the sky outside the window, silent.
A long silence passed, before the boy chuckled.
"Okay, then, you heartless fellow didn't miss me. I missed you."
With a feigned casualness, or perhaps a calculated indifference, Jiang Sui's voice pierced Su Qing's ears like an electric current.
"Jiang Sui!"
She always seemed to be at a loss for what to do with him, yet she also loved his unbridled energy.
"I'm not heartless, don't talk nonsense!"
She did miss him, but it was always difficult to bring herself to say it, it was so embarrassing.
Her heart was fluttering, like a heart beating fast.
"What nonsense, sweetheart? Tell me if you miss me. If you don't, I'll be sad."
Jiang Sui's voice was low and coaxing, and the corners of his mouth curled up slightly.
"Hmm."
Although she knew he was speaking deliberately, Su Qing's restless heart suddenly calmed. Her voice was soft and gentle.
So soft, even Jiang Sui's eyebrows curved slightly.
"Hmm, what is it?"
"Hmm?"
The faint, upturned ending made people forget all their worries, even wanting to embrace each other recklessly.
"You clearly know."
The girl's accusing voice brought a smile to Jiang Sui's lips.
"What do I know? I don't know. If miss then miss. If no then no. What does 'hmm' mean?"
Su Qing's ears flushed red from the shallow questioning. She bit her words, mumbling quickly, a word, miss, and then quickly hung up the phone as if to evade.
Jiang Sui, on the other end, heard it after his joy faded.
Beep, beep, the voice hung up, and the surprise on his face didn't even have time to fade.
His shoulder was stopped.
"Ah Sui, you've been grinning foolishly over there for half day. Look at those girls across the way; they're drooling just looking at you."
It was Qin Zhao who spoke. He narrowed his eyes and turned to look at Jiang Sui with a rather ambiguous expression.
He pointed a finger at a group of students gathered at the other end of the playground fence.
Jiang Sui was in physical education class, and those girls were in the same subject, staring at his handsome face.
When Jiang Sui saw Qin Zhao, he pushed his arm away.
"It's hot!"
Qin Zhao looked at his arm being pushed away, and Jiang Sui's expression returned to its cold, icy state.
The young man paid no heed to the glances, instantly returning his demeanor to normal. He clutched his phone, texting Su Qing.
But when he saw Qin Zhao approaching, he decisively put his phone away.