Soon after, I heard Liu Xiaoyu's voice drift over. "Are you really sure you don't want it?"
I turned to him. "No, thank you."
"Smack!"
The sound startled me. I turned around and saw the phone box on the floor, right next to the trash can. "Then I'll just take it down and throw it away later," he said.
"Huh?" My eyes nearly popped out. I quickly reached down and scooped up the phone, glaring at Liu Xiaoyu. "Are you crazy?"
"I'm not crazy," Liu Xiaoyu pursed his lips and said softly. "Didn't you say you didn't want it? I bought it to give to you. If you don't want it, I can only throw it away."
"That's monstrously extravagant!" I patted the phone in my hands, looking at Liu Xiaoyu with righteous indignation. "You're just going to throw away something this expensive?"
"Didn't you say you didn't want it? Give it back, I'm going to throw it away." Liu Xiaoyu reached out aggressively. "Give it to me."
"No." I quickly held the phone away. "It would be a waste to throw it away. I'll take it."
"Hmph..." Liu Xiaoyu snorted but retracted his hand.
I held the phone, turned it on, and looked over at his fair profile and ear-length hair. I said, "Thank you. This phone really will make things a lot easier for me."
"You're welcome," Liu Xiaoyu said softly. "Didn't you have your phone taken away? I saw you studying so hard and thought I'd help you, so I just bought you a random one. Plus, we can play ranked games together."
I looked at the pricey phone in my hand, probably one of the most expensive models on the market, and smiled helplessly. "Dude, 'random'? You didn't have to buy one this expensive, you know."
"Who are you calling 'dude'? Don't call me that." Liu Xiaoyu glared at me, then glanced at the phone in my hand. "Well, I really don't know. I just asked the sales lady to pick one out for me."
"What did you tell her?" I was amused. Asking a sales associate to "just pick one" is practically an invitation to get sold the most expensive and least cost-effective model.
"I just said I wanted a good phone for a student, and price was not an issue," Liu Xiaoyu said, looking completely unconcerned.
"You wouldn't have been ripped off if you hadn't added that last sentence," I said, speechless. If you tell them the price isn't an issue, of course they'll choose the most expensive one.
"What's the big deal? It's just a phone. Is it worth discussing for so long?" Liu Xiaoyu looked a little exasperated and sighed. Then, he looked at me seriously. "To me, some things aren't as valuable as you think, but by the same token, some things are much more valuable than you imagine."
I looked into his blue pupils. His clear eyes flowed like a blue lake, and I could even see my own reflection in them. I felt momentarily captivated; his eyes were truly beautiful.
"Thank you, Liu Xiaoyu," I whispered again.
"You're welcome, Lin Xiaonan," Liu Xiaoyu replied with a smile.
A New Phone and Lingering Doubts
I decided to stop pretending to be reserved. I was too excited to contain it. I started happily playing with the phone. I'd never handled such an expensive model before.
"You were so serious just now. Now look at the smile on your face. Look in the mirror—you look like an idiot," Liu Xiaoyu held up a mirror, urging me to look at myself. I was grinning from ear to ear.
"Hehe," I chuckled a few times, looking at the phone in my hand, thinking I should get a screen protector and a case for it.
"By the way, have you thought about why your phone was confiscated?" Just as I was playing with the new phone, Liu Xiaoyu handed me something. I took it without looking and popped it into my mouth.
"Mmm, so sweet. What is it?" I finally looked at what Liu Xiaoyu was holding. It was a handful of cherries.
"You eat things without even looking? You really are something," he gave me another thumbs-up.
"That's called trust," I said with a grin.
"You still haven't answered my question," Liu Xiaoyu insisted.
"That? How should I know? I guess she just accidentally saw it," I shrugged. That old witch just had it out for me.
"Really? I sit right next to you, and I never saw you play with your phone last week. But Teacher Bai somehow knew. Haven't you wondered why?"
"Yeah, why?" I was genuinely puzzled.
"When you brought it to the classroom on Friday, you had it tucked under a book in your drawer. Logically, the teacher shouldn't have suspected anything, wouldn't have been wandering around, and definitely wouldn't have gone so far as to search for it." Liu Xiaoyu continued.
"That's right! I didn't let her see it. How did she know I had a phone?"
"Did you let anyone else see your phone?" Liu Xiaoyu's eyes sparkled. He was peeling a banana as he asked.
"Who else? Just you, of course," I answered casually, then paused. "Wait a minute! Did you tell the teacher?!"
"Go away!" Liu Xiaoyu said irritably, taking a small, refined bite of the banana.
"Other than you, I don't think I showed it to anyone. I didn't even play with it in the dorm," I frowned, thinking hard.
"Is that so? Are you sure?"
After a long time, I remembered someone else: "Wang Hua, my upper bunkmate. I think he saw it."
"Do you have a grudge with him?" Liu Xiaoyu asked.
"A grudge?" I thought carefully. What grudge could I have with him? He just wanted someone to bully, and I happened to be his target. But thinking back to last week's incident, I hesitated. "Maybe."
"Oh," Liu Xiaoyu nodded thoughtfully and said nothing more.
I fell into thought as well. Could this guy have actually reported me to the teacher?
It was very possible. Given that Mistress Extinction already disliked me, she was probably looking for a reason to target me and would be happy to have me out of the class. It all started to make sense.
A wave of anger surged in my heart. I had no quarrel with this person. Not only did he pick on me before, but now he had almost gotten me kicked out of the class. If it were the old me, I would just swallow my pride, but the current me had decided to change. I wouldn't back down anymore.
The more I thought about it, the more I was convinced it was him. No wonder he gave me that knowing, wicked smile in the dorm on Friday. He had set me up.
But I didn't know what to do about him. I had no proof. Yet, to swallow my anger felt cowardly. If I had decided to change, I couldn't go back to how I was before.
"Give me the phone tonight. I'll take it home for you, and I'll bring it back on Friday," Liu Xiaoyu said.
"Okay," I nodded, suppressing my anger. This whole Wang Hua thing needed a long-term plan. Even if I had proof, what then? He reported me for bringing a phone, which is against school rules. What could I do to him?
Unable to do anything about him in the short term, I changed the subject to distract myself from my anger by mentioning the news I overheard in line.
"Xiaoyu, did you hear? Teacher Li Yue is in the hospital."
Hearing that, Liu Xiaoyu suddenly turned to me, giving me a strange look.
I felt confused. "What's wrong?"
Liu Xiaoyu pursed his lips, his expression unreadable. Then he said softly, "I know. I heard."
"Why haven't they found the attacker yet? The technology is pretty good these days, even without surveillance," I said softly, wondering what was up with Liu Xiaoyu.
Seeing him still staring at me, I asked, "Xiaoyu, what is it?"
"Nothing." Liu Xiaoyu shook his head.
"I know the reason you're talking about. It's because it rained heavily the day the incident happened."
His words made me realize. It had rained a very short but very violent storm on my way to the internet café, with thunder and strong winds. It must have ruined the crime scene.
"Fate helped them this time," I felt a sense of injustice. But on the other hand, this was also an opportunity for me.
"Teacher Li Yue is still in a coma. Maybe when she wakes up, she'll know who the attacker is," Liu Xiaoyu said softly.
"She hasn't woken up yet?" I was surprised.
"No, she was seriously injured."
She certainly was. I thought that if the security guard hadn't arrived, I would have eventually called an ambulance due to my conscience, and the video I had would have been enough to send Mistress Extinction to prison immediately.
But since the event had unfolded the way it did, and I now held such a powerful weapon, a quiet, unspoken ambition began to rise within me. I wanted to use this video for more than just off-campus residency. I wanted more. The warmth and softness I had unintentionally felt that day sometimes still lingered in my mind.
"But I'm wondering about something," Liu Xiaoyu said, fiddling with a piece of paper in his small hand.
"What is it?" I asked curiously.
"Tell me," Liu Xiaoyu tilted his head and asked. "Do you think the attacker might try to interfere while she's in the hospital? After all, if she wakes up, the game is over."
"What!?" I was stunned. I hadn't thought of that. "They wouldn't be that bold, would they?"
"Maybe. It's just a guess," Liu Xiaoyu shook his head.
But his thought struck a nerve. He had a very good point. If she woke up, Bai Manwen would be immediately implicated. Although she didn't have solid evidence, Mistress Extinction would definitely be investigated and monitored. She would be impacted, and any slip-up would lead to her complete downfall.
"You're really smart," I couldn't help but exclaim.
"Naturally," Liu Xiaoyu lifted his small head proudly.
"So, bro, explain two more problems to me?"
I smiled and held up my notebook in front of him.
"Only because I'm in a good mood," he relented.
Time gradually passed until evening. When Mistress Extinction came to the podium to collect phones, I kept staring at her, trying to read something on her face. I began to notice something strange: she seemed preoccupied. Her usual imposing aura had faded somewhat, and she looked like she hadn't slept well.
When she walked down later, I noticed up close that the smell of her makeup was quite strong. A thought immediately occurred to me: was she trying to cover up her exhaustion?
After Mistress Extinction left, I submitted my homework.
I sat on my stool, steadying my breath for a long time. Then, I slowly stood up, as if making a firm decision. I walked toward the office.
I knew it. My rise and resistance had begun.