When Xing Wu came downstairs, a breeze swept past him as Qingye, wearing a short-sleeved shirt and carrying her backpack, was playing with a self-balancing scooter at the entrance of Xuan Island.
Xing Wu walked out at an unhurried pace, his thick eyebrows shadowing a pair of intense eyes, facing the first ray of light rising at the horizon, lost in thought.
Qingye glided in front of him and waved her hand: “What are you spacing out about so early? Still not awake?”
Xing Wu lowered his eyelids and looked at her expressionlessly: “Aren’t you tired? How many hours did you sleep yesterday? You’re acting like you’re on an adrenaline rush.”
Qingye giggled: “No pain, no gain – senior year would be boring otherwise.”
Then she turned to Xing Wu and said: “I want to eat tofu pudding. Yellow Hair said that place you guys often go to has amazing chili oil – take me there.”
Xing Wu checked his phone – 5:45. Going for tofu pudding at this hour… clearly, the young lady was quite affected by last night’s events.
So Xing Wu swayed his shoulders as he led her toward the back street, with Qingye following on the self-balancing scooter. Xing Wu kept turning back to look at her, a mysterious smile playing on his lips.
Finally, after his nth time turning back, Qingye couldn’t help but ask: “What are you smiling at?”
“Don’t you think, at this hour, in this way, I’m kind of like walking a dog?”
Qingye immediately accelerated and sharply flicked his ear, then quickly glided ahead of him. Xing Wu touched his ear and smiled silently.
Although it was just past six, there was already a modest queue forming in front of Qi’s breakfast stall.
Qingye said with some surprise: “So many people?”
Xing Wu turned back and told her to find a seat while he queued up.
The so-called seats were just a few small wooden tables by the roadside. Some were already occupied, but fortunately, they came early enough that there were still empty spots.
After sitting down, Qingye glanced sideways at Xing Wu. He had changed into a long-sleeved hoodie before leaving, wearing black track pants with a white stripe, his long legs particularly eye-catching. She had never seen Xing Wu’s father, and although Li Lanfang wasn’t unattractive, she wasn’t particularly tall. Could Xing Wu’s build and proportions be inherited from his father? If so, how handsome must his father be as a middle-aged man? Qingye’s thoughts wandered.
When Xing Wu turned back with the bowls, he saw Qingye hugging her arms, curled up in a ball, staring blankly.
The autumn morning indeed had a chill to it. After setting things down, Xing Wu asked her: “Aren’t you cold?”
“Yes, I am,” Qingye answered matter-of-factly.
Xing Wu was speechless: “If you’re cold, why didn’t you wear more?”
Qingye pulled the bowl over and then tugged at his sleeve. Xing Wu looked at her: “What?”
“Lend me your jacket, I’m cold.”
“If you’re cold, you think I’m not?”
Qingye stared at him seriously: “Though we’re both cold, I think your physical condition is better than mine, and I’m your school’s only hope for the county’s top score, so you can’t let me catch a cold, you know, Mr. Safety Monitor.” By the end, Qingye’s eyes were curved in amusement.
Xing Wu was both amused and annoyed by her grandiose reasoning. He glared at her while unzipping his jacket and throwing it to her. Qingye didn’t stand on the ceremony, putting it on before reaching for the supposedly amazing chili oil.
Xing Wu got up and went across the street, leaving Qingye wondering what he was doing.
After a while, he returned with a hot meat flatbread and handed it to Qingye: “Here, eat well, top student. Our county is counting on you to bring us glory.”
Qingye smiled and accepted it, taking a bite. The fragrant, meat-filled bread instantly gave her a sense of contentment.
Xing Wu seemed unafraid of spicy food, adding several spoonfuls of chili to his bowl until it was bright red, looking frightening.
Qingye stirred her bowl, took a small sip, and looked up to ask Xing Wu: “I heard Du Qiyan’s mother urgently needs money for medical treatment, and who knows when Yang Gang can gather enough money. Do you think… if I offered to pay for her mother’s treatment first, would she accept?”
Xing Wu glanced at Qingye: “You have that much money?”
Qingye remained silent, but Xing Wu suddenly asked: “How much does one year of study in Canada cost?”
“Even being frugal, at least a hundred and fifty thousand yuan per year.”
“How much did your father leave you?”
They looked at each other for several seconds. Although one shouldn’t flaunt wealth, especially in such a poor, remote place, and a self-preservation instinct told Qingye not to reveal her entire assets to others, facing Xing Wu’s inquiry, she felt no need for caution. So she told him truthfully: “Three hundred thousand.”
Xing Wu frowned slightly: “That’s only enough for two years, what about after that?”
But Qingye didn’t seem very worried. She casually stirred her tofu pudding and said: “That’s why I need to find a way to get a scholarship. The spots are limited, competition is fierce.”
She took a big bite of her meat flatbread, her eyes full of fighting spirit.
Xing Wu’s frown deepened, and he said to Qingye: “Leave Du Qiyan’s mother’s situation to me, I’ll figure something out.”
Qingye looked up at him in surprise. By now, the breakfast stall was getting more crowded, and two girls wearing An Zhong school uniforms sat at their table. Judging by their uniform color, they were second-year students from An Zhong, and the conversation naturally came to an end.
The breakfast stall had limited tables, so people had to share. At first, the two girls didn’t pay attention, but after sitting down, they realized they were sitting next to Xing Wu. They immediately became so nervous they barely dared to breathe. They wanted to stand up, but there were no other seats available; continuing to sit, they didn’t even know where to look.
Xing Wu paid them no attention, scrolling through his phone while eating his tofu pudding, wearing just a short-sleeve shirt on the chilly morning. His arm muscles were firm and smooth, his profile clean and sharp. The girl sitting next to him kept stealing glances at him.
Xing Wu seemed to notice her gaze and raised his eyes – sharp as a bird of prey. The girl instantly blushed to her ears.
Qingye pushed her bowl toward Xing Wu: “Too spicy.”
Xing Wu pushed aside his empty bowl and naturally pulled over Qingye’s bowl to continue eating.
It was then that the two girls across from them looked up and suddenly recognized Qingye, the top student who had been the talk of the school lately.
As for why Qingye was eating breakfast with Xing Wu so early at the food stall, and why Xing Wu was eating her spicy tofu pudding, they didn’t know and didn’t dare to ask.
More and more students from An Zhi and An Zhong were arriving. Although not everyone recognized Qingye, almost everyone knew Xing Wu, and many stared at him in surprise, probably because no one expected to see him at a breakfast stall at this hour.
So Xing Wu quickly finished his food and got up.
When Qingye rode into campus on Xing Wu’s Ninebot, passersby were stunned. Xing Wu never came to school before the self-study period ended, yet today he arrived so early – everyone wondered if they were seeing things.
Moreover, it was well known that Xing Wu disliked others touching his things, but this transfer student not only touched it but seemed to have completely taken possession of it. Even more bizarre was that their very own school bully was following behind her without any complaint, completely overturning everyone’s expectations.
So in just one morning, many people began to believe the rumor that Xing Wu was Qingye’s subordinate. Even when Qingye went to the bathroom, girls from the neighboring class very politely let her go first, leaving her confused – since when had these non-mainstream students become so courteous?
Even more strange was that not just Class 2, but the whole school had started a trend of bun hairstyles. Qingye had tied hers up because of the heat and to keep it out of the way while studying, but now the non-mainstream students in the school were all wearing their buns almost reaching the sky, resembling Faye Wong’s hairstyle from “Appointment 1998.”
This directly led to Qingye feeling like she had time-traveled when walking through school recently, seeing all sorts of eye-catching styles. However, at the same time, she suddenly had a business inspiration.
When the last afternoon class bell rang, Qingye quickly packed up to hurry back. Seeing Shi Min still buried in copying English vocabulary, Qingye felt sorry for her while packing – spending an entire day copying a few English words without memorizing them, such persistence deserved a thumbs up if Qingye hadn’t been in a hurry.
As she walked out of the school gates with her backpack, she noticed several motorcycles parked across the street and a group of people standing at the corner. She glanced over and saw Xing Wu with one hand in his pocket and a cigarette in the other. Of the people around him, few were from An Zhong – Dog Tooth’s group was all there, including Shu Han whom she had seen last night.
Shu Han stood next to Xing Wu, also smoking a slim cigarette, wearing a black leather skirt that hugged her curves and high heels, looking sexy and hot. Passersby would all stare at her for a few extra seconds.
She wasn’t particularly beautiful in the conventional sense, but her eyes carried a kind of aloof coldness. She belonged to the same world as Xing Wu and the others, emanating an intimidating aura.
For the first time, Qingye had such a clear and direct sense that she and Xing Wu were from two different worlds. Perhaps she was even considered an oddity in their eyes.
If her father hadn’t gotten into trouble, she might never have known people like this in her entire life. Before, she wouldn’t have even glanced at such people, but now, looking at them from across the street, Qingye felt a complex emotion rising in her heart. She didn’t know why she was feeling this way.
Xing Wu was laughing and talking with them when he seemed to notice her gaze. As he turned his head, the smile hadn’t yet faded from his lips, but his eyes fell on Qingye. Qingye silently turned away and walked back, not even giving him another glance.
For a moment, she felt an unprecedented sense of loss. When she realized this terrifying feeling of loss in her heart, she quickened her pace even more. She had to shake this horrible notion from her mind, couldn’t let these complex emotions spread like a virus and occupy her thoughts.
Xing Wu watched her walking faster, almost running away, and his smile slowly faded.
When Qingye rushed back to Xuan Island in one breath, Liu Nian and Du Qiyan were just about to finish their shift. She immediately dropped her backpack and pulled it aside to ask: “Do any of you know how to do wool curls, carousel curls, air curls, or cloud perms? Any of these?”
“Cloud?” Liu Nian stared at her in confusion.
Qingye went upstairs to get her notebook, brought them together for a small meeting, and showed them several hairstyles popular among city girls. Clearly, in this county town where living standards lagged considerably, Liu Nian and Du Qiyan had never encountered these styles. Just looking at Du Qiyan’s firework perm, the local aesthetic taste was still stuck at least a decade behind.
Qingye asked if they wanted to make money. The two weren’t very interested at first, but their eyes lit up at the mention of money. Even Li Lanfang, who was passing by, stopped: “Qingye, what money are you talking about?”
Qingye turned the computer around and stood up to face them: “You’re just doing the same few boring hairstyles here, charging just a few dozen yuan for a perm. Without innovation, you naturally can’t bring in more income. Why not try some new styles to attract a larger customer base? Right now, all the hair salons in the county are making questionable styles. If we can master these trending styles, we can charge at least triple the current prices.”
Li Lanfang immediately interjected: “Look, Qingye, the living standard here is what it is. If you charge two or three hundred for a hairstyle, no one will come.”
“How do we know if we don’t try?”
Li Lanfang smiled dismissively, but Qingye turned the computer to face her: “How about this – if we can develop new styles including pricing and bring in actual customer flow, for any customer who chooses our new perms or dyes, Liu Nian and Du Qiyan each get 30% commission per head. If next month’s total profit doubles compared to this month, I’ll take 10% as an operations fee.”
Li Lanfang was confused by Qingye’s proposal and smiled: “I don’t understand what you’re saying. Do whatever you want, just don’t burn down my shop. I’ve fed the old lady, I’m going out to play mahjong. Liu Nian, and Yan Yan, help yourselves to food in the kitchen. Qingye, look after them.”
Then Li Lanfang left like a gust of wind. Qingye suddenly realized that discussing commission performance and operation plans with her temporary aunt was like talking to a wall. As she said, as long as the shop was still there and she got money each month, she had no interest in managing it – she’d rather think about what mahjong moves to make later.
So that evening, Qingye started working on research plans with Liu Nian and Du Qiyan. Qingye knew nothing about the technical aspects, completely an outsider, but she could gather useful materials and tutorials through various channels. Her academic spirit of research showed through, though she wasn’t sure if it would work.
This was when the difference between professionals and non-professionals became apparent. Although Liu Nian usually seemed not very bright, referring to the materials Qingye found for them, he could roughly understand the curling techniques and heating methods.
After discussing it for half a day, they decided to try it hands-on first. Theory without practice wouldn’t give them a real feel for it. The most troublesome question became who to practice on. Liu Nian and Qingye slowly turned their gaze toward Du Qiyan, who said dumbly: “I’ll do it then.”