“Eat this, you might feel a bit better,” she said softly. “I’m heading home now.”
Jiang Ren held onto the candy, his other hand grasping her: “What’s wrong with your eyes?”
Meng Ting panicked, fearing he might try to touch her glasses.
She quickly said, “I was in a car accident, my corneas were injured, and I was once blind. Jiang Ren, please let go of me.”
He frowned, “Can you see now?”
Meng Ting nodded, “I can’t handle strong light.”
“Let me take a look, close your eyes first.”
Meng Ting’s heart skipped a beat. How could she let him look? Her eyes had now recovered from the swelling and were no different from normal people’s, except that they would still hurt if used for too long.
She was so anxious she almost hit him, “No, my eyes look very strange.”
Seeing her face turn red, he couldn’t help but laugh, “How strange?”
Meng Ting wasn’t good at lying. After a while, she said quietly, “Just like in my student ID.” She carefully added, “They’re very ugly.” So please don’t look.
Jiang Ren laughed uncontrollably; he believed her nonsense.
However, the candy in his palm felt soft. He released her, “You can go home now.”
She panicked like a chased rabbit, no longer walking slowly but stumbling forward in a run.
He tossed the candy into his mouth.
The sweet and sour flavor spread across his taste buds. Jiang Ren leaned against the bus stop. The sky in H City was clear. For a moment, this city district, which in his eyes was a backwater, seemed different.
He tucked the candy wrapper into his pocket.
Well, if she didn’t want him to look, so be it. It’s not like she could be some heavenly beauty anyway.
Meng Ting returned home and handed the card to Shu Zhitong.
Shu Zhitong looked at her in surprise. She explained, “It’s the reward for the Math Olympiad competition. Uncle Shu, please keep it.”
After hearing her explanation, Shu Zhitong’s face lit up with joy, “Ting Ting is so clever. You keep this money and go buy some pretty clothes and good food. Don’t worry about the family, Uncle Shu won’t let you suffer.”
Meng Ting’s eyes felt sore. With a slight nasal tone, she said, “I have pocket money. Uncle Shu, you keep it.”
She put the card on the table and was about to return to her room when Uncle Shu said cheerfully, “Then I’ll save it in the bank for Ting Ting. It’ll earn quite a bit of interest. Ting Ting can withdraw it when needed.”
Shu Lan came out of her room. She had slept until noon and was still in her pajamas.
“Dad, where did this card come from?”
Seeing her reach for it, Shu Zhitong quickly took it away, “Xiao Lan, change your clothes and come eat. This is your sister’s thing, don’t touch it.”
Shu Lan was reprimanded and felt dissatisfied, “I just wanted to look, how come you’re so biased, Dad? I haven’t bought new clothes in ages.”
Talking about this made her angry.
Li Cai Vocational High School was different from No. 7 Middle School. No. 7 required students to wear uniforms and not stand out. Li Cai was different. Although they had a set of uniforms, the school didn’t enforce wearing them. Shu Lan had never worn the uniform once.
She wore her clothes, but due to their poor family circumstances, her clothes were far less fashionable and pretty than those of other girls. At this age, comparisons were inevitable, and Shu Lan felt terrible every time she saw others wearing nice clothes.
Only Meng Ting could bear wearing such shabby clothes all year round.
Shu Lan always felt that when walking through campus, others looked at her with mocking eyes.
She stomped her foot and left in a huff. What was wrong with wanting new clothes? Didn’t Jiang Ren like those girls because they knew how to dress up better than her? If she had money, she’d surely look even better than them.
Meng Ting returned to her room and, after much thought, pulled out a dusty box.
She opened the box. Inside were several beautiful dance costumes and a pair of white dance shoes. Her slender, pale fingers gently brushed over them. These were once the most beautiful things in her life. But after her mother’s death, she never wore them again.
Meng Ting always felt guilty.
She used to be as beautiful and dazzling as the aurora, the most eye-catching presence wherever she went. On stage, she was stunningly beautiful.
That year, she was in middle school.
Walking down the street, countless young boys would secretly look at her.
“That’s her, isn’t she pretty? I heard Deng Qiang say her name is Meng Ting.”
“I’ve seen her dance, she’s really beautiful.”
“She speaks so softly too, even cuter than my little sister.”
“Go talk to her.”
…
Meng Ting’s mother, Zeng Yujie, couldn’t help but smile seeing her daughter so popular, “Let me see, how many people followed you home today?” She peeked behind, and the group of boys scattered like birds and beasts.
Meng Ting was slightly annoyed, “Mom!”
Zeng Yujie laughed uncontrollably, “You’re so shy, how will you handle being bullied in the future?”
Recalling this, Meng Ting’s eyes couldn’t help but fill with tears. She looked at the small gold medal in the box that hadn’t faded, picked it up, and opened the back cover. Inside was the last photograph.
Under the stage lights, she sat at the piano, and Zeng Yujie stood behind her, smiling, her hand on her daughter’s hair.
The fourteen-year-old girl in the photo, with her soft hair tucked behind her ears, was unbelievably beautiful.
This was her former self.
In her past life, until her death, Meng Ting had always avoided these things, never opening this box. If it weren’t for this competition bringing her back, her mother wouldn’t have been in that car accident. When the accident happened, Zeng Yujie had hugged Meng Ting.
After Zeng Yujie’s death, for a long time, Meng Ting couldn’t even smile.
The most beautiful light in her life became an indelible pain. Her world went dark, and she never danced again, forgetting her past self.
The beautiful, dazzling self with a touch of pride.
Meng Ting went from being a talented, all-around prodigy to the most ordinary member of the masses.
And now, because of Uncle Shu’s predicament, should she overcome her psychological barriers and pick these up again?
On Monday, during study time, everyone knew about Meng Ting winning the Math Olympiad championship.
Zhao Nuancheng was also amazed, “Wow, you got first place? What about Lu Yue?”
Meng Ting was looking for her chemistry book and replied, “Second place.”
Zhao Nuancheng clicked her tongue, “My goodness.” Ting Ting was too amazing.
The class was also talking about this because Lu Yue was the goddess of the senior class. Lu Yue came from a good family and was well-mannered, usually like a high and lofty fairy, untouched by worldly matters. But unexpectedly, she lost to Meng Ting, who was a year younger.
The girls in class couldn’t help but say, “Meng Ting is so awesome, crushing them with her intelligence.”
The boys laughed and said, “Winning doesn’t matter, Lu Yue is so pretty. What’s the use of good grades?”
The girls also whispered, “Although Meng Ting is good, her eyes are a pity. Oh, let’s not talk about that. Have you heard about Lu Yue and Jiang Ren? It seems they’re dating.”
“No way!”
“Really…”
The topic gradually shifted. Zhao Nuancheng was furious. Ting Ting had won, yet people were sympathizing with her. She was about to puff up like a pufferfish.
For the entire No. 7 Middle School, Jiang Ren became the most unique existence.
He was from the neighboring vocational school, and that group often smoked under the ginkgo trees after school.
Even their school’s discipline master and teachers didn’t dare to manage him. It was said that he rarely attended classes. He had money, real money. Even though he had been driven out by the Jiang family, he was very generous.
Not many families could afford small cars that year, let alone the supercar Jiang Ren drove.
Meng Ting herself didn’t care about these things when she heard them.
She was still thinking about how to make money.
In a few years, housing prices would skyrocket, but Shu Zhitong had already sold the house. The current house was rented and in a newly developed area.
They were really poor…
And the Jiang family, who were in real estate, would be incredibly wealthy in a few years.
Fortunately, her mindset was peaceful. It didn’t matter if she had nothing. Only after dying once did she understand that being safe and healthy was the most important thing in life.
At dismissal time, there was a commotion at the gate of the neighboring vocational school.
Zhao Nuancheng and Meng Ting were walking together when they realized what the commotion was about.
Shen Yuqing was waiting for Jiang Ren.
She had originally thought Jiang Ren would come looking for her after a while, but then she heard rumors about Jiang Ren and Lu Yue. She couldn’t bear it anymore and came over proactively.
Jiang Ren took out a lighter from his pocket and lit the cigarette between his lips.
His smoking gesture was very casual. After a while, he looked down at her, “What are you doing here?”
Shen Yuqing said, “Jiang Ren, let’s start over. I won’t act on my own in the future. I’ll listen to you, okay?”
Jiang Ren clicked his tongue, “Not interested. Go away.”
Meng Ting was afraid Jiang Ren would spot her in the crowd. She lowered her head and pulled Zhao Nuancheng to leave.
Zhao Nuancheng misunderstood, “Ting Ting, you’re excited too, right? Damn, that’s Shen Yuqing. She begged Jiang Ren to get back together and was rejected. If even Shen Yuqing isn’t good enough for him, who will he like? Could it be Lu Yue?”
Meng Ting pressed her lips together, “Can we leave?”
Zhao Nuancheng couldn’t wait to stay and watch the drama unfold, “Ting Ting, don’t talk.”
Shen Yuqing’s eyes were red, “Do you really like Lu Yue? She’s only decent in studies. How is she better than me in any other way? Jiang Ren, do you have no feelings for me at all?”
Jiang Ren found it annoying. Hearing this, he put out his cigarette, “Aren’t you overestimating yourself?” He patted He Junming’s shoulder, “Where’s that photo from this afternoon?”
He Junming was stunned for a moment before realizing what Ren Ge meant.
He took out a small gold medal from his pocket, opened the back cover, and showed it to Shen Yuqing. His tone was mischievous, “Shen Yuqing, if Ren Ge is bothered by you, just stop coming. He likes this type. You don’t qualify.”
The onlookers all strained their eyes to look, but the gold medal was too small to see anything. Everyone’s curiosity was instantly piqued.
Shen Yuqing was close enough to see clearly.
This photo was quite old, and the resolution wasn’t good. It was taken several years ago.
In the less than-two-inch photo, a girl in a golden long dress had her fingers on a piano. She looked at the camera with a sweet and shy smile.
The photo had faded somewhat, but it didn’t diminish her exquisite beauty.
Shen Yuqing was stunned for a long time, unable to say anything.
Meng Ting, standing outside the crowd, was also stunned. After a moment, her face turned pale. She was all too familiar with that small gold medal. It had been in the box last night, how did it end up in He Junming’s hands today?
He Junming chuckled, “She’s pretty, isn’t she? Want to remake yourself?” He liked Lu Yue, so naturally, he wasn’t polite to Shen Yuqing.
Shen Yuqing came to her senses and was furious, “How old is she? You guys are perverts.”
Jiang Ren was impatient, “Are you leaving or not?”
Shen Yuqing was also afraid of him. With red eyes, she left. The crowd dispersed. Meng Ting didn’t know whether to be angry or scared. She gritted her teeth, her heart pounding, glanced at the small gold medal, and followed Zhao Nuancheng away.
He Junming was delighted, “Ren Ge, you really won’t take a look? She’s really beautiful.”
That girl who played the piano this afternoon, what was her name again? Oh right, Shu Lan. This was her gold medal. Who knew there was a photo behind it? When he saw it, he was amazed and said, “Damn, did I just see a little angel?” So cute, it was killing him.
Fang Tan came over to look and was also stunned, “She is very beautiful, but she looks quite young.”
He Han heard them discussing and joined in, also repeatedly exclaiming in admiration.
Only Jiang Ren was lying on the table sleeping. He found it noisy, “Shut up.”
Just now, when he was annoyed with Shen Yuqing, for some reason, he subconsciously thought of this photo.
He Junming handed it over, and Jiang Ren didn’t refuse this time. He looked down at it.
With just this one glance, he was also stunned.
“Ren Ge, you also think she’s very beautiful, right?” And she had a particularly pure aura.
The October sky was clear. Jiang Ren leaned against the tree, smiling somewhat roguishly, making a crude joke, “If I had met her a few years earlier, I might have…” He didn’t finish, but the men understood.
He Junming thought to himself, Ren Ge, you’re the real pervert beast.