Chapter Seventeen: The Clever Little Cat

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Li Ye wore a sullen expression as he read the letter, while his deskmate, Wen Leyu, kept glancing at him from the corner of her eye. Yet, given her good manners, she never actually peeked at the contents of the letter. However, seeing Li Ye furiously scribbling on the back of the paper stirred her curiosity immensely. What could Lu Jingyao have written to make such a kind-hearted boy so angry?

Finally, the little spy could no longer contain herself. She quietly and slowly stretched her neck forward, sneaking closer like a kitten stealthily stalking a mouse. But by then, Li Ye had finished writing, folded the letter, and just as he turned his head, their faces accidentally bumped.

Wen Leyu stiffened for a moment, quickly retreating her neck with a swift “whoosh,” sitting up straight and busily scribbling with her pen, putting on the appearance of a diligent student bent on daily self-improvement.

This little beauty was quite amusing.

Li Ye’s frustration instantly eased by more than half. He rested his cheek on one hand, elbow propped on the desk, turning his head to watch Wen Leyu write with such earnestness. His gaze was pure and serene, as if admiring a beautiful and lively painting.

Unaware, Wen Leyu’s pen didn’t stop moving, but a faint blush gradually spread across her pale skin, adding a touch of vibrant life to her otherwise overly fair complexion.

“What are you writing?” Li Ye asked. Not wanting to pry too much and embarrass her, he chose to break the silence with a considerate question.

Wen Leyu visibly relaxed, pushing her exercise book toward Li Ye, then wrote a message on a slip of paper.

“I’ve made some exercises for you. If you don’t understand anything, you can ask me.”

Li Ye took her large, rough exercise book and saw pages filled with dense English questions. “Why are you making me do these? Is this Mr. Ke’s idea?”

Wen Leyu paused briefly, quickly snatched back the note, and was about to write more when Li Ye whispered, “Although your handwriting is really beautiful, can you just talk to me instead?”

Wen Leyu froze again, but this time for several seconds before softly replying, “Aren’t you going to take the exam to get into Qingbei in the capital? I thought I could help you.”

Her voice was pleasant, but no one knew what she had endured over the years, which had rendered her a “little mute.” When she mentioned Li Ye “taking the exam in the capital,” she hurriedly corrected herself, probably because he had wanted to say he was going to the capital to find Lu Jingyao.

Li Ye smiled inwardly and nodded. “Thanks, I accept your help, but you have to accept mine as well.”

Wen Leyu blinked. “What kind of help?”

Li Ye pulled out his own exercise book and began writing math problems.

“I’ll give you a test paper too. If you don’t understand anything, you can ask me.”

Curious, Wen Leyu stretched her swan-like neck again, watching Li Ye’s pen and quickly writing out one question after another.

At first, she was confident because the questions Li Ye gave were all familiar to her.

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But when Li Ye reached the third sheet, she became serious.

Because these problems were unlike any she had ever seen.

“Do you really know how to solve these?”

“Of course!”

“How much did you score on the math section of the college entrance exam this year?”

“...”

Li Ye stopped writing and looked at Wen Leyu’s curious face, helplessly saying, “Can we not talk about that kind of thing?”

Wen Leyu was a little dazed as she looked at Li Ye, then her eyes shifted and she nodded firmly.

In that moment, Li Ye seemed to see the cat he had once raised in a past life—clumsy and adorable, but actually very clever.

...

“Jingyao, you’re truly brilliant. That day, senior Qian Shun only gave you a small tip, and your poem actually got published?”

“Yes! Junior sister Jingyao’s talent is something I’ve never seen before. Our Qingya Literary Society will rely on you to carry our legacy forward...”

Inside a lounge at the Foreign Languages Institute in the capital, Lu Jingyao was surrounded by a group of senior students, her face flushed red with both embarrassment and shyness.

Back in Qingshui County, she had enjoyed discussing poetry and literature with Xia Yue and others, so naturally, when it came time to choose a club at university, she joined the renowned “Qingya” Literary Society.

After several months of getting acquainted, Lu Jingyao boldly submitted a piece to the institute’s school magazine—and to her surprise, it was actually published.

Then came an awkward scene: several senior members flattered her excessively without asking for anything in return.

Especially a few of them whose eyes seemed to devour her whole, their overly enthusiastic attention making her deeply uncomfortable.

“Ahem, today, Junior Sister Jingyao’s work being published is a big event for the Qingya Literary Society. Therefore, I propose we all go out for a meal to celebrate. What do you think?”

“Great!”

“That’s only right!”

“Let’s go, tonight’s the perfect night for fine wine, no one leaves sober!”

The club members eagerly went out to eat, finally freeing Lu Jingyao from the embarrassment of endless flattery.

But soon, she began to worry again.

The feast would cost money. The last time the Qingya Literary Society gathered for a meal, everyone split the bill, each paying over two yuan—more than a tenth of her monthly scholarship allowance.

Since she had to save money to send home, Lu Jingyao had lived on steamed buns and pickles for a whole week after that dinner.

Although she earned five yuan and fifty cents from her published poem, she had planned to save ten yuan to send home. Now with this gathering, she wouldn’t even have enough to reach ten.

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“Let’s go, Jingyao. What are you thinking about?” He Xue, another member of the literary society, grabbed Lu Jingyao’s arm and pulled her to catch up with the others.

Lu Jingyao came back to herself. “Oh, nothing. Let’s go.”

As they walked, He Xue excitedly said, “It’s rare someone’s treating today. I’m going to feast—braised pork, braised pork knuckle, sweet and sour fish...”

Lu Jingyao’s heart felt lighter, and her steps became quicker. “Really? Who’s treating?”

He Xue turned to her with surprise. “Of course it’s you! You won money from your publication, you’re not going to forget us, are you? Our literary society’s tradition is that whoever earns from publications treats the others!”

“...”

Lu Jingyao’s steps faltered, her legs suddenly heavy as if filled with lead.

*I’m treating? When did I say I’d treat? What does the literary society’s tradition have to do with me?*

*Braised pork, braised pork knuckle, sweet and sour fish... each dish costs between four to nine dimes. With the appetites of these literary society members, three dishes per person is a piece of cake.*

*And that’s not even counting the alcohol. These people drink like it’s their last breath. A cheap bottle of white liquor costs three or four dimes; the expensive ones are several yuan. How many bottles will they need to get drunk?*

*Even worse is the beer—twenty cents a bottle. Several bottles won’t even make a dent...*

In less than a second, Lu Jingyao calculated the cost of tonight’s feast would be at least thirty yuan, and she’d have to use all the food coupons the school had given her over several months.

She regretted it. She regretted joining this so-called Qingya Society. She regretted publishing her poem in the school magazine.

Thirty yuan! Her monthly allowance was only twenty-two yuan and fifty cents, and she had to carefully set aside part of it to send home, to redeem her younger brother’s bicycle.

Now, not to mention thirty yuan, even twenty yuan was beyond her reach.

“Hey, Jingyao, what’s wrong? You look so pale. Don’t tell me you’re worried about money?”

“Ah? No, no... I just felt a bit cold from the wind earlier.”

Lowering her head and pursing her lips, Lu Jingyao dragged her feet forward, her heart tangled in a mess of worries.

She wanted to refuse, but feared being ridiculed.

Yet if she went, where would she find the money to pay?

Lu Jingyao felt as if she had suddenly been transported back to over a year ago.

The roof at home was leaking worse than ever, her mother’s cough growing more severe, yet the family couldn’t spare even a single extra coin.

Then, a boy had burst into her life, piercing the gloomy sky with a hole that let in brilliant sunlight.

But today, where was her sunlight?