Chapter 45: An Yuan’s Request
Liking An Yuan? Or being liked by An Yuan?
That kind of thing was pure fantasy. Only clueless outsiders would ship the two of them, spreading rumors about them dating all the time.
But as the people involved, they just laughed it off, knowing deep down that it was completely impossible.
Like An Yuan had said, whenever he looked at Chen Cheng, he couldn’t help but see her past life’s face, a sharp and handsome guy. And she couldn’t even begin to imagine An Yuan ever falling for a man, especially a childhood friend who had practically grown up as his brother.
As for her? That was even more impossible!
After lunch break, they returned to class. While Chen Cheng focused on the lesson, part of her attention was still on Li Wanyi.
Good thing she had been quick-witted at noon. Sensing something was off, she had followed Li Wanyi to the cafeteria, successfully interrupting the drama queen’s act of crying and making a scene!
Even though An Yuan was cold toward Li Wanyi now, what if? Who knew if he’d soften up out of nostalgia?
Right now, she was ahead, and she had to stay ahead. No way was she giving Li Wanyi a chance to turn things around!
Occasionally glancing back, Chen Cheng saw Li Wanyi slumped over her desk, looking utterly defeated. Like a sore loser, completely out of it and ignoring class.
Hmph! That’s what you get for messing with me!
Smirking, Chen Cheng lowered her head and continued working on her test paper. It was Chinese class, but she was doing math.
For her, Chinese was mostly about memorization, reading comprehension, and essays. Since she had already memorized the required texts before, reviewing them again wasn’t too hard. Essay was even less of a problem. After all, she had been writing webnovels for over a decade. Narrative writing was her specialty. She might not score top marks, but at least she wouldn’t drag her grades down.
Unfortunately, the same couldn’t be said for her other subjects…
Gotta work hard to get into the same city as An Yuan for college.
That way, they could still hang out on weekends after starting university.
“Pop quiz, recite Chu Shi Biao (Memorial on the Case to Go to War).”
Chen Cheng froze, hurriedly shoving aside her math paper and flipping open her Chinese textbook.
“An Yuan, you first.”
She let out a sigh of relief and turned to look at An Yuan in the fourth row. He stood up, scratching his head awkwardly, and she couldn’t help but stifle a laugh.
Finally, it’s your turn to suffer!
Back in elementary school, An Yuan had been a top student, ranking among the best in class. But ten years later, here he was, stuck sharing a desk with a slacker like her.
“Let me take another look first… I’m not confident.”
The homeroom teacher, surprisingly lenient, nodded and allowed him to stall. Then she turned to Chen Cheng.
Chen Cheng lowered her head without hesitation, fearing to attract the attention of the head teacher, seizing the time to glance at the 'Chu Shi Biao,' trying to memorize as much as possible.
“Chen Cheng, stop hiding. Your turn.”
The class erupted into suppressed laughter. Chen Cheng buried her face in despair.
I swear we’re not dating! Why do they keep picking on us?!
Luckily, despite stumbling here and there (with Pan Jie whispering hints from the side), she managed to get through it. But her face grew hotter with every word. She had never been good at being the center of attention, messing up even a single word made her blush with embarrassment.
The teacher ended up calling on nearly half the class, leaving behind a battlefield of groans and complaints.
“Anyone who couldn’t recite it properly, copy it ten times! Submit it tomorrow. Class dismissed!”
“Ughhh! I literally just memorized it two days ago!”
From the back row came Li Wanyi’s dramatic wail.
Chen Cheng pressed her lips together, trying not to laugh.
Serves you right! Instead of focusing on your studies, you spent all your time thinking about An Yuan! No wonder you forgot the text!
Chen Cheng grumbled about Li Wanyi in her head, then cheerfully dashed over to An Yuan’s desk. She peeked over and smirked.
"Already copying it? How long do you think ten times will take?"
An Yuan had also failed to recite the passage and was now miserably copying it down.
"I think the homeroom teacher is targeting me. I was the first one called."
"Yeah, for real! That was just cruel."
Their deskmate, Gao Dong, glanced around awkwardly, feeling like a third wheel. He quickly stood up. "Uh… I need to use the restroom. You can sit here."
"Oh, thanks~"
Chen Cheng plopped into Gao Dong’s seat and leaned over, eyeing An Yuan’s scribbled handwriting. "At least try to write neatly! If I were the teacher, I’d make you redo it."
"As if your handwriting is any better. I’m busy, go bother someone else."
"I'm just looking out for you~"
She pulled a few White Rabbit candies from her jacket pocket and teasingly waved them in front of him. "Want some?"
"No."
"Come on~ Brain power needs fuel. Have some sugar to recharge!"
"Scram."
Chen Cheng switched tactics. "Wanna go to the snack shop? Grab a Coke? Don’t you need a toilet break? C’mon, you can always copy this later~"
"By the way, how do you plan to spend the money I gave you? As your investor, I need to know where my funds are going. You didn’t blow it all on games, did you?"
Now that was a serious topic. An Yuan slowed his writing and replied, "It’s just a few hundred yuan, can’t do much with it. Plus, we’re high school seniors and still underage. But my dad trades stocks every day, so I gave the money to him."
"Oh! Wasn’t your dad the one who lost so much in stocks that your mom almost divorced him?"
"Yeah… that happened this year."
Chen Cheng’s eyes widened. "And you still gave him money?! That’s my money! You’re really fine with losing it?!"
"I had him invest in renewable energy stocks. I did my research, government subsidies for renewable energy started a couple of years ago. Even if this is a parallel world, the trend should be similar." An Yuan sighed, rubbing his temples. "You have no idea how hard it was. In his eyes, I’m just a kid messing around. He almost bought something else instead."
As a minor, there were so many things they couldn’t do, and influencing family decisions was even harder.
"I even tried convincing my mom to get a health check-up, but she refused. Says it’s a waste of money. By the time she realizes she needs it, it might be too late. What if she has a stroke or something?"
An Yuan rolled his shoulders, feeling the familiar weight of worry settle in.
"At least my parents are in pretty good health for now…"
Chen Cheng remembered her mom had been hospitalized once, but it was just a minor surgery. her father had also dealt with appendicitis, but nothing serious.
The real issue was herself. In the future, she developed rheumatoid arthritis. A lifelong condition with no cure, only management. The cause was unknown, and there wasn’t even a clear way to prevent it.
An Yuan’s pen suddenly stopped. He turned to look at her.
"What?"
"Why don’t you come to my place today and help me convince her?"
"Me?" Chen Cheng pointed at herself and shook her head furiously. "No way! I’m not good at this kind of thing!"
To outgoing people, talking things out was just a few extra sentences. But to her, anything involving serious conversations and persuasion was an instant nope.
"How am I supposed to convince her? You’re her son, and she won’t listen to you. What could I, an outsider, possibly do?"
That’s different. In his mother’s eyes, you’re her future daughter-in-law. Your status is much higher than him.
An Yuan thought this but didn’t say it out loud. Instead, he tried another tactic. "If you do it, I’ll buy you lunch every day from now on."
"I have hands and feet. I can get my own food. Besides, cafeteria food sucks."
An Yuan locked eyes with her, staring intently. "Chengzi…"
His gaze had this rare sincerity to it, making her scalp tingle. She pursed her lips tightly, hesitated for a long moment, then finally squeezed out a reluctant answer.
"…Fine."