You Rong wasn't foolish and naturally saw through it.
He pursed his lips, his eyes complex, yet he said nothing.
On her first day of part-time work, because Lin Qinghe worked so diligently, she returned to the apartment Lin Yi had bought for her at Nanda, exhausted and aching all over.
Lin Qinghe lay on the bed, gazing at the crystal chandelier above, and muttered, "This original body's constitution is too pampered. Just doing a little work makes me this tired..."
But the most troublesome thing was the progress bar that showed no change at all.
Lin Qinghe sighed, "There's no other way. For now, I'll try my best to make up for the original body's mistakes..."
The next day.
Lin Qinghe arrived at the classroom early and placed the breakfast with a note under You Rong's desk. The note read: "Your breakfast, I hope you like it. Remember not to waste it, wasting is shameful." A tongue-poking smiley face was drawn at the end.
After placing the breakfast, Lin Qinghe hid outside the classroom again and only entered after You Rong had.
You Rong saw the breakfast and cast a puzzled glance around the classroom before returning his gaze to the bread and milk.
Lin Qinghe's heart tightened.
Wouldn't he just leave it uneaten?
The next second, Lin Qinghe saw You Rong unwrap the bread and eat it, her eyes lighting up.
Perhaps You Rong ate it to avoid wasting food, but as the saying goes, "He who eats another's bread grows short of his own hand," and "He who accepts a favor should be lenient." In the future, she would find a way to let You Rong know it was her who sent him food, which might earn her some goodwill.
By noon, Lin Qinghe, again, waited until You Rong left before quietly placing the food with a note under his desk.
You Rong, holding the food, scanned the classroom and suddenly his gaze stopped on Lin Qinghe.
Lin Qinghe was startled and quickly lowered her head, pretending to search for something in her backpack, avoiding You Rong's sight.
Could You Rong's intuition be so accurate that he guessed it was her?
Lin Qinghe secretly peeked at You Rong from the corner of her eye. He had already looked away and was unwrapping his lunch. Only then did she secretly breathe a sigh of relief.
It seemed You Rong hadn't noticed; she had just been overthinking.
After a full day of classes, Lin Qinghe followed You Rong to the library and studied with him for an hour. Then, it was time for her part-time job, so she followed You Rong to the bar.
Just like yesterday, Lin Qinghe desperately vied for work, her own body panting for breath, not pausing for a moment. In contrast, because of her hard work, You Rong had a much easier time.
A customer at the bar got drunk and smashed a wine bottle, causing a disturbance. Brother Wang and the security guards dealt with it and called out, "You Rong, come here for a moment and clean up this broken glass."
Before You Rong could reply, Lin Qinghe blurted out, "I can do it!"
Lin Qinghe picked up the broom and dustpan and went over. As she swept, she saw an ID card also fall inside. Without much thought, she intended to pick it out. Just then, someone called out You Rong's name. Lin Qinghe was now extremely sensitive to the words "You Rong," and subconsciously looked up. Unbekempt, she was cut by a shard of broken wine bottle on the ground.
Lin Qinghe yelped in pain. Looking at her hand, she saw blood continuously oozing from the wound on her palm.
Brother Wang quickly came over, "Injured? Get up quickly! Forget about this... You Rong! Take her to the staff lounge. There's a first-aid kit inside. Help her clean the wound on her hand!"
You Rong nodded, glanced at Lin Qinghe, whose face was contorted in pain, and said, "Come with me."
Lin Qinghe cradled her injured hand and followed him into the staff lounge. You Rong found the first-aid kit, gestured towards the sofa, and indicated for Lin Qinghe to sit down so he could treat her wound.
Lin Qinghe was self-aware enough to know that she was not currently favored by You Rong. She said softly, "Um... you can just leave the first-aid kit there. The wound isn't serious, I can handle it myself!"
You Rong remained silent. He looked at Lin Qinghe for two seconds, then placed the first-aid kit on the coffee table in front of her and turned to leave.
As You Rong walked away, Lin Qinghe couldn't help but feel a little disappointed.
He really left just like that?
This proved how disgusted You Rong was with her.
Lin Qinghe sighed and dejectedly took out the disinfectant cotton swabs and alcohol from the first-aid kit to treat her wound.
You Rong, who had reached the doorway, hesitated for a moment. He turned back and saw Lin Qinghe clumsily treating her wound with one hand. A flicker of indecision crossed his face. Finally, he walked back.
Under Lin Qinghe's confused gaze, You Rong took the alcohol and cotton swab from her hand. "It's not easy for you to treat the wound by yourself."
Since You Rong had already taken Lin Qinghe's hand and started to treat her wound, she no longer refused. She secretly glanced at him and said, "...Thank you."
You Rong remained silent, his hand holding the alcohol-soaked cotton swab as he wiped Lin Qinghe's wound. She immediately let out a muffled groan in pain and instinctively pulled her hand back. But the next second, she bit her lip, forcing herself not to make a sound, and kept her hand steady.
Since You Rong was willing to treat her wound, she couldn't complain about the pain. Acting delicate and afraid of pain would only annoy him.
But disinfecting the wound was truly painful! Lin Qinghe's eyes welled up with a layer of misty white, making her look like she was about to cry.
You Rong glanced at the pitiful Lin Qinghe, and his movements involuntarily lightened.
The staff lounge was very quiet, except for their shallow breaths.
After disinfecting Lin Qinghe's wound, You Rong applied medicine and then took out clean gauze, unwrapped it, and bandaged her wound.
During the bandaging, You Rong was momentarily lost in thought.
Her hands were very white and tender, completely different from his own rough hands, calloused from years of part-time work. Such hands... should be pampered and cherished, not come to a bar to work as a server.
Once the wound on her hand was bandaged, Lin Qinghe quickly withdrew her hand and said nervously, "Th-thank you for bandaging my wound."
His hand suddenly empty, You Rong unconsciously wanted to clench it. Fortunately, he regained his senses in time, lowered his gaze, and collected his thoughts.
You Rong said in a flat tone, "Mm. Be careful these past two days, don't get it wet."
Lin Qinghe nodded vigorously, "Okay! I know, I will!"
You Rong said nothing more and got up to leave.
Lin Qinghe was left alone in the staff lounge. She couldn't help but wonder if You Rong's willingness to treat her wound meant he had a tiny bit of a change of heart towards her.
So after work, Lin Qinghe, who had been following behind You Rong, mustered her courage, sped up slightly, and caught up to him. She said with a dry laugh, "You Rong, what a coincidence, are you also walking this way home?"
You Rong glanced at her sideways but did not reply.
Lin Qinghe immediately realized her mistake and wished she could bite off her own tongue.
She had been trailing You Rong for the past two days, almost to his doorstep. He clearly walked this way home; what coincidence was there?
For the rest of the way, Lin Qinghe walked alongside You Rong at a slow pace. You Rong walked very slowly, and she matched his pace.
Seeing that the next intersection was the entrance to You Rong's neighborhood, Lin Qinghe, steeling herself, said, "You Rong, I live over there... It's quite late after work, and it's not safe to walk alone. Since we're going the same way, let's walk together from now on... We've agreed! I'll wait for you tomorrow after work!"
Lin Qinghe didn't give You Rong a chance to refuse and then ran off.
You Rong looked in the direction Lin Qinghe had disappeared, his expression unchanged. He continued to limp his way home.