Chapter 7: "Beauty" Saves "Hero"

  "Whoa! I'm going to drive you crazy! Drive you crazy!"

  "Son of a b****, I'm gonna beat you up!"

  "Woof woof——"

  ……

  The closer they got to the goal, the clearer the sound of scolding and cursing mixed with barking and muffled sounds became. Jiang Yu didn't even need to get close to guess that there must be a fight going on up ahead. Judging from the voices, these boys were all in their breaking-voice phase, probably still just junior high school students? She stopped in her tracks, shaking her head in dismay. Nowadays, what deep-seated grudges could these young students have, resorting to fighting to resolve them? Didn't they know that acting on impulse was the devil's work?

  She didn't want to cause trouble, nor did she want to be a heroic good youth. Anyway, she was just a weak woman with no ability to truss up a chicken, and even if she didn't get involved, nobody would blame her. Thinking of this, Jiang Ruyu made a standard about-face, lifted her foot and was about to march off in quick steps.

  "Wang Xiao, aren't you supposed to be very capable? The four of us are ganging up on you and you still won't yield!" a boy said boastfully.

  "Wow, you're still hitting!"

  ……

  Wang Xiao? Hearing this name, Jiang Ruyu's left foot, which had already been lifted, was put back down. Earlier, she seemed to have seen Wang Xiao walking in this direction. Such a quiet boy is now being beaten by four people, what if something happens? At this age, children are impulsive and don't know their own strength, if Wang Xiao gets killed, wouldn't it be irresponsible of her not to intervene?

  Jiang Yu thought of this and moved forward a bit, turning around to hide behind a stack of firewood. From this angle, she could clearly see the situation in front of her. Wang Xiao's school uniform was stained with dirt, and he was fiercely fighting an opponent who was also wearing a school uniform from the experimental middle school, using his bare fists against the other boy's stick. Even when three boys next to him hit him with sticks, he didn't dodge...

  Just as Wang Xiao was fighting one against four, although he was fighting beautifully, a good tiger can't hold out against a pack of wolves, and he was already showing signs of defeat. Jiang Ruyu suddenly had a pang of conscience and felt that she shouldn't ignore this new deskmate. She rolled her eyes, smiled mischievously, and shouted loudly: "Ah!! Director Liu, Director good morning!" Aren't they all from Shiyan Middle School? At this time, Old Liu's trick to ward off evil should be the most effective.

  “……”

  "Woof woof——"

  As expected, all the insults stopped, all movements froze, and only the big dog in the cage was still barking loudly. The four boys were stunned for a moment, then quickly threw the sticks in their hands into the courtyard or on top of the flat houses on both sides, picked up the schoolbags on the ground and ran away. Wang Xiao seemed to be injured, his movements were slightly slower, but he also quickly picked up his schoolbag, limping and running towards the school, while rubbing his right calf bone with one hand. This scene was extremely comical, adding to his handsome face with a flustered expression, it was almost laughable enough to burst Jiang Yurou's belly.

  "Hmph..." Jiang Yu's image was ruined as she sprayed water everywhere. She leaned against the woodpile and burst out laughing. These students, who looked so fierce on the surface, were actually all afraid of their teacher.

  Who knew at this time, a pleasant male voice came from above her head: "What are you laughing at?"

  “……”

  Jiang Yu's eyes petrified, and the voice, if she hadn't misheard it, seemed to be that of her new deskmate, Wang Xiao, who had just run far away. Jiang Yu slowly turned her head, as if you could hear her neck creaking like a mechanical device lacking lubrication. Right in front of her was the boy's shoulder. Lifting her head, she saw Wang Xiao furrowing his thick eyebrows, his narrow and upward-slanting phoenix eyes revealing no emotion, as black as a deep pool. At this moment, he was staring at her with pursed lips.

  "Uh... morning, morning, classmate."

  Jiang Ruoyu smiled and waved her hand at him, but he wouldn't take revenge, would he? Just now, his fierce appearance was enough to make her tremble with just one punch. Jiang Ruoyu's smile froze on her face, and she lowered her head slightly, her small chubby hand subconsciously curling the ends of her braided hair, standing there at a loss.

  "Thank you."

  "Huh?"

  She suddenly looked up and seemed to see a fleeting smile in the eyes of this tall boy. Jiang Ruyu chuckled and said, "Don't be polite, don't be polite. Oh right, Shan Shan is still waiting for me over there, she's afraid of dogs and doesn't dare come over. I'll go find her, bye!" After finishing speaking, she walked past him towards the alley.

  "No need to look anymore." Wang Xiao looked at Jiang Ruoyu's back and slightly furrowed his brow, "I saw her enter the school gate just now. And now it's already 7:10."

  "Ah?" Jiang Ruyu stopped in her tracks, her face immediately falling. She glanced at her watch and indeed it was already 7:10. What did 7:10 mean? At 7:10, school started its morning reading session, the school gates would be closed, and Old Liu would be like a loyal big black dog squatting by the school gate, waiting to pounce on latecomers. Arriving after 7:10 would result in at least a thousand-word essay, accompanied by a severe scolding...

  Jiang Yu's face scrunched up, how could she have forgotten the time? Or maybe it was because she hadn't experienced campus life for too long, and had lost even the most basic sense of time. Although she had left her house a bit early that morning, she went to Yu Shan Shan's place, then strolled along chatting leisurely all the way here, and watched an exciting live performance of "Young and Dangerous", losing track of time without realizing it. Now she was in trouble, doomed for sure.

  Wang Xiao looked at Jiang Ruoyu's rich expression, smiled after a while, and said: "Let's go, school." After that, he turned around and led the way in front. Jiang Ruoyu followed behind, comforting herself and making mental preparations, only to ask after a while: "Wang Xiao, didn't you run away? Why did you come back?"

  "I recognize your voice."

  "Oh. Then why did you fight with them? By the way, does your leg hurt?"

  "They came to me first. It doesn't hurt."

  "Oh, you're going to be late, why don't you hurry back to school? You should have had enough time originally, what are you doing coming back?"

  “……”

  "Why aren't you saying anything?"

  “……”

  Jiang Yu'er rolled her eyes again and started playing it cool, but she was his lifesaver! Who treats their benefactor like this? Not even bothering to respond to him, she couldn't be bothered with him either!

  ……