Chapter 19: Only After Losing Do You Know How to Cherish

Lu Jingyao entered the dormitory in low spirits, disturbing Watching Liu Muhan, who was about to fall asleep on the upper bunk.

She said drowsily, "Lu Jingyao, there's a letter for you. I put it under your quilt."

"Oh, thank you!"

Lu Jingyao sobered up a bit and hid on her bed; she didn't want her weakness to be seen.

But Watching Liu Muhan sensed something, poked half her body out from the quilt, and her head followed the edge of the upper bunk, stretching down like a cat poking its head.

"What's wrong, Sister Jingyao? Are you not feeling well?"

"No,"

Lu Jingyao quickly wiped the tears from her face with the quilt so Watching Liu Muhan wouldn't see.

However, just as Watching Liu Muhan's head was about to retract, Lu Jingyao suddenly thought of something.

"Muhan, can you lend me twenty yuan?"

"Twenty yuan?"

Watching Liu Muhan was stunned for a moment, sat up from the bed, took her coat, and started digging for her wallet.

While digging, she asked, "Sister Jingyao, what do you need twenty yuan for? Is there an emergency at home?"

"No....... it's the literature society meal....... I want to pay Qian Shun back as soon as possible."

Lu Jingyao hesitated for a moment before telling Watching Liu Muhan the truth, only omitting the part about Qian Shun going crazy after drinking.

Watching Liu Muhan paused in her action of taking out her wallet, but still took out twenty yuan and handed it to Lu Jingyao.

"Thank you, Muhan, I will pay you back as soon as possible."

"You don't need to be in a hurry to pay me back, but there are a few things I must tell you."

Watching Liu Muhan said earnestly, "Sister Jingyao, we have already entered the adult world; we can no longer easily trust others like teenagers.

This society is very complicated. Some people seem good to you but may not have good intentions, and some people seem bad to you but may not have any malice."

Lu Jingyao didn't quite understand and asked awkwardly, "Muhan, what do you mean by saying this?"

Watching Liu Muhan shook her head helplessly and said, "Sister Jingyao, think about He Xue and the others. Did they ultimately give you any substantial help? Think about your previous boyfriend; what kind of support did he give you?

Any hypocrisy cannot withstand the measurement of material things. Just because of a few so-called 'concerns' from intimate friends who only know how to talk, you go and belittle those who once paid for you......"

"Do you know that He Xue and the others just want to see you make a fool of yourself!"

Watching Liu Muhan finished speaking in one breath and retracted into her quilt to warm up.

But Lu Jingyao's mood couldn't be calm for a long time because of this.

"See me make a fool of myself? Am I not... a joke today?"

Lu Jingyao felt uncomfortable in her heart. Today she had wanted to borrow money from He Xue and the others to pay the bill quietly, in order to maintain the self-esteem she valued most.

As a result, He Xue let the news slip in a panic, letting everyone know about Lu Jingyao's embarrassment and poverty.

Although He Xue later told Lu Jingyao with great concern that it was unintentional, was it really unintentional?

Looking back at what happened when everyone first entered university a few months ago, Lu Jingyao actually already had the answer in her heart.

At that time, everyone had just arrived at university, chattering and intimate, as close as biological sisters.

But not long after, a subtle barrier appeared.

Watching Liu Muhan's family background was superior; not only were her daily necessities complete, but many were authentic "high-end goods."

Lu Jingyao was sensitive and self-reliant and rarely touched other people's items, but He Xue and the others were careless and often picked them up and used them.

At first, Watching Liu Muhan didn't pay much attention, but when He Xue continuously took Watching Liu Muhan's soap, shampoo, and vanishing cream and gave them to senior students in the student union in the bathhouse, Watching Liu Muhan wasn't happy anymore.

The seemingly delicate girl from the south actually had a very firm mind. It's one thing for roommates to use things, but you take my things to show off and give as favors—do you have any shame?

But He Xue didn't care and had a big fight with Watching Liu Muhan, calling her "stingy," "petty bourgeois enjoyment," etc., and swore to compensate Watching Liu Muhan twofold.

But months had passed, and Lu Jingyao hadn't seen He Xue compensate Watching Liu Muhan for anything.

How expensive could a bar of soap be? At most one or two yuan. Could He Xue not squeeze that out?

And today, the "stingy" Watching Liu Muhan lent Lu Jingyao twenty yuan at once, while He Xue, knowing Lu Jingyao's family was poor, still dragged her to treat everyone........

"Sigh~~"

Lu Jingyao sighed and took out her letters from under the quilt.

【There are actually three?】

Lu Jingyao looked at them; there was one from her brother, one from Xia Yue, and one from Li Ye.

After a little thought, she opened her brother's letter first.

After reading Lu Zixue's letter in one breath, Lu Jingyao's heart was full of worries.

Even across thousands of miles, she could feel the resentment and grievance in her brother's heart at this moment, but Lu Jingyao felt deeply powerless about this resentment and grievance.

This matter was easy if it was easy; as long as she bought Lu Zixue a bicycle, it could immediately resolve her brother's predicament.

But who could give her a bicycle? And a Phoenix brand one at that?

There was no one else but Li Ye.

Last time, Lu Jingyao wrote to Li Ye, asking Li Ye to return the Phoenix bike to Lu Zixue first, and she would slowly pay back the money for the bike.

At the time, she felt this method was no problem, but after today's incident, Lu Jingyao's heart wavered.

Just for thirty yuan, Qian Shun wanted to drag her to "walk together" in the dark.

Then how much was Li Ye's 26-inch Phoenix bike?

With a ticket, it was over one hundred and sixty; without a ticket, you couldn't buy it for two hundred.

Two hundred yuan was no different from an astronomical figure for the Lu family.

Why should he give it to you?

Did you let Li Ye put his arm around your waist? Did you play hide-and-seek under the quilt with him?

Li Ye doesn't owe you anything.

"Sigh~"

Lu Jingyao sighed again and opened Xia Yue's letter.

For this former best friend, Lu Jingyao was still very close. Their personalities were very similar; both were from humble backgrounds, both were confident and self-reliant, and both were full of longing for freedom in the future.

In the past, the two encouraged and supported each other in their thoughts and walked through the most difficult times.

But when Lu Jingyao finished reading Xia Yue's letter, she couldn't help but be stunned for a long time.

【Li Ye, that relationship-user, used the back door to get into the accelerated class.】

【Li Ye, that relationship-user, told on me, causing me to lose my position as class monitor,】

【Li Ye, that dog landlord, is secretly cramming English, probably still planning to chase you to the capital to cause trouble for you.......】

In the four full pages of letter paper, Lu Jingyao didn't feel any "self-reliance" or "confidence," but instead, all of it was the same "resentment" and "grievance" as her brother's.

It's just that what Lu Jingyao cared about wasn't Xia Yue's resentment and grievance, but Li Ye's rapid improvement in English.

"His English has already surpassed Xia Yue's, so will he really take the exam for the Foreign Languages Institute next year?"

"If Li Ye can get into the Foreign Languages Institute, then my father's original promise....... should I accept it, should I fulfill it?"

At that time, Lu Jingyao's father had promised Li Ye in front of the neighbors, "If you can get into university, I won't stop the two of you."

Lu Jingyao was very angry at the time, feeling that her father had been forced to compromise and concede.

But now it seems that her father was the master who understood the world and calculated everything.

If Li Ye takes the exam for the Foreign Languages Institute next year, then wouldn't the relationship between the two naturally be restored?

Thinking of this, Lu Jingyao suddenly felt ashamed, feeling that she was somewhat....... shameless.

But faintly, she was also somewhat expectant.

If Li Ye were by her side, how would someone like Qian Shun dare to treat her like that just now?

Although Li Ye was foolish, his fists were not generally hard.

And just by Li Ye's handsomeness, he could make countless pursuers feel inferior and shrink back.

Li Ye didn't understand literature, didn't understand poetry, but he was a university student!

The radiance of a university student was enough to cover up countless shortcomings and match her equally.

。。。。

"Eh?"

With a feeling of expectation, Lu Jingyao opened Li Ye's letter, only to find that it contained the original letter she had written to Li Ye a few days ago.

After flipping through it carefully, Lu Jingyao saw the reply Li Ye had written on the back of the letter paper.

Then, Lu Jingyao was completely stunned.

Li Ye's words were so fierce and his questioning so resolute that Lu Jingyao was caught off guard and at a loss.

And Li Ye's last sentence was like a basin of cold water, pouring over Lu Jingyao's head, making her feel cold to the bone.

【Since you chose to pursue your freedom, why interfere with my life again? Why ask me to be magnanimous and give the bike to your brother?】

【Don't contact me again. Please don't harass the frog at the bottom of the well, you swan who has flown into the sky. Even if one day he becomes a prince, it will have nothing to do with you.】

After a long time, Lu Jingyao muttered to herself: "He actually... hates me so much..."

And a strong sense of loss grew from the depths of her heart, quickly spreading throughout her body.

Only after losing do you know how to cherish; many things, once missed, will never return. ===== CHAPTER 20 =====