Chapter Fourteen: The Keen Young Maiden

Chen Wenwen?

Oh, Chen Wenwen...

Hearing that name from Little Sky Maiden’s lips left Lu Mingfei with a strange feeling. Clearly, he used to like Chen Wenwen—everyone else thought so too—but when Little Sky Maiden brought her up, he realized he didn’t feel anything for her anymore.

Nothing at all.

It was as if she’d simply mentioned an ordinary classmate.

Why? Why was that?

Perhaps it’s because…I’ve always known my feelings for her were one-sided. But I didn’t want to wake up. Even muddling through was better than the pain of facing reality. So, when I finally walked out of that old predicament, my perspective shifted as well. This one-sided infatuation, discarded, would affect no one else—so I forgot it quickly, so quickly that I hardly noticed.

My first love has ended…

From a flicker of surprise to a relieved smile, Lu Mingfei’s expression changed in an instant—nostalgia passing as quickly as a boy’s fleeting youth.

Why is he so calm?

Faced with this odd situation, Su Xiaoqiang felt increasingly uneasy. She knew Lu Mingfei better than anyone; as his friend, of course she’d notice when something was off. Ever since Chen Wenwen greeted Lu Mingfei this morning, she’d sensed something strange about his mood—he didn’t fawn, didn’t say much, which was already unusual.

Even more surprising, during self-study, he didn’t sneak glances at Chen Wenwen, didn’t make her quietly fume and steel herself to snap at him or set him up a few times.

Otherwise, she’d have exploded already!

Gradually, Little Sky Maiden’s eyes brightened with gossipy curiosity. Was this little lapdog finally tired of groveling? One less suitor for Chen Wenwen? There was something inexplicably satisfying about that…

Ahem.

After that brief indifference, Lu Mingfei cleared his throat, his eyes suddenly resolute as he stared into Su Xiaoqiang’s and declared, “No, that won’t do. Chen Wenwen is the girl I like—how could I do such a thing to her!”

Uh…

The odd light in Little Sky Maiden’s eyes vanished in a flash, replaced by an expression that said “just as I thought” and “he’s still the same,” her face full of helplessness and exasperation.

Of course, I was overthinking…

She propped her chin in her hand, looking at Lu Mingfei with feigned nonchalance. “Oh, so you won’t do it to her, but you don’t mind with me? Is it because you think I have a better temper than her, so you can bully me however you like? Ha…”

Faced with Little Sky Maiden’s increasingly dangerous gaze, Lu Mingfei didn’t flinch. He replied seriously, “No, no, no, what I mean is…it’ll cost extra!”

Extra…extra?

Su Xiaoqiang was stunned, her mind going blank. She never could have imagined that the resolve in Lu Mingfei’s eyes just now was all for asking her to pay more? Just for money? Just for money?

He wasn’t that kind of person, was he? Surely not…

She sat up straight, leaning in to scrutinize his face, searching for any trace of ulterior motive or special excuse to protect Chen Wenwen.

Yet Lu Mingfei’s smile was perfectly natural, as if he weren’t making excuses for Chen Wenwen at all.

Is this real? Can it really be?

Su Xiaoqiang found it hard to believe—the Lu Mingfei who’d held out so long would give up now? She still firmly believed this little loser must like Chen Wenwen, unless he’d miraculously changed his very nature.

Let’s try a more outrageous condition and test him!

Ahem. “I just thought, for Chen Wenwen, that might be too much. How about this: in front of the whole class, say you like me. Two thousand yuan,” Su Xiaoqiang proposed, her eyes burning.

She’d never forget the first day of term, when Lu Mingfei stood by her side, praising Chen Wenwen to her in the tone of a close friend talking about a girl.

Now, she wanted revenge. She wanted all their classmates to know that she was better than Chen Wenwen!

He should like me, not Chen Wenwen!

I, Little Sky Maiden, am ten thousand times better than Chen Wenwen!

“That condition’s a bit much. No,” Lu Mingfei refused flatly.

Saying he didn’t like Chen Wenwen was fine—because he really didn’t anymore—but confessing to Su Xiaoqiang was another matter. He didn’t like her; why should he confess? Whether she accepted or not, it would be a betrayal of Fufu.

Too much? So you still like Chen Wenwen?

Su Xiaoqiang clicked her tongue, teasing.

“No, I mean, confessing to you is too much. I don’t like you; why would I confess?” Lu Mingfei replied.

“Five thousand!” Little Sky Maiden declared, smacking the desk.

Lu Mingfei fell silent. Having been poor for over a decade, five thousand yuan was a fortune he could hardly ignore. But if he didn’t like her, he wouldn’t confess. That was his bottom line. Fufu wasn’t in this world, but that didn’t mean he could shirk his integrity with strange logic.

So this is what a teenage boy’s sense of chastity is like!

Hmph! Little Sky Maiden snorted in disdain.

“How about this—we change the condition,” Lu Mingfei offered.

“To what?” Su Xiaoqiang asked, idly fiddling with her expensive pen and scribbling aimlessly, wasting ink without a care.

“I’ll say in front of the class that I don’t like Chen Wenwen, and you don’t have to pay me. Just do me a small favor over the weekend.”

“A small favor?” Su Xiaoqiang raised an eyebrow, curiosity piqued.

“Yes, a small favor. I think you have great fashion sense—help me pick out some new clothes and a new look this weekend. How about it?” Lu Mingfei said earnestly.

He wanted to reinvent himself. He could always get some money from his aunt, but style wasn’t something that changed just because you wanted it to—it took time and a good eye. Fortunately, Su Xiaoqiang had both; her fashion sense and style were excellent. Lu Mingfei even thought she was more attractive than Chen Wenwen.

Wait, hadn’t he always thought Chen Wenwen was prettier?

He glanced at Chen Wenwen again, confirming his current aesthetic. No mistake—Su Xiaoqiang did seem more beautiful now. As for before…perhaps that was the glow of first love.

I’ve really changed…

Huh?

Su Xiaoqiang stared at Lu Mingfei in shock, a new idea suddenly flashing through her mind. Her gaze sharpened, locking onto him as she demanded, “Hey, don’t tell me you’ve shifted your affection to some other girl? Which class is she in?”