Daydreaming about Me

Chapter 12

Lin Yujing only discovered the receipt in the book three days later.

Initially, she had given up struggling. Fu Mingshu’s school started next week, and apart from dinner, they hardly saw each other these days. She figured they would see each other even less once school started.

Lin Yujing didn’t want to cause trouble or argue with Meng Weiguo over these issues. There was no need. She stayed at home, closed her room door, and enjoyed complete peace. No one bothered her.

However, the night before, she went downstairs to get some water and overheard Zhang Yi and Fu Mingshu talking in the living room.

It was past ten at night, and the servants were asleep. The house was empty. Zhang Yi was speaking in a low voice, not too loudly, “I think that child brought by Mr. Meng seems like a quiet one. He hasn’t made a sound these past few days.”

Lin Yujing paused at the staircase.

Fu Mingshu didn’t reply. Zhang Yi continued, “But you can’t tell just by looking. Kids nowadays hide their true selves. The things Mr. Fu left for you, you must fight for them—”

“Aunt Zhang,” Fu Mingshu’s voice sounded a bit impatient, “I don’t care about those things. I don’t dislike her because of that. I just don’t like her.”

Zhang Yi sighed, “I know you don’t care. You’ve been like this since you were young. But what’s yours is yours. You can’t let the family’s belongings end up with outsiders in the end.”

“Madam said not a penny would be given away for free, but who knows what tricks that father and daughter might have?”

“And that little girl looks likable, which makes her the most dangerous. You’re like Mr. Fu, tough on the outside but soft-hearted. Don’t let yourself be deceived…”

“I’ve watched you grow up. You’re the young master I hold dearly in my heart. In my eyes, you’re the only one in this family. I don’t acknowledge any second miss…”

Lin Yujing quietly went back upstairs with an empty cup in her hand.

That night, she didn’t drink a single sip of water. Suddenly, she didn’t feel thirsty anymore.

In her dark room, the laptop was still on, sitting on the bench at the foot of the bed, playing a movie with its flickering screen.

Lin Yujing lay flat on her bed, reaching out to the ceiling, seeing her slender fingers in the dim room.

She blinked blankly.

The next day, Lin Yujing got up at around four.

When she went downstairs, the living and dining rooms were empty and silent, as if everything was asleep. Lin Yujing glanced at her phone; it was 5:30.

She went out. Of course, Old Li hadn’t arrived yet. Lin Yujing walked leisurely alone, following the electronic map to find the subway station. She paused when passing by a 7- 11.

A week ago, she witnessed a bloody battle between big shots here.

Lin Yujing went in, bought two red bean buns, grabbed a box of milk for breakfast, and headed towards the subway station.

The location was excellent, with convenient transportation. There was even a subway line that went near her school. It didn’t seem to take a long route either. At 6:00 AM, there weren’t many people on the subway. When Lin Yujing got on, there was even a vacant seat. She sat down and texted Old Li while drinking her milk.

It took her just over half an hour to reach school, excluding walking time, which was about the same as the time spent in traffic when Old Li drove her.

When Lin Yujing arrived at her classroom, it was empty. She lay down on her desk to catch up on sleep.

She slept until the end of the morning self-study period. When the first class bell rang, Lin Yujing woke up, but her deskmate hadn’t arrived yet.

Lin Yujing thought it was good to have a deskmate who didn’t arrive on time. At least she wouldn’t be disturbed while catching up on sleep.

Her deskmate, the “Society Brother,” arrived late, just before the third period.

The third period was Mr. Jiang’s class. Liu Fujiang was a good-natured teacher. Except for his slow pace, he had no other issues. Over the past week, the students had gotten to know him and started calling him Brother Jiang or Old Jiang.

Old Jiang’s teaching style was as slow as his personality. Perhaps because he had learned about the average level of the sophomore Class 20 students before the start of the term and was afraid they couldn’t keep up, he had been teaching the Mendel pea hybridization experiment up until now. Lin Yujing didn’t bother to listen, idly flipping through her book.

Then she found the receipt paper inside.

Lin Yujing was stunned for a few seconds, trying to recognize the handwriting but didn’t identify it as Shen Juan’s.

The handwriting was not like his usual rushed scrawl. It was steady and formal, with a signature at the end: Guardian: Meng Weiguo.

Although the handwriting differed from his usual style, it seemed no one else knew about this matter besides him.

Lin Yujing turned her head to look at the person next to her.

Shen Juan was watching a video, lazily resting his head on his hand, with his phone propped up on a stack of books, making a natural phone stand.

None of his books had much writing on them. During class, he never seemed to take notes, at most drawing a few lines to pretend he was highlighting key points.

Lin Yujing watched him, hesitant to speak. She had no idea when this receipt was written.

She never thought Shen Juan would actually help her with it.

Thinking back on her not-so-friendly attitude these past few days, Lin Yujing felt quite apologetic.

She was a girl who valued loyalty and reciprocated kindness, very much upholding the principles of camaraderie.

And she didn’t like to owe others favors.

Judging from the past week, Shen Juan never studied during class. He either slept or watched videos. Even when he read books, he seemed to do it absentmindedly, flipping through them casually. It seemed he didn’t need her help with his studies.

At noon, during the lunch break, Lin Yujing handed the receipt to Liu Fujiang.

Liu Fujiang accepted it without question. Since the dormitories were almost fully assigned by now, he told Lin Yujing to check with the logistics teacher to see how her dormitory would be arranged. After explaining, Liu Fujiang asked her about her studies, “How are you finding the study pressure? Can you keep up?”

“Yes, it’s alright,” Lin Yujing replied modestly.

Standing in front of Liu Fujiang’s desk was a boy wearing only a school uniform jacket and tight jeans. His hair was neatly trimmed.

Lin Yujing glanced at him, finding him somewhat familiar, and couldn’t help but take another look.

The boy was staring at her without blinking.

Never afraid to meet someone’s gaze, Lin tilted her head and stared back.

Before she could continue for a few seconds, Liu Fujiang interrupted. After handing in the receipt, Lin Yujing turned and left the office. As she closed the door, she heard Liu Fujiang speaking earnestly to the boy in tight jeans, “Your mom told me about it. I think it’s fine. Young people, you should head back to your class—”

Lin Yujing thought he was a student from another class who had been called in for a scolding.

But after lunch, as soon as she entered the classroom, a gust of wind rushed past her, accompanied by the boy’s wailing, “Dad! Did you really leave me alone in the station?!”

Lin Yujing saw the boy in tight jeans sprawled across her desk, desperately throwing himself at Shen Juan. She was a bit puzzled.

Shen Juan was also caught off guard. After a few seconds, he recognized the person and said, “Ah, you’re in Class Ten too?”

“Yes, Dad, why didn’t you tell me when you left? Jiang Han and I were directly apprehended by the police and taken back by my mom, who almost beat us to death.”

Lin Yujing remembered now. She had seen this face before.

Mop No. 2.

The boy with dreadlocks and a tattooed arm.

But now, the dreadlocks were gone, and his hair was cut short above his ears, showing his forehead, making him look clean and neat, almost unrecognizable.

Mop No. 2 didn’t hold a grudge against Shen Juan for leaving him during the gang fight. It seemed he was used to it. He painfully described how he spent half the night in the police station, wrote a self-reflective essay titled “If I Fight Again, I Am a Fool,” and got beaten again when he returned home at dawn, along with having his dreadlocks completely shaved off.

He propped himself up on Lin Yujing’s desk, chatting with Shen Juan. Lin Yujing didn’t know where to sit, so she stood at the door, occasionally looking at her phone and half- listening.

“Dad, really,” Mop No. 2 continued to express his feelings, “you don’t know how happy I was to find out we’re in the same class. Aren’t you happy? I’m your son! Your dear son Wang Yiyang is back! And in the same class! Here to honor you!!”

Shen Juan, with one foot on the crossbar of the desk, laughed, “Alright, I know you’re filial. Finished talking? If so, leave now. My deskmate is waiting.”

Lin Yujing, who was suddenly mentioned, was still processing the fact that the father and son were in the same class. She put down her phone and looked over.

Wang Yiyang blinked, finally noticing someone other than his dad. He turned to Lin Yujing with an enthusiastic look, “Sister, it’s you again! We must be fated. Honestly, when I first saw you, I felt a connection. You look a bit like my mom, very close.”

Lin Yujing: “…”

She should have known something was off when this boy shouted “Kill me!” during the fight. Mop No. 2 probably wasn’t too bright.

Wang Yiyang looked at her eagerly, “What about that tattoo? Have you decided on a design yet?”

Lin Yujing looked at him blankly for a moment before remembering the matter, “Oh,” she glanced at Shen Juan, “I haven’t decided yet.”

Wang Yiyang became anxious, afraid she might not get it done with them, and seriously said, “Sister, I mean it. My dad’s skills are amazing. It doesn’t hurt much. Just let him do it for you.”

Lin Yujing: “…”

Shen Juan: “…”

Something seemed off, but nothing was explicitly wrong.

Shen Juan couldn’t help but think of inappropriate thoughts, a vein throbbing on his forehead. He glanced at Lin Yujing.

The girl opened her mouth but didn’t know what to say. She looked a bit confused and hadn’t fully reacted.

Wang Yiyang, afraid Lin Yujing wouldn’t believe him, rolled up his school jacket to reveal part of his tattooed arm, “Look, my dad did this. The shading—”

Shen Juan couldn’t take it anymore and kicked him from under the desk, “Shut up.” Wang Yiyang shut up.

Wang Yiyang hadn’t come to school immediately because his mom forcibly cut his dreadlocks, causing a big argument. He rebelled for a week before returning to school. Originally, the class had 48 seats in pairs. After Wang Yiyang came back, Liu Fujiang had him go to the logistics office to get a desk and chair, placing him in front of Shen Juan, next to the podium, enjoying solo seating.

The first period in the afternoon was English. The teacher’s gentle voice was the most soporific, especially after lunch, making everyone sleepy.

The English teacher continued teaching smoothly, interacting with herself.

Lin Yujing looked at her vocabulary list, then at Shen Juan. His English book was open on the desk, one hand supporting his head, and the other twirling a pen. Occasionally, he would flip a page to pretend he was following along.

Except the teacher was on Unit Two, and he had already flipped to Unit Seven or Eight.

Lin Yujing cleared her throat, shifted closer, and whispered, “I handed in the receipt this morning.”

“Hmm?” Shen Juan stopped twirling the pen and looked up, puzzled, then realized what she meant, “Oh.”

Lin Yujing looked at him, “Um…”

Shen Juan raised his head.

The girl fell silent.

Shen Juan raised an eyebrow questioningly. Lin Yujing wanted to thank him.

Genuinely thank him.

This felt strange. Usually, she could easily say polite or grateful words without meaning them, or to please someone. But now, sincerely wanting to say thank you made it hard to speak and even a bit awkward.

Just two words.

Lin Yujing looked at him, struggling for a long time, finally letting out a frustrated sigh. She reached into her school jacket pocket, her voice small like a kitten’s, “Hold out your hand…”

Shen Juan, without thinking, extended his hand.

Lin Yujing rummaged in her pocket and placed something in his palm.

Her hand, small and pale, brushed his palm, feeling cool. Then something slightly heavy and cool fell into his hand.

Shen Juan looked down. A lollipop lay quietly in his palm.

A white stick, a candy ball wrapped in cellophane, pink in color.

Peach-flavored.

Author’s Note:

Shen Juan’s inner world: Ahhhhhhhhh it’s candy! Given by my girl! (dancing in circles)