Chapter 115: Some Grievances Must Still Be Endured
In the southeast corner of the sports field, there was a small patch of shade beneath the trees. During military training, it became contested territory among the classes; some even went so far as to rise half an hour early just to secure this coveted spot for their drills.
Today, a few of the girls, including Lu Qingyue, arrived early and claimed the area first. Unexpectedly, soon after, students from the College of Arts showed up, asserting that they had trained there the day before and thus the place rightfully belonged to them. They demanded the Economics and Management students vacate the premises, accusing them of shamelessly occupying the spot without even using it.
Lu Qingyue was naturally indignant. She unleashed most of her fighting spirit, leaving her opponents speechless, and accused them of being dung beetles hiding behind masks—shameless to the core.
The leader on the other side was a delicate young girl. Being called a dung beetle proved too much; she burst into tears on the spot...
When Li Hui and the Arts College instructor arrived, they were met with this scene: two girls argued until their faces were flushed, and one was sobbing pitifully, making it seem as though Lu Qingyue was the bully.
After understanding the situation, they realized it was not so straightforward. Yet Lu Qingyue had indeed insulted the other girl, so both sides were punished equally—three laps around the track.
The punishment was minor, but among them was a person not easily crossed. Li Hui, trembling with anxiety, hesitated to punish this particular individual and tried to negotiate.
“Is it alright to punish her?”
Cheng Xingye listened to the reason, massaged his temples in mild exasperation, and sighed, “Do it.”
It wasn’t his problem to solve; as the former president of the student council, he couldn’t interfere with the instructors’ decisions. Still, uneasy, he hung up the phone, requested leave from his professor, and hurried toward the dormitory sports field.
...
The autumn sun beat down warmly. Even standing motionless beneath it for half an hour would make a person sweat, let alone running three laps.
Lu Qingyue was fit; she finished the laps with only a slight shortness of breath. The Arts College girl, however, suffered greatly. Not fond of sports, she usually struggled with two laps—three left her stumbling and crying, feeling wronged for enduring this on behalf of her class.
Li Hui watched for a while, feeling sympathy, and glanced back at Lu Qingyue, who seemed entirely unaffected, sighing,
“Why argue over a patch of shade? If they want it, let them have it!”
Lu Qingyue wiped her sweat nonchalantly and retorted with conviction,
“She tried to take our spot—why shouldn’t I say something?”
Li Hui replied, “But calling her a dung beetle was too much...”
Who would enjoy being called a dung beetle, especially a delicate girl? Lu Qingyue, still unconvinced, was about to argue further.
But before she could speak, a shadow suddenly fell overhead, accompanied by a lazy, cold voice:
“Why not?”
The newcomer wore a white casual shirt, sleeves rolled up twice, revealing a slender, strong forearm.
Lu Qingyue found herself completely defenseless against his appearance; her thoughts wandered—his hands looked as if they’d be fun to play with.
Li Hui greeted him with an awkward smile,
“It’s not that she can’t say it, but perhaps she should consider the other girl’s feelings?”
Cheng Xingye stood next to Lu Qingyue, glanced down at her sweat-drenched face, and lifted his hand to lightly brush her forehead. His tone was casual, yet carried an inexplicable sense of pressure,
“If you do something wrong, shouldn’t people be allowed to call you out? Is the Arts College always this overbearing?”
Li Hui: “....”
...
Brother... isn’t it you who’s being overbearing?
Now he understood how this ancestor’s sharp tongue had been cultivated!
As Li Hui struggled to find a way to satisfy Cheng Xingye, the Arts College instructor brought over the girl who’d finished her laps.
Knowing their class was at fault, the instructor apologized openly,
“Li Instructor, we’ve reviewed the matter—it was indeed our mistake. I’ll have her apologize to your group.”
The girl’s eyes were still red. Three laps were bad enough, but being called a dung beetle left her angry and aggrieved. She muttered a perfunctory apology.
Li Hui, feeling sorry for her, waved his hands,
“We were also at fault; we owe you an apology too.”
Lu Qingyue was stunned, “Why? Just because I called her a dung beetle?”
Hearing the term again, the girl looked as if she’d been stabbed anew and nearly began crying again.
Li Hui: “....”
Lu Qingyue: “....”
She couldn’t understand why someone could argue so fiercely, yet fall to pieces at the mention of ‘dung beetle.’
Wasn’t the dung beetle itself more deserving of sympathy? It hadn’t cried!
Lu Qingyue stood her ground, but Li Hui feared things getting out of hand if the girl cried further.
He was about to smooth things over when Cheng Xingye, standing nearby, spoke with a cool tone,
“Li Hui, is this how you usually handle things—all muddled?”
The weather was thirty degrees, humidity thirty-five percent, with a northwest breeze, comfortably moderate.
Yet Li Hui felt his neck go cold.
He’d worked under Cheng Xingye for two years; he could easily sense the displeasure behind those words.
Stunned for a few seconds, he heard that clear, deep voice again,
“If anyone needs to apologize, do it yourself.”
Cheng Xingye loosely gripped Lu Qingyue’s wrist, pulling her quietly to his side, an unmistakable gesture of protection,
“I can’t speak for others, but my girl won’t suffer such grievances.”
...
In the end, the matter concluded with the other party apologizing once more, subdued.
Lu Qingyue twisted her ankle while running, not seriously hurt, but Cheng Xingye insisted on taking her to the campus clinic, where he got an ice pack for her.
Sitting on the bed in the medical lounge, Lu Qingyue watched as he drew the white curtain, knelt down, and gently held her ankle to remove her shoe.
Her camouflage training pants were wide and long; he rolled up the hem twice, exposing a slender stretch of her pale leg.
Lu Qingyue felt embarrassed at having her foot examined so closely and tried to pull away. But her ankle was firmly, gently held in place.
His warm fingers pressed against her ankle bone as he softly touched the swollen area before applying the ice pack.
The cool sensation relieved the burning discomfort.
Lu Qingyue curled her toes contentedly and finally whispered,
“Cheng Xingye? Did I cause trouble for you?”
Since childhood, Lu Yi had always told her she was a magnet for trouble. She used to protest, never taking it to heart. But after getting together with Cheng Xingye, she started worrying—would he find her troublesome and decide to leave?
...
Cheng Xingye chuckled quietly, adjusting the ice pack without looking up,
“How is this trouble? They were wrong first; they should apologize.”
Lu Qingyue was taken aback, then timidly whispered,
“But I did insult her.”
The man kneeling before her finally lifted his head.
He dragged a chair over, sat down, and smiled,
“Is insulting someone a crime?”
He placed the arch of her foot on his thigh, one hand holding her ankle, the other pressing the ice pack, his posture leisurely as he tilted his head to look at her.
Even through the thin fabric, she could almost feel the firm muscles beneath. Her heart skipped a beat, and she nervously tried to withdraw her foot.
“It’s not a crime, but it’s probably impolite.”
At first, Cheng Xingye hadn’t paid much attention to her foot.
But her repeated attempts to pull away drew his focus.
Her toes were small and rounded, like white jade, flushed from running, resembling a string of snowy pearls.
Cheng Xingye thought she was growing up quite nicely.
Small and rounded everywhere, like a little animal not yet grown.
He smiled silently to himself, gently massaging her twisted ankle, voice low,
“Did she act polite when she tried to take your spot?”
His favoritism was clear.
Lu Qingyue was surprised at how completely he stood by her. Supporting herself on the bed, she tilted her head and asked,
“So you really won’t let me suffer any injustice?”
Cheng Xingye looked at her calmly, “Have I ever lied to you?”
His words delighted her. Lu Qingyue, satisfied, couldn’t resist swinging her foot.
Whenever she gained the upper hand, she became playful, promptly forgetting the morning’s unpleasantness. Raising her brows, she deliberately poked at his words,
“Oh? Any injustice at all?”
His hand paused as he massaged her ankle.
Perhaps he saw the mischievous sparkle in her eyes. Unconsciously, his mind wandered to something unspeakable.
After being teased so often, Cheng Xingye felt that if he didn’t retaliate, this little rascal would become even bolder.
So he lowered his eyes, composed, and changed his answer,
“Not necessarily.”
His gaze held a playful hint of reciprocity, as he replied unhurriedly,
“Some grievances you’ll just have to endure.”
Lu Qingyue: “???”