Free Web NovelChapter 188: Chapter 186: Young People Shouldn’t Give Up Easily
Yu Minlan stared blankly. Who carries their household registration book around with them?
How did she get hung up on that?
Lin Ruoxi thought for a moment, then pointed out another logical flaw. "Um, I’m not of legal age yet, so I can’t get a marriage certificate."
After she spoke, the girl tilted her head and looked at Xue Rui. Yu Minlan had just told her to imagine someone else as the male lead.
The girl hadn’t even had to think about it; she had immediately cast Xue Rui in the role.
But Xue Rui was even further from the legal age, so he couldn’t get one either.
However, seeing Yu Minlan clutching her hair in frustration, she decided not to say anything more.
"Sigh..." Yu Minlan let out a long sigh. She had told Lin Ruoxi to put herself in the character’s shoes, but Lin Ruoxi had taken it too literally, bringing her entire real-life situation into it.
She was trying to discuss the plot with Lin Ruoxi, but Lin Ruoxi was talking to her about real life...
Xue Rui stifled a laugh. ’Her methods aren’t working at all,’ he thought.
Yu Minlan turned to Xue Rui. She felt that teaching Lin Ruoxi about love was an impossible task. Just from watching a little TV, she was already overcome with a profound sense of powerlessness and despair.
Xue Rui saw Yu Minlan’s brow twitch, as if she wanted to say something to him.
The two of them moved to one side and put their heads together.
Before Yu Minlan could even speak, Xue Rui cut in. "I’ll add another fifty thousand."
Yu Minlan’s resolve instantly hardened. "I believe young people shouldn’t give up so easily. They must be brave enough to fight and take on challenges."
Then, she asked curiously, "Why don’t you teach her?"
Xue Rui frowned. ’How could I possibly teach her?’
Lin Ruoxi would listen to anything he said. Could that even be called a relationship? It would be nothing more than taking advantage of a naive girl.
With Gu Muxue, he would take the initiative. But with Lin Ruoxi... he had to let the girl take the initiative herself. The two situations were completely different.
"I think the environment is a big factor, too. There are lots of couples in college. She should be able to learn eventually, right?" Yu Minlan asked quietly.
Xue Rui nodded slightly. He thought Yu Minlan had a point.
Lin Ruoxi grabbed a disposable cup, poured some water for Yu Minlan, and pulled a box of Choco Pies from her backpack.
Then, she took out a pack of tissues and wiped her phone screen...
Watching Lin Ruoxi pull one thing after another out of her bag, Yu Minlan glanced at her own small purse, which could only fit a few cosmetics...
Xue Rui couldn’t help but smile. The girl was a true pragmatist, choosing utility over aesthetics every time.
Other girls liked elegant purses, thinking about how to coordinate them with their outfits. But Lin Ruoxi? She carried a big backpack all year round...
She carried the household registration book because it didn’t take up much space, and it was used quite frequently these days for things like handling paperwork for her grandmother. That’s why Lin Ruoxi kept all the family’s important documents with her.
He had to admit, the girl always gave him a sense of peace, as if he could entrust anything to her and it would be kept safe. Even his own ID card was in her backpack...
When he was thirsty, she had water in her bag. When he was hungry, she had snacks. When his phone was dead, she had a power bank. When he had a cold and a runny nose, she would pull out tissues from her bag... freeweɓnovel.cøm
It was like a bag of holding.
"Sister Yu, have a Choco Pie."
Lin Ruoxi generously placed a Choco Pie next to the disposable cup. She reached for another, but her hand suddenly froze, and she stuffed the box back into her backpack.
She kind of wanted one now, but then she remembered she’d already had one that morning...
Xue Rui sat down next to Lin Ruoxi and joked, "What about me?"
"Oh, they’re all for you." Lin Ruoxi paused for a moment.
Xue Rui didn’t usually eat her Choco Pies. ’Why does he want one today?’
Without overthinking it, she gave all the Choco Pies to Xue Rui.
As Xue Rui took them, he was curious too. ’Are these things really that good?’
Seeing the girl gulp, obviously wanting one but holding back, Xue Rui smiled. "If you want one, just eat it."
"I’m not hungry right now," Lin Ruoxi said.
Xue Rui gave a helpless smile. He knew Lin Ruoxi was different. If it were any other girl eating only one a day, he would have assumed she was watching her weight.
But not Lin Ruoxi. The girl just felt that she shouldn’t be so indulgent.
This was a mental habit ingrained from her family’s poverty. Even though she now had a fortune, she still felt she didn’t deserve nice things.
Xue Rui tore one open and found that the wrapper had been crushed and lost its seal...
Plus, with the hot weather, the Choco Pie had been stewing in her backpack all day. The chocolate coating had already melted, smearing his fingers. The cake inside was shattered, barely held together by the marshmallow filling...
In reality, the cake inside had crumbled into a mess of crumbs.
The corner of his eye twitched. He wasn’t a big fan of sweets to begin with, and the sight of this sorry mess completely killed his appetite.
He glanced over at Yu Minlan; the Choco Pie in her hand was perfectly intact...
’So the girl gave the uncrushed one to Yu Minlan?’
"I don’t want it anymore." Xue Rui handed the opened Choco Pie to Lin Ruoxi.
He was put off by its appearance, but he knew the girl wouldn’t be.
"Oh, okay." Lin Ruoxi naturally took the Choco Pie from him.
She was used to finishing whatever he couldn’t eat or didn’t like.
The girl saw that Xue Rui’s hand was covered in crumbs and melted chocolate. He was holding his fingers awkwardly, as if afraid of getting the chocolate on something...
’What a waste,’ she thought. ’He’s definitely just going to wipe it off and throw it away.’
After a moment’s hesitation, she decided to eat the chocolate.
Xue Rui was turning to look for a tissue. ’Why is she being so dense today?’ he thought.
’Normally, she would have already handed me a tissue.’
Just as he pulled out a tissue and was about to wipe his hand, he suddenly felt his fingers being licked. A warm, wet sensation sent a jolt through him, and his shoulders trembled...
He turned to see Lin Ruoxi, having just licked his fingers, now eating the Choco Pie.
For a second, he’d thought Da Huang had come to the hospital...
Lin Ruoxi guiltily turned her head away and nibbled on the mushy Choco Pie.
She remembered Xue Rui had told her not to lick her fingers when she ate, saying it was unhygienic and that germs enter through the mouth.
But she had done it her whole life without ever getting sick. It was a hard habit to break...
Besides, Xue Rui was a neat freak. He didn’t do any dirty or strenuous work, and he always used disposable towels after washing his hands. She figured his fingers were cleaner than hers...
Now she was a little afraid he would scold her, but she was also afraid that he *wouldn’t* scold her...
’What’s wrong with me?’ she wondered. ’Why am I worried about both possibilities?’
Xue Rui stared blankly as the girl ate. ’She’s always doing things that send a shock through me...’
Lin Ruoxi finished the Choco Pie in two or three bites, then crumpled the wrapper, dislodging the crumbs stuck inside. She tilted her head back and poured the crumbs from the wrapper into her mouth, not letting a single bit go to waste.
Xue Rui’s feelings were complicated. When Lin Ruoxi cooked and did chores, she had the air of a perfect wife and mother, exuding maturity and sensibility.
But when she had nothing to do, she reverted to being a complete child...
’Forget it. It’s not a big deal. I should scold her less,’ Xue Rui sighed to himself, reaching out to pat Lin Ruoxi’s head.
The girl lowered her head, enjoying his touch. She was a little happy that he hadn’t scolded her.
’But does patting my head mean he thinks I did a good job?’
Lin Ruoxi looked back and met his gaze. All Xue Rui could see was a pair of pure, innocent eyes.
Just then, Xue Xiaying was peering at the two of them through a gap in the curtain.
The moment she heard words like "household registration book" and "marriage," she had instinctively started paying attention to what was happening outside.
From her perspective, Lin Ruoxi and Xue Rui were sharing a cup, he was patting her head, and...
Combined with her chat with the old woman, she felt that the more she looked at the two of them, the more they seemed like a perfect match.
’But then, what was the deal with Gu Muxue?’
She knew every move Xue Rui made at school. ’Is he two-timing them?’
She’d been filled with questions ever since she stepped into Lin Ruoxi’s home the day before.
But now wasn’t the right time, so she held her tongue.
"Xiaorui, we’re checking the exam site tomorrow afternoon. The director called a meeting for us today, so give me a call if you need anything," Xue Xiaying said with a smile.
Xue Rui felt his aunt’s smile was unnatural. He knew she must be dying to ask him something.
But with the college entrance exams just two days away, she swallowed her questions so as not to affect his performance.
"Goodbye, Teacher Xue." Lin Ruoxi stood up to bid her farewell, the very picture of a well-behaved student.
Yu Minlan had met Xue Xiaying a few times as well, and she chimed in familiarly, "Teacher Xue, I can help out here. You go on and take care of your business."
"Mm, thank you." Xue Xiaying nodded, her expression carrying the same scrutinizing tone she used with her students.
Xue Rui frowned. Yu Minlan and his aunt were, at most, friends. He reminded her, "Auntie, you need to find a better balance between work and life."
"Huh?" Xue Xiaying looked puzzled. Why would Xue Rui suddenly bring that up?
Xue Rui said seriously, "Your temper has been getting worse. And it’s not just about this."
Xue Rui sighed. He now saw things from a higher perspective, which allowed him to see them more clearly.
He was starting to understand why "teacher" was one of the professions on the popular internet list of "three types of women not to marry."
Take Xue Xiaying, for example. Her temper had become noticeably worse over the past two years. But her life was a simple routine between home and school, so where did this change come from? freewёbn૦νeɭ.com
It had to be stress from work.
Teachers deal with students all year long, and homeroom teachers like Xue Xiaying especially have to maintain an air of authority in front of them.
This dynamic might help improve overall grades, but it unquestionably casts the teacher in a position of authority.
She maintained that mindset at school, then had to put on a different mask after work...
Juggling these different roles, especially as the pressure ramped up with the senior class, it was inevitable that her professional attitude would start bleeding into her personal and family life.
At home, it’s easy to become too domineering with loved ones.
To her friends, she would seem emotionally unstable.
Xue Xiaying’s first instinct was to get angry, but Xue Rui’s serious expression showed he wasn’t joking.
She thought about it carefully. ’Could it be... that he’s right?’
’Xue Rui was just reminding me out of kindness. Why did I get angry?’
"Right. I’m off." Xue Xiaying nodded and walked out of the hospital room.
As she walked down the hall, she took a deep breath, trying to recenter herself.
’How could Xue Rui see the change in me?’
She gave a bitter laugh. Sometimes, she felt like her nephew was the elder, always offering her such sharp, insightful advice.
