Chapter 3: So this is what it feels like to be redundant 1
Since I explained last time, no girls have come to harass me anymore, and their attitude towards me has also improved a lot. Wen Jinliang has been chased by girls and confessed his love to them every day, and there are endless gifts on his seat.
At first I would help him fend off those crazy suitors, but my actions caused some rumors, which scared me so much that I no longer dared to help him fend them off.
It took me a lot of effort to explain it clearly, and it will be a headache if it gets out of hand again.
One day after school, Wen Jinliang and I were walking back to the apartment, chatting casually. Suddenly, he stopped and asked me, "Xiao Qi, what do you think those girls like about me?"
"I don't know." I shook my head at Wen Jinliang and answered truthfully.
Wen Jinliang narrowed his eyes when he heard my straightforward answer and continued to ask, "If you were one of those girls, why would you like me?"
I thought about it seriously and shook my head at Wen Jinliang again: "I don't know. Because I have never liked you, so I can't answer this question."
Wen Jinliang's expression froze for a moment, but he soon chuckled: "You can't even pretend to like me... I really asked a stupid question. Xiaoqi, forget about this question."
I said "Oh" softly. Although I felt that Wen Jinliang was a little strange at the moment, I didn't think much about it and walked towards the apartment again.
But after walking a few steps, I found that Wen Jinliang didn't catch up. When I looked back in confusion, he was standing there blankly, staring at me intently with a smile on his face.
I was confused and was about to ask him why he didn't leave, but he suddenly said to me: "Xiao Qi, I suddenly remembered that I still need to go look for He. You go back first."
"But I..." I was about to ask to go with him, but Wen Jinliang interrupted me neatly: "It's okay, nothing will happen in a short while, no need to bother you to come with me."
I noticed that Wen Jinliang's expression was a little different from usual, and I knew that he really didn't want me to follow him, so I answered obediently: "I know, you just be careful." It would be the same if I followed him secretly afterwards .
Seeing my straightforward answer, Wen Jinliang turned around and was about to walk in another direction. He took a few steps and suddenly looked back at me as if he remembered something: "Xiao Qi, don't sneak behind me. I know you are planning to do this."
"Hey!" I looked at Wen Jinliang in horror. Why could he guess what I was thinking?
Wen Jinliang saw my surprised expression and smiled unconsciously: "I will be fine, don't worry. Just go back obediently."
Seeing Wen Jinliang say this, I knew I couldn't force myself to follow him, otherwise he would really be unhappy. So I had to compromise and said, "I understand, then I'll go back first." In order to show that I really wouldn't follow him, I left first.
But after walking a few steps, I suddenly felt a sharp pain in my chest. I couldn't help but squat down with my hands covering my chest, secretly saying "Oh no!" This time the pain seemed to come earlier than before... Damn it!
"Xiao Qi, what's wrong with you?" After seeing my abnormal condition, Wen Jinliang hurried towards me, helped me up and asked.
I endured the severe pain and tried my best not to show any discomfort on my face: "It's okay, it's just the old problem of heart pain. I will be fine after a rest, don't worry."
Wen Jinliang frowned and looked at my pale face carefully: "I'd better ask a doctor to take a good look at you. Physical problems cannot be delayed."
I immediately grabbed Wen Jinliang's sleeve, unable to hide my anxiety, and said, "Really don't bother the doctor, this is an old problem I have since my mother's womb! I've gotten used to it a long time ago, as long as I have a good rest, I'll be fine." If I really let the doctor examine my body carefully, my secret would be lost. This secret must not be known to Wen Jinliang now.
Seeing how persistent I was, Wen Jinliang compromised after thinking for a few seconds and said, "Then I'll take you back first."
"Aren't you still going to look for He? I don't have anything to do here... Don't worry about me, go look for He first." I took a breath and said to Wen Jinliang. It would be bad if I couldn't control the pain and went crazy and scared him, so it's better to separate quickly...
"I'll take you back first." Wen Jinliang's voice was not loud, but it was so majestic that it was impossible to refuse. But the look he gave me was like the warm sun in winter, which softened my heart for a moment.
I no longer refused his kindness and let him support me and walk silently towards the apartment.
After Wen Jinliang sent me back to the apartment, he gave me a few instructions and went to find He. I huddled in a corner of the sofa, gritting my teeth and enduring the severe pain this time.
Just be patient, it will be fine soon.
In a daze, I felt someone touching my cheek.
"Why are you sleeping here?"
Such a familiar voice...Whose voice is it? But I was too sleepy and didn't want to wake up from the confusion.
Suddenly, my body felt light, as if someone had held me up. His embrace was warm, and I seemed to have been held like this before...
The next day I woke up and found myself lying on the bed in the room. In my vague memory, I seemed to have slept on the sofa last night. Wen Jinliang did not wait for me to go to school as usual. When I arrived at the classroom, the first class had already ended, which was exactly the break time.
"Why didn't you wake me up? I'm late." I sat down next to Wen Jinliang, yawning.
Wen Jinliang didn't answer my question, but looked at me carefully for a few seconds: "You look much better, are you still feeling uncomfortable?"
"That's not a big deal anymore." I waved to Wen Jinliang hurriedly, afraid that he would misunderstand that I was still sick.
"I asked He to find me a new bodyguard yesterday." Wen Jinliang suddenly said this after hearing my answer.
"Hey!" I was startled and immediately stood up from my seat, saying in fear, "Are you going to fire me?"
Wen Jinliang looked up at me with a smile: "Of course not. I just felt that you were injured some time ago and your body is not fully recovered. Yesterday you had the same old problem again. I have to give you some time to recuperate... So I decided to find someone to replace you temporarily."
I bent down and grabbed Wen Jinliang's shoulders, looking into his eyes: "I'm fine, you really don't have to worry! I can continue to protect you!"
Wen Jinliang grabbed my hand and pulled me down to sit. "It's only temporary, don't worry. Besides, you need to take good care of your previous injuries. It would be bad if you left scars." After that, his eyes fell on my injured shoulder. "It's better for girls not to leave scars."
"Wen Jinliang, I..."
"Ding Ling——"
The ringing interrupted what I was about to say. Wen Jinliang made a quiet gesture to me and said, "Okay, it's decided. Just take good care of your health, and let go of my affairs for the time being." After that, he ignored me.
At that moment, I clearly and keenly sensed that something was starting to change between me and Wen Jinliang. It was as if a wall had suddenly been built in his heart, separating him from me, or as if I could only see his hazy figure from afar in the thick fog...
I began to feel fear, and this fear forced me to do something immediately.
"Wen Jinliang." I grabbed Wen Jinliang's arm and called out his name with some trembling, as if calling out his name could make me feel at ease.
Wen Jinliang turned his head and looked at me. Seeing that I was a little different, he asked me more gently, "What's wrong?"
"Do you hate me?" I blurted out. As soon as I asked this question, even I was stunned.
Wen Jinliang was slightly stunned, then said with a smile on his face: "How could that be? Xiaoqi is my most important friend, how could I hate you?" He deliberately emphasized the word "friend", as if he thought this word could comfort me.
Friends...
No...what is this feeling? It felt completely wrong when he said this word...it was different from the friend I said it to...why was there an inexplicable gloom filled in it?
"Xiao Qi, I will never hate you." Seeing that I was still in a daze and seemed not to believe what he said, Wen Jinliang whispered to me again.
Wen Jinliang's voice was too soft, and his promise made me feel unreal. But his words still made me feel at ease, and the impatience and anxiety in my heart seemed to have really dissipated a little because of his "forever"... Maybe I really thought too much?
I let go of the hand that was holding Wen Jinliang's arm and smiled apologetically: "I'm sorry, I asked a strange question... You don't have to pay attention to me."
Wen Jinliang stretched out his hand to ruffle my hair, but stopped halfway. He put his hand down and said to me calmly and gently: "I asked you a strange question before. We are even now, so don't take it to heart."
"Yeah." I nodded in response and focused my attention on the class.
The bodyguard that Wen Jinliang hired temporarily was a young boy who didn't like to talk much. I exchanged a few moves with him. Although he was not even half as good as me, he was more than enough to deal with a few assassins. Although I was somewhat reluctant, I had to temporarily give up the position of bodyguard.
In addition, Wen Jinliang also hired a doctor to take care of me. Because I took my own condition into consideration, I did not let him do a detailed examination, so the doctor only symbolically prescribed me some medicine to take good care of my body, and also helped me deal with the scar on my shoulder.
Because Wen Jinliang said it’s better for girls not to have scars.
Although Wen Jinliang treated me as usual these days, and was even more gentle than before, I knew that there was something different about him, but I couldn't put it into words. Later, at some point, I suddenly understood what was different.
Wen Jinliang no longer hugs or touches me casually. I don't know why he suddenly becomes like this. Obviously, it was very normal for him to hug me or touch my head before.
I never felt any discomfort from Wen Jinliang's touch, which was incredible, because I actually didn't really like other people touching me...even Xiaowu, I didn't really like physical contact.
Wen Jinliang went out of school today to do something. He took the bodyguard with him but not me. He happened to be looking for him for something, and when he saw that he was not there, he stayed to wait for him.
He rarely stays, I think maybe it's because he is in a good mood today.
He and I sat face to face, in silence. Suddenly I wanted to tell him about Wen Jinliang's recent changes, maybe he could explain to me why. Because no one in this world knows Wen Jinliang better than He.
He was very cooperative and listened to all my doubts and concerns. He was rarely so patient, which made me more sure that he was in a good mood today, so he would definitely answer my doubts.
He leaned on the sofa and looked at me, his voice still so calm: "Xiao Qi, do you want to hear the truth or a lie?"
I pursed my lips: " Of course it's the truth."
He looked at me quietly for a minute, as if he was thinking about whether he should tell the truth, and he rarely looked at me with such sharp eyes.
"Xiao Qi, I remember I explained to you what the difference between men and women is before, right? You can always pretend that you don't understand the difference between men and women, but Jin Liang can't." He easily resolved my doubts with his usual unique words.
I looked at He with my eyes wide open, and my mind went blank for a moment. So that's how it is, Wen Jinliang is trying to avoid suspicion, although I don't know why he suddenly started to do this, but it must be because of me... I did something that made him feel that he couldn't treat me like this anymore...
"You understand, don't you? That's why I enjoy talking to smart people." He spoke to me in a rare tone of appreciation.
"But why did he suddenly become like this..." My voice trembled slightly, and I still felt confused and puzzled.
"Maybe it's because he suddenly realized that you are a girl." He stood up and looked at me and said.
"What does this mean..." He's words made me even more confused.
"Jinliang will always find a girl to be with. How could he touch you, a girl, casually again?" He said incisively.
He's words suddenly made my heart ache.
Girlfriend? Oh, right... I have never thought about this. Wen Jinliang will have a girlfriend one day... His gentleness does not belong only to me. I am so stupid... The so-called difference between men and women, turns out to mean this...
"So... I'm the one who really needs to avoid it." I looked at He with a wry smile, "I... almost made a mistake again."
"Xiao Qi, I like your cleverness. It's a pity that you never use your cleverness in the right way." He looked at me with a half-smile.
I stared at He blankly. He was saying something I couldn't understand.
"He, why are you here?" The door was opened, and Wen Jinliang and the bodyguard walked in. He looked at He strangely, as if he was very surprised.
"Of course I have something to ask you." He stood up from the sofa and pointed at the bodyguard behind Wen Jinliang. "What a pity. I can only lend you this child until now. There is an important task that must be done by him next, so I want him back."
Wen Jinliang looked at He and said calmly, "Xiao Qi is not in good health and needs to rest. If you take him away, who will protect me?"
He pushed me in front of Wen Jinliang and said with a forced smile: "I think Xiaoqi is in great shape. If we keep her any longer, she will get moldy." After that, he took the bodyguard away without saying anything.
Wen Jinliang and I looked at each other in silence for a while, and I said, "I'm really fine, please let me continue to protect you."
Wen Jinliang smiled at me and said, "I understand. But if you still feel unwell, you must tell me, okay? You can't just hold it in."
I nodded to Wen Jinliang: "Well, I won't."
Then we were silent for a while. Wen Jinliang sat on the sofa where He had just sat and suddenly asked me, "Did He say something to you just now? You seem a little strange."
I sat on the sofa opposite Wen Jinliang and answered honestly, "I was a little confused and asked Mr. He. Besides, there is nothing strange about me..."
"Confused?" Wen Jinliang smiled slightly, "That's really rare. So are you willing to tell me about your confusion?"
I hesitated for a moment. It was inappropriate to tell Wen Jinliang about my confusion.
Wen Jinliang understood my hesitation, and the smile on his lips froze: "Are you confused because you can't tell me? It doesn't matter. Since you can't tell me, I won't force you, Xiaoqi."
I opened my mouth, but I didn't know what to say. In the end, I chose to remain silent.
From that day on, a thin mist spread between Wen Jinliang and me, isolating me from him for a short distance. This mist originated from him and started with me.
After spending a long time with him, I suddenly got it at some point. I began to realize that Wen Jinliang and I were different, so there should be some appropriate distance between us to maintain the balance between us as men and women.
Wen Jinliang noticed my alienation. This time, it was no longer him who alienated me, but I took the initiative to stay away from him. However, he didn't say anything after all. Many times, he just looked at me silently and no longer chatted with me. He acknowledged and accepted the distance between us.
I should have been happy and grateful for his actions, but I was still unhappy inside, and even I didn't understand why I was unhappy.
What's worse, the weird atmosphere between us was even noticed by the group of girls who were chasing Wen Jinliang all day. One day after class, a leader among them grabbed me out of the classroom and asked me with a group of girls: "You have been acting strangely with your boyfriend recently, completely different from before!" She asked directly without any subtlety.
I stared at the girl in silence for a while, then answered honestly, "There are differences between men and women. I didn't quite understand it before, but now I understand, so I have to avoid it."
The girls were stunned when they heard what I said. Everyone looked a little strange, but no one said anything. The leading girl asked me strangely, "Do you know under what circumstances a girl would avoid a boy?"
"When the boy has a girlfriend." I replied.
"But my idol doesn't have a girlfriend now! This is not the real reason why you are avoiding him!" The leading girl looked at me with wide eyes. Seeing my bewildered expression, she suddenly waved her hand at me in frustration, "It's incredible that there is a girl as slow-witted as you in this world."
I looked at the girl in confusion: "Please explain yourself more clearly. I don't understand you." Did she know something that I didn't? Maybe she could explain my strange mood recently.
The girl snorted and laughed, and her expression changed faster than turning the pages of a book: "We are not on such a good relationship. If you want to know why, think about it yourself, I won't tell you." After that, she took the girls away.
I had no choice but to go back to the classroom and think carefully about the girl’s question, but I couldn’t figure it out.
Wen Jinliang looked up at me from his seat. Seeing my distressed face, he couldn't help but ask, "Why are you so worried? Did they embarrass you again?"
I shook my head at Wen Jinliang: "No, they didn't embarrass me, they just asked a question that I couldn't think of the answer to."
"What's the problem?" Wen Jinliang asked casually.
"this--"
"Jinliang."
A pleasant voice came from outside the classroom, interrupting what I had not yet finished. A tall, fair-skinned girl slowly walked in from the door. Her appearance immediately attracted the attention of everyone in the class, because she had an extremely beautiful face, and even as a girl, I couldn't help but stare at her.
"She seems to be calling you." I said to Wen Jinliang beside me.
However, Wen Jinliang did not answer me. From the moment the girl appeared, his eyes were firmly locked on her. This was the first time he completely ignored me because of another girl...
