Gu Yebai saw a shadow of his past self in Ai Lian.
Because of that, he wanted to say a proper goodbye to her before he left.
He dialed Ai Lian’s number.
As if she had been expecting the call, it was answered almost the very next second it started ringing.
“Hello, um… Classmate Gu?”
The voice coming from the other end of the line was still timid.
It was cautious, carrying a hint of uncertain hesitation.
“How was your weekend?”
“It was a very good weekend.”
“What about you, Classmate Gu?”
“I’m doing well, too.”
Gu Yebai was actually not very good at talking to girls.
To put it bluntly, he felt that his opening line was quite a failure.
Usually, even if someone was having a bad time, they would still answer “well” when asked that kind of question.
In the end, it was just meaningless small talk.
“That’s rare,” Ai Lian suddenly said.
“What’s rare?”
“Usually, I’m the one who takes the initiative to call Classmate Gu… to ask about questions I can’t solve. I didn’t expect Classmate Gu would actually take the time to call me…”
Gu Yebai was silent for a moment.
“I’m leaving Linchuan. I’ll probably be gone within the next few days. So, I wanted to say a proper goodbye to you.”
“Where are you going, Classmate Gu?”
“Donghai.”
“Congratulations, Classmate Gu!”
The voice from the phone was not the disappointment he had expected.
Instead, it was a voice that sounded almost jubilant.
She was happy for him.
Yet, she was still clearly stuck in her own quagmire.
“Are you still in Linchuan right now?”
“Yes, I’m still here.”
“Why are you going to Donghai?”
“It’s a bit complicated to explain. Family reasons. I’m going to school there.”
The other side of the phone went quiet for a few seconds.
“Can I… see Classmate Gu one more time today? It might be the last time. Classmate Gu is the only person in my entire high school life who has been truly kind to me.”
“Of course! The reason I called was to ask you to meet.”
And so, the two of them agreed on a final meeting place — the Starbucks at Linchuan Wanda.
Gao Hongyi had been by Gu Yebai’s side from start to finish.
By now, it was impossible for her to let him act alone.
Never mind meeting someone of the opposite sex; even if he were meeting a man, Gao Hongyi had to follow.
“Uncle Bai has already made an appointment with that girl, right?”
“Yes.”
“If this is Uncle Bai’s final wish, I’ll accompany you.”
Gao Hongyi took two sips of a Frappuccino.
Seemingly dissatisfied, she leaned over and took two sips of the iced Americano that Gu Yebai had ordered.
She even went out of her way to bite his straw flat.
Then, her round, mischievous eyes stared at the straw, observing whether Gu Yebai would be disgusted by her.
She watched to see if he would change to a brand-new straw since there were plenty within arm’s reach.
But Gu Yebai showed no sign of disgust at all.
As if nothing had happened, he continued to drink the iced Americano.
Gao Hongyi suddenly felt as if she had received some kind of grand honor.
A happy and satisfied expression spread across her face.
This meant he had tacitly accepted that she could continue to touch the boundaries he had erected.
It also meant he accepted that she could draw closer to him without limit.
‘Hehe.’
Gao Hongyi had originally intended to keep a cold face and wait quietly for Gu Yebai’s female friend to arrive.
But at this moment, she couldn’t suppress the curve of her lips no matter how hard she tried.
She even started humming softly, one hand twining through her wine-red hair while the other propped up her cheek.
Her legs, clad in white silk stockings, swung gently under the chair.
‘I really can’t stop liking Uncle Bai more and more.’
She didn’t know how long had passed.
When she was with Gu Yebai, time always seemed to fly by exceptionally fast.
Finally, the figure of a girl entered Gao Hongyi’s field of vision.
Gu Yebai stood up.
It was obvious that this person was the Ai Lian he had mentioned.
‘What’s this?’
The moment she saw Ai Lian, the faint, lingering anxiety in Gao Hongyi’s heart vanished completely.
It was replaced by a natural sense of superiority.
“Uncle Bai, is this Classmate Ai Lian?”
The girl named Ai Lian was just as described.
She truly could not be called pretty.
In fact, she was quite ugly.
Gao Hongyi suddenly remembered a quote she had seen while reading Qian Zhongshu’s Fortress Besieged during the holidays — “Chinese people are ugly in a way that suggests the Creator was cutting corners, a sloppy and irresponsible kind of ugliness.”
“Westerners are ugly in a way that suggests an expression of the Creator’s malice, a deliberate prank played upon their features; thus, their ugliness is planned and serves a purpose.”
To evaluate her in one sentence, Ai Lian was “Westerner ugly.”
It was as if she knew exactly how this face could be repulsive and had deliberately worked toward that goal.
Dense freckles covered almost her entire face, which was not friendly to anyone with even a slight case of trypophobia.
The proportions of her facial features also seemed unbalanced, as if they had been randomly pieced together, carrying a deliberate and failed sense of clumsiness.
Her sense of fashion was also terrible — very provincial.
To view her as a potential threat was truly laughable.
How could someone like her take away her beloved Uncle Bai?
They weren’t even on the same level!
‘Poor girl. With looks like that, she’s probably been excluded from love since the day she was born.’
Love was a cheap commodity easily obtained by those born with beautiful features.
For those with average looks, it was a luxury to be cherished and fought for.
But for someone like Ai Lian, it didn’t even have the qualification to be a luxury.
No boy in the world would ever truly be interested in her.
Even if someone said they loved her, they would surely be calculating a plot against her.
Gao Hongyi never let go of Gu Yebai’s hand.
Their fingers were interlocked, tightly connected.
Her face wore a gentle and sweet smile.
Her attitude could be considered friendly and appropriate, yet her behavior was more like a hunter flaunting a trophy.
“Hello, you’re Classmate Ai Lian, right? My name is Gao Hongyi. Thank you for taking care of my Uncle Bai all this time.”
Gao Hongyi intentionally showed off her intimacy with Gu Yebai in front of Ai Lian.
They looked like a pair of inseparable lovers.
Although the two of them hadn’t officially announced it yet, in Gao Hongyi’s eyes, it was only a matter of time.
Gu Yebai didn’t refuse her hug, he didn’t refuse her interlocking their fingers while holding hands, and he didn’t refuse indirect kisses.
He even drank from the straw she had used without a care.
Coupled with her nearly perfect appearance, she had already won.
She was miles ahead.
She couldn’t possibly win any more than she already had.
“Hello… um… Classmate Gao. I’m Ai Lian. Classmate Gu and I are classmates…”
That timid appearance was truly a bit ridiculous.
Making such a fuss and being jealous of this kind of girl over Uncle Bai was a complete overreaction!
“I heard that Classmate Gu is leaving Linchuan, s-so I…”
The way she spoke made it look as if she were about to cry.
Was she really that shy around strangers?
Gao Hongyi also disliked communicating with strangers, but she was definitely not socially anxious to this extent.
She felt that Ai Lian’s performance was like that of a pill bug that would instinctively curl into a ball when encountering danger.
She only liked damp places.
She was pathetic.