CH 37

It was Friday, and after the last activity class, everyone was preparing to leave for home. Qu Zhi attended a class on robotics development and future trends, and because the discussion was quite intense today, he left the classroom later than usual. When he returned to the classroom, he noticed that Zheng Baozhu was still there, sitting at her desk and packing her bag while chatting with two classmates about outfit combinations.

Zheng Baozhu was taking a fashion design course. Qu Zhi didn't have a particular interest in designing beautiful clothes; he just liked beautiful clothes. He didn't engage in conversation with them and started packing his things at his own desk. Zheng Baozhu didn't pay attention to him either, continuing to chat and laugh with her classmates, "Red with blue? It depends on what shade of red and blue we are talking about."

"Let's use the same shade of blue as our school uniform and pair it with the shade of red from the Disability High School uniform!"

After finishing packing his things, Qu Zhi turned around and saw a student from another class standing by the back door. Coincidentally, she was wearing the Disability High School uniform paired with their own school uniform.

Qu Zhi paused for a moment, and the student looked up at him, then ran off amidst laughter. Qu Zhi furrowed his brows slightly, turned back, and said to the people in the classroom, "Are you all bored?"

Zheng Baozhu looked back at him and then snickered, "What's so boring about pairing outfits? I find robotics boring, heh."

Qu Zhi pursed his lips, said nothing, and then left. He remembered who that student was just now; it was Miao Siyu from the neighboring class. He had heard this name from other classmates and the only reason they knew about it was that she had a visual impairment.

In the eyes of these unenlightened classmates, a visual impairment seemed like something novel, so when someone discovered that Miao Siyu couldn't recognize them, the news spread throughout the grade.

Qu Zhi had thought that only elementary school students could be so boring, but it seemed that high school students weren't much better.

He walked to the neighboring class's door and saw Miao Siyu talking to a male classmate, "Where's my uniform?"

The male student being questioned had a nonchalant expression and even appeared somewhat pleased, "Here it is!" He handed Miao Siyu her uniform coat and couldn't help but tease, "So, you really couldn't recognize anyone? You can't even recognize words, right? Hahaha."

Miao Siyu pursed her lips and angrily threw the coat she was wearing on the ground, snatched her uniform back from the male student, and ran away.

The high school Qu Zhi attended didn't enforce a school uniform policy, but Miao Siyu always wore the school uniform to school. Everyone wasn't oblivious; they understood that she always wore the uniform to avoid the hassle of coordinating outfits, as wearing a uniform was safe and wouldn't go wrong. The Disability High School uniform was almost identical to theirs, so someone came up with the idea to have some fun with it by wearing it on top of their own uniform.

"Don't you think you've gone too far?" Qu Zhi stood at the classroom door, looking at the male student.

"What's it to you? I'm just having a laugh with my classmates," the male student retorted. He recognized Qu Zhi; after all, he was the top student in the grade and handsome too. But that didn't mean the male student would back down in front of him.

"Joking about someone else's flaws, do you really find that amusing?"

Finally, the male student showed some embarrassment, "What's it to you? Just because you're the top student, you want to control everything?"

Qu Zhi didn't bother with him any further and walked towards the direction where Miao Siyu had run off to. There were not many people left in the school at this moment. Qu Zhi walked down the stairs and saw Miao Siyu sitting on the stairs, holding her uniform and crying.

Hearing footsteps, Miao Siyu wiped her tears. Qu Zhi approached her and handed her a pack of tissues. Miao Siyu hesitated for a moment, then looked up at him. Qu Zhi slightly averted his gaze, placing the tissues on her uniform.

"Thank you," after a while, Miao Siyu opened the tissue pack and said thanks, "You saw everything just now, right?"

"Yeah," Qu Zhi replied softly, "They were in the wrong."

Miao Siyu held the tissues, and chuckled self-deprecatingly, "I'm used to it, actually. In the past, some classmates would hold up colored M&M chocolates, saying red ones tasted the best, and they would ask me to choose the red ones. Then, when I picked the wrong color, they would be so happy. I just didn't expect high school students to be this boring too."

"Yeah," Qu Zhi responded again, "So you don't need to take it to heart."

"I know..." Miao Siyu said, her voice choked with emotion, "But sometimes, I just can't help feeling wronged," She wiped her tears with the tissues, composed herself, and continued, "I don't want to be visually impaired either. I know everyone thinks I'm uncool, but I can't help it. I also want to wear beautiful clothes, but I can't even distinguish colors..."

When Miao Siyu said this, she looked up at Qu Zhi and asked, "Is the blue and red combination really that ugly?"

Qu Zhi fell silent for a moment, "If the saturation is too high, it can indeed be glaring."

"Oh..." Miao Siyu nodded gently, hugging her knees, "That's what Zheng Baozhu said too... Actually, I've always envied Zheng Baozhu in your class."

Hearing Zheng Baozhu's name, Qu Zhi's eyebrows twitched slightly, "Envied? For what?"

"She's beautiful, knows how to dress up, and everyone likes her."

Qu Zhi remained silent for a moment before speaking, "I actually think it's not very meaningful. Attractive appearances may temporarily please people, but in the end, what really matters is character."

Miao Siyu smiled as she listened to him, "It's not very convincing when it comes from someone who is good-looking like you."

"..." Qu Zhi was taken aback, "I truly believe that. I think character is more important than appearances."

Miao Siyu stood up with her uniform in her arms and said, "Thank you for comforting me. I feel much better now," She smiled and continued, "Back in elementary school, I told myself not to cry over such things anymore. I didn't expect that even in high school, I haven't made much progress."

Qu Zhi didn't say anything. Comforting others was never his strong suit. Today, he had already gone beyond what was normal by talking to Miao Siyu about all this.

"Let's go then," Miao Siyu put on her uniform and walked downstairs with Qu Zhi.

After hearing the story, Zheng Baozhu was silent for a full thirty seconds. "What are you talking about? Is this something you just made up now? Why don't I have any recollection of it?"

"...Maybe you said it casually back then and didn't take it to heart," Qu Zhi replied.

Previously, he had always thought that Zheng Baozhu said it on purpose, but after meeting her again, he gradually realized that Zheng Baozhu was different from what he had assumed—she wasn't that harsh of a person.

"What do you mean?" Zheng Baozhu asked.

Qu Zhi explained, "What I mean is, back then we were only in our first year of high school, you were just fourteen years old. You probably didn't think it was a big deal, and there was no ill intent."

This was the reason Qu Zhi had come up with recently to justify Zheng Baozhu's actions at that time.

However, Zheng Baozhu didn't seem pleased with his explanation; instead, she became even angrier, "So, you still think I was in cahoots with them, don't you? Hmph, even if I was only fourteen, I wouldn't do something like teasing classmates!"

Qu Zhi remained silent.

"And another thing, what do you mean by saying that appearances can only temporarily please people and it ultimately depends on the character? Are you saying my character is bad? You're implying that I'm not likable, aren't you?" Zheng Baozhu's face turned red with anger, "I won't stand for this injustice! You better explain yourself!"

Qu Zhi: "..."

He sat on the sofa somewhat nervously, carefully choosing his words, "I didn't say that. I just feel that even though you know how to dress up and understand fashion and beauty, you lack the most basic respect."

"..." Zheng Baozhu's fists were clenched, and she looked at Qu Zhi with a cold smile, "Respect, huh? It's because I respected you too much that you're still alive today!"

"..." Qu Zhi remained silent.

Zheng Baozhu couldn't sit still now; she paced back and forth in the room. She hadn't expected to be blamed like this on the last day of the year! This blame must not carry over to the next year!

"I remember now!" Zheng Baozhu suddenly stopped her pacing, turned her head to look at Qu Zhi, and said, "That day wasn't like that at all!"

Zheng Baozhu remembered that the main topic of the design class that day was fashion matching. After she presented her design from the previous class and received praise from the teacher, her spirits were high.

Maybe it was because the teacher specifically praised her, so after class, some classmates approached her and wanted to discuss fashion matching.

Zheng Baozhu had always been good at talking, and she was in a good mood that day, so she chatted with her classmates for quite a while, not paying attention to the time.

She didn't notice when Qu Zhi entered the classroom.

"Baozhu, which two combinations do you think look the worst?" one of her classmates asked.

Zheng Baozhu thought for a moment and replied, "Actually, I don't think there's anything inherently ugly. It depends on how you match them. For example, many people say that red and green look tacky together, but these two colors can still be matched in a sophisticated way."

"Yeah, you're right," the classmate nodded, then asked with excitement, "What about red and blue?"

"Red and blue? It still depends on the specific shades of red and blue," Zheng Baozhu replied.

"It's the blue from our school uniform matched with the red from Disability High School uniform!" The classmate became more and more enthusiastic as she spoke.

Zheng Baozhu didn't know what the excitement was about, but hearing the combination of these two colors had a huge impact on her. She had seen their school uniform blue and Disability High School uniform red!

She couldn't believe it and said, "Ah... that's too extreme. Both of these colors have such high saturation; who would pair them like that? It's not even about whether it looks good or not; it would hurt your eyes!"

"Exactly, hahaha! It's like those official notices with blue background and red text, hahaha, so ugly!"

"Are you guys bored?" Qu Zhi's voice suddenly echoed in the classroom. Zheng Baozhu was taken aback and turned to look in the direction of the voice.

Qu Zhi stood in front of his desk, carrying his bag, with a slightly furrowed brow and a hint of anger.

Zheng Baozhu frowned, not sure what Qu Zhi was up to again. He always found fault with things for no reason. Now, even when everyone was just discussing fashion matching, he couldn't stand it?

With a sneer, she looked at him and said, "What's so boring about discussing fashion matching? I find robotics boring, haha."

She disliked his pretentious demeanor, as if only his actions had meaning in the world, and what others did was useless.

Qu Zhi didn't say anything, picked up his bag, and left. Zheng Baozhu rolled her eyes and told the two classmates, "Don't mind him, let's continue our discussion."

"Ah, okay."

Whether it was Qu Zhi's sudden outburst or not, the enthusiasm of the classmates seemed to have diminished. Zheng Baozhu chatted with them for a while and then tidied up her things and left the classroom.

After hearing Zheng Baozhu's version of the story, Qu Zhi also fell silent for half a minute, "So, you genuinely didn't know that Miao Siyu was at the door?"

"Oh my goodness, how would I know?" Zheng Baozhu looked at Qu Zhi and asked, "Do I have eyes on the back of my head or something?"

Qu Zhi remained silent.

Given Zheng Baozhu's seating position at the time, it was entirely possible that she didn't see anyone at the back door.

"They must have suddenly noticed Miao Siyu passing by the back door dressed like that and deliberately asked you about it," Zheng Baozhu scoffed, "I'm so angry! They used me as a pawn! I actually earnestly talked to them about fashion matching!"

Qu Zhi slightly straightened his back but didn't speak. Zheng Baozhu looked at him and redirected her frustration toward him, "You are also strange. Since you saw it all, why didn't you just say it directly? You've been silently cursing me for so many years, couldn't you just ask me directly?"

"...I haven't been silently cursing you for so many years," Qu Zhi replied.

"Heh, do you think I'd believe that?"

"..."

After a moment of silence, Zheng Baozhu's emotions gradually eased. "No, I have to go and explain to Miao Siyu. Luckily, I saved her WeChat today."

Qu Zhi asked, "Will she believe you?"

"It doesn't matter if she believes it or not; as long as I clarify things for myself," Zheng Baozhu sat back on the sofa, took out her phone, and started typing a message. Qu Zhi sat beside her, looking down, and suddenly remembered something, "By the way, while we're at it today, there's something I want to ask you about."

Zheng Baozhu kept her eyes on her phone without lifting her head, "What is it?"

Qu Zhi said, "You told Qi Sheng before that I did something bad. I just wanted to ask, what bad thing did I do?"

Zheng Baozhu's fingertips paused and she looked up at him.

After looking at Qu Zhi for a moment, she temporarily put down her phone, "Don't you know it yourself?"

Qu Zhi couldn't help but laugh out of frustration, "I really don't know. Why don't you tell me?"

"Sure," Zheng Baozhu smiled at him. Thinking about this incident now, she found it amusing, "Back in our second year of junior high, do you remember New He Street?"

Qu Zhi furrowed his brow slightly. New He Street was a small alley near their home, and it had been rebuilt and widened into a bustling street now, with tall buildings on both sides. There was no trace of the dirty and shabby alley it used to be.

Zheng Baozhu observed his expression and hummed lightly, "How about it? Does it ring a bell?"

Qu Zhi looked at her and didn't speak for a moment. Zheng Baozhu thought they had talked openly about everything today, so she honestly said, "Back then, you were there. You pressed a student to the ground and beat him up, and I saw it happen."

Qu Zhi's expression didn't change much, as if he wasn't particularly surprised. After a moment of silence, he looked at Zheng Baozhu and said, "So, that's how you remember it?"

Zheng Baozhu became even more determined, "How else should I remember it? You just admitted it!"

Qu Zhi replied, "There was indeed such an incident, but it's not how you think it was."

"Don't care what I think! You admitted it, that's enough!" Zheng Baozhu picked up her phone again and even turned on the voice recording function, "Come on, say it again. You admit that during our second year of junior high, you pressed a male student to the ground and beat him up on New He Street."

"..."

"Why are you silent now?" Zheng Baozhu stared at him as if she had a deep-seated grudge to settle.

Qu Zhi asked, "I'm curious, is this incident so important to you?"

"Of course!" Zheng Baozhu said indignantly, "After witnessing that scene back then, I went home and told my mom!"

In her mother's eyes, Qu Zhi had always been a smart, well-behaved, and ambitious child, and she had no idea about his true nature in private. Zheng Baozhu had been agonized by her mother being deceived by Qu Zhi's facade but couldn't find any flaws in him until that day when she saw him beating someone up.

After returning home, she passionately told her mother about the incident.

"But my mother didn't believe me at first!" Zheng Baozhu recalled, still feeling frustrated from back then, "She said I must have mistaken the person. I regret not having a phone or internet back then; otherwise, I would have recorded it and made it go viral online."

Qu Zhi: "..."

"I wasn't willing to give up, so after starting school, I told the teacher about the incident, hoping the teacher would do justice for me," Zheng Baozhu's face was turning red again as she spoke, "But even the teacher didn't believe me. They all thought I was lying! I swear, the biggest lie I've ever told in my life was 'I can handle spicy food!'"