On the way back to the classroom, Lin Xiaowan was much quieter. Su Lin had hit the nail on the head.
Right now, her heart was filled with mixed feelings, and she felt a little uncomfortable. She had been with her classmates for three years. She knew that some of them had bad characters, but most of them were good.
However, because Su Lin didn't explain once, he was misunderstood by the whole class. This misunderstanding was so deep-rooted that she couldn't mediate it. This made her feel very uncomfortable.
Su Lin did so many good things, but because of one thing, he became like this.
"Su Lin… I…"
"Xiaowan, don't say you sympathize with me. You know, the last thing I need is sympathy. Don't think about helping me, I really don't need it."
"Do you really not care?"
Su Lin smiled. "Don't you understand me now? And I saw you chatting with Xia Shiyu just now. She should know by now about the donation, that's enough."
"..."
Looking at Su Lin's smile, Lin Xiaowan felt uncomfortable, but she couldn't do anything about it. She couldn't help Su Lin, even if she wanted to.
This made her feel very aggrieved; it was a feeling she had never felt before.
"Xiaowan, don't worry about it. The college entrance exam is in three months. Let me spend these three months in peace."
"But you haven't experienced the baptism of human form. These three months may not be as easy for you. If you are ever unhappy, you can talk to me about it."
(TL : Basically, it means she's innocent and hasn't experienced what humans are capable of doing, such as using you for their own gain.).
Lin Xiaowan was puzzled. "Me? Why would it not be easy?"
Su Lin sighed. "Xiaowan, you hid your pride, and you are now seen as easygoing and forgiving. There's nothing wrong with this. But after you donated more than 200,000 yuan today, everything changed."
"The first to bear the brunt would be your deskmate, Yan Huan. She's a greedy person, the days she's been freeloading off of you are not a day or two."
"I reckon that a person like her will borrow money from you in less than three days. One hundred to two hundred, two hundred to three hundred. If you lend her money, the next time, it'll be five or six hundred, and then she'll keep borrowing."
Lin Xiaowan was not convinced. "I'm not a fool. I won't lend money to others without a reasonable reason."
"Hehe, that's the problem. Everyone who wants to borrow money will find a reasonable reason."
Seeing that Lin Xiaowan still didn't believe him, Su Lin smiled. "You'll know when the time comes."
Lin Xiaowan was silent and thought that Su Lin was making groundless accusations.
Although Yan Huan often freeloaded on food and drinks, it was because her family was relatively poor. Moreover, she would bring some food over from time to time, although she barely ate.
Su Lin shook his head and went back to his seat. A girl like Lin Xiaowan would only face this problem head-on when she truly faced it. By then, her pride and nobility would be displayed.
Su Lin remembered that in the original novel, Lin Xiaowan had been so innocent until the second year of university. Until one day, she was targeted by a certain student council.
As soon as she sat down, Yan Huan went up to Lin Xiaowan and asked sarcastically, "Xiaowan, what's going on between you and Su Lin?"
"Xiaowan, you don't usually go with Su Lin to hand in your homework or come back together." Yan Huan looked at Lin Xiaowan with a probing look in her eyes.
Yan Huan knew very well that Lin Xiaowan was usually very easy-going and friendly, but deep down, she was very proud. Not everyone could be friends with her. Yan Huan was close to Lin Xiaowan, mainly because they had been deskmates for three years.
"There's only one way from the classroom to the office, so we're bound to run into each other." Lin Xiaowan was now upset, and she didn't want to tell Yan Huan about Su Lin.
Yan Huan was the most influential person in the class. Once she found out about it, it wouldn't take long for the whole school to find out. Then she wouldn't be able to clear her name.
"Oh! Xiaowan, you have to listen to me. Stay away from Su Lin." Yan Huan 'kindly' reminded her.
"Yes, yes, I know. Huan, don't worry about me. Instead of thinking about me, you should think about Ye Feng. He is deeply in love with you," Lin Xiaowan joked with a smile.
Yan Huan turned back and gave Ye Feng a glance, then disdainfully shook her head. "Me and Ye Feng? Impossible. We're destined to be from two different worlds."
Ye Feng is one of the few students in class that teachers have given up on. Even if he's putting in effort now, the idea of him going to college seems pretty unlikely.
Not to mention, Yan Huan ranks in the top ten in the class, with grades that could land her in prestigious universities like 985 and 211.
(TL : 985 and 211 universities are peak universities in China which is Peking University, Tsinghua University, Jiao Tong University, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Wuhan University, Nanjing University, Fudan University, and Xiamen University.).
So, when Yan Huan claims they're from different worlds, there's some truth to it. Once the ordeal of the college entrance exam is over, their paths will likely never cross again.
"Even though Ye Feng's grades aren't great, his intentions toward you are sincere; we can all see that," Xiaowan said bluntly.
"But what good is sincerity alone? Ye Feng's parents work at Jiangning Food Factory, which hasn't paid salaries for three months. If I were to be with him, we'd both be left in the cold."
Yan Huan's parents also work at Jiangning Food Factory, but her family situation is much better than Ye Feng's. Her parents hold higher positions, while Ye Feng's are mere employees. Combined with her occasional encounters with Ye Feng, she dislikes him intensely.
Especially since Ye Feng harbors inappropriate feelings for her, which only disgust her rather than evoke any sweetness. In her eyes, being liked by Ye Feng is utterly repulsive.
"If you still want to be my friend, Xiao Wan, don't bring up Ye Feng again. This guy lacks ambition and is wasting away playing games," Yan Huan stated firmly.
"Alright, but I have to remind you, Huan, you won't find someone as devoted to you as Ye Feng in the future."
Yan Huan pursed her lips and remained silent. Despite being slightly less attractive than Lin Xiaowan, she still holds a prominent position in the class. In her perspective, without the burden of Ye Feng, university life will be much better. Unlike now, where she feels stuck and without any male admirers.
Ding-ling-ling! As the bell for the next class rang, the two concluded their conversation.