CHAPTER 144: 143: NEW CLASSMATE (SECOND UPDATE)

Ye Ling raised her eyebrow and looked over. Before she could speak, Mr. Ji had already started yelling.

"Xiao Hong, it was originally our fault. You shouldn’t say such things. Hurry up and apologize to your new classmate!"

"Kids are like this, why are you angry?" Mrs. Ji, who was on the upper bunk and had been quite aggressive earlier, calmed down now and grumbled at her husband.

"This child just doesn’t understand manners." Mr. Ji saw his daughter storm off and apologized to Ye Ling, "Child, don’t take it to heart. Xiao Hong may seem headstrong, but she has a good heart. She’s straightforward and always wears her heart on her sleeve."

Unlike some people who are nice to you on the surface but have all kinds of bad intentions underneath.

Ye Ling naturally understood Mr. Ji’s words, "Uncle, you are too kind. I’m okay."

Mr. Ji smiled before his wife called him to pass something over, so he couldn’t say more to Ye Ling. Ye Ling glanced at the debris that had fallen on the bed due to the movement of the upper bunk and thought this wasn’t a solution. With money in hand, she left the dorm intending to buy some cloth to create a bed curtain. Even though she was living in the same room with others, covering it up would give her a personal space. She also planned to put some plastic sheet on the board above, so that anything falling from the upper bunk would be caught.

Xiao Hong was sulking in the yard after being scolded by her father. When she saw Ye Ling coming out, she shouted, "Hey, come here."

Ye Ling glanced at her and saw that there was no one else around. Knowing Xiao Hong was calling her, Ye Ling saw her arrogant posture and ignored her, heading towards the school perimeter.

"Hey, I’m talking to you, didn’t you hear?" Xiao Hong shouted as she watched Ye Ling speed up, stamping her feet in frustration.

Ye Ling didn’t have time to clash with a stranger. She went to the street and told the fabric seller she wanted to make a bed curtain. Hearing that she needed four meters of fabric, she felt a bit stingy, but considering she had three years of high school life ahead, she steeled herself and bought it. She asked them to make the bed curtain, with fabric straps for hanging, and also bought a rope. Returning to school, she planned to thread the rope through the straps to enclose the bed. Finally, she bought a plastic sheet, soap, and slippers before heading back to school.

At the entrance, she saw many people registering. Even those not staying on campus came to register. As long as they knew their class assignment, they could come directly on the first day of school.

In the crowd, Ye Ling didn’t pay much attention to others while carrying her things, but Wang Ping was the first to notice her. Recalling Guodong’s behavior yesterday, he didn’t dare to mention it. Instead, he nudged Zhang Linong, "Look, it’s Ye Ling."

Zhang Linong looked over, then asked Wang Ping to register him, squeezed through the crowd, and approached, taking Ye Ling’s things, "Moving in today? Is there anyone in the dormitory?"

"One person is already there." Ye Ling followed Zhang Linong into the school, "Won’t he get mad at you for coming over?"

Ye Ling knew that where Zhang Linong was, Zhao Guodong wouldn’t be far behind.

Zhang Linong laughed, "He’s in a bad mood these days. Just ignore him."

Ye Ling couldn’t help but smile.

Zhao Guodong, among the crowd, watched them chatting and laughing as they entered the school. Angrily, he glared at Wang Ping, "You’re so talkative, help me register. I’m going home."

Leaving Wang Ping behind, Zhao Guodong stormed off.

Why did Zhao Guodong come to register so early? He was hoping to bump into Ye Ling. So when Ye Ling came with her things, he was the first to notice and didn’t say anything. But once Wang Ping mentioned it, Zhang Linong went over. Watching them talk, he felt very uncomfortable.

Wang Ping had no idea how he’d upset Zhao Guodong. Earlier, he planned to register right away, but had to wait as Zhao Guodong insisted. Now, with Zhao gone, Wang Ping squeezed through the crowd, pushed people aside, and registered all three names. He then thought of finding Zhang Linong at school first.

Over at the dormitory, when Zhang Ningli returned with Ye Ling, the Ji family finished packing and were heading outside to eat. Seeing someone helping Ye Ling, they assumed it was a family relative. Mrs. Ji didn’t look at Ye Ling due to the earlier incident, but Mr. Ji greeted Ye Ling with a smile. Ji Hong kept eyeing Zhang Ningli and Ye Ling unhappily.

Zhang Ningli was quite handsome, with a lazy demeanor and not as wild as usual boys. Naturally, he attracted girls at school. Ji Hong hadn’t seen a boy this good-looking back in town, but he was walking with Ye Ling, which made Ji Hong dislike Zhang Ningli even more.

Zhang Ningli was perceptive, "Is she difficult to get along with?"

Ye Ling recounted the morning’s occurrence, "I spoke reasonably, wasn’t trying to start trouble, but she acted as if I was wrong."

"That’s school life, if you’re not used to it, you can stay at my grandma’s place. Since you haven’t returned to school recently, my mom also mentioned this." Zhang Ningli followed Ye Ling into the room.

Seeing Ye Ling shaking off the debris on her bed, he frowned but didn’t say much, and went to help. When Wang Ping arrived, they helped tuck the plastic sheet securely, then hung the bed curtain. Except for the front, which was open during the day, the other three sides were covered. At night, the front could be hung shut, making the bed completely enclosed.

Wang Ping laughed, "Looks like an old-fashioned bed."

"You know about it?" Zhang Linong looked at him.

"I’ve seen it on TV." Nowadays, some families in the courtyard had TVs, and Wang Ping sometimes watched TV there.

Ye Ling laughed and then Wang Ping suddenly said, "Let’s go eat noodles. Yesterday I asked my dad for money and he gave me two yuan."

It was perfect to go have noodles, after eating Ye Ling’s treat twice, Wang Ping had kept it in mind.

"No need, I had buns this morning, I’m still not hungry. You guys go eat." Ye Ling felt awkward.

Besides, she was thinking about earning money, so she wasn’t in the mood for food. She had spent over three yuan today; seeing the money going down day by day without any income, how could she not worry?

"I specifically told my dad you always treat me to noodles, that’s why he gave me money. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have given me a penny. Come on, let’s go." Wang Ping patted his pockets with an air of confidence.

Zhang Linong laughed, "Come on, if you refuse again, this money will be spent on comic books."

Wang Ping blushed.

Ye Ling laughed, "Alright then."

Knowing that Zhao Guodong would join, Ye Ling didn’t mind. She treated him as a kid, ignoring whatever he said. The three of them then walked out of the school towards the noodle shop, while Wang Ping headed to the courtyard to find Zhao Guodong halfway. (To be continued. If you liked this work, feel free to visit Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for recommendations, monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com for reading.)