Chapter 351 — A Brief Respite

"Nothing..." Tang Zhi shook her head. "Mom, why don't you go ahead and get Dad checked into the hospital first? I'll come see you both after school tonight."

"All right then, go eat with Little Lin, quick — it's past twelve already. Go on, eat, don't let yourselves go hungry!" Mother Tang asked nothing more. She hung up and, beaming, followed President Qin off to complete the admission paperwork.

Xue Min had already put in a word; whatever medical fees could be waived had naturally been waived for Mother Tang, and within the scope of President Qin's authority, every discount possible had been granted.

"What's the matter? Not happy?" Wei Zhao glanced at Tang Zhi and smiled.

"N—no..." Tang Zhi, of course, would not admit to what was really on her mind. She shook her head. "Let's go, time to eat..."

Wei Zhao and Tang Zhi arrived at the cafeteria. It was the busiest hour, the place a clamorous, bustling sea of people — but whoever caught sight of Wei Zhao promptly cleared a path for him.

At school, Wei Zhao had already surpassed the Four Tyrants of campus legend. Zhong Yongliang, Zou Ruoming — without exception, every one of them had been beaten by him into not daring to hit back. A person like that — who would still dare provoke him?

He and Tang Zhi ordered two vegetable dishes and one meat dish, scooped up half a jin of rice, and found a table to sit at. Two students were already eating there, but at the sight of Wei Zhao sitting down, they wolfed down their food in two or three bites and hastily vacated their seats.

Wei Zhao was somewhat at a loss for words. He hadn't expected his notoriety to have spread this far. In truth, he had never really done anything villainous, nor had he ever bullied men and women the way Zou Ruoming did. All he'd done was deal with Zou Ruoming and Zhong Yongliang — nothing else, was there?

He set the food on the table, and only then did Tang Zhi realize she had been too rushed when getting the food earlier. With so many people in line, she had simply asked for half a jin of rice without having it divided into separate portions — and now, eating it was turning out to be a bit of a chore.

Tang Zhi wanted to fetch another bowl and scoop some out, but she was afraid Wei Zhao might take it to mean she didn't like eating with him. She was still hesitating when Wei Zhao said, "Let's just share the rice. You eat from one side, I'll eat from the other. You don't mind me, do you?"

"Mm..." Tang Zhi shook her head. Since Wei Zhao had put it that way, she could hardly go get a bowl now. A little shy, she nonetheless agreed.

Tang Zhi carefully ate from her side of the plate of rice, feeling as though countless pairs of eyes were on her. It wasn't that the cafeteria had no student couples, but those who dared share a single plate of rice in public were very few indeed.

Neither Wei Zhao nor Tang Zhi had ever planned on sharing a plate of rice — it was only carelessness that had brought about the present situation.

In fact, hardly any students dared look directly their way. Who would want to provoke Wei Zhao? If you looked too long and he mistook it for an interest in Tang Zhi, getting beaten up for it would hardly be worth the trouble.

Tang Zhi had a small appetite. After a few bites she was full. She quickly set down her chopsticks and glanced around from the corner of her eye; seeing that no one was looking over, she breathed a sigh of relief.

But now the question was no longer whether she minded Wei Zhao — it was whether Wei Zhao minded her. She ate little, and had barely touched it before she was full, so the rest of the rice would all be Wei Zhao's. He would surely have to eat the part she had eaten from...

Did that count as an indirect kiss? At the thought, something in Tang Zhi's chest seemed to have become a little white rabbit, thumping wildly — she was a little shy, and a little excited too...

Thinking of what she had said over the phone last night — she still owed him a kiss... What form would that kiss take? In what way would she give it to him?

Earlier, at the hospital, Wei Zhao had only asked Tang Zhi to kiss his cheek. But now their relationship had plainly taken another step forward — so would he want to kiss her on the lips?

Tang Zhi didn't dare think any further, yet there was not a trace of aversion in her heart... In the past, whenever Tang Zhi saw the hero and heroine kiss on TV or in a novel, she would find it disgusting; if a man ever kissed her mouth to mouth, she was sure she would be sick to her stomach... But now, not only did she not feel sick — somewhere deep down, there was even a flicker of anticipation.

Wei Zhao had eaten slowly at first, worried Tang Zhi wouldn't get enough, but once she had finished, he swept through everything left on the table like wind scattering clouds, leaving Tang Zhi staring, dumbstruck.

"Are... are you full?" Tang Zhi hadn't expected Wei Zhao's appetite to be so large. He didn't look fat, yet he could certainly put it away.

"I'm full." Wei Zhao nodded.

"Then... shall we head back to the classroom?" A sudden reluctance rose in Tang Zhi's heart; she did not want to part from Wei Zhao just like this.

"Let's take a turn around the sports field." Wei Zhao stood up, gathered the trays, and walked out of the cafeteria with Tang Zhi, setting the trays down casually by the door.

The midday sun was glaring, and Tang Zhi narrowed her eyes slightly, raising a small hand to her forehead to shield them. Watching the students frolicking on the field, a feeling of happiness welled up in her unbidden.

On the verge of leaving this school, she had met Wei Zhao. Tang Zhi wanted to cheer, yet deep in her heart there lingered an uneasiness — as though Wei Zhao did not truly belong to her, and the happiness before her was all fleeting.

In her daze, a large hand caught her small one again. Tang Zhi came back to herself, hesitated a moment, then gripped that hand firmly in return: "Which university are you going to apply to?"

It was the first time Tang Zhi had worried about their future together; she feared this happiness would vanish in an instant.

"I don't know. It doesn't matter to me." Wei Zhao shook his head. Wherever Gu Mengyao applied, he would apply too — that went without saying. But to set Tang Zhi's mind at ease, he smiled and said, "Wherever you go, I'll go."

"Mm..." Tang Zhi's face broke into a smile, bright against the sunlight, a smile of pure ease, and the stone in her heart finally dropped. Yet she was still a little worried: "But what if one of us doesn't score high enough?"

"We can pay." Wei Zhao shrugged indifferently. "Your worrying is quite unnecessary."

"New money!" Tang Zhi laughed and scolded him, though she was truly glad of how much he valued her.

The two of them walked into the shade of the trees and found a stone step to sit down on.

Tang Zhi seemed to hold a particular fondness for this patch of shade; she always liked to come here. Propping her chin on her hand, she quietly savored the stillness of the moment.

Wei Zhao stretched lazily and sat quietly beside Tang Zhi as well.

But... this brief tranquility was something someone wanted to shatter...

Because Wei Zhao had just seen Gu Mengyao and Shen Yushu walking toward them hand in hand! Gu Mengyao was still cold as frost, while Shen Yushu was giggling and saying something...