Chapter 157: Bridal Carry

Lu Yuanqiu didn't quite remember what the catalyst was that motivated Zheng Yifeng to change in the upcoming semester.

He had originally thought that Zheng Yifeng would only start developing feelings for Su Miaomiao at the beginning of next semester, but looking at it now, the seeds of the guy's secret crush had long been deeply buried in his heart.

Could it be that next semester... Su Miaomiao responded to his affections in some way?

Was that what prompted Zheng Yifeng to change?

Lu Yuanqiu vaguely remembered that in the second semester of their senior year, Zheng Yifeng had stopped sleeping at school starting from a certain day. Aside from that, in all the major exams that followed, he managed to rank in the top ten of his class.

At the time, it not only shocked the entire class but also stunned the teachers in the office.

In that lifetime, Lu Yuanqiu had only witnessed Zheng Yifeng's personal transformation and hadn't paid attention to whether there were any changes in the relationship between him and Su Miaomiao.

...Or rather, until he ran into Zheng Yifeng at the banquet, Lu Yuanqiu had no idea that this guy had ever had any connection with Su Miaomiao.

This was simply incredible. If not for this rebirth, probably no one in the school would have discovered Zheng Yifeng's secret crush on Su Miaomiao, and Lu Yuanqiu only stood at a god-like vantage point because of his rebirth.

"Let's go, I'll carry you on my back."

Lu Yuanqiu said to Bai Qingxia.

She was wearing new shoes today, so by reason and emotion alike, he couldn't let her wade through the water herself.

Bai Qingxia was a bit shy. After all, there were many people blocked here, and almost every scene of a boy carrying a girl on his back across the water drew a wave of watching eyes.

"Get on."

At the back of the crowd, Lu Yuanqiu thoughtfully bent down. Left with no choice, Bai Qingxia could only lean onto his back, as deep down she didn't want her new shoes to get into the water either.

The next second, a remarkably loud voice came from the crowd.

"Make way! Make way! The kid is about to starve to death!"

Hearing the commotion, the students all stepped aside to make way, only to see a crew-cut boy holding a single-ponytail girl in a bridal style, running towards the cafeteria as large splashes of water exploded from beneath his feet.

The girl in his arms had a terrified face and wide, beautiful eyes. With one hand around Lu Yuanqiu's neck, she raised the other in a shy, angry fist and pounded it against Lu Yuanqiu's chest.

She was so angry she couldn't even speak.

Just as she was about to lean onto his back, Lu Yuanqiu suddenly spun around and grabbed the backs of her knees, changing the piggyback style into a bridal carry without the slightest warning.

A wave of hooting and teasing sounds erupted from the crowd behind them.

Hearing the noise, Zheng Yifeng, who was wading through the water, turned his head to look. Seeing this, Bai Qingxia hurriedly pulled back her fist and buried her blushing face in Lu Yuanqiu's embrace.

"Heh heh heh—"

Zheng Yifeng stared blankly as the crew-cut boy ran past him, a string of villain-like laughter tumbling from his mouth.

He stood frozen in place, as if he had forgotten how to take another step.

Perhaps someone who bravely fights for what they want is meant to live a much more exciting life than someone like him who preferred to escape.

Zheng Yifeng felt a heartfelt envy toward Lu Yuanqiu.

Arriving at the cafeteria, the moment Bai Qingxia was put down, she briskly walked toward the food stalls. Her face remained taut the entire way, her little hands clenched into fists, completely ignoring Lu Yuanqiu.

"Wait for me!"

Lu Yuanqiu stamped the water off his shoes and hurriedly followed behind her.

After getting her food at the window, Bai Qingxia turned around and glared at Lu Yuanqiu, then carried her tray toward a table in the corner.

Lu Yuanqiu quickly got his own food and followed, sitting down right across from Bai Qingxia.

Yet the girl seemed to have planned this all along; she stood up, left, and decisively switched to another table.

Lu Yuanqiu had just taken a bite of rice and hadn't quite registered it. Putting on an innocent act, he asked, "What's wrong, Xiaxia? Why are you unhappy? Who bullied you?" Without waiting for a reply, he immediately picked up his tray and followed her over.

Bai Qingxia lifted her gaze to look across the table, puckered her little lips, and once again picked up her tray to switch back to the original table. "Oh, switched back again. Alright, alright."

Lu Yuanqiu shamelessly followed her once more.

After going back and forth for ten rounds, the first person who couldn't bear to watch anymore turned out to be Ruan Yueru, who was sitting nearby.

"What are you two doing? Is this some new way for two people to hog two tables?"

Hearing this, Lu Yuanqiu turned his head and defiantly raised his middle finger. "None of your damn business."

"Blech—" Ruan Yueru bobbed her head toward them and stuck out her tongue.

Cao Shuang was sitting not far away. Lu Yuanqiu turned his head and complained to him, "Cao Shuang, can't you keep your wife in check?"

"Pfft!"

Cao Shuang spat out a mouthful of rice.

Ruan Yueru's face flushed red with anger as she slapped the table and stood up. "Lu Yuanqiu, you're full of crap! If you've got the guts, let's have a duel!"

"Tsk, what a kid." Lu Yuanqiu couldn't be bothered with her and turned back around.

After being roasted by Ruan Yueru's group, Bai Qingxia was too embarrassed to change seats again. She kept her head down, angrily eating the greens and rice in her tray.

Lu Yuanqiu started playing mind games with her. "You don't understand. If I carried you on my back, your shoes would still be close to the water; only by holding you in my arms could your shoes stay far away from the water. These are newly bought shoes after all, how could they get wet?"

With that, he very naturally picked up a large chopstick-full of greens from Bai Qingxia's tray. In the blink of an eye, only a few stray greens and white rice were left in her bowl.

The girl quietly raised her head and glanced at the greens stolen by Lu Yuanqiu. She had objections, but didn't dare to voice them. If Lu Yuanqiu wanted to eat them, she would certainly give them to him, but she knew Lu Yuanqiu hadn't wanted to eat them at all—he had simply taken them on purpose.

"Delicious, delicious."

As Lu Yuanqiu spoke, he transferred the meat dish from his own tray into hers. "Let's eat together."

Opportunities to have a meal in the cafeteria with Bai Qingxia were rare, and Lu Yuanqiu cherished them quite a bit.

However, this time Bai Qingxia didn't eat the meat Lu Yuanqiu gave her. After finishing her rice, she scooped the meat right back into his tray to express her lingering dissatisfaction.

After finishing, she placed her tray at the return station and walked toward the cafeteria exit.

Lu Yuanqiu shook his head, sighed, and sat down next to Cao Shuang with his own tray.

"Brother Qiu, you... you shouldn't just say things like that."

Cao Shuang lowered his voice, his face blushing.

"Say what?"

Lu Yuanqiu turned his head to look toward Ruan Yueru's direction, only to find that the short-haired little girl was still glaring angrily at them while her friends continuously comforted her.

Seeing that she was still mad, Lu Yuanqiu chuckled with amusement.

Bricks and stones had already been laid out over the standing water outside, and Bai Qingxia stepped across them to make her way back to the teaching building.

When she reached the entrance of her classroom, she suddenly noticed a cute girl with double ponytails peering inside the Senior Year Three, Class 28 classroom.
Bai Qingxia was never one to mix up faces, and she remembered this girl.

This girl was one of the drill conductors on the podium, standing to the left of Lu Yuanqiu, and seemed to be a freshman in high school.

Seeing Bai Qingxia appear, the cute girl with double ponytails hurriedly walked over and asked with a smile, "Senior Bai, I'd like to ask which seat is Senior Lu Yuanqiu's?"

Bai Qingxia was just about to answer when she suddenly caught sight of the pink envelope in the double-ponytail girl's hand.