Classmate Li Zhuangsheng doesn’t want to be reborn

"Stop talking, stop talking, I'm feeling a bit unwell..."

Li Zhuangsheng, whose knees had been struck by countless arrows, finally spoke up to stop Qin Luanyu. He was afraid that if she continued, he would burst into tears first.

Is this what the adult world is like? No wonder the main characters in anime are all high school students!
By the way, why did I write novels? It's because I didn't want to go to work! Why would I find a job after writing a novel? That's crazy!

But then again, what's the difference between writing novels and going to work? It's just that the latter has more flexible hours every day.

"Oh, then I won't say anything more." Qin Luanyu decisively stopped talking, sat up straight again, looked at Li Zhuangsheng, and said with a half-smile, "It's good to be rich, isn't it?"

"Are you showing off to me?" Li Zhuangsheng's face twisted with jealousy. "If I kidnapped you, how much ransom would your father pay?"

"Wow, that sounds really fun!" Qin Luanyu's eyes lit up with interest. "How about we give it a try? Even if they call the police, we can just say I was the mastermind, and nothing will happen."

"No, no, no, I was just joking..." Li Zhuangsheng sighed heavily and lowered his head helplessly. "Don't take it seriously."

Please read and understand carefully. I meant to express my envy of you rich people, not a criminal declaration! And please stop acting so nonchalant and slapping your dad on the back. You may not be afraid, but I am!
"I actually find it quite interesting..." Qin Luanyu seemed quite regretful about it.

Li Zhuangsheng sighed softly, "It feels like what you're describing is exactly the kind of life I want, and the Golden and Silver Beach Grassland... Do you also like listening to 'In That Faraway Place'?"

Qin Luanyu deliberately put on a stern face: "Although you told me, I don't like it at all!"

"Then why do you want to go to the Golden and Silver Beach?"

Li Zhuangsheng tilted his head in confusion. He wanted to go to Jin Yin Tan because of that song. Since Qin Luanyu didn't like it, why would he make a special trip to Jin Yin Tan?
"In many people's eyes, what they can't have is the best, what they can't have is the white moonlight. So, instead of letting him keep thinking about it, why not take him to the Golden and Silver Beach and see the beautiful Tibetan women there... Then he'll realize that there's no better girl in the world than me!"

Qin Luanyu patted her chest proudly, her eyes confident and bright, her cheeks rosy, like the rising sun in the morning.

Li Zhuangsheng and Xie Jiangqing stared blankly at Qin Luanyu, their eyes revealing a strange expression, as if they were somewhat ashamed of themselves.

“Indeed…” After a moment, Li Zhuangsheng slowly nodded, “You are indeed.”

"Oh, is this a confession to me?" Qin Luanyu immediately smiled and took Li Zhuangsheng's arm. "Then what kind of answer should I give you?"

“I just think you’re really a good person…” Li Zhuangsheng sighed, “especially… upright and honest.”

Xie Jiangqing clenched her fists and bit her lip: "Someone as perfect as you should find a guy who's good enough for you! Don't you think it's a waste to marry down?"

She rarely felt such overwhelming despair, not even when she was with Hu Mengdie. Perhaps it was because she had become accustomed to Hu Mengdie's charm and had given up early... But when facing Qin Luanyu, she felt a sense of bewilderment, as if she were being swept away by a massive torrent.

The two were not even in the same league. It was like two swordsmen dueling. She was full of confidence and thought it would be a wonderful duel between masters, but her opponent only made a single sword strike from afar, and before she could react, she was lying on the ground.

But even if she lay down, all she could do was grit her teeth and put up a futile resistance.

“If I were to marry someone, even if he were penniless, I wouldn’t consider it a step down. Because from the very beginning, if I felt wronged, I wouldn’t have chosen to marry him. If I chose to marry him, it must be because I was extremely satisfied with him.”

"You're too young to be talking about marriage. There are many things you don't understand..."

"Being young doesn't mean being immature. I know a friend who's six years older than me, but she has a crush on her best friend's husband. She didn't dare confess when they were together, and she still didn't dare confess when they were about to break up. But when other women got close to her best friend's husband, she inexplicably put on the airs of a matriarch, ostensibly for her best friend's sake, but actually just because she didn't want to give him up. Because deep down she felt that her best friend and husband were having problems, and she had a chance to take his place. How could she allow another woman to get involved? Isn't that ridiculous? She's clearly nothing to her, she's clearly betrayed her best friend emotionally, yet she pretends to be protecting her best friend's man, deceiving herself."

Qin Luanyu smiled, but her eyes held a hint of coldness. "Sister Xie, what's the difference between an old person and an ignorant elementary school student?"

Xie Jiangqing's face flushed red and then turned pale. Soon after, it burned with pain, as if someone had slapped her hard twice, or as if fire was burning her face.

……

"Were you two arguing today?" On the way home, Li Zhuangsheng turned his head to look at Xie Jiangqing, who was following behind him with her head down, and whispered to Qin Luanyu, "I listened for a long time but I still don't understand why you suddenly brought up the topic of marriage... Did she misunderstand something?"

Could it be that Xie Jiangqing misunderstood Qin Luanyu's feelings for him, leading to their argument? But if that's the case, Qin Luanyu doesn't seem to have clarified anything... However, the point of their argument at the end seems to have nothing to do with him anymore; it appears to be a debate about values?
"When did we have a fight?" Qin Luanyu blinked and asked back.

Li Zhuangsheng had nothing to say. The two hadn't actually argued loudly; to be precise, they had just had a minor disagreement.

However, Xie Jiangqing clearly lost the argument and looked quite dejected.

"How much was that meal?" Li Xiuyu asked.

“300,” Li Zhuangsheng said.

He paid the bill.

"Oh, it's alright then. The shop owner said he'd round it down for us."

"Oh, how much did it cost originally?"

"I forgot, it's almost 340, isn't it?"

"Apply so much?"

"After all, there are three beautiful women at our table. If you weren't here, you might have applied even more!" Qin Luanyu said with a smile.

The brother and sister, along with Qin Luanyu, chatted happily. Li Zhuangsheng glanced at Xie Jiangqing, who was alone behind him, coughed lightly, and slowed down.

"Xie Jiangqing, how did you like the food just now?" Li Zhuangsheng asked, trying to make conversation.

"Mmm." Xie Jiangqing lowered her head.

"I think the stir-fried meat is a little too salty. Hu Mengdie probably won't like it... Oh, right, actually I think what you said makes a lot of sense!"

"Oh." Xie Jiangqing was still listless and had no interest in replying.

No way, what's wrong with you all?! Hu Mengdie is like this, Hu Mengke is like this, and now even you are like this!
Li Zhuangsheng was exhausted.

Back home, Li Zhuangsheng gave Hu Mengke the food he had packed in advance. He was also quite unhappy. After watching Hu Mengke eat a few bites of food, he went back to his study to discuss novel writing techniques with Qin Luanyu.

……

"Li Zhuangsheng brought you food." Xie Jiangqing handed the food into the room, her voice low. Hu Mengdie didn't look at her, but just sat on the bed with her head down, her hair disheveled, hugging her knees and silently shedding tears.

"Why are you crying again?"

Xie Jiangqing sighed in frustration, while Hu Mengdie remained silent, gazing at the wind chimes on the windowsill before burying her face deeply in her knees.

"Aren't you going to watch it anymore?" Xie Jiangqing picked up the iPad Pro and waved it in front of Hu Mengdie.

Hu Mengdie shook her head silently, never raising her head.

"Let's eat then," Xie Jiangqing said.

Hu Mengdie did not make a move.

"Why are you crying again?" Xie Jiangqing suddenly raised her voice, a hint of annoyance and anger in it.

She grew increasingly agitated. For the past two or three days, Hu Mengdie had stayed indoors, obsessively looking at old photos, videos, and chat logs, seemingly recovering somewhat. But why was she crying again now?
So annoying, so annoying... What do you want from me?!
Frustrated, Xie Jiangqing opened her iPad Pro, only to be greeted by a video that was both strange and familiar.

She had never seen the video before, but she recognized it immediately as being from an earlier time.

Look! Look!

【My God, what are these?】

[Take a video! Take a video! Make sure to record it!]

[Hu Mengke, Hu Mengke, come quick! Look how many birthday presents your brother-in-law bought for your sister!]

Good heavens, are they moving the entire warehouse here?

There are words on it, what numbers?

[Quickly open it, quickly open it, let us see what's inside!]

[Rattle drum, bracelet, Lego, puzzle... Hahaha, Mengdie, is he treating you like a child?]

【Oh my, oh my, there's even a teddy bear pillow and a nightlight here! Haha, how come there's even a doll? You're such a grown-up, why am I giving you a doll? Do you like playing with dolls?】

These watercolor pens are pretty, but why are there roller skates on them...?

Xie Jiangqing watched the video silently. The person filming was probably Hu's mother. She wasn't on camera, but her startled, surprised, and amused voice filled the entire video.

In the video, Hu Mengdie initially smiled and joked with Hu Mengke, echoing her mother's words. However, after unpacking several packages, the smile on her face gradually disappeared, turning into a blank silence.

She silently unpacked the packages, one by one: a piggy bank, a hair clip, a starry sky lamp, an eye massager, a wind chime, a uterine warmer, hand cream, lipstick, a folding mirror...

Hu's mother and Hu Mengke became increasingly curious about the remaining gifts, but faced with their urging, Hu Mengdie's unpacking became slower and slower. Her eyes were sometimes confused and sometimes clear. She burst into tears as she unpacked the package.

Hearing the sounds from the video, Hu Mengdie in real life burst into tears again. The cries from the video and the real person intertwined, creating an eerie and sorrowful duet.

Xie Jiangqing stood there, at a loss.

She really hadn't seen the video. Although Hu Mengdie had posted it on her WeChat Moments and sent her a video privately, those were all things that happened afterward. Hu Mengdie arranged the gifts in chronological order and took beautiful pictures and videos.

Hu Mengdie's crying grew louder and louder, and for a moment, Xie Jiangqing couldn't tell whether it was the crying in the video or the crying in real life.

Hu Mengdie continued to cry until the video ended.

"Do these gifts have any special meaning?" Xie Jiangqing asked.

She seemed to be asking a question, or perhaps talking to herself.

She just remembered that since her birthday that day, Hu Mengdie's demeanor had undergone a complete transformation. Before, although she had become more cheerful, there was still a sense of forced smiles and falsehood. But after that day, she suddenly reverted to her high school self, like a bright moon, confident and cheerful.

Hu Mengdie covered her face and cried bitterly, which made Xie Jiangqing even more irritable.

She was feeling down. She had just been rendered speechless by Qin Luanyu's retort and then subjected to a barrage of veiled insults, leaving her feeling extremely ashamed.

She told herself that she wasn't that despicable, that she wasn't trying to steal her best friend's man, and that she wasn't secretly hoping for their divorce... She told herself to stay calm, what's the big deal?
If you are upright and honest, what are you afraid of? If you have a clear conscience, what are you afraid of?
But it's really annoying, she feels guilty.

She finally understood the source of Hu Mengke's despair: when faced with a woman like Qin Luanyu, no one except Hu Mengdie, Li Zhuangsheng's wife, could control her.

She even thought she could teach the other person a lesson because of her age, but she found that her understanding and knowledge of marriage were not as good as a young girl's.

I hadn't thought carefully about what marriage should be like, but the other person had clearly given it considerable thought and wasn't acting on impulse. That's why they brought the property certificate and everything with them.

This meal was a complete and utter defeat... it was utterly humiliating.

People will probably laugh at me for the next twenty years, mocking how such an overconfident fool could exist.

The most tragic thing is that I might have to attend Li Zhuangsheng's wedding a second time.

"What's there to cry about? Didn't I tell you this already? You just wouldn't listen!" Xie Jiangqing finally growled in frustration. "Why are you still crying now?"

Hu Mengdie continued to weep, her grief undiminished.

"What's the use of crying now? Let me tell you, crying now is completely useless! Even if you cry for three days and three nights, do you think he'll come back?" Xie Jiangqing forcibly lifted Hu Mengdie's head, looking at Hu Mengdie's face, her voice full of self-abandonment, "It's impossible, that Qin Luanyu is too strong, you can't beat her, nobody can beat her! Nobody will refuse her!"

"To be honest with you, yes, I do have feelings for Li Zhuangsheng. I told you this back in elementary school, but I've never tried to steal him from you. I would never do that, I definitely wouldn't! But I really like him, and I've never truly forgotten him all these years. But even so, I've given up now. Do you know how painful this is for me? Do you know how humiliated I am today?"

"What are you crying for? I'm the one who should be crying! I'm the one who should be crying, Hu Mengke is the one who should be crying! What right do you have to cry?" (End of Chapter)