You're my wife, don't doubt it!

As the car window slowly rolled up, he saw the girl smile and wave at him.

"The phone, the phone hasn't been given to me yet?" Before the car window was fully rolled up, Xiao Yao suddenly reached out and stopped it.

Shen Jie was slightly taken aback, then smiled tolerantly.

She pressed her thumb and pinky to her ear: "The phone, ask that child for it."

"Again?"

Chapter 12 Mermaid

At least this time, the phone number Shen Tianyun gave Xiao Yao was in line with the characteristics of this era.

In the morning, Xiao Yao was texting Shen Jie under the table.

Shen Jie didn't reply instantly, but her reply wasn't particularly slow either.

"Buzz—!" The phone vibrated with a startling sound inside the wooden desk.

Teacher Yao cast a sharp glance at her, and the students in the front row all turned their heads, but Yu Luying remained motionless.

Xiao Yao hurriedly turned off the vibration.

Damn it, why did the vibration function turn on by itself?

At noon, when Xiao Xiong came to the classroom to call Xiao Yao for lunch, he saw him putting his phone in his desk drawer and pressing buttons.

"Are you in a relationship?" Little Bear plopped down on Xiao Yao's desk. "You're smiling like... like my second aunt."

"Who laughed—you scared me to death!" Xiao Yao straightened his face, cleared his throat, and closed his flip phone: "Let's go."

When Xiao Xiong arrived at the cafeteria, Hua Ang and Shen Bin had already bought their food.

They were Xiao Xiong's friends and also from Class 4, so they both became Xiao Yao's friends.

"I heard you've got some young girls hooking up with?" Hua Ang asked with interest.

"Holy crap, really? The iron tree has bloomed?" Shen Bin's pimple twitched.

"Who told you that?" Xiao Yao glared at Xiao Xiong: "Xiong Ji, was it you? I just sent a message to my grandma at noon."

"Stop pretending. Aren't you being honest with us?" Little Bear said discontentedly. "I saw it all last night. You were walking with a very, very pretty girl and even saw her off in a taxi."

"Are you following me?"

“I’m eating too much space, so I’ll follow you for a bit. (Note: “一刚” is a Shanghai dialect word.)” Little Bear rolled his eyes: “I bumped into you while I was out buying soy sauce.”

"Oh, you didn't even call me."

"You think I'm like you, so clueless?" Little Bear launched into a tirade: "I'm telling you, you can't handle a beauty like you, can you? Even Yu Luying didn't fancy you, did she?"

"Why wouldn't I be able to handle it?" Xiao Yao retorted, "I'm telling you, it's a piece of cake!"

"Alright, stop bragging," Shen Bin commented. "I wonder who it was last week who was crying to the three of us about how he could never get a girl..."

"Cry your mother..."

"Don't talk nonsense, don't talk nonsense," Hua Ang interrupted Shen Bin: "So, you're saying you're from our school?"

"No, it's from No. 7 Girls' High School."

The three friends exclaimed in surprise, and then began a lively discussion.

"Seventh Girls' High School, isn't that a prestigious private school?"

"What kind of elite school is this? Bullshit."

"I heard that No. 7 Girls' High School in the city has a boys' class, is that true? That sounds awesome!"

"Yes, yes, they say they recruit a boys' class every three years."

“That’s not true,” Xiao Yao chewed his food carefully. “I asked her this morning, and she said that from 69 to… 81 or 82, there were boys. At that time, the school’s name was changed to Shanghai No. 8 Middle School, and then after 1 it became an all-girls school again…”

"I heard there are some special courses for girls, is that true?"

“Yes,” Xiao Yao said, like a seasoned expert: “Like Western dining etiquette classes, tea ceremony classes… what else was there? Let me check again.”

As Xiao Yao spoke, he took out his phone.

"You still dare to say it's not a prestigious school!"

"I've heard that No. 7 Girls' High School is full of beauties, and there's a legend about the five most beautiful girls: Lin from the South, Shen from the North, Yan from the East, Zhao from the West, and Ouyang from the Center..."

Why isn't the Seventh Girls' High School in the city known as the "Seven Beauties"?

“Hey Xiao Yao,” Xiao Xiong said, not participating in Hua Ang and Shen Bin’s discussion, “you’ve been talking to her about this all morning?”

"Then what should we talk about?"

"What about her?" Shen Bin asked mysteriously, nudging Xiao Yao's arm.

"Who is it? What should we do?" He followed Shen Bin's gaze and saw Yu Luying walking past him expressionlessly with an iron plate in her hand.

"A true man knows when to advance and when to retreat," Xiao Yao said casually.

The three friends cheered in unison.

After school, Xiao Yao followed Yu Luying to the hamburger shop next to the convenience store.

Spicy chicken burger, five yuan? ...That's a bit pricey.

While Xiao Yao was still rummaging through his pockets, Yu Luying had already paid ten yuan and handed him a hamburger wrapped in a paper bag: "Is one enough?"

"Oh dear, how could I accept this?" Xiao Yao reached out and took the hot hamburger. "This is not appropriate, not appropriate at all."

"Let's go quickly." Yu Luying looked around, as if afraid of being seen by others.

"Then, it's my treat next time!"

Yu Luying knocked three times on the side door of the church, and an elderly doorman opened it. As soon as she stepped inside, that familiar scent wafted towards her.

The smell was hard to describe, somewhat similar to the air in the school library—perhaps it was the smell of aged wood, ink, and candles mixed together.

"Weren't we supposed to go to the library?" Xiao Yao asked in a low voice.

"I thought about it later, and I guess it's not convenient to talk too loudly in the library, right? People will see me at school, and I definitely can't go to my house, and if I go to your house, my grandma will stop me..."

"Your...uncle isn't here, is he?" Xiao Yao asked nervously.

“I went to visit a patient; I won’t be here this week.” As she passed the entrance to the “sanctuary” (note: the area in a church where rites are held), Yu Luying made the sign of the cross and bowed.

Xiao Yao's gaze fell upon the deep sanctuary.

The church was dark, with no lights on. At the end of the central aisle, only a red lamp shone above and to the right of the altar, its faint light shining through the stained glass and falling on the cross.

The haggard face with a crown of thorns hanging on the cross was thus hidden in the dark and unclear world.

As Xiao Yao walked forward, passing near the confessional, he heard a male voice speaking inside.

"My morals don't allow me to have such thoughts, my identity doesn't allow me to come here seeking help, what should I do..."

"Isn't your uncle away?" Xiao Yao asked, looking nervous.

“He shouldn’t be here,” Yu Luying said, also puzzled. “Could he be here to vent? Or is another priest here? Let’s go, don’t eavesdrop!”

“What if it’s your uncle? Let’s get a different map,” Xiao Yao shook his head vigorously, trying to dispel the terrifying memory: “You haven’t seen him grab me by the collar…”

"Serves you right, who told you to pester me back then?" Yu Luying said, "And you even dared to chase me into the hall?"

"Ah, so your reason for rejecting me is simply because I'm a non-Christian? Does that mean I can't even pursue the path of the Lord?"

"Glib talk won't work; you know best what you're up to."

They bickered all the way up the creaking stairs, and Yu Luying led Xiao Yao to the second floor and into a small room that looked like a reception room.

"I'm going to the restroom." Yu Luying took off her backpack strap, wrapped it around her neck, and placed it on the small sofa.

"it is good."

Xiao Yao sat down at the table and casually flipped through a few theological books beside him.

Suddenly, a piece of paper tucked inside the book caught his attention—it was a piece of paper torn from an exercise book, and the neat handwriting on it looked familiar; it was most likely Yu Luying's.

Xiao Yao took out the note Yu Luying had given him yesterday from the side pocket of his backpack: "Go back first, don't wait for me, I'm having orchestra rehearsal."

He squinted and compared the handwriting on the two pieces of paper: Yes, this is what Yu Luying wrote.

"Foam"

Listen to my voice

The shouting

Lord, Lord, here I am.

Blood is replaced by sound

Shouting at the ends of the earth

I am the Little Mermaid

The Little Mermaid Who Can Never Go Back

Ariel turned into bubbles