After Becoming the Abused Heroine in a Campus Story - Chapter 11: Spicy Noodles

Chapter 11: Spicy Noodles

Jiang Xianzhi sat in her seat. She felt out of place in the cafeteria. However, after taking exams all morning, her stomach growled uncontrollably.

Jiang Xianzhi picked up her chopsticks. She carefully poked at the spicy noodles in her bowl. The broth of the spicy noodles had a hint of chili. It was topped with a layer of sesame paste. The topmost layer was sprinkled with sesame seeds and crushed peanuts. The dish looked quite appealing.

However, Jiang Xianzhi had never eaten this kind of food before. She hesitated and stirred it with her chopsticks. Her stomach growled a few more times.

Jiang Xianzhi sighed. She gritted her teeth and picked up a piece of lettuce to her lips. She hesitantly took a bite. She discovered that the strange taste she feared didn’t flood her mouth. Instead, the fresh sweetness of the lettuce, mixed with the aroma of sesame paste and crushed peanuts, rushed into her mouth.

Jiang Xianzhi’s eyes lit up. She took a big bite. She was so touched she almost cried. She never thought the junk food her family talked about could taste so good!

Jiang Xianzhi tried a meatball. She found it delicious too. She kept eating one bite after another, unable to stop.

Meanwhile, Zhou Yining continued queuing to buy spicy noodles. The school’s food options were limited. The counters selling noodles and spicy noodles were crowded. She had to keep waiting in line. The school’s rice dishes were just too bad.

Ten minutes later, Zhou Yining finally reached the front. She ordered a portion of spicy noodles and bought two bottles of soda.

When she returned, Jiang Xianzhi had already eaten half her food. Zhou Yining handed over a soda, “Drink this to cut the greasiness.”

“Thank you,” Jiang Xianzhi says. She hesitates about drinking it. At home, she always drank fresh juice. She had never tried cheap drinks like cola.

Jiang Xianzhi glances at Zhou Yining. She sees Zhou Yining open a can of cola. Zhou Yining takes a comfortable sip and starts eating.

Jiang Xianzhi’s gaze falls back to her own can of cola. Judging by Zhou Yining’s expression, the cola seems to taste pretty good.

She cautiously opens the cola and takes a small sip. She finds no strange taste as she imagined. On the contrary, it’s actually quite tasty. It’s cold and refreshing, easing the slight spiciness of the noodles.

Jiang Xianzhi’s eyes curve with a smile. She continues eating heartily.

Shi Yuanyuan gives Si Yaqing a look. They both purse their lips secretly. They thought the rich girl would dislike the cafeteria’s smoky atmosphere and go back to class to eat. Surprisingly, the usually bad-tempered rich girl eats with relish.

Shi Yuanyuan and Si Yaqing suddenly feel a sense of crisis. Why does it feel like Zhou Yining is more suited to be the rich girl’s lackey than they are? This won’t do!

Zhou Yining doesn’t know about their overthinking. She’s eating happily right now. Her body is still that of a high school student. The morning’s exams consumed all her breakfast. Eating spicy noodles now feels especially delicious.

When she finishes the last bite, Zhou Yining wipes her mouth with satisfaction. She drinks all the cola beside her.

Seeing her finish, Jiang Xianzhi says, “Are we going back? Want to go together?”

“Sure,” Zhou Yining smiles at her. She stands up to take her bowl out.

Jiang Xianzhi doesn’t know the cafeteria’s rules. Used bowls need to be placed on the cart for staff to clean.

After picking up her own bowl, Zhou Yining casually takes Jiang Xianzhi’s too. Seeing Jiang Xianzhi look at her, Zhou Yining explains, “Used bowls go to the cart over there. Come on, I’ll carry yours.”

Zhou Yining’s tone is casual. It’s neither flattering nor like she’s trying to please her. It feels like helping a friend out.

Jiang Xianzhi instinctively says, “Thank you.”

“No need, it’s just convenient,” Zhou Yining smiles at her. She places both bowls on the cart.

Jiang Xianzhi follows behind her. She feels something strange. Somehow, being with Zhou Yining feels more comfortable than being with Shi Yuanyuan and Si Yaqing. Although Shi Yuanyuan and Si Yaqing try to be her friends, she can sometimes sense their flattery. But with Zhou Yining, she doesn’t feel that at all.

Her attitude seems just like that toward a friend. Thinking this, Jiang Xianzhi’s lips curve slightly. Growing up, she’s never had real friends. Even when she wanted to make friends, the people she met often had ulterior motives.

“Let’s go. It’s only one o’clock. We can rest a bit when we get back,” Zhou Yining smiles at her and walks toward the cafeteria exit.

“Okay, let’s go,” Jiang Xianzhi follows her. She suddenly feels Shi Yuanyuan and Si Yaqing are a bit unnecessary. She seems to prefer being alone with Zhou Yining. Having two others around feels awkward.

Zhou Yining doesn’t notice anything. She chats and laughs with Jiang Xianzhi as they head to the school building.

Tian Xue happens to leave the building just then. She hurriedly hides at the corner, avoiding being seen by Zhou Yining and the others.

Tian Xue’s gaze toward Zhou Yining is heavy. Her thick glasses hide most of her expression. After a moment, Tian Xue walks toward the cafeteria alone.

After parting with Jiang Xianzhi, Zhou Yining returns to class. Xu Yueming sees her come back. He purses his lips and turns to chat with someone behind him.

Zhou Yining doesn’t want to deal with him either. She gets up to fetch water, then naps at her desk. The history teacher enters with exam papers. The afternoon exam is a comprehensive test covering three subjects in one thick paper.

The students are already tired. Seeing such a thick stack of papers, they sigh even more.

Zhou Yining rubs her temples to stay alert. When the papers are handed out, she starts answering quickly.

In her past life, her comprehensive test scores were excellent. For questions like short answers, she could hit every scoring point.

This time is no different. Zhou Yining answers swiftly and finishes the entire paper nearly forty minutes early.

After filling in the answer sheet, Zhou Yining naps again.

She plans to go to an internet café tonight to write and submit something. But she can’t return home too late, as it might raise suspicion.

When the bell rings, students in the back collect the answer sheets. Zhou Yining hands hers in and stretches lazily.

Even after the monthly exam, early dismissal isn’t allowed. The homeroom teacher instructs them to continue self-study.

In the second-year teachers’ office, Chen Yitong is grading papers. The evening self-study is supervised by the geography teacher. While grading, she noticed Zhou Yining’s paper had a high accuracy rate. Her handwriting is much neater than before. Now grading the essay, Chen Yitong pulls out Zhou Yining’s paper first.

At a glance, Chen Yitong finds Zhou Yining’s handwriting pleasing. The content fits the theme well, citing many famous quotes as evidence. It’s a standard model essay with almost no points to deduct.

But a perfect score in Chinese seems a bit outrageous. So Chen Yitong deducts one point from the essay. She starts calculating Zhou Yining’s score. She’s shocked to find everything else is correct, including reading comprehension. Every question hits the mark with skillful answers.

Chen Yitong is stunned. Zhou Yining usually ranks in the middle or lower in class. This sudden improvement is quite surprising.

The math teacher nearby sees her staring at the paper for a while. He leans over and asks, “What’s up? Who scored 149 in Chinese?”

Chen Yitong looks at Teacher Zhang, “It’s Zhou Yining from our class. This kid seems different these past few days. Like she suddenly got it. She feels more vibrant than before.”

“Zhou Yining? I was just about to talk about her. She scored a perfect 150 in math this time. Yesterday, I had her explain a tough problem on the board. She explained it clearly. I think this kid might be this year’s dark horse,” Teacher Zhang says happily. Having a top math student makes her proud.

As they discuss excitedly, Teacher Cao walks up to Chen Yitong with papers in hand, “Teacher Chen, does your class’s Zhou Yining have a problem with me? If she does, tell her to come to me directly. What’s with handing in a blank English paper? I’ve never seen a student like her.”