After Transmigrating, I Became The Heroine’s First Love! - Chapter 15

“Listen to this—that girl from the next class is juggling eight boyfriends! I want to know how she manages it. She’s even more hardcore than you, Xiang Wan!” Qiao Yanxin leaned closer to Pei Xiangwan.

Pei Xiangwan completely ignored her, continuing to revise her blueprints. Undeterred, Qiao Yanxin persisted, “Xiang Wan! Are you even listening to me?”

“I heard you. So what?” Pei Xiangwan turned to Qiao Yanxin, her dark eyes behind black-framed glasses were icy and intimidating.

“You should gossip less and study more. Go play somewhere else and stop bothering me.” She pushed up her glasses and lowered her head, her sharp nose and focused expression giving her a strikingly heroic air. Several female classmates glanced at her intermittently, drawn by her presence.

“Classmate Pei, as your classmate, I must remind you that one should have morals,” Ning Xuemo said, her voice dripping with condescension.

Pei Xiangwan, annoyed by Ning Xuemo’s buzzing like a fly, tossed her pen onto the desk, leaned back slightly, and tilted her head to look at Ning Xuemo as if she were trash. She sneered, “What’s your point, Classmate Ning? Where have I lacked morals?”

Qiao Yanxin, who hadn’t left, couldn’t stand anyone talking about her friend like that.

“Ning Xuemo went to the dance academy entrance to show off. Who are you trying to impress? Trying to win people over with that?”

Qiao Yanxin frowned as if she’d seen something disgusting, scanning Ning Xuemo up and down.

“Loyal? Tsk, tsk, tsk. Save your energy. Xiang Wan doesn’t need your face to plow fields.”

Ning Xuemo’s face turned livid with anger. No one knew she’d had plastic surgery; she’d flown to Japan for it, and it looked completely natural.

“Classmate Qiao, this has nothing to do with you. You’re being rude and disrespectful.”

The classroom fell into dead silence. No one dared to get involved in the rich girls’ feud. They could only pray inwardly for the teacher to hurry up—for the first time, they actually wanted class to start early.

Qiao Yanxin nonchalantly shook her leg, pressing her tongue against the roof of her mouth.

“What? You want to lecture me about respect? Someone like you deserves respect? Besides, I haven’t even hit you. I’d be afraid of getting my hands dirty.” She patted Pei Xiangwan’s shoulder a few times, saying arrogantly, “Did you know she can take on five people at once?!”

Ning Xuemo’s mouth twitched with anger. How could she not know that Pei Xiangwan had sabotaged her plans that day? That’s why she had come to confront Pei Xiangwan, to warn her that Jiang Shiyuan belonged to her.

Fear gnawed at her, but she forced a smile, determined to hide her terror.

“I hope you’ll stay away from Shiyuan. You shouldn’t hurt her. She’s too precious. Just… behave yourself, Classmate Pei.”

“Wait,” Pei Xiangwan called out, stopping Ning Xuemo.

“What is it, Classmate Pei?” Ning Xuemo asked, her smile dripping with insincerity.

“Jiang Jiang and I have been friends since childhood. As for you, everyone knows Jiang Jiang doesn’t even want to acknowledge you. What right do you have to warn me?”

She didn’t give Ning Xuemo a chance to reply. “Yes, I’m trash. But this trash will make amends for all the stupid things I’ve done. If I fail, everyone can post videos online, curse me to death, drown me in spit.”

Pei Xiangwan tilted her head toward the classmates filming with their phones, flashed a peace sign at the camera, and smiled—a smile brighter than the sun. “Got enough footage?”

The student holding the phone trembled, nearly dropping it. Caught red-handed, her face flushed crimson.

“E-enough… I’m sorry,” she stammered, quickly putting away her phone and turning back to the blackboard.

Ning Xuemo didn’t know what to say. The situation had spiraled out of control. Her expression was ghastly, not pale, but a livid purple, as if someone had punched her repeatedly in the face. Her teeth ground together in her mouth.

“Hmph, Classmate Pei, don’t regret this. Shiyuan will never like you,” Ning Xuemo spat before returning to her seat, determined to hide her humiliation.

A black-and-white butterfly flitted past the window. The once deathly silent classroom erupted into its usual cacophony.

Pei Xiangwan magnetically attached her stylus to her tablet and said to Qiao Yanxin, who was slumped over her desk, “I’m going to the restroom.”

Qiao Yanxin, half-asleep, cracked open an eye. “Want me to come with you?” she mumbled, though she had no intention of moving. Ever since Pei Xiangwan had started dragging her into serious studying, breaks between classes had become her lifeline.

“No need.”

Hearing this, Qiao Yanxin’s eyelids closed completely.

Pei Xiangwan stood up and walked out. Determined to stay alert, she let the water stream into her palm, interlacing her fingers and rubbing them against her knuckles. The pure, transparent column of water clung to her affectionately, constantly brushing against her hands—hands undeniably beautiful, undeniably the Creator’s most satisfying masterpiece.

In the bathroom, usually filled only with the sound of running water, another sound emerged: sobbing. The sound carried boundless sorrow and despair, eerily reminiscent of a vengeful female ghost from a Hong Kong film, unwilling to leave the world and consumed by thoughts of revenge. But this ghost harbored no desire for retribution, only desperate pleas.

“Is… anyone there? Help me… please help me.”

“Anyone will do.” She clung to the hope that someone would come, even as that hope dwindled to a faint glimmer. Her soaked school uniform jacket served as a stark reminder: Snap out of it. No one’s coming. You’ll be stuck here for a long time.

Tears streamed down her face, splattering against her already drenched clothes. Strands of black hair clung to her cheeks, leaving dark streaks. She bit her lip until it bled, desperately trying to suppress her sobs. She wanted to call out again, clinging to the faint possibility of a miracle.

It was always like this.

Pei Xiangwan removed the object propping the door open and pushed it inward.

There really is someone here… The two girls thought the same words, but their meanings differed.

The wet school uniform jacket had several small, round holes that looked like cigarette burns. Beneath it, the white shirt bore two glaring footprints. Pei Xiangwan frowned deeply, took off her jacket, and offered it forward.

“Classmate, wear mine. Your clothes are soaked and you’ll catch a cold if you keep them on.”

The girl didn’t move, her body trembling uncontrollably. Pei Xiangwan knew she was crying. The candy in her pocket was for Little Fox, so she withdrew her hand.

“Take it, Classmate. I’m Pei Xiangwan, you probably know me.” After all, she was the infamously notorious Pei Xiangwan—no one could possibly not recognize her.

The girl shook her head, her voice soft as a light rain, barely audible. “I’ll get your clothes dirty… I didn’t know… how could I have known?”

The scent emanating from this person who was willing to save her was on a completely different level from those other people. What right did she have to even know?

“It’s okay. Getting it dirty is better than catching a cold. Your health comes first. Take it quickly, class is about to start.”

Pei Xiangwan shoved the clothes into the girl’s arms. Afraid of dropping them, the girl immediately clutched the garment tightly. Pei Xiangwan recognized the girl’s blue-green fingernails—she was the one she had bumped into earlier.

“I’m sick… it’s contagious,” a weak voice drifted into Pei Xiangwan’s ears.

“Have you been to the hospital for a checkup?” Pei Xiangwan asked. “Was it diagnosed?”

Ma Wanqing looked up, shaking her head slightly. “No… no. The hospital said I’m not sick… it’s just… they said I have a contagious disease…”

Pei Xiangwan chuckled softly. “Then that settles it. They’re not doctors. Why would you believe them?” Her gaze fell on the black footprints on the shirt. “They’ve been near you all this time and haven’t gotten sick. Don’t listen to them. You need to stand up for yourself and fight back.”

Pei Xiangwan glanced at her wrist. “Class is starting soon. You should change quickly. I’m Pei Xiangwan, a third-year jewelry design major. It was nice meeting you. See you next time.”

The girl had already walked away, leaving the surroundings as quiet as if no one had ever been there, as if no one had come to rescue her. The school uniform jacket in her hand, still carrying the fresh scent of gardenias, told her it was all real.

“See you next time…” The voice drifted into the unknown, carried by the lingering fragrance.

Qiao Yanxin rubbed her sleepy eyes and squinted at Pei Xiangwan, who had just returned right on time. “You were gone for so long! Where’s your jacket?”

“I lent it to a friend,” Pei Xiangwan replied. Qiao Yanxin nodded without further comment, finding nothing unusual about it.

The images on the smart blackboard changed every few seconds as the teacher paused between explanations. Though the gemstones in the pictures were inanimate objects, they appeared vividly lifelike, as if imbued with life. The purplish-blue hues and shapes resembled both icicles fallen from glaciers and rocks tumbled down mountain slopes.

“Tanzanite…”