I Fell In Love With My Rival (GL) - Chapter 18.1

Silence enveloped the small back room of the laundry shop.

After speaking, Su Chunyin anxiously looked at Fu Erqiu, carrying a sliver of anticipation she didn’t even realize was there.

The aloof girl came to a halt, seemingly lost in thought. Su Chunyin even started to doubt whether she had heard her at all.

Just as she was about to overthink, Fu Erqiu’s lips moved slightly. Su Chunyin’s eyes lit up and she leaned in nervously to hear what she might say next—when suddenly, the door to the back room creaked open.

Fu Ying’s gentle voice floated in with a cheerful tone: “What are you two doing in here? It’s been so long.”

She seemed to have overheard a bit of their conversation. Smiling warmly, she walked over and softly ruffled Su Chunyin’s hair. “Niaoniao likes Erqiu, huh? Our Erqiu can be a bit stiff, but I’m sure she likes you too.”

Fu Erqiu didn’t respond. Instead, she took advantage of the moment when Su Chunyin was caught off guard by Fu Ying’s entrance and quietly slipped out.

Su Chunyin looked after her, slightly flustered. She was sure Fu Erqiu had been about to say something—something important—but now that moment had been interrupted.

“Tch, what a temper,” Fu Ying grumbled as she watched Fu Erqiu walks away. Then, patting Su Chunyin’s hand, she added, “Thank you for staying with Erqiu these days. You’re welcome here anytime, sweetie.”

Su Chunyin gave a distracted nod, her eyes still fixed on the direction Fu Erqiu had left. She was sure the “like” that Fu Ying mentioned wasn’t the same “like” she had meant earlier. She had believed Fu Erqiu

would understand—but now, thanks to the interruption, she wasn’t so sure anymore.

Fu Ying chatted with her a little longer. As an elder, Su Chunyin couldn’t just brush her off. Though she could be a bit domineering with her peers, she was always respectful toward adults. She waited politely before finally excusing herself. “Auntie, I’m going to check outside.”

Fu Ying nodded, and Su Chunyin finally breathed a sigh of relief and hurried out.

Fu Erqiu was still cleaning the shop front. The narrow space was cluttered with tools and clothes, leaving no sign of tidiness. Su Chunyin didn’t understand what there was to clean. She wanted to say something but, remembering their earlier tension, held back. After all, the cleaning didn’t matter—what mattered was whether Fu Erqiu had heard what she said earlier. And if she had, what had she wanted to say in return?

But as Su Chunyin approached her, timidity overtook her once more. She feared the answer she might hear—whether it matched her hopes or not. The question circled her lips several times before finally transforming into: “Let me help you.”

When summer break officially began, Su Chunyin could no longer visit Fu Erqiu as often as she had at school. She spent her days at home, playing one boring game after another.

Yang Yuxia called to ask how her Hawaii trip was going, and if she’d met any handsome guys on the beach.

That’s when Su Chunyin remembered—if this were like previous years, Su Zhi would have taken her to Hawaii for vacation.

Her interest in the game instantly disappeared. She had planned to ask Fu Erqiu to tutor her over the summer. Even though Fu Erqiu hadn’t said yes, she had already invited her. What if Fu Erqiu did agree—and she was off in Hawaii? That’d be ridiculous.

So, she began thinking of how to subtly tell Su Zhi she didn’t want to go to Hawaii, and maybe suggest having Fu Erqiu come over to tutor her instead. While she was still figuring out how to bring it up, Yang Yuxia kept pestering her in the group chat about where to find handsome guys.

By the fifth time Yang Yuxia messaged the group asking where she could find eye candy, Su Chunyin finally replied: [No handsome guys.]

Yang Yuxia wailed in the group: [Don’t tell me Xu Chang was right—that Hawaii’s just full of fat, pot-bellied old white men?!]

Su Chunyin responded: [No, I didn’t go to Hawaii.]

Now it wasn’t just Yang Yuxia—even Song Rao and Xu Chang jumped in to ask what was going on.

Su Chunyin hesitated a bit before finally telling the truth: [No Hawaii this year. My mom’s taking me up the mountain to do some quiet retreat. Some spiritual cleansing or whatever.]

Yang Yuxia blurted: [Spiritual cleansing? Wait, are you going to a temple or something?]

It wasn’t exactly a temple—but close enough.

Su Chunyin’s mother, Xu Yuhui, was a devoted Daoist. In recent years, she would spend a portion of each summer living at Qingchin Temple up in the mountains. Since Su Zhi was away on a business trip this year, she decided to bring Su Chunyin along.

It was drizzling the day they left for Qingchan Temple. Su Chunyin took her time packing in her room and couldn’t seem to get it done. Xu Yuhui didn’t rush her—she simply stood quietly at the door and waited.

With her mother watching silently, Su Chunyin eventually gave in. She tossed in a couple of outfits and two pairs of shoes, zipped her suitcase shut, and was done.

The family driver picked them up and began the drive up the mountain.

Qingchan Temple was in a remote location, accessible only by a steep winding mountain road.

To ensure a comfortable ride, the driver went slowly. Su Chunyin curled up in the back seat and messaged her friends: [Qingchan Temple is ridiculously far. Just the drive alone is going to make my butt go numb.]

There wasn’t much her friends could do except offer moral support. Yang Yuxia, ever persistent, still wanted to know if there were any hot young Taoist priests at the temple. Su Chunyin snapped back with a series of messages:

[No!]

[All the “legal” priests at Qingchan Temple are postgraduates or PhDs!]

[They’re all middle-aged or elderly with huge beards!]

From the rearview mirror, Xu Yuhui noticed her daughter playing on her phone. “Put that away,” she reminded. “You’ll get carsick.”

Su Chunyin pouted but put the phone down.

The scenery outside wasn’t all that interesting. Bored of looking out the window, she lay back to nap. When she opened her eyes again, the car had arrived at the destination, parked at the foot of a moss-covered stone path.

She looked up and saw a modest Daoist temple nestled above.

The temple was small and unadorned. Its incense offerings were clearly sparse, yet in Jiangcheng—where neither Daoism nor Buddhism was particularly popular—Qingchan Temple was already considered one of the most well-known in the region.

The drizzle hadn’t stopped. Su Chunyin opened her umbrella and stepped out. The light rain painted the mountain and temple in a hazy green hue.

The stone path could only be climbed on foot. While the driver went to find a place to park, Su Chunyin and Xu Yuhui began the ascent.

Her mother walked ahead, her pace brisk. Soon, her figure disappeared into the misty rain.

Looking in her direction, Su Chunyin hesitantly called out, “Mom?”

After a long silence with no response, Su Chunyin stood still on the stone path, shivering slightly in the wind. She began to second-guess herself: Maybe I should just head back with the driver. After all, the sun and beaches of Hawaii seem far more suited to summer.

Just as she wavered, the sound of returning footsteps echoed down the path. Xu Yuhui’s elegant face gradually appeared before her. She reached out her hand and asked, “Why didn’t you catch up sooner?”

Feeling reassured, Su Chunyin placed her hand in Xu Yuhui’s, just like she used to as a child when they went out together. The two walked hand in hand, finishing the rest of the way.

The head priest of the temple, who was an old acquaintance of Xu Yuhui, had been waiting at the gate. When he saw them approaching, he instructed a young Taoist to lead them to a guest room to rest.

The washing facilities at the temple were quite basic. The young Taoist brought them hot water, and Su Chunyin used it to wipe herself down and change out of her rain-soaked clothes before following Xu Yuhui to the dining hall for a meal.

After going all morning without food, even the simple vegetarian meal tasted delicious to Su Chunyin. Once the meal was done, Xu Yuhui went off to talk with the head priest, leaving Su Chunyin bored in the room, chatting idly with Song Rao and the others online.

They had originally planned to invite her to play games, but the signal on the mountain was terrible. After several disconnects and being reported for “throwing the game,” Su Chunyin could only watch helplessly as everyone else enjoyed themselves in the group chat.

Free time is dangerous, she realized. With nothing to do, her mind started to wander—and inevitably drifted to Fu Erqiu. That’s when she realized, despite chasing her for so many days, she didn’t even have Fu

Erqiu’s contact information.

She called Song Rao and asked if she had Fu Erqiu’s WeChat. Unfortunately, she called at a crucial point in Song Rao’s game, causing her to make a mistake. A curse flew from her mouth before she finally answered in a sour tone, “What do you want?”

Su Chunyin explained the reason for her call, which made Song Rao exclaim in disbelief: “You’ve been chasing her for so long and don’t even have her contact info?”

Unbothered by the teasing, Su Chunyin replied shamelessly, “I forgot, okay? You know a lot of people—help me out, will you?”

Song Rao sighed. “Ugh, it won’t be easy. If it were, I would’ve given it to you long ago without you even asking.” She paused. “But since you’re asking now, leave it to me.”

Su Chunyin thanked her and hung up, then lay back on the bed, lost in thought.

Everything in the temple was grown or made locally—from the vegetables and rice they ate to the wooden beds and pillows they slept on. The room she was staying in had only one large wooden bed, topped with straw and a bamboo mat. For someone as pampered as Su Chunyin, it was unbearable. After lying down for a bit, she felt a burning pain on her back. When she lifted her shirt, she saw that the rough, unpolished

edge of the bamboo mat had left red marks on her skin.

Bored out of her mind, Su Chunyin got up and went to find Xu Yuhui.

Xu Yuhui was in the main hall giving a lecture with the head priest. Su Chunyin listened for a while, then, feeling utterly uninterested, dragged a meditation cushion to the back and started fiddling with her phone.

A notification pinged from the class group chat—final exam results were out.

The previously silent group chat suddenly came alive, with everyone sharing their results. Some were elated, others dismayed. Su Chunyin didn’t care much; she took a quick glance and, seeing her rank had improved, exited the chat.

Just as she left the class group, Yang Yuxia bombarded the “Niaoniao Support Squad” group:

【Aaaahhhhhh Niaoniao, Su Niaoniao, what the hell!!!】

【[image][image][image]】

【Explain! How did you score so high in math and physics?! Your total score this time is even higher than mine—spill it, how did you do it?!】

Yang Yuxia had sent screenshots of Su Chunyin’s subject scores. Looking closely, Su Chunyin realized that her math and physics scores were each about ten points higher than usual. Since this exam’s science section was particularly difficult, those extra thirty points had caused her rank to jump dramatically—she had even overtaken Yang Yuxia, who usually outperformed her.

Smirking, Su Chunyin typed quickly:

【Of course! Haven’t you heard how smart your sister Su is? Just a bit of last-minute studying and I made a huge leap.】

【Yang Yuxia, it’s not that I couldn’t beat you before—I was just letting you win. Got it?】

Yang Yuxia instantly flew into a rage and sent a voice message laced with fury:

【Get lost!!!】