I Fell In Love With My Rival (GL) - Chapter 21.1

Fu Erqiu’s heart stirred slightly as she looked in Su Chunyin’s direction.

The girl making a wish deliberately avoided meeting her eyes. Not until someone behind her urged her to move did Su Chunyin finally turn around and say to Fu Erqiu, “Let’s go.”

The crowd behind them was bustling. It took a lot of effort for Su Chunyin and Fu Erqiu to squeeze their way out. They had lunch together in the monks’ dining hall, and afterward, Fu Erqiu said she was heading home.

Su Chunyin didn’t stop her. She just blinked her eyes sweetly at Xu Yuhui and said, “Mom, can I walk her down the mountain?”

Xu Yuhui knew she was getting bored up here and just wanted a chance to stretch her legs, so she didn’t object.

Fu Erqiu’s bicycle was still parked in the same place—right where the temple path met the stone road. Though it had rained all night, the clever spot she’d chosen kept it upright. She took out a cloth, carefully wiped it clean, and began wheeling it downhill.

As they passed a patch of foxtail grass, Su Chunyin picked a stalk and started teasing Fu Erqiu with it, bouncing it in her hand. Fu Erqiu casually pulled a handful of foxtail grass, and with just a few deft moves, wove it into a small, delicate flower crown.

Su Chunyin immediately lunged for it. “Give it to me! Give it to me!”

Fu Erqiu let go without resistance, and Su Chunyin took the crown with ease. The foxtail grass on Qingchan Mountain was unlike any other—silver-hued and feathery, with a soft shimmer like dewdrops. It was truly beautiful. Su Chunyin’s first instinct was to place the crown on her head, but the grass was still damp with rain.

She had barely set it in place before snatching it off again, spitting and patting the water from her hair.

Fu Erqiu’s lips curled into a small smile as she continued pushing her bicycle without hurrying. It was as if she had known this would happen.

Realizing what had just played out, Su Chunyin pounced at her, flailing dramatically. “How dare you! You set me up!”

Fu Erqiu didn’t resist. Her collar was wrinkled from Su Chunyin’s tugging. Then Su Chunyin had a sudden idea—she placed the still-wet flower crown onto Fu Erqiu’s head, lopsided and crooked. Fu Erqiu reached up to take it off, but Su Chunyin glanced around and stopped her.

“Don’t move!” she commanded, quickly pulling out her phone and snapping a picture, capturing the moment forever.

Satisfied, she opened the photo album to view it. In the photo, the tall girl stood with one hand on her bicycle, the other gently holding the crown, her gaze slightly dazed as she turned toward the camera. Behind her, the lush mountain greenery framed her in a softness that made even her calm features seem tender.

Delighted, Su Chunyin snapped a dozen more pictures, each one well-composed, though none quite perfect.

Something was still missing.

She glanced up at Fu Erqiu. The taller girl stood patiently across from her, waiting for her to finish. Su Chunyin smacked her forehead—she knew what was missing now.

She trotted up to Fu Erqiu, wrapped an arm around hers without a hint of shyness, switched to selfie mode, and held the phone high. “Come on, let’s take one together!”

Click.

And just like that, Su Chunyin’s photo album now had their first photo together.

The path downhill was still long. After the rain, the air was clean and fresh, and the mountain scenery even more beautiful than the day before. Walking behind Fu Erqiu, Su Chunyin chatted idly.

“Look over there—mushrooms!”

Fu Erqiu glanced over and replied, “Yeah, after the rain, it’s common to see mushrooms in the mountains. But those are cow dung mushrooms—not edible.”

Curious, Su Chunyin ran over with a stick to poke at them. “Why are they called that? Do they really grow out of cow dung?”

“Mm,” Fu Erqiu nodded. “There’s probably a pile of dung under that cluster right now. You might even be stepping on some.”

Su Chunyin froze in place, dropped the stick, and screamed, “I’m not clean anymore! Aaaaah—” Then she turned to see Fu Erqiu smirking faintly.

“You tricked me!” she shouted, realizing what had just happened. “There’s no way those came from cow poop—you liar! Eat dung yourself!”

She picked up a mushroom and tossed it at Fu Erqiu.

Fu Erqiu dodged nimbly, still pushing her bicycle. The two of them bickered and played the whole way down the mountain—well, mostly Su Chunyin pestering Fu Erqiu.

When they reached the base, Fu Erqiu stopped. “This is as far as I go. You should head back.”

“Okay, I will.” Su Chunyin said it, but didn’t move an inch.

Fu Erqiu wasn’t in a hurry. She parked her bicycle and waited.

“Um…” Su Chunyin hesitated, then muttered shyly, “I know the wish was fake, but I really do want you to tutor me.”

She looked sincerely into Fu Erqiu’s eyes. “Qiuqiu-jie, come be my tutor during the summer, please?”

Fu Erqiu stood still, as if thinking it over.

Su Chunyin tugged on her sleeve with a pitiful expression. “Please, Qiuqiu-jie.”

After a long pause, Fu Erqiu sighed in reluctant agreement. “Alright.”

Xu Yuhui’s retreat at the mountain temple was set to last half a month, so they agreed that Fu Erqiu would start tutoring Su Chunyin after that. Su Chunyin wanted her to quit her delivery job and just rest at home, but Fu Erqiu wasn’t one to sit idle and chose to keep working part-time.

Unable to convince her otherwise, Su Chunyin resorted to ordering takeout three times a day—each from the farthest place possible—just to keep Fu Erqiu busy and close to Qingchan Temple.

Whenever Fu Erqiu came by, Su Chunyin would prepare hot water for her to wash up, cool fruit, and herbal medicine to prevent heatstroke, afraid she’d get sick from delivering in the summer heat. With time, the monks at the temple and even Xu Yuhui became familiar with her.

One day, when Fu Erqiu came late, Xu Yuhui even asked with a smile, “Where’s that little tutoring student of yours?” Su Chunyin quickly explained, and Xu Yuhui chuckled, “As long as you two aren’t fighting.”

Finally, when Xu Yuhui returned from her retreat, Su Chunyin excitedly ran down the mountain. Her first stop was the Little Laundry Shop.

But when she got there, it was closed.

Furious, Su Chunyin sent a message to Fu Erqiu: [Where are you?]

It wasn’t until evening that Fu Erqiu replied: [Had something to take care of.]

Su Chunyin glared at those few words and snorted coldly.

The next day, as promised, Fu Erqiu arrived to tutor her. She rode her bike to the address Su Chunyin had sent, but before she could enter the residential area, a security guard stopped her—it was a no-biking zone.

She found a spot nearby to lock her bike and walked the rest of the way, backpack on her back and peaches cradled in her arms.

The residential complex was enormous. Even the area outside the main gates was expansive. She walked a long while before finally reaching the actual entrance.

Strict security prevented strangers from entering. Fortunately, someone was already waiting for her.

“You must be Miss Fu?” the man said. “I’m Butler Liu. Madam asked me to bring you in.”

After confirming her identity, Fu Erqiu followed him to a standalone villa. Before they even reached the door, the fence opened automatically. Fu Erqiu glanced at the pristine white tiles leading to the entrance, then at her own muddy shoes, hesitating.

But Butler Liu didn’t notice. He just patted her shoulder and said, “Go on in.”

Inside, Xu Yuhui was reading a Taoist classic on the sofa. Fu Erqiu handed over the peaches she’d carried all the way. “From my hometown. No pesticides.”

Xu Yuhui smiled and accepted them, gesturing upstairs. “Niaoniao is in her room on the second floor.”

Fu Erqiu nodded and followed Butler Liu up the stairs. He pointed out Su Chunyin’s door but didn’t go in. “Miss doesn’t like people entering her room, so I’ll let you go on your own.”

Fu Erqiu walked up and knocked.

No answer.

She knocked louder. Bang—the door suddenly yanked open.

“I said stop bothering—”

The girl at the door paused, squinting. “Fu Erqiu?”

Fu Erqiu’s gaze rested briefly on her stormy expression. “I’m here to tutor you.”

Su Chunyin gave a soft snort and didn’t step aside. Instead, she pulled the door nearly shut. “Let’s go to the study.”

All the rooms on the second floor were bedrooms except for one right across from the stairs, which was set up as a study. Su Chunyin led her there, and they had just sat down when a servant brought in the now-washed peaches on a tray.

The plump, juicy peaches looked delicious. Just as Su Chunyin reached out, Fu Erqiu said, “I brought these from home. They’re really sweet. Want to try one?”

Su Chunyin smoothly changed course, grabbing a pen instead and scoffing, “Wild peaches from the countryside? Probably taste awful.”

She slouched in her chair, not even bothering to take out her books, arms crossed as she stared at Fu Erqiu.

While unpacking her bag, Fu Erqiu reminded her, “You’ll be streamed next semester. Based on your finals, your English is mediocre, and your geography and history are weak. On the plus side, your math and physics have improved. Unless you have a strong preference for liberal arts, I’d recommend going with science.”

Su Chunyin snorted, “You think I should choose science just because you said so? Are you my mom or my dad?”

Fu Erqiu wasn’t the least bit annoyed. She calmly pulled out a supplementary study plan from her bag. Not only did it target Su Chunyin’s weak points, it also included a long-term improvement roadmap. “Your biggest issue is that you never learned the foundational material in the first place. Rather than just patching the gaps, you might as well start over from the beginning.”

Su Chunyin took the plan and gave it a cursory look. It was incredibly detailed, breaking down what to study and what to master in each session. The plan was clearly based on the assumption that she’d choose the science track. If she chose liberal arts instead, Fu Erqiu had an alternate plan ready—though that one was notably more concise.

Su Chunyin scanned the papers with a complicated expression. “You sure know how to put on a good show now. But when I was actually looking for you, you just disappeared.”

Fu Erqiu keenly picked up on a key detail. “You came to find me?”

Originally intending to keep a stiff upper lip, Su Chunyin couldn’t help the surge of grievance that rose the moment Fu Erqiu asked. She tried to hold it back but failed. “Last night, the first thing I did after coming down from the mountain was look for you. But you completely vanished. You didn’t even reply to my messages!”

Fu Erqiu recalled the message she received the night before and finally understood why Su Chunyin was upset.

She set down her bag and pulled out a math textbook and a basic practice workbook for the first semester of Grade 10. “Your math shows the most promise, so we’ll start there today.”

With that, she began teaching in a methodical and serious manner.

Su Chunyin was stunned. She propped her hands up on the table, blocking all the materials Fu Erqiu had laid out. “Wait—aren’t you going to explain yourself at all?” Her voice trembled with emotion. She didn’t even realize what her words implied: as long as Fu Erqiu gave some sort of explanation, she’d believe her—and maybe even forgive her.

Fu Erqiu tried to tug the book away but couldn’t. With a sigh, she replied, “Yesterday was the death anniversary of my grandparents. My mom and I went back to our hometown to visit their graves.”