Chapter 92

As the final exams approached, Fu Yanyan went home less frequently and spent most of her time studying in the school library.

Jin Xiuzhu would occasionally visit her when she had free time, bringing some homemade dishes. This habit was cultivated by Liu Liu.

The food at Liu Liu's school cafeteria was not very good; the head chef was the principal's relative and always made sweet dishes, adding sugar to everything. Liu Liu couldn't get used to it, as she had a particular taste for food since childhood. She complained to Jin Xiuzhu, who then started delivering meals twice a week and even made chili sauce for her.

None of this was mentioned to Jiang Mingchuan, as he would surely scold her for being too delicate, unable to endure such minor hardships, especially considering how people in the past didn't even have tree roots to eat.

As a result, in the hearts of the three children, their mother was the gentlest and most indulgent, and they liked sharing their problems with her.

Recently, Jin Xiuzhu prepared two portions, delivering one to the younger child and then to the older one. The mother and daughter would have a meal together in the cafeteria. Jin Xiuzhu loved the cakes from Fu Yanyan's school cafeteria, which were the only Western-style pastries available there. Every time she visited, she would buy a portion to try.

Fu Yanyan sat across from her, eating the dishes Jin Xiuzhu had brought.

Jin Xiuzhu said, "Aunt Fang should be back tomorrow. I heard Fanfan has a girlfriend, is that true?"

Fu Yanyan was surprised and looked up, "How did you know?"

Jin Xiuzhu replied irritably, "You kids never tell us anything after growing up."

Fu Yanyan innocently said, "It's not my fault. Fanfan told me not to say anything. If you knew, Aunt Fang would find out, and then everyone else would know too."

Jin Xiuzhu blinked and pretended to be clueless, "How could that happen?"

Fu Yanyan hummed, clearly not believing her.

Jin Xiuzhu changed the subject, "Fanfan isn't as secretive as you. He wrote letters, and Aunt Zhang found them while cleaning the room."

"..."

What a big fool.

Jin Xiuzhu curiously asked, "Tell me, whose girl is it?"

Fu Yanyan thought about it and decided to tell Jin Xiuzhu, "You don't know her. She's an upperclassman at Fanfan's university. When he first started college, she helped him out of kindness."

She lowered her voice and added, "At that time, she already had a boyfriend. Fanfan waited until they broke up before pursuing her."

Whether he caused the breakup or not, she wasn't sure. Yang Chaoying said Fanfan often sent umbrellas and food late at night, leading many to think he was the girl's boyfriend. Despite the misunderstandings, Fanfan didn't explain and even praised her boyfriend in front of her.

Yang Chaoying thought Fanfan was a wimp, but Fu Yanyan saw him as a major player. If He Yan had half his cunning, he wouldn't have been cheated on.

Jin Xiuzhu's eyes sparkled with curiosity.

Fu Yanyan continued, "I don't know much more. But they seem to be doing well now. They even invited me and Chaoying to hang out."

But she was busy and didn't want to be a third wheel. Yang Chaoying said the guy became disgustingly affectionate after getting the upperclassman, calling her "baby" all the time, making him want to punch him.

Yang Chaoying, Fanfan, and Liu Liu were childhood friends. Yang Chaoying always excelled academically and skipped several grades to lighten his brother's burden. Fanfan followed suit, and both ended up at the same university, in the same major, and even in the same dormitory.

Only Liu Liu was still in high school, and whenever she talked about these two, she gritted her teeth.

Fanfan doesn't hang out with Yang Chaoying much anymore, and Liu Liu is preparing for the college entrance exam, so Yang Chaoying writes letters to her, telling her everything.

Jin Xiuzhu nodded and said regretfully, "Fanfan has a girlfriend, but your brother doesn't."

Fu Yanyan thought she was worrying too much, "Why rush? Didn't you and Dad get married in your late twenties?"

Jin Xiuzhu ignored her, "I'm not worried about Xiaoyan. But you, you're so pretty, why aren't any boys interested in you?"

Fu Yanyan didn't respond and buried herself in her meal.

Jin Xiuzhu glanced at her, "Acting dumb again."

Fu Yanyan thought, _Your youngest daughter is the real deal, dating two guys._

However, perhaps due to Jin Xiuzhu's words, when Fu Yanyan went to the library that afternoon, a boy sat next to her.

She didn't pay much attention and continued reading. After a short while, the boy spoke, "Classmate, can I borrow your book?"

Fu Yanyan frowned and glanced at her books, "Sure."

The boy thanked her gratefully, "Thanks."

He took the top book and opened it, but after flipping through a few pages, he spoke again, "Classmate, what does this question mean?"

Fu Yanyan turned to look at him and recognized him as part of the couple she had seen arguing outside Zhou Lili's school. The argument was quite loud, leaving a strong impression.

She frowned and calmly pointed out, "You're not from our school."

Then she took back the book from his hands, gathered all her books, and left.

The boy quickly chased after her, "Hey, classmate Fu, where are you going?"

Fu Yanyan stopped, turned around, and looked at him unhappily, "Did you ask about me?"

The boy didn't answer but smiled brightly, "Hello, classmate Fu. My name is Wang Yining. Nice to meet you."

Fu Yanyan coldly replied, "I don't want to meet you."

She turned and walked away.

She wasn't naive and was familiar with such behavior. In high school, similar situations occurred, and she even fought back, which deterred anyone from expressing interest in her.

In her first year of college, a senior brought her a love letter, which she rejected outright. When he persisted, she gave him a harsh scolding.

Jin Xiuzhu said no one pursued her because no one dared to.

The boy watched as Fu Yanyan walked away. Not only was he not angry, but he also smiled and said, "I like her temper."

In the days that followed, Fu Yanyan encountered the boy every day. No matter how she tried to drive him away, he wouldn't leave, which made her extremely annoyed.

What frustrated her the most was that the day before her exam, his girlfriend found her.

Fu Yanyan was studying in her dormitory when a classmate told her that a girl was looking for her downstairs. Assuming it was Jin Xiuzhu, since similar situations had happened before—classmates often mistook Jin Xiuzhu for her sister or senior—she didn't think much of it. After tidying up, she hurried downstairs, only to find not Jin Xiuzhu, but a furious girl approaching her.

As the girl approached, she raised her hand to slap Fu Yanyan, but Fu Yanyan reacted quickly and grabbed her wrist.

Every winter and summer vacation, Fu Yanyan learned a few moves from Jiang Mingchuan, especially after growing up. Jiang Mingchuan taught her genuine martial arts to ensure her safety when she went out.

The girl didn't expect Fu Yanyan to have such strength; once her wrist was caught, she couldn't move at all and felt so much pain that she wanted to cry. She instantly started yelling, "You bitch, you're stealing someone else's boyfriend! Don't you have any shame? How dare you stop me? Do you believe I can get people to beat you so badly your mother won't recognize you..."

Midway through her tirade, Wang Yining suddenly ran over and angrily shouted, "Tang Ying, don't go too far. We've already broken up."

Seeing the boy who was scolding her, the girl's face turned red with anger. "You're actually yelling at me for this stinking woman?"

The boy looked impatient. "Are you done yet?"

It was Fu Yanyan who was stunned. She looked at the woman in disbelief. "Your name is Tang Ying?"

She carefully examined the girl. The last time they met, there was a distance between them, and the girl was wearing makeup. Fu Yanyan hadn't recognized her then, but now, upon closer inspection, she noticed some similarities.

However, in her memory, Tang Ying was always a little princess, delicate, beautiful, and fragile.

Not like the person in front of her, who was rude, cursing, and wearing heavy makeup.

Hearing Fu Yanyan's words, Tang Ying became even angrier, thinking Fu Yanyan was trying to intimidate her. "What? You want to take revenge on me? Have you even heard my name? You dared to steal my boyfriend. Do you believe I can make life miserable for you in the capital?"

Fu Yanyan calmly replied, "Tang Ying, I'm Fu Yanyan."

Tang Ying's face twisted with disgust. "I don't care if you're Fu Yanyan or Bai Yanyan. If you dare to steal my man, I won't let you off."

Fu Yanyan observed the subtle expressions on her face and realized that Tang Ying had genuinely forgotten her. After all, it had been over a decade. It was normal to forget.

But seeing Tang Ying in front of her, Fu Yanyan didn't feel happy. After a moment's thought, she said, "When we were young, I lived downstairs from you. Your mom married Uncle Yang, and we both lived in the military dependents' quarters. We even went to school together. But something happened, and your mom suddenly took you away, leaving behind your brother."

"Tang Ying, you weren't like this before."

Hearing these words, a hint of confusion flashed across Tang Ying's face. As Fu Yanyan spoke, her brows furrowed, and she seemed to remember something. Her eyes narrowed slightly as she carefully examined Fu Yanyan, noticing her outstanding appearance. She fell silent.

No longer shouting or cursing, Tang Ying slumped like a deflated balloon, her spirit drained. She met Fu Yanyan's gaze briefly before looking away.

Her arm dropped, and Fu Yanyan released her grip. Tang Ying's hand fell to her side.

Fu Yanyan asked again, "How have you been?"

Tang Ying's eyes welled up, but she didn't show it. Instead, she smiled and lifted her head, pretending to be happy. "Pretty good. What about you? Forget it. Since we're old acquaintances, I won't hold today's incident against you. You can have this man. Actually, I don't like him anyway. He's too ugly, the ugliest among all my exes. I only dated him because he was rich. Who knew he'd be so fickle? Don't let him fool you."

She shrugged indifferently. "I'm leaving."

Waving her hand, she turned and left.

Wang Yining, who had been called ugly, looked grim and wanted to say something. Then he saw Tang Ying suddenly stop and turn back to ask Fu Yanyan, "How is that child doing now?"

"You mean Chaoying?"

Tang Ying nodded uncertainly, not remembering the child's name.

Afraid that Tang Ying might disturb them, Fu Yanyan said, "He's not doing well. Uncle Yang remarried and left him with Yang Yingxiong. The brothers had a hard time, but things are better now that Yang Yingxiong has a job."

Tang Ying hummed in acknowledgment and silently left.

Watching Tang Ying's thin silhouette, Fu Yanyan couldn't reconcile her with the elegant girl she had seen in the hospital. Though they were the same person, the Tang Ying in front of her seemed to have endured countless hardships.

Seeing Tang Ying like this, Fu Yanyan felt a deep sense of emptiness and sorrow. Once, she had felt like a clown, secretly admiring Tang Ying's perfection, feeling inferior. Now, in a place unknown to her, Tang Ying had fallen into the same mire.

Fu Yanyan had noticed the scars on Tang Ying's wrist, familiar to her from her own past.

After Tang Ying left, Wang Yining tried to speak to Fu Yanyan, but she ignored him, giving him a cold glance before turning and heading upstairs.

The exams lasted three days, with the final one ending at noon. Fu Yanyan ate lunch at the cafeteria, then returned to her dormitory to pack lightly before leaving with two bags.

On her way down, she was stopped at the dormitory entrance.

Today, Tang Ying wasn't wearing makeup, her face pale and haggard as she approached Fu Yanyan. As she got closer, Fu Yanyan could smell the pungent scent of cheap cigarettes.

Tang Ying pulled out a letter from her pocket and handed it to Fu Yanyan. "This contains some money I've saved. Please give it to that child. I feel quite guilty towards him. Never mind, it's pointless to say this."

Fu Yanyan hesitated. In reality, Yang Chaoying didn't need the money. Tang Ying herself seemed to be struggling. Fu Yanyan had said Yang Chaoying was struggling to prevent her from bothering the brothers.

She hadn't expected Tang Ying to give them money.

"He won't accept it."

"Just give it to him. Consider it our way of making amends."

Fu Yanyan took the letter. "I'll tell him."

Tang Ying hummed in acknowledgment.

Fu Yanyan asked again, "How have you been these years?"

Tang Ying looked at her in confusion.

Fu Yanyan thought for a moment and said, "When we were young, I was very introverted. You tried to befriend me several times, but I pretended not to notice. Later, I regretted it."

Tang Ying let out a light laugh and then said calmly, "What's good or bad about it? My mom later became someone's mistress, and I lived in the shadows too. Those men tried to take advantage of me, but now it's all over. That's that. I'm leaving."

Fu Yanyan nodded.

As Tang Ying turned to leave, she suddenly said in a low voice, "When I was little, I really envied you."

She envied Fu Yanyan for having a good mother and father, for having a brother who doted on her, and for always having a lively home. Although she later forgot what Fu Yanyan looked like and her name, she always remembered there was a little girl of the same age downstairs who was beautiful and happy, whom she dreamed of becoming.

Hearing this, Fu Yanyan stood frozen in place.

At that moment, she felt as if the experiences of two lifetimes had come full circle. In her past life, she had envied Tang Ying immensely, but in this life, Tang Ying envied her.

Fu Yanyan found it somewhat absurd and felt a sense of helplessness against fate.

Watching Tang Ying's retreating figure, she suddenly called out, "Tang Ying, can we be friends again?"

Tang Ying paused, then turned back in disbelief, pointing at herself, unsure if she had heard correctly, "Me?"

Fu Yanyan nodded.

Tang Ying frowned and said guiltily, "But I'm a mess now. I smoke, drink, fight, and swear..."

Fu Yanyan shrugged, mimicking her earlier gesture, "I'm not much better either."

Tang Ying looked at her, laughed lightly, and then her eyes welled up with tears. She tilted her head slightly, not wanting anyone to see her vulnerable side, and said nonchalantly, "Sure, if you don't mind, we can be friends."

Then she waved, "I'm off."

But the moment she turned away, tears streamed down her face.

Fu Yanyan was the only one who knew her past and still wanted to be her friend.

No one knew that when she decided to come here, she never planned to return. She had already chosen how she would leave this world.

But now, she had a friend.

Looking at her back, Fu Yanyan felt an immense sense of peace. From the moment she called out those words, she sensed that the regrets and frustrations of both lives had vanished.

They both would have a better future.