From the first week of summer to the end, between the end of Jiang Muqing’s summer cram school and the start of my visit to my grandparents’ house, quite a lot of things happened in that long period of time.
That night, Jiang Muqing got totally shit-faced, and refused to let go of me. At the end, she threw up all over my clothes.
The strange smell of seafood and beer, along with the acidic odor of stomach bile, nearly made me faint.
I ignored my body’s irritation, and managed to carry her home.
Mom took her to throw up in the bathroom, and helped her clean herself. Then, she gave Jiang Muqing a fresh set of pajamas.
Mom blamed Jiang Muqing all on me. She sat near Jiang Muqing while chewing me out. I exasperatedly sat through her lecture, changed my dirtied clothes, and took a good, long shower. I scrubbed as hard as I can, but I couldn’t wash away the disgusting feeling.
I couldn’t wash it away.
In my heart, I wanted to find somewhere to complain, to vent. But after my shower, I saw the girl roll around the bed painfully. She kept kicking off the blankets, and my mother kept pulling them back. With that sight, all of my thoughts disappeared.
At last, I had achieved nothing. She was still unhappy, unable to become a normal, healthy high school girl. She was still unable to live with delight.
With each strike, the plan in my heart was near tatters. Now, I can only count my steps as I walk along.
I needed to let her know that on this world, I was the most normal, and that I wasn’t the only one as she believed.
Now, I need an opportunity.
However, before that chance lands, I have to face the consequences of my failures.
….
With Mo Shiyu’s invitation, I brought Jiang Muqing along to our summer studying group. As I expected, the normally peaceful group was overturned with her arrival.
First was the seating arrangement.
Jiang Muqing stubbornly wanted to sit by my side, but the usually generous class president Mo Shiyu suddenly started to haggle. She didn’t let it pass, and the two started to argue in the classroom.
I kept throwing looks at Mo Shiyu, hoping that she would show more leeway towards Jiang Muqing. But even though she was normally mature and observant, it was like she didn’t understand my point, and fought with Jiang Muqing like a little child.
Class was about to start, and I had no choice but to pick a random stranger to sit with. It was only then they sat together quietly.
My head hurts.
Next, was the even more excruciating self-study at the ice-cream shop.
Jiang Muqing and Mo Shiyu seemed like they were injected with speed*, and quarreled over explaining problems. Discussing problems and concepts is inherently a positive occasion, but it was the opposite under the two of them.
*Speed is also known as amphetamine.
I could only let them take turns, but the argument of who goes first came up.
“Let Jiang Muqing give it a shot, she had the highest score in Shier High. Maybe there’s some easy method only she knows.”
Although Mo Shiyu was a little reluctant, she didn’t really have anything to argue with. The girl sat unhappily, glaring at me and Jiang Muqing.
Jiang Muqing shot a dirty look back at Mo Shiyu, and started to explain her own problem-solving method to me.
Her procedure was very unique, and the logic behind it went a little farther than our current textbooks. However, it was insanely easy to use, and could find the answer in a flash.
She spoke quickly, immersed in her own path of thought. She didn’t think about whether I could understand, but rather in solving the problem.
I listened very carefully, and understood the general abstract. But by what I felt, the method was just too much of a leap from where I was right now. It was too much for my current understanding.
It completely strayed from the teacher’s walkthrough, and followed her own philosophe with diligence.
I flipped through the answer key seemingly in disbelief, but the answer was identical with Jiang Muqing’s answer.
It had far fewer steps than the walkthrough, making me very suspicious of Jiang Muqing’s accuracy.
“Lu Fan, did you not understand?”
Jiang Muqing frowned as she looked at my brooding face.
“It’s a little more fast-paced than usual, and have I learned that equation before?”
“Nope, I found it from another workbook. It’s really handy.”
“Which book?”
I had never seen the strange formula before.
“Here.”
Jiang Muqing took out a copy of “Advanced Mathematics Reasoning”, used typically in universities.
?!
This is out of my league….
“And how did this step go to this one?” I asked dazedly.
“It’s easy! Just like this…”
Jiang Muqing explained with confidence.
“I still… Don’t understand…”
I started to question my intelligence. The pressing matter at hand was that I couldn’t keep up with her brain at all.
Just like that, I hit a bump in Jiang Muqing’s road.
Mo Shiyu watched as I fumbled with Jiang Muqing, and couldn’t resist herself anymore.
“Here, let me try.”
She smirked at Jiang Muqing. *
*Some of you may have forgotten, but Lu Fan left out the violent and crazy bits when he was explaining to Mo Shiyu last chapter. So MSY as of now is oblivious to Jiang Muqing’s… more interesting side.
Jiang Muqing clearly wanted to have another turn, but I felt that maybe she could learn to express her methods more easily if she would listen to Mo Shiyu’s.
“Let the Class Pres speak, maybe she has a better solution.” I urged Jiang Muqing.
“What better solutions can she have? Hmph! I’ll see what better ways she can use to solve this problem.”
So, she unwillingly let out her spot, and let Mo Shiyu explain the problem.
No matter what, Mo Shiyu was still quite experienced with tutoring. Although she wasn’t as fast as Jiang Muqing, but by following each step on the walkthrough, I understood quickly.
Mo Shiyu’s every move was accurate and balanced, without a shred of carelessness. All the formulas were displayed clearly by the answer.
“Ah, I see. Thanks!”
After hearing Mo Shiyu’s thorough explanation, I let out a sigh of relief.
“No problem.”
Next, she glanced at Jiang Muqing with delight, seemingly to prove some point.
Jiang Muqing’s face was darkened. She clenched the pencil in her hands, with her head lowered. She looked like a stray dog, abandoned by its family.
Damn it. With the state she was right now, I wondered if the situation would run out of control.
“Jiang Muqing, are you alright….”
I looked at her a bit worriedly.
“It’s fine, you two continue.”
She paused for a while, and suddenly started to laugh.
The corners of her mouth were slightly tilted, like Da Vinci’s “Mona Lisa”. Although it was a smile, it seemed more like a smirk, sending uncomfortable chills down people’s backs.
“Are you sure?” I asked.
You’re saying that you’re fine, but you’re really not acting like it!
“Yep.”
“Then… Let’s keep going.”
I observed Jiang Muqing anxiously, and resumed conversation with Mo Shiyu after confirming that she wasn’t going anywhere.
To speed up the process, we threw ourselves completely in discussion, quickly finishing off many hard problems. It was as if we have forgotten Jiang Muqing’s presence.
Jiang Muqing seemed compliant, too. She didn’t bother us anymore, and sat quietly across us. She didn’t say a word, but her hand kept doodling incessantly on her paper.
“die”
….
“Uh… What’s that you’re doing over there?”
“I’m studying some vocabulary.”
She kept smiling.
From the first week of summer to the end, between the end of Jiang Muqing’s summer cram school and the start of my visit to my grandparents’ house, quite a lot of things happened in that long period of time.
That night, Jiang Muqing got totally shit-faced, and refused to let go of me. At the end, she threw up all over my clothes.
The strange smell of seafood and beer, along with the acidic odor of stomach bile, nearly made me faint.
I ignored my body’s irritation, and managed to carry her home.
Mom took her to throw up in the bathroom, and helped her clean herself. Then, she gave Jiang Muqing a fresh set of pajamas.
Mom blamed Jiang Muqing all on me. She sat near Jiang Muqing while chewing me out. I exasperatedly sat through her lecture, changed my dirtied clothes, and took a good, long shower. I scrubbed as hard as I can, but I couldn’t wash away the disgusting feeling.
I couldn’t wash it away.
In my heart, I wanted to find somewhere to complain, to vent. But after my shower, I saw the girl roll around the bed painfully. She kept kicking off the blankets, and my mother kept pulling them back. With that sight, all of my thoughts disappeared.
At last, I had achieved nothing. She was still unhappy, unable to become a normal, healthy high school girl. She was still unable to live with delight.
With each strike, the plan in my heart was near tatters. Now, I can only count my steps as I walk along.
I needed to let her know that on this world, I was the most normal, and that I wasn’t the only one as she believed.
Now, I need an opportunity.
However, before that chance lands, I have to face the consequences of my failures.
….
With Mo Shiyu’s invitation, I brought Jiang Muqing along to our summer studying group. As I expected, the normally peaceful group was overturned with her arrival.
First was the seating arrangement.
Jiang Muqing stubbornly wanted to sit by my side, but the usually generous class president Mo Shiyu suddenly started to haggle. She didn’t let it pass, and the two started to argue in the classroom.
I kept throwing looks at Mo Shiyu, hoping that she would show more leeway towards Jiang Muqing. But even though she was normally mature and observant, it was like she didn’t understand my point, and fought with Jiang Muqing like a little child.
Class was about to start, and I had no choice but to pick a random stranger to sit with. It was only then they sat together quietly.
My head hurts.
Next, was the even more excruciating self-study at the ice-cream shop.
Jiang Muqing and Mo Shiyu seemed like they were injected with speed*, and quarreled over explaining problems. Discussing problems and concepts is inherently a positive occasion, but it was the opposite under the two of them.
*Speed is also known as amphetamine.
I could only let them take turns, but the argument of who goes first came up.
“Let Jiang Muqing give it a shot, she had the highest score in Shier High. Maybe there’s some easy method only she knows.”
Although Mo Shiyu was a little reluctant, she didn’t really have anything to argue with. The girl sat unhappily, glaring at me and Jiang Muqing.
Jiang Muqing shot a dirty look back at Mo Shiyu, and started to explain her own problem-solving method to me.
Her procedure was very unique, and the logic behind it went a little farther than our current textbooks. However, it was insanely easy to use, and could find the answer in a flash.
She spoke quickly, immersed in her own path of thought. She didn’t think about whether I could understand, but rather in solving the problem.
I listened very carefully, and understood the general abstract. But by what I felt, the method was just too much of a leap from where I was right now. It was too much for my current understanding.
It completely strayed from the teacher’s walkthrough, and followed her own philosophe with diligence.
I flipped through the answer key seemingly in disbelief, but the answer was identical with Jiang Muqing’s answer.
It had far fewer steps than the walkthrough, making me very suspicious of Jiang Muqing’s accuracy.
“Lu Fan, did you not understand?”
Jiang Muqing frowned as she looked at my brooding face.
“It’s a little more fast-paced than usual, and have I learned that equation before?”
“Nope, I found it from another workbook. It’s really handy.”
“Which book?”
I had never seen the strange formula before.
“Here.”
Jiang Muqing took out a copy of “Advanced Mathematics Reasoning”, used typically in universities.
?!
This is out of my league….
“And how did this step go to this one?” I asked dazedly.
“It’s easy! Just like this…”
Jiang Muqing explained with confidence.
“I still… Don’t understand…”
I started to question my intelligence. The pressing matter at hand was that I couldn’t keep up with her brain at all.
Just like that, I hit a bump in Jiang Muqing’s road.
Mo Shiyu watched as I fumbled with Jiang Muqing, and couldn’t resist herself anymore.
“Here, let me try.”
She smirked at Jiang Muqing. *
*Some of you may have forgotten, but Lu Fan left out the violent and crazy bits when he was explaining to Mo Shiyu last chapter. So MSY as of now is oblivious to Jiang Muqing’s… more interesting side.
Jiang Muqing clearly wanted to have another turn, but I felt that maybe she could learn to express her methods more easily if she would listen to Mo Shiyu’s.
“Let the Class Pres speak, maybe she has a better solution.” I urged Jiang Muqing.
“What better solutions can she have? Hmph! I’ll see what better ways she can use to solve this problem.”
So, she unwillingly let out her spot, and let Mo Shiyu explain the problem.
No matter what, Mo Shiyu was still quite experienced with tutoring. Although she wasn’t as fast as Jiang Muqing, but by following each step on the walkthrough, I understood quickly.
Mo Shiyu’s every move was accurate and balanced, without a shred of carelessness. All the formulas were displayed clearly by the answer.
“Ah, I see. Thanks!”
After hearing Mo Shiyu’s thorough explanation, I let out a sigh of relief.
“No problem.”
Next, she glanced at Jiang Muqing with delight, seemingly to prove some point.
Jiang Muqing’s face was darkened. She clenched the pencil in her hands, with her head lowered. She looked like a stray dog, abandoned by its family.
Damn it. With the state she was right now, I wondered if the situation would run out of control.
“Jiang Muqing, are you alright….”
I looked at her a bit worriedly.
“It’s fine, you two continue.”
She paused for a while, and suddenly started to laugh.
The corners of her mouth were slightly tilted, like Da Vinci’s “Mona Lisa”. Although it was a smile, it seemed more like a smirk, sending uncomfortable chills down people’s backs.
“Are you sure?” I asked.
You’re saying that you’re fine, but you’re really not acting like it!
“Yep.”
“Then… Let’s keep going.”
I observed Jiang Muqing anxiously, and resumed conversation with Mo Shiyu after confirming that she wasn’t going anywhere.
To speed up the process, we threw ourselves completely in discussion, quickly finishing off many hard problems. It was as if we have forgotten Jiang Muqing’s presence.
Jiang Muqing seemed compliant, too. She didn’t bother us anymore, and sat quietly across us. She didn’t say a word, but her hand kept doodling incessantly on her paper.
“die”
….
“Uh… What’s that you’re doing over there?”
“I’m studying some vocabulary.”
She kept smiling.
