Chapter 147: Giving up and striving; Coal and Flowers!
Translator: Sparrow Translations Editor: Sparrow Translations
The toughest thing in life is not learning to fight for something but rather learning to give up. ‘Learn to give up when it is time to do so’ is a commonly spoken phrase but only when one is faced with such a situation would one know how hard it is to give up on something that you’ve worked hard to get.
When Li Qingchuan had heard that Xue Meining had a boyfriend, he immediately returned to Qingshui to teach Ling Yun a lesson. However, he had never thought that he couldn’t even be compared to Ling Yun. Not considering other things, the sole fact that Ling Yun managed to cure him of his heart disease put him in huge debt to Ling Yun.
Comparing looks? With just a short separation of two hours, Ling Yun returned with a thinner face making him look extremely charming.
Comparing power? Li Qingchuan’s father was one of the most powerful people in the whole of Qingshui City but Xue Meining did not care about such things. If she did, she would have been his girlfriend a long time ago. Furthermore, even a fool could see that Xue Meining loved Ling Yun just from the way that she looked at him. How was Li Qingchuan supposed to compete with that?
Hence, Li Qingchuan had decided to give up after countless hours of contemplation and suffering. As for the conversation he had with Tang Meng, it was just a slight feeling of reluctance. Tang Meng smiled as he restarted the engine.
“Stop being so moody. It is not your fault for losing to Ling Yun! Anyway, with your circ.u.mstances, which girl would resist you? What do people say? When one gives up a tree, he will gain a whole forest!”
Li Qingchuan replied with a punch, “D*mn you!”
Tang Meng laughed without dodging and asked, “So how is it? You are not sick anymore?”
“My mother has brought me to the Shengli Hospital to get checked and there is no problem with my heart. It really is a miracle!” Li Qingchuan said while nodding. A flicker of grat.i.tude crossed his face.
Tang Meng exclaimed in shock, “It’s really so miraculous? Then Ling Yun’s abilities are truly unbelievable. Doesn’t it mean that his medical expertise is even better than Miracle Doctor Xue?!” He then continued after the shock wore off, “Brother, since you are well now, let’s party tonight with all the other guys!”
Truthfully, Li Qingchuan really wanted a break to let go of his feelings so he agreed, “Let’s talk again after sending Little Ning home…”
After arriving at Qingshui First High School, Tang Meng immediately drove into the schoolyard and gave Xue Meining a call to ask her to come down. Eventually, she excitedly ran down the stairs but upon seeing that it was Tang Meng and Li Qingchuan who had come to send her home, her eyes reflect disappointment. She asked, “Where is Ling Yun?”
After glancing awkwardly at Li Qingchuan, Tang Meng looked back at the girl and answered, “Hey, Little Ning. I didn’t come to cla.s.s this afternoon so I have no idea where Ling Yun went. It rained very heavily today so let us send you home, won’t you?” Xue Meining stomped her feet in anger and stalked off towards the car while murmuring, “What kind of boyfriend is he to not show any care even after such a storm?!”
The Little Demon Girl had turned the lies into reality and had forgotten that Ling Yun was just supposed to be her s.h.i.+eld. Li Qingchuan shook his head while laughing bitterly. The Hummer hummed to life and sped off amidst the envious stares of the students who had no idea how to go home.
…
Cla.s.sroom of Grade 12 Cla.s.s 6.
After packing up her things, Cao Shanshan said to her tablemate, Zhang Ling, “Let’s go. The car fetching me is here and I will ask my driver to send you home.” The two of them left the cla.s.sroom together.
Reaching the first floor, Zhang Ling suddenly looked at Cao Shanshan and said mysteriously, “Shanshan, I’ve thought of a great idea for you!”
When Ling Yun had left with Zhuang Meifeng, Cao Shanshan had returned to cla.s.s in a bad mood but in the last two sessions of revision time, her mood lifted up immensely after thinking about something.
Now, hearing that Zhang Ling had a plan, she smiled and said, “What idea?”
Zhang Ling whispered, “You can suggest to the teacher to change the seating arrangement. Just say that Ling Yun is not concentrating in cla.s.s and request for him to be beside you so that you can keep an eye out for him! Didn’t the two of you have a misunderstanding two days ago? If you are to sit together every day, the misunderstanding will clear up especially since you are so smart!”
She couldn’t help but be impressed by the large number of ideas Zhang Ling had. Cao Shanshan blushed as she looked down—they had thought of the same thing. Actually, Cao Shanshan had been wondering how she should bring it up but now that Zhang Ling had said it, she decided to play along.
Nodding her head, she said with a red face, “It is so embarra.s.sing that you can even think of such a bad idea…”
Seeing that she was considering her idea, Zhang Ling smiled in satisfaction. “It is easier for females to chase after males. With your looks, won’t it be easy to get Ling Yun if you wanted to?”
Cao Shanshan blushed even harder as she quietly replied, “Don’t you like him too? Are you not going to chase after him as well?”
Zhang Ling became embarra.s.sed and stamped her foot into a puddle of water, saying, “Me? Chase Ling Yun? After seeing the girls that were looking for him today, tell me, do you think I even stand a chance?”
She was very self-aware and knew that it was not because she didn’t want to but it was because the compet.i.tion was too strong for her to be able to attract Ling Yun.
“It’s not certain. Ling Yun loves to look at the chests of females and with your big chest, he might like you better…” The two girls kept nothing from each other, not even hiding the fact that they both liked Ling Yun.
Checking that they were alone, Zhang Ling suddenly grabbed Cao Shanshan’s chest and chuckled, “Your chest is even bigger than mine and it is rounder. Even Ling Yun has complimented it himself.” Cao Shanshan, who had been thinking about Ling Yun, mistook Zhang Ling’s hands for Ling Yun’s. She almost let out a squeal when Zhang Ling grabbed her.
“You b*tch! What do you think you’re doing!” the fl.u.s.tered Cao Shanshan exclaimed.
Zhang Ling chuckled, “See? I knew you were thinking about Ling Yun. Tomorrow, listen to me and sit beside him. Then, you two can flirt at the back of the cla.s.s without interruption!”
Hearing the jealousy and disappointment in her voice, Cao Shanshan seriously said, “Zhang Ling, we are practically sisters. Why don’t you try to chase Ling Yun? Even if you fail, it can be considered a good memory, right?”
Zhang Ling glanced at her and replied, “Shanshan, you really won’t get jealous if I chase Ling Yun?”
Cao Shanshan looked back and earnestly uttered, “You saw all the beautiful women who were looking for him. If I am to feel jealous, it would be of them and not you. If you really like him, you should try too and we can compete fairly…”
She paused before continuing, “Actually, I am worse than you! You liked him even before his exceptional performance but for me, I only found out about my feelings today. You are already much better than me at this point!” Truthfully, her words described the vast differences between the two girls, including their feelings.
Who would have looked at him when he was not at his peak? Cao Shanshan had said it herself that she would not marry Ling Yun even if she had to marry a pig. Even after Ling Yun’s outstanding behavior, Cao Shanshan had not thought greatly of Ling Yun. She just thought that Ling Yun would become a powerful person, but in her heart, she wasn’t moved to the point that she would let go of everything else and just chase after Ling Yun.
On the other hand, Zhang Ling had always admired Ling Yun and was willing to be his girlfriend but because she thought that he was out of his league, she had automatically given up her right to chase him.
One only liked him and try to know him better when he became successful; the other had been by his side, watching him grow and seeing his hard work. One was like an extra flower on an already beautiful garden and the other was like much-needed charcoal in the snowy cold. How could they be compared? It was obvious who was better!
Of course, Zhang Ling and Cao Shanshan had different ident.i.ties and they saw things from different points of views but the same could be said for Xue Meining as well as Tang Meng?
This was the reason why Ling Yun paid no heed to Cao Shanshan while he was courteous to Zhang Ling.
Humans communicate through common experiences and instinct which is the reason why some people fall in love at first sight while others are unable to form a relations.h.i.+p even after many years.
If commoners are like that, it was much more obvious for someone with a strong spirit like Ling Yun. He knew that Cao Shanshan did not truly look up to him which was why he was unable to feel close to her and also why they were always fighting.
“Shanshan, stop thinking so much. We have different backgrounds and you are already carrying a large burden…” Zhang Ling shared her thoughts before smiling cheekily, “Then, I will really be chasing after Ling Yun, okay?”
Cao Shanshan rolled her eyes as she replied, “Sure, just don’t get eaten up by him!”