Chapter Seven: The Goods Have Arrived—Remember to Inspect

Leaning back on the sofa to rest, Mengxia Ye let the phone ring and vibrate several times. The screen displayed the name “Chengze Lu.” Only when she finally woke up did she pick up the call, her movements unhurried. On the other end, an impatient voice burst through, grating to the ear.

“Mengxia, what took you so long to answer? I’ve been calling you all afternoon.”

“I was injured and couldn’t answer,” she replied evenly.

“What happened? I heard you took leave this afternoon—did something occur?” Chengze Lu’s agitation eased slightly upon learning she’d missed his calls because of an injury.

“It was for the internal cheer squad selection for the basketball league. I went. On the way to pick out uniforms, I was locked in the storeroom and intimidated by Ye Xingchen’s crazed fans.”

“What?”

“Are you badly hurt, Mengxia?”

“It’s nothing serious—just nearly disfigured,” she continued in that understated tone. “Though who knows, maybe next time they’ll throw acid.”

Chengze Lu’s face paled at her words, but he still managed to comfort her, asking what she planned to do next.

“It’s nothing new. After all this bullying, I’ll probably just have to quit the cheer squad in the end.”

“No way…” he cut in immediately. “I’ll handle the cheer squad for you, but you have to help me get into the basketball team. Ye Xingchen is the captain. Use that photo to threaten him if you have to.”

“No matter how arrogant he is, he’ll still be afraid to anger his sickly mother to death.”

Mengxia Ye’s face turned cold. She uttered a single word—“Alright”—into the phone. “I’ll get you in, but are you sure you’ll deal with those girls from the cheer squad?”

“Don’t worry—it’s just a few girls.”

“Good.” Hanging up, Mengxia Ye dialed another number. A sweet voice answered.

“The goods have arrived. Remember to check them.”

“Understood.”

The next day, waking in bed, Mengxia Ye felt a dull ache in her head. She touched her forehead, wincing at the pain.

“Mengxia, time to eat,” came Aunt Yu’s voice from outside. “What happened to your head? Did someone at school bully you?”

“No, I just knocked it by accident.”

“Oh dear, look at that bruise. Did you put any ointment on it?”

“I think I did.” She glanced at the bottles of medicine and painkillers by her bed, recalling the ordeal in the storeroom the day before. Yet, the details after that remained hazy.

After breakfast, Mengxia Ye took the arranged car to school. As soon as she entered the classroom, she found a bottle of strawberry milk on her desk. She held it, feeling the warmth, wondering if he always timed her arrival so precisely. Otherwise, how was the milk always warm?

After class, Yichen Su turned to ask about the injury on her head. Truthfully, she barely remembered the incident herself. Was this some kind of post-accident amnesia?

“Yichen, let me tutor you after class today,” she offered.

“No, let’s wait until the weekend—your head hasn’t healed yet.”

At lunch, he pulled a bottle of medicine from his backpack and reapplied it to her wound. Walking on her right, Manting Lin looped her arm through Mengxia’s and teased, “Yichen, where did you magically conjure another bottle of medicine? Are you a witch trying to poison our Mengxia?”

“No, I’m probably one of the seven dwarfs with magic powers.”

Everyone burst out laughing.

“So you’re saying our Mengxia is the princess?” Manting joked.

Meeting Yichen’s gaze, Mengxia couldn’t help but smile, and together they headed to the cafeteria, where they ran into Xingchen Ye.

The four of them sat down. Just as Muke Yan turned, Xingchen Ye disappeared—only to reappear, striding over to clap him on the shoulder.

“Son, don’t leave your old man behind.”

Xingchen, gritting his teeth, replied, “I’m right here.”

“Oh, sorry, my astigmatism—I forgot my glasses,” Muke replied, pulling them from his pocket and putting them on with an exaggerated flourish. “Much clearer now.”

“Hey, let’s eat,” someone said.

Xingchen rapped Muke on the head. “Did you even see what you got us?”

“Food, of course.”

“And the dishes?”

Muke adjusted his glasses, feigning seriousness. “Hmm, I guess someone must have stolen them.” He was promptly swatted again and had to offer up some of his own food.

“Eat up—I’ll manage.”

Xingchen was about to explode. He should never have let Muke fetch the food alone.

Manting Lin was laughing so hard she could barely breathe. “Oh… eating with no dishes… ha… ha…” she giggled.

“Mushroom head, laugh again and I’ll throw you out.”

“Alright, I’ll stop… can’t… ha ha…”

Xingchen glared at Muke, who, long used to his astigmatism, didn’t notice at all—his image utterly ruined in Xingchen’s eyes.

After lunch, the five of them walked together, as if out for a leisurely stroll.

“By the way, since you two joined the cheer squad, don’t you have rehearsal soon?” Xingchen asked.

“Yes! We’re going to cheer for Seventh High, defeat Third High, and win first place!” Manting Lin declared with a raised fist.

“Great. We need to head to the basketball court anyway. Let’s go together.”

Manting nodded cheerfully. “Perfect! I’ll watch you all play basketball too.”

“Mengxia, are you coming?” someone asked.

She nodded. She was curious to see Yichen Su play.

In the practice room, several girls were already stretching. Soon, an instructor arrived to guide them through the basics, eventually choosing Manting Lin as the squad captain.

During a break, Manting dragged Mengxia to the basketball gym. Watching Yichen Su making shot after shot, Mengxia thought he looked very different from his usual gentle self—every bit as impressive as Xingchen Ye.

“Mengxia, isn’t Xingchen Ye handsome?” Manting gushed. “Look, all those girls around are fangirls holding bottles of water for them. Let’s buy one too!”

Mengxia pointed to several crates of water near the waiting area. “There’s probably enough water already.”

Manting shook her head, hands cupping her cheeks. “It’s not the same! Buying it shows you care and encourages them. They’ll try harder.”

“Ah…”

“Come on, Mengxia.”

The two walked to the vending machines. Just then, Manting remembered she needed the restroom. Left waiting, Mengxia stepped inside as the sunlight outside was a bit too bright.

She hadn’t gone far before overhearing a group of girls whispering.

“Did you see that? Our school’s heartthrob Chengze Lu actually went into the girls’ restroom!”

“Exactly! And didn’t you see a girl come out crying just now?”

“Don’t tell me he’s a peeping tom?”

“Who knows? Rumor has it he’s always getting handsy with girls, and his private life’s pretty messy.”

Chengze Lu again? Mengxia frowned. Manting had just gone to the restroom—could she have been bullied by him?

She grabbed the water and headed for the restroom. From inside, angry shouts echoed out. A sign on the door read: “Under repair, do not enter.”

Chengze Lu’s voice was unmistakable.

“What are you doing here?” came a sweet voice from behind.

Mengxia took a couple of steps back and turned to see a cute girl with two braids, strong-looking, carrying a bucket of water.

“Step aside—they’re cleaning the restroom.”

“Oh.” Mengxia obediently moved back, watching the girl disappear inside. A moment later, the shouting grew louder. The girl emerged, giving Mengxia a playful wink.

Soon, Manting’s voice called for her—she’d ended up using a restroom on a different floor.

When the two returned to the basketball gym, Chengze Lu, now neat and composed, was already entering with an air of effortless elegance.