Chapter 29: Henchmen
Xiahou Ming walked out of the school gate.
The evening wind was a little hot, ruffling the hair on her forehead.
She took a deep breath and was about to walk towards the town center.
A figure, as if lying in ambush, flashed out from behind the huge camphor tree at the school gate and blocked her way.
It’s Lin Xiaomei.
“So slow.”
She crossed her arms and looked Xiahou Ming up and down with an unhappy look on her face.
“What are you doing?”
Xiahou Ming frowned, feeling an ominous premonition in her heart.
“What am I doing?
I’m the one asking you what you’re doing.”
Lin Xiaomei pointed her chin towards the school and said in a sarcastic tone.
“You were having a great time chatting with that Wen Xuelan.
What’s wrong?
Have you changed your taste now?
Do you like the kind of whiny, sullen person?”
Xiahou Ming was too lazy to talk nonsense with her and turned sideways to avoid her.
Lin Xiaomei immediately moved sideways like a crab and stood in front of her again.
“Don’t follow me.”
“Who’s following you?”
Lin Xiaomei curled her lips.
“Is this road yours?
I’m going this way too, is that okay?”
Xiahou Ming knew that it was useless to reason with Lin Xiaomei.
If she is not allowed to follow, she might make a lot of noise at the school gate and attract more unnecessary onlookers.
She stopped talking, but walked forward silently.
Seeing this, Lin Xiaomei raised a smug smile at the corner of her mouth, and followed her closely like a piece of taffy that couldn’t be thrown away.
The two of them walked one in front and one behind on the somewhat dilapidated street.
“Hey, why are your legs so short?
Can you walk faster?”
“Where are you going?
You’re so mysterious.
Are you going to find that freak named Yu?”
“You don’t really think that wearing a skirt makes you a woman, do you?”
“Ah, actually, it doesn’t matter to me whether you are a man or a woman.”
Lin Xiaomei’s familiar voice kept buzzing in her ears like a mosquito.
In a trance, she felt as if she had returned to the past.
She is still the “Brother Ming” walking in front, and following behind her is still the little follower Lin Xiaomei who obeys her orders.
She even subconsciously wanted to take out a cigarette from her pocket and turned around to yell at her to shut up.
But when she really turned her head, what she saw was Lin Xiaomei’s unfamiliar expression full of worry.
The strong sense of reality was like a basin of cold water that woke her up instantly, bringing her severe dizziness and nausea.
“Hey, go to the store and buy me a bottle of Coke.”
Seeing her turn around, Lin Xiaomei immediately said in a commanding tone.
“Go by yourself.”
“What?”
Lin Xiaomei’s voice suddenly rose.
“Didn’t you order us around like this before?
Now you can’t do it the other way around?”
“You know I can’t get any money recently.”
Xiahou Ming’s voice was flat.
“Hmph.”
She glared at Xiahou Ming’s back fiercely, then as if in anger, she took a few quick steps to pass her and rushed into a small shop on the roadside.
Soon, she came out again, holding two cans of iced Jianlibao in her hands.
The orange-yellow packaging of the cans was particularly eye-catching in the evening light.
She walked to Xiahou Ming and slammed one of the cans into her arms with a “pop,” neither too light nor too heavy.
“Here.”
She turned her head away, not looking at Xiahou Ming.
“Since you look like you’re about to die, this is a reward for you.”
“What do you want?”
Xiahou Ming looked at the drink in her arms and finally stopped.
“What do I want?”
Lin Xiaomei was stunned by her sudden question, and then she sneered.
She took a step forward and approached Xiahou Ming.
Her eyes, which always had a mean smile on their faces, were now filled with mist.
“I want to go back to freshman year of high school,” she whispered, “back to when you weren’t the wretch you are now.”
Xiahou Ming’s whole body stiffened.
“Those were the good times back then,” Lin Xiaomei’s eyes were a little out of focus, as if she was looking through Xiahou Ming at a phantom from the past.
“You’re still you, Wen Xuelan… You’re still that idiot who was only bullied by me.”
“Do you remember?”
Her voice began to tremble uncontrollably, a hint of tears in her voice.
“You asked me to throw her homework book into the toilet… and I did it.
I would do whatever you asked me to do… because I knew that as long as I listened to you, you wouldn’t let anyone touch me.”
“Are you crazy?”
Xiahou Ming looked at her in disbelief and subconsciously wanted to step back.
“Am I crazy?
I think you’ve changed!”
Lin Xiaomei’s emotions finally got out of control.
She suddenly grabbed Xiahou Ming’s shoulders and shook her hard, tears streaming down her face without warning.
“Look at what you’re like now!
You’re neither human nor ghost!
Why?!”
“Why have you become like this and still be the focus of everyone’s attention!?”
“That freak named Yu is always following you around!
That Ling Yicai is protecting you like a lapdog!
Now even that idiot Wen Xuelan is…!”
“Why do you always get everything so easily!?”
“What about me!?
What am I?!
You made me what I am now…
I don’t associate with Wen Xuelan, and I follow you like a dog every day…
Are you tired of me now?
You don’t want me anymore?
Are you going to play with those women?”
“I used to… I used to follow you so desperately, just to make you look at me more!
I wanted you to… order me around just one more time!”
“But what about now?
Tell me… you look like a coward who can’t even protect yourself!
How can I follow you?!”
By the end of her speech, she was sobbing that she could only let go of her hand and wipe away her tears with the back of her hand.
Xiahou Ming just looked at her quietly, looking at her face which was flushed with excitement and tears, with mixed feelings in her heart.
Then she turned around and continued walking in the predetermined direction.
Her silence made Lin Xiaomei feel more powerless and desperate than any rebuttal.
“Forget it!
You won’t understand even if I tell you this!”
She wiped her face roughly, tried to straighten her back which was slightly hunched due to crying, and quickly caught up with her.
Finally, the two stopped in front of a slightly old building.
Xiahou Ming raised her head and looked at the glass door with the four big words “Xinhua Bookstore” printed on it, feeling uneasy.
‘Will she be here?’
Lin Xiaomei also stopped.
She adjusted her breathing, which was a little disordered due to crying, and looked at her suspiciously:
“After all this time, what are you doing here?
Buying a workbook?”
Xiahou Ming looked at the unopened can of Jianlibao in her hand.
The metal can was still cold.
She looked at Lin Xiaomei next to her, whose eyes were still a little red and swollen, but who was trying hard to pretend that nothing had happened.
She finally stretched out her finger and, with a “click,” opened the ring of the can.
She tilted her head back and took a sip.
A liquid with a rich honey sweetness and ample bubbles slid down her throat, but it could not calm her inner anxiety.
She held the can of Jianlibao in her hand again and pushed open the door.
Lin Xiaomei hesitated for a moment and followed her in.