Chapter 84: A Beauty That Captivates All Eyes

Tang Yu tugged at the corner of her lips. “Sorry, I…”

The boy’s mouth twitched. “It’s me, Zhang Jingyu.”

She still looked blank, and Zhang Jingyu couldn’t help but speak with a touch of sarcasm.

“All right… You top students always have your noses in the air. I’m not as rich as Zhou Xunwen, nor as good-looking as Bian Yang in the back row. It’s normal you don’t remember me…”

He hadn’t finished when his father smacked him sharply on the back of the head.

“You rascal, what nonsense are you spouting!”

Mr. Zhang looked at her apologetically. “Don’t be upset, he just has a sharp tongue, he’s not a bad kid.”

“So you really are the top student. I knew I remembered right. You’re here to get your hair done, aren’t you? Sit down, sit down!”

Mr. Zhang wiped the remaining hair off the stool with a towel, his manner affable and kind.

Tang Yu had originally wanted to try another shop, but couldn’t withstand his enthusiasm, so she sat down.

“Classmate, what happened to your hair? How did it end up like this?” Mr. Zhang examined her hair and asked.

Tang Yu didn’t answer. Zhang Jingyu, cracking sunflower seeds and leaning against the wall, said, “She must have been messed with. A few days ago, she was bullied in the dorm, probably got her hair cut then. It was a big deal—Meng Shirui got an official reprimand and has to read a public apology under the flag next Monday.”

“What kind of child is that, to bully a classmate?! Don’t your teachers do anything?” Mr. Zhang frowned.

Zhang Jingyu replied, “Even us boys avoid Meng Shirui when we see her. No one dares cross her; she’s got connections—supposedly the principal is related to her. Tang Yu just has bad luck, getting targeted by Meng Shirui more than once. The teachers can’t do anything about her.”

After a moment’s silence, Tang Yu exhaled softly, feeling unable to stay and thinking of going to another shop.

In the mirror, Mr. Zhang said indignantly, “So that’s what happened. Don’t worry, Tang Yu, Uncle will make sure to design you a lovely hairstyle. Don’t be upset, don’t let something like this affect your studies!”

Zhang Jingyu snorted with laughter. “It hasn’t affected her studies at all. She keeps scoring higher and higher—drives Meng Shirui crazy.”

“No need, Uncle, I—”

Tang Yu’s words were cut off as Mr. Zhang swept her off to wash her hair.

With such determination, he was set on making her hair look beautiful.

Tang Yu had no choice but to let him do as he pleased; after all, another salon might not be any better.

She opened up the English-language film she’d downloaded.

Seeing her improvement, Bian Yang had started urging her to try watching English movies without subtitles.

The spoken English in films was nothing like what Teacher Gao used in class; the actors spoke so quickly, even faster than English songs.

No matter how hard she concentrated, she couldn’t keep up with the dialogue.

So she kept rewinding, listening to each line a dozen times until she fully understood, before moving on.

Once she got into it, she lost track of time. By the time Mr. Zhang said he was finished, two hours had passed.

She looked up at her reflection in the mirror.

The movie was still playing, but for several seconds she didn’t come back to herself.

“Well?” Mr. Zhang asked, proud. “If I say my skills are second-best, no one on this street would dare claim first!”

Zhang Jingyu, who had just returned from playing basketball, glanced inside. The ball in his hand dropped to the floor with a clang.

His expression, besides a hint of amazement, was tinged with something twisted and odd.

After all these years in the salon, he had never seen a single haircut transform a pitiful top student into the very image of a campus princess.

While Mr. Zhang had been doing her hair, perhaps he’d asked her opinion; she’d been watching her movie, responding absently a couple of times…

Tang Yu fell silent.

“How lovely! This is the trendiest style for a young lady like you!” Mr. Zhang was thoroughly satisfied. “Your hair is thick, but the back was too badly damaged, so I extended it to your shoulders. The bits at your cheeks were uneven, so I cut them all to make a princess cut. You’ve got such beautiful features, let’s show off the lower half of your face—it’s stylish and striking!”

Her original straight bangs had been trimmed as well, revealing her bright eyes and delicate face.

Mr. Zhang grew more pleased the longer he looked.

“Isn’t it beautiful?” he boasted to his son.

Zhang Jingyu touched his nose, blushing, unable to stop himself from stealing another glance.

Before, Tang Yu’s hair had been long and thick, always covering her face as she buried herself in workbooks; he’d never really seen what she looked like.

Now, with this hairstyle and her cool-toned dress…

She looked both pure and world-weary.

She was beautiful.

So beautiful it was hard to look away.

How had he never noticed Tang Yu’s potential before? No wonder Zhou Xunwen always hovered around her…

Zhang Jingyu was certain that, come Monday’s flag ceremony, she would astonish everyone.

Since things had come to this, Tang Yu exhaled and quietly looked away from the mirror.

“Uncle, how much is it?”

Hair extensions were expensive—she was prepared to be overcharged.

But Mr. Zhang waved it off. “You’re Jingyu’s classmate; Uncle won’t take your money!”

“That’s not right. Please treat me as a regular customer,” Tang Yu said.

“To be honest, Uncle only designed this style for you because of what you went through. Normally, I just do what the customer asks, no advice given. So don’t be so polite—I just wanted to help.”

He couldn’t even imagine how he would feel if his own son went through school bullying, let alone a girl.

But Tang Yu didn’t like owing favors and insisted on paying.

In the end, Mr. Zhang’s eyes lit up with an idea.

“How about this: photocopy your notes for my son. He’s never been able to improve his grades, but your notes are worth more than any haircut.”

Zhang Jingyu nodded eagerly. “Tang Yu, lend me all your notes so I can copy them! And how do you do those math problems? That last big question was impossible—I didn’t even know where to start, and you got full marks!”

He looked at her with an expression that said, “Are you even human?”—but full of admiration as well. “Tell me how you figured it out, how you thought to use those formulas. If you explain it, that’ll be payment for the haircut!”

Seeing his son so enthusiastic, Mr. Zhang chimed in, insisting on taking no money.

Finally, Tang Yu agreed.

After all, saving money was never a bad thing.

But her notes were in the classroom; she’d have to wait until Monday to bring them for copying.

Mr. Zhang, worried about the noise downstairs, let them go up to the second floor to review the problems.

It was Zhang Jingyu’s room, not too big or small, with a messy bed taking up much of the space.

A few basketballs rolled on the floor, and the desk was piled high with study materials.

He hurriedly stuffed the scattered clothes on the bed into the blanket, cleared off the desk, and made space for her.

Tang Yu sat on the stool he handed over, her skirt spread neatly over her knees, and opened his math exam: 110 out of 150.

She focused intently, explaining each step in detail. She first broke down the problem, explained her method, and when she saw he couldn’t follow, tried several different approaches.

In the end, she even summarized the general strategy for such questions.

Zhang Jingyu, chin in hand, finished listening, feeling enlightened—she explained it even better than the teachers.

Ms. Hou was proud and only sketched out the main idea; Sun Xuemin was impatient and only taught the solution matching the answer key.

“Your math is amazing, Tang Yu! Why don’t you compete in the math contests? You’d get extra credit for the college entrance exam!”

Tang Yu’s lips twitched slightly. “I registered. I just didn’t join the training after talking with Ms. Hou.”

“You registered? Wang Qing said you didn’t.”

“I wasn’t planning to, but changed my mind later,” she replied.

While in the hospital, Ms. Hou had called again, encouraging her to take the mock exam, and Tang Yu had agreed.

“Then I wish you luck,” Zhang Jingyu smiled.

“Thank you.” The explanation finished, Tang Yu stood, her skirt falling smoothly. “I’ll be going now.”

At the door, Zhang Jingyu suddenly called after her, “Tang Yu.”

She turned, puzzled.

Zhang Jingyu scratched his head awkwardly, eyes darting. “Actually, I saw Meng Shirui and Liu Yaojie bullying you in the hallway before, but I was afraid of trouble and pretended not to see. I’m sorry.”

Tang Yu was silent for a moment, then said quietly, “It’s all right.”

“Can I…ask you for help with problems in the future?”

She saw no ill will in his eyes, her lips moved, “You can.”

Zhang Jingyu grinned sheepishly.

Seventeen or eighteen, at an age as blank as a sheet of paper—leaving aside the Meng Shiruis of the world, most people were like this.

To do no harm was already the greatest kindness.

He walked her downstairs.

Standing at the door of the salon, Tang Yu looked up at the bright moon, her beautiful eyes gleaming, her mood particularly clear.

She couldn’t quite say why, but it felt as if she was finally becoming a normal person.

Someone who could stroll around after school, go shopping with friends, then stop at a snack stall for a bowl of fish balls.

No longer trembling with anxiety, no longer afraid of being dragged into an alley to face unknown terrors.

Just like now, gradually dissolving into the ordinary fireworks of daily life.

Perhaps her heart was too peaceful, and suddenly she thought of Bian Yang.

She thought of the English songs he’d recommended to her.

The photos he’d sent her of Qingbei University.

The seaside and the sunset.

Bian Yang had said he wanted to translate the world as he saw it for her.

And also…

“Moonquake.”

She gazed at the moon, unconsciously murmuring the word.

It was said that the moon experiences about a thousand major moonquakes each year—tremors that go unnoticed by those on Earth who gaze up at it.

Just like now—my heart is trembling, but these quakes in my heart, you will never know.