Lost, Then Cherished

Lu Jingyao entered the dorm feeling dejected, disturbing Liu Muhan who was about to fall asleep on the bunk above.

"Lu Jingyao, there's a letter for you," she mumbled. "I put it under your quilt."

"Oh, thanks!"

Lu Jingyao sobered up a bit and retreated to her own bed, not wanting anyone to see her vulnerability.

However, Liu Muhan sensed something was amiss. She poked half her body out from under her quilt, her head extending over the edge of her bunk like a curious cat.

"What's wrong, Jingyao jie? Are you not feeling well?"

"No,"

Lu Jingyao quickly wiped the tears from her face with her quilt, trying to hide them from Liu Muhan.

But just as Liu Muhan's head was about to retract, Lu Jingyao suddenly thought of something.

"Muhan, can you lend me twenty yuan?"

"Twenty yuan?"

Liu Muhan blinked in surprise, sat up, grabbed her coat, and started fumbling through her wallet.

As she searched, she asked, "Jingyao jie, what do you need twenty yuan for? Is there an emergency at home?"

"No, it's... it's for our literature club's dinner. I want to pay Qian Shun back as soon as possible."

Lu Jingyao hesitated before telling Liu Muhan the truth, omitting the part about Qian Shun's drunken outburst.

Liu Muhan paused her search for a moment, then pulled out twenty yuan and handed it to Lu Jingyao.

"Thank you, Muhan. I'll pay you back as soon as I can."

"You don't need to rush to pay me back, but there are a few things I need to tell you."

Liu Muhan said earnestly, "Jingyao jie, we've entered the adult world now. We can't easily trust people like we did as teenagers.

This society is very complicated. Some people might seem nice to you, but they might not have good intentions. Some people might seem mean, but they might not have any malice."

Lu Jingyao didn't quite understand and asked sheepishly, "Muhan, what do you mean by that?"

Liu Muhan shook her head helplessly. "Jingyao jie, think about He Xue and the others. Did they ever offer you any substantial help? And what about your ex-boyfriend? What kind of support did he give you?

Any insincere affection can't withstand the test of material things. Don't belittle those who have sacrificed for you just because of a few words of 'concern' from so-called close friends who only know how to talk.

Do you know that He Xue and the others just wanted to laugh at you!"

Liu Muhan finished in one breath and then retreated back into her warm quilt.

But Lu Jingyao's mood couldn't calm down for a long time.

"Laugh at me? Aren't I a joke today?"

Lu Jingyao felt a pang of sadness. Today, she had wanted to quietly borrow money from He Xue and the others to pay the bill, to maintain her pride, which she valued most.

But He Xue had startled everyone and let slip the news, making everyone aware of Lu Jingyao's embarrassing poverty.

Although He Xue later apologized profusely to Lu Jingyao, claiming it was unintentional, was it truly unintentional?

Recalling what happened a few months ago when they first arrived at university, Lu Jingyao already had an answer in her heart.

When they first arrived at university, everyone was chattering and close, like sisters.

But soon, a subtle rift began to appear.

Liu Muhan came from a wealthy family. Not only were her daily necessities complete, but many of them were genuine "high-end" items.

Lu Jingyao was sensitive and self-reliant, rarely touching others' belongings. However, He Xue and the others were casual, often taking things and using them freely.

At first, Liu Muhan didn't pay much attention. But when He Xue repeatedly took Liu Muhan's soap, shampoo, and face cream and gave them to senior students in the student union in the bathhouse, Liu Muhan became displeased.

The seemingly delicate girl from Jiangnan was actually quite firm in her opinions. It was one thing to let dorm mates use her things, but to take her belongings to save face and curry favor? Did she have no shame?

But He Xue was unconcerned. She had a huge argument with Liu Muhan, calling her "stingy" and "snobbish," and swore to compensate Liu Muhan double.

But months have passed, and Lu Jingyao hadn't seen He Xue compensate Liu Muhan for the items.

Even if a bar of soap was expensive, it wouldn't cost more than one or two yuan. Could He Xue really not afford it?

Yet today, the "stingy" Liu Muhan had readily lent Lu Jingyao twenty yuan. He Xue, knowing full well Lu Jingyao's family was poor, had insisted she treat them.

"Sigh~~"

Lu Jingyao sighed and took out her letters from under her quilt.

[There are three letters?]

Lu Jingyao looked at them. There was one from her brother, one from Xia Yue, and one from Li Ye.

After a moment's thought, she opened her brother's letter first.

After reading Lu Zixue's letter in one go, Lu Jingyao was filled with worry.

Even separated by a thousand miles, she could feel her brother's resentment and grievance at that moment. However, Lu Jingyao felt powerless to address this resentment and grievance.

This matter was both easy and difficult. If she could buy Lu Zixue a bicycle, his predicament could be resolved immediately.

But who could give her a bicycle? And a Phoenix brand one at that?

There was no one else besides Li Ye.

The last time Lu Jingyao wrote to Li Ye, she asked him to return the Phoenix bicycle to Lu Zixue first, and she would pay for it slowly.

At the time, she thought this was a good plan, but after today's events, Lu Jingyao's resolve wavered.

For just thirty yuan, Qian Shun wanted to "take a walk together" with her in the dark.

Then how much was Li Ye's 26 Phoenix bicycle?

With a ticket, it was over 160 yuan, and without a ticket, you couldn't even buy it for 200 yuan.

Two hundred yuan was an astronomical sum for the Lu family.

Why should she give it to you?

Did you let him put his arm around your waist? Did you play hide-and-seek with him under the covers?

Li Ye doesn't owe you anything.

"Sigh~"

Lu Jingyao sighed again and opened Xia Yue's letter.

Lu Jingyao felt very close to this former best friend. They had similar personalities, both came from humble backgrounds, both were confident and self-reliant, and both yearned for freedom in the future.

In the past, they had encouraged and supported each other mentally, getting through the most difficult times together.

But after Lu Jingyao finished reading Xia Yue's letter, she couldn't help but stare blankly for a long time.

[That well-connected person, Li Ye, got into the fast track class through the back door.]

[That well-connected person, Li Ye, complained and got me removed as class monitor.]

[That dog landlord, Li Ye, is secretly cramming English. I suspect he'll still come to the Capital City to bother you in the future.]

In the entire four pages of letter paper, Lu Jingyao didn't feel any "self-reliance" or "confidence." Instead, it was filled with the same "resentment" and "grievances" as her own younger brother.

However, what Lu Jingyao cared about was not Xia Yue's resentment and grievances, but Li Ye's rapid improvement in English.

"His English has already surpassed Xia Yue's. Will he really be able to get into the Foreign Studies Institute next year?"

"If Li Ye can get into the Foreign Studies Institute, then Father's promise back then... should I accept it? Should I fulfill it?"

Lu Jingyao's father had promised Li Ye in front of the neighbors, "If you can get into university, I won't stop your relationship."

At that time, Lu Jingyao was very angry, thinking her father had been forced to compromise and back down.

But now, it seemed her father was the one who truly understood the world and was a master strategist.

If Li Ye were to come to the Foreign Studies Institute next year, wouldn't their relationship naturally be restored?

Thinking of this, Lu Jingyao suddenly felt ashamed, feeling a bit... shameless.

But faintly, she also felt a sense of anticipation.

If Li Ye were around, would people like Qian Shun dare to treat her like that just now?

Although Li Ye was a bit simple-minded, his fists were not ordinarily hard.

Moreover, Li Ye's handsomeness alone was enough to make countless suitors feel inferior and retreat.

Li Ye didn't understand literature or poetry, but he was a college student!

The radiance of a college student was enough to overshadow countless flaws and make him an equal match for her.

"Huh?"

With a sense of anticipation, Lu Jingyao opened Li Ye's letter, only to find her own original letter from a few days ago inside.

After carefully examining it, Lu Jingyao finally saw Li Ye's reply written on the back of the letter paper.

Then, Lu Jingyao was completely stunned.

Li Ye's fierce words and resolute questioning caught Lu Jingyao off guard, leaving her at a loss.

And Li Ye's last sentence was like a basin of cold water, drenching Lu Jingyao from head to toe.

[Since you chose to pursue your freedom, why do you still interfere in my life? Why do you ask me to be magnanimous and give the bicycle to your brother?]

[Let's not contact each other anymore. Swans that have flown into the sky should not harass frogs at the bottom of the well. Even if he becomes a prince one day, it will have nothing to do with you.]

After a long while, Lu Jingyao murmured to herself, "He actually... hates me this much..."

A strong sense of loss welled up from the depths of her heart, quickly spreading throughout her body.

You don't know what you've got until it's gone. Some things, once missed, will never come back.