TFSRITA Chapter 142

The four of them smiled broadly, exchanging a look before Dong Meng said, “Oh, and an apology—this is what we managed to gather from our allowance this week. We hope you like it.”

Saying that, they awkwardly handed over a gift box.

The box was square, neatly wrapped with a bow.

Yan Qing eagerly untied the string and opened the flaps of the box in front of their expectant eyes. The top lid lifted to reveal a beautifully crafted cake inside.

There was nothing written on it, just a large cake with a sweet cream aroma filling the room instantly.

Yan Qing glanced at the four girls, all smiling with a hint of ingratiation.

“Hope you like it,” Dong Meng whispered.

They had taken their time selecting the gift, eventually deciding on a cake because they figured Yan Qing must have had few birthdays given her circumstances. They initially considered writing “happy birthday” on it, but didn’t want to upset Yan Qing, so they refrained.

They weren’t wrong.

Before turning eight, the original owner had grown tired of cakes. After eight, she could rarely get one, as no one remembered her birthday. Even as a child, she wondered why her uncles and aunts had turned so quickly, from smiling faces to demons.

She knew not to ask. Whenever she did, even if she could get money in return, she would end up beaten because they said she didn’t deserve their money—she had no parents.

So she would just scavenge for scraps during Wei Jun, Yan Yue, and Yan Peng’s birthdays, eating whatever they didn’t want.

Yan Qing felt a pang of sadness. The original owner’s aunt issues stemmed from her not being able to afford sanitary pads, so she scrimped on her meager savings. If she used them all up, getting more money next time would be even harder.

Yan Qing got up.

The four girls instinctively stepped back a bit.

She chuckled. “I’m not going to lash out randomly, don’t worry. Let’s cut the cake and eat it together, okay?”

“Sure, sure!” the four girls quickly nodded, all wearing bright, youthful smiles.

The mid-term exam results came out on the first day of school at noon.

Most students were eagerly awaiting them.

Except… Yan Qing’s class.

It didn’t matter to them—they were always at the bottom of the rankings, what was there to look forward to?

But Yan Qing was still hopeful. She wanted to see if she had made any progress. After finishing lunch, she rushed to the classroom, dodging a boy who tried to confess to her along the way and arrived at the classroom door to see the rankings posted.

When she looked, Yan Qing couldn’t hide her joy—she had indeed improved!

It showed: [Yan Qing, Class rank 26, Grade rank 652].

With over 1,300 students in the grade, the original owner’s scores had always hovered in the thousandth range, with dreadful marks.

This time, though the scores were still far from perfect, at least Yan Qing passed the Chinese language exam! The other scores had also improved by around thirty points each, making for a substantial overall gain.

“Yan Qing, you’ve made great progress. Keep it up!” Mr. Zhang, their homeroom teacher, walked over, turning back when he saw Yan Qing checking the scores. He patted her on the shoulder and praised her, “If there’s anything you don’t understand, just come to the office and ask. Don’t spend all your time on your phone, and don’t waste class time either. Also, I’m planning to move you to a new spot—it’s time to sit a bit more centrally.”

Yan Qing nodded naturally. “Thank you, Teacher, but my scores haven’t quite caught up yet. I use my phone to ask my tutor questions. Once I catch up, I’ll pay more attention in class.”

Mr. Zhang understood, nodding thoughtfully—no wonder she had only gotten the basic questions right this time, missing the slightly more challenging ones.

But the seat change would still happen.

The usual practice was to switch seats every month, though most students preferred to stay put.

This time, Mr. Zhang moved Yan Qing to a central position, recognizing the rarity of a student willing to study. It was an opportunity he didn’t want to miss.

A few days later, Yan Qing received a call from Chu Zhao.

She was in class at the time.

Typically, Chu Zhao only called in the evenings during the first month, seemingly aware she was in class during the day.

This time, seeing the incoming call and then looking up at the teacher at the front of the class, Yan Qing raised her hand.

“Yan Qing? Do you have a question?” the English teacher asked with a smile.

Yan Qing apologized and stood up. “I have something I need to take care of, so I need to step out for a moment. I’m sorry, Teacher.” She didn’t wait for the teacher’s approval but went out immediately.

The classmates stared at her as if she were a monster.

No matter how little they attended class, they wouldn’t just walk out in the middle of a lecture like that—so disrespectful to the teacher.

The English teacher’s expression darkened momentarily, but she managed to maintain a stern tone. “Keep going with the lesson!”

“…” the students exchanged glances.

In the hallway, Yan Qing was already outside answering the call. “Chu Zhao? Why are you calling at this hour?”

A delicate, soft voice came through, but the background noise, along with Zhou Huaiya’s frantic cries, made it all chaotic.

“Zhao Zhao, stay calm, Mom’s here!”

“Chu Zhao, listen, I can hear Qing Qing’s voice…”

Yan Qing responded quickly, trying to match the calm tone. “Chu Zhao, can you hear me? Chu Zhao? Please respond…”

She kept her voice steady, not wanting to scare him.

But the noise continued.

Suddenly, a scream rang out, Zhou Huaiya shouting, “You can’t play with this!”

Yan Qing’s heart sank.

The phone was useless when it came to Chu Zhao.

She hung up and walked away.