Chapter 22: Yuting’s overwhelming desire to protect

True gold fears no fire, and the same goes for friendship.

When Lin You lost his disguise of darkness, the thing he had feared did not happen.

Yuting didn’t mind the flaw in the boy’s appearance.

If anything, the boy’s true face made their short-lived friendship even stronger.

Yuting was the kind of girl who talked more and more the more familiar she got with someone.

During the day, she had seen Yuxiu leading Lin You down the second-floor hallway.

Extremely curious about what they were doing, the girl directly asked Lin You, the person involved.

“Classmate Zhong was taking me to see the teacher.”

When Lin You mentioned Zhong Yuxiu, his cheerful mood cooled slightly.

Of course, it wasn’t that he disliked Yuxiu, but because during the seat change, he hadn’t been able to stand firm with her and had chosen to back down.

It felt as if he had betrayed Yuxiu.

“Wow, what for?”

Yuting was shocked. In her worldview, not being called out and criticized by the teacher was a good thing. She would never seek out a teacher on her own.

“It was nothing, just a small matter.”

Lin You deliberately tried to hide it, to prevent Yuting from getting angry after learning he had been bullied.

After spending a few days with her, he had already discovered that Yuting was the type of girl who was easily driven by impulse.

If he told her he was being bullied by Zhang Chunli and the others, Yuting might just roll up her sleeves and go beat up that group of bad girls at school tomorrow.

The boy hadn’t even told his dearest grandmother, let alone his good friend.

“Oh, I see. So what’s the relationship between you, Ah You, and this Classmate Zhong?”

Yuting’s attention shifted from the teacher to Zhong Yuxiu.

“We were deskmates… no, we’re classmates.”

Hearing Yuxiu’s name made Lin You’s mood sour a little.

“She didn’t bully you, did she?”

Yuting continued to press.

Invisibly, a strong protective instinct for the boy had developed within her.

“Classmate Zhong is a very nice person, she didn’t bully me. Yuting, you don’t have to worry.”

Lin You quickly shook his head in denial.

“Good for her. Whoever dares to bully Ah You will have to answer to my iron fist first!”

Yuting was slightly relieved. Then, she puffed out her chest, raised her arm, and struck a cute muscle-flexing pose.

“By the way, Ah You, don’t you know that boys and girls shouldn’t be so familiar? You can’t let a girl hold your hand just like that.”

The image of Lin You and Yuxiu holding hands was vivid in her mind, and Yuting was super concerned about it. She found a reasonable excuse to remind him.

“I guess you’re right…”

His grandmother had taught him about this too, and Lin You had common sense.

But, as Yuting was saying this, did she not realize that one of her own little hands was still holding the boy’s?

“I’m different! I’m Ah You’s good friend. It’s normal for good friends to hold hands.”

Yuting noticed the subtle change in the boy’s expression and immediately declared her double standard.

“Mhm!”

Lin You didn’t dislike having his hand held, whether it was by Yuting or Yuxiu.

Their hands were small, soft, and tender. Although they didn’t bring the same sense of security as his grandmother’s large hand, they let the boy know that not all of his peers disliked him.

“Hehehe, speaking of which, Ah You is also a student at Baiyun Elementary! Where do you live? Let’s go to school together tomorrow?”

Yuting giggled sweetly, having come up with a great idea.

“No, thank you. I like to go to school alone.”

Lin You imagined the scene. Yuting would definitely be laughed at for walking with him.

“Yuting, during the day, just pretend you don’t know me.”

Without giving Yuting a chance to speak, he quickly made a well-intentioned request.

“Why? Aren’t we good friends?”

Hearing this, Yuting’s first reaction was unhappiness.

In her innocence, she couldn’t immediately understand the boy’s intentions.

“People hate me. If you get too close to me, Yuting, you’ll be dragged down too.”

Lin You cared deeply about this friendship, so of course, he would explain his motives clearly.

“I’m not afraid!”

After understanding the boy’s good intentions, Yuting was incredibly moved and immediately patted her flat little chest to state her position.

“But I am. I don’t want to ruin Yuting’s perfectly good life. That’s not what a friend should do, right?”

The soft-spoken boy became a little bit firm. He was adamant about not wanting to drag Yuting down.

“Hey, Ah You…”

It was the first time Yuting had seen the boy so serious. For a moment, she was at a loss, and her resolve began to waver.

“Yuting, just promise me. We’ll be good friends at night, and during the day… we’ll just pretend we don’t know each other!”

Lin You pleaded with the girl again and again to agree to his proposal.

“Then… alright then.”

Yuting found she had no resistance to the boy at all and agreed in a daze.

“Yuting, thank you! You’re the best!”

With the matter settled, Lin You finally breathed a sigh of relief.

He had gained a friendship without dragging Yuting down. To him, it was the best of both worlds.

“Hehe, you’re welcome. It’s a… a small thing.”

The boy was happy, and Yuting followed suit with a silly grin.

“It seems to be getting late. Yuting, you should go home.”

The girl’s mind was completely focused on interacting with the boy, paying no attention to the time at all. It was now 10:05 PM, and it was Lin You who had to persuade her to go home.

“Alright then, I’ll go home first. Remember to meet at the park tomorrow night!”

The girl was reluctant to leave. Before going, she insisted on setting a time for their next meeting.

“Bye-bye!”

The boy walked her part of the way, seeing Yuting to a well-lit area before they waved goodbye to each other.

‘This is so nice. It turns out that besides Grandma, there are people who don’t hate the way I look…’

Tonight’s snakeskin bag wasn’t as full of spoils as usual, but Lin You had gained a friendship that he wanted to cherish for a lifetime.

He didn’t linger any longer and happily went home.

At Yuting’s house.

Her parents wore serious expressions. Mother Xu was even holding a clothes hanger in her hand.

“Where did you go so late at night, you little devil?”

Mother Xu yelled at her daughter who had gone missing.

“Dad…”

Yuting, caught red-handed, tried to call for her father’s support.

“Hurry up and explain yourself to your mother.”

Father Xu usually doted on his daughter, but Yuting’s behavior this time was too dangerous to be condoned any longer.

“Hmph, I’ll go wherever I want!”

In Yuting’s heart, confessing would be a betrayal of her friendship with the boy.

So, the girl gritted her teeth and decided to resist to the end.

“Ouch, ow, ow…”

The consequence of this was being forcefully held down on her mother’s lap, the clothes hanger coming down on her little bottom in a flurry of smacks.

“I’d rather die than tell! This is a secret between me and Ah You!”

Even with tears welling up in her eyes from the pain, Yuting persisted, her face practically screaming “loyalty.”

“If you sneak out to play with your friends at night again, I’ll smack your bottom raw.”

Mother and Father Xu had already guessed that their troublemaking daughter had probably gone out to play with friends.

“Sob, it hurts so much. But I didn’t sell out Ah You. Hehe, if Ah You finds out, he’ll definitely praise me for being so tough.”

That night, Yuting slept with her bottom facing the ceiling.