Green Tea Beauty

The boy laid on the ground in a state of embarrassment, with his elbows propped on the hard ground. The pain he felt was severe, not to mention how uncomfortable it was to be beaten in the face by Chi Xing.

     He was truly scared, especially after seeing the knife in Chi Xing's hand and looking at him as if he was looking at a lifeless dead man. He had no doubt that Chi Xing would really stab him.

     Even his breathing became slightly heavier.

     Hearing a slight noise, he raised his head and saw a pair of small black leather shoes with a pair of tube socks above on a pair of slender fair legs under a pleated school uniform skirt. Her hair hung straight down with uniform bangs on the forehead. Her eyes are also very big and have long eyelashes.

     It was Lin Shi Cha.

     "Can you give me back the medicine?" The boy heard Lin Shi Cha ask so softly.

     The boy covered his aching stomach kicked by Chi Xing with one hand as he trembled uncontrollably with the other hand and returned the medicine.

     Lin Shi Cha usually treats everyone's gossip with an indifferent attitude, which is why everyone started to feel emboldened.

     They thought that Lin Shi Cha would still say nothing this time, but it turned out not to be so.

     Everyone saw that Lin Shi Cha handed that boy a clean tissue and then slowly straightened up: "You guessed right, I do indeed have a disease... but it's not a recent disease, I've been ill ever since I was a child. "

     As soon as this remark came out, the noise in the class suddenly fell silent.

     Chi Xing tried to stop her. He was both peeved and maddened, "ChaCha!"

     Lin Shi Cha shook her head. She looked around at the students: "Speaking of which, I have only been classmates with everyone for a year and a half and we have also only known each other for a year and a half. Although this time is short, I thought I should cherish it. That's why I proposed to leave the hospital and return to the school campus."

     "Unfortunately, I might have much time with everyone anymore. Next semester, I probably won't be able to study in class… …" Lin Shi Cha's voice was extremely soft. Speaking to here, she paused for a second, then smiled: "That's why I thought this time was precious and I don't want to argue with anybody."

     In a classroom full of silence, a girl asked tremblingly: "What-what do you mean you won't be able to study next semester?"

     "Ah..." Lin Shi Cha repeated herself as she pursed her lips and smiled, blinking her eyes: "Because the doctor told me that I won't survive past this summer."

     Silence.

     Deathly silence.

     The pupils of the boy lying on the ground shrank violently. With still blood at the corner of his mouth, he stared incredulously at the smiling Lin Shi Cha: "What… …" He muttered to himself.

     Chi Xing glared at him: "Are you satisfied now?"

     At this time, there was a voice at the door. It was Shen Mo, "Huh? What's wrong?" He still didn't know what happened.

     Seeing the boy lying in front of Lin Shi Cha, he quickly ran over nervously to check her body, "ChaCha, how are you? Did he bully you? Do you feel uncomfortable anywhere??"

     "I'm fine." Lin Shi Cha grabbed his cuff to keep him still, "Don't be nervous." She reassured.

     Shen Mo was unhappy, mumbling as he set the snacks he had just bought for Lin Shi Cha on the table: "How can I not be nervous, it's not like you don't know your… …" Halfway through, Shen Mo stopped talking.

     After such a big event happened, the dean of teaching affairs arrived. Since it was the break between classes, there were many people outside the corridor, watching the excitement.

     The dean took a look and saw that the troublemaker was Chi Xing again: "Chi Xing, what did you do?!"

     The incident ended with Chi Xing being dragged to the office to write a self-reflection report.

     Everyone thought it was over for Chi Xing. As he had beaten him into a pig's head, it was not impossible for that boy to call the police. However, he remained silent and grimaced in pain when he was given the ointment, but didn't say anything. Instead, he was absent-minded the entire time.

     These two days, the atmosphere in the class had also become weird.

     With so many mouths, it was difficult to keep it a secret. It didn't take long for the news of Lin Shi Cha's illness to spread everywhere on the joint school forum.

     Bian Heng was very infuriated by this and even wanted to find trouble with that boy, but was stopped.

     An afternoon two days later.

     Under the glow of the sunset, Lin Shi Cha was going home, but was stopped by a girl with short hair reaching shoulders on the way. Her expression wasn’t very good, "Lin Shi Cha."

     Lin Shi Cha couldn't remember who she was: "Huh? You are… …?"

     It was Bian Heng who recognized her first, "It's you! What do you want to do?" He stared at the girl with an unkind expression.

     The female voice's shoulders trembled as she was about to cry, "I didn't mean to scold you that day, I'm sorry, I'm sorry." As soon as she said a few words of apology, she burst into tears.

     "I really didn't mean to say that about you. In fact, I am very jealous of you. You’ve received so many people’s likes, whileI would be rejected if I confessed to others. I felt uncomfortable, so I couldn't help scolding you with vicious words.”

     "I didn't know you were sick, I didn't know Chi Xing and them were just taking care of you. I’ve even maliciously speculated about your relationships. My thoughts are too dirty, I'm sorry... …I've been having nightmares and can't sleep these two days. I feel very very sorry and guilty."

     "I am sorry."

     She keeps repeating the three words 'I am sorry', as if nothing else can represent her mood at the moment except this sentence.

     This series of words finally reminded Lin Shi Cha who she was. She turned out to be the girl, who cursed her b*tch, in the school league that day.

     "It's embarrassing," the girl wiped her tears, "Why is my mouth so poisonous? That day I was almost beaten up by Chi Xing. Even I want to go back in time and beat myself up for making you sick and then hospitalized." As she spoke, she hiccuped non-stop, appearing quite pitiful.

     How vicious can children of this age be? Man on earth, good at birth; it is normal to have jealousy, but everyone was still kind in nature and will be frightened, guilty and remorseful because of Lin Shi Cha being hospitalized.

     She has also been suffering and decided to come over to apologize.

     Bian Heng was a little surprised. He flattened his lips and ignored her.

     Lin Shi Cha smiled, "It's okay, I forgot all about it." She asked again, "Who rejected you? I can help you chase him."

     The girl sniffled, then glanced at her with a sobbing tone, "No, what if he likes you?"

     This was also possible.

     Bian Heng: "... …"

     Lin Shi Cha grabbed Bian Heng's clothes, "Then I'll be leaving first, I’ve accepted your apology."

     As the girl walked back, she called her best friend crying: "She actually accepted my apology, and she accepted it so easily... hiccup... I feel a little uncomfortable... I mean, I feel a little bit sad... uncomfortable..."

     A voice came from the phone: "You’re uncomfortable, you still have a face to be uncomfortable? Did you even hear how ugly your curses were that day? If I wasn't your friend, I would blow your head off!"

     "Waaa, you’re scolding me." She burst out crying.

     On the way back, Bian Heng said: "ChaCha, you shouldn't spread this matter." He didn't want others to look at Lin Shi Cha with pity.

     Lin Shi Cha raised her head: "If I don't say anything, they will always think of you guys that way. It doesn't matter since I will die, but they will only remember you four like that."

     "I don't want this to be a stain on your history. You guys will all become excellent people in the future." Lin Shi Cha declared with a bright smile on her face.

     Bian Heng was dumbfounded. Unexpectedly, he couldn't think of any words to respond to Lin Shi Cha for a long time.

     Lin Shi Cha laughed, then she thought about it and spoke: "This entire time, I've always treated you guys pretty badly." She didn't continue, but Bian Heng understood what she wanted to say.

     "No, you are very kind to us." Bian Heng uttered firmly.

     A few days later, the class's attitude towards Lin Shi Cha changed at a speed visible to the naked eye. It wasn't that they suddenly liked Lin Shi Cha, but some changes in the details.

     Everyone took care of each other's self-esteem and wasn’t deliberate in being nice to others.

     Girls started to invite Lin Shi Cha to go to the bathroom between classes and go to the canteen to buy food together. Some girls also would ask Lin Shi Cha questions with their exam papers in distress. In fact, after a week, one or two girls invited Lin Shi Cha to hang out.

     Everyone kept silent about Lin Shi Cha’s illness like they didn't know about it.

     On a hot summer day, when Lin Shi Cha returned to class, she held a paper cup in her hand with a few skewers of Oden in it. This is a snack supplied by a lady boss of the school canteen and the response was quite good.

     She raised it up and shared one with Chi Xing and the others: "Eat quickly, the teacher will be here soon."

     "I want to eat the one you bit into." Chi Xing stared at the skewer in Lin Shi Cha's hand, the round ball was bitten into the shape of a crescent by her.

     Lin Shi Cha didn't refuse either, "There's only half." Lifting it to Chi Xing's mouth, Chi Xing swallowed it in one gulp and narrowed his eyes happily.

     Two minutes later, Chi Xing sat on his seat with a paper cup of Oden on his head and a big bump on his forehead.

     That was the result of eating what Lin Shi Cha had eaten, to be beaten by the other three.

     This class period was math. The math teacher came in and pushed up his glasses. First, he saw Chi Xing’s trio and Lin Shi Cha among them. He sighed countless times in his heart before giving in and starting the lecture.

     The short-haired boy sitting in the second row was the one who took Lin Shi Cha’s medicine bottle and made rude remarks on the podium. The bruises on his face from Chi Xing's beating had faded a little.

     He sat on his seat and awkwardly wrote a note to entrust someone to pass it on to Lin Shi Cha.

     He didn’t expect that it would be intercepted by Huo Yi Nan, who was next to him. Huo Yi Nan opened it up and lightly scanned, causing that boy to tremble.

     After he scribbled a few words, he tossed it back again.

     The boy opened it and took a look: Use your mouth.

     What he wrote on it was an apology to Lin Shi Cha. After all, he was a boy who wanted to save face. He truly had no guts and was also embarrassed to stand in front of Lin Shi Cha.

     Yet, Huo Yi Nan had already said so.

     After dawdling the entire afternoon to the school dismissal at night, he finally stood in front of Lin Shi Cha’s table: "That… …"

     Everyone in the classroom all glanced at this side, thinking the boy was going to say something improper to Lin Shi Cha again.

     Lin Shi Cha was packing her stationery bag, while Chi Xing, who was next to her, put the books in Lin Shi Cha's schoolbag and helped her organize her items: "What are you doing? Hurry up and speak up." He didn't even look at him, his tone impatient.

     The boy blushed, "I… …I'm sorry..." His voice became smaller and smaller.

     "Huh?" Chi Xing arched his eyebrows, glancing up and down at him: "Are you a man, can’t you speak louder?"

     He suddenly raised his voice, "I'm sorry! Classmate Lin Shi Cha! I lost my mind that day! In the future, if there is anything I can help you with, please let me redeem my sin!!!"

     With a jerk, he recited what he said on the note, as if he was reading an oath.

     Instantly muffled laughter spread in the classroom.





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Notes:
Man on earth, good at birth (人之初，性本善): The beginning of the “Three Character Classic”, which contains Confucianism beliefs for easier digression for children. Here is the entire English translation if anyone’s interested (the first line's translation is different from the one I used in the chapter)