"Hiss——" Wang Chen took a breath of cold air.
Whether it was the fact that Tang Ruotong had hated him or the fact that she said this in a plain tone, he didn't know how to deal with it.
After a moment of silence, he asked: "Can you tell me why you hated me before?"
Tang Ruotong's fingers were knotted at the corners of his clothes, "Do you still remember what happened when you first entered school?"
"That was the first class quiz. Our rankings were very close. You were fifth from the bottom and I was sixth from the bottom."
Wang Chen was startled and said in a lower tone, "Remember."
How could you not remember? His academic performance was once his only pride. Faced with all the difficulties and bleakness of life, he was able to hold on to the few hopes in his hands and build up the confidence to support himself.
But after he was promoted to No. 1 Middle School, his only remaining support was crushed into powder.
When I think about those days now, I still feel gloomy and dull.
"After one semester, you are number one in the class. After one year, you are number one in grade." Tang Ruotong said.
"You hate me just because I don't want to be the tailgater with you?" Wang Chen joked.
"No, I just planted a little seed of disgust at that time, and more of I envied you." Tang Ruotong looked at him, "I really hate you, starting from that group assignment in the second semester."
Wang Chen was stunned, and after recalling for a moment, he finally remembered, "Is it that assignment of researching ferocious beasts and submitting a log?"
"Yes." Tang Ruotong looked into space, as if lost in memories, "Each group has three to five people. The workload of that homework is not small. This configuration is the best way to ensure the quality of the homework without falling behind on your own homework. .”
"Everyone quickly formed a team with their friends, including me. Only one person was left unaccounted for," Tang Ruotong said.
Wang Chen smiled bitterly when he heard this: "That person is me."
At the beginning of the second school year, he swept the entire No. 1 Middle School with a counterattack, becoming a frequent guest on the praise list and a student praised by teachers.
But at the same time, because of Wang Chen's overly diligent study attitude, other students were regarded as lazy and ignorant in the eyes of the teacher. He received a wave of cold hostility from his classmates, intentionally or unintentionally.
Among them, it was Cai Kun who took the lead in isolating Wang Chen.
"At that time, I was a little lucky. I was lucky that I was not crowded and isolated by the group like you. I was lucky that I found a group of people who were willing to accept me."
Tang Ruotong's tone remained calm, as if he was telling someone else's story.
"At the same time, I am laughing at you from the bottom of my heart, at your desperate attitude, at your failure to blend in with others, at your... lack of flattery."
Her tone finally got a little ups and down, "It seems that I finally proved that what I did was right. It was meaningful for me to endure and obey the soft bullying of the small group of girls. This prevented me from becoming like you. situation."
"At that time, I prayed in my heart: Wang Chen, please be cowardly and beg for mercy! Please collapse! Please be weak, so that my ugly appearance will not be so conspicuous..."
Tang Ruotong's clothes had been rubbed into knots by her, "But you didn't. You still look like you can't be beaten no matter what."
"You stand up from your seat and tell the teacher that you want to be in a group by yourself. The teacher says that it will put a lot of pressure on you, but you say it doesn't matter. You will complete the homework on time and to the highest standard."
Tang Ruotong bit the corner of his mouth and looked at Wang Chen, with mist in his eyes, "You did it, at the expense of the dark circles hanging under your eyes every day, and at the expense of only leaving yourself ten minutes for lunch break."
Wang Chen observed Tang Ruotong's face, wanting to know more about the girl's thoughts. He didn't know that she had been paying attention to him silently before.
"Your assignment was displayed on the screen by the teacher. He praised you. He said that your assignment was far superior to other groups in terms of breadth and depth. It doesn't look like an assignment done by one person."
"But you still look calm and relaxed, with a smile hanging on the corner of your mouth, as if you have never experienced any difficulties, as if you can do this as a matter of course."
Tang Ruotong's volume got louder and louder.
"At that time, I finally understood that in your eyes, there were no things that I cared about. In your eyes, there was no choice to sink. You would just march forward with great joy, regardless of any slackness or hesitation. "
Two tears fell on her cheeks, "From that time on, Wang Chen, I hate you! I hate your efforts, your persistence, your attitude of never giving in, and your aloof expression! "
Tang Ruotong cried, "Why do you have to be like the sun? Once you rise, I can no longer turn a blind eye to my own weakness! I am like a muddy puddle, destined to be evaporated by your brilliance and sink under the water." The dirt is clearly visible.”
Wang Chen remained silent. Faced with a girl's worries that spanned hundreds of days and nights, he could only remain silent.
"You probably wouldn't notice my dark thoughts, right? You might even think I'm unreasonable, right?" She finally cried, "Isn't it? You will just keep moving forward, with the most proud attitude, Crush all the people and things that have defeated me until you reveal the servile me underneath, then judge me and cut thousands of knives on my body with your noble eyes!"
She stared at Wang Chen, her stubborn eyes making him feel a little familiar. He had seen such unwillingness in the mirror a while ago.
They just stared at each other, neither of them looking away.
After a long time, Tang Ruotong turned his face away, wiped away the tears from the corners of his eyes, and continued:
"I'm afraid of that day, of the sun's final judgment on the dirty puddles."
"But it didn't come."
"On the day of the awakening ceremony, you awakened the auxiliary profession, Life Shaman. The sun that makes me breathless seems to be about to set."
"But you know? I didn't feel happy at that time, and there was no joy in my heart for your frustration." Tang Ruotong's side face showed a trace of sadness, "I just felt that my heart was blocked, as if there was something very important. Things are lost and empty.”
"Even though I awakened the rare professional Holy Shield Knight, that huge feeling of emptiness still enveloped me."
"It turns out that even if it is evaporated, the dirty puddle will still want the sun to rise."
"It wasn't until I saw your back outside the Six-Tailed Poison Centipede King's lair that everything turned around."
"I'm not sure it's you. I'm worried that my expectations will be disappointed."
"But this place is still filled with joy little by little." Tang Ruotong touched his heart, "When the moment the record of the virtual realm is broken by you, it will cheer for a long time..."
Tang Ruotong said with a smile, "The sun has risen as usual."
