Picked Up the Female Lead When She Was Young (GL) - Chapter 62

The child was in such a miserable situation, she definitely had to help.

Xia Wanshuang was soft-hearted, and she was genuinely afraid that Qing Luo would jump from the rooftop.

“I can help you hire a tutor.”

Qing Luo hadn’t expected Xia Wanshuang to say that.

Her face was stunned, and she didn’t know how to respond for a moment.

“I’m not a teacher. I struggle with my own studies, so I probably don’t have the ability to teach you. If you’re truly willing to study hard, then consider this me sponsoring you.”

The former excellent teacher smoothly told a harmless white lie, her tone gentle toward the girl in front of her.

She wouldn’t personally tutor this child.

First, there was the issue of time.

Second, she didn’t want Qing Luo to become dependent on her.

Third, and most importantly, she had a very possessive little jar of vinegar at home.

If that little girl knew she was personally tutoring Qing Luo, the house would surely explode.

“As long as you’re willing to study, after the college entrance exam, you should be an adult. Then you can go far away. They won’t have the right or the ability to restrain you.”

“The higher your score, the more choices you’ll have. You can go to any city you want. Degrees and scores don’t mean everything, but the more you accumulate, the higher you can climb.”

Xia Wanshuang used the word “as long as” twice, outlining a beautiful future for Qing Luo.

“You can get rid of everything you have now. It’s true that people can’t choose their birth, but that doesn’t mean you have to be trapped by it. You can’t choose the environment you’re born into, but you can absolutely decide what kind of life you live.”

Teacher Xia’s motivational class was in session.

She wasn’t just speaking pretty words; she was offering things that were genuinely tangible.

Xia Wanshuang was putting an opportunity right in front of Qing Luo, hoping she would seize it.

“Can it really be like you say?”

Qing Luo’s face held a hint of yearning, asking hesitantly.

“Yes. You have the courage to climb out here. What can’t you achieve?”

Xia Wanshuang reached out her hand.

She had a fear of heights and only dared to glance down from the 32nd floor.

Qing Luo, however, dared to cross the barrier, swinging her legs without support, letting the cold wind whip across her face.

If she had the courage not to fear death, what couldn’t she overcome?

Qing Luo placed her hand in Xia Wanshuang’s.

Her hand was icy cold; even a person with poor circulation like Xia Wanshuang was chilled by its temperature.

Qing Luo’s feet touched the ground, but she still felt unreal.

“If you can avoid going home, then don’t go back. I have an old house that you can stay in. If you have financial problems, you can come to me for help.”

“Are you this kind to everyone?”

Qing Luo looked at Xia Wanshuang, thinking vaguely that this person was far too unguarded.

She had wanted to gain some benefit, but she hadn’t thought it could truly happen.

“Of course not. But when I have the ability, and I can help, why wouldn’t I?”

All it took was this to save a life and rescue a person from misery.

“Aren’t you afraid I’m a bad person who’s lying to you?”

“I don’t believe I’d misjudge a person.”

Xia Wanshuang never promised kindness at the expense of others.

She didn’t think her actions were grand; she just felt that many people had hard lives, and if she could give them a better future, why not do it?

Planting good causes reaps good rewards—that was Xia Wanshuang’s belief.

Xia Wanshuang took two hundred yuan from her pocket and placed it in Qing Luo’s hand.

“Go find a cheap hotel for tonight. The exam is in a little over ten days. Come to my house tomorrow, and I’ll take you to the old house. Of course, you won’t live there for free. There’s one condition.”

“What condition?”

“Next time you come here, don’t put your legs over the edge.”

Qing Luo let out a soft laugh and nodded.

“Okay, I promise you.”

She really is a wonderful person.

Even with the wind blowing, she felt as if she were bathed in sunshine, warm and cozy.

The soft cake that emitted a sweet fragrance didn’t mind sharing its flowing honey with the insects it attracted.

The insect stood on the perimeter, clutching its gains, yet felt hesitant and reluctant to come closer, fearing its body would stain the cake.

Qing Luo walked downstairs with Xia Wanshuang and watched her walk farther and farther away at the entrance of the building.

Qing Luo then plunged into the light herself, walking forward relentlessly, then breaking into a jog.

It was as if by running, the darkness could not catch her.

••••

When Xia Wanshuang returned to the market, only one of the three old hens remained.

“You’re back, miss! Good thing you came quick. The other two were sold. I saved the one you wanted for you.”

“Great, thank you, Uncle. Please prepare it for me.”

Xia Wanshuang watched the boss kill and pluck the chicken, thinking this old hen would make a very nutritious soup.

She would slowly stew it, and they could eat hand-pulled noodles with the chicken soup tomorrow.

After buying the chicken, Xia Wanshuang bought some fruits and vegetables, put the bags on her scooter, and rode home.

She saw Zhou Qinglang anxiously waiting outside the apartment building entrance.

As soon as her scooter stopped, Zhou Qinglang rushed over to carry the bags.

“Why did you come out? It’s so cold outside.”

“Because you were gone for so long, Sister, and you wouldn’t answer my calls!”

Zhou Qinglang opened the door, letting Xia Wanshuang walk in, her tone full of resentment.

“You called me? My phone was in my pocket. I didn’t hear it while riding.”

“Then why did you come back so late this time?”

“I was delayed by something on the road.”

Xia Wanshuang went upstairs, took the groceries from Zhou Qinglang, and headed to the kitchen.

Zhou Qinglang followed closely, watching Xia Wanshuang prepare the ingredients.

“What delayed you? You didn’t go off being a hero, did you?”

Zhou Qinglang only meant it as a joke, but Xia Wanshuang hesitated for a moment.

“You could say that?”

“What do you mean, ‘you could say that’? Sister, you really did go off doing good deeds?”

Xia Wanshuang began telling her about meeting Qing Luo today.

As soon as she said the name, Zhou Qinglang yelled in shock, making Xia Wanshuang jump and almost drop the old hen.

“What did she say to you? Did she try to guilt-trip you?”

Zhou Qinglang’s hair stood on end when she heard that person’s name.

Her heart felt like it was on fire, and she paced frantically in the kitchen.

“You two really know each other?”

“I don’t know her!”

Zhou Qinglang was practically spitting out the words, her emotions running high.

“She’s actually having a pretty hard life.”

Xia Wanshuang briefly described what she had seen.

Zhou Qinglang’s frown deepened with every word.

She thought of what Qing Luo had said that day—that she was more unfortunate than Zhou Qinglang.

Zhou Qinglang almost wished she wasn’t so miserable.

Xia Wanshuang cleaned the chicken, stuffed seasoning packets into its cavity, and continued to talk about the rest of the encounter.

“What?!”

“She actually asked you to help her tutor? Sister, you didn’t agree, did you?”

“I agreed to help her hire a tutor. It’ll be a sponsorship.”

“Sister, you really said that?”

Zhou Qinglang suddenly brightened, leaning closer to Xia Wanshuang to confirm.

“Yes, why would I lie to you? My grades aren’t that great. If I taught her, you’d be a better tutor.”

“You can count me out of that.”

She was already working hard just to contain her temper around Qing Luo; tutoring her was out of the question.

She’d rather tutor the four bullies.

“Anyway, we’re financially comfortable and have some extra money, so let’s help her out. Classes with a tutor don’t cost too much. Oh, and I promised to let her temporarily stay in the old apartment in our complex.”

“Ah…”

Zhou Qinglang’s face fell again.

“Just think of it as a free tenant. We’ll do good deeds and pray for blessings for you. Our Langlang is the most generous, right?”

Xia Wanshuang wasn’t Buddhist, but she believed in karma.

She hoped that all the goodness she did would be blessed upon Zhou Qinglang, wishing her a smoother, easier path ahead—free of sickness and disaster, with everything going her way.

“Since Sister said so, let her stay. She’s getting off easy.”

That apartment had been rented out to several people.

Since Zhou Qinglang didn’t sense that Xia Wanshuang thought Qing Luo was special, she felt she had nothing to fuss about anymore.

She wants a benefit?

Fine, then I’ll give her some benefit.

“But Sister, please don’t get too close to her, okay? If you meet her again, you must tell me, or we’ll go together.”

Although their confrontation was brief, Zhou Qinglang was already clearly aware of Qing Luo’s talent for emotional manipulation.

If Qing Luo were to take things out of context and complain, Zhou Qinglang feared she might literally throw up from anger.

“Okay.”

Zhou Qinglang expected Xia Wanshuang to ask why, and she had the reason prepared, so she was momentarily stunned by the quick agreement.

“I thought Sister would ask me why.”

“Then, why?”

Xia Wanshuang poured clean water into the ceramic pot, agreeing to the question without looking up.

“I just… I just feel that person is very strange. She’s a quick-changing two-faced person. She seems like two different people in and out of school, and her emotions seem unstable. She gives me a very pathological feeling.”

Conclusion: seriously ill.

Pathological two-faced person with rapidly changing emotions, commented the quick-changing two-faced person, Student Zhou Langlang.

“She sees me as the only piece of driftwood in the sea right now, hoping to hold onto me to climb up. But I just want her to realize that she’s not actually in the sea; she’s only in a shallow pool. If she bravely swims forward for a bit, her feet can touch the ground. I’m just pointing out a path for her, not becoming her crutch. As for how she walks that path, that’s up to her.”

Xia Wanshuang turned on the gas stove and covered the pot of soup.

Her tone was calm, as if she had simply done an ordinary thing on an ordinary winter day.

Zhou Qinglang was influenced by her calm demeanor and slowly became peaceful.

This was what Xia Wanshuang had always taught her by example: Do good deeds; don’t ask about the future.

Zhou Qinglang thought with a touch of pride, The person I love is simply this wonderful!

“The soup will take a while. Are you hungry now?”

It was a little past four in the afternoon.

Xia Wanshuang was starting the soup early so they could enjoy it tonight.

“Not hungry yet.”

“Okay, I’ll start cooking rice and making dinner at 6:30.”

“Got it. Let’s go to the room. The living room is cold. I’ve finished my homework and am working on extra practice questions.”

Zhou Qinglang said, pulling Xia Wanshuang’s hand toward Xia Wanshuang’s room.

The door was closed, shutting out the cold wind.

Voices drifted out from the room, spreading softly into the air.

“Sister, I thought you’d be angry because I spoke badly about someone else.”

“Although judging prematurely isn’t good, I figure that anyone Langlang speaks badly about might genuinely be doing something wrong.”

People have self-interest.

While Xia Wanshuang didn’t advocate for prejudice, her blatant favoritism for Zhou Qinglang made her choose the child she loved.