The old wooden door was pushed open gently, letting out a piercing, unpleasant creak. Walking up the stairs ahead of Liu Yinuo, Ye Xingmian looked somewhat nervous. She stood at the doorway and said softly, “Class Monitor, this is my room.”
Liu Yinuo couldn’t help but frown.
Standing at the doorway, she was met with a thick, heavy smell of mold. The lighting inside was poor, and large shadows loomed amidst the piles of old furniture on both sides. Dim lighting, crude decor, and floors and walls that had fallen into disrepair—this was her first impression of this attic.
It was obvious that this family was using the space as a storage room. Either it had been a junk room before Ye Xingmian moved in, or they had started piling old furniture here over the last few years. Regardless, seeing the state of the place caused Liu Yinuo’s heart to suddenly tighten.
“Class Monitor… do you really want to come inside…?”
Listening to the girl’s humble inquiry beside her, Liu Yinuo took a deep breath. Although she had previously imagined that the girl’s living conditions might not be great, she never expected them to be this abysmal.
Exhaling, she tried her best to calm her emotions.
“Does Student Ye usually sleep here?”
“Um… it looks a bit messy from the outside, but it’s actually much better inside.” The girl lowered her head, feeling a deep sense of inferiority at having the Class Monitor see how crude her bedroom was.
“Then let’s go in.”
The two of them stepped further inside. Just as Ye Xingmian had said, the room looked much better from the interior. The space was wider, and the window facing the street provided good lighting. Additionally, because the girl seemed to clean regularly, there was no visible dust on the floor, making it a somewhat normal living space.
However, it was still quite sparse. Liu Yinuo didn’t even see a desk. Aside from a bed by the window and a solid wood wardrobe with peeling paint, there was no other furniture.
It truly shattered her worldview; she never imagined one of her own classmates lived in a place like this. Beyond the heartache, she felt a surge of anger.
To be honest, what Ye Xingmian’s foster parents were doing to her was bad enough, but she felt that the biological mother Ye Xingmian had mentioned—the one Lin Ziyan spoke of—was even worse. What kind of work could possibly keep someone so busy that they couldn’t come to see their own child once in nearly ten years? Did she not even know her child was being marginalized and bullied in a foster home, living in a place like this?
She felt a deep sense of loathing for that distant mother.
Ye Xingmian still had the scarf she had been gifted wrapped around her neck, her expression tense.
“Class Monitor, do you want to sit? I’ll go get a stool for you.”
One of the few benefits of living here was the abundance of old furniture. However, with the girl’s strength, she could only move small stools and the like. As for the heavy desks buried at the very bottom, she had neither the strength to move them nor the time to clear them out. Asking her foster parents for help would almost certainly result in a rejection; to them, if she had that kind of time, she should be doing more housework. As time passed, even though there were still some broken wooden tables that were usable, the girl never had the chance to clear them for use.
The girl pulled out the small stool she had sat on the previous night from the corner. She used a piece of tissue from her pocket to wipe it down meticulously before handing it to Liu Yinuo.
“Sorry, Class Monitor, I only have this kind of stool. It might be a bit wobbly…”
“It’s fine.” Shaking her head, Liu Yinuo took the stool and sat down near the bed, leaning against the bedframe to save her strength. She pulled her schoolbag from behind her and fished out the test papers she had prepared in advance.
Just as the girl had said, the small stool was very unstable. With even the slightest movement, it creaked and swayed, making one worry it might fall apart at any moment. The girl watched it with concern.
“Class Monitor… maybe we should go downstairs instead…”
“It’s okay. We have to head to class soon anyway, so we’ll stay for a bit and then head down. I’ll just ask you a few questions to get a sense of your progress. Have you reviewed this test paper yet?”
“No…”
“What about this one?”
“Um, I heard the teacher talk about this one before, but I didn’t really understand it…” The girl shook her head blankly.
“Then let’s start with this one.”
Liu Yinuo proceeded to ask several questions to gauge the parts the girl was missing. She frowned; there were a bit too many things she didn’t know. For a moment, she wasn’t sure where to begin the explanation.
Time ticked by, and before they knew it, it was almost time for class. Checking her phone, Liu Yinuo stood up.
“Student Ye, do you really not want to come to my house? Your foster parents treat you so poorly, so what are you gaining by staying here? I’ll treat you well, I promise.”
She stared straight at the girl, trying to deduce her thoughts from her expression. However, she was ultimately disappointed.
The girl turned her head away, avoiding her gaze.
“Class Monitor, I still have to wash the dishes. I’ll be going first…”
She ran down the stairs as if she were escaping.
Watching her disappearing back, Liu Yinuo’s frown deepened. Finally, she could only let out a helpless sigh.
Why is she avoiding me? Is it because of Lin Ziyan’s threat, or is she afraid of my parents? Why?
Don’t be like this… I’m the only person who is truly good to you…
Even that mother of yours probably doesn’t care about your life as much as I do, right?
If she is just an ATM in the distance sending money to your foster parents, then what is the difference between having a mother like that and having none at all?
She knew that presuming to judge a mother’s love for her child was disrespectful behavior, but she couldn’t help but think that way. The objective facts were right there. Lin Ziyan said the girl’s mother hadn’t returned in a long time, and since the girl didn’t have a phone, she probably hadn’t even heard her mother’s voice in ages.
Such a person, no matter how much they loved their child or how hard they worked to earn money, was ultimately incompetent.
So, my little cutie, the only person truly caring about you and keeping you in their heart right now is me…
Only I will be good to you. Why… why do you run away again and again? Why…?
The more she thought about it, the more agitated she became. Liu Yinuo felt a fire rising in her chest. She wasn’t usually an impulsive person, but right now, why? Why was she like this…?
Taking a deep breath, she forced herself to calm down.
It was fine. The road ahead was long, and she still had many opportunities.
Thinking this, she finally settled her emotions. As she looked down to pack her schoolbag, her eyes inadvertently glanced under the bed, and she suddenly spotted something.
What is that…?
Frowning, she pulled the object out from under the bed. The area under the bed had clearly been cleaned carefully by the girl; there was no accumulated dust, and the floor was clean enough to reflect light. Therefore, the item was also very clean, though it looked somewhat old from the outside.
Liu Yinuo looked at it, feeling curious. How did this bag end up under the bed? Ye Xingmian, who was always meticulous with housework, shouldn’t have made such a mistake. Moreover, there seemed to be something inside the bag.
She decided to unzip it and look. Inside was… a brown teddy bear…?
Did her little cutie actually have something like this in her room? It still looked quite new; it must be something very precious to her. How could it have been tossed under the bed? It must have been an accident.
Sighing at the girl’s carelessness, she took the teddy bear out of the bag and placed it gently on the bed, covering it with the quilt. As for the bag, she placed it in the corner where the junk was piled.
Calculating that it was about time to go, she put on her own backpack and headed down the stairs.