When the Flowers Bloom, Chapter Sixty-One: Wen Leyu, Sharp-Tongued and Quick-Witted

At half past five on a winter afternoon, the sky had already turned completely dark. The few streetlights cast elongated shadows of Wen Leyu and Lu Jingyao as they wandered the streets. They had been roaming for quite some time, neither daring to speak first, as if challenging each other in a silent contest of endurance.

Finally, it was the younger Wen Leyu who broke the silence.

“You really shouldn’t have come looking for Li Ye. Sending money to County No. 2 High School has already caused him a great deal of trouble. Now coming to see her again—is this your way of making that scandal that rocked the whole school immortal?”

Lu Jingyao abruptly stopped in her tracks, staring at the calm and indifferent Wen Leyu. She felt the last dam within her heart slowly breaking apart.

Since leaving the grain store, Lu Jingyao’s mood had been unsettled. The coldness from Hu Man, Han Xia, and the others left her not only confused but also deeply saddened. They had once been classmates, studying and striving together, encouraging each other to seek freedom and change their fate. Yet now that Lu Jingyao had successfully made it, why couldn’t she receive the congratulations she deserved?

That, however, was not the worst part. Lu Jingyao, strong as she was, could brush off the attitudes of Hu Man and the others, since they no longer belonged to the same world and would likely never cross paths again. But Wen Leyu was different—she was the younger sister Lu Jingyao truly cared about.

Yet here was this sister, in the biting cold of winter, uttering such cold and merciless accusations.

“Xiao Yu… I thought you would understand me… We are both abandoned by fate… We must strengthen ourselves, change our destiny…”

Lu Jingyao sniffled hard, lifting her chin and stiffening her neck. “Is it wrong to strive to change one’s fate?”

Wen Leyu’s face remained expressionless as she stared at the now resolute Lu Jingyao. Her voice was cold and harsh. “Changing your fate is your right. But hurting others is your fault. Don’t hide behind some nonsense about freedom to cover up your betrayal. And don’t use it as a weapon to hurt others over and over again.”

Lu Jingyao’s heart fluttered in panic at Wen Leyu’s words, but she quickly raised her voice.

“I never meant to hurt anyone! It’s Li Ye who’s useless. Everything I’ve done is legitimate. Guo Jia law protects freedom of marriage, and I’ve already repaid what I owe him…”

“No!” Wen Leyu interrupted sharply, raising her arm and pointing directly at Lu Jingyao’s chest.

“You betrayed him. You betrayed pure, sacred love.”

Lu Jingyao seemed struck by an invisible paralysis and stumbled back several steps.

Love—a word so noble in literature—yet for more than half a year, Lu Jingyao had deliberately avoided it.

They fell silent again. After a long moment, Lu Jingyao gave a bitter smile.

“Xiao Yu, you’ve only known Li Ye for a few days, how could you be so completely bewitched by him?”

“A few days? Hah…” Wen Leyu sneered quietly. “People aren’t that complicated. Sometimes, a few minutes are enough to see through someone.”

Lu Jingyao stared at the girl before her, as if she had been bewitched. Then Wen Leyu began to recount an old story.

“Do you remember last year when you took me to steal corn?”

Lu Jingyao was taken aback. The memory Wen Leyu mentioned was embarrassing. Wen Leyu and Teacher Ke had just arrived at Liuqiao Township. Because Lu Jingyao’s father and Teacher Ke both worked as substitute teachers at the school, the two had become acquainted.

That late summer, Lu Jingyao and her brother Lu Zixue invited Wen Leyu to eat “green corn.” At a time when food was scarce, green corn with its faint sweetness was one of the few delicacies in the countryside.

Unable to resist the enthusiasm of the Lu siblings, Wen Leyu followed them to the cornfield north of the township government, only to realize that their “invitation” was actually to steal.

In those days, stealing corn wasn’t unusual; many educated youths sent down to the countryside had done it.

But Wen Leyu had never done such a thing before! What if…

The worst happened. Perhaps the cornfield had been heavily guarded. That day, someone was “watching the slope.”

The watcher was an elderly man with limited mobility but a large dog.

The mute girl with no experience in theft was chased by that big dog. In her panic, she failed to jump over a small ditch and fell in clumsily.

Lu Jingyao wanted to go back and help Wen Leyu, but the old man was already approaching. Her brother Lu Zixue pulled her away desperately, and they fled in such haste that even their shoes were lost.

Wen Leyu wasn’t caught that day. Lu Jingyao only remembered her returning covered in mud, her face barely visible, like a muddy monkey.

Li Ye, who came to Liuqiao Township looking for Lu Jingyao, was caught red-handed and labeled a “corn thief.”

At the time, Lu Jingyao was puzzled and tried asking Li Ye, but he said nothing. Whatever it was, it wasn’t good, and everyone soon chose to forget.

But now, with Wen Leyu bringing it up, Lu Jingyao instinctively sensed that Li Ye and Wen Leyu had some kind of connection then.

Sure enough, the previously cold Wen Leyu’s eyes grew moist.

“Did you know that my ankle was twisted? I was standing in the muddy water, barely able to stand, and that big dog was barking wildly right above me.”

“Did you know that for someone like me, if caught stealing, it would bring huge trouble for my mother?”

“But you didn’t come back to help me… You only told me to run… Am I a fool? Don’t I know to run?”

Tears welled up in Wen Leyu’s large eyes, streaming down her small face and freezing on the collar of her padded jacket as ice crystals.

She would never forget that moment.

That big dog, afraid of water, didn’t jump into the ditch to attack her immediately but barked fiercely, drawing the old man closer.

Wen Leyu struggled desperately but to no avail, falling repeatedly into the foul water, her face covered in stinking mud.

At that moment, Wen Leyu was utterly despairing. Tears fell silently, but she dared not make a sound.

She hoped that by pretending to be still, she could delay capture, praying the Lu siblings would return to save her.

But they didn’t come back. Instead, a tall, upright young man came running like the wind and kicked the dog so hard it lost its courage.

It really lost its courage—the dog died.

Wen Leyu wiped her tears with the sleeve of her jacket and laughed.

A bitter, mocking laugh.

“Do you remember that scene? Li Ye was caught, but he not only owned up to the dog but also to the corn cobs we dropped by the ditch.”

“And you, Lu Jingyao, Li Ye’s fiancée, not only showed no concern but mocked him as stupid and blamed him for embarrassing your father.”

Lu Jingyao fell silent.

She had selectively forgotten that scene, but how could she ever truly forget?

Li Ye was hauled to Liuqiao Township, where he roughly pushed the old man aside and arrogantly said, “It’s just a dog I kicked to death. It’s just a few ears of corn I stole. Can’t I just pay you back?”

The locals of Liuqiao Township banded together, surrounding Li Ye with shouts and threats.

But even with bruised eyes, Li Ye’s arrogance didn’t waver.

In the end, only with the intervention of Lu Jingyao’s father did Li Ye settle the matter with money.

Back then, Lu Jingyao did blame Li Ye.

“Aren’t you good at running? Why didn’t you run? Isn’t your grandfather the director? Why not use his name?”

Li Ye said nothing, only chuckling foolishly.

Unexpectedly, Li Ye had actually saved Wen Leyu.

Biting her lip, Lu Jingyao argued, “I wasn’t mocking him as stupid. I just thought he could have handled the situation better to avoid that embarrassing scene.”

Li Ye’s grandfather had returned to work by then. As long as Li Ye denied stealing, that was the end of it.

But Wen Leyu looked down on that notion.

“If Li Ye didn’t steal, then who did? Do you think you’re the only smart one?”

Though Wen Leyu was younger than Lu Jingyao, she had lived through far more complicated experiences.

Being a local, who could she possibly fool? Lu Jingyao was a native, but Wen Leyu was a newcomer—could she really escape?

If Li Ye hadn’t taken the fall for her that day, Wen Leyu might have been in serious trouble.

(The author once did a similar thing, ran away, but somehow got tracked down. I was just home for summer vacation; strangers stand out, and after a few questions, they know it’s you.)

Lu Jingyao took deep breaths, using the cold air to cool her inner anxiety and restlessness.

“So back then, you and Li Ye…”

“No. Li Ye didn’t know me at all. My face was covered in mud… After he kicked the dog to death, he didn’t even glance at me.”

Wen Leyu was certain of this because, in their later interactions, Li Ye hardly ever looked her in the eye. Only this year, at County No. 2 High School, had things suddenly changed.

Lu Jingyao choked on her words again and after half a minute spoke in a mature tone.

“Xiao Yu, you’re still young and don’t understand many things. There’s no such thing as unconditional love in this world. Every kindness comes at a price. When others treat you well, they always have a purpose—they want something in return…”

This was a truth Lu Jingyao had realized only after being humiliated by Qian Shun.

But no sooner had she spoken than Wen Leyu retorted sharply.

“Then what did Li Ye get out of being so good to you?”

Lu Jingyao was left speechless. When did this mute girl become so sharp-tongued?

[Li Ye wanted to marry me, isn’t that obvious?]

But since Lu Jingyao had accepted benefits yet broken the engagement, she couldn’t justify this reason openly.

It was too humiliating.

Even more humiliating, though, was what came next.

Wen Leyu directly asked Lu Jingyao, “You talk about self-strengthening and independence, changing your fate. So how did you get into university?”

Lu Jingyao was momentarily stunned, then answered confidently.

“I got in through hard work and Teacher Ke’s help. I will never forget the kindness Teacher Ke showed me.”

“No, that’s not true.”

Wen Leyu slowly shook her head, staring into Lu Jingyao’s eyes.

“You got into university because I ate a piece of candy.”

Lu Jingyao was utterly stunned, unable to understand why Wen Leyu would say something so unreasonable.

But in a flash, a memory struck her mind like lightning, throwing her into confusion.

Back then, Lu Jingyao’s father, Li Ye, and Lu Jingyao brought gifts to ask Teacher Ke for English tutoring.

Teacher Ke had calmly refused, leaving no reason to continue pleading.

But just as they were about to leave, Wen Leyu opened the gift Li Ye had brought and ate a milk candy.

Teacher Ke immediately agreed and devoted himself to helping Lu Jingyao get into university.

[A twist of fate, all because of a piece of candy?]

Lu Jingyao looked up at the sky, utterly lost. All her self-reliance, pride, and confidence suddenly seemed like a joke.

Without Teacher Ke’s help, she could never have gotten into university, let alone a prestigious place like the Capital Foreign Language Institute.

And that candy belonged to Li Ye.

After a long while, Lu Jingyao gave a bitter smile and asked Wen Leyu, “Do you regret eating that candy back then?”

Wen Leyu smiled but didn’t answer, turning and walking away.

[Regret it? Of course not!]