ASHIA Chapter 41

Translated by: Queen Dei Mos

Novel Update Schedule: Monday

The ones in bold were written as is in the original text.

The warm sunlight of spring streamed through the square skylight and into the music room.

Xie Sui pushed the door open and saw the girl standing on a chair, wiping the skylight of the music room with a rag.

Her light yellow dress gently swayed from the breeze blowing in from the window.

Sunlight poured down upon her fair and clear face, and her beautiful eyes, bathed in the sun’s glow, resembled marbles, sparkling with clarity and transparency.

She wasn’t tall enough. Even standing on the chair, she had to stand at her tiptoes to reach the top of the skylight to clean it thoroughly.

Xie Sui walked over and rudely lifted her around the waist.

Ji Bai let out a startled cry as she was hoisted onto the his shoulders.

Ji Bai slapped his back hard and shouted, “What are you doing? Put me down!”

Xie Sui placed her steadily on the ground, snatched the rag from her hand, stepped onto the chair, and meticulously wiped the dust off the glass.

Ji Bai stood to the side, watching Xie Sui’s skilled movements, thinking he was really good at whatever he did.

She turned around, picked up a broom, and started to clean the room.

Seeing this, Xie Sui immediately jumped off the chair, snatched the broom from her hand, and helped her sweep the dust.

Ji Bai looked at him helplessly, “Xie Sui, what exactly are you trying to do?”

“I said, in the future, when it comes to manual labor, just call me, you shouldn’t be doing this.”

“Then what should I do?”

Xie Sui also didn’t know how to express his meaning, so he pointed to the cello in the middle of the room.

“So if I play the cello, I won’t have to do manual labor anymore?”

Xie Sui leaned on the broom and seriously looked at her, “Manual labor, earning money…you don’t need to worry about any of that.”

Ji Bai’s lips curled up, revealing two faint dimples at the corners of her mouth, took his words as a joke, “Is there such good things in the world?”

“Of course not.”

“……”

“Unless you become my Xiao Bai.”

“……”

Ji Bai didn’t know what to say to this shameless guy anymore. She walked to the chair, picked up her school bag, and took out the small white dog pendant from it.

Xie Sui’s gaze was drawn to what she took out, seeing the small dog, his heart rate quickened. He stepped forward and reached for the pendant, but Ji Bai raised her hand and dodged him.

“This is the first time I’ve ever encountered something like borrowing flowers to offer to Buddha.¹(Original Text): 借花献佛 – jiè huā xiàn Fó. (English): lit. presenting the Buddha with borrowed flowers (idiom); fig. to win favor or influence using sb else’s property / plagiarism. Source: omgchinese”

Ji Bai walked to the square window, holding up the small white dog pendant up to her eyes to examine it. Under the sunlight, the small white dog shone with a bright gleam.

In a slightly hoarse but gentle tone, she said, “Maybe because this is the first time I’ve ever given a gift to someone, but if you don’t like it, just give it back to me. Giving it to someone else is pointless.”

Beads of sweat formed on Xie Sui’s forehead. For the first time in his life, he tasted the bitterness of being unable to defend himself. “I really don’t know how it ended up with her. I might have lost it. I spent the whole night looking for it…”

He even rummaged through the trash cans in the garden, nearly going mad.

Ji Bai had never seen Xie Sui so frantic before, but she could tell he wasn’t lying.

“You searched all night?”

“I didn’t find it that night, so I went back to look for it several more times.”

“Really stupid.”

Ji Bai’s heart softened, and she muttered, “If you can’t find it, just forget about it. It’s just a small trinket.”

“It’s not that simple.” Xie Sui said in a low voice. “It’s the first gift you’ve given me. It’s not that simple.”

“What if you never find it?”

“In that case, I’ll…”

Ji Bai thought he was going to say something big, but instead, he walked up to her, his lips curling up, and softly said, “Let you give me another one.”

“……”

Ji Bai had never encountered such a shameless man.

In truth, Ji Bai hadn’t thought much about giving him this gift. She just felt sorry for him when he was locked up in the police station that afternoon and then his biological mother treated him so badly. Ji Bai couldn’t bear it, so she thought she would give him a small dog to comfort him…

“Give me the keys.”

Xie Sui obediently handed her his keys. They were very simple, a house key, bike lock…and nothing else.

Ji Bai reattached the small dog to the keys and handed it to him. “Here, be careful, don’t lose it again.”

Xie Sui solemnly took the keychain, the joy of recovering something lost was evident across his eyebrows. He tried to contain his excitement but couldn’t help it. In the instant Ji Bai turned around, he lowered his head and kissed the small white dog.

Ji Bai picked up her deep red cello and said, “I’m going back.”

Xie Sui stopped her. “Don’t go.”

“Is there anything else?”

“Can you play a piece for me?” He pointed to her cello.

Ji Bai frowned. “What are you trying to do?”

“I just want to listen to music.”

Suspicious of his intentions and feeling like there might be some ulterior motive, she asked, “You…understand what you hear?”

“That guy in the suit, does he understand?”

Ji Bai’s lips twitched. “What guy in a suit?”

Xie Sui kneaded the bridge of his nose, his voice furious, “On the night of the thirtieth, the guy who put his coat on you.”

Ji Bai suddenly remembered, he was talking about Li Chen.

“That ah, I thought you left.”

“Laozi leaves and you start getting cozy with other men?”
“……”

It’s not like that!

Ji Bai didn’t know how to explain to him, so she turned around with the cello on her back and walked out of the classroom.

Xie Sui realized he said the wrong thing and quickly grabbed her. “That night on the thirtieth, I heard many people coming out of the hotel saying that the young miss Ji from the Ji Group played the cello really well. I didn’t get to hear it, but I want to.”

Ji Bai hesitated for a few seconds. “Just one piece then, I need to go back to do my homework.”

Xie Sui brought her a chair, let her sit down, and crouched beside her.

Ji Bai spread her legs apart, securing the cello between them, and played a relatively cheerful piece.

Unlike other girls who stiffened up when playing the cello, she would sway and bob her head to the enchanting melody, fully immersed in the music, completely oblivious to her own appearance.

Because it was only when one immersed oneself wholeheartedly in the music that one could truly express the emotions within the piece to their fullest extent. In that moment, one should be completely oblivious to whether or not they looked good while playing the cello. Anyone who was too focused on their appearance was merely putting on a show, not truly immersing themselves.

Ji Bai didn’t need to put on a show, she just needed to play.

Xie Sui watched her with fascination, perhaps because of the cheerful melody, a hint of a smile appeared at the corners of his eyes.

Ji Bai continued playing while glancing at him.

He smiled like a dog, still crouching beside her, looking even more like the small white dog she had given him.

A hint of a smile played at the corners of Ji Bai’s mouth as she finished the piece with a light and cheerful melody.

“Okay, it’s over.”

Before she could finish her sentence, Xie Sui suddenly leaned in, his lips hovering two centimeters from her cheek for two seconds. Seeing that she was frozen and unresponsive, he gave her a light peck.

Her skin was soft, it was like kissing a marshmallow.

“!!”

Ji Bai touched her cheek, looking at Xie Sui with disbelief, instinctively raising her leg to kick him.

Xie Sui, seemingly anticipating her reaction, stepped back a bit and raised his chin to look at her, saying, “Do you have to be so violent?”

Ji Bai covered her face, her fair cheeks blushing red, still feeling the dryness of his kiss still lingering on her skin.

How embarrassing!

“Indecent.” she cursed him in a rage.

“I gave you a few seconds to push me away, but you were just daydreaming.”

“Indecent behavior has no excuses!”

Xie Sui licked his thin lips. “Alright.”

Indecent or not, the way she smiled was just too damn adorable. If he could resist it, he wouldn’t be a man.

Ji Bai turned away from him with her cello on her back, angrily grumbling that she would never trust him again.

**

That night, after Xie Sui finished boxing, he went to a CD store and browsed the classical music section.

Cong Yuzhou watched him pick out several CDs of famous cello pieces with eyebrows higher than a small mountain. “Holy shit, Brother Sui, you’re actually going to start listening to classical music! Awesome!”

Xie Sui couldn’t be bothered to pay attention to him.

“But do you even understand this stuff?”

“With more exposure, I’ll naturally understand it.”

Xie Sui randomly picked out a few cello CDs and went to pay.

He didn’t really understand how to appreciate this kind of classical music, but he wanted to try, to understand her, to understand her interests and hobbies.

If other men could understand it, then he could surely understand it too.

That afternoon, Ji Bai received a message from Li Chen, saying he happened to be passing by Dexin High School for some things and would drop by to give her the study materials.

Ji Bai checked the time and replied, “There’s still half an hour before school ends.”

“It’s okay, I haven’t arrived yet either. Walking over should take about the same amount of time.”

Xie Sui and a few friends walked out of the school gate with basketballs. They saw several girls excitedly holding hands and running out, exclaiming as they ran, “Ji Bai is talking to a really, really handsome guy ah!”

“Is he her boyfriend?”

“I don’t know, I’ve never seen him before, doesn’t look like a student.”

Cong Yuzhou looked at Xie Sui with concern. The basketball spun on Xie Sui’s fingertips for a few moments before he walked out of the school gate with a blank expression.

From afar, he saw a boy and a girl on the other side of the street. The boy was wearing a sports jacket, looking casual and relaxed, a far cry from the guy in a suit and tie he saw outside the annual meeting that day.

But regardless of his appearance, there was no denying that this boy was incredibly handsome, with flawless features and a warm, gentle aura.

The surrounding girls couldn’t help but cover their mouths in surprise, gazing at Ji Bai with envy.

Xie Sui saw Ji Bai taking the bag from his hand, a gentle and radiant smile on her face.

The two of them chatted, appearing quite familiar with each other.

She had never spoken to him so much like that.

Xie Sui’s eyes grew colder, his expression darkening. Jiang Zhongning, standing beside him said “Who’s this guy ah, coming to our turf to act recklessly? Should we stop him later?”

Cong Yuzhou said, “No need to stop him, I recognize him. He’s Li Chen, the young master of the Li Group.”

“Is that the same Li Group that deals with real estate nationwide? The city center’s commercial district belongs to them ah.”

“That’s right, it’s him. I heard from the manager of our boxing gym that he’s also an investor and likes boxing.

Jiang Zhongning glanced at Xie Sui and said with a deep, gruff voice, “Regardless of who he is, trying to steal our brother’s girl, we can’t let him off. We’ll stop him later.”

Xie Sui gave him a cold look and replied, “Stop him, then what?”

“Give him a beating ah.”

“Beat him up and then what?”

Jiang Zhongning blanked. “Give him a beating, and then…”

He didn’t know what would happen if they gave him a beating, maybe they would have to pay medical expenses or get arrested, but at least he could vent his anger for a moment, and he would feel good inside.

Xie Sui tossed the basketball to Cong Yu Zhou and walked away.

In the past, he used to believed that fists could solve any problem.

Now, whenever he thought of that girl’s delicate features, coupled with the realization that she might get angry because of his stupid actions, or even cry because of him, it softened Xie Sui’s fists.

His firm and persistent and boulder of a heart melted.

He didn’t want the girl to dislike him. He wanted to get closer to her, one step at a time. Even if it was just a centimeter closer, it would be a blessing to him.

Jiang Zhongning jabbed Cong Yuzhou. “Hey, don’t you think Brother Sui has become a bit of a coward?”

Cong Yuzhou watched his retreating figure, the setting sun stretching his shadow long and far.

“It’s not that Brother Sui has become a coward, he’s fallen in love.”

**

Ji Bai treated Li Chen to milk tea, thanking him for bringing her the study materials. After leaving the milk tea shop, the two said their goodbyes.

Before Ji Bai could even get on her bike, the bag containing the study materials was snatched away.

She turned around to see Xie Sui had already flipped through the study materials. The materials were quite comprehensive, including notes and textbooks with highlighted key points.

“You…give it back to me!”

“Why are you so nervous?”

Xie Sui took two steps back, successfully evading the girl’s attempt to snatch the materials from his grasp.

“Xie Sui!”

Ji Bai was getting a bit anxious, as if afraid he would damage the already worn-out notebooks. “Give them back to me quickly!”

“Why did he give you these used old notebooks?”

“These are study materials for the university independent admission exam.²(Original Text): 自主招生 – zìzhǔ zhāoshēng. (English): Independent Admission Exam. Meaning/Purpose: It is when Chinese universities choose students using their own criteria, not just Gaokao scores. This allows them to find students with special talents or skills that fit their programs. I’m not quite sure about this, if you know please do comment! They are very important.”

Xie Sui took out a notebook and caught sight of the header with the characters ‘S University’ printed on it.

“You want to go to S University?”

Xie Sui frowned as he looked at her, “Even the top students in the whole grade might not be able to get into that university.”

Ji Bai was fully aware of S University’s reputation as a top-tier university in the country. Her grades weren’t too bad, ranking around the top thirty of her grade.

With her current grades, it was almost impossible for her to get into S University so she had to work hard ah. Not only did she have to strive for the college entrance exam, but she also wanted to try the independent admission exam of S University. With more than a year left, it’s definitely doable.

Xie Sui’s eyes lingered on the characters ‘S University’, somewhat lost in thought. Before he could react, the bag of study materials was snatched away by her. She carefully put the bag into her school bag.

Xie Sui seemed to have lost the desire to fight over it.

Ji Bai glanced at him. He was facing the setting sun, his dark eyes lowered, lost in thought.

“Xie Sui, what’s wrong with you?”

Xie Sui asked her, “Why do you want to go to S University? Is it because that guy is also at S University?”

“What are you talking about? I just want to get into a good university.”

“What’s the average monthly salary for graduates from a top university like that?”

“How would I know?” Ji Bai pushed her bike and said as she walked, “Several thousand or ten thousand. If the major is good, it’s also possible to earn tens of thousands.”

“Laozi right now earns several thousand in one night. If I raced, tens of thousands is also possible.” Xie Sui said, “Don’t you think this…is better than spending a few years studying in university?”

His gaze was deep, but there wasn’t much conviction in his words.

Ji Bai stopped walking and stared at him. “Xie Sui, can you box for the rest of your life? What will you do when you’re thirty or forty years old, can’t fight anymore, and start losing?”

“There will always be a way.” Xie Sui licked his molars and stubbornly said, “With money, I can make more money with money. In short, if you follow me, you’ll never suffer.”

“……”

A gust of wind brushed past their faces, bringing a faint floral scent. Cherry blossom petals fell from the trees and softly settled on the young man’s shoulders.

“Money is certainly important, but people can’t live solely for it.”

Ji Bai softly sighed and intently gazed at Xie Sui. In a gentle voice, she said, “Xie Sui, when you finally leave behind your youthful recklessness one day, what will you rely on to support yourself ?”

Xie Sui stopped in his tracks, watched as the girl got on her bike and wobbled away into the distance.

That night, Xie Sui didn’t sleep a wink. He sat by the window, silently watching the flickering lights of the city.

The girl’s words repeatedly hammered and interrogated his heart——

When you finally leave behind your youthful recklessness one day, what will you rely on to support yourself ?

**

The next morning, Cong Yuzhou came to school and was surprised to find that Xie Sui was not dozing off with his head covered. He was flipping through an English textbook, furrowing his eyebrows, and painstakingly spelling out the first word.

Cong Yuzhou silently sat down, staring at Xie Sui with wide eyes. He was certain that Xie Sui was genuinely trying his best to spell out the words.

Jiang Zhongning and the others also gathered around, staring at Xie Sui’s “strange behavior” with astonishment.

Cong Yuzhou made a hushing motion to them. “Shh, Brother Sui is sleepwalking.”

Xie Sui didn’t even glance at him. Reaching out, he pressed his hand against the other person’s face, turning his head to the side. He continued to spell out: h-o-n-e-s-t.

“No way, Xie Sui, what’s gotten into you? Are you actually studying?”

Xie Sui put down the English textbook, casually raised his head, and gave the boys a glance. “I want to apply to S University.”

With this statement, several of the boys were dumbfounded.

“When you say S University, do you mean the vocational school that’s under its name?”

Xie Sui threw a book at Cong Yuzhou, who easily dodged it. “Hehe, just kidding.”

“S University, the S University.”

“No, Brother Sui, are you fully awake?” Cong Yuzhou sat down next to him. “Do you even know how many points it takes to get into S University?”

Jiang Zhongning proceeded to say, “Even if you’re the top student in our grade, it’s still not guaranteed that you’ll get into S University. With your grades…”

Xie Sui asked, “How many points are needed?”

Cong Yuzhou took out his phone to check the minimum passing score. “Last year it was 688.”

Jiang Zhongning leaned in and asked, “So how many points is Brother Sui short of?”

Cong Yuzhou tapped on his calculator. “‘Brother Sui…is 680 points short.”

“……”

“Brother Sui, last time in the final exam, you only scored 8 points ah?”

“You, it’s already pretty good that Brother Sui didn’t leave his paper blank. Out of all the exams he took, the only one was the math exam, and he even managed to guess 8 points on the multiple-choice section.”

The boys couldn’t hold back their laughter and started cracking up. Xie Sui couldn’t be bothered to deal with them. He buried his head and focused intently on spelling out the words.

When it comes to studying, some people lacked the ability despite their efforts, while others had the ability but lacked the will. Xie Sui belonged to both categories. On one hand, he really felt overwhelmed by the densely packed English words and mathematical functions and found them to be scalp tingling. On the other hand, he had to go boxing after school to earn money. If some wealthy young master wanted to race, he’d go race with them, and by the time he gets home, it would already be one or two in the morning and he’d be too exhausted to do anything but fall asleep.

Be that as it may, Xie Sui still struggled each day to fight off the overwhelming drowsiness. In class, he would force himself to lift his head and look at the teacher standing at the podium.

He missed so much homework, it was almost impossible for him to catch up in a short amount of time. He was unable to make sense of what the teacher was saying most of the time, but as long as he listened, he felt that he wasn’t completely hopeless. In this way……

Even if the hope was slim, there was still a chance for him to be with her.

Over the weekend, Xie Sui went to the city library to borrow a couple of English books with translations to read.

The reading room was nearly empty. Xie Sui had just emerged from the bookshelves when he immediately spotted a man and woman sitting by the window.

Ji Bai wore a light-colored dress with an open yellow cardigan on top. Her hair was pulled back into a fresh ponytail, and sunlight poured onto her fair and clean face. Her eyes were as clear as crystal, and her eyelashes fluttered with a lovely shimmer.

She opened her exercise book and asked Li Chen next to her for help with a problem.

Xie Sui leaned against the bookshelf, waves of turmoil churning in his dark eyes. He kneaded his nose and turned to leave, but after taking a few steps, he heard the clear and bright laughter of the girl behind him.

The anger in his chest surged to his head in an instant. Xie Sui turned back and walked towards them.

He sat down across from Ji Bai, the girl was engrossed in her math equations, oblivious to his presence.

Xie Sui kicked back in his chair, propped his long legs crisscrossed up on the table, and pulled out a cigarette from his bag, lighting it up.

Acting as if he was a big shot.

Li Chen frowned, “Classmate, this is the library.”

”Who the hell are you calling classmate?” Xie Sui’s tone was extremely unfriendly.

Ji Bai glanced at him with clear eyes. Xie Sui slightly tilted his chin and boldly met her gaze, openly revealing his jealousy and dissatisfaction.

Ji Bai let out a soft sigh and said, “Xie Sui, put your legs down.”

Her voice was very gentle, as if it was wrapped in a thin layer of gauze.

Xie Sui pressed his tongue with his molars, hesitated for about four or five seconds, and finally, obediently put his long legs back down.

The cigarette in his hand was merely burning; he wasn’t actually smoking it. Noticing Ji Bai’s disapproving gaze shift to the cigarette, he had no choice but to get up and walk to the trash can, where he angrily extinguished the cigarette.

Xie Sui leaned against the bookshelf, arms crossed, and looked at the two people from afar with a frown.

Li Chen asked Ji Bai in a low voice, “Do you know him?”

“Yeah, he’s my schoolmate.”

Li Chen looked up at Xie Sui by the bookshelf, his eyes carrying a hint of complexity.

Half an hour later, when Ji Bai went to return a book by the bookshelf, Xie Sui grabbed her wrist and pulled her to the last aisle of the bookshelf, pressing her against the bookshelf.

The sunlight shone through the floor-to-ceiling windows, shining directly on his light brown eyes, making them particularly clear.

Ji Bai didn’t know what he wanted to do, and nervously looked at him, on guard.

Xie Sui pursed his lips, not saying a word, his dark eyes were fixed on the girl, filled with a storm of violent emotions raging within him.

Under his intense gaze, Ji Bai’s earlobes gradually turned red without her realizing it.

“Xie Sui, you let go of me.”

Ji Bai lowered her voice and cautiously glanced around, fortunately, no one was around.

She pushed him, but couldn’t make him move. Instead, he grabbed her wrist and roughly pressed it above her head.

This position caused her entire body to press closely against his without any obstruction. Through the thin spring shirt, the warmth of his body transferred to hers.

Fine beads of sweat dotted Ji Bai’s forehead.

What are you doing with him?” Xie Sui’s voice was very heavy.

“Didn’t you see? Li Chen is helping me with my lessons.”

It was true that the two of them were just reviewing lessons and weren’t doing anything else, but Xie Sui was simply jealous. The sight of them together made him absolutely furious.

“You shouldn’t interact with him anymore.” His face was downcast, his eyes dark. “Don’t have any contact with him.”

“Xie Sui, can you stop being like this? It’s too much ah…”

Was this too much to ask? She probably hadn’t even seen his extreme side.

Xie Sui stared at her lips for a good while. When all of a sudden he closed his eyes and kissed her.

Ji Bai couldn’t dodge this kiss at all. Her hands were pinned above her head by him and she could only watch helplessly as the young man approached her and pressed his lips against hers.

His lips, dry yet soft, quivered, drawing her lower lip into a gentle, wet kiss.

Ji Bai could hear her own heartbeat intertwining with his, like a wild symphony.

“Wu…”

She let out a faint sound, trying to turn her face away, but Xie Sui grabbed her chin with one hand, applying slight pressure. He pinched her, forcing her to open her mouth to meet his, letting him advance. He tentatively extended his tongue…

A sharp pain shot through his tongue. He had been bitten, and a metallic taste of blood spread through his mouth.

Xie Sui opened his eyes, his cold and sharp gaze softened. Now, Xie Sui’s eyes were filled with tenderness, and his cheeks were tinged with an unnatural blush.

The girl beneath him turned her head away, her nose brushing against his neck and collarbone, her breaths very light and soft.

“Bit me?” There was a trace of blood on his thin lips.

“……”

Her eyes suddenly turned red, her dark eyes glistening with tears. She turned her gaze toward the window, feeling wronged, “How could you…bully people like this?”

How could he do…such a thing to her here?

Xie Sui’s heart melted completely. He knew he had done something wrong. He released his grip on her hands, and Ji Bai quickly covered her lips.

“Xiao Bai…”

Just then, someone passed by the bookshelf. Ji Bai immediately distanced herself from him, pretending like nothing had happened.

After the person left, Xie Sui gently brushed her cheek with the tip of his nose, affectionately for a few seconds. Reluctantly, he turned and walked away with long strides.

Ji Bai stood alone by the bookshelf, lingering for what felt like forever.

Sunlight poured in through the floor-to-ceiling windows, and countless specks of dust floated in the air. Ji Bai turned her head and saw several copies of classic literature in Chinese-English that he had left behind on the bookshelf.

T/N:

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Chapters Left: 52

• 1
  (Original Text): 借花献佛 – jiè huā xiàn Fó. (English): lit. presenting the Buddha with borrowed flowers (idiom); fig. to win favor or influence using sb else’s property / plagiarism. Source: omgchinese
• 2
  (Original Text): 自主招生 – zìzhǔ zhāoshēng. (English): Independent Admission Exam. Meaning/Purpose: It is when Chinese universities choose students using their own criteria, not just Gaokao scores. This allows them to find students with special talents or skills that fit their programs. I’m not quite sure about this, if you know please do comment!