Give Me Another Smile

By the time Yin Zhao-an finished tidying Tang Yu's desk, the sky outside had already darkened.

After putting Tang Yu's book into her schoolbag, Yin Zhao-an picked up the schoolbag and walked out of the classroom.

The lights out on the street had already come on. Tang Yu stepped on her own shadow as she walked forward. Occasionally, she would lift her head to look at the person silently walking in front of her before quickly lowering her head again. Throughout this time, her right hand was squeezing a stress ball in her pocket, the stress ball being something she had bought a long time ago.

Why does it feel like I'm the one in the wrong here? Tang Yu inwardly complained. Normally, she would be the one walking in front while Yin Zhao-an would follow closely behind her…

After walking for a little longer, Tang Yu no longer wished to continue walking. For reasons known by only herself, she stood motionless as she watched the person in front of her walk away.

Three seconds later, though, Yin Zhao-an stopped walking. However, Yin Zhao-an did not turn around, so Tang Yu could only guess what expression was on Yin Zhao-an's face.

Silence. Deathly silence.

Tang Yu inexplicably shrank back, suddenly feeling a little scared. Then, she subconsciously walked up to Yin Zhao-an's side with hasty steps, grabbed her schoolbag from Yin Zhao-an, and softly said with a guilty conscience, "I'm hungry, so I'm going home first."

Okay, Tang Yu had to admit she was scared. Perhaps it was because of her habit from her previous life, but whenever she saw Yin Zhao-an going silent with a cold expression on her face, she would subconsciously wonder if she had done something wrong. Then, she would try every means she could think of to make Yin Zhao-an happy, even if it turned out that she had done nothing wrong in reality.

Now, though, Tang Yu felt that the best move to make would be to stay as far away from the current Yin Zhao-an. There was no way she would try to coax Yin Zhao-an in this life...

"Ah!"

However, Tang Yu let out a surprised cry before she could make her escape. Then, she subconsciously took a few steps back as she looked at Yin Zhao-an, who had snatched her schoolbag away once again, with a terrified look on her face and her heart beating rapidly.

Yin Zhao-an didn't expect Tang Yu to show such a huge reaction, so she couldn't help but be momentarily stunned. But after she adjusted her expression, she walked up to Tang Yu and sincerely apologized, "I'm sorry for keeping you hungry."

Tang Yu: ???

"I'll carry your bag, so let's go home together," Yin Zhao-an said as she slung the dirty schoolbag over her shoulder, placing it right next to her own black schoolbag.

However, Yin Zhao-an did not move even after she finished speaking. It was obvious that she wanted to let Tang Yu go first, and Tang Yu naturally noticed the girl's intentions. Although Tang Yu didn't show any reactions on the surface, inwardly, she was freaking out.

Bastard! I don't want to walk in front of you and be watched by you!

After reaching the familiar crossroads, Yin Zhao-an returned Tang Yu her back and fell into thought as she looked at the street leading to Tang Yu's house.

Meanwhile, Tang Yu hurriedly put her schoolback on her back and said a "goodbye" before turning around and leaving, her hasty actions making it seem like a ferocious beast was chasing after her.

"Be careful on your way home."

These words coming from behind her were spoken lightly, but Tang Yu suddenly felt her nose becoming sour. She also bit down on her lower lip to the point where it turned white.

Shortly after they started living together, she would always leave home alone while Yin Zhao-an stayed in her room. Yin Zhao-an didn't even know when she left or when she returned. How exactly had things turned out like this…[1]

The evening wind in late summer was a little cool. Tang Yu stuck her hands in her pockets and walked into the small courtyard of her home. Then, she looked up and saw that, sure enough, the house was pitch-black.

After carefully inspecting the courtyard door's lock and locking it, she walked up to the front door of her house, took out a key, and opened it. Then, after changing into her house shoes and turning on the lights, she was greeted by a clean and tidy living room.

Nobody was in the living room, but there was a note placed under a cup on the coffee table. The note was written in a cursive script, but it was obvious that whoever wrote this note had restrained their handwriting to a certain extent, making the note much easier to read.

Tang Yu could already tell who had written this note. Meanwhile, according to the note, it would seem that her parents would be busy with a mission these next few days and wouldn't be free to come home to cook for her. The note also mentioned that some money had been placed in her bedroom drawer and she should ask for more if it wasn't enough.

Tang Yu folded the note and brought it upstairs with her. Then, following the instructions on the note, she found a small stack of bank notes in her desk drawer. The notes were also thoughtfully exchanged into small bills. If children her age were to enter a shop with a 100-yuan bill, there was a high likelihood that they would be cheated. For example, the shopkeeper could give fake bills for change.

Of course, there was also a small minority of shopkeepers who would refuse to accept large bills from children. After all, doing so came with a certain degree of risk.

There were some handmade noodles kept in packets in the refrigerator. Each packet of noodles came with its own flavorings, and there was quite a variety of flavorings. After picking a packet with long and thin noodles, she made her way to the stove.

After completing all the necessary procedures with the help of a stool, Tang Yu covered the pot with a lid and hopped off the stool. Now, all she needed to do was wait for the water to boil.

Honestly, cooking instant noodles would have been much quicker than cooking handmade noodles. However, Tang Yu couldn't stand the flavor of instant noodles. She remembered that Yin Zhao-an used to them very much, the latter often stockpiling all sorts of instant noodles in their refrigerator. However, because of how frequently Yin Zhao-an ate instant noodles, there was a time when she kept getting nosebleeds one after another. After suffering through that series of nosebleeds, the sight of instant noodles thoroughly disappeared from their home.

After the noodles were done, Tang Yu slurped on them while tapping away at the computer, causing a series of codes to appear on the screen. After jumping through multiple blue screens, she eventually entered an information interface.

…

TL Notes:

[1]Just to clarify a paragraph in this chapter:

Shortly after they started living together, she(Tang Yu) would always leave home alone while Yin Zhao-an stayed in her(Yin Zhao-an's) room. Yin Zhao-an didn't even know when she(Tang Yu) left or when she returned. How exactly had things turned out like this…

[TL: I honestly don't know what 'this' is referring to. Tang Yu could be:

Wondering how her relationship with Yin Zhao-an had gone from their previous life's state to their current life's state;

Wondering how her relationship with Yin Zhao-an had gone from their childhood state to their adulthood state in her previous life.]