Xu Ruying felt her long hair being grabbed.
"What are you doing?" she asked nervously.
"We need to tie your hair up first."
"Oh." Xu Ruying fell silent, embarrassed. The little girl's touch was gentle, without any tugging. She pulled an elastic band from her own head and tied Xu Ruying's hair up.
Then she clung to Xu Ruying's neck and said, "Nothing here."
Xu Ruying let out a sigh of relief, but before she could fully relax, Li Xiaoya crouched down in front of her and pulled out the trouser leg tucked into her LV ankle boots.
As she lifted the trouser leg, Xu Ruying screamed before Li Xiaoya could say anything: "Ah! A leech! Ahh!"
[Holy crap! That gives me the creeps! I'm terrified of those things!]
The front half of the leech had already burrowed completely into Xu Ruying's calf. It was round and plump from sucking blood, still wriggling slightly.
"Who can help me remove it?" Xu Ruying was on the verge of tears.
Sheng Yuxiao frowned, about to speak.
Li Xiaoya had already taken out a paper packet from her pocket, opened it, and sprinkled its contents on Xu Ruying's leg. Fine salt fell onto the leech. The leech's slight wriggling quickly turned into frantic writhing.
It extracted itself from Xu Ruying's leg and fell to the ground with a plop.
It quickly went through the process of writhing, bleeding, drying up, and dying completely.
Xu Ruying was still in shock, her pale face even had two teardrops on it.
She said in a trembling voice, "I tucked my trouser legs into my boots. How did it still manage to crawl onto my leg?"
"That's just how leeches are. When we work in the rice paddies, we wear long rubber boots, a layer of autumn pants, and then another layer of outer pants. We tie the trouser legs separately. Otherwise, they always find a way in," Li Xiaoya explained calmly.
Xu Ruying listened with her scalp tingling, feeling that these creatures were utterly horrifying.
"Then... could there be more on me?" As Xu Ruying uttered these words, she felt like she was about to faint.
Li Xiaoya nodded reluctantly, "Maybe."
Xu Ruying raised her hand to scratch her back, asking, "What should we do?"
Sheng Yuxiao immediately took charge: "Take her to the hospital."
The bodyguards and driver nodded repeatedly, worried that something might happen to Miss Xu. Even if it was just leeches.
Li Xiaoya thought for a moment and said, "I can check for you."
"O-okay, how do we do that?"
Li Xiaoya borrowed a dormitory room from the teacher, then led Xu Ruying inside. Closing the door, she turned and said, "Take off your clothes."
Xu Ruying was dumbfounded. "What?"
"How else can I check?" Li Xiaoya asked innocently.
Xu Ruying realized it made sense, but it still felt strange. No wonder she was brought to a separate room... At least it was just a little girl in front of her.
Xu Ruying, suppressing her embarrassment, imagined she was in a public bathhouse and quickly took off her expensive clothes.
"H-how is it? Are there any more?" she asked.
"Two more."
"Two?!"
"Done," Li Xiaoya said.
"It's done already?" Xu Ruying hadn't even had time to feel distressed. She turned around and indeed, two more leeches had fallen to the floor beside her feet.
She immediately got goosebumps all over and quickly jumped to the side.
Shivering, Xu Ruying hugged herself. Turning her head, she saw Li Xiaoya picking up the clothes she had taken off. Xu Ruying quickly asked, "What are you doing?"
"When we get back, I'll smoke these clothes with some herbs. That way, it's less likely for insects and bugs to get in," Li Xiaoya said as she shook the clothes, causing two more black bugs to fall out.
"Can I still wear these clothes?" Xu Ruying asked with a pained expression.
"Yes, you can," Li Xiaoya handed them back to her. "The other bugs are just scary, they won't really bite you."
Xu Ruying couldn't go out naked, so no matter how scared she was, she had to put them back on.
"Don't forget to smoke my clothes," Xu Ruying reminded her.
Li Xiaoya nodded.
Now it was Xu Ruying's turn to feel embarrassed. "I'll pay you for your help."
"No need," Li Xiaoya said, opening the door and walking out first.
Xu Ruying was stunned for a moment, then caught up and asked, "Why? Why not? You helped me, so I should pay you. I'm a person who believes in fairness."
The danmu (on-screen comments) started scrolling: [It's because of Sheng Yuxiao!]
[That's right, as long as you're a good friend of Sheng Yuxiao, or his relative, you can enjoy Li Xiaoya's friendly feedback~]
At this moment, Sheng Yuxiao heard the commotion and turned his head: "All done?"
Xu Ruying's spirits dampened, and she said dejectedly, "Yes, I'm never coming back here. I'm leaving now."
Li Xiaoya tugged at her sleeve: "Let's leave together after school."
Xu Ruying thought the child was trying to curry favor with her.
Then she heard Li Xiaoya say: "If you go back alone, you might fall into the rice paddy again."
Xu Ruying shuddered and immediately changed her tune: "O-okay, I'll wait for you then."
Li Xiaoya nodded slightly: "Mm, let's eat first."
Now that it was mentioned, Xu Ruying's stomach started growling.
She wanted to maintain her dignity, but her stomach wouldn't allow it.
Li Xiaoya turned to look for her lunchbox, saying, "We need to hurry to the cafeteria, or there won't be any food left."
Xu Ruying thought it would be like university cafeterias abroad. If not a high-end restaurant, at least there would be a buffet, right?
She quickly followed along, only to be shocked by the large aluminum basins on the long tables.
"This... is lunch?" Xu Ruying's voice trembled.
[Who is this person anyway? Why are they being so picky?]
Xu Ruying didn't know she was being criticized in the comments.
Soon she also realized: "I... can't eat the food here?"
The cafeteria staff didn't even glance at her. The large aluminum basins she had looked down on weren't even available to her.
Li Xiaoya nodded: "This is all funded by the government and kind-hearted people. Only students can eat here."
"Then what about me..."
Li Xiaoya had already filled a lunchbox. She turned and said, "I'll share with you."
Xu Ruying looked down at the lunchbox: "I'm eating with you?"
Sheng Yuxiao interjected: "What are you thinking? The four of us will share."
Xu Ruying: "..."
Xu Ruying couldn't help but shed tears: "What kind of day is this?"
Li Xiaoya carried the lunchbox out, looking at the bodyguards and driver, she asked Sheng Yuxiao: "What about them?"
Sheng Yuxiao said: "Don't worry about them, they'll find their own food. Xu Ruying, you don't have to worry either."
Li Xiaoya whispered, "But she looks so pitiful."
Sheng Yuxiao replied coldly, "She just comes here to eat and doesn't do any work. What's there to pity?"
Xu Ruying poked her head in. "Sheng Yuxiao, are you secretly badmouthing me?"
Li Xiaoya turned and said, "No, he said he'd share half an egg with you."
"I doubt he's that kind-hearted," Xu Ruying said skeptically.
Li Xiaoya sat down on a large rock at the edge of the playground.
She cleared her throat. "Ahem, now I'll distribute the food."
Xu Ruying couldn't believe how she had ended up in this situation, actually having to huddle with Sheng Yuxiao and Ning Heng, waiting for a child to divide their food.
"Ning Heng, for chopping wood and feeding the chickens, you get meatballs."
"Sheng Yuxiao, um, you get beef and half an egg."
"Xu..." Li Xiaoya had forgotten her name, "you get half an egg."
[LOL, it's like Li Xiaoya is running this household, isn't it?]
