Even if dopamine was secreted due to the sugar, he could still hold back. Thanking, a kind of sissy behavior, was definitely not something he would do.
“Hua Jie’s special milk tea, tastes good, right? I’ll make you another one next class, thanks for helping me with the problem last week and giving me a ride over the weekend.” She said, her voice soft and gentle.
Very cute.
Shen Mo grunted, displaying a pride akin to a big boss listening to an employee’s report.
As the bell rang for class, the teacher entered the classroom with books in hand.
Shen Mo frowned at Hua Jie and said:
“Why are you looking at me? Pay attention to the class.”
“Oh, okay.” Hua Jie quickly averted her gaze.
She felt she had grasped the essence of ‘the fragrance lingers on the hand that gives roses,’ finding satisfaction in his content expression from the milk tea, which made her feel content too.
It was a pity that class had started, or she could have ‘savored’ it a little longer.
…
When only a fifth of the milk tea remained, Shen Mo began to drink it more slowly.
He was reluctant to finish it.
He wasn’t sure if she really meant it when she said she would make him another one; if she had just said it casually… he would feel embarrassed to ask her for more.
Better to save it and drink it slowly.
It wasn’t until the third class period ended that Hua Jie reached out for his cup, really preparing to make him another one, that Shen Mo felt relieved. He gulped down the last bit he had been reluctant to drink and handed her the empty cup.
It was this simple milk tea, without pearls or cream, that gave Shen Mo a wonderful feeling.
It was a kind of simple happiness he had never experienced before, trivial and seemingly not worth mentioning, but deeply imprinted in his memory, making it seem very much worth remembering and cherishing.
Having lost his mother at a young age and with a father immersed in painting, often forgetting he even had a son, Shen Mo had learned to play by himself and take care of himself from childhood.
The few women around him were either distant relatives he rarely saw or nannies who couldn’t offer emotional interaction.
What Hua Jie offered him was a form of new tenderness.
A stack of cardboard to shield him from the wind, a cup of milk tea, a band-aid; these might seem insignificant, yet they were starkly different from the money his father gave him or the chocolates, scarves, love letters, and jellies other girls who pursued him had gifted.
It was genuine care, tenderly meeting his needs.
During the first afternoon class, as he drank the milk tea, Shen Mo glanced quietly at the Doll-headed little potato.
He thought, although teaching her could be frustrating enough to make him want to strangle her.
But… having such a desk mate didn’t seem too bad after all.
…
By the time the second afternoon class ended, Hua Jie again reached out to Shen Mo for his cup.
Shen Mo sternly refused.
Although the milk tea was good, one shouldn’t overindulge.
He really couldn’t pee anymore!
Hua Jie reluctantly agreed, took the cup, washed it along with her own, and then stored them in her desk.
What a pity, she had thought to repay his small kindness with great gratitude.
This gratitude would now have to pause, to be slowly offered later.
…
Soon, milk tea became popular in Class 1-7.
The industrious and skillful female students started making their own versions, although the taste varied due to different choices of tea, amounts of sugar, and milk.
But all in all, they were delicious.
So much so that a week later, milk tea became a trend throughout the school, and even some perceptive parents spotted a business opportunity.
Half a month later, the small store across from the school started selling milk tea.
This directly led to milk tea becoming popular in Jinsong City years ahead of its time.
As for Hua Jie, who was among the first to start drinking milk tea, her classmates described her as ‘not only good at painting but also able to whip up some magical concoctions, like her signature milk tea, which are all fantastic!’
Hua Jie smiled modestly, embarrassed to take too much pride in the praise.
She was just acting a few years beyond her age.
And then there was: ‘She really knows how to enjoy life!’
Hua Jie pondered and agreed.
Indeed, life is full of hardships.
It’s just this bit of sweetness that she couldn’t give up, relying on it and coffee every day to keep going.
….
….
In the second week after school started, Hua Jie also kept herself busy and fulfilled.
Her classmates still kept asking her to draw, but now they wanted portraits instead of various celebrities or cartoon characters.
While others had to pay for models or ask for favors to learn drawing, Hua Jie was in high demand. Her classmates were willing to pay her to draw their portraits, and her prices were even higher than those for drawing celebrities or cartoon characters.
It made the other kids who were learning to draw jealous beyond belief.
Liao Shanshan continued to promote Hua Jie’s business enthusiastically and even helped her get more orders. Soon, students from other classes also knew about Hua Jie, who could draw portraits, which was more appealing than other types of drawings.
Smartphones hadn’t appeared yet, and not many students owned cameras. Developing photos was not easy, and going to a photo studio to take pictures was considered a luxury for students.
Moreover, most people looked stiff and unphotogenic in front of the camera, and they were often dissatisfied with their photos.
But drawing was different.
Hua Jie was skilled, and her portraits not only resembled the subjects but also made them look more beautiful than in real life, which was truly surprising.
Especially when Liao Shanshan framed her own portrait meticulously, it looked as exquisite as a piece of artwork, becoming the best advertisement.
Orders were piling up, with a waiting list extending to the next week, and the demand was still increasing.
By Wednesday, Hua Jie had already earned 100 yuan, adding to her previous earnings, totaling 143 yuan.
In the year 2000, her father’s monthly salary was only 1300 yuan, but here she was, making almost two hundred yuan in just over a week by drawing portraits for her classmates.
It was quite stimulating.
On Wednesday evening, after finishing her homework, reviewing and previewing her lessons, and brushing up on some junior high school courses until her brain felt mushy, Hua Jie took out an eraser and carved a rubber stamp for Liao Shanshan.
Now their relationship was great; Liao Shanshan was warm, lively, and loyal, almost like her half-agent.
So, she wanted to give her friend a little gift in return.
Early the next day, just like the day Liao Shanshan gave her a gift, Hua Jie handed a simply wrapped small box to her friend.
Liao Shanshan was ecstatic when she received the gift. As she opened the box, she couldn’t contain her excitement and jumped up in delight.
Girls are truly wonderful, innocent, and lively, like little puppies when they’re happy.
Following that, Liao Shanshan became the most proud and glamorous student in the class—
At least that’s how she felt.
A personal seal like this, in the eyes of children from small northern towns, was something only adults or celebrities could have. They only had colored stamps with cartoon characters, and the most sophisticated ones were plastic stamps with single characters.
But a personal seal with a carefully designed font and layout, specially carved with one’s own name.
That feeling… it was like owning an emperor’s seal.
The female student immediately ran across the street to buy ink and came back to stamp it on every notebook and book she owned.
She even stamped the book spines and the backs of her hands… no place was left unstamped.
Next, she might even stamp it on her forehead.
She would tell everyone, “This was a gift from Hua Jie!” During break times, when she met acquaintances from other classes in the hallway, she would proudly exclaim, “Look! A friend gave it to me! A personal seal! My friend is amazing; she can draw and carve seals!!!”
Hua Jie was a bit stunned. Liao Shanshan’s exuberance and her joyous state, resembling a bouncing puppy, were completely unexpected.
Her idea of happiness was the kind adults experienced, just a happy smile, polite words of gratitude, maybe a deeper emotional connection, and possibly a return gift.
She truly forgot how wild a newly promoted freshman girl to the high school could be.
By almost the end of the morning session, Hua Jie was starting to regret giving Liao Shanshan the gift.
She even began to doubt herself. Was this seemingly simple gift of a rubber stamp actually a mind-blowing item?
Did she make the gift too extravagant?
Before the afternoon classes began, Hua Jie realized that not only did she owe a bunch of portrait drawings, but she also had orders for over a dozen rubber stamps.
Quite a hustle…
However, her wallet became even thicker!
Not only were her classmates not shy about their orders, but they also paid promptly.
She hadn’t even delivered the goods, yet the payments were all received.
Counting them up, it was over three hundred and twenty yuan.
A few hundred yuan in the year 2000 could easily turn into several thousand after more than a decade!
It was a bit sudden. In the evening after school, Hua Jie held the money in her pocket.
She suddenly realized she could buy a bicycle for herself.
…
The following time, Hua Jie’s life became unbelievably fulfilling.
Study, study, study, and draw, draw, draw.
She utilized every break time to draw for her classmates and carve stamps to earn money.
She had become a well-known entrepreneurial talent at her school, making a fortune through drawing.
After the third period on Friday morning, she returned to her seat with a cup of milk tea and continued her work without pause.
Suddenly, the boy behind her pushed the desk again, causing it to hit the back of her chair, and she frowned.
She had already told the boy behind her several times this week not to push the desk so hard. Each time it startled her, and a few times, his desk almost squeezed her arm resting on the chair back.
But the male student seemed incorrigible, always apologizing but repeating the offense, not taking it seriously at all.
Not only did he push the desk into her chair, but he also shook his leg against her chair when their desks were close.
She had spoken to him a few times but didn’t want to get into a confrontation, so she pulled her chair forward, trying to avoid him.
However, he took advantage of the situation, pushing his desk forward, invading her space without any awareness, continuing to either hit or shake her chair.
It was so annoying; she felt like hitting him.
“Zhao Jinhui! Could you stop hitting my chair and squeezing me forward? Do you need all that space for raising pigs?” Hua Jie stood up and scolded him, unable to bear it any longer.
Zhao Jinhui had a good temper and immediately dragged his desk backward, saying, “Sorry, sorry. Don’t be angry, just tell me, hehe.”
“……” Hua Jie had no more patience. She had told him at least a dozen times this week.
But she held back her anger, sighed helplessly, and shot him a glance.
Moving his chair back a bit, he sat down and continued to focus on painting.
Shen Mo, leaning against the doorway, chatted absentmindedly with classmates playing basketball, his gaze casually sweeping over Zhao Jinhui, who was apologizing and then fooling around with other classmates. He pursed his lips in silence.
As the bell for lunch rang, Zhao Jinhui suddenly stood up and with a bang, slammed his desk into Hua Jie’s chair, causing his metal pencil case to fall onto Hua Jie’s back.
Startled, Hua Jie grabbed the pencil case and glared angrily at Zhao Jinhui.
“Sorry, sorry,” Zhao Jinhui grabbed the pencil case and put it on his own desk, ignoring Hua Jie’s reaction. He laughed happily as the class ended, then dashed out of his seat, disappearing from the classroom in the blink of an eye.
Hua Jie was really fed up with him.
He was even more annoying than being kicked by mischievous kids behind him in the movie theater, being nudged by children on the subway, or sitting next to a crying baby on an airplane!
After calming down for two minutes, Hua Jie finally turned and left the classroom.
It wasn’t until Hua Jie left the classroom that Shen Mo leisurely stood up.
He glanced around, seeing that most of the classmates had left, leaving only four boys sitting in the back row and two slow-moving girls.
He pointed to the back row and said, “You four, come here.”
Shen Mo couldn’t really distinguish who these four students were, but vaguely guessed based on their height that they might be the classmates who played basketball with him. But… that wasn’t important.
The four boys looked at each other, confirming that Shen Mo was calling them. Although they suspected it wasn’t something good, considering Shen Mo’s temper and fists, they pretended to be cheerful and walked over.
“What’s up, Shen Mo?” one of the tallest and more outgoing boys asked first, his tone seemingly jovial but actually carrying a polite inquiry.
Next, Shen Mo gave them an order, and although the four had doubts, they obediently complied under the pressure of Shen Mo, the wolf king.
So, when everyone came back for class in the afternoon, they found that Zhao Jinhui’s desk was missing.