"Hello, can I join you?"
The three girls who were initially chatting together stopped in their tracks when they noticed Li Caiyi. Their expression was that of surprise. It must have been unexpected to see her, who was usually alone, suddenly coming up to them like that.
One of the girls with short hair cleared her throat before she spoke. "Li Caiyi, aren't you going to the cafeteria today?"
Of course, she would ask that. In the past, Li Caiyi rarely spoke or interacted with her classmates except for the minimum necessity. At lunchtime, she would usually go to the cafeteria and eat with Li Chunhua, Li Junjie, and Meng Renshu; no other outsider allowed. Before long, they were established as a group, and since the three were exceptionally popular, the other kids began to keep their distance from her, too, as they didn't want to offend her accidentally. Putting Li Chunhua and Li Junjie aside, they couldn't afford to cross Meng Renshu, the sole heir to Meng Corporation.
Thanks to Meng Renshu's halo, Li Caiyi was spared from interacting with people who tried to get closer to her with an underhanded motive, but at the same time, the regular students also avoided her. It wasn't a secret that Meng Renshu was very protective of the twins.
One time, a guy persistently pursued Li Chunhua and even followed her home secretly. Meng Renshu said he took care of them, and that guy couldn't be seen anywhere on the school grounds since then.
Meng Renshu might look gentle and harmless on the outside, but when you carelessly step a foot into his red zone, then he won't spare you any mercy. Li Caiyi involuntarily became one of those careless people too in her past life, so she understood why these girls were so cautious around her.
"I'm not eating in the cafeteria today. I want to join you and have a chat. Can I?" Li Caiyi asked again in a soft voice. Although it might not be apparent in her face, she was very nervous inside. She waited for their answer with bated breath.
The short-haired girl exchanged glances with the other two, trying to communicate using their eyes. In the end, she nodded her head with a smile. "Take a seat first, don't just stand there."
Li Caiyi's face brightened when she heard that. She pulled a chair and sat with them before putting down her lunch box. There was a hint of excitement in her eyes.
"You surprised us when you suddenly called out to us." A girl with big eyes and a petite body who sat beside her smiled warmly. She seemed to be a cheerful girl who liked to prank on others from a glance.
"Nian Nian, don't talk when your mouth is full," the short-haired girl reprimanded her, but her indulging tone betrayed her strict words. She was the one who spoke to her first. Li Caiyi's impression was that this girl was a cautious and serious one.
"Just let her be, Ya Ya. She just can't stand the awkward silence." The easy-going girl with a messy bun and uniform grinned across from her. Among the three of them, she looked the easiest to approach, just based on the relaxed air around her. "Li Caiyi, it's rare to see you around during lunchtime, but it's rarer to see you talk first to other people like this. What's the occasion?"
Li Caiyi, who was suddenly being questioned, couldn't form an answer right away and stammered on her reply. "N-nothing. It's just, I want to chat with my c-classmates sometimes."
"Hmm, that makes sense. You are always sitting alone in the class, after all."
"Chen Ruolan, what are you saying?!" The short-haired girl called Ya Ya glared at Chen Ruolan with incredulity. She just can't fathom how this girl could be so tactless sometimes.
Chen Ruolan covered her mouth with her hand. "I messed up. Did I say something wrong again?"
"Ahaha, you sure did! You're as insensitive as always!" This time, the girl called Nian Nian laughed.
Ya Ya sighed before she looked at Li Caiyi apologetically. "I'm really sorry for Ruolan's words. She didn't mean anything bad with it; she is just too frank sometimes."
Li Caiyi waved her hand in front of her. "Please don't apologize. I was the one who suddenly intruded on you guys, and she isn't saying anything wrong at all."
"Now I feel bad when you put it that way," Chen Ruolan scratched the back of her head. "Sorry. Don't mind what I said earlier. My mouth acts faster than my brain sometimes."
"More like, all the time! Hahaha."
"Shut up, Nian Nian."
"Both of you, please don't start arguing again. Li Caiyi would feel troubled if you do."
Looking at the three of them, freely speaking what was on their mind aloud, Li Caiyi felt a weird sense of estrangement. They seemed to be very close friends despite their bickering. It was a refreshing sight to see, but she couldn't help but feel uncomfortable with the thought of being an unwanted existence there.
"Forget about that! Let's talk about Li Caiyi instead. I have been curious about her for some time now!" Nian Nian suddenly turned her head towards Li Caiyi.
"Y-yes?"
"Now that we have talked a little, I feel that you're a bit different from what we imagined."
"Different how?"
Nian Nian crossed her arms while thinking hard. "Previously, you seem like the type that doesn't enjoy talking at all. It's tough to approach you."
"That's what I thought too! You are always with your group. Or when you are actually in class for once, you never talk to anyone. If someone spoke to you, you only gave a quick reply, and that's it. We thought you would dislike it if we talked to you, so no one dares to approach you anymore." Chen Ruolan added.
Her unstoppable friends exasperated Ya Ya, but she couldn't deny what they said. She observed Li Caiyi closely, half-expecting her to make excuses for herself.
Who would have thought that Li Caiyi would slightly bow her head in front of them?
"I'm very sorry for my rude behavior."
The three of them were dumbstruck.
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