The tray was a local dialect for the fruit, its scientific name being raspberry.
She feared Qing Muye wouldn't understand.
"Is all you think about is food?"
The two held umbrellas, and he looked at her. The raindrops falling from the umbrella between them created a thin curtain of rain, adding a touch of beauty to everything.
"Not food? Hmph, I'm not you, how would I know what you're giving me?"
Meng Jingwei felt Qin Muye was being mysterious, but she still reached out to take the item.
She discovered it was an exquisite little box. She lowered her head and sniffed it; it had a faint, pleasant vanilla scent.
"This is medicine I had an old TCM doctor in the neighboring village concoct. It accelerates wound healing and repairs scars."
Girls were generally quite vain and disliked leaving scars on their bodies.
Thus, Qin Muye sought out a TCM doctor for this ointment.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk..."
Meng Jingwei opened the box and looked at the milky-white ointment inside, which emitted a refreshing fragrance. She couldn't help but tease, "So good? Then I'll accept it."
She closed the lid and slipped the flat, round little medicine box into her pocket.
Then, she looked up at him, "Alright, what do you want from me?"
Anyone who acts overly solicitous is either up to no good or has ulterior motives.
What good intentions could Qing Muye possibly have?
A second ago, the man's cold, handsome face held a faint smile, but in the next moment, it turned several degrees colder, his entire demeanor like a frost-covered expanse, exuding an intimidating chill.
He glanced at Meng Jingwei with a cool gaze, bypassed her, and walked away.
Meng Jingwei stood rooted to the spot, watching him walk step by step into the mud. She couldn't help but wonder, "How baffling. Everything was fine, what's he mad about now?"
Perhaps it was because she hadn't thanked him?
She trotted along with Qin Muye towards the school. The journey was quite long, and they walked for an hour before reaching the school.
Despite the heavy rain, the downpour dripped and pattered, with large raindrops splashing on the ground, creating bubbles and ripples with a loud sound, yet it couldn't drown out the clear sounds of reading from the school.
The children were reading aloud, embodying the spirit of 'ignoring everything outside the window and focusing solely on the teachings of sages'.
The school was simple, built with mud bricks and tiled roofs. Rainwater streamed down from the eaves. On the roof, a person in a blue raincoat was climbing a ladder to repair the roof and prevent leaks.
"When I was little, I also attended school in a place like this."
Meng Jingwei stood in the rain, looking at the scene before her, as if returning to her childhood.
Qing Muye, born into a wealthy family, had never experienced the situation of the classroom suddenly leaking water while class was in session during his childhood.
To avoid disturbing the children's lessons, they took a distant look and then went to a newly cleared study room within the school.
As expected, the study room was leaking badly.
Some of the donated books were still sealed, while others had been opened. A dozen or so books had been soaked.
Meng Jingwei couldn't find anything to catch the rainwater, so she could only stand by the bookshelves holding her umbrella to protect the books.
The school had four classes. First and second graders shared a classroom, while third, fourth, and fifth graders each had their own class. However, there were only two teachers.
In such harsh conditions, the two teachers dedicated themselves immensely to the school's few forty to fifty students.
Meng Jingwei was deeply moved.
After a while, the rain finally cleared.
The man in the raincoat readjusted the leaking tiles, and everything was secure.
He then ran breathlessly to Meng Jingwei and Qing Muye, giving a simple, honest smile, "Sorry, the rain was heavy just now, I was fixing the roof."
"It's alright, we just came to take a look out of idle curiosity. On the contrary, Teacher Li, you and your wife have stayed to look after the children in these mountains; it's truly admirable."
Meng Jingwei praised him sincerely.
"Hahaha, we're used to it. These children are the future of the country; it would be a pity if no one cared for them," Teacher Li said as he took off his raincoat and busied himself pouring water for the two.
"No, no, thank you. We don't need any."
Meng Jingwei quickly stepped forward to stop him, then took off her backpack and took out forty thousand yuan in cash from it. She handed it to Teacher Li, whose skin was dark and who was thin, "What the company donated to the school before was already a lot. This is just a small token of my appreciation. Keep it for your and your wife's living expenses. Only when you are well can you ensure the children are better off."
After arriving in Dongpu Village, Meng Jingwei had met Teacher Li and his wife. They were a very kind couple who taught students without seeking reward, something countless people could not do.
Qing Muye, standing beside her, saw this scene, and his obsidian-like eyes flickered slightly, his gaze filled with surprise.
In his mind, Meng Jingwei was a woman who saw money and was eager for it, yet he had never expected her to donate forty thousand yuan to Teacher Li and his wife in one go.
Especially since, as far as he knew, Meng Jingwei was very frugal and short on funds, having no money at all.
"No, no, no. Please, you don't have to. You've already given so much, you really don't need to."
"Please accept it. This is my heartfelt wish for you and the children, you mustn't refuse."
Teacher Li repeatedly refused, but Meng Jingwei firmly handed him the forty thousand yuan and then pulled Qin Muye away.
She was afraid that if she lingered any longer, Teacher Li might return the money to her.
The two walked through the mud, their trouser legs stained with the yellow earth, but Meng Jingwei was in a very good mood.
She stood on the mountain, inhaling the fresh air after the rain, and caught sight of a rainbow on the other side of the mountain. "Qing Muye, quick, look! A rainbow! It's so beautiful. Come on, Qing Muye, take a picture of me. Or better yet, let's take a selfie together. It'll be a souvenir of our first time doing charity work."
"Okay."
Qin Muye didn't refuse.
He walked to her side, and Meng Jingwei pulled out her phone and raised it. Only then did she realize Qin Muye was too tall, so she glared at him, "You're so tall you're running out of the frame."
A hint of helplessness appeared on Qin Muye's deep, chiseled face. "You're short, is that my fault?"
"Then can't you squat down a bit?"
Qin Muye: "..."
Facing her unreasonable demands, given Qin Muye's usual temperament, he should have ignored her. However, he slightly bent his knees and stood beside her.
Meng Jingwei held her phone high, opened the selfie function, and then, looking at herself and him in the camera, she said to Qin Muye again, "Squat a little lower."
He didn't speak, but his body honestly squatted down a bit more.
Meng Jingwei took the opportunity to loop her arm around his shoulder, and the two took an intimate photo together.
With a click, the photo was frozen. They stood on the hillside, with a large mountain not far behind them. Wisps of mist swirled around the mountains, and the sunlight cast a brilliant radiance, making the rainbow exceptionally vibrant.
The background of the photo was stunning, and the subjects, a handsome man and a beautiful woman, were a perfect match, even more beautiful.
"Not bad, it looks great. But Qin Muye, what's with that expression?"
Meng Jingwei glanced at the photo but found that while she was looking at the camera, Qin Muye was slightly turning his head to look at her.
"I wanted to take a photo with you as buddies, but it turned out looking like a close-up shot of a couple. No, no, I'm deleting this."