Married to the Grim Reaper Against My Will

Am I not civilized?

School life was monotonous and repetitive; time flew by quickly, and soon the monthly exams at the end of May were over.

After the last subject, the science exam, everyone was actively and enthusiastically comparing answers, the classroom filled with rustling sounds. Besides comparing answers, some were also quietly discussing what to do that afternoon.

The second semester of the second year of high school had entered monthly exam mode, and everyone was under immense pressure to prepare for exams almost every day. To relieve the students' stress, they were given an afternoon off after each monthly exam.

The classroom was filled with a suppressed buzz of discussion. Ji Mian sat quietly in her seat, head down, working on the last physics problem on the exam paper. She used a simpler approach and calculated the same answer as on the test paper, which made her feel somewhat relieved.

Perhaps influenced by her aunt's family matters and the series of events at Tiangong, her score in the last monthly exam had slipped from fourth to eighth.

The students only discussed freely for about twenty minutes before the homeroom teacher entered, and the classroom instantly fell silent.

"That concludes today's exams. Rest this afternoon, and return to school promptly tomorrow," the homeroom teacher said, standing on the platform and surveying the classroom. She then pointed to a group below the podium, "Group four, everyone take paper and pens, and come with me to the office to tally the scores."

To improve the efficiency of practice and explanation, the monthly exams were graded and results were released quickly.

Ji Mian was in Group four. She took her paper and pen and stood up with the others, subconsciously glancing towards Zhang Keke's seat at the back of the classroom.

Zhang Keke was also looking at her. Seeing her look over, she raised an eyebrow, picked up her phone, and gestured for a phone call.

Ji Mian nodded and followed her group to the office.

The day after tomorrow is Zhang Keke's birthday, and Zhang Keke has invited a group of people to go out. However, it falls on Saturday, and Ji Mian has to return to Tiangong. She didn't tell Zhang Keke the truth, only saying that she had to go home for the weekend. She originally intended not to go, but to celebrate Zhang Keke's birthday separately after returning from "home." However, Zhang Keke changed the birthday party to today for her sake.

Actually, Ji Mian wasn't very comfortable in such lively occasions, but since Keke had specifically changed the time for her, she couldn't refuse.

Ji Mian went to the office with her group to tally the scores, not finishing until lunchtime. Back in the classroom, all her classmates had left. She sent Keke a message saying she was done, and Zhang Keke told her to find her at the old town department store.

The party was in the evening; Zhang Keke was probably helping her mother right now.

Ji Mian packed her bag and headed out, He Sihang following her with his own bag. They were both in the fourth group and had tallied the scores together before going home.

He Sihang had seen Ji Mian's test paper when tallying the scores: 293 in the combined science section, first in the entire grade, and third overall. "Ji Mian, I lost a few points on the last physics question. Could you help me check?"

Before the answer sheets were even handed out, He Sihang caught up with her, his test paper covered in calculations.

Ji Mian had gotten third place this time, which was a good result, maintaining her usual level. The anxiety from her previous drop in grades had eased, and she was in a good mood, smiling as she replied, "Sure."

She took the test paper from He Sihang, and the two talked as they walked.

Upon reaching the school gate, having finished explaining the major problems, He Sihang suddenly realized, "Your method is so concise, much more concise than the teacher's. But if you hadn't thought of that, it would be difficult to come up with this solution. You're amazing, I couldn't have thought of that."

Ji Mian handed him the test paper back, smiling, "You're exaggerating. I used a clumsy method, just doing a few more problems and memorizing it. I have to go now, bye-bye."

"Wait, let me treat you to milk tea," he quickly added, seeing Ji Mian was about to refuse, "as a thank you."

Ji Mian paused for a moment, "I should be thanking you."

He Sihang was a little surprised, but immediately thought of the May Day brothel incident. He smiled sheepishly, "It's nothing, and it was my dad who asked me to do it, so of course I had to do it well. Besides, you girls are naturally a little delicate, it's only right that I look after you."

Ji Mian didn't say anything more, walked to the nearby milk tea shop, and ordered two cups of milk tea. He Sihang remained somewhat embarrassed, a shy smile on his face, but he didn't refuse and obediently followed behind her.

Ji Mian turned to look at him. "What flavor do you want?"

"Ah, ah," he suddenly stammered, "Anything is fine, just the same as yours."

After buying milk tea, the two went to the bus stop to wait for the bus, but no bus came for a long time. It was midday in late May, and the weather was already quite hot; fine beads of sweat appeared on Ji Mian's forehead.

However, what was more anxious was her mood. Waiting for the bus was always like this; the longer it waited, the less likely it was to come, and the more impatient she became.

The owner of the stationery store next door called out to the two, "There's road construction in front of Xihua Road; there's no bus service here for the next few days. Isn't there a notice on the bus stop sign? Did someone tear it down?"

The two glanced at it; there was no notice on the bus stop sign, but there were traces of torn edges of paper. Ji Mian smiled and thanked the shopkeeper, inquired about the service suspension information, and then took out a marker and scrap paper from her bag to write down the notice about the suspended bus service. She wanted to post the notice but realized she didn't have any glue.

He Sihang, watching from the side, immediately ran to the stationery store to buy glue.

The shopkeeper teased him as he took the glue out, "Students dating? But your girl seems nice, well-behaved and pretty, and has good character too. Cherish her; it'll be hard to find such a pure girl after you enter society."

He Sihang blushed, "No, we're just ordinary classmates."

The shopkeeper chuckled, with a knowing look on his face. These days, there are plenty of high school students dating.

He Sihang returned with the glue, his blush still lingering. Ji Mian took the glue he handed her, glanced at him, and asked, "Are you hot? Why don't you wait for me under the shed over there? I'll be done in a bit."

"No, not hot."

"Your face is so red."

He Sihang: ...

He lowered his eyes, avoiding her gaze, "I ran here just now, I was in a bit of a rush."

Ji Mian didn't press further, and the two of them put up the notice together.

Since the road was closed, after they finished putting up the notice, they walked to the next street to wait for the bus. Zhang Keke was probably getting impatient and sent another message to urge them on.

Zhang Keke: [My mom isn't busy here, she told me to go to Tianhe first, you can just come over later.]

Ji Mian: [Okay, there's road construction here, I'll wait for the bus next door, it might be a long detour, I'll be a little late.]

Not long after, Zhang Keke sent another message, but she didn't have time to read it because she ran into Shi Man and her group. This street was far from the vocational school, but very close to the technical high school. Shi Man must have skipped class to hang out with some students from the technical high school.

There were six of them, boys and girls, all dressed rather extravagantly. They walked and joked, drawing attention in the quiet midday street.

Ji Mian stopped almost instinctively when she saw them. She was docile and afraid of getting involved with these delinquents.

"What's wrong?" He Sihang noticed her unusual behavior.

"Let's go over later."

He Sihang followed her gaze and saw the group from the technical high school. He didn't say anything and stopped with Ji Mian.

Shi Man walked past the group, still cheerful and the center of attention, as if Shi Jiancheng's incident hadn't happened. Or rather, even if it had, it didn't concern her.

Ji Mian remembered that Ji Xiuan had said Shi Man had run away from home. On a sweltering afternoon, Ji Mian felt a chill in her heart. Ji Xiu'an could have allowed her daughter to escape hell, that was understandable, but why drag her down with her?

Ji Mian bit her lip, watching the group of arrogant and unrestrained teenagers leave.

"Hey, Shi Man, isn't that your sister?!" Suddenly, a girl lagging behind shouted.

The others all stopped, several pairs of eyes sweeping over.

Ji Mian froze instantly. He Sihang noticed her unease and secretly took a step forward, blocking half of her body.

Shi Man took the cigarette out of her mouth and smiled contemptuously. "I don't have a sister, don't talk nonsense."

The girl retorted, "I saw her at your house last time, your mom said she's your sister."

"Tch, she doesn't deserve it."

Shi Man was still holding a grudge against Zhang Keke for talking back last time, and this time, relying on her numbers, she was particularly arrogant, wanting to get revenge. She raised her chin and walked towards Ji Mian, followed by a group of people behind her.

"Watch closely, it's her, she seduced my dad and got kicked out." Her lips curled into a sneer, her face full of mockery. "Don't ever say she's my sister again, I find it disgusting."

Ji Mian stared at her in astonishment, not only because of the offensive words she uttered, but also because Shi Man could actually act as if it were none of her business. Seeing Shi Man's still arrogant and unrestrained demeanor, she even began to doubt whether the story of Shi Jiancheng's madness was true. Otherwise, how could a daughter be so cold-blooded?

She subconsciously asked, "Shi Jiancheng..."

"Aren't you disgusting? You still have the nerve to mention my dad? How despicable are you!"

Shi Man was already seething with anger, and mentioning Shi Jiancheng only struck a nerve. She absolutely couldn't let her friends know about Shi Jiancheng's situation. Her anger flared up instantly, and she raised her hand to slap Ji Mian.

He Sihang reacted quickly, grabbing her wrist. Although he was shocked by what Shi Man had said and couldn't recover for a while, he instinctively stopped her, though his gaze towards Ji Mian was somewhat different.

Shi Man now had more people with her, so she was more confident. Since she couldn't hit Ji Mian, she vented all her anger on He Sihang.

"Who the hell do you think you are?! You dare stop me?!"

She pulled her hand back and raised it to hit He Sihang. "You're just a backup plan, and you actually think you're a protector? Look at your ugly face!"

Shi Man hurled insults at He Sihang as they struggled: "Aren't you shameless? This piece of trash even seduced my dad, and you treat her like a goddess? Disgusting! Like you've swallowed a fly!"

She seemed determined to use every filthy word imaginable to smear Ji Mian, only then could she slightly vent the anger that had been building up inside her for days.

He Sihang initially didn't want to fight with a girl, but Shi Man became increasingly outrageous, directly scratching his face. He Sihang raised his hand to slap her away; the boy was stronger, and he threw her to the ground.

Shi Man was furious and screamed, "What are you all standing there for? Watching my show?!"

The group snapped out of their daze and surrounded He Sihang and Ji Mian. Shi Man even scrambled to her feet and lunged at He Sihang.

"Shi Man, that's enough!"

Ji Mian suddenly rushed in front of He Sihang, blocking him, and grabbed Shi Man's hand.

Ji Mian wasn't good at arguing, much less fighting, but He Sihang had been innocently dragged into this whole mess, and she couldn't just stand by and watch.

She was no match for Shi Man's strength and was easily thrown aside, staggering back a few steps. Luckily, He Sihang was behind her and caught her.

Shi Man's friends had already gathered around. Ji Mian didn't have time to think much, looking at Shi Man and asking, "I heard your dad's gone mad. How can you still be playing here? Don't you care about your own father at all?"

Her words successfully attracted the attention of Shi Man's friends. They all stopped, looking at her and then at Shi Man.

Shi Man felt the strange looks from her companions, feeling like her veil of shame had been torn away by Ji Mian. Her back stiffened, and then, enraged, she swiftly and accurately slapped Ji Mian.

Ji Mian took the slap squarely, her head turning to the side, her face burning with pain.

But at least her friends didn't continue to approach.

"Ji Mian, I'll f*****g kill you!"

Shi Man lunged at her like a madwoman. He Sihang reacted, pushing her away, but the others began to stir again.

"What are you doing, bullying our No. 2 Middle School students?!"

Xu Ting's nonchalant voice rang out, and several tall teenagers strolled over from the other end of the street.

Ji Mian heard his voice and instantly felt relieved. She looked in the direction of the voice, as if looking for someone, her gaze sweeping over the faces of the teenagers, but she didn't see Jiang Wang.

That feeling of relief, however slight, was mixed with a touch of unease because Jiang Wang wasn't there. She didn't know when she had started to accept and rely on Jiang Wang.

The group quickly walked up to Ji Mian, blocking the two of them. Xu Ting's gaze swept over them, stopping on one of the boys' faces, a sly smile on his face. "Yo, isn't this my brother Tiancheng? What are you doing? I seem to remember, when Brother Wang beat you up last time, he told you that anyone who touched Ji Mian was going against him, didn't you forget?"

Zhao Tiancheng's face was very unpleasant. Of course, he remembered the time Shi Man had told him to deliberately chase after Ji Mian and then shake her off, only to be stopped by Jiang Wang.

Everyone present was unafraid of Jiang Wang, but since he wasn't there, Zhao Tiancheng couldn't afford to lose face in front of so many people.

His face darkened, and he snorted coldly, mocking, "Jiang Wang's got plenty of free time, meddling in every little thing."

"Hey, hey, hey," Xu Ting exaggeratedly raised his eyebrows, looking quite pleased with himself, "Watch your mouth, this is our sister-in-law. If Brother Wang doesn't take care of her, who will?"

As he spoke, he turned and winked triumphantly at Ji Mian, "Right, sister-in-law?"

Ji Mian: ...

She pursed her lips, remaining silent. At this moment, with Jiang Wang's name being used to help her out of an awkward situation, she shouldn't be so tactless as to argue back and make a fool of herself in front of the vocational high school students.

However, He Sihang's gaze towards her became increasingly subtle.

The vocational high school students, upon hearing Xu Ting's words, couldn't help but scrutinize Ji Mian. Jiang Wang was a real troublemaker. If other teenagers were wild horses, he was an absolutely wild horse that had gone mad, impossible for anyone to tame.

For three years at No. 2 High School, outsiders didn't know, but those who interacted with him knew that while it seemed like girls flocked to him, he ignored them all. In three years, no one had ever mentioned Jiang Wang having a girlfriend.

Aside from Xu Ting, who thought Jiang Wang might like him, everyone else thought Jiang Wang was just a deeply immature teenager with a lone-wolf hero complex, who wouldn't say it but secretly disliked girls affecting his sword-drawing speed.

But now, Xu Ting said Ji Mian was Jiang Wang's girlfriend. Everyone was curious—what kind of extraordinary person could tame this wild horse?

Ji Mian felt a little uncomfortable being stared at. Xu Ting stepped in front of her, "What are you looking at? Want to die?"

Everyone remained silent, not wanting to offend Jiang Wang unnecessarily.

"What are you all still standing around for? Want to come eat with us?"

Zhao Tiancheng's face was ashen. He glanced at Xu Ting, turned, and left, the others following suit.

"Wait!" Xu Ting called after them again. "Who hit someone just now? Come here."

Shi Man's back trembled violently. She had started to feel uneasy when she heard that Ji Mian was Jiang Wang's girlfriend, and now, hearing Xu Ting's words, she was immediately terrified.

She stood there, not daring to turn around to look at them.

"You were pretty fierce when you hit someone, but you chickened out now? If you dared to hit someone, you have to bear the consequences. This slap, our Mianmian must get it back."

Xu Ting grabbed her arm and forcefully pulled her around. Shi Man screamed in fright.

Zhao Tiancheng couldn't hold back any longer. He rushed back, pointing at Xu Ting and yelling, "Xu Ting, that's enough! A grown man grabbing a girl and beating her, you think you're so tough?"

"Who the hell are you pointing at? I'll beat you up, you hear me?!"

Ji Mian, standing behind him, immediately grabbed his clothes, her voice trembling, "Let it go, okay?"

Xu Ting turned to look at her, silently enduring for a moment, "Fine."

He had met Ji Mian a few times and knew her personality; she didn't like conflict, and she would definitely feel bad if she caused a conflict and dragged others into it.

Xu Ting turned back to Shi Man, "Our Mianmian said let it go, so let it go today. If there's a next time, I'll drag you out of your nursing school and beat you up!"

Zhao Tiancheng glared at Xu Ting, didn't provoke him further, and walked away with the frozen Shi Man. After Shi Man and her group left, Xu Ting looked at Ji Mian, then at He Sihang, as if he wanted to say something, but hesitated for a moment before remaining silent.

“Going to Tianhe? I'll take you?”

Ji Mian remembered that Zhang Keke had previously shared an apartment with Xu Ting, so they should have some connection. “It's Keke's birthday, aren't you going?”

Xu Ting scratched the back of his head awkwardly. “I have something to do, I probably can't make it.”

“Then you go ahead and do your thing, I'll take a bus myself.”

“Are you alright?” Xu Ting pointed to her cheek.

Ji Mian pressed the back of her right hand against her burning cheek. “It's okay, I can go by myself.”

Xu Ting looked at her, hesitant to speak, and after a long while said, “Alright, then we'll be going now.”

After he finished speaking, he glanced at He Sihang beside him, didn't say anything more, and turned to walk towards the street.

Several other teenagers followed him, a few of them, always eager to stir things up, shouting before leaving, "Goodbye, sister-in-law!"

Immediately, someone echoed, "Goodbye, sister-in-law!"

Now that they were alone, Ji Mian blushed and retorted, "Don't listen to Xu Ting's nonsense!"

The group of teenagers walked away, laughing and joking.

He Sihang continued to follow her to the bus stop, not saying anything, but Ji Mian could clearly sense that he was more distant than before.

She wanted to explain, but felt powerless, unsure where to begin. Shi Jiancheng's matter involved too many things, and there was no evidence whatsoever. It would all come down to her own words, and might only make things worse.

Besides, she felt it was unnecessary to explain. Shi Man could easily smear her reputation, but she didn't have the energy to explain to everyone.

This was probably a case of spreading rumors with a mouth, but refuting them with exhausting legwork.

Since seeing Ji Xiuan's attitude towards this matter, Ji Mian had become much more accepting of it. Some things, you can't expect everyone's trust; you only need the trust of those you consider important.

At the bus stop, Ji Mian's phone rang. It was Zhang Keke calling.

"Mianmian, why aren't you here yet? Didn't Jiang Wang pick you up?"

"Jiang Wang?"

"Yeah, he was at No. 2 Middle School. I asked him to pick you up."

Ji Mian was silent for a moment before slowly saying, "I didn't see him, but I saw Xu Ting."

"Wait... Lu Chen said he received a message from Jiang Wang, and he's busy and can't come. Damn, no loyalty. Don't worry about him, just come by yourself."

"Okay, I'm waiting for the bus, it should be here soon."

Ji Mian hung up the phone, feeling a little confused, and kept looking in the direction Xu Ting had left.

Xu Ting and a group of teenagers rounded the street corner and saw the minivan parked by the roadside. Jiang Wang sat in the passenger seat, rolled down the window, rested his elbow on the windowsill, a cigarette between his fingers, and nodded at him from afar. "Did it work?"

"Yeah," Xu Ting replied, opening the door and jumping into the driver's seat. "Why didn't you go yourself?"

Jiang Wang lowered his eyes, his expression not good, and coldly glanced at him. "Why the hell should I go?"

Ever since he saw Ji Mian with that guy while driving, Jiang Wang had been acting this sarcastic and awkward.

Xu Ting scoffed. "Then nobody should go. It's none of your business."

"Are you f*****g asking for a beating?" Jiang Wang raised his hand to hit him.

"Ah, damn it, buddy, let me tell you, Ji Mian got beaten up."

Jiang Wang's movement abruptly stopped, then he defiantly lowered his hand, yelling, "What the hell is it to me?"

After he finished speaking, he looked out the window, but unconsciously gritted his teeth.

In that instant, Xu Ting saw his gloomy face and almost felt his anger was about to materialize.

In the back seat of the van, some people who hadn't yet grasped the truth were discussing—

"That boy was in their Sunshine Class too, right?"

"Probably. They're all bookworms who only know how to study. He just stood there dumbfounded after being hit, and a girl had to shield him. Damn, I'm even a little jealous. When will I ever have a girl shield me?"

Upon hearing this, Xu Ting realized this topic was practically dancing on Jiang Wang's sensitive area, and things were about to go wrong. He quickly gave a wink to those behind him.

But the boys, still lingering on the topic of girls, didn't notice him for a while, continuing their giggling—

"If I had a soft girl like that protecting me, I'd f*****g die for her."

"Stop dreaming. A good student like Ji Mian wouldn't even look at someone like you."

"What's wrong with someone like me?"

"You f*****g have some self-awareness. Those good students wouldn't even look at us. They all prefer the refined, academically gifted. People like us, in their eyes, have 'no future' written all over our faces."

"Can't you all be quiet? Stop making such a racket!"

Jiang Wang suddenly roared, grabbing the ashtray beside him and smashing it on the control panel.

The loud crash startled everyone, and the noisy car fell silent instantly. Everyone exchanged bewildered glances, unsure what was happening. They held their breath, the atmosphere inside the car tense and suffocating.

Xu Ting glanced at Jiang Wang. This guy was truly enraged; his face was stern, looking like he was about to explode and start a fight.

Jiang Wang closed his eyes, rubbed his temples, took a deep breath, and asked in a cool tone, "What, do I look uncivilized?"

The bright sunshine seemed to have instantly turned the car into a freezing winter, and everyone shivered.

The group of boys were on the verge of tears. Brother Wang, this is a death trap! If you want to hit us, just say so. We're all brothers, don't play games.