The Interstellar Queen of Scavengers

Chapter 754: Chapter 754: Truth or Dare

Facing repeated rejections yet swarmed by an ever-growing pile of food, Ji You, the girl enveloped in an ’anguish’ of loneliness, took bite after bite, eating the food unhurriedly with a reserved and genteel demeanor until none remained.

Having finished, she pulled out a handkerchief and gently dabbed the corners of her mouth, saying, ”Thank you, the dinner was delicious.”

Seeing that Ji You had finally finished eating, Chu Jiaojiao, who had been watching the whole time and as an unabashed fan of beauty immediately fawned over her, ”Classmate Ji You, you even eat in such a beautiful manner.”

Ji You: ”...”

The corners of Ji You’s mouth twitched almost imperceptibly. Good thing she was easy-going; otherwise, who could dine so heartily under the close scrutiny of 9 pairs of eyes? Especially Chu Jiaojiao, that shameless beauty-chaser, gaping and drooling like she hadn’t seen someone eat in hundreds of years...

Ahem...

Throughout the meal, Ji You toughed it out under pressure, chewing slowly and keeping her poise until she finished dinner without leaving a single grain of rice or drop of soup.

Feeling full and satisfied, Ji You was in an excellent mood, so she didn’t stint on showing a pleasant face to Chu Jiaojiao and the others, her lips pursed in a toothy smile, ”It was very delicious, thank you, everyone.”

At the sight of Ji You’s happy smile, Chu Jiaojiao was nearly dizzy with delight, ”No need to thank us, as long as Classmate Ji You is happy.”

Sheng Qingyan: ”...”

Sheng Qingyan inwardly scoffed: [Eat that much, of course, she’s happy.]

The others might not have been as expressive as Chu Jiaojiao, but seeing the gloom lift from Ji You, they all breathed a sigh of relief.

Then—

Ji You glanced at Sheng Qingyan, with lips puckered so high they could hang an oil bottle, and suddenly turned to Yue Qiguang, whispering, ”Yue Qiguang, I know there’s something that you just can’t figure out about me.”

Yue Qiguang: ”???”

Ji You’s tone was calm as she continued, ”Since this started with you, you must be thinking, why haven’t I taken revenge on you?”

Rarely blushing, Yue Qiguang flushed but quickly turned his head away with his usual haughty attitude as he felt his cheeks grow hot.

Ji You smiled and said, ”Not just Yue Qiguang, but all of you must be confused. Considering my stinginess, how could I allow myself to suffer alone?”

Yue Qiguang muttered with a red face: ”Stingy? Who would’ve thought you, dummy, had some self-awareness.”

Yue Qiyuan: ”Cough cough...”

Yue Qiguang promptly closed his mouth.

”Ah!” Pretending not to have heard, Ji You sighed, then her gaze gently swept over her teammates.

Without needing an answer, Ji You already knew they all shared the same thoughts, and she heaved another little sigh, ”No matter how stingy I am, I’m still your captain, your teammate, and a member of Team 44. So, at any moment, what I need to ensure first is our collective interest, and think of the gains and losses for our entire team... If I alone am punished, versus all of us being punished, which loss is greater and which is smaller?”

Everyone’s expressions became focused.

Ji You declared confidently, ”No need for me to provide the answer, I believe you all understand. The reason I stood up to argue with Teacher Mu was to fight for the rights we deserve for us all. Although I didn’t succeed completely, she changed her mind and let you all have dinner. In my view, that was a reward for my efforts, and that’s what I should do.”

”Teacher Mu wanted to punish me alone by going hungry, and I could have given up on our rights then and there, letting everyone continue to face the original punishment of hunger but I didn’t. Because—”

Ji You paused, her clear and sincere gaze sweeping across Chu Jiao, Yue Qiguang, Yue Qiyuan... before continuing,

”Tomorrow we still face many daunting assessment tasks. If everyone is hungry, our performance tomorrow will surely be affected, and definitely the assessment results of our team. If it’s just me going hungry, with your usual performance and our capabilities, we can definitely pull through tomorrow’s assessment.”

”My final choice, of course, is naturally to choose all of you!”

While speaking, Ji You smiled, ”We are teammates after all!”

At these words, the faces of the nine people present, including Sheng Qingyan, all displayed a bit of shame.

—Turns out, everyone had really misunderstood Number 4444!

——Yeah! Although person number 4444 has always been stingy, her actions have always been generous! Why would everyone think of her as someone with a small nose and small eyes who nitpicks over everything?

Cough cough...

With this thought in mind, everyone’s expression became even more filled with shame.

Ji You’s lips slightly lifted, as she sincerely said, ”Thank you all, for being willing to take care of me when my mood suddenly dropped.”

Cough...

The chicken leg rice is so fragrant! The fruit juice is so tasty! If I could have even more, that would be just perfect.

However, the words above aren’t just empty talk from Ji You, whether as a captain or as a team member, she has always looked at the issues from an overall perspective, prioritizing collective interests. This has always been her mindset and how she demands herself to act.

So, in truth, there’s no way she’s deceiving these little fools in front of her, cough cough...

After Ji You’s heartfelt words, many people in Group 44, who originally thought Ji You was shirking work while enjoying delicious food, now felt even more ashamed.

——When it comes to being petty, it turns out they are the ones who are pettier.

The day’s task came to an end.

The group walked back to the temporary campsite with hunched backs and bent waists, their spirits defeated. Upon seeing the miserable state of Group 44, the other students all showed an expression of ’we all get it’.

The entire Group 44: ”...”

Yue Qiguang grabbed a tuft of his red hair on top of his head, angrily saying, ”What do these idiots mean by looking at us like that? Daddy will sooner or later let them understand what mild sadness is.”

”Cough...” Ji You gave him a disdainful look, ”Why don’t you say less, for fear that others won’t know your sadness is too light, huh?”

Yue Qiguang: ”...”

The others all kept a straight face, silent, and at that moment, they all straightened their backs, trying to put some distance between themselves and Yue Qiguang.

Yue Qiguang: ”Daddy’s not mildly sad!”

As his words fell, the area within dozens of meters around Yue Qiguang instantly cleared out.

Yue Qiguang: ”...”

Yue Qiguang forced himself to straighten his back, but—

”Hiss~”

He couldn’t help but grit his teeth and grimace in pain, taking a sharp breath of cold air.

Nearby.

Passing students pointed and made comments:

”That looks painful, they can’t even stand straight.”

”Look at Yue Qiguang with that heart-wrenching expression, I’d say his sadness is not only not mild, it’s quite intense.”

”Group 44 is so pitiful! Thankfully, we didn’t draw the task of raising cattle.”

”Speaking of which, except for Yue Qiguang, are the other members of Group 44 okay?”

At this comment, Yue Qiyuan, Shen Changqing, Lou, Lance, Zhang Ye, Xuzhou, Chu Jiaojiao, and Sheng Qingyan all simultaneously raised their heads, standing even more upright, but— there were slight traces of strain in everyone’s expression.

Just as they were about to continue being the subject of pointing and commenting, Ji You suddenly stepped forward, glaring at the onlooking crowd, and scolded, ”Pack up all your messy speculations. We’re fine! Everyone disperse, disperse.”

Having said that, Ji You performed an aerial somersault and even demonstrated a split, using her actions to break apart the ridiculous assumptions of the crowd and prevent the spread of rumors.

Therefore, all the members of Group 44 looked at Ji You with even greater gratitude.