Fourth period in the afternoon.
It was rare for Xie Zhen and He Mo to see Lin Ran still in the classroom. He Mo couldn’t help but mutter, “Brother Ran isn’t going to pick up Yanyan today?”
Xie Zhen, munching on a pack of spicy snacks, chimed in, “That doesn’t seem likely.”
The two of them huddled together, scheming, and finally decided to send Xie Zhen to probe Lin Ran. After finishing his snacks, Xie Zhen scooted over to Lin Ran’s side.
But before he could get close, Lin Ran pressed a finger against his chubby face, speaking in a calm tone, “Say what you need to.”
Xie Zhen chuckled, “Brother Ran, why aren’t you picking up Yanyan anymore? Also, the fairy got hurt because of you, shouldn’t you, you know, do something? Poor girl, she’s been through a lot.”
Lin Ran didn’t look up, “My dad arranged for someone to pick up the little brat. There’s a bodyguard now, so nothing will happen.”
After a brief pause, Lin Ran turned to Xie Zhen and asked, “What should I do?”
Xie Zhen, with a straight face, replied, “Brother Ran, I heard the fairy was doing really well in her old school. How about… you write her homework for her? Her hand’s injured, right?”
He Mo nearly spat out the water he was drinking.
Xie Zhen was truly fearless.
Lin Ran frowned, staring at Xie Zhen for a while. Just when Xie Zhen thought he was about to get scolded, Lin Ran, with a hint of impatience, asked, “Where’s the school’s study room?”
Xie Zhen: “…”
He turned to look at He Mo in shock.
Lin Ran was really going to write the fairy’s homework!
—
7:00 p.m.
Sheng Qingxi and Song Shiman sat quietly in the well-lit study room. The room felt more like a mini library, with the seating arrangement similar to their classroom. Bookshelves and books separated the rows of seats, mimicking the setup of their usual classroom with 7-6-7 desk arrangements.
Though the study room had 20 seats, most of the high school seniors rarely used them, preferring to stay in their classrooms for exams. As a result, the room was often half-empty.
When Song Shiman was taking her tests, Sheng Qingxi would sit alone here.
Their seats were near the back door, in a group of seven, though the other four seats nearby were vacant.
It was just Sheng Qingxi, Song Shiman, and Gu Mingji.
At the moment, Sheng Qingxi was reviewing the test papers that Song Shiman had written the day before. They were working through the second semester of first-year high school material. Song Shiman’s Chinese and English were decent, but she struggled with math and science.
Sheng Qingxi adjusted her tutoring plan based on her friend’s strengths and weaknesses.
However, Song Shiman’s attention was completely elsewhere. Her mind wasn’t on the test papers in front of her, but rather on the fact that Gu Mingji had suddenly sat down next to Sheng Qingxi to ask her a question. The two of them were inexplicably close.
Song Shiman glared at Gu Mingji with her little face tense. Although Gu Mingji wasn’t bad-looking, he still couldn’t compare to Lin Ran.
At the moment, Gu Mingji was leaning down, writing something on a piece of paper. When he finished, he handed the paper to Sheng Qingxi. She glanced at it briefly before beginning to write as well. Song Shiman peeked over and saw a mess of formulas that seemed both familiar and unfamiliar to her.
What really angered Song Shiman wasn’t just how close the two of them were sitting, but the fact that while Sheng Qingxi was writing, Gu Mingji wasn’t even looking at the paper. His eyes were fixed on Sheng Qingxi the entire time.
Even a fool could tell what Gu Mingji was thinking!
Just as Song Shiman was about to explode, she caught a glimpse of someone standing outside the window.
She turned around in shock and saw Lin Ran, expressionless, watching the two of them. She had no idea how long he had been standing there, but his eyes were fixed on the pair. His gaze was calm, with no visible emotion.
Yet, somehow, this expressionless Lin Ran seemed even more terrifying.
When Lin Ran noticed her looking at him, he glanced at her indifferently. Song Shiman, as if understanding his unspoken message, quickly stood up and opened the back door of the study room.
Sheng Qingxi, who was fully absorbed in solving the problem, didn’t notice that there was now someone else at their table.
Gu Mingji, however, made brief eye contact with Lin Ran. Lin Ran, sitting lazily in the chair with his arms crossed, glanced at him with a cold, disinterested gaze before letting his eyes settle on Sheng Qingxi.
He didn’t speak immediately, not wanting to disturb her.
The first self-study session in the study room was meant to be quiet. Students were only allowed to talk during the second session, which was a discussion period.
Song Shiman, though, felt something was off. She couldn’t quite pinpoint what it was, but since she couldn’t figure it out, she buried herself in her homework. After all, with Lin Ran here, Gu Mingji wouldn’t dare be as bold as before.
Everyone in school knew the transfer student had a thing for Lin Ran.
After Sheng Qingxi finished solving the problem, she pushed the paper back to Gu Mingji. Instinctively, she wanted to glance at Song Shiman, but as she looked up, she froze for a second.
Across from her sat Lin Ran, wearing his loosely fitted school uniform. As usual, his zipper was only halfway up, revealing a glimpse of his sharp collarbone. His expression was lazy as he looked at her, his posture relaxed.
The messy fringe on his forehead had been casually pushed aside, and his dark eyes gleamed faintly under the dim light.
When Lin Ran noticed Sheng Qingxi looking at him, he reached out and tapped the desk lightly before grabbing the blue pen from her hand.
Sheng Qingxi let him take it without protest.
Lin Ran pulled out a sheet of paper and quickly scribbled a few words on it. He slid the paper back toward her once he was done.
Sheng Qingxi glanced at the paper. Written in bold, messy characters were four words: Where’s your homework?
She picked up another pen and wrote beneath his words: It’s done.
Compared to Lin Ran’s bold, sweeping handwriting, Sheng Qingxi’s small and neat characters filled just one tiny line beneath his. The contrast made Lin Ran’s writing seem even more wild and unruly.
Lin Ran let out a quiet scoff, drawing a glance from Gu Mingji.
Without any care for reason, Lin Ran continued to write: Don’t do it tomorrow. I’ll do it.
Sheng Qingxi, recalling what Lin Yanyan had said, hesitated for a moment before writing back: Do you even know how?
After a second thought, she decided the message seemed too blunt. She crossed it out and rewrote: My right hand doesn’t hurt anymore, so it won’t affect my homework.
When Lin Ran saw her response, he was speechless: “…”
The words “Do you even know how?” were still plainly visible at the top, even though Sheng Qingxi had made only two light strokes to cross them out, which seemed incredibly half-hearted.
Lin Ran felt like Sheng Qingxi was doing this on purpose. It was as if she was born just to annoy him.
Frustrated, he wrote back: Isn’t it just homework?
Sheng Qingxi sighed softly and wrote: Have you finished your homework today?
Lin Ran, full of arrogance, responded: I never do homework.
Sheng Qingxi followed up without missing a beat: Then go to the classroom, get your homework, and I’ll teach you how to do it.
Lin Ran: “…?”
He looked up in annoyance, only to meet Sheng Qingxi’s pure, obedient gaze.
His words got stuck in his throat as their eyes met for a moment. Defeated, he stood up and headed for the back door, tossing two words over his shoulder as he left: “Wait here.”
Five minutes later, back in Class 1’s last row.
He Mo watched Lin Ran rummage through his desk, growing more and more agitated the longer he searched. Without a desk partner, He Mo had no idea what Lin Ran was looking for.
He stretched his neck to get a better view, only to catch Lin Ran’s frustrated glare.
He Mo: “…”
He quickly shrank back, but before he could look away, he heard Lin Ran ask, “Mozi, what’s our homework for today? And why don’t I have a math notebook?”
He Mo: ?
Xie Zhen: ??
Neither He Mo nor Xie Zhen ever did their homework, so they were just as clueless.
In the end, He Mo had to swallow his pride and ask the class rep, who found the situation amusing but kept a straight face. Concerned that He Mo might forget, the class rep wrote it all down on a piece of paper.
He Mo returned to Lin Ran with the list. After a long search, they finally found all of Lin Ran’s crumpled, blank notebooks shoved into a forgotten corner of another desk. He Mo couldn’t help but remark, “Every notebook is blank, and every notebook is crumpled. Brother Ran, you’re impressive.”
At least they occasionally made an effort to pretend by writing their names. Lin Ran, however, nearly tossed the notebook aside in frustration.
By the time Lin Ran returned to the study room with his wrinkled homework, the bell for the end of the first self-study session rang. Song Shiman had taken Sheng Qingxi downstairs to the milk tea shop, leaving only Gu Mingji and Lin Ran in the room.
When Lin Ran entered through the back door, he noticed Gu Mingji’s eyes on the crumpled notebooks in his hand, his gaze filled with subtle curiosity, as if the meaning behind it was clear.
Without hesitation, Lin Ran tossed the notebooks onto the table, their chaotic appearance now imbued with a certain defiance due to their owner’s presence.
Lin Ran had always been unruly, whether at home or at school.
Gu Mingji knew better than to cross the Lin family. One of the most valuable lessons he had learned growing up in the Gu family was how to avoid the sharp edges of people like Lin Ran. Lin Ran was both too fierce and too dangerous.
Gu Mingji quickly averted his gaze, no longer interested in provoking Lin Ran.
While waiting for Sheng Qingxi to return, Lin Ran absentmindedly scrolled through messages on his phone. Halfway through, he remembered that he didn’t even have Sheng Qingxi’s WeChat. Something crossed his mind, and with a sudden idea, Lin Ran opened the app store and downloaded a new app.
For the first time in his life, Lin Ran found himself doing something as sneaky as searching for someone’s name on the No. 2 High School forum.
Lin Ran lowered his gaze, carefully typing out her name: Sheng Qingxi.
As expected, a flood of posts appeared, and he scrolled through several pages without finishing. Most of the posts were either people asking for Sheng Qingxi’s contact information or posting her photos. Some even went as far as sharing her exam scores.
He clicked on a post titled “Worship the Exam Goddess.”
The poster had uploaded every single report card of Sheng Qingxi’s since she transferred to No. 2—her monthly exams, midterms, and finals. Without exception, she had been ranked first in every test. The second-place name kept changing, but hers remained firmly at the top.
Lin Ran suddenly recalled how he had spoken to her at the school gate, looking down and saying—
“Study hard.”
Lin Ran: “…”
What was the point of studying when she was already at the top? And he had just told her he’d do her homework.
He meant to close the post, but for some reason, he saved the long image of her scores to his phone. After doing so, he felt like there was something wrong with him.
As he continued scrolling, most of the newer posts were from students at other schools asking about Sheng Qingxi at No. 2. He clicked into each one but couldn’t find any contact information for her.
Instead, he saw a few posts discussing her family background:
23L: Never seen the Exam Goddess’s parents pick her up.
45L: She’s pretty frugal, never seen her wear any name brands.
63L: Anyone close to the Exam Goddess? Can share some insights?
75L: I’m in her class. She’s always alone, never seen her close with anyone.
…
At that point, Lin Ran couldn’t read any more. He closed the app entirely.
An overwhelming mix of emotions—sour and bitter—welled up in his chest, almost suffocating him. It was as if he couldn’t bear it anymore, so he stood up and left the room.
When Sheng Qingxi and Song Shiman returned, Lin Ran was nowhere to be found. All that remained were the crumpled notebooks he had left on the table. Song Shiman placed the small cakes she had bought on the table and shot a long, hard look at Lin Ran’s messy homework.
Sipping on her milk tea, she sighed quietly.
Sigh, she was now more diligent than Lin Ran.
When Sheng Qingxi began picking up Lin Ran’s notebooks, Song Shiman couldn’t help but complain, “Xiao Xi, don’t bother with him. You can’t spoil him like this—liking someone doesn’t mean having no boundaries.”
Sheng Qingxi just smiled softly and said nothing.
Meanwhile, Lin Ran had taken a break in the bathroom, where he smoked a cigarette before returning.
The hallway was bathed in the soft glow of the night, shrouding most of his figure in darkness, while inside the classroom, it was a different world—bright and full of light.
Through the window, Lin Ran saw the quiet and beautiful girl, head bowed as she carefully unfolded his crumpled homework. Her slender fingers smoothed out each wrinkle, bit by bit.
But to Lin Ran, it didn’t feel like her fingers were smoothing out paper. It felt as though they were soothing something inside him.
Gentle. Warm.
And it left him restless, stirring something deep within him.
He stood silently outside the window, watching as she patiently unfolded his notebooks. Then, he saw her run to the bookshelf, seemingly to grab a few thick books.
Lin Ran stepped inside.
Inside the classroom.
Most of the books on the lower shelves were practice tests and textbook guides. The heavier books were placed higher up. When Sheng Qingxi tried to reach for one, she had to stand on her tiptoes.
Just as she raised her left hand and touched the dry book cover, a shadow suddenly loomed over her.
The familiar, somewhat intrusive scent wafted from behind her as the person slightly lifted their hand, easily reaching the book she was trying to grab. Their fingertips inevitably brushed against each other.
Sheng Qingxi reacted as if she had been shocked, quickly pulling her hand back. Instinctively, she turned to look behind her.
Lin Ran, seeing how Sheng Qingxi recoiled like a startled animal, couldn’t help but chuckle softly. He leaned in slightly, his voice low and teasing, “What are you avoiding? It’s not like—”
Lin Ran’s words abruptly stopped.
His chin had suddenly brushed against something soft.
Moist and sweet, with the scent of pudding milk tea.