Liang Zhiyi froze for a moment, then quickly denied it, “Don’t talk nonsense! We’re just friends, so of course, I’m going to speak up for him…”
At that moment, the housekeeper came upstairs to inform Liang Tongzhou that dinner was ready. He decided not to press the issue further and said, “I’m heading down.”
Before he could leave, Liang Zhiyi grabbed his arm, “By the way, does your school team need any other roles? Something that regular students can sign up for?”
“Yeah, there are positions in the logistics team or the cheer squad. Are you thinking about joining?”
“Well, I’m just checking things out for now…”
After Liang Tongzhou left, Liang Zhiyi thought for a moment and then called Ji Fei’er.
“Huh? You want to join the logistics team?” Ji Fei’er was surprised when she heard this. “Is it because of Pei Chen?”
Liang Zhiyi giggled, “Well, if you have time, join me! I don’t want to do it alone.”
“Aren’t you going to join the cheer squad? You were in the cheer squad back in middle school.”
“I’m tired of that. I want to try something different, and I want to be closer to Pei Chen.” Being part of the logistics team would allow her to help him out—how great would that be?
Seeing how smitten she was with Pei Chen, Ji Fei’er was at a loss for words. Liang Zhiyi spent quite a bit of time persuading her, but Ji Fei’er was still hesitant. Hearing this, Liang Zhiyi sighed softly, “It’s okay if you don’t want to, but just so you know, my brother is also on the school team.”
“Your brother is on the team?!” Ji Fei’er immediately changed her tune, “Then I’m in too!”
“Weren’t you just saying you didn’t want to go?”
Ji Fei’er smiled sweetly, “Don’t get me wrong, I just thought it over and realized I have the time.”
Liang Zhiyi chuckled, “Alright then, it’s settled.”
So, Ji Fei’er and Liang Zhiyi signed up for the logistics team together. The weekend passed, and a new week was about to begin.
On Monday morning, since she got up early, Liang Zhiyi arrived at school a bit earlier than usual.
When she walked into the classroom, she noticed that they had already switched seats for the week, and she was now sitting at the last desk in the first row.
There were only a few students in the classroom, and she noticed Pei Chen’s backpack on his desk, though he was nowhere to be seen. He was probably busy with something again.
After sitting down, she pulled out her Chinese textbook, unwrapped a lollipop, and popped it into her mouth before starting to review.
As her classmates gradually filled the room, Pei Chen returned, holding a stack of practice reports. He handed them out, asking everyone to fill them in according to a specific template and submit them today.
Seeing him, Liang Zhiyi’s mood instantly sweetened, just like the taste of her lollipop.
Pei Chen sat down and placed the report in front of her. Noticing that she was smiling at him, his brows furrowed slightly, “What are you smiling about?”
She averted her gaze and said cheerfully, “Just seeing someone made my day better.”
“…”
Pei Chen wasn’t oblivious; he could tell who she was hinting at.
He paused for a moment before responding calmly, “Hurry up and fill out the report.”
Looking at the practice report, she slumped over her desk and groaned, “There’s so much to write…”
She began to write slowly, but after a while, Pei Chen had already finished his and put it away. Seeing this, Liang Zhiyi scooted her chair closer to his desk and blinked at him, “Pei Chen, could you help me write mine…?”
“Why?”
Liang Zhiyi scrunched up her face, looking pitiful as she said, “I don’t know what’s wrong with my right hand today, it’s so sore that I can’t even hold a pen properly.”
Pei Chen glanced over and saw her lying on the desk, her soft cheeks and bright almond eyes reminding him of a kitten begging for treats.
She rubbed her cheeks, sore from sucking on the lollipop, and pleaded, “Pei Chen, please help me. Besides, my face hurts so much, it’s really uncomfortable…”
“…”
What does a sore face have to do with writing?
Liang Zhiyi looked at him with wide, hopeful eyes. A few seconds later, he looked down at his textbook, then extended his hand, palm up, towards her.
She blinked in confusion, and the next moment, she gently rested her chin in his large, dry palm. “Hmm?”
Pei Chen, still focused on his textbook, suddenly felt the weight in his hand, the soft texture of her skin pressing against his palm. He turned to see her resting her face in his hand.
He quickly withdrew his hand, his voice cold and hoarse, “I meant for you to hand me your practice report.”
“…”
Liang Zhiyi’s cheeks flushed red. A few seconds later, she calmly responded with an “Oh,” and said, “I thought you were offering to massage my face since it hurts.”
She buried her face slightly, muttering, “Taking advantage of me…”
Pei Chen: “….”
In the end, Pei Chen took her practice report and started filling it out for her. After a while, when Liang Zhiyi went to refill her water, she took his water bottle as well, saying she’d fill it for him too.
A little while later, Sang Xunling walked over to Pei Chen and gently asked, “Pei Chen, how should I write this part?”
Noticing that Liang Zhiyi wasn’t at her desk, Sang Xunling casually sat down in her seat. Pei Chen answered her questions in a calm tone, and Sang Xunling said, “I’d like to see how you’ve written yours.”
She reached for the report on his desk, only to realize that the name on it was Liang Zhiyi’s. She paused for a moment, surprised. “Are you doing this for Liang Zhiyi?”
Pei Chen replied indifferently, “I just happened to have some time.”
The smile on Sang Xunling’s face faded slightly, and she let out a dry laugh, “Zhiyi is so lively; she gets along with every guy so easily…”
Pei Chen didn’t respond, “You should focus on the report.”
Sang Xunling nodded, and a few seconds later, a water bottle was placed on the desk in front of her. She looked up to see Liang Zhiyi standing beside her.
Caught in Liang Zhiyi’s gaze, Sang Xunling reluctantly stood up, allowing Liang Zhiyi to sit down. Placing Pei Chen’s water bottle on the desk, she smiled, “Pei Chen, I’ve refilled your water.”
Pei Chen thanked her, and Liang Zhiyi continued chatting with him. Seeing this, Sang Xunling returned the report and left, clutching her hands tightly.
Back at her desk, a friend noticed her pale face and asked, “Lingling, what’s wrong?”
“…Nothing.”
Sang Xunling lowered her head, quickly calming herself down. No matter how close they seemed, it was possible that Pei Chen and Liang Zhiyi were just friends. Liang Zhiyi was the one clinging to Pei Chen, and with his aloof personality, there was no way he could like someone like Liang Zhiyi.
Absolutely not.
The morning passed by quickly.
The third period in the afternoon was supposed to be music class, but the English teacher had something to take care of, so the head teacher, Mr. Fang, came to substitute.
It always seemed like the PE, art, or music teachers were the ones mysteriously absent whenever school was in session…
After class began, Mr. Fang, for once, didn’t teach a new lesson. Instead, he asked everyone to take out their workbooks and start on some exercises while he sat at the podium, grading the weekend’s homework.
Occasionally, soft murmurs could be heard in the classroom as some students whispered to each other, while others secretly played Go on their desks.
As Liang Zhiyi worked on her assignments, she pushed a freshly opened pack of matcha cookies towards Pei Chen, who was sitting beside her. “Pei Chen, do you want to try some?”
Pei Chen, adjusting the glasses on his nose, continued working on his practice paper, one that he had bought himself, without sparing her a glance. “No.”
Liang Zhiyi tried to engage him in conversation, “Then how about we go to the snack shop together after class?”
“No.”
“Then do you want to go fill up our water bottles together?”
“No.”
“…”
Seeing his cold responses, Liang Zhiyi let out a soft “Oh,” slumped over her desk, and curled up with her arms wrapped around herself, sighing repeatedly.
After a while, Pei Chen turned his head at the sound and saw her huddled up like that. For once, he asked, “…Are you cold?”
She lowered her head, “Living in the Tibetan Plateau, how could I not be cold?”
Lincheng, being in the south, had an outdoor temperature of 25 degrees Celsius today. Pei Chen was slightly taken aback, “What Tibetan Plateau?”
She gave a soft laugh, “The area with high altitude and low temperatures that spreads out from you as the center, comparable to the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.”
Pei Chen: “…”
In the front row, Xuan Xia overheard their conversation and couldn’t resist turning around. In a low voice, he asked with a grin, “What are you two talking about?”
Resting her chin on her hand, Liang Zhiyi absentmindedly mumbled, “We’re talking about ‘Ya La Suo’ matters.”
“Huh? What’s ‘Ya La Suo’ supposed to be?”
She began doodling on her scratch paper, humming softly, “Ya La Suo, that’s the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau…”
Xuan Xia couldn’t hold back his laughter, “What are you singing? That’s such a low pitch!”
“You sing it, then?”
Xuan Xia took up the challenge and sang a line. Not to be outdone, Liang Zhiyi responded with her own line, and before long, the two were engaged in what felt like a musical showdown, each trying to outdo the other with higher notes.
Listening to them from the side, Pei Chen could only think, These two are such idiots.
As they hummed, they got more and more into it. “That is the Qinghai-Tibet High…”
Just as they were hitting the high notes, they suddenly turned their heads and saw Mr. Fang standing beside their desks, arms crossed, silently watching them.
The word “Plateau” was swallowed back into their throats.
Liang Zhiyi and Xuan Xia: ?!
Mr. Fang looked at them with an amused smile, “Why did you stop singing? I was really getting into it, waiting for that final high note.”
“…”
“Who would’ve thought you two had such talents? Physically in math class, but your hearts are up on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.”
“…”
When did Mr. Fang get here? they thought in horror.
It was a socially catastrophic moment.
—
Translator’s Note:
If you’re wondering why Pei Chen didn’t think they were siblings even though they have the same surnames:
Chinese surnames can have different meanings even if they are spelled the same in English or Romanized using the same pinyin. This happens because Chinese characters can have different meanings and pronunciations, even if they are represented by the same pinyin spelling.
For example:
1. Li (李) – This is one of the most common Chinese surnames. The character “李” means “plum.”
2. Li (黎) – This “Li” is less common and means “dawn” or “black.”
3. Li (厉) – This “Li” means “severe” or “strict.”