Liang Zhiyi stared at the book in her hand, completely stunned.
…So, it really was him at the administrative office this morning!
This kind of humiliation was just too much…
She immediately chased after Pei Chen and blocked his path, looking up at him with a mix of frustration and amusement. “Pei Chen, I didn’t expect you to have the habit of eavesdropping!”
Her bright almond eyes sparkled, and her lips, as red as cherries, carried a hint of the gardenia scent that wafted toward the boy’s nose.
Pei Chen swallowed, his Adam’s apple bobbing slightly, and he took a step back to maintain his distance, turning his gaze away as he responded calmly, “Anyone walking into the administrative office would have heard it. It was hard not to.”
Liang Zhiyi: “…”
Was she really that loud?
“So, Pei Chen, you’ve been paying quite a lot of attention to me, remembering even things like this.”
He replied indifferently, “It just left an impression, that’s all.”
“…”
Her gaze swept over the nearby bookshelves before she pulled out a book and slapped it into his hand. “Fine, then I’ll recommend one for you too.”
Pouting, she turned and walked away. Pei Chen glanced down at the book in his hand. On the cover, a yellow Garfield cat was squinting at him, and the title read: *Don’t Be Too Much*.
Meanwhile, Liang Zhiyi returned to Ji Fei’er’s side, pulled out a chair, and sat down heavily.
Ji Fei’er teased her, “So, did you finish flirting?”
Liang Zhiyi huffed in response, not saying anything as she rested her chin in her hand and stared out the window.
After a moment, she couldn’t help but let the corners of her lips curl up slightly, her heart beating a little faster.
She wasn’t really angry about it.
In fact, she found him quite amusing.
How could someone be so good-looking, so aloof, and yet sometimes so infuriating in the way he spoke?
Liang Zhiyi turned her gaze back to the reading area, and her eyes once again found Pei Chen’s refined yet distant figure as he worked.
Even though they hadn’t known each other long, this person had a way of constantly drawing her attention…
But considering that Pei Chen was working and that they were in a public place, Liang Zhiyi didn’t approach him again. Instead, she focused on reading.
When it was finally time to leave, she made sure to pass by Pei Chen, haughtily saying goodbye before stepping out of the bookstore.
Pei Chen finished organizing the books in his hands, and without thinking, he glanced outside the bookstore. He spotted the Rolls-Royce from the previous night parked at the entrance.
The driver got out and respectfully opened the door for Liang Zhiyi.
She stepped into the car, her every movement exuding a noble elegance, like a bright little rose. The words of her classmates from earlier today, speculating about her being a rich heiress, echoed in Pei Chen’s mind once more.
But for her, this was just everyday life.
In the end, Pei Chen lowered his gaze and returned to his work, earning his fifteen yuan an hour.
Half an hour later, his shift ended, and he left the bookstore.
As he rode his bike home, it was already evening. Passing by a fruit shop near his neighborhood, he went inside and spoke in a low, calm voice, “Boss, do you need any help with moving goods today?”
Although there were only a few days left of summer vacation, he wanted to take on as many jobs as possible.
The shop owner knew about Pei Chen’s family situation and would occasionally let him help out.
Though the pay wasn’t much, it was enough for him to buy some food for his father or a few reference books for himself.
“There is, actually. Two trucks of fruit just arrived. I’ll give you sixty yuan for the job.”
Pei Chen nodded and stayed to help.
…
The stars and moon had risen, and the sky grew dark.
After carrying the last three crates of grapes into the store, Pei Chen finally finished his work. He walked to the water basin at the entrance, turned on the faucet, and washed his hands.
The cold water ran over his hands, stinging where the skin had been worn away. His muscles ached, particularly his right knee, which throbbed with a dull pain.
After washing his hands, he grabbed a bottle of mineral water from nearby and took a long drink, his prominent Adam’s apple bobbing as beads of sweat slid down his skin.
The shop owner came out and called to him, “Thanks for your hard work, young man. Come in and have a slice of watermelon.”
Pei Chen licked the water off his thin lips and shook his head. “No, thank you. I need to get home.”
“Fair enough, you should head home for dinner. Let me settle your pay…”
After receiving his wages, Pei Chen left the fruit shop. He stopped by a stationery store to buy a few basic supplies he needed and also picked up a set of Huanggang practice papers.
With his day’s work finally done, he walked back toward his neighborhood. Passing by a flower shop, he noticed several potted plants displayed at the entrance. Among them were a few pots of particularly beautiful flowers, their petals pure white and soft, just beginning to bloom, fresh and elegant.
The flower shop owner saw him looking and came out with a smile, asking, “Hello there, would you like to buy a pot of gardenias? They’re just fifteen yuan each, and these will bloom soon. They’re perfect for decorating your home, really beautiful…”
As the owner spoke, an image of Liang Zhiyi’s radiant face flashed through Pei Chen’s mind, but it quickly faded.
His long lashes lowered like dark feathers as he finally replied, “No, thank you.”
Then, he turned and walked away.
—
The weekend passed, and the first day of the new semester arrived.
On Monday morning, the sun rose brightly, casting a golden light over the campus road leading to the entrance of No. 1 High School.
Pei Chen rode his bike through the bustling streets and finally arrived at the campus road.
After dismounting, he pushed his bike towards the school gate. Dressed in his school uniform, with sharp and defined facial features, his understated and aloof demeanor couldn’t conceal his presence, even amidst the busy crowd.
After buying breakfast, he continued walking towards the school entrance, when suddenly, a gentle female voice called out, “Pei Chen—”
A girl approached him, also pushing a bicycle. She wore a blouse and a short skirt, her black hair cascading like a waterfall, her features gentle and serene.
The girl’s name was Sang Xunling.
She was the vice class monitor of Class 9 and one of the few girls who communicated more frequently with Pei Chen. They had a fairly friendly relationship.
As she walked up to Pei Chen, the two of them standing together made for a particularly eye-catching sight. Passing students couldn’t help but glance their way.
Sang Xunling looked at Pei Chen, a shy smile playing on her lips. “You’re here so early today?”
“The homeroom teacher asked me to come in early.”
“That makes sense. We’re heading off for military training soon,” she sighed, “Starting the semester with military training is pretty brutal.”
As they chatted and walked into the school, she suddenly remembered something. “I just realized, that new girl in our class is sitting next to you now, right?”
Hearing this, Pei Chen’s expression flickered slightly. Sang Xunling smiled teasingly, “If she has a quiet and reserved personality, sitting next to you would be the perfect choice.”
Quiet and reserved?
Pei Chen heard this but didn’t respond.
“I thought you might object at first, but since you’re used to sitting alone, I guess you don’t mind, right?”
After a few seconds, Sang Xunling heard him reply calmly, “The homeroom teacher will probably rearrange the seating in a while.”
Or maybe not—she might want to change seats soon enough anyway, implying that he didn’t need to worry about it at all.
Sang Xunling nodded, understanding that he generally preferred sitting alone. “True, it’s hard for a girl to see the blackboard clearly from the back row. I’m sure the seating will be adjusted after military training.”
The two of them slowly made their way to the bike parking area.
Meanwhile, at seven o’clock, a private car pulled up at the school gate.
As Liang Zhiyi got out of the car, Ji Fei’er had just finished buying breakfast nearby.
The two met up, and Ji Fei’er noticed the smile on Liang Zhiyi’s face, puzzled. “We’re about to start military training. Why are you so happy?”
“Of course I’m happy—I’ll get to see Pei Chen.”
“You’re still thinking about him…”
Though Liang Zhiyi said this half-jokingly, after not seeing Pei Chen for two days, she was indeed looking forward to the start of the semester.
No worries, she thought, they were desk mates now, so there would be plenty of time to see him in the future.
When they arrived at Class 9, Liang Zhiyi made her way to the fourth row, where she saw that Pei Chen had already arrived. He was reading, his long lashes casting a shadow in the soft morning light.
She walked over and sat down beside him. “Good morning, Pei Chen.”
Pei Chen turned slightly at the sound of her voice and was met with her smiling face.
Her hair was dark and smooth, her eyes bright and glistening, especially under the sunlight.
He responded with a neutral tone, “Morning.”
As she sat down, many of the other students’ gazes shifted towards her, still curious about the new girl. Especially a few boys—someone said something, and one of them blushed shyly, causing a small commotion.
From childhood, Liang Zhiyi had always been the center of attention.
But at that moment, she didn’t pay much attention to the others. Casually, she pulled out the physics worksheet she needed to turn in, when suddenly, a deep blue planet-shaped earring was placed on the desk in front of her.
Huh? Isn’t this the one she lost that night?!
She had been searching for it these past two days!
She looked at the earring in surprise, then turned to Pei Chen, who handed it to her. He was still flipping through his book, not even looking up as he said, “I found it that night.”
Upon hearing this, she broke into a bright smile. “Thank you! I thought I’d never find it again.”
Liang Zhiyi turned to the reflective window, holding the earring close to her earlobe as she examined it. Just then, she heard Pei Chen’s deep voice, “You can’t wear that at school.”
“I’m not, I’m just holding it up to see.”
Leaning towards him with a hand resting on the back of her chair, she smiled and said, “Pei Chen, look—you found my earring, and the next day we became desk mates. Don’t you think we’re kind of like the main characters in a drama? We’re really quite fated, aren’t we?”
“…”
Pei Chen lowered his eyes indifferently. “I don’t think so.”
Ha.
*I don’t need you to think it; I think it.*
Liang “CEO” Zhiyi happily put away her earring while Pei Chen returned to his book, though a subtle shift in his emotions flickered in his eyes, hidden in the shadows of his long lashes.
—
Once all the students had arrived, the homeroom teacher organized everyone to head downstairs, where they would board the buses in front of the teaching building.
At eight o’clock, the entire sophomore class set off for the military training site.
An hour and a half later, the buses arrived at their destination—the Lincheng Patriotic Education Comprehensive Base.
The school placed a strong emphasis on patriotic education, and this comprehensive base had partnerships with many high schools. It was well-equipped with training grounds and dormitories specifically for student military training, making it a more formal setting than the school itself.
As the buses pulled into the base’s parking lot, the students peered out the windows, seeing two rows of instructors standing at attention, their military postures flawless. The students were in awe. “Wow, the instructors are so handsome!”
The girls, in particular, were especially excited.
The instructors had arrived ahead of time to await the students. After everyone retrieved their luggage and disembarked, they formed up according to their gym class formations. Once they received their training uniforms, the instructors led each class to the dormitory building.
The dormitory conditions were simple. Boys and girls had to stay in the same building—boys on the lower three floors and girls on the upper floors—but strict rules prohibited any visits to the opposite gender’s floors.
Dorm assignments were made based on the order of the formation. Since Liang Zhiyi was new and had joined the lineup with Ji Fei’er, the two of them were luckily assigned to the same room.
In addition to them, the dorm also included a few other girls who were friends with Ji Fei’er.
The instructor instructed everyone to drop off their luggage and then meet downstairs. The students hurried to change into their camouflage uniforms.
The boys from Class 9 were quicker to gather at the dormitory entrance.
Under the sun, the two rows of boys stood there, a bit listless from the heat. Some complained, “Girls are always so slow.”
“Feels like waiting for a girlfriend on a date.”
“Wake up, where’d you get a girlfriend?”
They joked around until someone spotted Sang Xunling coming down the stairs. One of the boys whistled, “No wonder she’s the school beauty.”
Sang Xunling had been voted the school beauty before, and as she walked by, someone turned to Pei Chen, who was taking roll, and teased, “Class monitor, don’t you think Sang Xunling is especially pretty?”
The boys around him laughed, “What a pointless question. The class monitor doesn’t even notice girls.”
Pei Chen, still focused on counting heads, kept his gaze down, his expression cool and indifferent. He didn’t even glance up, as if he hadn’t heard a word.
The boys continued their banter, but soon, more girls began descending the stairs. When one of the boys caught sight of them, he nudged the person next to him.
“Whoa, check out our new classmate, Liang Zhiyi!”
Several boys immediately looked up.
In their line of sight, Liang Zhiyi appeared in a short-sleeved camouflage uniform, the hem of her shirt tucked neatly into her cargo pants. The sunlight cascaded down, illuminating her snow-white skin like fine porcelain bathed in golden light. Her military outfit perfectly balanced a sense of strength and sweetness.
The boys, who had been languishing under the sun, suddenly perked up, their spirits lifted by the sight. Jokes started flying among them:
“That figure is amazing, her waist is so slim…”
“Look, he’s already mesmerized, haha! Hey, are you about to get a nosebleed?”
The teenage boys, fueled by hormones, grew restless and excited.
Their mischievous laughter reached the usually silent Pei Chen.
In the next moment, he turned his head and saw Liang Zhiyi walking toward him.
Liang Zhiyi stopped in front of him, her smile playful and her voice sweet, “Class monitor, I’m here, just thought I’d let you know.”
Pei Chen lowered his gaze and met her mischievous eyes.
His eyes unconsciously drifted downward, and her slender waist came into view.
In his eyes, her skin was so fair, the fitted camouflage uniform accentuating the curve of her waist—slim, delicate, almost as if it could be gently grasped with two hands.
The thought flashed through his mind unexpectedly.
A dark glint flickered in his eyes before he quickly looked away, his expression darkening. His Adam’s apple bobbed heavily as he spoke in a cold voice, “Get in line.”
Liang Zhiyi: …?
Why did he suddenly get so harsh?