After military training ended, life back at school remained much the same as before.

Amidst busy studies and exams, half the semester flew by in a flash.

Once midterms finished, Lin Zhexia finally felt the mountain weighing on her chest lighten somewhat.

The midterm exams ran for three consecutive days. In the days before, she frequently visited Chi Yao’s place, asking him to highlight important points for her.

“You’re so accurate with your predictions,” Lin Zhexia said that morning while waiting for the bus, holding a carton of milk. “You correctly predicted the last two major problems in math.”

Chi Yao leaned against the railing of the waiting area in his school uniform, looking not fully awake.

Lin Zhexia: “Though the question format changed somewhat. I still couldn’t solve the final part.”

Chi Yao glanced up: “It’s fine, at least you recognized that these two problems were of the same type.”

Lin Zhexia: “I’m in a good mood today, so I won’t argue with you.”

As they spoke, the bus slowly pulled into the station.

On the bus, Lin Zhexia sipped her milk, curious about what song Chi Yao was listening to: “What are you listening to? I want to hear it too.”

Chi Yao was huddled in the back row by the window, eyes closed, catching up on sleep.

Hearing her, he raised one hand, lifting the earbud dangling on his other side and passing it to her.

Lin Zhexia took it and heard low electronic music.

She couldn’t understand the song—it was quite different from her usual music taste. Before the song ended, she nudged Chi Yao with her elbow: “Change the song, play something else.”

“Not changing it,” Chi Yao said. “Take it or leave it.”

Lin Zhexia: “There’s a popular song lately, I want to hear that one.”

Chi Yao: “I don’t want to.”

Lin Zhexia: “Just give it a listen, you might like it too.”

Chi Yao: “Give me back my earbuds.”

Lin Zhexia: “…”

Early in the morning, the two childishly argued back and forth about changing songs.

He Yang, sitting in front of them, shook his head, unsurprised, and continued sneaking in time to copy homework that he needed to submit once they reached school.

Daily life after arriving at school remained routine. Halfway through the semester, Lin Zhexia had become familiar with her classmates. She, Chen Lin, and Tang Shuxuan formed a small group.

When they gathered to chat during breaks, two male students from the back row would also join the conversation.

The boy sitting behind her had a gentle appearance and usually didn’t talk much.

Tang Shuxuan: “Just now in class, Teacher Wu’s face when he realized he calculated the data wrong—I died laughing.”

Chen Lin didn’t say anything; she was always busy with her phone during breaks.

Tang Shuxuan: “Stop surfing the internet. Why are you always on your phone?”

Chen Lin didn’t look up, continuing to surf and post on the forum with flying fingers, casually sharing with them: “I’m busy. Do you know about the neighboring school?”

Lin Zhexia: “Neighboring school?”

Chen Lin: “The Experimental Affiliated School.”

This rang a bell.

He Yang’s school.

Lin Zhexia: “The one… three bus stops away from No. 2 High School?”

“Yes,” Chen Lin said. “I’m arguing with people from their school.”

Lin Zhexia: “…”

The internet truly brings people closer together.

Speaking of phones, the boy sitting behind suddenly said, “I just realized we haven’t added each other as contacts yet.”

For classmates, exchanging contact information wasn’t unusual.

After adding Tang Shuxuan and Chen Lin, he turned to Lin Zhexia: “Um, Lin, could I add you as a contact?”

Lin Zhexia had no reason to refuse, so she gave him her number.

At noon, Lin Zhexia and Chen Lin went to the cafeteria to get food.

The No. 2 High School cafeteria offered abundant food options of decent quality. Lin Zhexia, carrying her tray, looked around for a seat. She spotted two empty spots at Chi Yao’s table.

“Nobody’s sitting here, right?” Lin Zhexia approached with her tray. “If not, I’ll allow you to dine with this young master.”

Chi Yao was struck by her “young master” reference: “It’s empty, but people with brain problems aren’t welcome.”

Lin Zhexia: “This young master has an IQ of 280, belonging to the high-intelligence group.”

Chi Yao slowly looked at her: “To me, you seem more like 250.”

The boy who delivered water sat across from Chi Yao and found this exchange hilarious. He greeted Lin Zhexia, playing along: “Master Lin, what a coincidence meeting you here.”

Lin Zhexia gave him approval: “At least Xu knows how to play along, unlike some people.”

The water-delivering boy was named Xu Ting.

Since Lin Zhexia frequently visited Class 1 to find Chi Yao and often appeared during PE class, he and Lin Zhexia were somewhat acquainted.

Lin Zhexia invited Chen Lin to sit down as well, then said: “I’ll go get some soup.”

Chen Lin stood up too: “I…”

Lin Zhexia: “No need, I’ll get some for you.”

Chen Lin had wanted to go with her.

Because after Lin Zhexia left, she was left alone facing the two boys, mainly facing Chi Yao.

Chen Lin held her chopsticks, silently eating.

She didn’t dare speak to Chi Yao.

Although she had closely followed and gossiped about him on the first day of school.

But throughout this half-semester, she discovered that Chi Yao was difficult to get along with.

Initially, she had introduced herself: “I, I’m Chen Lin, Xiaxia’s deskmate.”

Chi Yao had merely responded with an “Mm.”

Then the two had nothing to say to each other.

She saw Lin Zhexia speaking naturally with Chi Yao, but when it came to herself, she couldn’t even manage a single exchange.

So in Chen Lin’s eyes, Chi Yao maintained strong boundaries, was cold, and difficult to approach.

It seemed only her classmate surnamed Lin could chat with him unselfconsciously, even childishly argue with him.

Lin Zhexia returned with the soup, unable to eat quietly.

She casually picked out the cauliflower she disliked and placed it on Chi Yao’s plate: “You’re still growing, eat more.”

Chi Yao: “If you don’t want me to flip this tray onto your head, take it back.”

Lin Zhexia: “What this young master has given away cannot be taken back.”

“Oh, thank you, Young Master Lin,” Chi Yao put down his chopsticks and turned his head. “Young Master Lin, that chicken leg in your bowl looks nice, give it to me too.”

Lin Zhexia: “…That’s not happening.”

Chi Yao: “Didn’t expect Young Master Lin to be so stingy.”

Lin Zhexia: “…”

Halfway through the meal, they suddenly began discussing midterm exam results.

Xu Ting: “This midterm was quite difficult.”

Lin Zhexia deeply agreed: “Indeed.”

Xu Ting pointed at Chi Yao across the table and continued complaining: “I asked him to highlight key points for me, but he completely refused—”

This was something Lin Zhexia couldn’t agree with.

Xu Ting: “Why aren’t you saying anything, Young Master Lin? Don’t you think he’s cold-hearted?”

“Because he highlighted points for me,” Lin Zhexia said. “I can’t comfortably join the conversation.”

Xu Ting: “…”

What, was he being bullied for not having a childhood friend?

Lin Zhexia encouraged: “Some results will probably be released this afternoon. Don’t be afraid; bravely face it, no matter how badly you did.”

Lin Zhexia’s guess was correct—some results were indeed released that afternoon.

The Chinese, Math, and English test papers were distributed in batches.

This midterm, Lin Zhexia’s performance remained stable, consistently ranking among the top in her class.

But Chen Lin’s results weren’t so ideal; she barely passed each subject.

From the afternoon onward, Lin Zhexia noticed that her expression didn’t seem right.

“You should spend less time on your phone,” Lin Zhexia thought it was because of her grades, and comforted her. “These questions aren’t that difficult. Just spend some time reviewing the key concepts.”

Chen Lin stared vacantly at the desk, responding in a somewhat lost manner.

But even when class began, Chen Lin remained distracted.

The last class was Math. During the lesson, the math teacher called her name several times: “Chen Lin—what’s going on with you? With these grades, and you’re still not paying attention in class.”

“Stand up,” the math teacher said. “Which problem was I just explaining?”

Chen Lin stammered, unable to answer.

Lin Zhexia whispered “problem three,” but it was too late.

Math teacher: “Stand for the remainder of the class.”

Chen Lin remained standing until the bell rang.

It wasn’t until the dismissal bell sounded, after Lin Zhexia finished her cleaning duties and was about to go to Class 1 to find Chi Yao to go home together, that Chen Lin finally broke down and grabbed Lin Zhexia: “Um… after school, could you walk with me?”

Lin Zhexia found it strange: “But I don’t think we live in the same direction.”

Chen Lin held her hand, her voice trembling: “Someone might come to trouble me tonight. I’m afraid to walk alone.”

“I’ve been arguing with people from the neighboring school on the forum these past few days, and somehow they found my personal information…”

As she spoke, Chen Lin showed Lin Zhexia her phone screen.

Posts on the forum were anonymous.

The argument content was actually quite childish; Chen Lin’s favorite idol had conflicts with another idol, and fans from both sides were fighting, each defending their “brother.”

The forum was a campus section, with commenters mostly being students from different schools in the city.

Chen Lin’s ID was “Little Orange,” and her private message inbox contained several disturbing messages:

“I’m from Experimental Affiliated School. Where are you from? If you have the guts, let’s meet and talk.”

A few hours later.

The person sent two more messages:

“Your name is Chen Lin, right? Class 7, Year 1”

“Just you wait.”

Seeing these messages, Lin Zhexia felt a chill down her spine.

After all, who would have thought personal information from an anonymous forum could be leaked so quickly?

Lin Zhexia calmed down and said, “We’re all students. I don’t think they have the technical means to track down your information, and everyone’s been busy with midterms, so they wouldn’t have the energy for that. It’s probably someone who knows your identity on the forum who leaked it.”

She then asked: “Think carefully, who knows that Little Orange is Chen Lin?”

Chen Lin was too panicked to consider these questions.

Seeing her state, Lin Zhexia didn’t feel comfortable letting her go home alone, so she sighed: “I’ll walk with you after school. Even if they come looking for you, they probably won’t dare do anything. Let me tell Chi Yao.”

So Lin Zhexia waited for her to pack her bag while taking out her phone to message Chi Yao:

“Don’t wait for me after school.”

Chi Yao replied with a question mark and two words: “?—Reason.”

Lin Zhexia didn’t tell him about Chen Lin’s situation; it wasn’t appropriate to disclose such personal matters. She typed back: “Because I have other good friends too. Today I’m walking home with Chen Lin.”

The other side quickly replied:

“Got it.”

Chen Lin’s bus stop was quite far from school, requiring crossing two streets.

On the way, Chen Lin anxiously asked: “Do you think they’ll bring many people to beat me up?”

Lin Zhexia said, “I doubt it. It was just an argument online.”

Chen Lin: “They might. Obsessive fans can be terrifying.”

Lin Zhexia countered: “Including yourself?”

Chen Lin: “…After this incident, I’ve decided to leave the fan community and devote myself to studying.”

Lin Zhexia: “Good that you’ve realized this.”

The topic circled, and Chen Lin brought it back: “Do you think they’ll bring people?”

Lin Zhexia responded mildly: “Don’t let my appearance fool you. I’m quite good at fighting.”

“…You?”

“When I was little, I could take on three at once.”

To reassure Chen Lin, Lin Zhexia showcased her childhood achievements: “Those chubby boys about this tall, I made them cry several times. One had a whole gang of followers, but none could beat me.”

The more she spoke, the more she recalled that heroic feeling of protecting her little brother when she was young.

Except that little brother she protected back then had the surname Chi.

She walked while keeping an eye on their surroundings.

The first street was bustling with people, but after turning at the intersection into the second street, there weren’t as many people around.

This area was some distance from the school. Business wasn’t good for the shops, and many had closed.

Across the street was a dark alley, likely a dead end, with poor lighting and some debris piled inside.

The reason she noticed this alley was that there seemed to be a few people standing inside. They were dressed in a sleazy manner, with cigarettes between their fingers.

The leader had dyed red hair, squatting at the alley entrance, biting his cigarette while brazenly surveying passersby.

Lin Zhexia slowed her pace: “Although I don’t think it’s that serious, but… when you usually pass by here, are there people in that alley across the street?”

Chen Lin looked over, shook her head, and answered with certainty: “No, I walk this road every day after school. I’ve never seen people hiding there.”

Only then did Lin Zhexia start to feel alarmed.

She had believed these people wouldn’t come to trouble Chen Lin, thinking that as students, no one would risk disciplinary action.

But she hadn’t considered that sometimes, to cause trouble, they didn’t need to appear in person.

Lin Zhexia forced herself to remain calm, pretending nothing was wrong, acting as if she hadn’t noticed anything unusual. Then she took out her phone from her pocket and, without any thought, opened her chat with Chi Yao.

But her slightly trembling fingertips betrayed her current emotional state. When typing on the alphabetic keyboard, she made several errors:

“I’m now at

At Schkol, outside two streets away, the bus route 9 station is here-

There are former hooligans”

Lin Zhexia couldn’t make her movements too obvious. She was about to correct the misspelled “school” and “a group” to prevent Chi Yao from misunderstanding.

Just then, the people in the alley immediately made their move.

The red-haired leader dropped his cigarette, pointed in their direction, and the others understood, following together.

Lin Zhexia immediately grabbed Chen Lin’s hand and sprinted back toward school: “Run!”

For those people to reach them, they needed to cross the road in between, which gave the girls some time, but not much. The two were cut off at the end of the road, just one street away from the busy area.

“Why are you running?” the red-haired man spoke with a mouth full of cigarette smell. “Which one of you is Chen Lin?”

Lin Zhexia squeezed Chen Lin’s hand: “Who are you? I don’t know you.”

Red-hair: “Who cares who I am. Quickly tell me, which one is Chen Lin, who argued with my sister online? If you don’t say, I’ll beat both of you.”

At this point, the red-haired man’s gaze lingered on Lin Zhexia’s face for a few seconds.

“The little girl is quite pretty,” Red-hair said. “If I’m not careful with my hands, it would be a shame for that face.”

Lin Zhexia wanted to buy more time, so she said: “I don’t know any Chen Lin. You’ve got the wrong people.”

Seeing these two wouldn’t cooperate, Red-hair smiled, spat on the ground, and was about to raise his hand to grab Lin Zhexia’s hair, intending to pull her toward himself—just then, a hand extended from his side. Only then did he realize someone was standing behind him.

That person was taller than him, slightly bent forward, wearing a No. 2 High School uniform.

Standing behind him, the person extended an arm around him, resting it on his shoulder, pressing back the hand he had half-extended, in a buddy-like embrace.

From a distance, it looked as if they were together.

Lin Zhexia had instinctively closed her eyes out of fear. Opening them, this was the scene she saw.

“Brother,” the person had very light-colored eyes, and turned to look at Red-hair. “Blocking people’s way?”

Red-hair was confused by this move, unable to immediately determine friend or foe.

But he thought this might be someone like him; otherwise, he wouldn’t have approached with such familiarity: “Who are you? Also here for a fight?”

Chi Yao’s expression remained unchanged, his chin slightly raised, drawling his reply: “Ah, yes, I’m from No. 2 High School, often fight on this street.”

Red-hair was about to say “Never heard of such a tough character in Cheng’an,” when the next second—

The young man’s hand had already gripped the back of his head firmly, pulling his hair backward, forcibly dragging him back. His movements were clean and swift, his hand strength substantial. Several fingers tightened, then he kicked hard at Red-hair’s lower leg.

“Me,” Chi Yao said, “I just like to wander this street when I have nothing to do, beating up whoever I don’t like the look of.”