The voice echoed in the classroom. Those farther away might not have heard it, but people within three or four tables could hear it. Everyone instinctively turned to locate the source of the sound.
Lǜ Xīngyán was sick, his voice hoarse. It was just a soft utterance, indistinguishable to others, but Zhào Lǎngmíng felt it sounded oddly familiar… as if he had just heard Lǜ Xīngyán’s voice moments ago.
It seemed to come from behind him, so he glanced toward Shěn Xīngruò’s direction, uncertain if it was her playing it out loud. But Shěn Xīngruò was looking at him. Strange, right?
Confused, Zhào Lǎngmíng then slowly noticed that everyone else was also turning their heads toward him. What’s going on? Why is everyone looking at him? His desk mate, a boy, seeing everyone’s gaze on Zhào Lǎngmíng, also assumed it was he who played the sound out loud.
He cautiously shifted aside, pondering whether he should request a seat change with Wáng Yǒufú. Zhào Lǎngmíng’s sexual orientation seemed off somehow.
Lí Chéngfān and Biān Hè’s seats were quite far from the incident, so all they caught was a distorted version —
“Huh… Zhào Lǎngmíng is flirting with a guy!”
“That’s disgusting, asking ‘baby, did you miss me this afternoon…'”
Lí Chéngfān and Biān Hè were bewildered, and they both chimed in the group chat.
Lí Chéngfān: “Damn, Lǎng-yé, you never revealed your true self! I’ve been rooming with you for so long and didn’t know you were a zero!”
Biān Hè: “Or maybe a one…”
Lí Chéngfān: “Where do you see any hint of him being a one?”
Biān Hè: “True.”
Zhào Lǎngmíng: “What are you guys talking about?”
Lǜ Xīngyán also asked what was going on, prompting Lí Chéngfān to vividly recount the scene. When he heard the man opposite him say, “Baby, did you miss me this afternoon,” it sounded oddly familiar, but he couldn’t recall saying “baby.”
Zhào Lǎngmíng finally understood why everyone was staring at him and explained while feeling utterly exasperated.
Zhào Lǎngmíng: “Damn… It wasn’t me!”
Zhào Lǎngmíng’s voice came from behind me. I was just turning my head, and suddenly everyone was looking at me. What the heck is going on here?
Lǜ Xīngyán casually chimed in, “I don’t care about your orientation, just don’t drag me into it. I’m clean and clear.”
Zhào Lǎngmíng: “…”
Lǜ Xīngyán, clean and clear.
Good.
Three minutes later, this clean and clear high school boy wanted to tease his future girlfriend a bit more. But as soon as he sent the message, he noticed a red circle next to it, with a small exclamation mark inside. Along with it, there was a line of gray text — “You are not yet friends with him (her).”
Lǜ Xīngyán: “…”
In the evening, when Shěn Xīngruò got home, Lǜ Xīngyán took advantage of his study break to send a friend request on WeChat, promising absolutely no more reckless flirting. After resting at home for two days, Lǜ Xīngyán’s cold finally improved. — Not that Wáng Yǒufú would have given him any more days off anyway.
When he returned to school, Wáng Yǒufú was still holding his red thermos cup, looking at Lǜ Xīngyán as if his nose wasn’t a nose and his eyes weren’t eyes. He muttered, “Lǜ Xīngyán, you’re quite precious, aren’t you? You took two days off for a cold. The teachers in the science department, even when pregnant, insist on teaching until the last moment before going to the hospital. They’re back in class less than a month after giving birth.”
“I can’t give birth, can I?”
Lǜ Xīngyán chuckled.
“Scoring 488 is your limit!”
Wáng Yǒufú sneered at him then thought better of it and waved him off, sending him back to class.
Last night, while Shěn Xīngruò was at evening self-study, he had nothing to do, so he went to the barbershop to wash his hair and had his hair trimmed to create a fluffy, natural, and refreshing handsome effect.
Now, as he stepped out of Wáng Yǒufú’s office, he casually brushed his bangs aside and lazily walked to the classroom.
Rumors about him being expelled from studying abroad had finally dissipated with his appearance.
But those rumors were meaningless anyway. Lǜ Xīngyán hadn’t taken them to heart. There was once a particularly eccentric girl at his school who took a liking to him at a party and started aggressively pursuing him.
For some reason, this teenage girl was incredibly bold, insisting that physical intimacy before emotional intimacy was perfectly fine.
Still boasting, as if there were guys at their school who wanted her first time so badly that they were willing to buy her a thirty-thousand-yuan luxury bag just for it. They made it sound like she was willing to sleep with him, and he should be grateful.
Lǜ Xīngyán didn’t even dignify that nonsense with a response. At the time, he thought, “Even if someone offered me thirty thousand, I wouldn’t be interested. I’m pure and virtuous, a true virgin.”
For some reason, later rumors twisted the story into him spending thirty thousand to buy the girl’s virginity, and the girl herself would tacitly agree to it when asked.
Later, Lǜ Xīngyán heard from Xǔ Chéngzhōu that there was an even more absurd rumor at their school, where someone had raised the price to fifty thousand to sleep with that girl.
In any case, what angered Lǜ Xīngyán the most was this particular rumor. If the person hadn’t transferred out of Xīngchéng later, he would have seriously considered going to confront them.
Regardless, on the third day of senior year, Lǜ Xīngyán’s appearance signaled that the whole class was present, and it also marked the smooth start of senior year life.
Senior year started relatively early, and the campus felt especially deserted. With Saturday classes starting soon, it felt like time was dragging on endlessly.
Lǜ Xīngyán felt like he had lived through a century already, but it had only been two weeks.
Entering senior year, the atmosphere in the teaching building had become noticeably more solemn.
The art students had all left campus to participate in training;
In the neighboring classes, some students in their sophomore year had already scored over 1900 or even 2000 on the SAT, but they were not satisfied. They planned to retake it in November this year;
Martial arts training proceeded methodically every noon and evening after school…
Everyone was striving and working hard for their respective futures.
In early September, the freshmen and sophomores finally started school, and the campus finally gained some liveliness.
In previous years, it was the junior and senior boys who eagerly watched the excitement, focusing on finding beautiful and fair-skinned junior girls.
But this year was different. This year, it was the girls who were eagerly watching the freshmen boys.
The reason? Among this year’s freshmen, there was a second-generation star, Péi Xīyàn.
Péi Xīyàn’s mother was the famous actress Sū Chéng, and his father was a mysterious jewelry tycoon.
In the year when the parent-child variety show first aired, at the age of six, he was brought onto a parent-child interactive program by Sū Chéng. With his outstanding appearance and his rebellious yet cold and aloof temperament, he quickly garnered a large number of fans, including older sisters and mothers.
In the following years, he hadn’t appeared much on TV shows, only occasionally guest-starring in some TV dramas and filming commercials, so he couldn’t be considered a member of the entertainment industry.
But in the first half of this year, his portrayal of the young male lead in the movie “The Last Time” was a huge hit both in terms of box office and reviews.
Although he played the young version of the male lead, the opening and ending credits of the movie listed him as a special appearance, yet his actual screen time was even more than the female lead’s.
Péi Xīyàn’s character in the movie was just too captivating, drawing fans once again after his variety show appearance years ago.
Since the day Péi Xīyàn’s enrollment at Mingli School was announced, discussions at the school have not ceased.
People were eagerly anticipating the start of freshman year.
The school administration seemed to understand the students’ excitement well, as they specifically arranged for Péi Xīyàn to speak on behalf of the freshman class at this week’s morning assembly.
The seniors didn’t have to attend morning assemblies, but many still skipped the Monday morning self-study session to gather courage and sneak off to the playground to catch a glimpse of the star.
When they returned, everyone was buzzing with satisfaction.
“Péi Xīyàn is handsome, and he hasn’t aged poorly at all.”
“Yeah, so many child stars end up looking terrible. Hey, over the summer, I rewatched that variety show he did as a kid after finishing ‘The Last Time.’ He was so adorable when he was little! Although he’s not as cute now, he’s still incredibly handsome!”
“I watched that variety show when I was a kid, but when I watched the movie, I didn’t even recognize him as Péi Xīyàn. He was my childhood prince!”
Shen Xīngruò and Lǜ Xīngyán also watched the movie over the summer, but they waited until it was available on streaming platforms.
At the time, Shen Xīngruò praised Péi Xīyàn for his handsome looks and acting skills.
Lǜ Xīngyán, on the other hand, critiqued him from head to toe with a cold expression.
Never did they expect him to become their school junior.
During class, students were still discussing the superstar, and Shí Qìn even took a photo to show Shen Xīngruò.
But Shen Xīngruò only glanced at it briefly, seeming uninterested, and focused on brushing up on English test papers.
Lǜ Xīngyán, somewhat teasingly, asked from the side, “Don’t you think he’s quite handsome? Why didn’t you join them to see him?”
Shen Xīngruò remained silent.
Lǜ Xīngyán continued in a teasing tone, “Have you suddenly realized that these immature kids aren’t worth your attention, or do you think someone like me is more handsome and manly?”
Shen Xīngruò glanced at him. “You’re overthinking it.”
“I went to Mr. Wang’s office last week to pick up some test papers, and coincidentally, the grade leader was there too. The grade leader said he would help me get a signed photo of Péi Xīyàn, the kind with a personal message, as a reward for being at the top of the grade last semester.”
Lǜ Xīngyán: “…”
True to his word, the grade leader got a signed photo for Shen Xīngruò that afternoon.
“To Shen Xīngruò, wishing you great success and happiness every day. Péi Xīyàn.”
Lǜ Xīngyán glanced sideways and chuckled lightly, “You’re just a little peacock with a small wingspan, yet you wish for soaring success. Can this kid even speak? Wishing a girl to become more and more beautiful and find a good husband would be appropriate, or at least wishing her a bright future. ‘Great success and happiness every day,’ you won’t even fly away.”
Shen Xīngruò, without hearing his comment, examined the handwriting for a moment and then remarked, “The handwriting is quite nice, and the good wishes are good. I like it.”
Lǜ Xīngyán felt annoyed, so he asked a girl from the neighboring desk for a postcard and quickly wrote:
“To my future girlfriend Shen Xīngruò,
Wishing you become more and more beautiful, and may you soon receive your ATM. May your future be bright, with houses all over the world, including Iceland, Greece, and even Lake Geneva.
Yours sincerely,
Your future boyfriend, Lǜ Xīngyán.”
After finishing, Lǜ Xīngyán showed it to Shen Xīngruò. “How’s that?”
Zhào Lǎngmíng, unaware of what they were up to, was about to lean over and take a look.
Lǜ Xīngyán acted quickly, shooing him away.
Then he slipped the postcard into Shen Xīngruò’s book.
Shen Xīngruò: “…”
Such a goofball.