After the second period on Monday, all students from Grade 10 and Grade 11 went to the North Field to participate in the weekly flag-raising ceremony.

Class 9’s position was directly facing the flag platform, right in the center of the field. Boys formed one vertical column, girls another, arranged by height.

The summer sunlight was scorching. Although it had just passed ten o’clock, when the rays shone on people’s exposed skin, sweat still poured down continuously.

The school rules at Linshi No. 1 High School required students to wear uniforms during the flag-raising ceremony. Looking from afar, it was all a sea of blue and white, except for the somewhat jarring patch in the middle.

That group of male students at the end of the class formation were all wearing their own clothes.

Black, yellow, red—a small patch of differently colored T-shirts mixed in, highlighting their sense of being different.

Grade 11 Class 9 was a very special existence in the entire grade.

Inside were academic achievers who could rival the experimental classes, as well as wealthy second-generation students at the bottom of the grade rankings. The people in Class 9 loved causing trouble, yet the school consistently maintained a hands-off attitude, or rather, turned a blind eye. This made other students harbor a feeling of respectful distance toward the people in this class.

If even the school couldn’t control them, they naturally couldn’t afford to provoke them either.

The Dean of Students came over once during this time, restraining his temper as he inquired of Xu Xingchun, who stood at the very front of the class, “Why aren’t those students in your class wearing uniforms again?”

Xu Xingchun pressed his lips together and answered in a formulaic manner: “They forgot to bring them.”

“Forgot to bring them again? How many times has this been?!”

Li Zhiping frowned, his voice rising, “Your Class 9, don’t always think about being special in the grade. If you’re studying at this school, you must follow this school’s rules!”

Xu Xingchun listened quietly, his expression unchanged. His eyebrows and eyes were deeply cold and calm, his features sharp and clear.

After educating him for a few more sentences, given that the student before him was a three-good student who consistently ranked at the top of the grade, Li Zhiping couldn’t directly lose his temper. He could only say: “Remember to remind them in advance next time, don’t be too excessive.”

After the Dean of Students left, only then did the few girls standing at the front dare to breathe out.

They chirped and chattered, discussing in low voices.

“Li Zhiping only ever dares to say something in front of the class monitor, if he’s so capable, why doesn’t he go to the back and talk to Xie Ci and the others…”

“Tch, what’s the use of talking to those people, would they even listen?”

“Then what’s the use of talking to the class monitor?”

“At least the class monitor would dare to go find that group of people in the back…”

“……..”

As conversations from nearby people drifted into her ears from time to time, Ma Xuanrui couldn’t help but secretly glance at the male student standing diagonally in front of her.

She looked for quite a while, perhaps her gaze was too direct. He became aware of it, turned his head to look back, his profile outlined in shadow by the sunlight.

She didn’t dare continue looking and quickly lowered her head, yet her heart couldn’t help feeling a wave of distraction.

Ma Xuanrui had been in the same class as Xu Xingchun for two semesters, yet the number of times they’d spoken could be counted on one hand.

She knew he was good-looking, had excellent grades, and was secretly admired by many female classmates in the class. During breaks, girls would deliberately bring their homework to ask him questions. He was never impatient, his expression always light, yet very polite.

When Heaven truly favors someone, it gives them all the best things.

Xu Xingchun was such a person.

The good student that teachers in the office would boast about to each other, an academic genius with near-perfect scores in every subject, with looks that were beyond criticism.

She was self-aware of her own ordinariness, utterly unremarkable among a group of glamorous girls. She had never fantasized about confessing to him.

It was just that occasionally when her mind wandered in class, her scratch paper would be filled with the three characters “Xu Xingchun.”

During PE class, she would secretly watch him. His interests, hobbies, and even his grades—she was thoroughly familiar with all of it in her heart. She didn’t dare let others know of her admiration, afraid people would think her foolishly delusional.

She could only secretly watch him.

The quiet and proud Xu Xingchun.

—

The flag-raising ceremony had already proceeded to the fifth item.

On the flag platform, the host read from the list: “Next, please welcome Qiu Qingqing from Grade 11 Class 8 to give a speech under the national flag.”

After finishing, the host went down.

But the applause below was prolonged and unceasing. It was even mixed with cheers and whistles.

Xu You had been looking down at the book in her hands, but hearing the commotion, she couldn’t help but look up.

Looking far away at the female student on the flag platform, she had a high ponytail, wore a white uniform and pleated skirt. Her entire being radiated a very confident aura.

Qiu Qingqing…

Xu You recalled this name in her mind.

Oh.

This was the female protagonist of that fight incident at noon that day.

Collecting her thoughts, Xu You continued reading.

The instant she lowered her head, she heard the brazenly loud discussion of two male students beside her.

“Aiya, Shen Jiayi ah, didn’t she just dump Xie Ci a while ago?”

“When did that happen?”

“Last week, probably.”

One male student answered casually.

Fu Xueli, standing in front of Xu You, couldn’t help but roll her eyes and said impatiently to the two people beside her, “Fang Qicheng, your mouth is really big.” It was clearly Xie Ci who dumped Qiu Qingqing, who knows who’s spreading nonsense.

Fang Qicheng raised his eyebrows innocently, saying with a smile, “Sister Xueli, I also just heard it from others, don’t mind it.”

He knew Fu Xueli had a good relationship with Xie Ci and that group, so he consciously stopped talking.

Fu Xueli snorted through her nose, “Who’s your sister?” After saying that, she turned off her phone, her bored gaze wandering around, then stopped on Xu You.

Her deskmate was wearing a blue and white autumn jacket, the end of her ponytail hanging loosely on her shoulders, her head lowered as she quietly read the book in her hands.

Completely at odds with the noisy atmosphere around her.

“What are you reading so seriously?” Fu Xueli bent down slightly, resting her head on Xu You’s shoulder, looking down and asking.

“Ah, what?” Xu You turned her head slightly, lifting the book in her hand, “This, you mean?”

“Yeah.”

Xu You closed the pages, showing her the cover, a light smile rippling at the corners of her lips: “A book by Long Yingtai.”

“……..”

Fu Xueli paused, asking: “Who is Long Yingtai?”

This time it was Xu You’s turn to be speechless.

“Hahahahahaha.” After teasing Xu You, Fu Xueli asked: “Why do you always wear the uniform, don’t you find it ugly?”

She had wanted to ask for a while now, why she always wore the uniform jacket. In Fu Xueli’s impression, even when hot, Xu You would only roll up her sleeves, never taking it off.

“Aren’t the school rules to wear it?” Xu You was taken aback again, asking back very seriously.

Fu Xueli laughed, “What are school rules, I’ve never heard of them since childhood.”

Xu You: ……..

Soon, the flag-raising ceremony reached its end.

The grade discipline committee member spoke, first briefly summarizing last week’s hygiene situation and each class’s tardiness situation. Then the loudspeaker routinely broadcast the school’s public criticism:

Grade 11 Class 9’s Xie Ci, Song Yifan, Li Qing, together with Grade 11 Class 1’s Fu Yishun as leaders, gathered other students on campus and engaged in a brawl on campus on X month XX day. The impact was extremely bad, seriously violating school discipline and regulations. The school has decided to give these four students a public criticism and probation.

It is hoped that other students will take this as a warning, study diligently, and obey the school’s various rules and regulations.

Before the criticism was even finished reading, a chorus of sighs arose from below.

The students indicated they had heard this type of public criticism countless times. Class 9 had almost become a special feature of Linshi No. 1 High School’s flag-raising ceremony.

The students in their class were probably the sum total of all students who had ever been on probation in the entire school.

—-

After being in the sun for half an hour, the flag-raising ceremony finally ended.

Each class’s formation disbanded. Xu You and Fu Xueli also merged into the crowd, moving toward the direction of the academic building.

After walking for a while, Fu Xueli linked her arm through Xu You’s, asking her seriously in a very small voice: “Have you ever forcibly kissed someone?… Or been forcibly kissed?”

Xu You was dumbfounded for a moment. After slowly processing it, she was clearly unable to handle this type of question, waving her hands, “This… is too strange, we’re still high school students.”

“Tch.” Fu Xueli forcefully kicked a pebble at her feet, her mood seemingly suddenly irritated.

She muttered and mumbled, her words still shocking as always, “High school students can even have babies, damn it.”

Xu You was silent.

Before she had time to say anything, two people walked past them, a male and a female.

The two seemed to be chatting happily, the female student almost brushing past Xu You’s shoulder.

She looked up and met eyes with the male student who happened to turn his face.

However, he wasn’t looking at Xu You, his gaze lightly sliding past the person beside Xu You.

Fu Xueli was still obliviously looking down, kicking the pebble at her feet, while kicking and cursing, “Fuck, fuck, fuck his mother Xu Xingchun…….”

Xu You quickly tugged at her clothes, saying with a guilty conscience: “Xueli, lower your voice…”

The male protagonist of her deskmate’s cursing was just a few meters away from them…

As she spoke, Xu Xingchun seemed to glance this way again, almost imperceptibly.

After those two people in front walked far away, only then did Xu You worriedly explain to Fu Xueli: “You were just cursing the class monitor, he probably heard you.”

Fu Xueli glanced at her, “If he heard, then he heard. This isn’t the first time I’ve cursed him.”

From the field back to the classroom, the fourth period was about to start.

Xu You sat at her seat organizing her books. The standing air conditioner behind her was spitting out cold air, the vent aimed directly at her, so cold that a layer of goosebumps rose on her body.

The continuous stream of cool air blew.

Her fingertips were ice cold. She had just taken out her pen preparing to write when she felt a wave of hot fluid in her lower abdomen surging downward.

Oh no.

Because of transferring schools this month, everything had passed in a rush. She had even forgotten the date of her period.

Xu You felt annoyed. She rummaged through her bag for a sanitary pad, stuffed it into her jacket pocket, and looked at the time.

“Xueli, how long until class?” Xu You asked Fu Xueli.

Fu Xueli saw her face full of strangely anxious urgency, puzzled, “Five more minutes, what’s wrong?”

Xu You nodded, bit her lip, got up and ran toward the restroom.

After solving the problem and coming out, there weren’t many people left in the corridor. The hallway was quiet.

Xu You was afraid of being late and couldn’t help but quicken her pace, jogging toward the classroom.

Class 9’s classroom was in the middle section of the third floor. There was a staircase by the back door.

As she approached the corner staircase near the classroom, her footsteps suddenly stopped.

She froze on the spot.

There were people kissing not far away.

The female student stood on the step, her arms around the male student’s neck, standing on tiptoe, her chest pressed against his chest.

That male student wasn’t doing anything, lazily half-leaning against the wall, letting that female student kiss him.

From her angle, she could see that male student’s face at a glance.

It was Xie Ci.

After Xu You reacted, she couldn’t help but be stunned.

This, they, in broad daylight… what if a teacher passed by?

She stood rooted to the spot, unable to advance or retreat.

Walking past them rashly like this would definitely be very awkward… but if she didn’t go past, she would be late for class.

While she was hesitating, embarrassed, her gaze fluttering everywhere, a blush rising on her small face.

A thick, deep gaze looked over.

Xie Ci discovered her. His bright black pupils held an unknown meaning in their depths, his eyebrow peak lifting.

Xu You’s cheeks flushed slightly red. Lowering her head, extremely embarrassed, she wanted to pretend she hadn’t seen anything and quickly pass by.

As she hurriedly quickened her steps, she heard a teasing male voice from the side, “Classmate Xu, seen enough?”