Homeroom teacher, Teacher Ha, revealed a stern expression. He stood on the podium for at least two minutes before students gradually started to notice him.
The first student to spot the homeroom teacher lifted his leg and kicked his deskmate, who was bragging so much that his spit was flying everywhere.
In an instant, the entire class fell silent, the boisterous atmosphere, previously like a food market, suddenly quieted down into the solemnity of Beijing's Great Hall of the People.
In the back row, a male student was spinning a book, his face full of arrogance, as if this particular life skill made him incredibly formidable.
It wasn't until the book he had been spinning with his fingertips for five continuous minutes was knocked flying by a blackboard eraser.
"Damn!"
He was about to curse loudly, but as soon as he turned his head, he met the gloomy gaze of Teacher Ha, the homeroom teacher.
He was so scared his soul nearly flew out of him: "Bean... is a type of plant."
Teacher Ha's dark eyes behind his glasses swept across the entire classroom.
All the students didn't know what to do, only feeling a sense of pressure, like the night before a storm.
"Xia Tang," Teacher Ha suddenly spoke.
Xia Tang, sitting in the front row, her heart pounding, startled, blurted out, "Yes!"
"What 'yes'?" He angrily pointed at the blackboard eraser on the ground. "Go pick it up for me."
"Yes..."
Xia Tang immediately breathed a sigh of relief, then obediently walked to the back row of the classroom and picked up the blackboard eraser.
It was then that Teacher Ha slowly began to speak—
"Anyway, I can't seem to control you all right now."
There it was again, that familiar opening line.
Xia Tang picked up the blackboard eraser and carefully placed it next to the podium.
Teacher Ha continued—
"Haven't I reminded you before? When school ends, you must go straight home, no loitering around, doing this and that, and absolutely do not go near the hooligans at the neighboring Thirteenth High School! You all treat my words as if they go in one ear and out the other, don't you!"
These words immediately made everyone think of some recent incidents, and they began to whisper amongst themselves—
"Looks like it's confirmed!"
"Must be. Song Qingyu hasn't been to school for days now."
"The police even came to school to investigate, didn't they?"
All the surrounding classmates seemed to know the full story, but only Xia Tang was vaguely confused.
She asked her deskmate, "What's going on?"
"Song Qingyu from Class A2," Jia Zhenzhen leaned close to her ear and whispered, "I heard he was pursuing some 'big boss' from the neighboring Thirteenth High School, obsessively following him for over three months, but that person didn't pay him any mind.
As a result, afterwards, I don't know what happened, but he was tricked by the hooligans from Thirteenth High School into going to a bar, plied with a lot of alcohol, and then..."
Xia Tang covered her mouth with her hand. "And then what?"
"Luckily, the police arrived in time, so nothing major happened."
"That's a relief."
Jia Zhenzhen said, "This incident involved many teachers.
Even though he wasn't a student from our class, Teacher Ha was severely criticized by the leadership.
Isn't he just taking out his anger on us?"
Teacher Ha slammed the blackboard eraser onto the podium and angrily said, "Can the sports school next door be like you all? You are people who have to take university entrance exams, and later become professors and doctors! If you are negligent now, hanging out and fooling around with them, then your lives are as good as over!"
Everyone remained silent, not daring to speak, enduring Teacher Ha's outburst of anger.
After class ended, and after seeing Teacher Ha leave the classroom, the classmates then began to chatter noisily—
"Teacher Ha's collateral damage radius is just too wide."
Song Qingyu isn't from our class. He's pursuing a boy from No. 13 High School. What's that got to do with us?"
"What else can we do but put up with it? Teacher He probably got an earful from Xia Tang's mother."
Xia Tang's mother was the school's Head of Academic Affairs.
Like all other Heads of Academic Affairs, she wore gold-rimmed glasses, was always impeccably dressed, and was as unyielding as a security door.
People often heard her criticizing teachers outside the Academic Affairs office, speaking without mercy. Once, she even scolded a new teacher until she cried.
Song Qingyu's incident this time was rumored to have shaken the Ministry of Education, so naturally, the teachers at Nanxi No. 1 High School weren't having an easy time either.
Every day they attended meetings, every day they got scolded.
Teachers, criticized by their superiors, would then take it out on the students.
Teacher He directly described the neighboring No. 13 High School as a den of danger and wild beasts, resolutely preventing his students from associating with those people.
"Is Song Qingyu really pursuing a boy from next door?"
"Of course! No. 13 High School is a sports school, so naturally there are lots of handsome boys. It's understandable that Song Qingyu was momentarily captivated."
Jia Zhenzhen excitedly said, "The one he's pursuing is Zhou Qin, the super heartthrob of No. 13 High School! He's even more handsome than our school's heartthrob Qi!"
Hearing someone mention Qi Xiao, Xia Tang, who was doing her homework, also looked up. "That handsome?"
Seeing her interest, Jia Zhenzhen immediately put on a gossipy expression and nudged the person next to her with her elbow. "Tang Tang, I heard Qi Xiao is pursuing you?"
Xia Tang took an eraser out of her pencil case and cleaned up the parabola on her scratch paper.
"I guess so."
Jia Zhenzhen, delighted, whispered, "Wow, he's got a lot of nerve. Your mom is the homeroom teacher, and he still dares to be so audacious."
Xia Tang put down her pen. "Everyone's afraid of my mom, but he doesn't seem to be."
Qi Xiao had a face that embodied the classic 'first love' vibe.
His appearance was like that of a 'traffic' idol who had just debuted and instantly shot to fame online not long ago.
His family's financial situation in Nanxi City was either first or second best.
Although his grades weren't bad, a rebellious streak ran deep in his bones.
A person like him, placed in a school like Nanxi No. 1 High School, which was filled with obedient students and boasted a 100% university admission rate, was truly a "fire-starter."
One day last semester, Xia Tang only remembered that the weather was a bit hot. As she was passing by the basketball court, Qi Xiao ran over right after finishing a basketball throw, casually taking off his uniform jacket and handing it to her.
At that moment, Xia Tang was eating an ice cream, and she was momentarily stunned.
He jutted his chin out, his peach blossom eyes raised—
"Hold this for me."
Xia Tang replied indifferently, "My hands are full."
After saying that, she leisurely walked away from the sports field, still eating her ice cream, under the envious and admiring gazes of a group of girls.
Perhaps he was used to being pampered by the girls around him, but Xia Tang's cold rejection only made Qi Xiao more interested. From that moment on, he started paying more attention to her.
Qi Xiao's seat was one of the "thrones of the Left and Right Protectors," located on either side of the teacher's podium, a spot that received the most "special attention" from the teachers.
In class, Qi Xiao would seemingly accidentally yet deliberately turn his head, casting a fervent gaze toward Xia Tang.
Xia Tang always pretended not to see him.
Qi Xiao was the captain of the basketball team and recognized as the school's heartthrob. His whole being exuded a radiant, fresh, and sunny aura.
To be honest, Xia Tang didn't hate him, but she didn't particularly like him either.
However, he really knew how to enjoy himself and have fun, and sometimes the games he came up with were quite interesting.
So, occasionally, Xia Tang would agree to hang out with him once in a while, as a way to relax after school.
…
After school, Xia Tang and Jia Zhenzhen stepped into the bubble tea shop.
A group of handsome boys and pretty girls from the basketball team and cheerleading squad were inside, lively and boisterous, laughing and joking with each other.
Qi Xiao was also there.
He was the tallest in the group, wearing a black and white SUPREME hoodie. His aura was striking, and his handsome features were almost aggressively captivating.
He was like the most skilled hunter; just one glance could "capture" a girl's stirring heart.
For a boy like him, it seemed there was always a lively crowd around him.
Xia Tang tried her best to keep her distance from the handsome boys and pretty girls of the basketball and cheerleading teams. She stood tucked away in a corner, taking out her phone to scan a code and order.
As she aimed her phone at the QR code on the wall, a cup of bubble tea suddenly appeared in the scanning frame.
She lowered her phone and saw Qi Xiao's handsome face.
With one hand in his pocket, he casually used his other hand to place the cup of bubble tea into hers.
Done, he naturally turned and walked back to his friends, as if nothing had happened, without saying a word.
The warmth of the hot bubble tea spread to Xia Tang's palm.
"Oh, he's so smooth!" Jia Zhenzhen exclaimed, "He's really got game!"
Handsome and good at flirting, who could resist Qi Xiao's charm?
Xia Tang handed the bubble tea to Jia Zhenzhen: "If you like it, take it."
"Oh, then I won't be polite!"
Just then, a black Audi pulled up outside the bubble tea shop and honked twice.
Everyone recognized it; it was the car of the "demon head" Director of Academic Affairs.
The boys and girls, who had been standing together laughing loudly, immediately widened their distance.
Xia Tang told Jia Zhenzhen: "My mom's here to pick me up, I'm going now. Bye bye."
"Bye bye."
Xia Tang quickly ran out and got into Director Tan's Audi.
The car was filled with a faint fruity scent. Xia Tang placed her schoolbag next to her, then took out her phone.
Director Tan reminded her: "Seatbelt."
Only then did she pull the seatbelt across her body from behind, with a click.
"How many times have I told you not to drink this stuff?" Director Tan glanced disapprovingly at the bubble tea shop through the rearview mirror: "Bubble tea is full of powdered milk and preservatives. Drinking too much is bad for your health."
Director Tan had long, narrow eyes, and when she looked at people, there was a kind of suppressed intensity.
Xia Tang looked down at her phone and replied sullenly: "I didn't drink it."
"If you didn't drink it, then why are you coming out of a bubble tea shop?"
Xia Tang didn't want to explain to her, only saying: "I know."
Director Tan was clearly fuming. She started the engine and asked angrily: "Do you know Song Qingyu?"
"No, she's not in my class."
"I know she's not in your class."
Director Tan continued, concerned: "You must have heard about her situation."
"Teacher He mentioned it."
Director Tan guessed that the homeroom teacher had already hinted at it to them, so she didn't say much more, only adding: "At this stage, everyone is pushing forward. Even a slight lapse in concentration will leave you behind. Look at how fierce the competition is in our school. There's an exam every month. Count how many talented people shoot to the top of the rankings."
You are at the most beautiful age of your life, and I hope you can dedicate all your thoughts and efforts to improving yourself.
Don't get your priorities mixed up, and don't do anything you'll regret for the rest of your life."
Xia Tang said indifferently, "I know."
Madam Tan looked at her through the rearview mirror. She wanted to remind her a bit more, but after a long hesitation, she finally changed her words—
"Xia Tang, you need to be a good example. Don't embarrass me, and definitely don't do anything I don't allow."
"I know, Mom."
Just then, Xia Tang's phone vibrated. She quickly switched it to silent mode.
Qi Xiao sent a message—
"Did the demon queen scold you?"
Xia Tang calmly looked at her mother in the rearview mirror. Madam Tan's eyes were fixed straight ahead, concentrating on driving.
She breathed a sigh of relief, her long, slender, pale fingertips typing: "Your bubble tea, I gave it to my best friend."
Qi Xiao: "I saw it."
Xia Tang didn't reply to him anymore.
A moment later, Qi Xiao sent another message: "Tomorrow's the weekend, do you have any plans yet?"
Xia Tang: "Practice piano in the morning, probably nothing in the afternoon."
Qi Xiao: "Tomorrow I'm inviting friends from the team to play an escape room, but we're still short a few people, do you want to come? I found a really awesome place; I heard the NPCs are great at role-playing and can even pretend to be ghosts crawling on walls."
Xia Tang's fingertips hesitated slightly.
Qi Xiao really knew how to grasp her weakness.
He knew she was an adrenaline junkie and loved playing high-horror escape rooms.
She thought for a moment and replied, "I won't be the first one in."
Qi Xiao: "Okay, approved!"
At 9 PM, Xia Tang finished her homework and left her room.
In the living room, Madam Tan was still on the phone, seemingly handling something related to Song Qingyu: "Yes, with something like this happening, the school cannot shirk its responsibility. We will definitely cooperate with the police to handle this matter.
But Thirteenth High School cannot ignore this either, especially that boy Song Qingyu was pursuing..."
"Mom, I'm going out to buy something," Xia Tang said, walking straight to the door.
Madam Tan covered the receiver and said, "It's so late, just call a delivery person to buy it for you."
"It's sanitary pads, delivery people don't buy those," Xia Tang said. "Besides, I want to go out to clear my head. I want to do more practice problems later."
"Come back early, and don't go to deserted places."
"Okay."
Xia Tang left the upscale residential area, crossed the street, and went straight to the convenience store opposite, picking out two packs of her usual sanitary pads from the shelf.
Turning around the aisle, she saw a group of boys in Thirteenth High School uniforms approaching.
Thirteenth High School's uniforms had a very typical sports school style. They were entirely green, with two yellow stripes on the arms and legs, somewhat resembling those in Chinese emoji packs.
"Brother Qin, do we have to pretend to be ghosts again tomorrow?"
"Hahaha, with your skill at climbing roofs and scaling walls, you'll definitely scare those stupid customers out of their wits."
These teenagers didn't look harmless at all. Gathered together, they looked as if they were about to rob the convenience store. Their voices were deep and booming as they casually joked with each other.
Because of the incident with Song Qingyu, the teachers had all described students from Thirteenth High School as dangerous beasts.
Suddenly seeing several Thirteenth High School boys who didn't look like good people, Xia Tang couldn't help but feel a shiver of fear.
Of course, the boys also noticed Xia Tang's noticeably faster pace.
Her expression revealed the look they often saw on the faces of students from Nam Xi No. 1 High School—
Fear, panic, as if they’d seen a ghost.
And behind that fear was contempt for those at the bottom of the "college entrance exam pyramid."
Feeling insulted, the boys used malicious voices, deliberately trying to scare Xia Tang: "What are you running for, little sister?"
"Afraid we'll eat you up?"
"..."
Xia Tang lowered her head in silence, not wanting to get entangled with them, and quickly walked towards the cashier.
The moment she rounded the shelf, moving too fast to stop, she bumped into a man.
His frame was very solid, not moving an inch.
In contrast, Xia Tang was knocked back two steps, hitting the shelf, and the two packs of sanitary pads in her hand flew out.
Xia Tang rubbed her aching waist, then looked up at the person opposite her.
The first thing that caught her eye was a scar below his left forehead, directly cutting through two-thirds of his eyebrow.
The man's facial features were sharp; though his eyelids had shallow creases, the inner curve was fluid, and combined with the severed eyebrow, it revealed a certain cold, almost inhuman indifference.
Still, Xia Tang had never met a man whose face was marred yet could still be so handsome.
He was also wearing the uniform of the nearby No. 13 High School; his shoulders were broad, supporting the loose-fitting uniform with a classic hanger-like frame, and around his slender neck hung a silver leaf-shaped necklace.
Xia Tang didn't dare to look him directly in the face, her gaze resting only on the faded No. 13 High School emblem on his chest, then she opened her mouth, trembling, and turned to leave.
"Hey."
Chu Qin called out softly, his voice low and casual.
Xia Tang stopped, not daring to move.
Just then, she saw the man bend down, pick up the sanitary pads from the floor, and offer them to her: "Don't need these anymore?"
Xia Tang lowered her eyes, looking at his hand holding the sanitary pads.
His knuckles protruded, his skin wasn't fair like the boys beside her, but leaned towards a barley yellow, and his fingertips seemed to have thick calluses.
When she took the sanitary pads, Chu Qin exerted force, pulling both the items and her towards him, instantly drawing her closer.
He leaned in, his grip incredibly restrained—
"What are you scared of?"
"No..."
He raised his voice, a hint of mockery in his tone, and whispered in her ear: "Even if everyone at No. 13 High School is a hooligan, we wouldn't lay a hand on someone in the middle of the street."
The convenience store was incredibly cold, but because Chu Qin was so close, Xia Tang felt the surrounding temperature gradually rise.
Hot, stifling, uncomfortable...
She was forced to look up, her gaze meeting his once more.
The young man's pupils were inky black, devoid of any emotion, yet they held a strong sense of pressure.
Xia Tang flushed in a panic, apologizing in a tiny voice: "I'm so sorry."
With that, she grabbed the sanitary pads and bolted out of the convenience store as if fleeing.
Even the cashier took a long moment to react: "Hey! You haven't paid for that yet!"
However, the little girl had already vanished into the night.
The cashier could only look towards the boys from No. 13 High School.
The boys exchanged glances, then collectively turned towards the tall young man standing by the shelf: "Of course, Brother Qin has to take the blame for this!"
Chu Qin had a cigarette between his lips, looking utterly weary.
He walked over, took out his phone, and scanned the code for Xia Tang—
"How much?"
***