"Sheng Xia!"
Standing frozen in place, someone called her name.
It was Xin Xiaohe, holding the pole of a "windmill" as she walked over from the covered corridor. Several other girls followed behind her, all sweating profusely.
"What are you doing just standing here?" Xiaohe asked as she approached.
"Calling home," Sheng Xia replied.
Xiaohe handed the pole to a classmate and waited until everyone had left before asking, "What's wrong? Everything okay? You don't look so good."
Was it that obvious?
Sheng Xia tightened her grip on her phone, then had a sudden idea. "Xiaohe, could I temporarily store my formal dress and things in your dorm room?"
Xiaohe looked surprised but didn't ask questions, nodding immediately. "Of course! Want to take them over now?"
Checking the time—already past eleven—Sheng Xia agreed, "Yes, thank you."
"Always so polite?" Xiaohe made as if to throw an arm around Sheng Xia's shoulders, then glanced at her own sweat-drenched clothes and chuckled awkwardly. "Let's go!"
They returned to the classroom to get the gift box, only to find Sheng Xia's desk surrounded by people.
More accurately, they were gathered around Zhang Shu's desk.
A group of boys were discussing the upcoming NBA regular season—who was favored to win, which team had changed coaches, which team was losing momentum, which new stars were emerging, how Chinese players might perform...
Xiaohe boldly joined the discussion while Sheng Xia stood outside the crowd, bewildered. Were basketball brothers more important than sisters now?
Hou Junqi was the first to notice Sheng Xia. He patted the boy occupying her seat. "Move it, the goddess is here."
Everyone turned to look.
Zhang Shu also glanced back, meeting the girl's fluttering eyes before looking away.
When would she finally wash off that makeup?
Her eyes were so watery and large you could practically swim in them.
"Damn right, daring to sit in the goddess's seat? You've got a death wish! Hahaha!"
"My bad, my bad!"
"Rather than betting on teams, let's bet on which goddess will win on the confession wall!"
After every major school event, the campus confession wall mini-program would explode with activity. It wasn't really for confessions anymore—just for fun. Most of the school's "top influencers" were born there.
"I've already seen so many posts about Sheng Xia!"
"What about Chen Mengyao?"
"Uh... also a lot..."
"Open it up and count them quick!"
Amid the rowdy chatter, they actually cleared a path. Sheng Xia hesitated—should she just sit back down and endure their teasing?
Moreover, with only her and Zhang Shu seated in the middle while everyone else stood around them, the scene looked bizarre no matter how you viewed it...
Sheng Xia tapped Xiaohe's shoulder. "Xiaohe, should we go now?"
Xiaohe clearly sensed Sheng Xia's discomfort.
"Oh, right, let's go!"
Hou Junqi asked, "Where to?"
Xiaohe snapped, "The girls' dorm. Want to come?"
Hou Junqi: "...Be my guest."
As Sheng Xia bent to pick up the gift box from the book crate between the seats, an arm reached over. "Need help?"
Sheng Xia paused mid-motion.
Ever since he'd called out her little secret, even his voice seemed to carry some magnetic quality that unsettled her.
Up close, that scent of sun-baked grass filled her nostrils again.
Her heartbeat lost its rhythm.
She lifted the gift box before replying, "No need, thank you."
Zhang Shu frowned slightly. Her words sounded no different than usual, yet something felt off.
Like how she hadn't even looked at him.
Almost involuntarily, he asked, "Then shall we eat together later?"
Silence fell.
The previously boisterous crowd exchanged bewildered glances.Although everyone knew that Sheng Xia had lunch at Zhang Shu's relative's place and often ate with Zhang Shu and Hou Junqi, the electric tension crackling in the air was unmistakable.
Thump, thump, thump.
Sheng Xia could hear her own heartbeat, isolated in the silence like boiling alcohol.
She had only one thought: leave quickly, before anyone else could hear it.
Why had he suddenly issued such a "public invitation"? Hadn’t he heard the rumors?
Maybe he had. Maybe he was just—
Flirting.
A faint voice whispered in her heart.
"No need. I’m eating in the cafeteria with Xiao He," she replied before turning and walking away first.
Xin Xiaohe hurried after her, confused: …? We didn’t talk about this?
As the two girls left the classroom, the others' gossipy curiosity flared, but no one dared to start—just exchanging knowing glances and teasing chuckles.
"Break it up. Time to eat," Zhang Shu said, standing up to shoo them off.
"Hey, A-Shu, who’d you pick in the end?"
Someone finally couldn’t resist asking.
Zhang Shu kept packing his bag, and just when Hou Junqi thought he’d brush it off with another "boring," he answered flatly, "Isn’t it obvious? Yi Jianlian."
"Who’s asking about Yi Jianlian?!"
Zhang Shu slung his bag over his shoulder and chuckled. "Later."
"Boo! No fun!"
"Ugh! So lame!"
Hou Junqi’s eyes darted around before he suddenly slapped the desk and stood up, declaring to the disappointed crowd, "Isn’t it obvious? He’s picking his own people, idiots!"
Then, smugly, he followed Zhang Shu out.
……
After the opening ceremony, the third-years had nothing left to do but attend classes as usual. Still, the screams from the sports field and the noisy crowds of first- and second-years passing by the teaching building were impossible to ignore.
The most absurd part? Some underclassmen even came to Class Six specifically to see Sheng Xia.
A few boys brazenly loitered at the classroom door, peering inside with an attitude of "If I’m not embarrassed, you are."
Spotting Sheng Xia, one of them called out, "Senior, can I add you on Q.Q?"
Sheng Xia kept her head down, silent.
This had never happened at No. 2 High. Were all the top students this… bold (shameless)?
Hou Junqi stood up, blocking the way with hands on his hips. "Didn’t we say Senior is taken by another senior? You still dare to ask?"
The underclassmen just laughed, unfazed. "Oh? So she’s yours?"
Hou Junqi faltered. "W-Well, obviously not."
"Then what’s it to you? Wait—are you that ‘Wrestle, Pikachu’ guy?"
"You little—!" Hou Junqi rolled up a book and threw it at them. The boys dodged, laughing, but refused to leave.
The whole class burst into laughter.
"Sheng Xia, the teacher wants you."
A deep male voice came from the back door, and everyone turned to look.
It was Zhang Shu.
He had just come down from Lao Wang’s office, and his expression wasn’t exactly friendly.
Strangely, the underclassmen quieted down.
Hou Junqi blinked. Since when did A-Shu call Lao Wang "teacher"?
"Huh? Oh." Sheng Xia hesitated. Why would the teacher call her? Had the rumors reached him?
She sighed and stood up, uneasy.
As she passed Zhang Shu, he leaned in and whispered, "Teacher didn’t call you. Wait for me in the water room."
Sheng Xia’s steps faltered.
What… what was he saying?What was he doing now?
Just moments ago, those junior boys had caused a stir, and now almost the entire class was staring at her while he whispered in her ear right under everyone's gaze.
So close...
Sheng Xia's ears burned, and she didn't even have the presence of mind to observe her classmates' expressions. She hurried out of the classroom, almost running upstairs.
In the classroom, eyes filled with teasing glances.
Zhang Shu remained expressionless, picked up his water bottle, then took Sheng Xia's cup from her desk before walking out of the classroom toward the water dispenser.
He ignored those curious and provocative junior boys the entire time.
What did this mean?
Was he getting water for Sheng Xia?
The junior boys suddenly understood—so the senior really was the senior's girl?
Sheng Xia circled from the second floor back to the first-floor water dispenser.
At this time, the room was empty. She stood there blankly, lost in thought.
Slender fingers waved in front of her as the boy's teasing voice reached her ears. "Can't handle sudden fame?"
Sheng Xia looked up to see Zhang Shu standing before her, head tilted, eyebrows raised, his eyes bright.
His eyes weren't particularly large—narrow and sharp at first glance. But because of his well-defined under-eye bags, the sharpness was softened, lending him a youthful charm. When he smiled, the right corner of his mouth lifted higher, giving off a roguish, careless vibe.
Sheng Xia had never seen two such contrasting traits complement each other so perfectly on one face.
Equally suited for action and stillness, capable of both authority and boyishness.
He was the favored child of Nuwa.
"Not as accustomed to it as you are," Sheng Xia replied.
Her tone carried a hint of anger—something unheard of before.
Zhang Shu's brows lifted as he studied her, his gaze both teasing and assessing.
Only this close did he notice her long, dense eyelashes—not black but light brown, soft and straight, covering her entire eyes.
No wonder when she wore makeup, those lashes lifted, making her eyes shine like a hundred-watt bulb.
Though they said people with straight lashes had tempers—why wasn't she like that? Or was it hidden?
Zhang Shu leaned in slightly. "Are you... throwing a tantrum?"
Sheng Xia didn't answer, her brows furrowed, only then noticing the cup in his hand.
She looked up again. "Why are you holding my cup?"
Zhang Shu turned away without answering, turned on the faucet, and filled the cup in seconds. He lifted it, examining it with amusement. "This cup—all looks, no use. Looks big but holds so little?"
No wonder she ran out every break.
His topic jumped so abruptly that Sheng Xia answered without thinking. "It's double-walled. For insulation."
"Oh—" He drew out the syllable, wearing an exaggerated look of realization, a smirk playing on his lips.
As if to say, "As if I didn't know."
Sheng Xia realized she'd been teased. She refused to "blush shyly" and indulge his mischief, but since he had just helped her out, she couldn't exactly snap at him.
She exhaled through her nose, staying silent, her thoughts a tangled mess. Before she could sort them out, laughter echoed as a few girls entered the water room.
Seeing Zhang Shu and Sheng Xia, they paused, eyes darting between the two, hesitating whether to enter.
Even though they were just standing there, why did the atmosphere feel so... unusual?
Sheng Xia snatched her cup from Zhang Shu's hand and hurried out, head lowered.
Like a hasty retreat.
Zhang Shu blinked at his now-empty hand and chuckled.
The girls exchanged glances, eyes alight with interest.Sheng Xia returned to the classroom to find those junior boys already gone. When her classmates noticed the water cup in her hand, they exchanged knowing smiles.
Without glancing sideways, Sheng Xia took her seat, stared blankly at the blackboard for a few seconds, then pulled out a notebook and began reading quietly.
If not for her slightly reddened ears, her demeanor could almost be described as transcendent—so immersed in her own world that all surrounding gazes seemed irrelevant to her.
Hou Junqi sensed something unusual about the girl but couldn't pinpoint what exactly. When Zhang Shu returned, Hou Junqi widened his eyes, his face screaming "What's going on?"
Zhang Shu ignored him, propping his chin on his hand as he studied Sheng Xia unabashedly.
She was reading her study notes, densely packed with well-copied phrases, quotes, and poetry.
What had she said before?
—Reading poetry can relieve summer heat.
Was she... feeling hot?
Nanli had no autumn—winter arrived almost overnight. Though it was already autumn by the calendar, there were no autumn colors in sight. Even in November, the scenery remained summery.
However, the temperature wasn't as high as in August or September. An occasional cool breeze made it quite pleasant.
So her heat definitely wasn't the weather's fault.
Then it must be his fault.
Had his joke about her becoming famous overnight gone too far?
At that moment, she turned a page, wrote something in the blank space, then closed her notebook and took out textbooks for class.
When the bell rang, Zhang Shu reached into his desk for books. As he leaned slightly toward Sheng Xia during the motion, the girl startled like a bird hearing a bowstring, abruptly shrinking away from him.
Her sudden movement caused her study notes to fall to the floor.
Zhang Shu froze mid-action, bewildered...
What, was he contagious or something?
Seeing the girl's entire body screaming "stay away," Zhang Shu's expression darkened. Maintaining his position, he picked up her notebook.
It fell open at the folded page, revealing what she'd just written.
Two large lines dominated the center of the page—not study notes, but more like a self-admonishment:
"Let idle gossip flow as it may, what harm can verbal daggers do?
The muddy earth knows not my heart's purity—I'll wander free and sing my tune."
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