The evening self-study sessions at the affiliated high school were all unsupervised, with subject teachers taking turns to monitor. Two desks in the hallway served as the monitoring teachers' stations, where students could go out to ask questions without disturbing the class. The school also prohibited teachers from using evening self-study time for lectures.
However, according to Xin Xiaohe, some teachers always sneakily seized the evening self-study sessions to go over exam papers after tests, and Wang Wei was a prime example.
There were three sessions of evening self-study. Day students could leave after the second session at 9:30 p.m., though they could also choose to stay. Boarding students, however, were only dismissed at 10:30 p.m.
At the start of the school year, there wasn’t much homework, so after the second session that evening, everyone was let go.
Xin Xiaohe had made plans with her roommates to grab a late-night snack at the North Gate, and the girls enthusiastically invited Sheng Xia along.
The North Gate was a small entrance, directly opposite Wenboyuan—the same neighborhood where Sheng Xia had taken a shortcut and caused the "car accident" last time. She hadn’t gone that way since, opting instead to take the long way around through the South Gate.
"The food at the North Gate isn’t just a late-night snack—it’s part of our school’s culture. Come experience it!" Xiaohe said.
But Wang Lianhua knew the dismissal time for evening self-study, and coming home too late would earn her a scolding.
Besides, Sheng Xia wasn’t particularly brave. While the roads were still lively right after school, riding her bike alone later when everything was dead silent made her uneasy.
Though she studied Marxism, her mind was still preoccupied with old-fashioned fears.
Sheng Xia politely declined Xiaohe’s invitation, promising to go together next time after getting permission from home.
...
Sheng Xia had barely stepped through the door when Wang Lianhua arrived home with Wu Qiuxuan and Zheng Dongning, who had just finished their after-school classes.
While Sheng Xia attended school, her two younger sisters were in summer interest classes, which should have ended earlier.
The four of them crowded the doorway, struggling to change shoes.
Qiuxuan, impatient with their slow movements, stomped barefoot into the house, her face dark as she slammed her bedroom door with a thunderous bang.
Used to such scenes but still concerned, Sheng Xia asked, "What’s wrong with Qiu Xuan?"
Wang Lianhua scoffed through her nose, equally irritated. "Your father, of course. He promised to take her and Ning Ning out for dinner tomorrow, but now he’s canceled again."
This was nothing new, so Sheng Xia didn’t press further.
Dongning was clearly upset too, but children were easier to placate. Wang Lianhua had bought her a new set of colored pencils on the way home, and now she sat at the coffee table, absorbed in testing the colors on her sketchbook.
Because of this, Wang Lianhua was in a bad mood and didn’t ask Sheng Xia about her first day. The carefully prepared, optimistic report Sheng Xia had rehearsed—omitting any troubles—went unused.
The family quietly went about their routines, washing up and retreating to their rooms.
Sheng Xia leaned back against her headboard and pulled her phone from the drawer to charge it.
It was the latest iPhone model, delivered by Brother Li on Sheng Mingfeng’s orders. He had said that since she was entering her crucial senior year, she should reach out to him if she had any requests or things she couldn’t discuss with her mother. "Don’t push yourself too hard," he’d added. "There are many paths to success—a top university isn’t the only way. Everyone has their own strengths; there’s no need to force yourself."
Wang Lianhua still didn’t know about the phone’s existence.
Sheng Xia wasn’t particularly interested in electronics. She had a basic student phone that, aside from calling Wang Lianhua, served no other purpose. It could go weeks without charging and still work.
The only electronic device she used regularly was the Kindle Wang Lianhua had bought her.
This new phone felt like overkill.Brother Li got her a new phone number and also set up a WeChat account for her. The WeChat only had Brother Li and Sheng Mingfeng in it. She knew what this meant.
After turning on the phone, she hesitated for a long time on the WeChat interface before finally composing and sending a message.
"Dad, the little sisters miss you a lot."
About half an hour passed, but there was no response at all. Sheng Xia sighed heavily and turned off the lights to sleep.
She couldn't fall asleep. After tossing and turning several times, Sheng Xia gave up struggling and got up to memorize vocabulary.
She had already previewed the words in Unit 1 and spent the entire evening self-study session memorizing them without any issues. But now, looking at them again, it seemed like everything was connected to what was weighing on her mind.
Administration—government agency;
Capture—to seize;
Fascinate—to enchant;
Centre on—to focus on someone or something;
Send in—to submit for processing...
Sheng Mingfeng was a good official, but definitely not a good husband.
Was he a good father then?
Sheng Xia couldn't tell either.
...
The next day, as expected, Sheng Xia woke up late. She rushed to school without eating breakfast. Pressed for time, she took a shortcut through Wenboyuan and saw a familiar mountain bike riding out from one of the apartment buildings.
The boy was wearing his school uniform today. His long legs made the baggy uniform look much more fitting on him, the blue and white colors radiating youthful energy under the morning sun.
He was riding fast, the wind puffing up his uniform like a balloon. As he turned a corner, the wind changed direction, and the fabric deflated, clinging to his slender back.
The mountain bike and the electric scooter entered the north gate one after the other, then proceeded to the bike shed.
The bike shed was still crowded, and they parked their vehicles far apart.
Then the boy and the girl entered through the back door of Class Six one after another.
Zhang Shu only noticed someone coming in behind him after he had taken his seat. As she passed by, she brought a gust of wind carrying a faint, pleasant fragrance—the same scent that had followed him all the way here.
His gaze fell on her oversized sportswear. The top fit reasonably well, but the pants were so wide they could have wrapped around another person her size.
Hou Junqi wasn't wrong—so thin that her footsteps made no sound, what else could she be but a ghost girl?
The morning reading bell rang just seconds after Sheng Xia took her seat. She patted her chest in relief—that was close, almost late on the very first day.
Xin Xiaohe was engrossed in previewing physics, making Sheng Xia feel somewhat ashamed. Others with such good grades were still so diligent and serious, while she, a slow learner, didn't even know to start flapping her wings earlier.
"Morning, Xiaxia!" Xin Xiaohe greeted her. "Your timing is even more precise than Zhang Shu's."
"I didn't sleep well last night and woke up late, wuwu."
"Haha, too excited after transferring schools?"
"Maybe," Sheng Xia played along. "What time did you arrive?"
Xin Xiaohe said, "6:30."
Sheng Xia's sense of shame deepened further. Although boarding students usually arrived earlier than day students, back at her previous school, even arriving at 7:30 meant there were only a few people in the classroom.
"So early," she remarked.
Xin Xiaohe said, "That's normal for boarders. Some in our dorm come as early as 5 o'clock."
On this first morning of the new semester, a sense of pressure hit Sheng Xia like a tidal wave. She felt like an ordinary person who had accidentally stumbled into a Godzilla universe.
Today's morning reading was for Chinese. Before it began, the Chinese teacher Fu Jie needed to select new class representatives.Several students eagerly raised their hands, which surprised Sheng Xia. At No. 2 High School, being a class representative was practically synonymous with being a workhorse—few were willing to take on the role, and teachers usually had to handpick someone each time.
"Are there any other candidates?" Fu Jie suddenly turned her gaze toward the back row. "New student, would you like to run for the position?"
At this, the entire class turned to look at the back.
Fu Jie introduced, "Sheng Xia ranked fourth in the city for Chinese last semester, with a perfect score in composition. Everyone should learn from her."
At the front, Hou Junqi spun around abruptly, causing Sheng Xia's desk to shake.
His eyes lit up as he egged her on, "Wow, you're amazing, little Sheng Xia! Go for it! Your friend here will vote for you!"
Sheng Xia had been organizing her stationery when she was suddenly called upon. She froze mid-motion, noticing that nearly the entire class was now staring at her. A faint blush crept up to the tips of her ears.
Her fair, almost translucent skin made that hint of red all the more noticeable.
She shook her head. "No, thanks."
Her voice was so soft that Fu Jie, standing at the podium, wouldn't have caught it without reading her lips.
Fu Jie raised her eyebrows, looking somewhat regretful, then nodded. "Alright, let's have the candidates come up and say a few words."
Sheng Xia had actually only been responding to Hou Junqi. Since the teacher had heard her, she didn't repeat herself.
Hou Junqi sighed in disappointment, as if lamenting her wasted potential. "Ah... I was hoping we'd get to write fewer weekly journals."
Sheng Xia lowered her head, her small ears still tinged with pink.
Now, practically the whole class had noticed: this new student was truly thin-skinned.
And she was surrounded by the three most intimidating classmates.
Xin Xiaohe, Hou Junqi, and Zhang Shu.
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