Sheng Xia thought she would cry her heart out or toss and turn all night, but she didn't.
Once home, she began reviewing her manuscript, meticulously categorizing each piece. In the end, she nearly resigned herself to the fact that her collection was indeed too scattered. Her reading was extensive, with most of the poems written by lesser-known poets—some so obscure that even classifying them proved difficult.
She reread each piece one by one, searching for common threads, and worked until the early hours of the morning. Finally, she played a meditation track and fell into a deep sleep.
The relentless pace of senior year left no room for melancholy. After the seating rearrangement, Sheng Xia and Zhang Shu barely crossed paths anymore. The class, ever perceptive, noticed that the "class couple" seemed to have met a tragic end, and no one teased or egged them on anymore. Everything felt as if it had returned to the beginning of the school year.
It wasn’t until the weekend that Sheng Xia noticed the flood of messages on QQ.
She hadn’t opened the app since deleting that post, but she logged back in to arrange a meetup with Tao Zhizhi.
The messages were all from the same person—an unlisted "new friend," the guy with the dyed blond hair.
At first, he had asked blunt questions, like whether she had a boyfriend. When he received no reply, he toned it down but still persisted with daily "good morning" and "good night" messages.
Sheng Xia had encountered such admirers back in middle school.
She replied politely, "Thank you for your greetings, but I’m very busy with school and rarely check messages. You don’t need to send these anymore."
That finally brought silence, and Sheng Xia thought the matter was settled.
But on Monday morning, a head of blond hair appeared outside Class Six during the morning reading session.
The boy stood at the door, scanning the room. Sheng Xia only looked up when she heard the murmurs around her. Spotting her, the blond guy grinned and waved, then handed a paper bag to a student near the door, saying, "Could you give this to Sheng Xia? Thanks."
His voice wasn’t loud, but most of the class heard it—especially Zhang Shu, who had just been moved to the first seat in the second row.
The blond guy left without lingering, as if he understood the art of taking things slow.
The student by the door turned around only to meet Zhang Shu’s icy glare and froze on the spot: Should he deliver it or not?!
In the end, the student mustered the courage to walk to the back of the third row and handed the bag to Sheng Xia before scurrying away as if he’d just ditched a hot potato.
Her deskmate, Li Shiyi, waggled her eyebrows. "Wow, what’s this? Breakfast? Who is he, Sheng Xia?"
Flustered under the scrutiny, Sheng Xia mumbled, "I don’t know."
"An anonymous admirer? I’m jealous."
Inside the paper bag was a plastic container wrapped in paper, revealing an assortment of delicate Cantonese dim sum.
Sheng Xia had eaten this before but had no appetite, so she set it aside.
During break, she checked her phone and, sure enough, found a message from the blond guy: "Fine, I won’t message you—I’ll just come see you instead."
Sheng Xia: …What kind of logic is that?
She replied, "Please don’t come to my classroom again. It’s very disruptive. I’m going to delete you now—sorry."
After sending that, she tapped "Delete Friend."
…
With the official start of the semester came PE class. Sheng Xia still carried a lingering dread of basketball, but this term’s focus was volleyball—equally intense.
Back in sophomore year, the high school had organized an interclass volleyball tournament, so nearly everyone in Class Six knew how to play.
There was no warm-up. The teacher immediately divided them into teams and had them compete.
Groups were formed by random draw—three boys and three girls per team. They had to pick a team name, and opponents were assigned based on the first letter of each name.Sheng Xia was grouped with Hou Junqi, which could be considered fate. Hou Junqi came up with a resounding name for their team: The Glorious Ancestors Group.
The boys all thought the team name was particularly badass, while the girls simply smiled faintly.
Oh well—men remain boys until death. They just can’t escape their chuunibyou phase.
As they waited for their opponents to be assigned, a guy with dyed blond hair appeared by the edge of the field.
The blond guy was carrying a bag of drinks—mineral water, sports drinks, C100, yogurt, iced tea, and more—quite the variety.
At this point, no one needed to guess why he was here.
He smiled and waved at Sheng Xia, not being overly forward, and simply sat under a tree to wait.
Whispers spread across the field.
Sheng Xia’s face burned red under the blazing sun.
She sighed softly but still walked over.
The blond guy handed her the bag. “Don’t be mad. I came to apologize. It won’t happen again—can you add me back?”
Sheng Xia said, “No need to spend money, classmate. I… understand what you mean. I’m planning to study abroad, so please don’t bother me anymore.”
The blond guy probably didn’t expect someone who looked so soft-spoken to be so direct.
After a pause, he said, “It’s fine. Just think of me as a moon stored in your phone. I won’t come again. Take these—I didn’t know what you liked, so I got a bit of everything.”
“Take them back,” Sheng Xia insisted.
“If you don’t take them, I’ll keep coming,” he countered.
Sheng Xia had no choice but to accept the bag of drinks and return to the court.
The blond guy called after her, “Remember to check Q.Q!”
Sheng Xia didn’t reply, sighing unconsciously again.
She placed the bag of drinks by the court. A teammate teased, “Xia Xia, how thoughtful—exactly six bottles!”
Sheng Xia thought about it—the breakfast last time had gone to waste, so why not? “Let’s share them?”
No one hesitated. They asked Sheng Xia what she wanted first before choosing for themselves.
Feeling a bit irritated, Sheng Xia said offhandedly, “Mineral water.”
The teammates picked their drinks, leaving behind one bottle of iced tea, which they handed to Hou Junqi. He instinctively took it but then caught sight of his bro’s glare from across the field. His hand jerked, and the bottle fell to the ground, bursting open with a spray of white foam.
Personified, it would be a peaceful death.
“Don’t talk to strangers, got it? And you dare drink water from strangers? People like you wouldn’t survive half an episode in a TV drama!” Hou Junqi ranted loudly, deliberately raising his voice so the entire field could hear.
Laughter erupted everywhere.
Finally, the opponents were assigned. When Sheng Xia saw who was standing across from her, she froze.
What kind of cursed fate was this?
Zhang Shu wore a basketball jersey over his T-shirt, basketball shorts below, and knee pads—the pair she had given him—now slightly frayed.
The sunlight caught his tousled hair, casting fragmented shadows around his eyes and softening his sharp gaze with a hazy glow.
Otherwise, the surroundings would have already plunged into winter.
She averted her gaze.
The teacher came over to explain the rules. When he announced the opposing team’s name, the court erupted in laughter—except for Sheng Xia, who stiffened like a snowman in winter.
The Glorious Ancestors Group vs. The Early Romance Inspection Squad.
Zhang Shu’s team was called—The Early Romance Inspection Squad?
This class really had no shortage of chuunibyou cases.
Sheng Xia knew how to play volleyball, but her serves weren’t great—they always skimmed the net. While not against the rules, it was a bit of a disadvantage.
On her third net-skimming serve, she received a warning glare.Zhang Shu calmly caught the ball and said sternly, "Don't keep testing the limits of my patience."
The atmosphere grew subtly tense.
Was Zhang Shu going too far with his words? Unless there was hidden meaning behind them, not just referring to volleyball.
Sheng Xia was slightly stunned—this was the first time he'd looked directly at her since the match began.
Through the sparse net, an icy aura washed over her.
"I..." She averted her gaze from his knife-sharp stare.
Hou Junqi tried to mediate, "Little Sheng Xia, why don't you stop serving and move to the front?"
She moved to the front row, now directly facing his tall figure across the net.
His piercing gaze seemed about to bore right through her.
The halftime whistle was a lifesaver. Sheng Xia quickly escaped to the shade under a tree.
She saw Xin Xiaohe running toward her but stopping halfway, eyes fixed on the other side of the field.
Following her gaze, Sheng Xia saw Zhang Shu walking toward her with a bottle of water.
She was the only one in this direction now.
Xiaohe blinked and turned away.
With his long legs, Zhang Shu reached her in just a few strides, standing hands-on-hips as he looked down at her.
Silent.
Exhausted from exercise, Sheng Xia's mind felt sluggish.
She simply stared blankly back up at him.
A breeze brought fleeting coolness.
Neither noticed the watching eyes around them.
Zhang Shu spoke first: "You're so naive—wonder if you'll get scammed abroad?"
Snapping back to reality, Sheng Xia felt disadvantaged by their positions. She clapped her hands and stood up, annoyed. "None of your concern."
Zhang Shu unscrewed the water bottle and offered it to her.
Sheng Xia was taken aback—this gentlemanly gesture contrasted sharply with his earlier behavior.
Just as she reached for it, he withdrew the bottle, tilting his head back to gulp the water. His Adam's apple bobbed rapidly; droplets trailed down his lean neck—sweat or water, she couldn't tell.
Sheng Xia quickly averted her eyes.
And dismissed her own wishful thinking.
Zhang Shu turned to her. "Testing if it's poisoned for you. Don't just drink anyone's water."
Huh?
Before she could process this, Sheng Xia realized her original water bottle by the court was gone.
Was this the same bottle that yellow-haired guy had given her earlier?
He'd nearly finished it—this was his "taste test"?
Her skeptical eyes met his.
Zhang Shu looked away at the nearly empty bottle, unbothered. "Oops, drank it all."
With that, he tossed it in a perfect arc into a distant trash bin.
A clean "clang"—precise and effortless.
Not a hint of remorse.
Then he told her, "Don't look so offended. I'll buy you a new one—wait here."
He jogged off toward the dormitory supermarket.
Before the second half began, Zhang Shu returned. Sheng Xia accepted his "compensation"—a different brand from before, some trendy label covered in viral quotes that had gained popularity.
Sheng Xia had never bought it—overpriced and mediocre.
Her eyes caught the phrase printed on the bottle: "The wise don't fall in love."
Sheng Xia: "..."
As the cool breeze brushed by, she struggled to rein in her wandering thoughts.
...
That night in bed, Sheng Xia tossed and turned again. Next week, her cram school's intensive classes would begin—nightly sessions meant she couldn't attend evening self-study at school anymore. Otherwise, she'd have no excuse to give Sheng Mingfeng.Lu Youze sent a message saying he was taking a long leave and asked if she wanted to join him.
Lately, Lu Youze had been skipping evening self-study sessions more often.
Sheng Xia asked, "During the day?"
Lu Youze replied, "Yeah. Classes at night, so I need the daytime to review and digest."
Sheng Xia said, "I don’t know. Maybe later."
Maybe later. Maybe wait a little longer.
In the darkness, the image of the boy tilting his head back to drink water surfaced again—as if trying to swallow all his frustration and resentment, as though doing so would make them disappear.
But… wasn’t he the one who gave up first?
Why did he have to say something like, "Don’t test my patience"?
Ah…
Sighing silently, Sheng Xia opened the "Meditation Space" again.
She had grown increasingly dependent on this program—it was the only way she could get a good night’s sleep.
Later episodes weren’t just about sleep aid; deep meditation also helped ease anxiety.
This episode’s opening line was: "The hustle and bustle of city life led people to create rules—to live and work within them, step by step, orderly and structured. But it also trapped them in rigid frameworks. Trying to step outside the box and see things from a different perspective might be a good way to break through bottlenecks and relieve anxiety."
The soothing female voice continued as Sheng Xia closed her eyes and relaxed.
"Now, imagine the problem troubling you as a polyhedron. Instead of fixating on the side you can’t break through, turn to another side. Picture a door there. Stand before it, push it open, and see if there’s something you’ve overlooked—something that might contradict your usual framework, or something seemingly insignificant. Imagine whether it might have a purpose you’ve ignored… If not, close the door, and let’s move to another side…"
Sheng Xia felt as if she were floating in the air, surrounded by countless drafts. One by one, she pasted them onto the inner walls of the polyhedron…
What remained in the end were those hard-to-categorize, obscure pieces.
There were over twenty of them.
So many?
"Imagine whether it might have a purpose you’ve ignored…"
Sheng Xia’s eyes snapped open.
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