At half past twelve, Hou Junqi finished a round of ranked gaming and rubbed his stomach as he negotiated with a certain top student buried in a sea of problems. "Shu, let's go. Books may hold beauties and golden houses, but they don't have rice, do they?"
Zhang Shu glanced at the clock on the podium and took off his glasses. "Fine, let's go. You won't starve to death."
Hou Junqi sprang up. "Hurry up, then. I'm practically skin and bones already."
Zhang Shu laughed freely. "With that chest of yours, even after starving for ten days to half a month, you still wouldn't be skin and bones."
Hou Junqi: "Stop yapping. Think being skinny makes you special?"
The cafeteria was nearly empty at this hour, and the food selection was sparse.
Most of the metal trays behind the counter were empty. The few that still had food were devoid of meat, leaving only some vegetable dishes—some even just side dishes.
The two of them practically cleared out the leftovers. Zhang Shu ate expressionlessly while Hou Junqi looked close to tears. Without meat, the whole day would be miserable. He missed Sister Sujin's braised pork ribs, crispy fried pork, yellow-braised ribbonfish, cola chicken wings, soy-braised beef... No, even just stir-fried eggplant would be better than this monk-food in front of him.
"Shu, how much longer are we eating in the cafeteria? Give me a number," Hou Junqi asked, poking at his rice.
Zhang Shu lifted his eyelids, looking somewhat exasperated. "Didn't I say until my sister gets married? You were all for it back then, practically wishing you were her brother instead. Regretting it now?"
"Of course not! I'll strive endlessly for Sister Sujin's happiness," Hou Junqi said, shoveling a few mouthfuls of rice before slumping again. "But can we come earlier? What kind of crap is this..."
Zhang Shu: "If we came earlier, would they sell it to you for two bucks?"
Hou Junqi said, "It's not like we're short on money. Didn't you just sell your mistake notebook?"
Hou Junqi had to admit, this money-making method was impressive. Zhang Shu sold his notes to the stationery shop owner at the north gate, who photocopied and resold them to underclassmen. A win-win.
Zhang Shu: "You think that little bit of money will last long?"
Hou Junqi: "I can lend you some!"
The moment he said it, he regretted it. This wasn't about money in the first place. Zhang Shu was dead set on proving himself this time—showing Zhang Sujin he could be independent so she could live her own life without worry.
Besides, he knew Zhang Shu. After saving for two years, he probably had a few thousand tucked away. To gain independence sooner, Zhang Shu had explored plenty of ways to make money, flipping electronics and gaming accounts online alone had earned him a fair amount. Zhang Shu's mind was sharp—he was just stingy.
"Can't you treat yourself better? If you weren't so tight-fisted, Chen Mengyao would've been all over you by now..." Hou Junqi muttered under his breath, too afraid to say it outright.
Zhang Shu looked up, leaning back in his chair as he stared at Hou Junqi. "What's she got to do with this? Others might be brainless, but you're with me every day—are you brainless too? You don't have to follow me."
Seeing he wasn't joking, Hou Junqi froze mid-reach for his chopsticks. "Zhang Shu, what do you mean by that? Is that what you think I meant?"
Zhang Shu said, "Nothing. This is my business. You don't have to be involved."
A surge of anger shot straight to Hou Junqi's head, tilting it sideways. "What's the point of saying crap like that? What kind of brothers are we then?"
Zhang Shu still wore that lazy expression.
Hou Junqi shot to his feet, flung his chopsticks down, and turned to leave.
He made it all the way to the cafeteria entrance without hearing a call from behind. Scratching his head, he finally turned back.Zhang Shu simply kept his head down and ate, not even bothering to glance after his departing friend, as if Hou Junqi’s dramatic exit couldn’t stir the slightest ripple in his heart.
Hou Junqi turned away angrily and stormed off.
As he walked, his fury only grew. Once he exited the north gate, he hailed a taxi and went to eat alone at a restaurant.
To say how he and Zhang Shu became friends—it was through a fight, though not with each other. They fought side by side against others.
Back in their first year of high school, Zhang Shu wasn’t yet a top student, but he wasn’t as hopeless as Hou Junqi either. Neither of them cared much for studying, but Zhang Shu consistently ranked around 15th to 20th in the class, while Hou Junqi was perpetually at the bottom.
At first, Hou Junqi didn’t like Zhang Shu. The guy was arrogant and effortlessly cool.
What pissed him off the most was that Zhang Shu didn’t even do or say anything particularly cocky—his every move just radiated an untouchable coolness.
Normally, that kind of aura would have girls flocking to him while other guys kept their distance. But weirdly enough, even the guys constantly crowded around his desk, and afterward, they’d rave about him behind his back.
Hou Junqi had come from the basketball team and had always been a leader among his peers. He’d never seen anything like this before.
Their first interaction was during a class basketball tournament. Putting everything else aside, Zhang Shu was actually a decent player—just too sportsmanlike. The two of them couldn’t sync up on the court. Nice guys finish last, and their opponents clearly played dirty, constantly pulling flashy fouls. The referee even blew biased calls. Hou Junqi couldn’t hold back and shoved the ref, getting himself ejected. Without their star player, Class Six lost the championship.
That night, Hou Junqi went to the referee’s class to confront him, only to be told the guy had gone to an internet café to relax. He rushed over, but on the way, he stumbled upon a 1v3 brawl in an alley.
Zhang Shu, alone, was holding his own against three seniors. In the end, what secured his victory wasn’t skill—it was brains.
The three opponents just mindlessly threw punches and kicks, but Zhang Shu went straight for the leader. He dodged behind a tree, then grabbed the referee’s arm and twisted it behind his back, slamming him against the trunk. The referee howled in pain, unable to even see how Zhang Shu had done it.
Zhang Shu said, “You call yourself a referee? You don’t even deserve to play. Might as well cripple you.”
The referee was practically begging for mercy, apologizing profusely.
Just then, one of the guys in Zhang Shu’s blind spot quietly picked up a glass liquor bottle from a nearby trash can and raised it, ready to smash it over Zhang Shu’s head. Hou Junqi burst out from the internet café’s back door and kicked the guy square in the ass, sending him face-first into the ground.
After the fight, the two of them sat drinking by the back door of the internet café. Hou Junqi said, “I can settle my own grudges. Didn’t need you butting in.”
Zhang Shu shot him a glance. “Don’t flatter yourself.”
Despite his words, he clinked his beer can against Hou Junqi’s. Then he tilted his head back and downed the entire can in one go, shaking the empty can at him with a smirk.
Hou Junqi felt almost bewitched. At that moment, only one thought crossed his mind: Damn, this guy really is cool.
He chugged his beer too.
Like the oath-sworn drink in The Peach Garden Oath , the two became brothers from then on.
He never would’ve guessed Zhang Shu could fight like that—the guy was as skinny as a twig.
Later, after they started hanging out, he learned where Zhang Shu’s fighting skills came from.
Zhang Shu had a tragic past. He had no parents.
His father had died of heatstroke on a construction site, even making the news. The foreman and developers constantly hounded his family for settlements. His mother, already depressed while pregnant with him, passed away the day he was born. His sister, Zhang Sujin, who was eighteen years older, raised him.
Zhang Sujin had once been a singer. Though she’d released a few songs that didn’t make waves, she was young and strikingly beautiful—if she’d persevered, she could’ve had a bright future ahead.But to raise Zhang Shu, Zhang Sujin gave up her musical dreams, returning from Dongzhou to Nanli to sell breakfast in their hometown to support the family. Her cooking was excellent, and she was beautiful, so business was decent. However, her beauty also attracted unwanted attention from local troublemakers, which was why Zhang Shu had learned to fight from a young age—likely honed through countless beatings.
Zhang Sujin saved up some money, and by the time Zhang Shu was in his third year of junior high, she opened a fast-food shop near the north gate of Nanda High School.
Zhang Shu had been living like a delinquent before, but he managed to get into the high school for her sake—no small feat, considering he went from being mid-tier in a small-town school to ranking around 800th in the entire city in just half a year.
If the legendary "Mencius’ mother moving three times" was a touching tale, his sister’s sacrifices weren’t far behind.
The fast-food shop gained popularity through word of mouth for its delicious meals, and Zhang Sujin expanded into a lunchtime daycare service, relying on regular customers to bring in new ones.
She was thirty-five, unmarried, and had never even been in a relationship, always saying she hadn’t met the right person.
Zhang Shu knew it was all because of him.
He wished Zhang Sujin could have her own happiness, her own life.
A week before the new semester, Zhang Shu encountered the man pursuing Zhang Sujin. He saw them kissing, saw the man propose, and saw Zhang Sujin push him away.
The man looked refined, his eyes full of affection, his words and actions respectful. He understood Zhang Sujin’s concerns, was willing to help care for her younger brother, and even willing to wait for her.
Zhang Shu also noticed the Maybach parked beside them.
Financially stable, personally outstanding, and morally impeccable—this man was flawless.
And Zhang Sujin had clearly been reluctant to pull away from the kiss.
Yet she still turned him down.
That night, Zhang Shu had a huge fight with Zhang Sujin. He swore he’d never eat another bite of her food, declared he was splitting from her, and urged her to abandon her "brother-dependent martyr" mentality.
Hou Junqi also attended Zhang Sujin’s lunchtime daycare. She only charged him half-price, and thanks to his friendship with Zhang Shu, he often got extra servings.
He wasn’t exaggerating—in his heart, Zhang Sujin was like a sister to him too.
Zhang Shu was hard to define, not someone who fit neatly into any box.
Call him a top student? Outside school, he was wilder than anyone—cross him and see what happened. Call him a delinquent? His mind was sharp as a tack—if he wanted to rank first, he’d do it.
Hou Junqi both pitied and admired Zhang Shu. There seemed to be nothing Zhang Shu couldn’t achieve—if he failed, it was only a matter of time and effort. Being friends with someone like Zhang Shu was an honor. But sometimes, Hou Junqi couldn’t help but feel that while they got along in fun, their inner worlds were on completely different wavelengths.
So when Zhang Shu spoke like that today, Hou Junqi felt exposed—like a pathetic lapdog, always trailing behind. He’d even begged his dad to pull strings to keep them in the same class, yet Zhang Shu didn’t seem to care whether he followed or not.
But then again, Zhang Shu had always been sharp-tongued, his words venomous—maybe he was just talking nonsense.
Hou Junqi regretted his sudden outburst.
It felt childish.
Did Zhang Shu even consider him a friend, damn it?
...
The cicadas’ midday screeching was deafening, but for the drowsy, it was like a lullaby.
Hou Junqi lay sprawled on his desk, fast asleep, drool pooling on his arm, just short of snoring.
And the most awkward person in the room?
Sheng Xia.
She had just bought a book box at noon, placing it beside her desk to store her textbooks. Now, only the day’s required books remained on her desk—clear, tidy, and perfectly organized.The downside of having an unobstructed view was that now, with just a slight downward glance, she could see—
Hou Junqi, broad-shouldered and long-limbed, sprawled across the desk with his shirt riding up, revealing the waistband of his underwear emblazoned with English letters.
Throughout the entire class, Sheng Xia alternated between looking up and down, her face flushed with embarrassment. When the bell finally rang, she immediately dashed out to refill her water bottle. Even after fetching water and using the restroom, she returned to find Hou Junqi still fast asleep.
It was a long break between classes. The classroom buzzed with activity—students chatting, laughing, and even kicking shuttlecocks in the hallway—yet none of it disturbed his deep slumber.
Xin Xiaohe and Yang Linyu were debating how long it would take for Hou Junqi’s own drool to drown him awake, snickering mischievously. Clearly, they had also caught sight of his exposed waistband.
Xin Xiaohe didn’t react at all.
Feeling too embarrassed to bring it up, Sheng Xia sat back down and bent over to retrieve the books she had just moved from her desk, stacking them one by one into a tall wall of textbooks.
A barrier against the indecent sight.
Just as she finished, she noticed Zhang Shu sitting sideways, one foot propped on the chair’s crossbar, elbow resting on his thigh, chin in hand, watching her busywork with an expression that unmistakably said, What an idiot.
She didn’t want to be the idiot moving books back and forth either.
At the moment, he was wearing glasses. While black frames made others look bookish, on him, they added a scholarly charm, tempering his usual rebellious aura with a mix of intellect and modern flair.
Their eyes met, but he didn’t look away. In fact—unless she was imagining it—the corner of his mouth quirked slightly, as if mocking her.
Sheng Xia thought: Is this what they mean by a faint, elusive smile?
The glare off his lenses made her blink.
In her peripheral vision, he stood up, walked over to Hou Junqi’s desk, and rapped his knuckles against it. "Wanna hit the canteen?"
His voice was quiet, much softer than the surrounding clamor, yet Hou Junqi reacted as if he’d heard a military command, jerking upright in a daze. "Where to, Shu? Canteen? Oh—yeah, let’s go!"
The two tall figures vanished through the back door.
Peace, at last, returned to Sheng Xia’s line of sight.
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