Chapter 11: I Believe His Trick
Gossip is human nature. Most of the students in the cafeteria looked over at the commotion.
Li Shu didn’t like it.
Liking someone is a personal matter. There’s no need to make it public and embarrass her. Call it bold pursuit of love if you want, or call it interference in life if you don’t.
She felt listless and didn’t want to speak. Seeing the line move forward, she followed weakly.
Jiang Zhe, seeing her remain silent, thought Li Shu was shy and that he still had a chance. So he persistently followed.
“Li Shu, think about it. This is the first time I like a girl.”
Li Shu took out her meal card from her pocket. She hadn’t eaten in the cafeteria before, but once the meal card was issued, all fees were prepaid.
Li Shu thought for a moment: “Sorry, it’s almost my turn. You’re holding up the line. If it’s not important, can we talk later?”
Jiang Zhe: What the hell, isn’t this important?
Qiu Ning: If she hadn’t seen Li Shu’s indifferent look, she would have thought her deskmate was just showing off.
After saying this, Li Shu whispered to the aunt serving food, who was craning her neck to see: “Three scoops of rice, sweet and sour pork, salt-and-pepper shrimp, and a serving of stir-fried greens.”
Jiang Zhe had finally gathered his courage. How could he give up just because of this small setback? He had finished serving his food and was about to sit next to Li Shu, when a shadow fell on his shoulder.
Jiang Yi raised his eyebrows, looking down at him from above.
“You’re Jiang Zhe from the basketball team, right?”
Of course Jiang Zhe knew who Jiang Yi was, though they hadn’t spoken before. While he was still confused, Jiang Yi, without a word, grabbed him and led him outside.
“Come, let’s talk.”
Li Shu and Qiu Ning found a window-side seat. Qiu Ning didn’t rush to eat, just placed her utensils on the table.
“Really unexpected. Jiang Zhe would even do something like this. You didn’t see it, but An Qi, who badmouthed you at the stairwell last time, was there too. Her face was so ugly—it was really satisfying to see.”
Li Shu bit into her sweet and sour pork, the tangy sweetness lifting her mood slightly.
“Jiang Zhe is good at basketball, and his grades are above average, not bad.” Qiu Ning shifted her tone.
“But studies are the priority. Li Shu, you can’t let all this nonsense affect your learning.”
“By the way, tomorrow’s exam—are you confident?”
Li Shu glanced at her briefly: “No.”
Qiu Ning choked. She picked up her chopsticks and sighed: “Jiang Zhe even wrote a love letter—pretty literary, though I don’t know what he wrote.”
Li Shu hadn’t wanted to talk about it, but she couldn’t resist.
She chose her words carefully: “Don’t you think it’s kind of cheesy?”
What year is this? Still playing with leftover old tricks.
In the afternoon, PE was suddenly replaced by math. When Zheng Hong came to announce it, the whole class groaned.
Zheng Hong, stern-faced: “What are you doing? Thinking about PE when your grades are this low? Don’t you have any sense of your own performance? You really think I’m happy to teach you? If I weren’t worried you’d fail too badly, I’d rather drink tea in my office.”
As he spoke, he scanned the room and stopped at the empty seat in the last row.
“Where’s Jiang Yi?”
“He said he went to have lunch with his dad.”
Zheng Hong scowled: “This kid always says he’s going to eat with his dad at noon. I believe his trick.”
The boys in the back row snickered: “Our Jiang Shao has many dads.”
Meanwhile,
Shen Yan blocked the door, calmly watching Jiang Yi, who was frantically pressing the doorbell.
Jiang Yi held large and small bags of takeout, waving them in front of Shen Yan. Seeing that he wasn’t letting him in, he could only force a smile.
“Dad, let’s have a meal together?”
Chapter 12: Yan-ge, Don’t You Love Me Anymore
Shen Yan pressed his tongue against his molars, unable to help but smile.
He lazily leaned against the door, scanning Jiang Yi from head to toe, unusually as if he were processing something.
Jiang Yi, seeing a chance, didn’t care about anything else: “I ordered three jin of crayfish, just to honor you, Dad.”
Shen Yan slightly leaned to the side, making way. Once Jiang Yi stepped inside, he casually closed the door, lazily went to the fridge, and tossed a beer to Jiang Yi.
“You can eat, but the ‘acknowledge me as your son’ part is off the table.”
Jiang Yi could hear the disdain in his tone.
Unable to accept the fact, he gathered all his courage: “What’s wrong with me? I already acknowledged a son at school. I call you Dad, and you can already be a grandfather.”
This was clearly a forward, good thing to do.
Shen Yan’s fingers were long; his index finger bent slightly and applied a little force. A sharp rip sound, and he opened the canned beer with one hand.
Shen Yan’s light brown eyes didn’t glance at Jiang Yi even once. His free arm rested on the table. His hair was still dripping from just having washed it. He spoke casually: “I don’t take advantage of men.”
Jiang Yi laughed: “As if you’ve ever taken advantage of a woman before.”
“Besides, I would even let you. Yan-ge, tell me, it’s because you don’t like me, that you don’t take advantage of me, right?”
Shen Yan paused. Amused by Jiang Yi’s ridiculous logic, he shrugged his shoulders, nearly laughing so hard he would choke.
“Jiang Yi, you’re seriously twisted.”
Jiang Yi even worried a little for Shen Yan.
The Shen family was wealthy, and Shen Yan, as the eldest son, bore a heavy burden. But he always did as he pleased. Shen Yan’s father was strict, but what could he do when Grandpa doted on him?
The Shen family’s ancestral home was in A City. Although there were ready-made houses here, without Grandpa there, how could Shen Yan easily come to A City to study?
“Your dad actually agreed to your transfer,” Jiang Yi clicked his tongue in amazement.
Shen Yan was indifferent: “Grandpa’s word settled it.”
Jiang Yi skillfully peeled the crayfish, the smell of food spreading in the air.
“That’s right. You were originally studying in A City in middle school. It was only because Grandpa wasn’t well that you went back then.”
Jiang Yi, afraid of reminding Shen Yan of those old problems, quickly changed the topic.
“By the way, a heads-up: at Fu Nan, there are lots of good-looking girls.”
Jiang Yi winked: “I know Fu Nan well. If you like someone, tell me, and I’ll make sure she’s right in front of you.”
Saying this, he felt a little ridiculous. With Shen Yan’s looks, finding a girlfriend shouldn’t be difficult.
The real problem was that no girl could meet his standards.
How could he even talk about it?
Dating isn’t marriage—you just want fun and excitement, right?
Jiang Yi buzzed around like a fly, whining nonstop in his ear. Shen Yan kicked once, careful not to use much force.
“Finished eating?”
Jiang Yi changed gloves, his mouth still streaked with sauce: “Just ate a few. That’s nothing. This place is really good. I brought it specially for you. You eat too. After you’re done, take me off the blacklist.”
Shen Yan put down his half-drunk beer. Unable to tolerate him, he snapped the meal box shut without discussion, put it into the takeout bag, hooked his fingers around it, and walked out.
Jiang Yi shoved a peeled shrimp into his mouth and chased after him, mumbling: “Yan-ge…”
“Take your food, goodbye.” He smiled faintly and closed the door firmly.
Jiang Yi, suddenly trapped outside: ???
He stared blankly at the crayfish.
Wailing and howling, he started pounding on the door: “Yan-ge, don’t you love me anymore?!”
He cried out with all his heart: “It’s fine to let me leave, but take me off the blacklist!”
Chapter 13: Li Shu, You’re Growing Up?
“Creak” — the door opened.
Jiang Yi’s mournful expression vanished quickly; smiling brightly, he stepped inside: “I knew it, you were just joking. How could you possibly do that kind of inhumane thing?”
Just as he spoke, Shen Yan blocked the way, staring straight ahead, and tossed a transparent plastic bag. Jiang Yi looked down—it contained discarded shrimp shells.
Jiang Yi: “This…”
Before he could finish speaking, the door was coldly shut again, and Jiang Yi got another taste of a slammed door.
Jiang Yi: Damn it.
After throwing him out, Shen Yan quickly tidied the dining table. Once finished, he casually flopped onto the leather sofa.
Pressing his fingertips lightly to his temples, his expression darkened slightly as he thought of Shen Yi’s earlier mention of Shen’s father. Beneath long, slightly curled eyelashes, his light brown eyes were deep and shadowed.
He moved his lips: “Damn.”
Li Shu waited until school was over, slung her backpack over her shoulder, and walked out. Once past the school gate, she called a taxi.
Back at the villa, Aunt Xu was cooking.
“Xiao Shu, you’re back? Two dishes are ready; I’ll call you when they’re done.”
Li Shu changed her shoes. Passing the dining room, the aroma hit her—she knew Aunt Xu’s cooking was always excellent.
She responded with a word, then went upstairs to her room and put down her backpack. Lately, online games had been popular, and she had downloaded some, but as a clumsy player, she had suffered repeated defeats and given up.
Now she opened a novel app. A romance story that was trending recently caught her interest. She found it fairly good, few plot holes, and waited for updates every day.
After paying to read the latest chapters, Aunt Zhang came to call her.
Li Shu simply put her phone on charge in her room, then slowly went downstairs.
Aunt Zhang, seeing her come out, whispered in her ear: “Madam’s back. Her expression doesn’t look good; Xiao Shu, don’t make your mother angry.”
Aunt Zhang knew better than anyone: Li Shu had a gentle personality, but Shu Xiao had a hot temper. Saying “don’t make her angry” was just polite advice, a reminder not to poke the sharp end of Shu Xiao’s temper.
Shu Xiao had her makeup done perfectly, wore head-to-toe designer clothes, and sat elegantly and gracefully.
She held a ragdoll cat in her arms, absentmindedly stroking its fur. The cat purred contentedly.
Hearing movement, she glanced lightly at Li Shu coming down the stairs, then quickly returned her gaze elsewhere.
“Mom.” Li Shu walked closer and softly called.
Shu Xiao, however, went straight to the dining table, responding with a cool: “Hmm.”
Li Shu looked at her retreating back; there was no warmth in her eyes.
Aunt Xu, knowing that this mother-daughter pair had always been distant, could only anxiously pat Li Shu’s back.
“Xiao Shu, go sit with your mother for dinner.”
Shu Xiao didn’t ask about Li Shu’s start of school, just as she hadn’t asked why Li Shu stayed out last night.
During the meal, all that could be heard was the crisp clatter of chopsticks on plates. Nothing else.
The atmosphere was tense, faintly eerie.
But Li Shu thought it was perfectly normal.
Soon, Shu Xiao put down her chopsticks. Li Shu was still chewing on sweet-and-sour pork ribs.
“You want to live in the dorm?” Shu Xiao leaned back slightly, her tone unreadable—no hint of joy or anger.
Zheng Hong couldn’t get in touch with Li Mao Guo, so he tried contacting her instead.
Li Shu looked up, meeting Shu Xiao’s face, five parts similar to her own.
“For such a small thing, your homeroom teacher called me five times.” Shu Xiao spoke each word deliberately, with clear impatience at being disturbed.
Li Shu’s fair face showed no emotion. She stared steadily at Shu Xiao. Her voice was soft but firm: “Yes, I want to live in the dorm.”
“Li Shu, you’re growing up?”
Chapter 14: Amaze Them All
If Li Mao Guo had strong control tendencies, on the contrary, Shu Xiao hardly ever cared about her.
Not to mention scrapes and bumps, even when Li Shu had a fever and was groggy all night, Shu Xiao at most would just come take a glance and go through the motions.
Li Shu was stunned. How would Shu Xiao have the time now to even bother scolding her?
Just as she was about to say something, a sharp, piercing screech of a chair scraping the floor made her frown.
“The conflict between you and your father, I don’t want to deal with. Don’t bother me with these trivial things in the future.”
Shu Xiao, holding the cat and wearing high heels, no longer focused any thought on Li Shu.
Aunt Xu watched Shu Xiao leave. The temperature at the dining table seemed like it could freeze, sending a chill down her spine.
She knew Madam had no heart for the Li family, had parted ways in spirit with Li Mao Guo. Yet Xiao Shu was, after all, flesh from her own body. For a mother to be like this—rare indeed.
How hard must it be for the child?
She hesitated a moment, then stepped forward and poured a glass of milk for Li Shu: “Xiao Shu, your mother was just speaking in anger.”
Li Shu lowered her head and finished off the piece of rib, spitting out the bone and wiping her mouth with a napkin.
She hadn’t expected Zheng Hong to act so quickly. Unfortunately, he had only contacted Shu Xiao.
But that made sense. If he had contacted Li Mao Guo instead, once he learned she applied to live in the dorm, there was no way he could have stayed calm—he would either return to give her a moral lecture or bombard her with calls.
“Oh.”
Funan High School placed great importance on the first exams of senior year. Early in the morning, all homeroom teachers and invigilators were called to a meeting. Ten minutes before the exam, all classroom cameras were turned on simultaneously.
This way, students didn’t need to switch classrooms; they found their seats according to the list and took the exam.
Hearing this news, Class Seven erupted in wailing.
“This is just deadly. The old man invigilating was already headache-inducing; now they’re using cameras that haven’t been used in centuries. How am I supposed to cheat?”
“Am I going to fail again?”
The conversation of the girls in the front row reached Li Shu’s ears clearly.
“Have some confidence. Take away what you don’t know. Don’t you have a clue about your own level?”
Li Shu had slept late yesterday; her eyelids were heavy. But the exam was in about ten minutes. She thought for a moment and decided to hold on and wait until she received the test paper before sleeping.
The top students had gone into the experimental class; ordinary class students were assigned randomly by the system.
From the looks of it, the two in front of her also had poor grades. Her deskmate was not even on the same level.
Qiu Ning had all her exam supplies arranged neatly on the desk. Her gaze kept shifting toward the corridor, sitting straight, waiting for the exam paper to arrive to perform perfectly.
Judging by that confident aura, if she didn’t take first place in the class, it wouldn’t make sense.
“Li Shu, do your best in the exam.” She pushed her black-framed glasses, exuding her precise top-student aura.
Li Shu had been dozing; hearing this, she forced herself to wake up. Before she could respond, Qiu Ning continued to encourage her.
“Don’t be nervous, relax.”
“You probably put too much pressure on yourself, stayed up last night just reviewing, right?”
Li Shu: I didn’t, I really didn’t.
But Qiu Ning didn’t give her a chance to speak. Immersed in her own world, she said: “It looks like it’s time for us to let our grades do the talking, to amaze them all.”
The chatter in front ceased. Two girls teasingly turned their heads.
“Please, amaze me to death, okay?”
“Hahahahahaha, I’ll wait for you to slap me in the face with your report card.”
Li Shu felt that this remark was a bit off, but she didn’t have time to ponder. Zheng Hong entered, holding a sealed bag.
Finally, she could sleep.
Chapter 15: The First Exam
When the exam paper arrived, Li Shu spread it out, casually filled in her name, class, and exam number, then couldn’t help but cover her mouth and let out a delicate yawn, her peach-blossom-shaped eyes gleaming.
She leaned forward, collapsing over the paper, her whole body draped on it.
Zheng Hong handed out the papers, and the exam bell rang, but his expression was grim.
“Class monitor. Where are the students in the back?”
The monitor of Class Seven sat in the third row; she was a slightly chubby little girl.
“Teacher, Jiang Yi and the others didn’t come today.”
Zheng Hong exploded with anger. These little brats, it was one thing if they were at the bottom, but this time they completely skipped the exam!
He was about to rage, but considering the exam, he held back, went to the office, called the subject teachers to help watch the students, and went personally to catch them.
The subject teachers were young, just graduated not long ago, teaching English for Class Seven. Their tone was gentle and soft.
With cameras in place, most students dared not act out.
Li Shu’s situation was different. The English teacher saw her sleeping soundly, remembered the principal’s instructions, and ultimately didn’t disturb her.
In short, Li Shu had a good sleep.
Of course, all of this ended when Zheng Hong returned with those five or six teenagers.
There were still about half an hour left before the exam ended. Zheng Hong figured that these few embarrassed students in the back wouldn’t pull off any tricks, so he dragged them into the office and scolded them for nearly half an hour.
“Internet café? While everyone else is taking the exam, you’re at the internet café? How fun was that, huh!”
Jiang Yi grinned: “Fun.”
As soon as he spoke, Wu Zexi foolishly chimed in: “Super fun.”
“Shut up!”
Zheng Hong’s hand shook.
“Wait in the office. I’ve already contacted your parents!”
Zheng Hong made them write self-criticisms, then finally had a moment to go back to the class. Seeing everyone behaving, his expression softened slightly—then he noticed the girl, extremely out of place, sleeping soundly on her exam paper.
“Li Shu!”
Li Shu woke groggily. Looking up, she saw his magnified anger. Rubbing her sleepy eyes, she responded a bit late: “Good morning, teacher.”
Zheng Hong thought: I’m doomed; one day these kids are going to drive me to death.
“What are you doing!” He angrily tapped on the blank exam paper on the desk.
Yesterday, Zheng Hong had gone over Li Shu’s summer homework, noting some easy-to-miss difficult points. The little girl had marked them all, even writing several methods for solving them on the side.
She must have hired a tutor to study.
Not to mention math, Li Shu had ranked first in the grade in every middle school Chinese test.
Zheng Hong quickly found a reason.
“Fill in everything you know, Li Shu. The teacher has high expectations for you. You can’t think the questions are too easy and leave them blank. Take the math exam seriously this afternoon.”
Li Shu: ???
Why does Zheng Hong think her grades are good?
Seeing his chest rising and falling, her fingers instinctively curled slightly. She thought about how Zheng Hong had gone to trouble over her dorm application.
“Oh.” she replied softly.
Zheng Hong nodded, satisfied, then thinking of the headaches in the office with the other students, he waved to the English teacher and left again.
Li Shu faced her exam paper, feeling troubled.
She rested her chin on her hand and looked at the multiple-choice questions.
After reviewing them once, she fell into thought: it seemed there were no correct answers.
The teacher who made the exam had made a basic mistake.
At that moment, Qiu Ning, taking advantage of the English teacher standing diagonally across and conveniently blocking the camera, quietly passed her a note.
Seeing the answers handed over, Li Shu felt her ears flush. She pressed her lips together, changed a few answers, and copied them down.
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