Shen Weiwei noticed that Lin Yue’s expression clearly showed recognition, yet she claimed not to know him.
Could it be… a secret romance?
She understood, she totally understood!
Young people these days had all sorts of tricks, and secret affairs were the most thrilling.
Shen Weiwei lightly pursed her lips, choosing not to expose Lin Yue.
“Is that so? Alright then.”
Lin Yue, however, was curious about how the photo had come to be. She asked in return, “Do you know him?”
Before Shen Weiwei could answer, a commotion erupted outside. A group of girls crowded around the entrance of Class Ten, peering inside.
“Damn, even the back of his head radiates such an aura.”
“Shh, keep it down. Don’t disturb his sleep.”
“Who stepped on my foot?!”
Lin Yue followed the noise and looked over. This scene was familiar from her past life—Xie Yan Si was a natural-born attention magnet. Wherever he went, screams were never far behind.
In this life, it seemed no different.
Suddenly, Lin Yue felt that she and Xie Yan Si had truly become disconnected, as if a clear dividing line now stood between them.
Her little shadow seemed to have vanished for good.
Seeing Lin Yue’s troubled expression, Shen Weiwei smiled faintly.
She thought to herself, So this is what you call “not knowing him”? Look at that worried little face, afraid someone might steal him away. Tsk, tsk, tsk.
Keep pretending.
Let’s see how long you two can keep up this secret act.
Just then, Chen Feng, the homeroom teacher of Experimental Class One, approached with a stack of test papers. Spotting the crowd of girls gathered outside Class Ten, he asked, “What’s everyone looking at here?”
The girls quickly averted their gazes and turned to face the kindly-looking Teacher Chen.
“Hello, Teacher Chen.”
“Teacher Chen, Class One is having another exam?”
Chen Feng smiled. “You all should be having one too—the placement exam. Have you forgotten?”
The girls froze at his words, exchanging glances.
Oh no!
They had been so focused on ogling the handsome guy that they’d completely forgotten about the placement exam!
The group of girls hurriedly scrambled upstairs.
Chen Feng chuckled to himself, thinking, Ah, youth.
He then strode into the Class One classroom.
Hearing Chen Feng’s gentle tone earlier, Lin Yue remarked to Shen Weiwei, “This Teacher Chen seems quite gentle.”
Shen Weiwei glanced at the naive Lin Yue and smiled. “Don’t jump to conclusions so soon.”
With that, she quickly turned around and sat up straight, her back perfectly erect.
Ten minutes later, Lin Yue understood what Shen Weiwei had meant.
Watching Chen Feng at the podium, his voice calm but every word sharp and piercing, she saw how he both motivated and intimidated the class of top students.
During the lesson, Chen Feng was stern and unsmiling. After distributing the test papers, he delivered a warning before they began.
“I hope that after tomorrow’s placement, all forty-eight students in this classroom will remain. If anyone leaves, it can only mean you haven’t worked hard enough. Remember, studying is a silent battle. Winning it depends entirely on yourselves—no one else can help you.”
As the bell rang overhead, Chen Feng wasted no time.
“Alright, you may begin.”
The moment he finished speaking, the sound of pens scratching against paper filled the classroom, wrapping Lin Yue in an atmosphere of palpable tension.
Every student’s pen moved busily, their expressions focused and intense.
No one wanted to leave this class, because they all knew that once they were gone, they might never make it back in.
The teaching methods at Chengbei No. 1 High School were completely different from those at Rice Academy. Chengbei No. 1 High School emphasized progress through competition, while Rice Academy fostered a relaxed and pleasant atmosphere.
After all, most students at Rice Academy were children of officials or wealthy families, and many would study abroad for university.
Compared to Rice Academy, Lin Yue preferred this tense and competitive atmosphere.
Like finding her tribe, she twirled a pen in her hand, a smile curling at the corners of her lips as she joined their ranks.
The senior year department at Chengbei No. 1 High School was silent, while the senior year department at Chengnan No. 6 High School was a chaotic uproar.
Chengnan No. 6 High School was the worst high school in Haicheng. Its students were either fighting or involved in street gangs, with very few focusing on their studies.
Xu Qiao had always felt dizzy at the sight of books since childhood. In this life, she didn’t have the outstanding academic achievements like Lin Yue to be admitted to Rice Academy.
Unsurprisingly, she ended up at Chengnan No. 6 High School, becoming one of the troublemakers.
She bought the cheapest hair dye online and dyed her hair a low-quality shade of yellow.
Sitting conspicuously in the classroom of Class 7, Grade 12, amidst the noisy atmosphere, her face darkened as she stared at her phone, her knuckles turning white as she gripped it tightly, as if she wanted to crush it.
She had seen Lin Yue enter Chengbei No. 1 High School this morning and secretly felt pleased.
She thought the Lin family didn’t particularly favor her either, since they didn’t send her to the prestigious Rice Academy but to this public school.
In her eyes, a prestigious private school and a public school were incomparable.
The former was far superior to the latter.
As soon as she arrived at school, she opened her phone and browsed the campus forum of Chengbei No. 1 High School.
To her dismay, she found posts with Lin Yue’s photos exploding in popularity.
The comments were flooded with praise, calling her dazzling, academically outstanding, and beautiful like a fairy.
Seeing these glaring words, Xu Qiao gritted her teeth.
Why did Lin Yue deserve it all? In her previous life, she enjoyed wealth and glory, and in this life, she was showered with praise and admiration. What made Lin Yue so special?
As she scrolled further, Xu Qiao spotted a familiar figure.
The big devil from her past life—Xie Yan Si.
Wasn’t he supposed to be abroad?
Xu Qiao had been keeping tabs on Lin Yue and Xie Yan Si, trying to comfort herself by comparing their situations.
As long as she endured, she would become the brightest star in the future.
When she heard that Xie Yan Si had been in a car accident and lost his memory, she laughed in her dreams several times.
See, even fate was on her side.
Now, seeing Xie Yan Si, she curled her lips into a cold, ruthless smile.
Even fairies fall from grace, just like she once did. Now, it’s your turn, Lin Yue.
The placement exam lasted until the end of the second evening self-study session.
Chen Feng collected the exam papers and looked at the new student in the last row. He said, “Lin Yue, come to my office tomorrow to pick up your school uniform.”
Lin Yue replied, “Okay.”
After Chen Feng left with the papers, Lin Yue began packing her bag.
Shen Weiwei, seeing her actions, asked in surprise, “Yueyue, aren’t you staying in the dorm?”
Lin Yue said, “No, I need to find time to exercise for physical education. I can jog slowly on my way home.”
This was a reason Shen Weiwei hadn’t expected.
Harsh. Indeed, there wasn’t a single person in Experimental Class 1 who wasn’t intense.
After packing her things, Lin Yue left the classroom with the other day students.
Lin Yue found her bicycle parked at the school gate that morning. Just as she unlocked it and looked up, she caught a glimpse of a familiar figure passing by the alleyway ahead.
Upon closer inspection, it was Xie Yan Si, who had just returned from abroad.
And the girl with dyed yellow hair beside him was…
Xu Qiao?
For a moment, Lin Yue almost didn’t recognize the girl as Xu Qiao.
Xu Qiao was completely different from her past life—her yellow hair resembled a bundle of dry, tangled straw, coarse and messy. She had grown so thin she looked malnourished, her face gaunt and hollowed out.
Yet on that hollowed face, she wore a radiant smile as she faced Xie Yan Si, as if she had just heard the funniest joke in the world.
A strange feeling stirred in Lin Yue’s heart. Why were they together?
Under her unwavering gaze, she watched as the two turned into the dark alley beside them.
Lin Yue bit her lower lip, lost in thought for several seconds. An inexplicable restlessness welled up inside her, accompanied by an indescribable sense of suffocation.
Images of the humiliation she had endured in her past life flashed before her eyes, one after another.
She had been wrong. She should never have held onto any illusions about Xie Yan Si.
All that talk of redemption was nothing but nonsense.
Lin Yue tightened her grip on the bicycle lock, her gaze fixed on the dark entrance of the alley. Her clear, translucent eyes flickered with shifting emotions.
She saw it clearly now.
The Xie Yan Si of today bore no resemblance to the little follower he once was.