“H-How is that possible?!” Lin Duole didn’t expect him to say something so absurd so directly. Frowning, he said, “Stop overthinking it. It’s nothing like that.”
Lu Chengyu caught him touching his nose, looking a bit flustered, though not like he was lying. Spreading one leg inward to box Lin Duole in, Lu Chengyu asked, “Then why do you have that look on your face?”
What look?
Lin Duole was baffled. He touched his cheek, but instead of explaining, he just sat there in silence as the atmosphere turned tense and awkward.
“Did you get your homework workbook back?” Lu Chengyu asked, clearly grasping for conversation.
Looking out the window, Lin Duole was preoccupied with the conversation between Uncle Lu and Auntie Song. Having no heart to deal with him, he replied with a trace of irritation, “No, it won’t be too late if I turn it in tomorrow.”
After all, the English class representative was his seatmate, Hao Dongmei. As long as he spoke to her, she would certainly agree.
Lu Chengyu went silent for a moment. Turning his head to look at Lin Duole’s side profile, his warm breath brushed against the other boy’s cheek as he scoffed unkindly, “Heh, you’re really something. You haven’t been in the city long, but you’ve already learned how to trade favors—getting the English class representative to cover for you and give you special treatment?”
“It’s not like I didn’t hand it in on purpose. Besides, you know I finished it all. It shouldn’t matter if I don’t turn it in today.” Last night, there was only one grammar problem left in the exercises. Lin Duole hadn’t known how to do it, so he had asked Lu Chengyu for help. After helping him go over it, Lu Chengyu had casually left it on the desk, which was why Lin Duole forgot to bring it today.
“If everyone were like you, finding excuses not to turn this or that in, everything would be a complete mess,” Lu Chengyu said, feeling awkward inside but stubbornly digging his heels in anyway.
Lin Duole’s face burned at his words. Leaning against the window to put some distance between them, he felt a flicker of suspicion—was Lu Chengyu sitting so close that he could hear his thumping heartbeat?
Lu Chengyu took in all of his movements. Thinking Lin Duole was intentionally avoiding him because of his scolding, he began to regret speaking so harshly. Yet his original intention hadn’t been to blame him for not turning in his homework; he simply wanted Lin Duole to stay away from Hao Dongmei—the farther, the better. He knew Hao Dongmei liked cute, handsome boys, and she was closer to Lin Duole than anyone else in class. Young boys and girls, experiencing first love—he was afraid that if Lin Duole got too close to a girl, feelings would develop, which wouldn’t be good. He came to the city to study, not to fall in love.
When the car arrived at the school gate, Lin Duole and Lu Chengyu kept a wide distance between them, walking toward the classroom one after the other.
Halfway there, Lu Chengyu heard a girl behind them call out to Lin Duole. From the soft tone alone, he knew it was that seatmate of his again, Hao Dongmei.
“Duole, Duole, wait for me!” Carrying her backpack, Hao Dongmei had tailored her uniform pleated skirt very low, down to roughly the upper third of her thighs. Girls this age often loved beauty and pursued being unique, and Hao Dongmei was no exception.
Lin Duole waved to greet her and waited so they could walk to the classroom together. Hao Dongmei pulled him toward the bulletin board. Lin Duole asked, “Dongmei, what are we doing over there? Aren’t we going back to the classroom?”
“We are, we are, but wait a second.” Exuberantly, Hao Dongmei pulled a small device with an Apple logo out from inside her uniform jacket and handed it to Lin Duole. “The rockery behind the school was renovated, and the scenery next to the bulletin board is so pretty. I want you to use my newly bought MP3 to take a picture of me.”
Lin Duole accepted the small pink object. It was only the size of a palm, yet it could read web novels, watch movies, play English listening exercises, make phone calls, and even take photos. Amazed by this novel electronic gadget, he fiddled with it in his hands for a moment before asking, “How do you take a picture with this?”
Near the campus bulletin board sat a rockery next to a pond. Now that summer had arrived, the lotus leaves in the pond were vibrant green, and the water reflected the blue sky and white clouds like a stunning painting.
Hao Dongmei raised her hand, swiped the screen, and instructed Lin Duole, “You tap this camera icon, adjust the angle, and I’ll stand over there. When you’re ready, just press this middle circle and it’ll take the shot.”
Lin Duole blinked, signaling he understood. Wearing her short skirt, Hao Dongmei walked over, struck a peace sign toward the lens, and smiled. Lin Duole followed her instructions and pressed the shutter.
After taking the picture, Hao Dongmei leaned in to take a look. It was only natural for teenage girls to adore beauty; looking at Lin Duole’s handsome face, she nudged him toward the edge of the pond, bit her lip, and said, “Duole, stand right there. Let me take one of you, too!”
“Better not. Class starts in five minutes. Let’s head back so we don’t miss morning self-study,” Lin Duole said. Having never taken a photo before, he felt a bit stage-frightened and even more embarrassed to strike a pose by the rockery and pond.
“It’s fine! Just one picture, can we just do one? Please! We said we’re friends—are you really unwilling to let me take just one photo?” Hao Dongmei pulled his arm, laughingly pushing him beside the rockery before reassuring him, “Just like that, don’t move. We’ll leave right after this photo. We definitely won’t be late.”
Unable to refuse, Lin Duole had no choice but to stand there stiffly, his face expressionless and his large eyes unsure of where to look. Only when Hao Dongmei urged him to look at the lens did he obediently focus on the black focal point of the MP3.
Unbeknownst to them, their laughing, teasing, and playful pushing were all witnessed clearly by Lu Chengyu, who was standing by the third-floor classroom window.
Xu Mingze was the first to notice the two of them on a “date” by the rockery. Pointing out the window, he shouted to the classmates inside, “Hey, come look! Lin Duole and Hao Dongmei are dating!”
Because of his handsome appearance and soft, likable personality, Lin Duole was a frequent topic of conversation among the girls. But unlike Lu Chengyu, who was cold and distant, most girls knew he worked hard and was eager to learn. Thus, they rarely dragged him into games or playful banter. At most, they would admire his good looks from a polite distance, afraid to disturb his studies and never daring to entertain thoughts of getting too close.
Hao Dongmei, however, was different. Advantageously seated right next to him, combined with her bright, bold nature and fearless attitude toward everything, she could chatter her way into becoming friends with even someone as slow to warm up and introverted as Lin Duole.
“Oh man, look! Are they holding hands? They’re not actually together, are they?” A girl couldn’t help but sigh in regret.
“Where are they holding hands? Are you blind? Hao Dongmei is pulling Lin Duole’s hand!” a loyal fan of Lin Duole defended.
“Get real. They’re talking, laughing, and playfully tugging each other to take photos like that—how is that any different from dating?” The other girl refused to back down and retorted, “Even if they aren’t dating now, seeing them act so sweet and affectionate every day means it’s only a matter of time. Hao Dongmei is lively and bold, while Lin Duole is a quiet soul who can’t say no. He’ll fall for her sooner or later.”
“Get outta here. Lin Duole’s head is completely filled with studying. How could he be thinking about dating?”
As a crowd of people gathered by the window bickering over what they saw, Lu Chengyu stood listening to the messy rumors with a deep frown, feeling utterly annoyed. What annoyed him even more was that the very next second, as the bell rang, he saw the boy and girl walk back into the classroom chatting and laughing—and sit right in front of his seat.
Completely unaware of what had just transpired, Lin Duole took out his English textbook at his desk and began memorizing vocabulary. Hao Dongmei led the morning reading session as usual while collecting the English workbooks.
When she checked and saw that Lin Duole hadn’t turned his in, she hesitated for a moment but didn’t think much of it, quietly omitting his name from the list of missing assignments.
Their English teacher, Ms. Zhang, was a young woman who had just graduated from university and stepped onto the teaching podium. She was also the head teacher of Class 1. She maintained strict rules and discipline. Having just finished the six-school joint exam two days ago, she received the report cards today. Seeing the class’s obvious drop in grade points and ranking, she was thoroughly fuming. She resolved to crack down hard on students who failed to turn in homework or lacked a serious attitude during the upcoming class meeting.
During the first period in the morning, Ms. Zhang held the list of unsubmitted homework, read off a few names, and ordered all five of them to stand up.
In the past, failing to turn in homework wouldn’t result in being publicly named. Ms. Zhang was clearly trying to make an example out of them to discipline the class’s recent decline in atmosphere.
“There are only five names on this list, but the workbooks collected are short by six. One student is being covered for. If you know what’s good for you, stand up now—don’t wait until I root you out and make things embarrassing.”
Lin Duole’s eyes widened in sheer disbelief. He had never missed an assignment before, yet the one time he forgot to bring it happened to coincide with the head teacher’s strict check—and his considerate seatmate had quietly covered for him.
Cold sweat broke out on Lin Duole’s palms. He was the one who hadn’t turned in his assignment, he was the one whose name wasn’t called, and he was the exact person the teacher was now trying to drag out for severe punishment.
“So you had the nerve not to turn it in, but not the nerve to admit it?” Ms. Zhang scanned a few mischievous boys in the back row who remained seated, mistakenly assuming the culprit was among them. “Do you really want me to check every single book to find out who it is?”
With those words, everyone realized the head teacher was genuinely furious. The entire class sat nervously, terrified to find out who was about to be made an example of.
With his head hung low and his body stiff, Lin Duole stood up. “Teacher… I’m sorry. The last one who didn’t turn it in was me.”
Everyone was stunned. The usually diligent and studious transfer student actually hadn’t turned in his homework—and was even covered for by the class representative! This revelation made everyone even more convinced: were Lin Duole and Hao Dongmei secretly dating, leading him to slack off on his studies?
Ms. Zhang was equally stunned. Out of all her calculations, she never expected the person who failed to turn in homework to be Lin Duole—the student who was normally most attentive in class, most proactive with assignments, and showed the greatest progress in this joint exam.
Furthermore, when the child first transferred into this class, his guardian was Lu Tingyu. She didn’t know much about who Lu Tingyu was, but according to the dean of students, the boy’s family had sent plenty of gifts to the school leadership, all with the hope that the school would take special care of him.
Ms. Zhang could make an example out of anyone except Lin Duole. Thus, after her initial shock, she cleared her throat lightly and said calmly, “Ahem, well, perhaps the class representative simply missed writing it down. Lin Duole made great progress in this joint exam. Everyone should learn from him.”
She then began announcing the results of the joint exam. Seeing Lin Duole still standing, she instructed, “Duole, take a seat first. As for the rest of you who didn’t turn in your homework, come to my office after class to explain yourselves.”
The class meeting passed in agonizing discomfort. Compared to the midterms, Lin Duole had indeed made rapid progress this time. His English and Physics had improved significantly, launching him from 48th place to 18th place in the class.
When he returned home, Lu Tingyu had clearly received a text message from the teacher as well. At the dinner table, he repeatedly praised Lele for his dedication to learning, promising it would yield great results, while also urging Lu Chengyu to follow his younger brother’s example and set a good standard.
Lu Chengyu watched his father with a cool gaze and said, “I will, Dad.”
After speaking, he glanced at Lin Duole, noticing that his expression seemed very uneasy and cautious—looking no different from when he first arrived.
Lin Duole was indeed sitting on pins and needles. He noticed Auntie Song sitting at the dinner table without saying a single word, quietly picking at the rice at the bottom of her bowl with little appetite—a complete contrast to her lively, enthusiastic self from this morning.
“Lele, have another bowl of chicken soup. Come, Uncle will scoop some more for you.” Lu Tingyu smiled as he picked up Lin Duole’s bowl from the side and refilled it for him. “You made tremendous progress this time. Uncle is so proud of you!”
Lin Duole stared at the bowl handed to him, dazed for a couple of seconds before speaking up: “The teacher said I still have room for improvement.”
“Of course! The educational resources back there were so poor before. Now that you’re in Beijing, with how diligent and smart you are, progress is a given.” Lu Tingyu placed a chicken drumstick into Lin Duole’s bowl.
Lin Duole stole a glance at Auntie Song. Biting his lip, he spoke with careful deliberation: “Uncle Lu… I want to live at school. Could you arrange for me to board at school?”