The next day.
Li Qing only realized there had been changes to the classroom seating arrangement when she arrived at school. Fortunately, she was still in her original spot.
She headed toward the window seat in the last row but abruptly stopped when she saw who was sitting in the adjacent seat.
Yuan Tingshen?!
Li Qing’s expression changed instantly. Had Old Liao gone mad?!
She immediately turned around and went to the office to find Liao Ting.
Liao Ting seemed to have anticipated her arrival and explained guiltily, “Both of you are tall, so neither of you will block anyone’s view in that spot…”
“Ji Minglang is 187 cm tall. How can he sit in front of me?”
“…He’s sitting in front of Yuan Tingshen, not you.”
Liao Ting’s explanation was feeble and unconvincing.
Li Qing let out a bitter laugh.
Under the gleeful gazes of the other teachers in the office, Liao Ting whispered, “Since the change has already been made, why not try to adapt?”
Li Qing snorted heavily.
Liao Ting was startled.
“Fine.”
Li Qing gritted her teeth and agreed. “I’ll try.”
She was determined to surpass Yuan Tingshen and reclaim the top spot in the grade!
Liao Ting breathed a sigh of relief.
“That’s the spirit. Classmates should be friendly and help each other learn and improve…”
“Teacher Liao, Li Qing has already left.”
The Chinese teacher beside him reminded him, holding back a laugh.
Liao Ting fell silent, speechless.
The other teachers immediately gathered around.
“Teacher Liao, you’re really bold. Those two are famously at odds with each other!”
“Ah, Old Liao has a sweet burden. Who wouldn’t want the top two students in the grade?”
“I had no choice!”
Liao Ting sighed helplessly. “Li Qing only wants to apply to universities in Wucheng. I thought maybe Yuan Tingshen could spark her competitive spirit and make her reconsider.”
After all, wasn’t it said that rivals couldn’t stand to see each other succeed?
He had asked Yuan Tingshen—his family had plans for him to study abroad. Surely Li Qing wouldn’t want her rival to have a better life than her, right?
…
Li Qing returned to the classroom with a cold expression.
Her classmates were eager to gossip but lacked the courage, so they could only cautiously observe the situation at the back of the room.
Without a word, Li Qing piled the newly distributed textbooks on her desk, intending to block the presence of the person sitting conspicuously beside her.
Unexpectedly, Yuan Tingshen, who had barely spoken to her throughout their sophomore year, suddenly asked, “Do you dislike me?”
“…Of course not.”
Li Qing replied with a forced smile and continued stacking the textbooks higher.
Yuan Tingshen furrowed his brow, a hint of confusion flickering in his eyes.
He had thought she was finally willing to acknowledge him.
After all, on Qixi Festival, she had given him a bouquet of flowers.
Yuan Tingshen had come to Wucheng to accompany his elderly grandmother in her final days.
Qixi Festival was the day of her funeral.
That day, a light drizzle fell over Wucheng. After the funeral, Yuan Tingshen wandered aimlessly through the streets, and Li Qing happened to pass by at that moment.
He recognized her immediately.
Yuan Tingshen had a deep impression of her. He had always paid attention to her, but Li Qing never gave him a friendly look.
He didn’t know how he had offended her.
At the time, Li Qing was riding a bicycle, wearing a delivery uniform that was clearly a size too large.
Because of the rain, she had casually thrown on a plastic raincoat, which billowed and rustled in the cold wind.
She looked somewhat disheveled, but her eyes were clear and bright.
Li Qing stopped beside him, seeming to hesitate for a moment.
Then she handed him the bouquet of roses blooming in full splendor from the front of her bicycle.
“The customer didn’t want it, so it’s yours.”
Yuan Tingshen stared blankly as Li Qing walked away with effortless grace.
The bouquet still appeared vivid and enchanting under the gloomy sky.
Just like her.
In that moment, it seemed as though a beam of sunlight had pierced through the continuous rainy days that had left Wucheng damp and humid.
The sky had cleared.
Li Qing had long vanished from his sight, yet his heartbeat showed no signs of calming down.
After his grandmother passed away, Yuan Tingshen should have returned to Jinghua, but when faced with his parents’ inquiries, he inexplicably said he wanted to stay.
He wanted to keep this bouquet.
But now—
Yuan Tingshen looked at the pile of textbooks stacked between them, his eyes filled with confusion.
“Did I do something to upset you?”
He pursed his lips, trying hard to strike up a conversation with Li Qing.
Yuan Tingshen wasn’t good with words and had no interest in meaningless interactions, but now, he desperately wanted to know what Li Qing truly thought.
Yet Li Qing continued to brush him off with vague replies.
“Of course not!”
Yuan Tingshen opened his mouth to speak, but before he could utter a word, Li Qing shot him a sharp glare.
“If you disturb me while I’m solving problems again, I’ll report you.”
“…”
A sense of helpless defeat rose in Yuan Tingshen’s heart.
Little did he know, Li Qing was even more unsettled than he was.
Yuan Tingshen’s presence was simply too overwhelming.
Moreover, he was tall and kept glancing in her direction frequently—the pile of books couldn’t block his gaze at all.
Could it be that Yuan Tingshen was no longer satisfied with competing with her from afar and wanted to crush her competitive spirit this way?
Li Qing’s imagination ran wild, and the more she thought about it, the more convinced she became that this must be the case.
After school, instead of going home, she headed straight to the Miye Bar.
“Mom! You’re back from school!”
Yuan Miao, dressed in the bar’s server uniform, looked serious, cool, and handsome when he wasn’t speaking.
But the moment Li Qing walked in, he immediately scurried over like an eager puppy, dutifully carrying her backpack.
“I helped with cleaning today.”
“…”
He was catching on quite well.
Li Qing’s lips twitched slightly, gaining a clear understanding of what Zhao Wenyi meant by “perfectly blending in.”
Yuan Miao continued, “Uncle Zeng even taught me how to mix drinks! But he wouldn’t let me touch anything—just let me drink Yakult.”
“Hmm.”
Li Qing responded, “When the bar opens for business, you should go upstairs and rest.”
She took her backpack back from Yuan Miao and prepared to go to the second-floor office to do some homework.
Because of Yuan Tingshen, she had been distracted all day and couldn’t focus at all.
“How could I leave then? That’s when it gets busy.”
Yuan Miao pouted.
Li Qing walked into the office listlessly.
Uncle Jiu rarely appeared at the bar, and most of the time, it was Zhao Wenyi managing things. When she entered, Zhao Wenyi was sitting behind the desk.
Watching her take out a set of exam papers and start working on them, Zhao Wenyi stood up in surprise. “This is the first time you’ve brought homework back.”
“…Don’t even mention it.”
Li Qing frowned with a look of annoyance.
Zhao Wenyi sat down on the sofa beside her and probed indirectly, “Is Yuan Miao really your… son?”
After a day of observation, Zhao Wenyi couldn’t find any signs of deception. Yuan Miao even knew habits that Li Qing herself wasn’t aware of.
Li Qing’s pen paused.
She looked up and spoke earnestly, “I don’t know how to explain it. It’s absurd, but he really is…”
She could never bring herself to be harsh with Yuan Miao.
Moreover, Yuan Miao’s attitude was too natural; there wasn’t the slightest hint of awkwardness in how he behaved around them.
If this was an act, his acting skills could earn him the title of Best Actor.
“And besides…”
Li Qing took out the two or three thousand yuan that Yuan Miao had secretly slipped into the inner pocket of her backpack yesterday.
“He put this in here.”
Li Qing’s tone was complicated. “If this were a pig-butchering scam, he’s sacrificing too much. What could he possibly gain from it?”
Zhao Wenyi was momentarily speechless.
He thought for a moment, then shook his head.
“Yuan Miao clearly grew up in a well-off and happy family. That means you’ll have a good life in the future, and that’s enough.”
“…Besides, when that kid called me ‘uncle,’ I actually felt quite happy.”
As he spoke, Zhao Wenyi couldn’t help but laugh.
Li Qing looked utterly exasperated.