The first day of school had finally come to an end.
For Shen Yandong, the events of this short half day alone were enough to remain in his memory for an entire year.
First, he had been confessed to by an extremely annoying alpha. Then that same alpha had insisted on moving a desk to sit beside him, declaring with complete confidence, “So that’s why the teacher arranged for me to sit alone at a desk. She was waiting for you to appear!”
Not only Shen Yandong, even the other students were unable to hold themselves together.
From their expressions alone, Shen Yandong could almost read the unspoken thoughts in their minds.
“That’s because you’re too troublesome, okay?”
Yet Di Zhe did not feel the slightest bit embarrassed. Like someone who was naturally familiar with everyone, he immediately began asking questions.
“What do you like to eat? I’ll buy it for you tomorrow.”
“What color do you like? I’ll go dye my hair that color.”
“Where do you live? I can walk you home after school.”
He spoke endlessly without pause.
“Look at our math teacher, doesn’t he seem really fierce? Actually he’s all bark and no bite. He’s super easy to talk to and the English teacher, she’s really pretty, right? She has a baby face. Don’t be fooled by how young she looks. She’s actually thirty five already and has twin daughters. They’re really adorable. Last time I ran into them at the amusement center, the two little girls even called me big brother.”
“Oh, right. The Chinese teacher is also our homeroom teacher, isn’t she? She’s very young, she just graduated from graduate school. This is her first time being in charge of a class, so it’s not easy for her. We should be considerate and try not to cause trouble for her…”
Di Zhe spoke ten sentences yet Shen Yandong might not respond with even one but that didn’t affect Di Zhe’s enthusiasm in the slightest.
He poured out everything he knew, as though he wanted to open up his heart and show Shen Yandong everything inside it.
Finally, when Di Zhe began talking about the homeroom teacher, Shen Yandong could not help but speak.
“I think the person in this class who causes the most trouble is you. As long as you don’t cause problems, she won’t have any difficulties.”
His tone was as indifferent as ever.
He slightly turned his head. His eyes, gray and cool like tinted glass, carried an air of detachment. The corners of his lips curved faintly and every word he spoke carried a clear hint of sarcasm.
The entire class instantly fell silent.
No one dared to look over but inwardly they all silently mourned for Di Zhe for a second.
Yet Di Zhe didn’t care at all. Instead, his eyes suddenly lit up with excitement.
“Wow, so you were actually listening to me!”
Shen Yandong fell silent.
Di Zhe seemed to interpret that silence as encouragement and became even more energized.
“Yandong, let me tell you another piece of gossip. This one is about the principal…”
Shen Yandong watched the alpha talking endlessly with a cold expression.
At that moment, he had only one wish in his heart.
Could someone please give this person a bottle of mute medicine?
Shen Yandong finally understood.
Now he knew why Di Zhe couldn’t find anyone to date.
Originally, he had been a little puzzled. Even if Di Zhe was an alpha who went into rut randomly, he was still an alpha. His looks were quite good and he was tall as well. Why didn’t he have a partner?
Now he understood.
Who could possibly endure having a hundred buzzing flies flapping around their ears every day? It would drive anyone insane.
And this guy couldn’t even understand basic hints.
Shen Yandong had already made it obvious that he found him annoying yet Di Zhe seemed completely incapable of taking a hint.
“Ding, ling, ling.”
The class bell rang.
Di Zhe reluctantly closed his mouth.
The tension in Shen Yandong’s nerves finally eased, slowly relaxing.
Throughout the entire half day, Di Zhe had been repeatedly testing the edge of his patience. One moment he was so overbearing that Shen Yandong almost felt like thinking, “Maybe replacing this alpha altogether would solve everything.” The next moment, Di Zhe would rein himself in just enough to make him think, “Fine… I can still tolerate it.” Back and forth, again and again.
Now that the class bell had finally rung, the world had at last fallen silent.
Shen Yandong could finally breathe a small sigh of relief.
Unfortunately, it didn’t take long before the chemistry teacher handed out the exam papers, once again refreshing his understanding.
“Di Zhe, 88 points.”
Shen Yandong suddenly raised his head.
He had never imagined that this person, who looked every bit like a complete idiot, would actually rank third in the class.
Di Zhe scratched the back of his head and grinned foolishly.
“Isn’t this score very lucky? I deliberately aimed for it!”
Shen Yandong: “…”
He had almost believed it.
Could it be that this person was actually the type who pretended to be foolish while hiding real strength?
In Shen Yandong’s mind, countless principles and logical deductions began running at high speed, trying to find even the slightest flaw in Di Zhe’s expression.
Was this alpha truly stupid, or was he deliberately acting foolish?
Pretending to look casual, Shen Yandong slightly turned his head. From the corner of his eye, he quietly glanced at Di Zhe’s profile.
The boy had lowered his head slightly and hadn’t noticed he was being observed. He was playing around with something on his own. Sunlight fell upon his slightly tousled short hair, giving it a warm golden glow. His nose bridge was high and well defined, his features sharp and distinct. Even the casual curve of his lips carried a sense of carefree confidence, joy and the boldness unique to youth.
Shen Yandong’s gaze paused for a moment and an inappropriate thought suddenly surfaced in his mind.
“If he didn’t open his mouth, he would actually count as a handsome alpha.”
Wait.
What was he thinking?
Shen Yandong immediately withdrew his gaze, as though looking any longer would be a waste of time. His mind calmly reminded itself: appearances could not be trusted.
Yes, so what if he was good looking?
No matter how attractive the exterior was, it couldn’t conceal the fact that Di Zhe’s brain was filled with nothing but nonsense.
Without drawing attention, Shen Yandong tightened his grip on the pen in his hand, attempting to mask a strange mixture of irritation and something harder to name.
What annoyed him was how dazzling Di Zhe was. Even when he was simply sitting there quietly, he felt like a blazing source of heat and light, forcing Shen Yandong to be distracted by his presence.
Just then, Shen Yandong heard the person beside him snickering quietly.
“Hey, hey.”
Shen Yandong frowned.
What was he laughing about?
When he turned his head to look, he saw that Di Zhe had drawn a watch on his own arm.
And strangely enough, it was quite well drawn. He had used five different colored pens to decorate it.
With great pride, Di Zhe showed it to him.
“Wow, look at my watch! Isn’t the dial perfectly round? I drew it freehand! I’m amazing!”
…Forget it.
Let’s pretend I never thought anything just now.
The corner of Shen Yandong’s eye twitched.
And so Shen Yandong endured the entire day like this. Finally, when school ended, he grabbed his bag and hurried out of the classroom as fast as he could.
But he was still too slow.
Di Zhe quickly caught up with him, rushing after him while asking, “Dongdong, where do you live? I’ll walk you home.”
Shen Yandong’s steps halted.
His voice turned cold as he corrected him. “Don’t call me ‘Dongdong.’”
“Ah, why are you so shy?” Di Zhe said cheerfully. “If I can’t call you ‘Dongdong,’ how about ‘Little Dong’? That’s cute too.”
Shen Yandong replied flatly, without the slightest emotion, “No.”
Di Zhe tried again. “Then ‘Yanyan’? Or ‘Little Yan’?”
“No,” Shen Yandong said. “None of those. We’re not that familiar.”
Di Zhe suddenly clenched his right fist and smacked it into his left palm as if enlightenment had struck.
“Oh! I get it now,” he said. “So there’s a beginner phase. After some time passes and we get familiar with each other, then I’ll be allowed to call you that, right? Yandong.”
Shen Yandong’s expression darkened. His voice turned icy.
“I am clearly rejecting you. Can’t you understand plain language, Di Zhe? I have no intention of becoming familiar with you in the future either. So please show some respect and maintain proper boundaries.”
Only after hearing words that blunt did Di Zhe finally show a faint expression of defeat.
He looked a little pitiful as he rubbed the tip of his nose, brushing away imaginary dust and muttered, “Hey, don’t be so angry. I only wanted to use a nickname because I like you. You can call me ‘Little Zhe’ if you want.”
Shen Yandong: “…”
He turned around and walked away.
But Di Zhe was not discouraged at all. Persistently, he followed beside him and continued speaking.
“Even though you’re very cold, the way you’re cold is also very beautiful. You’re like a flower growing on a high mountain peak, right? I really like you.”
Like?
You say you like me when we just met?
You’ve said the same thing to dozens of other people?
And today alone you’ve repeated it thirty seven times to me?
Your ‘liking’ is far too casual, thrown out the moment you open your mouth.
Shen Yandong thought with complicated emotions.
They walked out of the school gate toward the bus stop.
Stretching his neck to look ahead, Di Zhe spotted his family’s car waiting nearby and immediately suggested, “My car has already arrived. I can drive you home. There are snacks in the car too.”
Did he think he was a primary school child who would fall for a few snacks?
Shen Yandong felt even more speechless.
He raised a hand to refuse. “No need.”
Then he added sharply, “We’re already second year high school students. Do you not have the ability to take care of yourself? Do your parents still have to pick you up and drop you off every day? If you got lost outside, would you need the broadcasting station to announce it so your parents could come claim you?”
Di Zhe froze.
At that exact moment,
The bus arrived at the stop.
Shen Yandong said coldly, “Goodbye.”
Students leaving school and nearby residents surged onto the bus.
The next second, Di Zhe took a large step forward and jumped on as well.
He was tall and strong, easily squeezing his way to stand beside Shen Yandong. Then he flashed a bright smile.
“You’re right,” he said happily. “From now on I won’t let my family drive me anymore. I’ll take the bus home with you every day.”
This time, it was Shen Yandong who was left dumbfounded.
“…Is this even the bus you take home?”
Di Zhe lowered his head dramatically and clasped his hands over his chest as if cradling his heart.
“Your heart is my home.”
Shen Yandong: “…”
The surrounding students: “…”
Help! That’s so cheesy and disgusting! Someone please control this guy!
Inside, Shen Yandong honestly didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.
With an expressionless face, he thought to himself: Is this guy insane?
Despite Shen Yandong rejecting him again and again along the way, Di Zhe still stubbornly followed him, pulling and lingering until they finally reached the entrance to Shen Yandong’s home.
So this was where Shen Yandong lived.
This area was part of the old district. The government claimed it was under historical preservation, so no major renovations were allowed. Most of the buildings remained the same old mud and tile houses from decades ago.
The very first thought that crossed Di Zhe’s mind when he saw the house was: Wow… houses this shabby still exist?
When Shen Yandong arrived at his door, Di Zhe naturally followed right up behind him. With hopeful eyes, he asked eagerly, “Let me greet your uncle and aunt!”
Shen Yandong took out his key while answering him coldly. At the same time, he deliberately blocked the doorway, clearly guarding against the possibility that Di Zhe might shamelessly try to slip inside.
“My mother isn’t here.”
“Then I’ll come again another day.”
“She won’t be here another day either. She works in another city.”
“Then what about your father?”
“My dad isn’t here either. He went to a very faraway place.”
Di Zhe froze.
Almost instantly, his imagination filled in the rest of the story with tragic detail.
A father who had passed away early. A mother struggling alone to support the family. A lonely yet strong Shen Yandong growing up under difficult circumstances.
His heart suddenly ached as if pricked by a needle.
Ah.
Had he just touched upon Shen Yandong’s painful past?
Oh no. He was really too insensitive.
Di Zhe immediately stopped pestering him and spoke with genuine remorse.
“I’m sorry…”
Shen Yandong felt that something about his expression seemed a little strange but he couldn’t be bothered to correct him. He simply waved his hand in dismissal.
“Now that you know, hurry up and leave.”
Di Zhe watched as Shen Yandong opened the door and stepped inside. Unable to resist, he peeked into the courtyard.
Immediately, his attention was drawn to the sight inside.
There were all sorts of flowers planted in battered pots and broken containers scattered across the yard. The ground was still bare earth, with a few worn blue stone bricks laid here and there. An old reclining chair rested near the wall. A table that was clearly decades old stood beside it, its surface weathered with age.
Through the half open doorway, he could even glimpse an old fashioned stove used for burning firewood.
…He hadn’t seen such an old house in eight hundred years!
Was Shen Yandong’s family… really struggling this much?
Di Zhe wondered.
On the way home, his mood was heavy.
Even when he passed by the ice cream shop he usually loved, he had little appetite. He only ordered one large scoop of chocolate ice cream. Normally he would have chosen two different flavors.
The more he thought about it, the more his heart ached.
The more he thought, the more it hurt.
He munched on the ice cream with small bites. The ice cream was cold but his heart burned warmly.
Clenching his fist, Di Zhe made a firm resolution.
He thought with determination: God, I understand now. The reason you sent me into this world must be so I can protect Shen Yandong.
Sniffling slightly, he vowed in his heart.
I will definitely become the best top in the world and take good care of Shen Yandong!
✦ ✧ ✦
Fleurveil
[Translator]
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← PreviousNext →
ChaptersChapter 1 · Love at first sightChapter 2 · Lack of discretionChapter 3 · ShamelessChapter 4 · UnreasonableChapter 5 · PerseveranceChapter 6 · College Entrance Examination EndChapter 7 · Graduation dinnerChapter 8 · Confession nightChapter 9 · Pressing in step by stepChapter 10 · Enough is enoughChapter 11 · A huge blowChapter 12 · University start dateChapter 13 · Roommate meetingChapter 14 · Relentless harassmentChapter 15 · I’ll pick you upChapter 16 · It’s my vulnerable periodChapter 17 · Voluntary datingChapter 18 · Open your heartChapter 19 · Obedient to allChapter 20 · Not a virginChapter 21 · Swear to love meChapter 22 · Youthful DaydreamsChapter 23 · Teenage ThoughtsChapter 24 · EmptyChapter 25 · Extremely anxiousChapter 26 · Too lazy to struggleChapter 27 · From now on