“–You’ve really gotten yourself into big trouble this time…”
Su Tang nodded.
Sniffling, his voice still sounded somewhat choked: “Cousin said his dad has tons of money~”
“He said he’s been studying at Qinghe since the first grade, and now he’s already in the third grade.”
Watching Su Tang’s endless tears, a wave of irritation surged in Li Xingchuan’s chest.
Yet this irritation wasn’t directed at Su Tang; it pointed straight at that clueless cousin.
Third grade, third grade, he thought—why is it that everyone he detests in this world is in the third grade?
Gazing into Su Tang’s watery eyes, untainted by a single speck of impurity, he asked in a low voice: “What did he say to you?”
Lifting his small face and trying hard to recall, Su Tang obediently reiterated: “He said Qinghe is the most expensive school in Shengjing… The meals inside are even better than what Grandpa and I eat during Chinese New Year…”
Li Xingchuan gave a cold chuckle: “Your cousin only has this much capability.”
Raising his hand, his fingertips gently combed through Su Tang’s tear-dampened bangs as he lowered his voice to a whisper: “Back then… it must have been very grievance-inducing, right?”
Instead, Su Tang held Li Xingchuan’s hand that was wiping his face, puffed out his little chest, and said with a touch of pride: “No, Brother! I didn’t feel aggrieved back then at all!”
Then he pouted: “I was just so envious that he gets to celebrate the New Year every single day.”
“But I’m not that envious anymore—eating at Brother’s house is what truly feels like the New Year!”
Li Xingchuan pulled Su Tang to sit down on a chair.
Standing before him, he bent down and used a tissue to extremely lightly dab away the tear stains on his face: “From now on, I’ll let you celebrate the New Year every single day.”
Su Tang immediately hugged his arm, his fawn-like eyes widening into circles as they shimmered: “You mean… I’ll get to come eat at Brother’s house every day from now on?”
Li Xingchuan smiled slightly: “It means I’ll be able to get two Qinghe admission letters tonight.”
“One for me, one for you.”
“Starting next Monday, we’ll go to Qinghe together to study too.”
Li Xingchuan scrutinized Su Tang.
He was actually somewhat worried that Su Tang would compare Qinghe to First Primary School.
So he stared intently at Su Tang’s eyes—if those eyes didn’t instantly light up upon hearing “Qinghe” the way they had previously when hearing “First Primary School”…
Li Xingchuan would feel irritated, feeling that being assigned to Qinghe was imperfect.
Yet at that moment, Su Tang’s eyes truly looked as though stars were blooming within them.
His pitch-black pupils dilated slightly, his eyelashes still wet, but surprise and smiles spread across the bottom of his eyes: “Really, Brother? Really?!”
“Of course.”
“I’m so happy, it’s like… a dream I forgot about for a long time suddenly came true!”
Su Tang abruptly stood up from the chair: “Brother, are we in the same class?”
“Of course.”
“Then… then can we not be in the same class as ‘Xu Meng’? He’s my cousin.”
“Alright, not in the same class.”
Taking Su Tang’s hand, Li Xingchuan walked him to a slightly dimmed corner, pulled the mini projection egg out of his pocket, and deliberately tossed it in front of Su Tang: “Once you come to Qinghe with me, you aren’t allowed to dwell on any other schools anymore.”
“From now on, even if someone praises another school to the skies in front of you and says they want to transfer you—you are not allowed to agree.”
Opening the projection egg, he asked in a deep voice: “Did you understand?”
Wide-eyed, Su Tang was stunned by the realistic 3D galaxy suddenly blooming before his eyes. Opening his small mouth, he hurriedly began clapping his hands: “Understood! Brother, I understand!”
“Let me touch this magic egg too… Let me touch it too!”
When Li Xingchuan told Su Tang “of course we’re in the same class,” he genuinely believed that the two of them were naturally meant to be assigned together.
And he was firmly convinced that his father would definitely make that exact arrangement—
Hateful as he was of Li Shenglan, he had never doubted the man’s astuteness and methods.
Therefore, upon returning home, when Li Shenglan spread two brand-new admission letters out on the table, Li Xingchuan fell into a brief silence.
——The two letters, one printed with “Third Grade,” and the other printed with “First Grade.”
The letter for “Third Grade” had his name written in black and white.
Suppressing his frustration for a long time, Li Xingchuan asked: “Why is it third grade again?”
——Did he have a grudge against “third grade” in his past life? Are they at loggerheads in this one?
Across the entire universe, apart from “third grade,” was there no other age group he could be placed in?
“I want to go to fourth grade,” Li Xingchuan said coldly.
“Xingchuan, your private tutoring progress only reaches third grade,” Li Shenglan reminded him.
“It’s just skipping a grade!”
“Not ‘just’. You are Party B. You don’t have a say.”
“…Then what about Su Tang? He’s not Party B, let him skip up to third grade.”
“He is the entourage accompanying Party B.”
Li Xingchuan’s expression was very poor: “Fine, I accept. Can I just make one request?”
Li Shenglan pushed his glasses up: “You may speak.”
Li Xingchuan said: “Put me in the class that has ‘Xu Meng’; he’s also in the third grade.”
Li Shenglan nodded: “I will consider it accordingly.”
Yet as soon as Li Xingchuan left the study, he immediately dialed his assistant’s phone: “Check whether there is a student named ‘Xu Meng’ in Xingchuan’s class. If there is, transfer Xingchuan to another class—as far away from ‘Xu Meng’s’ class as possible.”
Meanwhile, out of the study, Li Xingchuan was restlessly flipping in and out of the second-floor balcony, feeling deeply flustered.
Over at the small western-style building, Su Tang was circling around Grandpa—who had returned from his conversation with Li Shenglan that afternoon—in excited little spins.
He couldn’t stop jumping for joy in a low voice: “I’m going to school with Brother! I’m going to school with Brother…”
Grandpa Su gazed at his spinning little figure with eyes full of tender affection, a well of suppressed hot tears lurking deep in his eyes, almost feeling overwhelmed and at a loss by this sudden stroke of good fortune.
He had run into Li Shenglan on his way home.
Li Shenglan was standing under a tree with a calm expression.
Someone was holding a black umbrella for him from behind, and he stood straight there, not knowing how long he had already been standing.
When Grandpa Su stopped his little electric scooter and nervously greeted him, Li Shenglan nodded politely: “Mr. Su, I’ve been waiting for you.”
Feeling apprehensive in his heart, Grandpa Su followed Li Shenglan to the Li family villa.
When Li Shenglan slowly elaborated on inviting Su Tang to enroll in Qinghe, Grandpa Su’s mouth hung open, staring in a daze for a full five seconds.
Qinghe…
That school was so well-suited for Su Tang.
It wasn’t that he had never dreamed of it, but it was simply too far out of reach for him.
With a tuition fee of two hundred thousand a year, there was simply no way he could pull that off. Even though the Li family manor provided extremely generous welfare allowances for veteran employees with children—bringing it down to fifty thousand a year after the subsidy—this sum remained an insurmountable figure for him.
Grandpa Su did reveal a flash of uncontrollable joy, but his first reaction upon recovering his senses was to wave his hands in refusal—
He truly couldn’t accept this unpayable favor with a clear conscience.
Yet Li Shenglan said: “There’s no need to consider the cost.”
“It’s a rare and precious affinity for the children to hit it off; affinity is met by chance and cannot be forced.”
“Besides, if you agree to Su Tang’s enrollment, in order to make it convenient for them to go to and from school in the future, Xingchuan is going to live long-term at your place, which will inevitably cause you trouble. I won’t be paying you this ‘trouble fee’ either.”
“When it comes to the children, we only talk about sentiment. Do you agree?”
Li Shenglan was an extraordinary figure who frequently appeared on television.
A noble person high above the clouds whom, in any other context, he would have zero possibility of coming into such close contact with.
At that time, with a line of servants clearly standing behind them, Li Shenglan personally poured him a cup of kung fu tea.
Grandpa Su only felt that the teacup was too small, the tea sliding down his throat without even allowing him to taste any flavor…
Yet he didn’t dare, nor did he know how to refuse once more.
——That would instead appear coy and hypocritical.
Deep down, he was clearly yearning for Su Tang to be able to go.
Since Li Shenglan in such a high position could still be this earnest, if he, an ordinary little person, were to put on airs and act coy again, it would make him look petty.
Grandpa Su simply tucked this heavy favor silently away in the bottom of his heart.
——Even though he knew better than anyone else that for the rest of his life, he would likely lack the capacity to ever repay it.
In order to let the two children adapt in advance.
The next day, Li Xingchuan was “shipped off” by Li Shenglan to sleep at Su Tang’s house.
Far from feeling any humiliation from being “shipped off,” Li Xingchuan’s brow and eyes grew increasingly swaggering due to the sheer delight in his heart.
Especially at night, when Grandpa Su actually permitted him to sleep in Su Tang’s bedroom and share the same bed with Su Tang, the corners of his mouth were practically impossible to suppress.
Except that—
At night, when Su Tang snuggled up beside him and softly expressed his yearning, saying “From now on we can listen to lectures together in the big classroom with Brother,” the swaggering smile on Li Xingchuan’s face faded instantly once again.
Closing his eyes, he avoided Su Tang’s sparkling gaze: “Plans have changed…”
“The two of us couldn’t get into the same class.”
“I’ll give you the admission letter tomorrow… you’re in the first grade.”
“Then what about Brother?”
“I’m in the third grade.”
“Then we… are we far apart?” Su Tang suddenly hugged Li Xingchuan’s arm tightly, his voice harboring a trace of unperceived panic.
Opening his eyes, Li Xingchuan met Su Tang’s watery, flickering pupils. He gently patted Su Tang’s clenched fingers: “I’ll take you to your classroom first every day. Don’t be afraid.”
“Then… what about when school is over?” Su Tang’s eyes were brimming with reliance, like water-soaked glass.
Li Xingchuan curved the corners of his mouth, lowering his voice: “I’ll pick you up.”
“Just wait for me obediently in your classroom after school lets out.”
“We’ll go home together.”
Su Tang asked again: “Then what about lunch break? Grandpa said Qinghe’s nap room is huge, one room can sleep twenty day students… They even have lunch breaks in winter!”
Tucking the blanket corners in for him, Li Xingchuan gently patted his back with his palm: “I’ll come find you at lunchtime to eat together.”
“After we eat, I’ll take you to nap.”
“We’ll sleep in the same room, rest assured.”
Su Tang gave a tiny yawn, yet his eyes still tried hard to stay round and open, full of yearning: “Can we… sleep in the same bed like this?”
Reaching out, Li Xingchuan gently covered his eyelids: “We can. Go to sleep.”
“That’s great…” Su Tang’s voice gradually blurred, sounding like a dream muttered aloud.
Unconsciously rubbing closer to the edge of Li Xingchuan’s blanket, he was scooped up and gently patted by Li Xingchuan.
Every little while, Li Xingchuan would quietly use the back of his hand to test Su Tang’s forehead.
Only after confirming his breathing was steady and his temperature normal did he truly close his eyes and sink into sleep.
Monday arrived in the blink of an eye.
Two different grades and two different classes simultaneously welcomed their respective transfer students.
And the demeanor of these two children when standing on the podium to introduce themselves could be described as worlds apart.
When Su Tang walked timidly onto the podium, he was so nervous that his left foot tripped over his right, nearly tumbling right at the edge of the platform. When speaking, he didn’t dare look down at the audience either, his words stuttering and his voice as thin as a gnat’s.
Fortunately, his classmates didn’t show any expressions of disdain; instead, some whispered among themselves about how “he’s so pretty” and “so cute.”
When the teacher was arranging his seat, several children raised their hands eagerly: “Teacher! Can the new classmate sit next to me?”
“Sit by me!”
“I want to sit with him too!”
…
Meanwhile, when Li Xingchuan sauntered leisurely onto the podium, he expressionlessly spat out just five words:
——”My name is Li Xingchuan.”
The reaction of the classmates in his class was also completely different from the uniform friendliness in Su Tang’s class.
Some people secretly blushed, some rolled their eyes and muttered under their breath “what’s he putting on airs for,” while one or two others wore complex expressions, their gazes mixed with vigilance, astonishment, and even a faint trace of dread…
In the end, Su Tang was arranged to sit in the third row.
As for Li Xingchuan, unwilling to share a desk with anyone, he walked straight to the very last row of the classroom, to that seat by the door.
——Not because he was enthusiastic about acting as the “class gatekeeper,” but simply because he felt that sitting here, the moment the dismissal bell rang, he could be the very first to dash out of the classroom and quickly go find Su Tang.
Sitting right in front of Li Xingchuan were a big chubby boy and a small skinny boy.
Just as the first class officially began, the back of the chubby boy sitting closer to Li Xingchuan was lightly poked by the tip of a pen.
Turning his head, the chubby boy asked impatiently in a low voice: “What?”
Li Xingchuan asked calmly: “Who is Xu Meng?”
The chubby boy scratched his head: “There’s no one by that name in our class.”
Li Xingchuan put down his pen, his expression sinking abruptly.
He realized that he had likely been played by Li Shenglan.
At this moment, the slightly farther away skinny boy also timidly turned his head, tentatively whispering: “I-I know Xu Meng…”
His name was Li Cheng, the son of some member of management in the Li family manor. Other classmates might not recognize Li Xingchuan, but he didn’t dare not recognize him. Yet he also knew that Li Xingchuan most likely wouldn’t remember him—there were simply too many children in the manor; everyone knew the manor lord’s son, but the manor lord’s son probably wouldn’t even deign to give them a straight look on ordinary days.
He originally wouldn’t dare provoke Li Xingchuan, feeling his heart flutter with panic even just approaching him.
But he had some bad blood with Xu Meng.
Hearing Li Xingchuan ask this, he couldn’t help turning his head back after all.
Li Xingchuan pursued the question: “Which class is he in?”
Li Cheng lowered his voice: “Class Three… Three.” [T/N: Grade 3, Class 10]
Having said that, Li Cheng remained in a state of jittery anxiety.
Sure enough—
The moment the bell rang for the end of class, a harsh “creak” of a chair being dragged across the floor came from behind him.
Turning back in a panic, he saw that the desk and chair behind him were already empty.
Li Xingchuan had long since vanished from the classroom doorway.
Li Cheng’s fingers trembled slightly.
In his heart, he thought with a mix of fear and sheer gratification—
“Xu Meng, oh Xu Meng… You’ve really gotten yourself into big trouble this time!”