Zhou Zhi’s gaze abruptly retracted.
She picked up the last homework notebook and quickly rose to her feet.
She wanted to leave. She wanted to escape.
“Heh.”
A cold laugh came from in front of her. A tall figure blocked her path of escape, his black shadow completely enveloping her.
Backlit, she couldn’t make out the expression on the young man’s face—only his silver hair shimmering with fine specks of light under the lamplight.
Ji Xuanxu handed the homework he had picked up to Wu Ya, who scrambled to take it.
Her mind was still stuck in a dazed blankness.
“Thank you.” Zhou Zhi held the much smaller stack of notebooks with one arm, her other hand clenching and unclenching. The words “thank you” repeated silently in her mouth many times before she could force them out.
Difficult. Bitter.
Crossing a torrent of time spanning over a thousand days.
No response came.
The air fell into a long silence, the space between them squeezed tight, breeding frustration and suffocation.
“Thank you.” Zhou Zhi took a deep breath and offered a piece of chocolate, her voice much louder this time as she raised her head to meet Ji Xuanxu’s eyes.
Ji Xuanxu’s fingertips curled slightly. The corner of his mouth lifted into a mocking arc.
A scoffing laugh rang out, carrying a hint of ambiguous malice—part disdain, part resentment.
Gu Wan stepped forward, a bright and generous smile on her face. “Sorry, Zhou Zhi, but our A-Xu doesn’t like chocolate.”
Before her words even faded, the young man had already taken the chocolate.
The smile on Gu Wan’s face stiffened abruptly.
Ever since she had known Ji Xuanxu, chocolate had been like a forbidden word to him.
He wouldn’t eat it, wouldn’t look at it, and didn’t even like others mentioning it.
An alarm bell rang loudly in her heart. Her gaze fell back on Zhou Zhi’s face, turning sharp and piercing.
Zhou Zhi walked around Ji Xuanxu and headed toward the other teaching building.
Wu Ya, dazed and confused, hurriedly followed.
Ji Xuanxu turned around, watching the girl’s figure disappear around another corner. The lifted corners of his mouth slowly flattened.
His bright eyes were laced with agitation and regret.
The dark chocolate was bitter, melting between his lips and tongue like a dose of traditional medicine.
But the aftertaste carried a hint of sweetness.
“A-Xu…” Gu Wan hesitated, as if wanting to say something more.
Ji Xuanxu lowered his head and cut her off. “You have no right to make decisions for me.”
The young man’s voice was cold and gloomy, carrying a veiled warning.
The heart that Gu Wan had held suspended suddenly dropped.
So that was it.
Right—people in their circle had seen every kind of beauty. Ji Xuanxu wasn’t the type to be swayed by a pretty face.
So he was blaming her for meddling in his affairs.
A mere Zhou Zhi… Gu Wan’s face turned pale.
The young man left without hesitation, clean and decisive. Gu Wan watched Ji Xuanxu’s retreating figure and clenched her fists.
Evening self-study ended at ten.
Lights out at ten twenty.
When Wu Ya was blocked by Gu Wan on the dormitory balcony, her heart pounded violently. Her lips turned pale, and even her breathing became shallow.
She knew this afternoon’s incident wasn’t going to blow over.
The Gu family held power and influence in Qiongjiang City. Whatever Gu Wan wanted at school, there would naturally be people falling over themselves to do her bidding.
And she was merely one of many who sought to curry favor.
Gu Wan crossed her arms, half-leaning against the frosted glass door. Her gentle voice carried an extraordinary sense of oppression. “Wu Ya, do you think I’m pretty?”
Hearing this question, Wu Ya breathed a sigh of relief. She put on a fawning, flattering smile. “Pretty! Sister Wan, you’re the prettiest girl in all of Number Thirteen!”
The words were spoken with complete sincerity.
Not only was Gu Wan good-looking, but her sense of fashion and style far surpassed her peers. The refinement of high society made Gu Wan seem more precious than everyone else.
A goddess whom no one dared to covet lightly.
Gu Wan laughed twice, then asked, “Between me and Zhou Zhi, who is prettier?”
Wu Ya paused for a moment, unable to resist comparing the two.
Unlike Gu Wan’s glittering opulence.
The newly arrived Zhou Zhi was more like a fragile, pure white flower—delicate and easily broken, drenched in post-rain dishevelment, effortlessly stirring pity in others.
A sickly melancholy seeped from within, adding a touch of mystery to her beauty.
There were always many beautiful women in this world, but temperament was something unique.
“Sister Wan is prettier! How could that little girl compare to you?” Wu Ya said flatteringly, though the words went against her true feelings.
Gu Wan’s eyes narrowed slightly. “Give her a warning, Wu Ya.”
So infuriating. Even though she was as bland and uninteresting as plain water, she still felt glaringly irritating.
Wu Ya: “But…”
She hesitated, words trailing off.
But she could tell—Ji Xuanxu definitely had feelings for that Zhou Zhi.
He picked up her homework for her…
Watching Gu Wan’s suddenly darkened expression, Wu Ya finally gave in, nodding with some difficulty.
There was no choice. She couldn’t afford to offend either Gu Wan or Ji Xuanxu.
The night was silent, and the flashlights that had been wandering during patrol downstairs had long since disappeared.
“Bang!”
The sound of the door being slammed open was like a thunderclap in the darkness, accompanied by ugly curses and soft whimpers.
“A toad lusting after swan meat! Look at yourself before daring to confess to Ji Xuanxu!”
“Don’t you know that Ji Xuanxu and my Sister Wan grew up together? They’re a match made in heaven.”
Wu Ya’s voice was shrill and arrogant as she shoved a short-haired girl into a corner, vile words spilling from her mouth one after another.
The entire sixth floor, four dorm rooms—everyone was awakened by the shouting.
No one dared to complain.
Everyone knew Wu Ya always followed Gu Wan around.
Zhou Zhi opened her eyes, staring at the pitch-black ceiling. A flicker of darkness passed through her clear, distinct eyes.
Someone in the dorm whispered, “From the sound of it, isn’t Wu Ya bullying Zhao Zhenzhen?”
“Aren’t they good friends?”
Most of the students in the dorm were high achievers and weren’t familiar with Wu Ya’s group, but being jolted awake at this hour, fear was inevitable.
“Thud!”
Something slammed against their dorm door, and Wu Ya’s voice became even clearer.
“You just transferred here and you’re already stealing someone else’s boyfriend.”
“You little slut, don’t get cocky. Next time, I’ll beat you until your teeth fall out.”
“All you’ve got is a pretty face for seducing people…”
The direction of her words became increasingly obvious, and everyone gradually caught on.
Wasn’t this just scolding the mulberry tree while pointing at the locust tree—an indirect attack!
Who had just transferred here? Everyone knew perfectly well.
The girls in the dorm stared at Zhou Zhi’s bed, hesitant to speak.
Though they hadn’t interacted much with the new classmate, after a week together, they had grown quite fond of her.
She never made a fuss, never argued, never clashed with anyone.
How did she end up tangling with trash like Wu Ya’s group?
The ugly cursing continued, with even more vulgar and filthy words spilling from Wu Ya’s mouth, echoing across the entire sixth floor.
Gu Wan stood by the door, letting out a cold snort.
She’d been rejected by Ji Xuanxu so many times that only when she returned to class could she reclaim that feeling of being the center of attention.
The class monitor from Room 601 had already put on her shoes and socks. When the conflict first started, she’d wanted to push the door open and stop it, but she quickly realized Wu Ya was cursing at Zhou Zhi.
Serves her right!
Well said.
A seductive fox spirit.
Deserves a scolding.
She’s only been here for a week, and already she’s got that fool Liang Muye completely turned around.