Perhaps Shen Mu and Fei Xinglan’s gazes were too direct, further fueling Li Shuo’s anger.
He knew he was in trouble this time. Being caught by Zhang Wen for ambushing students was bad enough, but the fact that Jin Yixiu and Xi Xiangyang, the two favorites of the school, were among those being targeted meant that the tiger (Zhang Wen) would definitely make a big deal out of it. He probably wouldn’t escape punishment this time.
He didn’t care much about points, he had a history of demerits anyway, but he couldn’t swallow this anger. It was the first time he suffered such a loss, falling into the hands of these two “weaklings.” And now, they were looking at him with such disdain, as if he were an idiot. It was a blatant insult to his pride.
Shen Mu and Fei Xinglan ignored Li Shuo and walked towards their seats. They didn’t want to waste time on this idiot.
Li Shuo wanted to rush over and teach them a lesson, but he was stopped by his followers.
“Boss, forget it. If they report us again and we get caught at noon, we’ll be in even bigger trouble.”
“Yeah, and they didn’t do anything wrong.”
“What the f*ck did you say? Say it again if you dare!” Li Shuo roared at them.
“Nothing, nothing. I was wrong.”
Some of them were quite dissatisfied with Li Shuo. Their families were well-off, allowing them to attend this school despite their mediocre grades, but their families weren’t as wealthy as Li Shuo’s, so naturally, they weren’t as fearless as him.
This time, they might lose points because of Li Shuo, and they resented him for it, but they didn’t dare to fall out with him, so they could only endure it and curse him behind his back.
While the atmosphere on that side was tense, Shen Mu and Fei Xinglan were unaffected. They put down their things, ate breakfast while chatting, and handed in their homework to the class representative. Li Shuo’s matter was completely disregarded.
Shen Mu’s personality was quite contradictory. Sometimes he seemed naive, slow to react, and a bit silly; but other times, he was incredibly clever, quick-witted, and sharp.
In short, Shen Mu usually appeared obedient, but he was a bit dark inside, held grudges, but wouldn’t necessarily seek revenge. He wouldn’t waste time on people or things he didn’t deem worthy.
Shen Mu and Fei Xinglan attended class as usual, completely ignoring the resentful gazes directed at them.
Time flew by and soon it was noon. Shen Mu and Fei Xinglan packed their things and looked out the window towards Class A. They were still in class. The teacher for their class that period was notorious for running overtime.
Shen Mu walked over and stood at the door of Class A, looking at Jin Yixiu. This feeling was just like when Shen Mu first saw him.
Even though he had seen him frequently these past two days, Shen Mu was still stunned. No matter how many times he saw Jin Yixiu, he would still feel the same heart-fluttering sensation as their first encounter.
The sunlight fell on Jin Yixiu’s porcelain-like face, casting a faint golden halo. His dark hair, focused expression, the pen in his slender, well-defined hand—it made Shen Mu involuntarily think of the line: “A gentleman of noble character, his appearance is as such.”
As Shen Mu watched, he suddenly seemed to have an illusion. Amidst the sound of reading aloud, he seemed to hear a voice.
“Ah Mu, Ah Mu.”
Who? Who was it? Why did it sound like Ah Xiu?
“Ah Mu, Ah Mu.” The voice suddenly grew louder, startling Shen Mu awake. He looked to the side.
“Ah Mu, what’s wrong?” Fei Xinglan looked at him strangely.
“Huh? What’s wrong?” Shen Mu was also confused. Was the voice he just heard an illusion or…?
“You were just staring at Jin Yixiu in a daze, and you didn’t respond no matter how much I called you. I thought you were possessed.” Fei Xinglan thought for a moment and added, “You looked like you were in a trance.”
Shen Mu laughed: “What nonsense are you talking about?”
As the two were talking and joking, there was a commotion in Class A. They turned to look and saw students gradually coming out of Class A; their class had finally ended.
Shen Mu shook his head, trying to forget about the voice he had heard earlier, and looked towards the crowd, waiting for Jin Yixiu.
Jin Yixiu and Xi Xiangyang soon appeared, walking straight towards them.
Before they could speak, another annoying fly buzzed over.
“Shen Mu, Fei Xinglan,” Luo Yuan trotted over, looking at the two with his signature fake smile, “I’m treating you after school today, don’t forget.” Liang Feng followed behind him.
“…Okay,” Shen Mu replied perfunctorily.
Fei Xinglan didn’t respond at all; he couldn’t even be bothered.
Jin Yixiu frowned slightly, a glint of coldness flashing in his eyes.
Liang Feng, seeing Jin Yixiu and Shen Mu together, became even angrier. He adjusted his expression and went in front of Jin Yixiu, putting on what he thought was a sweet smile, tilting his head up, batting his eyelashes, and saying, “Jin Yixiu, don’t forget about tonight either.”
Shen Mu’s eyes widened. What was this? What was going on?
Shen Mu walked over angrily, pulled Jin Yixiu back, and stood in front of him, smiling at Liang Feng, whose face had become unsightly because of this action: “Don’t worry, Liang Feng, Ah Xiu is going with us, he definitely won’t forget, so you don’t have to bother reminding him.”
Shen Mu paused, shifted his gaze to the livid Luo Yuan, and then looked back, feigning hesitation: “Also, compared to you, I think Luo Yuan needs more attention right now. He seems to be in a very bad mood.”
“…” Liang Feng looked at Luo Yuan, who indeed had a gloomy face. Seeing Liang Feng looking at him, he snorted coldly and walked away.
Liang Feng was unwilling to leave just like that, but he also had to coax Luo Yuan. Before he could catch a bigger fish, he couldn’t afford to lose Luo Yuan.
Liang Feng gave them an apologetic smile and then hurried to chase after Luo Yuan.
Xi Xiangyang watched and clicked his tongue: “Yixiu, you’re really charming. Someone’s already hooked a fish, yet they’re still unwilling to give up on this piece of jade.”
Jin Yixiu glanced at him and didn’t speak.
Listening to this, Shen Mu felt something was off. Xi Xiangyang’s words clearly referred to Luo Yuan and Liang Feng, but Jin Yixiu didn’t seem to show any disgust. Perhaps he didn’t care about those two, or maybe he knew Xi Xiangyang was joking and didn’t bother responding. But…
Shen Mu still didn’t want to give up this opportunity. He originally planned to get to know Jin Yixiu slowly, and then test his views on same-sex relationships, but now, he couldn’t hold back anymore.
Liang Feng’s behavior gave him a wake-up call. Jin Yixiu was so outstanding, the best wherever he went, and too many people liked him. If he didn’t seize the opportunity, then in the future… No, he had to take action.
“Xi Xiangyang, aren’t you afraid Ah Xiu will be angry if you say that? What if Ah Xiu is straight and dislikes our relationship?”
Fei Xinglan, hearing this, raised an eyebrow slightly. Ah Mu’s move was quite efficient.
Xi Xiangyang’s expression also changed slightly. Although Shen Mu’s words sounded like a joke, why did he feel that he was serious?
Jin Yixiu’s heart skipped a beat. Was this…?
“I do dislike it, and I hate it very much, but it’s not because of you.” Jin Yixiu looked at Shen Mu, whose expression had suddenly become serious. “It has nothing to do with your relationship. Whether I like or dislike someone has nothing to do with their gender. When you truly like someone, gender is not an obstacle, not a reason, nor an excuse.”
Hearing this answer, Shen Mu felt relieved, the weight finally lifted from his heart.
“Really? I think so too.” Shen Mu looked directly into Jin Yixiu’s eyes, the corners of his mouth lifting.
“What are you two doing? Hurry up, we still have to go to the director’s office,” Fei Xinglan interrupted the suddenly ambiguous atmosphere, urging them.
He was still a little worried about Shen Mu being with Jin Yixiu. The current Jin Yixiu seemed flawless, like a true noble and aloof young master, but the impression he had left on Fei Xinglan before made him unable to forget it.
Xi Xiangyang frowned. Little Xingxing didn’t seem to like Yixiu and Shen Mu being together. Why? Did he think they were unsuitable? Or… did he dislike same-sex relationships? New chapters come out on novelping.com first.
Shen Mu turned his head away shyly, “Let’s go.”
Jin Yixiu thought about the little beauty’s cautious probing just now. Truly adorable.
The four of them walked, each with their own hidden thoughts.
“What do you guys want to eat? Ah Xiu and I will go buy it, you guys can find a seat,” Xi Xiangyang said, looking at the crowded cafeteria.
“I don’t know, I don’t have much of an appetite, anything is fine,” Fei Xinglan said.
Jin Yixiu looked at Shen Mu, waiting for his answer.
“Something nutritionally balanced, with both vegetables and meat. Ah Xiu, you should eat something like that too,” Shen Mu reminded him.
“Of course,” Jin Yixiu smiled in response.
Shen Mu saw two people leaving the cafeteria, and there were two empty seats opposite them, just enough for four. He quickly pulled Fei Xinglan over.
After the two sat down, Fei Xinglan watched Shen Mu keep looking towards Jin Yixiu and pursed his lips, “Ah Mu.”
“Hmm?” Shen Mu turned to Fei Xinglan: “What’s wrong, Xinglan?”
“There’s something… it’s about… that… about Jin…” Fei Xinglan sighed, “Never mind.”
It’s still unclear how to approach Shen Mu.
“Really, nothing’s wrong?” Shen Mu felt Fei Xinglan had been acting strangely lately, noticing this absentminded state several times.
“Nothing, nothing, what could be wrong?” Fei Xinglan laughed, waving his hand dismissively.
Seeing this, Shen Mu didn’t press further. After all, if someone didn’t want to talk, there was no point in asking.
Meanwhile, Xi Xiangyang and Jin Yixiu had finished getting their food, trays in hand.
“Here.” Xi Xiangyang placed a plate of food in front of Fei Xinglan.
“Hey, these are all my favorites!” Fei Xinglan rubbed his hands together, looking at Xi Xiangyang, and asked, “Did you just randomly pick these?”
“Guess.” Xi Xiangyang shrugged, sitting opposite Fei Xinglan.
Of course, he had picked them specifically. This procrastinator, having realized his feelings for Fei Xinglan, had started to investigate. Knowing what someone likes to eat is the most basic information.
Jin Yixiu also placed the food he had chosen in front of Shen Mu. They had picked similar dishes.
“Oh, not bad, not bad.” Shen Mu looked at Jin Yixiu, giving him a thumbs-up: “Giving you a like.”
Jin Yixiu blushed slightly, a faint flush evident on his face. “Thank you.”
Shen Mu found him adorable, unable to stop smiling.
Beside them, Fei Xinglan wasn’t so happy. His sixth sense told him these two were now together, the atmosphere between them had already changed. No, he had to tell Ah Mu soon.
If Ah Mu didn’t mind, then it was fine, and he wouldn’t interfere too much in their relationship.