Yun Xiang dazedly placed her math notebook on the podium, and as she walked back, she shot Pei Xingche a look of extreme complexity.
Fine, he still had that jade-like, untouchable, high-and-mighty look. (Of course, that was if you ignored Little Ala perched on the young man’s head.)
She absolutely could not imagine someone like him saying such wild, scandalous words.
As the ancients said: You can know a person’s face, but not their heart.
Never a truer word spoken.
Her pinky finger, still covered with a band-aid, curled slightly inward. Yun Xiang was starting to regret it.
She began to wonder if agreeing so hastily had been too rash.
Was she really going to be desk mates with Pei Xingche?
When the math exam papers were handed out, Pei Xingche was noticeably more serious and much quieter this time.
His inner voice contained nothing fanciful—just concise, straightforward answers.
Yun Xiang also buckled down, deliberately not listening to Pei Xingche’s answers, fully immersed in her own calculations.
Two hours later, the bell rang, and Yun Xiang put down her pen.
She lowered her eyes in discomfort.
She still had no idea how to approach the second and third parts of the final big question.
[Didn’t expect this paper to be somewhat difficult. Looks like those math old-timers want to give everyone a warning.]
[Haha, but this level of difficulty is nothing for me. Can’t help it—I’m just that awesome.]
[Just wondering how the little snail did. Kind of worried.]
For some reason, after hearing the muttering inner voice behind her, Yun Xiang’s mood lifted a little.
If someone as smart as Pei Xingche said it was hard, then it was understandable that she couldn’t solve it.
After the papers were collected, it was the usual frantic dash to the cafeteria.
Yun Xiang, as always, was the last to leave the classroom, and Pei Xingche, as always, followed her.
[The little snail’s pace has picked up today, huh.]
[Um, ahem, I’m really not a creep. I’m not stalking her—I’m following her.]
[Fine, actually, I’m a detective, code name 1314. I started investigating this classmate in front of me back in ’22. The case hasn’t been cracked yet, but my heart has already surrendered.]
Pfft.
The classmate walking ahead couldn’t help but curve her eyes, a sweet smile spilling at the corners of her lips. It was just a pity the classmate behind couldn’t see it.
Shen Zhe didn’t manage to catch Yun Xiang at the cafeteria this time.
On top of that, he hadn’t performed well on the math exam just now, which only added to his frustration.
Frowning, he had no appetite and returned to the classroom early.
But he happened to catch Pei Xingche placing a yogurt on Yun Xiang’s desk right at the doorway.
Almost instinctively, he stepped back.
After waiting a while, he walked in pretending he hadn’t seen a thing.
There weren’t many people in the classroom at the moment—most were gathered in the back comparing answers with the class top scorer, while a few sat by the windows buried in their work.
Apart from him, no one should have discovered Pei Xingche’s secret.
Yes, Shen Zhe was almost certain now: Pei Xingche liked Yun Xiang.
His heart sank. Rarely showing his emotions, his face darkened, and his gaze turned murky and grim.
Even if he was unwilling to admit it, Pei Xingche was indeed a formidable rival in love.
What infuriated him even more was his suspicion that Yun Xiang had been deliberately distancing herself from him lately—all because of Pei Xingche!
So that was it. She’d already found a replacement, which was why she was so eager to shake him off.
Her whole play-hard-to-get act was just to string him along!
Shen Zhe clenched his fist, forcing down his anger.
Now he didn’t need to be soft-hearted at all. Just like Jiang Yangze said—get her drunk, take her straight to bed, snap some photos and record some videos afterward, and use them to threaten her. See if she’d dare to resist.
Shen Zhe’s mind churned relentlessly, and the more he thought about it, the more excited he became. A sharp glint flashed behind his black-rimmed glasses.
His gaze swept over that carton of yogurt—it was an eyesore no matter how he looked at it.
Turning his back, he secretly hid the yogurt under his desk, planning to toss it in the trash when he found the chance.
This wasn’t the first time he’d done something like this.
In past years on Valentine’s Day, a few cards would always appear in Yun Xiang’s desk, and he’d disposed of every single one for her.
At that moment, a very tall girl in the last row stood up to throw away trash and noticed the yogurt missing from Yun Xiang’s desk. She furrowed her brow.
She’d clearly just seen Pei Xingche, the school heartthrob, sneakily placing something on Yun Xiang’s desk again.
Actually, even before Pei Xingche had transferred to Class Five, she’d once caught him slipping a card into Yun Xiang’s desk.
An Wuyang yawned, casually averting her gaze, deciding not to meddle in other people’s business.
After all, it was only natural that the timid weren’t chosen.
No one was to blame.
The placement exam flew by over two long yet short days.
What followed was the most agonizing part—waiting for the results.
The homeroom teacher of Class Five, who was also their math teacher, was named Wang Yi, nicknamed “Minister of Foreign Affairs.” He was a middle-aged man with a half-bald head and eyebrows that were nearly invisible.
Before he even approached the classroom, his hearty laughter could be heard from inside.
Clearly, there was good news.
The students in the classroom felt their tense hearts ease a little.
This math exam had been tough, and they were all uncertain about their performance, but hearing Old Wang’s laughter, things were most likely looking up.
At the very least, the class average wouldn’t be too low.
Old Wang walked into the classroom and, seeing the grinning students, immediately darkened his face. He tossed the teaching ruler onto the podium and scowled at them:
“What are you laughing at? You still have the nerve to laugh?”
“Jiang Yangze, I’m talking about you—the only one in our class who failed. You really outdid yourself!”
The class: …
Jiang Yangze hung his head in shame, his face cycling through shades of red and purple.
Great. He’d probably have a hard time explaining this when he got home.
“But we do have a few outstanding students in this class,” Old Wang shifted his tone, his barely visible eyebrows arching with pride. “The only perfect score in the entire grade is right here in our class.”
A wave of groans swept through the classroom.
They’d all taken that exam, so they knew exactly how difficult it was to get a perfect score.
Many eyes turned to An Wuyang, the math class representative, since she was usually the one with the highest score in the class.
An Wuyang raised one slender eyebrow, initially not wanting to comment, but when she turned her head and met her deskmate’s clearly enthusiastic, admiring gaze, she quickly shook her head in denial: “It wasn’t me.”
She’d gotten stuck on the last part of the final bonus question too.
Hearing An Wuyang’s words, everyone grew even more curious, all guessing who could have gotten the perfect score.
If Old Wang weren’t still at the podium, they might have started placing bets.
Of course, some guessed it was Shen Zhe, the class study committee member. Shen Zhe shook his head, his expression sour.
It couldn’t be him—he’d left several questions blank.
Yun Xiang, sitting next to Shen Zhe, blinked very lightly, feeling inexplicably nervous.
Could it be him?
Was he really that impressive?
“Stop guessing,” Old Wang said with a beaming smile, looking at Pei Xingche, who was sitting in the last row next to the trash can. “It’s our new classmate, Pei Xingche.”
With that, Old Wang started clapping, leading the applause.
The entire class erupted. Applause rang out from all directions as incredulous gazes turned toward Pei Xingche—the girls’ eyes clearly burning with more fervor and excitement.
Pei Xingche twirled his pen, his expression cold and aloof, his clear black-and-white eyes utterly unruffled.
If Yun Xiang had been just a little closer to him, she would have heard the smug young man’s triumphant inner voice:
[Is that all? I could ace that exam with my eyes closed.]
[Babe, were you blown away by how handsome I am? My bad.]
[Lost all sense of direction—today I’m just too damn cool.]