After eating and drinking their fill, the group dispersed and headed back to their respective homes.
Even though there were no evening self-study sessions at school today, Qiao Muyu, who was studying at home, didn’t have the slightest intention of relaxing. As usual, he arranged a pile of practice problems for himself.
The midterm exam was coming up next Monday, and he had to seize the remaining two days to brush up on his weak points.
Before he knew it, he had been hunched over his desk grinding through problems for two hours. After writing the final answer, Qiao Muyu tossed his pen aside, stretched his arms, and stood up to move around a bit.
After pouring a glass of warm water and returning to his room, he picked up his phone—which had long since finished charging—from the desk. Touching the screen to light it up, he saw five unread message notifications popping up.
He clicked in to see that the content of the messages was identical, all from the same person.
[Z.] has added you as a friend. Accept?
Verification Message: Lu Zhen.
Qiao Muyu: “…”
Why did this guy send five requests in a row? He must be really bored.
He put down his water glass and casually tapped “Accept.” A second later, a message from the other side popped up on the screen.
[Lu Zhen]: I forgot to add you before. Sorry.
Qiao Muyu’s fingertips paused. This person had suddenly become so polite; he really wasn’t used to it.
[Qiao Muyu]: No worries, I forgot too.
[Lu Zhen]: Still awake this late? Are you studying?
Qiao Muyu, who had just finished a set of practice papers, felt his heart skip a beat: No wonder this guy reached out to chat; he’s here to scout out my revision progress, isn’t he?
So, he decisively chose to mislead his opponent.
[Qiao Muyu]: Nope, I was just reading a manga.
[Qiao Muyu]: I got so absorbed that I didn’t see your message. My bad.
[Lu Zhen]: What manga?
[Qiao Muyu]: Nothing special, just an obscure original manga.
[Lu Zhen]: What’s it about?
Damn, why is he still asking?
Stunned, Qiao Muyu could only make something up on the spot.
[Qiao Muyu]: It’s about the world’s greatest martial arts master who went years without a rival. But in a certain competition, he was defeated by an unknown, mysterious swordsman. The master refused to accept it and practiced bitterly, vowing that one day he’d reclaim the title of number one and crush that swordsman under his feet…
The story Qiao Muyu spun sounded quite legitimate, but in reality, it was just a “magical realism” version of his own mental journey since meeting Lu Zhen. He figured it was enough to fool him.
After reading it, the other side sent back a reply that made Qiao Muyu’s vision go dark.
[Lu Zhen]: Interesting premise. So, did they end up together?
[Qiao Muyu]: ⊙_⊙?
[Qiao Muyu]: Together? What do you mean?
[Lu Zhen]: The two protagonists you mentioned.
[Lu Zhen]: Isn’t this a romance manga?
[Qiao Muyu]: What does this have to do with romance?! This is clearly a hot-blooded shonen battle manga!
[Qiao Muyu]: They are both guys! GUYS! And they’re arch-rivals! How could rivals ever end up together?!!!
[Lu Zhen]: Oh.
[Lu Zhen]: That’s a shame.
[Qiao Muyu]: ……^p^
What the hell is this guy “shaming” about? Can someone please understand me?
Fortunately, Lu Zhen didn’t dwell on the non-existent manga and shifted the topic to other things—from recent weather to the cafeteria menu. Not a single word was productive.
After Qiao Muyu was dragged through a long, confusing chat, he accidentally caught a glimpse of the time in the top right corner of the screen and jolted upright in bed.
Crap! It’s almost twelve! I haven’t done my two mandatory pre-sleep English reading exercises!
Wait, something’s wrong.
Is this kid intentionally stalling for time to delay my studies? Did I actually fall for his trap?
What a… what a sinister plot!
With this thought, Qiao Muyu’s fingers flew across the keyboard.
[Qiao Muyu]: Anyway, it’s late. I should sleep. You should rest too. Goodnight.
[Qiao Muyu]: [Kitten tucked into a blanket sleeping.jpg]
He killed the conversation instantly, giving the other guy no chance to start a new topic.
Seeing the other person could only politely reply with “Goodnight,” Qiao Muyu tossed his phone aside with great satisfaction. He sat back at his desk, flipped open his exercise book, and began to work furiously.
Sleep? Screw that. I’m pulling an all-nighter to out-study everyone!
…
Because of Lu Zhen’s interruption, Qiao Muyu accidentally overdid the late-night studying.
The next morning, he arrived at school yawning incessantly, looking completely drained.
Taking advantage of the time before morning self-study began, he slumped over his desk to catch up on sleep.
In a half-asleep haze, he vaguely heard a rustling sound at the corner of his desk. He lifted half his face from the crook of his arm and squinted, seeing a large shopping bag.
Looking further up, he saw the face of the culprit who had cost him an hour of sleep last night.
Lu Zhen caught his gaze and greeted him first: “Morning.”
“…Morning.”
Qiao Muyu propped up his face lazily, looking at the bag on his desk with confusion: “What’s this?”
“Plum candy,” Lu Zhen said. “Bought it for you.”
Qiao Muyu blinked: “Why buy this for me?”
Lu Zhen: “Don’t you like it?”
Qiao Muyu was slightly stunned. Could it be that during yesterday’s dinner, Lu Zhen noticed he liked these and specifically bought them for him?
Since it was a kind gesture, Qiao Muyu felt awkward refusing, so he said: “Oh, thanks.”
He opened the bag and was shocked to see it filled with a vast variety of plum candies in all sorts of packaging. “This many?”
He had reason to suspect Lu Zhen was trying to feed him to death to eliminate a competitor.
“I didn’t know which brand you liked, so I bought a bit of everything,” Lu Zhen explained. “You can take your time eating them.”
“Young master, I’m not picky. I can eat any brand.”
Saying this, Qiao Muyu casually picked one out and unwrapped it. The plump green plum was coated in a layer of white sour plum powder; it looked quite appetizing.
Sour foods naturally help with alertness, which was perfect for shaking off his current drowsiness.
He popped the plum into his mouth. But the expected sweet-tart fruitiness didn’t arrive; instead, a violent wave of sourness shot straight to his brain, making his teeth chatter.
Seeing his expression shift, Lu Zhen asked: “What’s wrong?”
Qiao Muyu was too sour to speak. He twisted open his water bottle, took a huge gulp to wash down the intensity, and then grabbed another plum of the same brand, shoving it into Lu Zhen’s hand. He said crossly: “Try it yourself!”
Not knowing what to expect, Lu Zhen took it and put it in his mouth. Two seconds later, his brow furrowed as well, and he silently reached for his water.
Seeing him suffer, Qiao Muyu couldn’t help but laugh: “I thought you were pranking me on purpose! This brand’s powder is way too sour. It almost dissolved my teeth.”
Meeting Qiao Muyu’s eyes—which were dancing with schadenfreude—Lu Zhen reached a solemn conclusion: “I won’t buy this brand anymore. Throw the rest away.”
However, Qiao Muyu thought of something, his lips curling into a mischievous smirk: “Nah, keep ’em. These are perfect for pranks.”
He turned around and called out to Du Jingfei, who was wiping the blackboard on the podium: “Du Jingfei! Big brother’s treating you to candy!”
“Coming!”
Seconds later, a heartfelt curse rang out in the Class 1 classroom.
“Pah! Qiao Muyu, you jerk!”
“Haha!”
After finishing his prank, Qiao Muyu ran back to see Lu Zhen still standing by his desk, looking like he had something to say.
Qiao Muyu: “Something else?”
Lu Zhen nodded slightly and asked: “What are your plans for today?”
Qiao Muyu: “Classes.”
Lu Zhen: “I mean after school at noon. Are you free?”
Today was Saturday, so there were only half-day classes. Since the afternoon was a normal holiday, Qiao Muyu didn’t have any special plans.
But his intuition told him there was a catch. He didn’t rush to answer, instead raising an eyebrow: “Why?”
Lu Zhen said: “A new art exhibition just opened at the downtown gallery. You’d probably be interested. Want to go see it together?”
Hearing the words “art exhibition,” Qiao Muyu’s eyes lit up, but then a wave of suspicion hit him.
Wait, this isn’t right.
The midterm is this Monday. On the most critical two days before the exam, you’re inviting me out to play? And you chose the thing I’m most interested in? You’re clearly trying to distract me and intentionally mess with my revision!
Qiao Muyu was impressed by his own sharp analysis. His eyes darted around as he feigned a sigh: “Aww, what a shame. My cousin is coming over this weekend. I have to stay home and take care of him. I can’t go to the gallery with you. Such a pity.”
Lu Zhen: “Cousin?”
Qiao Muyu: “Yeah, he’s super clingy. Wherever I go, he follows like a little shadow. I can’t shake him off.”
Like hell. There was no such person as a “cousin.”
Lu Zhen seemed to believe him. After a moment of thought, he suggested again: “You can bring him along. That exhibition is kid-friendly; a lot of parents bring their children.”
“No!” Qiao Muyu refused without thinking.
“Why?”
“Because he…” Qiao Muyu lied with a straight face, “He’s blind.”
Lu Zhen: “?”
Qiao Muyu switched to a mournful expression instantly, his eyes downcast as he choked out: “Born that way. Nothing can be done. You don’t understand—my cousin is so pitiful. He can’t even watch cartoons, let alone see an art exhibition…”
If Lu Zhen pushed any further, he’d be a monster. He could only say: “Oh. Then some other time.”
“Mhm, mhm. Definitely next time.”
After brushing him off, Qiao Muyu sat down in his seat, his mind still dwelling on what just happened.
Lu Zhen’s sudden kindness over the past two days was truly baffling.
First, he intentionally let him win in the game, then he chatted with him late into the night, and now he was actively inviting him out for the weekend. This was a complete 180 from his previous cold and indifferent attitude. It was hard not to suspect he had an ulterior motive.
After thinking it over, Qiao Muyu could only come up with one reason: Lu Zhen hasn’t been studying well recently, thinks he’s going to fail the midterm, and wants to drag me down with him.
Heh, unfortunately for you, your little trick has been exposed by the brilliant me.
The top spot of the grade will surely be mine, Qiao Muyu’s!