What a Suck-Up

Jimo lowered his eyes as he stood among the crowd. Everyone was still waiting for his response.

A gust of cold wind made the ache in his lower back, which had finally begun to ease, grow worse.

All he wanted now was to return to his dorm and take a hot shower.

Jimo pressed the clothes into Ke Yueyi's hands.

Ke Yueyi watched him quietly without moving.

Jimo paused, but what he said was inconsequential, bound to disappoint the people watching the spectacle.

"It looks like it's going to rain."

"Brother, I'm cold, so I'll head back first."

The faintly hostile gazes around him, the ache in his lower back, the chill throughout his body, and the pressure of his studies...

None of them amounted to much on their own, but with all of them weighing on him at once, faint cracks had begun to appear in Jimo's mask. He was sick of it all.

He didn't want to get mixed up in these matters, and it would be best if he had nothing to do with F4 either. Ke Yueyi was strange. He had been the same way at the racetrack last time, never intervening. Whether others were making trouble for Jimo or ignoring him, Ke Yueyi had always watched him silently from a distance.

Jimo didn't think he would suddenly have a change of heart and genuinely help him this time.

As for why Ke Yueyi was doing this...

Jimo didn't want to investigate. It had nothing to do with him.

Sure enough.

The two held each other's gaze for a long time before Ke Yueyi finally raised his hands and took the clothes.

"Mm."

Before leaving, Jimo suddenly remembered that he probably didn't look well. He turned back and smiled at him before leaving.

The crowd parted of its own accord. Ignoring the various gazes on him, Jimo walked away without looking back.

Leaving it all behind him.

The moment he stepped into the dormitory building.

Rumble!

The sky darkened, lightning flashed, thunder rolled, and rain poured down.

When Jimo returned to the dorm, soaking wet, Zhuang Zhe was astonished.

"You came back in all that rain? Why didn't you ask me to bring you an umbrella?"

Jimo shook his head and put down his books.

"I'll take a shower first. I didn't manage to buy any food, so order some takeout."

"Okay, hurry and wash up. I'll order."

Only after a hot shower and a change into dry clothes did Jimo feel alive again.

When he came out, he found a steaming cup of ginger tea on the table.

Zhuang Zhe said, "Drink it while it's hot."

Jimo smiled, picked up the cup, and drained it in one go. He lay down on his bed, and exhaustion swept over him.

As he drifted toward sleep, Jimo wondered if he was coming down with a fever.

He shouldn't have gone out that afternoon.

After Jimo left, Chen Ziwu lay on the grass for a long time before walking back in a daze. With great difficulty, he accepted a fact.

He couldn't beat Jimo, a weakling who looked like he'd never worked out.

And yet Jimo's moves had clearly been efficient, fast, precise, and ruthless.

His fighting techniques were seasoned.

Chen Ziwu couldn't make sense of the contradiction.

He made up his mind to go see him again.

There were few people on this road, and it was quiet. Anything said could be heard clearly, so Chen Ziwu easily caught what the two were talking about.

"Why did you pull me away just now? The student council obviously sent someone to do it. Why wouldn't you let me say so?"

The other person sounded a little angry. "Li Shuangjian, you were the one they were after in the first place. Are you trying to get yourself killed faster? Jimo has Young Master Yi protecting him. What could happen to him?"

"That rotten temper of yours—don't learn from that stubborn mule Jiang Wangshu, or sooner or later the student council will get you expelled..."

Before the special-class student could finish, he turned and saw Chen Ziwu looking at him from a short distance away. His eyes widened, and he immediately lowered his head.

Chen Ziwu frowned and asked, "Did you just say Jimo?"

"Yes... he accidentally had a bucket of water dumped on him in the cafeteria just now."

"Hah? Serves him right."

Chen Ziwu's first reaction was amusement, but then his expression grew a little strange. "Who dumped it on him? He's so good at fighting, and he still got bullied?"

Jimo had just knocked him down, only to get bullied right afterward?

The special-class student was a little confused by his words. Wasn't this the student council's doing?

He didn't dare say too much, so he could only stammer, "Maybe it was the student council."

Chen Ziwu frowned when he heard that. They were targeting Jimo?

How come he didn't know about it?

A few days ago, their president, Huang Zhenghao, had been afraid Chen Ziwu would cause trouble and had specifically warned him not to bother Jimo for the time being.

Not that Chen Ziwu had listened.

The special-class student was anxious, afraid of offending him again.

To his surprise, Chen Ziwu simply walked away after hearing him out.

By the time Chen Ziwu reached the cafeteria, most of the people had already left.

He looked around but didn't see Jimo.

Instead, among the crowd, he saw someone sitting on the ground with his back to him, looking dejected. With people coming and going, wasn't he afraid of being stepped on?

Chen Ziwu approached and recognized him as a freshman who had joined the student council this year. He was usually quite active and enthusiastic about every event, so Chen Ziwu remembered him.

"What are you doing here? Where's Jimo?"

The man looked up and visibly jolted at the sight of Chen Ziwu. Then he grabbed him in agitation. "Brother Ziwu, you... you have to help me. I'm dead this time."

Chen Ziwu slapped his hand away. "Slow down. What happened?"

The man rambled on incoherently for a long time.

Chen Ziwu finally understood. This was the person behind it, and through a twist of fate, he had ended up drenching Jimo.

"I didn't mean to. That Li Shuangjian was too arrogant, so I thought I'd teach him a lesson..."

Chen Ziwu knew exactly what he was thinking and finished coldly, "And show off in front of F4 while you were at it, so they'd promote you, right?"

Everyone knew He Zhenglin loved watching a spectacle. That was how Huang Zhenghao had originally been pushed into the position of president by He Zhenglin.

"Yes." The man's face was pale.

"Then wait for death."

At the thought of the looks F4 had given him when they left, he began trembling uncontrollably.

Jimo had left, and F4 had followed right after him.

Although they hadn't explicitly said what they would do to him, everyone understood.

They had said to Jimo, "I'll give you an explanation."

That was enough.

Naturally, there would be people eager to go after him until F4 was satisfied.

He had been kneeling there for so long, yet no one had dared come over and speak to him, including the student council colleagues who had helped come up with the idea.

He had brought it on himself, and he was an idiot. Chen Ziwu felt no sympathy whatsoever and kicked him away. "I can't help you with this."

The man fell to the ground, the hope in his eyes fading bit by bit. Everyone knew what kind of life awaited him.

"However..."

Chen Ziwu paused. He didn't know what had prompted him, but he added one more thing.

"Go beg Jimo. As long as he's willing to forgive you, F4 will naturally let you off."

The rain continued into the night and poured all night long. Whenever Jimo woke up, he could hear it beating against the window.

After the rain, the temperature dropped another few degrees.

Winter had officially arrived.

Jimo pulled the quilt tighter around himself and sneezed several times, his head feeling a little heavy.

Zhuang Zhe handed him a thermometer. "Serves you right. Let's see if you dare get caught in the rain again."

A little later, Jimo took it out and checked: 37.8 degrees, a low fever.

Jimo was thoroughly dissatisfied with this body. Before, he could have gone swimming in a river in winter without getting sick all year.

Jimo said in a hoarse voice, "Ask the teaching assistant for a leave of absence for me. I'll submit the form later."

Today's classes weren't too important, and in his current state, he wouldn't be able to take anything in anyway.

Zhuang Zhe disagreed. "No need. I'll secretly answer roll call for you."

After Zhuang Zhe left, Jimo slept a little longer. When he felt more energetic, he got up and forced himself to eat some breakfast.

He didn't have much time to rest. He still had a pile of analysis reports to write.

News of Jimo being drenched soon spread everywhere. Zhuang Zhe went out and only then learned that Jimo hadn't gotten wet in the rain that day.

With finals approaching, there were far fewer classes. Jimo stayed in the dorm doing assignments, too lazy even to check his phone, and didn't go downstairs for several days straight.

Zhuang Zhe brought all his meals back for him.

"I brought you seafood congee today."

"Thanks."

Zhuang Zhe put the food on Jimo's desk. Watching Jimo concentrate on the academic papers on his screen, he seemed to want to say something but hesitated.

Eventually, even Jimo noticed something was wrong and looked up.

"What is it?"

Zhuang Zhe looked conflicted. "Are you over your illness?"

"Yeah, I am."

"Oh."

With that, he went back to his own desk.

Jimo gave him a puzzled look. "Is there something you want to ask me?"

Zhuang Zhe thought for a moment and shook his head. "No."

Better not say anything.

He had run into someone downstairs for several days in a row. Zhuang Zhe had heard from others that this was the culprit who had made Jimo sick.

So when the man begged him to pass a message to Jimo, Zhuang Zhe had refused at once.

It couldn't be anything good. If it were, he wouldn't have come looking for them.

After eating, Jimo put on a thick down jacket. Before he could leave, Zhuang Zhe spoke up.

"Where are you going?"

Jimo glanced at him. "To take out the trash."

Zhuang Zhe immediately stood up. "I'll take it out. Mine's full too."

He took Jimo's trash bag, but when he opened the door, he found Jimo right behind him.

"Aren't you going back inside?"

"I'll come with you and get some sun."

His assignments were going fairly smoothly, and Jimo was in a good mood. After staying in the dorm for so long, his hands and feet felt a little cold, and some sun would make him more comfortable.

But Zhuang Zhe stood blocking the door without moving.

"The sun's too strong right now. Wait until later this afternoon."

Jimo frowned and stared at Zhuang Zhe without speaking. When the other's expression grew a little uneasy, he abruptly asked, "What's going on outside?"

"Huh?"

Zhuang Zhe played dumb. "Nothing."

Before long, he gave in under Jimo's gaze.

"All right, I give up. I knew I couldn't hide it from you. Someone from the student council has been waiting downstairs for you. The dorm supervisor won't let him in, though. It's been days, and I keep running into him whenever I go to or come back from class."

"Waiting for me?"

"Yeah. He knows I'm your roommate and has asked me to pass on a message several times, but I ignored him."

"It's fine. Let's go together." Jimo didn't take it too seriously. He couldn't stay in the dorm forever just to avoid some random person.

When they went downstairs, Zhuang Zhe looked around but didn't see the person he'd mentioned.

"That's strange. I definitely saw him when I came up just now."

Maybe he'd gotten tired of waiting and left.

Jimo had said he wanted some sun, so after throwing out the trash, the two didn't immediately go back upstairs. Instead, they headed toward the sports field.

The weather was good today, with bright sunshine, and plenty of students were out and about.

From a distance, the two saw that someone had set up several tables by the activity center and was stopping passersby to help them fill something out.

Zhuang Zhe said, "That's Jiang Yu and the others. They're conducting a survey."

Jimo suddenly remembered something. "How's your part of the market research coming along? Do you need my help?"

"Um..." Zhuang Zhe guiltily looked away. "It's almost done."

Jimo could tell from his expression that he hadn't made much progress.

He was about to speak again when a conversation drifted over.

"Oh, isn't that Jimo over there?"

"Yeah. What's he doing out today? Didn't he boast that he'd take first place, only to turn around and skip class over and over?"

"Keep your voice down. Didn't you hear that student council member who drenched Jimo the other day ended up in a miserable state?"

Jimo looked over. The people speaking were his classmates.

Their voices weren't quiet, and the people around them who heard also turned to look at the person everyone had been talking about for the past few days.

Zhuang Zhe said to them, "Jimo is sick."

No one paid him any attention.

Jiang Yu paused in the middle of sorting the forms and stood up.

In the sunlight, Jiang Yu's blond hair fluttered as he walked over with his head held high and his chest out, like a proud little lion.

He gave Jimo a sidelong glance. "A high score? A high score you got from hanging around F4 every day?"

"What, did they even buy off Professor Xiang for you? You sure know how to suck up."

With so many people gathered around, Jiang Yu was the only one who dared come over, and he still looked down on Jimo. Jimo could tell from Jiang Yu's attitude toward F4 that, unlike the others at the academy, he neither feared nor yearned to be like them.

He even seemed somewhat disdainful.

This class study representative is pretty interesting.

Jimo didn't answer him. He simply pulled a questionnaire from his hands and glanced it over.

Jiang Yu sounded a little irritated. "What are you doing?"

Jimo raised an eyebrow and pointed at the questionnaire in his hand. "Aren't you looking for people to fill these out?"

"Give me a pen."

Jiang Yu froze, his expression turning a little strange.

Jimo's reaction isn't what I expected. What's going on?

When Jiang Yu still didn't move, Jimo reached over and pulled the pen from his breast pocket himself.

"You..."

Jiang Yu glared at him, but Jimo didn't spare him a single glance. Half-bent over, with a stretch of fair neck exposed, he braced one hand on the table and swiftly ticked boxes on the paper.

Jiang Yu stared at that stretch of neck, still in a daze even after Jimo finished filling out the questionnaire.

Jimo straightened up and said to Zhuang Zhe, "Take a picture."

Zhuang Zhe was a little puzzled. "Huh?"

Jimo explained patiently, "You can use their questionnaire format as a reference. These questions are pretty good."

Whenever it came to homework, Zhuang Zhe didn't think twice. Over the past few days, he had done whatever Jimo said, so he immediately pulled out his phone and snapped a picture.

Jiang Yu came to his senses and immediately snatched the form back.

His eyes blazing with anger, he shoved Jimo. "Jimo, you actually want to plagiarize!"

Calling it plagiarism was a bit much. There were tons of questions like these online.

Jimo shrugged indifferently. "I can even buy off Professor Xiang, so why would I be afraid of plagiarizing?"

Jiang Yu had never seen anyone so shameless. Jimo had actually said something like that without a care. Jiang Yu wasn't as quick with his tongue as Jimo, and his face turned red with anger.

Before leaving, Jimo even smiled at him. "I filled out your questionnaire for you. Aren't you going to thank me?"

If the people around him hadn't held him back, Jiang Yu really would have rushed at him.

Even after Jimo left, Jiang Yu couldn't calm down.

"Tell me, how can he admit to buying off a professor so brazenly? Doesn't he feel ashamed? What's so great about hanging around F4 every day? They'll just kick him away once he graduates."

"And he actually took a picture of our form just like that!"

Jiang Yu went on for a long time, but no one answered him. He looked over at them, puzzled. "Why aren't you saying anything?"

His group members looked at him hesitantly. "Jiang Yu, don't you think you always get angry really easily whenever you run into Jimo?"

Yeah, why?

Jiang Yu froze and remained in a daze for a long time.