First

Luo Di returned to his seat and unexpectedly found someone new there. His gaze met that of a petite girl with blunt bangs, barely over five feet three inches tall.

They simply looked at each other, and the atmosphere became somewhat awkward, as though Luo Di had forgotten the name of this classmate.

Just as Xiao Ying was about to introduce herself,

Luo Di suddenly said, "Li Xiaoying."

"Mm..."

"Mm."

Luo Di nodded and began packing up the things on the lounge chair.

By the time the final group of students had finished their match, today's school-opening assessment had officially come to an end.

Most of the students in the class were limping, and more than ten needed to be hospitalized.

Even the relatively uninjured students had no reason to feel fortunate. They knew full well that tonight's match had been utterly inadequate. They had been completely suppressed and had to make changes in the final six months.

Luo Di was the first to finish packing and left the gym at a brisk pace.

"Luo Di, wait..."

Gao Yuxuan jogged after him, walked shoulder to shoulder with him, and carefully asked about Zombie Transformation.

Seeing this, the class monitor frowned slightly and hurried after them. But halfway there, she suddenly remembered something, spun around with a swift, dance-like turn, and looked toward the girl still standing in the rest area, too stunned to react.

"Xiao Ying! After tonight's fitness test, the cafeteria will have free late-night snacks. Want to come with us?"

"Okay!"

Xiao Ying grabbed her backpack before she could even zip it up and chased after them with an awkward, same-arm-same-leg running gait, trailing behind the three of them.

Cafeteria

Everyone used to go home before six, so they had never eaten dinner in the school cafeteria, let alone a late-night snack.

Since Jupiter City was an immigrant city primarily inhabited by people of Chinese descent, the entire cafeteria mainly served Chinese food. The familiar fragrance of chili oil greeted them as soon as they entered.

The serving counter was filled with freshly cooked toppings, including but not limited to bamboo shoot braised beef, braised pork ribs, minced meat sauce, stir-fried pork with green peppers, and more.

Meanwhile, the cafeteria ladies were boiling springy noodles made from high-quality flour in huge pots.

The toppings were unlimited, and students could serve themselves as much as they wanted. Each bowl also came with a freshly fried egg.

Although it was delicious, most students still cared about the calories. After all, it was already nighttime, so most only ordered small or medium bowls.

Luo Di was the same. In his view, eating too much at night would affect his sleep.

Both he and Gao Yuxuan got small bowls of pork rib noodles.

Xiao Ying, who had not said a word the entire time, got herself a small bowl of dry mixed noodles with fried minced meat sauce. She timidly followed behind the class monitor to the table where the other three were sitting.

Then... Bang!

A heavyweight large bowl slammed onto the tabletop.

Everyone's attention was drawn over, and only then did Xiao Ying realize that the class monitor had ordered a large bowl of noodles piled high with beef, pork ribs, and an oversized fried egg.

"Xiao Ying, don't just stare at me. Hurry up and eat~"

"Oh."

Sitting beside the class monitor, Xiao Ying did not dare raise her head at all, because Luo Di was seated directly across from her.

The class monitor introduced her while eating. "Oh, right. Xiao Ying will be with us from now on. Whenever it's time to eat, if I have to go handle class monitor duties, remember to bring Xiao Ying along."

Gao Yuxuan, seated across from them, gave an OK gesture, while Luo Di silently ate his noodles.

The delicious late-night noodles were quickly wiped clean, and the class monitor had clearly enjoyed her meal the most.

It was also Xiao Ying's first time learning that the class monitor could eat so much. For a moment, she even felt a little sad.

In her eyes, the class monitor ate so much yet maintained such a good figure. According to conservation of energy, she must have spent an unknown amount of time on intense after-school training.

Bang! The class monitor set the large bowl she had been holding back on the table again. Even the soup inside had been completely drained.

After wiping the oil from the corner of her mouth, the class monitor brought up a topic. "By the way, are you planning to live on campus? You can save commuting time, and cafeteria breakfasts are free too."

Gao Yuxuan pushed up his glasses. "I'm somewhat neurasthenic. I prefer sleeping alone."

"What about you, Luo Di?"

"My home isn't that far. It's only a twenty-minute bus ride. Besides, my mom makes breakfast for me in advance, so there's no need to live on campus."

Hearing that, the class monitor looked helpless. "Ah~ But I've decided to live on campus. I've already discussed it with my family. For the final six months, I'll devote all my energy to studying and preparing at school.

What about you, Xiao Ying?"

"I-I haven't decided yet. I'll discuss it with my family when I get home tonight..."

The class monitor immediately threw an arm around Xiao Ying's shoulders. "Live on campus, live on campus! As long as you decide to stay, I'll immediately go talk to Little Ruan and have him assign us to the same dorm room. Then we can eat together in the mornings and go to class together. Having company will make campus life much richer."

"Okay." The moment she heard that she could share a dorm room with the class monitor, Xiao Ying immediately agreed, despite not having discussed it with her family yet.

The next day

The first class in the morning was their homeroom teacher's Physical Education Class.

However,

This Physical Education Class was unexpectedly held inside the classroom, mainly to announce yesterday's results and arrange future evening classes.

Ruan Zhijun was still wearing his military uniform, but subtle expressions revealed the joy he was trying to hide.

"First, congratulations to all of you. Our class's average score has improved again, and we are now second in the grade. In last night's assessment, two students deserve special recognition.

Wu Wen broke the school records for both sprinting and long-distance running, ultimately placing fourth in the grade.

After the teachers stayed up late discussing and evaluating Luo Di's overall results, he was ultimately ranked first in the grade."

The entire class immediately burst into thunderous applause.

The class monitor smiled and gave Luo Di, who was sitting by the window, a thumbs-up.

"Additionally, apart from those two students, Gao Yuxuan, Xu Dianjun, and Li Xiaoying have also placed within the top fifty in the grade.

Your evening classes will be assigned to the elite group for special training."

Xiao Ying, sitting in the front row, could hardly believe it. She usually ranked around one hundredth in the grade. She had never expected to improve so much this time. In her eyes, this progress was inseparable from the encouragement the class monitor had given her last night.

When she turned around to look at the class monitor, the other girl had already made a finger heart at her.

"The rest of you who did not make it into the elite group need not be discouraged. I'll give you the training most suitable for you... Oh, right! Luo Di, Wu Wen, go to the Principal's Office now. It's good news."

The class monitor sprang to her feet and was already standing at the classroom door, vigorously waving Luo Di over.

"You're so slow~ The principal is looking for you, and you still seem so impatient, huh?"

Luo Di did not respond. He quietly walked through the corridors of the Teaching Building.

The Teaching Building and the Administrative Building where the principal was located could be reached directly through an interconnected circular skybridge.

After the two passed through the classroom area and made sure that talking would not disturb the lessons in other classes, Luo Di, who had remained silent the entire way, suddenly spoke.

"Class monitor, is something troubling you?"

"Huh? Why do you say that?"

"It just feels strange that you suddenly became close with Li Xiaoying. The two of you barely had any interaction before."

"Then did you and I have any interaction half a year ago? I only realized last night that Xiao Ying is very talented. And she's cute too, isn't she? Her little round face, and tonight, Xiao Ying and I will be sleeping together in the dorm.

Oh, right. Xiao Ying seems to like you. What do you think?"

Luo Di paused, glanced at the class monitor beside him, then looked ahead again and continued walking.

Who would have thought that the class monitor would quicken her pace and pass him? Just like during winter break in the stairwell, she placed her hands behind her back, giving him an almost impossible-to-ignore hint.

One second,

Two seconds,

Three seconds,

She had thought she had merely tossed a pebble into a bottomless well.

Who would have thought that the well seemed to have been filled with water, and the falling pebble struck the surface, sending up a splash and receiving a response.

A rough yet warm hand gently touched hers.

The two walked across the skybridge and entered the Administrative Building. They climbed the nearly deserted stairs step by step toward the Principal's Office on the top floor.

When they were only one floor away,

Step!

As Luo Di stepped onto the stair at the turn, his vision suddenly warped and even began to spin. He staggered and nearly fell down the stairs.

Had the class monitor not grabbed him firmly, he would likely have smashed his head against the railing.

"Luo Di, are you okay? Did you skip breakfast? Low blood sugar?"

"I had noodles at home... I don't know what happened. I suddenly got dizzy. Are you okay?"

"Of course I'm fine~ Otherwise, how could I have caught you? How about after we see the principal, we go to the school clinic together for a checkup?"

"Mm." Luo Di was still very concerned about his physical condition. Nothing could go wrong before graduation.

Top floor,

The moment they arrived at the door to the Principal's Office, they heard voices coming from inside. The soundproofing made the words unclear, but it seemed to be some unpleasant conversation, perhaps even an argument.