Heart United

The bell rang for the end of class, and Gu Jiaming slumped onto his desk to doze off.

Going to bed late every day and waking up in the early hours was still hard on a kid's body, but his mind had gotten used to it. When he had nothing to do, he'd habitually zone out or nap to make up for lost rest.

He hadn't given much thought to the mother and daughter who'd been chased down at dawn today. After taking out the killer, the two women—one older, one younger—had begged for his help in English. He just pretended not to understand and slipped away under cover of night, figuring the survivors wouldn't recognize him in their relief.

But when he, Lingjing, and Huaisha jogged to that grassy slope that morning, the dozen-plus bodies found in the woods and on the slope had already caused a huge uproar. In fact, from the first glance, Jiaming had recognized the killer's identity—a member of Peiluojia's Asia branch, codename Aqi. In his original life, when Jiaming officially became a killer at seventeen, this guy was still alive—wild, bloodthirsty, and flashy to the extreme. Because of that flamboyant nature, Peiluojia only rated him B+, but in terms of real skill, he was already at A-grade level.

Taking out a crazy killer was no big deal. The problem was that Peiluojia would definitely investigate this. Though it was unlikely to trace back to him, it still nagged at his mind. Also, when he left in the dark, the little girl's soft cries of "Help, help me..." were actually kind of nice to hear... I'm really twisted, he thought to himself.

Even though he'd entered the same school as Lingjing and Huaisha, the three of them weren't in the same class. Xinghui Middle School had three classes per grade. Generally, top students like Lingjing were in Class One, average students like Jiaming were in Class Two, and troublemakers like Huaisha, who was always picking fights, were naturally placed in Class Three. Since they were separated like this, Jiaming had free time to zone out and rest, though during breaks, Lingjing and Huaisha would often come find him.

The classroom was noisy and chaotic. He'd barely dozed off when someone suddenly slammed his desk, making him jolt upright. He focused and saw it was the same guys who'd cornered Huaisha in a dead end yesterday. The fat one leading them had a gauze patch over his mouth and nose, looking pretty ridiculous. Jiaming couldn't help but laugh as he yawned. "You looking for Shasha? She's in the next class over."

"Go to hell! I'm here for you today!" Seeing the kid dare to laugh at him, the fat guy roared, and the whole classroom went silent. His eyes swept around, a little uneasy, then he grabbed Jiaming by the collar and yanked him up. "Come out with me."

With a lazy, sleep-deprived expression, Jiaming meekly followed him out.

Truth be told, these guys weren't really looking for Liu Huaisha. That girl was way too fierce—she carried a baseball bat everywhere and fought like she was out for blood. The school couldn't let something like that happen, so they'd targeted Jiaming, who was supposedly the weaker one.

The five of them shoved and jostled Jiaming out of the classroom, cursing under their breath. "You were pretty cocky yesterday, huh?"

"Not so brave today, are you?"

"Try that again if you've got the guts."

The first-year classrooms were on the first floor. The five of them pushed the silent Jiaming toward a secluded spot. Some students playing nearby whispered and pointed, probably wondering why the usually quiet Gu Jiaming had pissed off these high school thugs. But as they passed the Class One classroom, a girl burst out shouting.

"What do you think you're doing!"

With a pretty face, two pigtails, and a light blue floral dress, Ye Lingjing, the class monitor of Class One, charged out like a warrior. She reached for Jiaming's hand, but two guys blocked her.

"Who are you to him? Mind your own business!" Two high schoolers pointed at Lingjing.

"I don't care!" The usually gentle girl didn't back down an inch. She shoved one guy's hand away. "Let him go, or I'll tell the teacher!"

Jiaming smirked. The high schoolers laughed mockingly. "Haha, she says she'll tell the teacher..."

Before they could finish their taunt, Lingjing took advantage of their distraction and kicked one guy hard in the shin. She shoved with both hands, sending another tumbling into the grass nearby. She practiced martial arts daily—though to Jiaming it looked like fancy footwork—and despite her delicate appearance, she was much stronger than most girls. The student in the grass was fine, but the one she'd kicked with her red leather boot staggered and fell, clutching his shin and howling.

Truly, birds of a feather... Jiaming chuckled inwardly. The shinbone was one of the most vulnerable spots—a trick Huaisha had taught Lingjing during their downtime.

When Jiaming had been dragged out, the middle schoolers playing on the grass had already noticed. Now that a fight had broken out, everyone nearby was watching. The fat leader hesitated for a moment when he saw the refined Lingjing strike first, then took a step forward. But Jiaming subtly lifted his left leg, and with a "thud," the fat guy fell flat on his face. He hit the ground so fast that his face smacked the dirt without any grace. When he lifted his head, tears in his eyes and grass stems all over his face, blood was already streaming from his nose—the same one Jiaming had blackened yesterday—soaking the gauze around his mouth and nose.

Fights between kids didn't have much technique. The remaining two students shoved Jiaming hard. They were a full head taller than him and Lingjing, so they weren't scared. Jiaming dodged clumsily, deflecting one shove, and the guy's momentum sent him crashing into the other. They tried to charge again, but a girl had already burst out of the classroom—Liu Huaisha.

Wearing the blue-and-white Xinghui uniform, looking like a straightforward tomboy, Sister Liu swung her meter-long baseball bat and sprinted toward them. The momentum made the two high schoolers freeze. Jiaming was a little stunned too. This girl, trying to kill someone?

"Liu Huaisha! Gu Jiaming! Ye Lingjing! What do you three think you're doing!?"

At that moment, a thunderous roar rang out. The middle school's discipline director had spotted the commotion and was charging down from upstairs. Hearing the teacher's shout, the high schoolers scrambled to escape, but Liu Huaisha didn't seem to want to let them go. She closed in and swung the bat viciously. Jiaming quickly moved to stop her.

"Jiaming, move... ah..."

"Shasha, don't... mmph..."

With a "thud," the two kids slammed into each other and tumbled to the ground. Jiaming ended up on the bottom, with Huaisha sprawled on top of him. The teacher's voice grew closer. The three high schoolers fled first, followed by the fat guy with blood gushing from his nose and the limping lackey. When they got up, both kids were covering their lips.

That collision had them landing almost mouth-to-mouth, both hit hard. Ignoring the shouting discipline director, the girl's cheeks flushed slightly as she waved her bat. "Why'd you block me!"

Jiaming shrugged and lowered his hand. Blood seeped from his lip. He rolled his eyes. "It's busted..."

"Serves you right!" Huaisha yelled. "Mine's busted too!"

"Are you okay?" Seeing both her friends bleeding from the mouth, good-girl Ye Lingjing forgot the discipline director still yelling nearby and crouched down to check their wounds. Then the director's roar shook the whole campus.

"You, you... you three are driving me crazy! Liu Huaisha! You actually dared to hit someone with a baseball bat at school! And Ye Lingjing and Gu Jiaming, you joined in too! You... I'm making you stand on the grass for the whole morning! Let the whole school see you three! Tomorrow, write me three self-criticisms and hand them in—I'm announcing this to the whole schooooool (echoing endlessly)!"

So when the bell rang for class, the three of them were left alone on the grass in front of the teaching building. Any student glancing out the window could admire their heroic poses.

"Damn, that bald bastard dared to yell at me. In a few years, I'll find someone to trash his whole family..."

Liu Huaisha vented her hatred for the bald discipline director. That jerk had confiscated her bat—no big deal, she had plenty more at home. She'd bring a sturdier one tomorrow!

"Are your mouths okay?" Lingjing asked worriedly, earning a barrage of dirty looks from Huaisha toward Jiaming.

"Lingjing, you need to keep an eye on your boyfriend. He just stole my first kiss in front of everyone."

After saying that, Huaisha tried to act casual but couldn't help blushing. Lingjing spat lightly, her face flushed red. Huaisha always spoke without a filter, hanging around with gangsters. Lingjing had once cried over being called "Jiaming's wife," but after hanging out together so long, she'd gotten used to it. Still, they were just thirteen- or fourteen-year-old kids, and with so many people watching, she smiled slyly after a moment. "Well, my good-girl reputation is totally ruined now, thanks to you two."

They'd been in middle school for over a semester, and though they always stuck together, this was the first time they'd fought in public like in elementary school. After a moment, the silent Jiaming yawned.

"Yeah, standing here is boring. I'm thinking... we should skip class."

As soon as he said it, both girls' eyes lit up.