Was I jealous?
Had he really been jealous?
Impossible!!!
Ding Yebai kept thinking about it all night, tossing and turning. Even when he went to school the next day, he was still thinking about it.
During the extended break, he stared blankly at the blackboard, thinking about what had happened the day before.
Lu Shuai came back to himself and patted his desk. "Xiao Bai, did you hear that our class is getting a new student?"
"No."
"I heard he came from Jinghuai University. His major wasn't a good fit, so he came back to repeat his final year."
"I see."
Ding Yebai had absolutely no interest.
Lu Shuai said, "I heard he's a really handsome guy. Your position as the class heartthrob might be in danger."
Hearing "class heartthrob," Ding Yebai became slightly interested. He looked at Lu Shuai. "What?"
Just then, homeroom teacher Zhang Wei walked in with a tall, slender, handsome boy wearing glasses.
He had fair skin and delicate features, and his light, graceful steps made him incredibly easy to like.
Zhang Wei said, "All right, all right, everyone sit properly. Let me introduce you all. This is the new student in our class, Li Pingqiu. He'll be studying with everyone this year. Let's welcome him with a round of applause!!!"
As soon as he finished speaking, enthusiastic applause rang out through the classroom.
Li Pingqiu smiled faintly at everyone and said in an unhurried manner, "Hello, everyone. My name is Li Pingqiu, and I'm twenty years old. I was in the class two years ahead of you. After the Gaokao, I was admitted to Jinghuai University, but the major wasn't to my liking, so I chose to repeat my final year."
He spoke with refined manners, and with that face of his—like a jade-like gentleman from a painting—he was practically a walking "heart-stealing device."
Lu Shuai turned around to look at Ding Yebai, then glanced at Li Pingqiu.
Hmm...
These two were obviously different types.
Xiao Bai looked cool and aloof, while Li Pingqiu was the gentle-as-jade type.
But girls probably all liked someone like Li Pingqiu.
After all, he looked like an absolute sweetheart.
Zhang Wei said, "Li Pingqiu, go sit with Lu Shuai. He doesn't have a deskmate."
Lu Shuai's smile instantly froze as he watched helplessly while Li Pingqiu carried his backpack over, narrowing his eyes into a smile.
Lu Shuai stood up and turned sideways to let him get inside and sit down.
"Thanks."
"Oh, oh, no problem."
And so, the class's first incident of two boys sitting together took place.
Ding Yebai sat behind them. He looked at Lu Shuai, then at Li Pingqiu.
His female deskmate patted his arm and pointed at Li Pingqiu, wearing a knowing smile. "Hey, Ding Yebai, don't you think those two look kind of perfect together?"
??????????
Ding Yebai furrowed his brows in confusion and asked incredulously, "What makes them a good match?"
"A roguish athletic guy and a gentle, considerate top student. How perfect are they?"
"..."
Speechless, Ding Yebai turned his head away and let out a deep sigh.
"You're hopeless."
"What?"
"Nothing."
"Oh."
The first math class after the extended break
It was another familiar session of working through practice papers.
At a certain point, the math teacher would always ask, "Who's finished? Bring your paper up to me."
Usually, Ding Yebai was the only one who took his paper up.
But this time, Li Pingqiu went up with his paper too.
The two of them squeezed into the aisle and stared at each other.
Li Pingqiu pushed up his glasses and gestured for him to go first.
Ding Yebai glanced at him and walked toward the podium.
The math teacher was delighted.
There was no need to mention Ding Yebai—he was the teacher's pride and joy. And Li Pingqiu was an outstanding top student too.
After the two of them handed in their papers, they quietly waited.
A while later, the math teacher finished grading them and handed the papers back to the two of them.
Ding Yebai had a perfect score, while Li Pingqiu had gotten one multiple-choice question wrong.
Li Pingqiu smiled faintly and pushed up his glasses.
Ding Yebai's face showed no expression. He was already used to this.
After they returned to their seats, Li Pingqiu began studying the question he had gotten wrong, while Ding Yebai took out another paper and started working on it.
After a while, class ended. Once the students had handed in their papers, some put their heads down on their desks to sleep, while others worked on problems.
Li Pingqiu turned around and patted Ding Yebai's desk. "Ding Yebai."
Ding Yebai found it strange that he was calling his name. "What is it?"
Li Pingqiu asked, "How do you solve the last multiple-choice question?"
His eyes and brows held a smile, and he was radiantly cheerful and gentle.
Ding Yebai took the paper and explained it to him.
The two of them discussed it as they spoke, and they inexplicably clicked.
Of course, that only applied to math problems.
A few minutes later, Li Pingqiu suddenly understood. "Thanks."
"No problem."
Seeing that he was about to turn back around, Ding Yebai called out, "Hey, wait."
"Hm?"
"Are you from Jinghuai University?"
"Yes."
"Then have you ever heard of Yang Zhi?"
"?"
"?"
"?"
The three of them looked at one another, then turned toward Ding Yebai in unison.
Lu Shuai knew about Yang Zhi's relationship with Ding Yebai. He was merely puzzled as to why Ding Yebai had suddenly asked about her.
The other two were simply curious.
Li Pingqiu said, "I... saw her picture. Since she was an outstanding student, her photo was displayed on the bulletin board."
"Mm. Got it."
He nodded slowly, pretending not to care at all. He spun his pen in his hand a few times, caught it, and began working on the problem.
Li Pingqiu looked at Lu Shuai questioningly. Lu Shuai shrugged and shook his head, his expression clearly saying, Who knows what this ice-cold guy is thinking?
Li Pingqiu blinked blankly. He took another serious look at Ding Yebai and suddenly realized that something was off about his expression.
His face looked expressionless, but in reality, it was obvious: he was paying attention. He cared.
Come to think of it, how did he know Yang Zhi?
Before you continue