Chapter 33

A Uppercut, First Semester: Chapter 31, Chapter 29: A Date Between Honor Students (Not Really) After staying up all night to finish the book Shiina had recommended, Yuan Yuyuan dragged his battered body into the classroom the next day. Unlike Yuan Yuyuan, who arrived just as the bell rang, Ichinose had come to class early. Seeing him looking half-dead, she asked curiously, "Good morning, Yuyuan. Did you not sleep well last night?" "Oh, I spent too long wandering through the ocean of knowledge last night and lost track of time. Don't worry about it." Ichinose nodded. So he'd been reading. She'd thought something had happened to him. Yuan Yuyuan figured there was nothing worth paying attention to in the morning classes, since not a single word had made it into his ears. "Wake up, dummy. School's over already." Seeing that Yuan Yuyuan was still lying motionless on his desk, Himeno Yuki grabbed his shoulder and was about to start shaking him. Yuan Yuyuan was actually awake; he was just a little sleepy and wanted to lie there a while longer. But when he felt the hand that had once squeezed his throat resting on his shoulder, he instantly snapped wide awake. "No, no, I'm up! Please, Lady Himeno, spare me!" "Quit fooling around and let's go." "Coming, coming." Yuan Yuyuan wasn't a masochist, but he kind of liked Himeno Yuki's attitude. Kanzaki was far too serious. They were friends, yet he acted like they were in a superior-subordinate relationship, always making Yuan Yuyuan feel like he was somehow Lu Xun himself. After the two exchanged a few words, Yuan Yuyuan parted ways with Himeno Yuki. He still had one very important thing to do: go on a date with Shiina, a meeting of the honor students... Just kidding. By the time Yuan Yuyuan reached the library, Shiina was already sitting inside, reading. She didn't have dark circles under her eyes, so it seemed she hadn't waited until the last day to remember their agreement, unlike him. "You're here early, Shiina." "You're here, Yuan. Please, sit down." As soon as Yuan Yuyuan sat down, Shiina looked at him with sparkling eyes. He knew exactly what that meant, so he took out the book she had recommended and said, "Shall I go first? Let me start with my opinion. It really is a rare and wonderful book. James M. Cain is every bit the master people say he is, and I'm grateful to Shiina for giving me the chance to read this masterpiece." Seeing Shiina smile so brightly at his polite words, Yuan Yuyuan felt a rare pang of guilt. But he'd already set the tone so high, so he had no choice but to keep going. "The title is especially profound. The original reason the postman rings twice is to make sure the recipient hears the knock. It was also the secret signal the real-life model for the heroine, Ruth, arranged with her lover to get the insurance policy after they murdered her husband. And yet, the postman never appears in the book. But when you consider the story's details—the Greek man who only died after surviving two murder attempts, the heroine who only died after two car crashes, and the hero who was sentenced to hang after two trials—you can't help but sigh at how good and evil are ultimately repaid in kind. It's like how evil people may escape punishment for a time, but they can never avoid it forever." After Yuan Yuyuan finished, even Shiina couldn't help giving him a gentle round of applause in the library. "I didn't expect you to notice all that. You really read it carefully, Yuan." "You're too kind. This is the first book you've ever recommended to me, Shiina. Of course I had to appreciate it properly." Yuan Yuyuan lied without batting an eye. He'd stayed up all night reading the book only so Shiina wouldn't catch him out. He hadn't had any time to think about his impressions of it. He'd actually looked all that up on his phone while eating with Himeno Yuki. Thank goodness his memory was good, or he wouldn't have remembered such a long speech. Once Shiina had sincerely shared her feelings about finishing Boy's Life, Yuan Yuyuan felt guilty again. But there was nothing he could do—because of his intermittent amnesia, sometimes he just couldn't remember these things. (He was sure of it.) Seeing Yuan Yuyuan lost in thought, Shiina Hiyori assumed something she'd said was wrong and asked cautiously, "Um, Yuan, do you think what I said was wrong?" "Not at all. I just feel that my understanding is still so shallow compared to yours. It's embarrassing." "No, no, I should be thanking you, Yuan..." Seeing that the library was about to turn into a mutual admiration club, Yuan Yuyuan quickly interrupted Shiina before she could continue. "Why are you suddenly being so formal with me, Shiina? Is it because I spoke without thinking a while back?" "Don't tease me, Yuan! Let's just read." Shiina still blushed a little as she remembered the scene when she'd recommended the book to Yuan Yuyuan. "All right, all right. You're just too cute when you're embarrassed, so I couldn't help—" "Don't say another word..." Yuan Yuyuan didn't push things too far. The two started reading, just as they had before, but Shiina was unusually quiet today. She usually shared the amusing parts with him. P.S. I'm shocked! This chapter was up for three months before I was told it violated the rules??? First Semester: Chapter 32, Chapter 30: The Horikita Siblings' Past "Farewell, prison!" After school that afternoon, Yuan Yuyuan, who'd been counting down the minutes until the bell, started laughing. Shiina was cute, but she was so timid when she got embarrassed that aside from nodding to each other when they parted, they hadn't said a word the whole time. He'd been pretty bored. Just then, Yuan Yuyuan's phone chimed with a notification. He took it out and saw, to his surprise, a message from Prime Minister Horikita. Prime Minister Horikita: [Are you free tonight?] Yuan Yuyuan instantly regretted opening the message. Was this guy planning to drag him off to do some hard labor? But he'd already seen it, and the message had been marked as read, so he wasn't going to let him get away with it! Yuan Yuyuan: [Unread.] To his surprise, the stranger saved in his contacts as Prime Minister Horikita wouldn't stop pestering him. Prime Minister Horikita: [Come to the Student Council in half an hour. I have something very important to discuss with you.] ...Rank really did have its privileges. If it was something important, then he had no choice. Yuan Yuyuan ate dinner without tasting it, then trudged toward Manabu Horikita's office. This time, he didn't bother knocking; he opened the door and walked right in. "You're here. Sit down." Manabu Horikita didn't need to tell him. Yuan Yuyuan had already flopped onto the familiar sofa. Manabu Horikita knew he was a lazy bum, so he didn't waste time with unnecessary chatter. "Suzune said she wants to talk with me. What do you think?" "??? I thought you'd found some dirt on Nagumo. That's it? This is the important matter you called me over for?" Yuan Yuyuan had lost his free time and couldn't care less about Manabu Horikita's dark expression. "Come on, you're such a siscon. Would it kill you to be honest with her? You called me over for this, and your conscience doesn't hurt?" "Maybe you're right. Suzune really hasn't grown up at all." "Hey! Don't ignore me!" "Everything she's done has been to catch up with me. She came to Advanced Nurturing High School, wanted to make it into Class A, and even grew her hair long because of something I once said." That got Yuan Yuyuan's attention. He'd always thought Horikita Suzune was just a poor imitation of Manabu Horikita. He hadn't realized she was a hopeless brocon, too. Why did that suddenly make him feel so turned off? "Ahem. Since you've asked so sincerely, I'll tell you. Do you remember what I said to you the last time we went out to eat?" Manabu Horikita didn't know why Yuan Yuyuan had brought that up, although...