Xu Xiaoyan dragged her suitcase to the bedside, unzipped it, and began packing.
She moved quickly, hanging a few clothes in the closet, placing toiletries on the table, and a small alarm clock on the bedside table. She pulled a small box from the bottom of her suitcase, opened it, and glanced inside. There was a silver badge engraved with her family crest. She looked at it for two seconds, closed the box, and tucked it under her pillow.
The luggage was packed in less than ten minutes.
She stood in the center of the room, looked around to make sure everything was in its proper place, then walked to the bed, kicked off her shoes, and flopped onto the bed.
The mattress was of medium firmness, the quilt was fluffy and soft, and the pillow had a faint soapberry scent.
Xu Xiaoyan lay on the bed, staring at the ceiling. There was a thin crack on the ceiling, extending from the light fixture to the corner of the wall, like a winding path.
Her mind started playing out a movie again.
The way Zhong Shenxiu walked over from the other end of the corridor. The long sword at his waist, the shoulder-length black hair, and those eyes—light gold, vertical, and when he looked at her, it was as if light burned out from the depths of his pupils. When that gaze fell on her, she felt as if something had looked her over from the inside out, and all her pretense and defenses were as fragile as paper, easily punctured.
Then Zhong Shenxiu gently walked up to her and lifted her chin...
Xu Xiaoyan turned over and buried her face in the pillow.
The pillow was cool, and it felt strangely comfortable against her burning cheeks. She nestled in the pillow for a while, then turned over and let out a long sigh.
tomorrow.
I'll see him again tomorrow.
In a formal class, we sat in the same row in a classroom...
No, there are fewer people in Class Zero, so they can sit anywhere. She can sit next to him, or behind him, or in a seat where she can see him.
Xu Xiaoyan stared at the crack in the ceiling, a smile playing on her lips.
Not every opportunity to get in through connections comes with this kind of setup: a cold and aloof iceberg teacher, a taciturn swordsman classmate, and a sunny and cheerful boy-next-door type—I haven't met them yet.
This lineup, this setup, this appearance...
She rolled halfway around on the bed and pulled the blanket over herself.
As for Xie Xie...
Xu Xiaoyan thought for a moment, and the image of the boy with short brown hair and dark green eyes appeared in her mind. He was kind of handsome, but if he stood next to Zhong Shenxiu, he would probably look like an ordinary passerby.
Irrelevant.
She mentally labeled Xie Xie with this label, then closed her eyes and began to look forward to tomorrow.
The opening ceremony was held early the next morning.
Class Zero stood at the very front of all the first-grade classes without a doubt. The four students lined up in a row.
Yes, there were only four people; Tang Wulin was late.
Wu Zhangkong stood expressionless in the teacher's seat, seemingly unconcerned about Tang Wulin's lateness.
Zhong Shenxiu stood on the far outer edge, at the head of the line. The marks left on him by a month of arduous training in the deep mountains were deeper than anyone could imagine. He had grown taller, and his already imposing figure now towered over Xie Xie stood beside him by more than half a head, completely able to look down on everyone in Class Zero.
His shoulder-length black hair was a little longer than before the holiday, hanging down beside his ears, making his angular face appear even more cold and hard. The Light-Imperial Ninja Blade at his waist hung quietly at his side, the ornaments on the scabbard gleaming with a dark luster in the morning light.
Xie Xie stood beside him, his short brown hair swaying slightly in the morning breeze, his dark green eyes glancing occasionally towards the outside of the queue, as if waiting for someone. He stood there for a while, then tiptoed, craning his neck, his gaze sweeping from the entrance of the square to the edge of the queue, and then back from the edge of the queue to the entrance of the square.
"Why hasn't Wulin arrived yet?"
Xie Xie muttered to himself, his voice low but clearly audible in the quiet standing line of Class Zero. He tilted his head and glanced in Wu Zhangkong's direction, making sure the teacher wasn't paying attention, before lowering his voice again and saying, "Has he forgotten when school started?"
Zhong Shenxiu glanced at a corner of the line.
That spot belongs to Tang Wulin; it's empty.
His gaze lingered on that empty spot for less than a second before he looked away and turned to look at the front of the square.
Xie Xie seemed to be used to Zhong Shenxiu's reaction and didn't expect him to respond. He muttered a couple of things to himself, then put his hands in his pockets, tapped his toes on the ground, and looked up at the entrance to the square.
Gu Yue stood next to Xie Xie, her long, glossy black hair tied in a high ponytail, revealing a section of her fair nape. Her posture was much more casual than Xie Xie's, with her arms crossed in front of her chest. Her face, with its black hair and black eyes, carried a natural aloofness, and her gaze was calmly fixed on the platform in front of the square, seemingly uninterested in Xie Xie's rambling.
"He wouldn't be as unreliable as you; something's probably up."
Gu Yue spoke. Her voice wasn't loud, and her pace wasn't fast, but every word was clear.
Upon hearing this, Xie Xie's expression changed.
He turned to look at Gu Yue, his dark green eyes filled with resentment. His eyebrows rose, his nose wrinkled slightly, and he instantly switched from his muttering state to a reactive mode as if his tail had been stepped on.
What do you mean I'm unreliable?
Xie Xie's voice rose slightly, but he quickly lowered it again. He glanced quickly in the direction Wu Zhangkong was standing, making sure the cold-faced teacher wasn't paying attention, before continuing in a low voice, "I have the highest Soul Power cultivation besides Shenxiu!"
Gu Yue chuckled.
The laugh was soft, a hum from her nose, carrying an undisguised contempt. She finally turned her head, her dark eyes landing on Xie Xie's face, a slight smile curving her lips.
"That's not necessarily true."
Gu Yue's voice was slow and leisurely, like he was teasing a cat with its fur standing on end.
"I didn't indulge myself like you this holiday, Mr. Xie."
She pronounced "Young Master Xie" very clearly, each word carrying a kind of composure that made one's teeth itch.
Xie Xie's expression froze.
He opened his mouth, wanting to refute, but swallowed the words back. His expression suddenly changed, not with anger, but with a guilty conscience after the truth had been exposed.
His eyes quickly glanced in Wu Zhangkong's direction.
Wu Zhangkong in white, he resembled a sword sheathed in its sheath, quiet yet sharp. His gaze was fixed on the podium, showing no reaction to the commotion from Class Zero, not even blinking.
Xie Xie finally breathed a slight sigh of relief.
He let out a very subtle sigh, his shoulders slumped slightly before straightening up again. He withdrew his gaze and looked at Gu Yue again, his expression shifting to a deliberate, slightly defiant nonchalance.
"Hmph, no matter what, I was three grades ahead of you before the holiday."
Xie Xie's voice returned to normal decibels, his chin was raised again, and his short brown hair swayed in the wind.
"The advantage lies with me."
As he said those four words, he pulled his right hand out of his pocket, pointed his thumb at his chest, and his dark green eyes were filled with the certainty that "I'm going to win this round."