Chapter Summaries

After returning from the mountain, Chen Shi'an and Li Wanyin divided their abundant wild mushrooms, and Chen delivered some to Lin Meng Qiu and Wen Zhixia. Wen Zhixia gave him homemade dumplings, invited him upstairs, and learned he would eat dinner at home with Li Wanyin before meeting her again at six fifteen.

• Li Wanyin sorted the mushrooms Chen Shi'an had gathered and packed two bags for him to give to Uncle Lin and his classmates.
• Chen Shi'an messaged Lin Meng Qiu, who confirmed she was home while her father was away, and arranged to bring her mushrooms.
• Chen Shi'an met Wen Zhixia outside her building, where she gave him dumplings from her mother and accepted a bag of mushrooms.
• Wen Zhixia invited Chen Shi'an upstairs, but he left to deliver the other bag to Uncle Lin and said he would eat at home with Li Wanyin.
• Wen Zhixia told her curious aunt that Chen Shi'an was her classmate and good buddy, then arranged to meet him at the intersection at six fifteen.

Chen Shi'an delivered wild mushrooms to Lin Meng Qiu, who gave him a new water bottle before he left. He returned home to share a mushroom dinner with Li Wanyin and Shi Mo, where Li Wanyin toasted their first proper meal as roommates and wished them well for her new job.

• Lin Meng Qiu waited anxiously for Chen Shi'an, then opened the door after watching him through the monitor and blushing when he revealed he had heard her waiting nearby.
• Chen Shi'an gave Lin Meng Qiu wild mushrooms and explained how to cook them, but declined her offer to stay for dinner because he was eating with his roommate.
• Lin Meng Qiu gave Chen Shi'an a new sports bottle and claimed she had bought it for herself but no longer needed it.
• Chen Shi'an returned home, where Li Wanyin prepared lion's mane mushroom chicken soup and several mushroom dishes while he kept her company in the kitchen.
• Li Wanyin served dinner with orange soda for Chen Shi'an and Shi Mo, then toasted their first proper meal as roommates as Chen Shi'an wished her luck with her new job.

Chen Shi'an and Wen Zhixia walked to evening self-study, where she lent him middle school science textbooks and offered study advice. Chen Shi'an declared his goal of taking first place in science, and Wen Zhixia wondered whether he might eventually challenge Lin Meng Qiu.

• Chen Shi'an and Wen Zhixia met on their way to school and talked about his mountain foraging, herbal tea, and pine nut candy.
• Wen Zhixia gave Chen Shi'an her old physics, chemistry, and biology textbooks, then learned that Lin Meng Qiu had already lent him math workbooks.
• Chen Shi'an told Wen Zhixia he planned to take first place in science and, if he had time, first place in humanities too.
• Wen Zhixia told Chen Shi'an that weekly tests would begin that evening and asked about his progress in Chinese, math, and English.
• Chen Shi'an said he had memorized 1,964 English words, and Wen Zhixia offered to lend him English reading materials and help with combined science.

Chen Shi'an took the first subject of Yunqi No. 1 High School’s weekly test, a Chinese exam, after receiving duplicate middle school science textbooks from Lin Meng Qiu and Teacher Liang. He finished quickly and earned Teacher Liang’s praise for a likely score above 120, while Lin Meng Qiu remained irritated by his repeated efforts to hide his answers.

• Lin Meng Qiu brought Chen Shi'an a set of middle school science textbooks, which he stacked with the books Wen Zhixia and Teacher Liang had provided.
• Teacher Liang gave Chen Shi'an another set of science textbooks, but Chen Shi'an declined them because he already had the books he needed.
• Teacher Liang began the weekly Chinese test and told the class they had two and a half hours to complete it.
• Chen Shi'an read the passages before answering, while he and Lin Meng Qiu each mistook the other's glances for attempts to see their answers.
• Chen Shi'an wrote an unconventional argumentative essay and completed the test before Lin Meng Qiu.
• Teacher Liang reviewed Chen Shi'an's paper, estimated his score at over 120, and praised his improvement.

Chen Shi'an left evening study to make pine nut candy and stomach-soothing tea, while Lin Meng Qiu secretly enjoyed the snacks he left her. At home, Li Wanyin helped shell pine nuts and discovered that Chen Shi'an had no palm lines.

• Chen Shi'an promised Lin Meng Qiu pine nut candy and stomach-soothing tea, then left her pork jerky before going home.
• Lin Meng Qiu secretly ate the jerky and left a bottle of milk on Chen Shi'an's desk.
• Chen Shi'an and Wen Zhixia walked home together, playfully fought over a pebble, and Wen Zhixia took it with her when they parted.
• Li Wanyin told Chen Shi'an she had spent the evening shelling pine nuts for his candy, and he joined her on the couch to finish the task.
• Li Wanyin watched Chen Shi'an crack pine nut shells with his fingers, examined his hand, and noticed that he had no palm lines.

Chen Shi'an made pine nut candy with Li Wanyin and shared it with her, Wen Zhixia, and Lin Meng Qiu. As he explored the city and considered what his own Dao might be, Fat Ink established himself as the boss of nearby stray cats.

• Chen Shi'an cooked pine nut candy while Li Wanyin recorded him, and they tasted the finished batch together.
• Chen Shi'an set aside candy for Li Wanyin, Wen Zhixia, and Lin Meng Qiu before going to sleep.
• Chen Shi'an explored a new area of the city and pondered what it meant to follow his own Dao.
• Fat Ink became the leader of the stray cats within two kilometers and stayed busy gathering food and defending territory.
• Chen Shi'an gave Wen Zhixia a bag of pine nut candy on their walk, and she shared one piece with him.
• Chen Shi'an secretly handed Lin Meng Qiu her promised candy at school, and she quickly hid it in her desk drawer.

Teacher Wan paid Chen Shi'an his Douyin video earnings, and Chen Shi'an posted photos from his mountain-foraging trip. After seeing Chen Shi'an score 125 on a Chinese test, Lin Meng Qiu and his classmates were shocked by how quickly he was improving, while Chen Shi'an compared papers with Lin Meng Qiu and asked her for advice.

• Teacher Wan showed Chen Shi'an that his video had earned 6,765.8 yuan and transferred the full amount to him.
• Chen Shi'an checked his Douyin account, found over eight thousand followers and many messages, then uploaded photos from his trip to Waterwheel Mountain.
• Teacher Wan asked Chen Shi'an to teach the Eight-Section Brocade to Class Five and Class Eleven during their joint PE lesson.
• Lin Meng Qiu examined Chen Shi'an's Chinese paper and found that he had scored 125, only ten points below her own score of 135.
• Chen Shi'an compared answers with Lin Meng Qiu, pointed out a question she had missed, and listened as she explained how his essay structure had cost him points.
• Zheng Yining and Xie Mengxuan were surprised that Chen Shi'an scored 125 despite never having attended school, and Lin Meng Qiu decided to bring him writing books.

Chen Shi'an drew attention with his 125 on a Chinese test, then spent lunch and the afternoon preparing to teach the Eight-Section Brocade and play badminton. Wen Zhixia and Lin Meng Qiu both invited him to play, leaving him baffled because he did not know badminton.

• Chen Shi'an's classmates marveled at his 125 Chinese score and discovered that he had written his placement-test answers in classical Chinese.
• Chen Shi'an and Wen Zhixia discussed their Chinese scores over lunch, and she was delighted to learn they shared PE that afternoon.
• Chen Shi'an agreed to lead the Eight-Section Brocade practice, while Lin Meng Qiu recalled her embarrassing fall into his arms during the fitness test.
• Wen Zhixia invited Chen Shi'an to play badminton after practice, and Lin Meng Qiu later approached him with her own invitation.
• Chen Shi'an was confused when Lin Meng Qiu went to fetch badminton equipment, since he had never agreed to play and did not know how.

Chen Shi'an taught Class Five and Class Eleven the first two sections of the Eight-Section Brocade during their shared PE lesson. After class, Lin Meng Qiu and Wen Zhixia both asked him to play badminton, and he suggested they play together, leaving the girls to choose opposite courts.

• Class Five and Class Eleven assembled for PE, and Teacher Wan and Teacher Liu arranged for Chen Shi'an to teach both classes the Eight-Section Brocade.
• Chen Shi'an demonstrated the first two sections and corrected students' breathing and movements, including Lin Meng Qiu and Wen Zhixia.
• The classes practiced seriously and finished early, so Teacher Wan and Teacher Liu dismissed them for free activities.
• When Xu Zihan invited Chen Shi'an to play basketball, Wen Zhixia and Lin Meng Qiu each asked him to play badminton instead.
• Chen Shi'an took both girls' rackets and suggested they play together, and Wen Zhixia and Lin Meng Qiu pointed toward opposite courts.

Chen Shi'an watched Wen Zhixia and Lin Meng Qiu battle in a badminton match, then played both girls himself and beat them decisively. The PE lesson ended with the girls baffled by his unexpected skill.

• Chen Shi'an chose the middle court and watched Wen Zhixia and Lin Meng Qiu exchange powerful badminton shots.
• Wen Zhixia and Lin Meng Qiu played a seven-point match while Chen Shi'an kept score, with classmates gathering to watch.
• After a disputed final shot, Chen Shi'an ruled that Wen Zhixia's shuttle had landed out, giving Lin Meng Qiu the win.
• Chen Shi'an played Lin Meng Qiu and defeated her seven-zero, then beat Wen Zhixia by the same score.
• The bell ended the lesson as Wen Zhixia and Lin Meng Qiu remained bewildered by Chen Shi'an's badminton ability.

After PE, Lin Meng Qiu enjoyed an easy conversation with Chen Shi'an and later startled her classmates by asking to resign as class monitor. The class and Teacher Liang urged her to stay, and Chen Shi'an’s question about what to call her prompted her to reclaim the title.

• Lin Meng Qiu reflected on why she felt comfortable talking with Chen Shi'an even though friendly conversations with other classmates made her feel pressured.
• Chen Shi'an noticed a scrap of tissue on Lin Meng Qiu’s face and asked to learn badminton from her during the next PE class.
• Teacher Liang held a class meeting and invited students to resign from or recommend themselves for class officer positions.
• Zhong Ying and several other officers resigned, then Lin Meng Qiu announced that she wanted to step down as class monitor and proposed Qiu Yufu as her replacement.
• Qiu Yufu refused the position, and the class voiced unanimous support for Lin Meng Qiu to remain monitor.
• Chen Shi'an asked what he should call Lin Meng Qiu if she resigned, and she sat down and told him to call her class monitor.

Teacher Liang filled the class officer vacancies as students volunteered for subject representative roles to motivate themselves, and Chen Shi'an became the mental health committee member. The chapter ended with Chen Shi'an suspecting that Lin Meng Qiu had a serious problem she would not share.

• Teacher Liang invited students to fill the open class officer positions, and Huang Jinghan volunteered as physics representative to push herself to improve.
• Bai Yong volunteered as Chinese representative for the same reason, and students soon filled the chemistry and biology representative positions as well.
• Chen Shi'an asked about the remaining committee roles and volunteered to be mental health committee member, explaining that he could offer guidance based on his Daoist practice.
• Teacher Liang appointed Chen Shi'an, and Zheng Yining asked whether she could confide her worries to him in confidence.
• Chen Shi'an offered to hear Lin Meng Qiu's troubles, but she denied having any, leaving him convinced that she had a serious problem.

Chen Shi'an and Wen Zhixia discussed life, walked around the track, and shared a playful moment on the grass before evening study. Chen Shi'an’s reputation as a hidden top student faded when he turned in a blank math test.

• At dinner, Chen Shi'an explained his views on life to Wen Zhixia and invited her to visit Pure Dust Temple on Mysterious Peak Mountain.
• Wen Zhixia’s friends teased her after seeing her eating with Chen Shi'an in the cafeteria.
• Chen Shi'an and Wen Zhixia walked around the track, then sat on the grass and compared their legs while she secretly took a photo of them together.
• After Chen Shi'an’s Chinese score of 125 sparked rumors that he was a top student, he handed in a blank paper for the weekly math test, ending the speculation.

Chen Shi'an shared a pine nut candy video and discovered Li Wanyin’s Douyin account, including recordings of her singing. After Wen Zhixia and Lin Meng Qiu watched the video and investigated the voice, both recognized it as Li Wanyin’s, while Lin Meng Qiu quietly liked and commented on Chen Shi'an’s post.

• Chen Shi'an returned home, shared mung bean sweet soup with Li Wanyin, and listened as she described her first day at work.
• Chen Shi'an posted a video of making pine nut candy, then insisted that Li Wanyin show him her Douyin account.
• Chen Shi'an watched Li Wanyin’s singing videos and teased her about the lyrics, leaving her embarrassed.
• Wen Zhixia watched Chen Shi'an’s video, recognized Li Wanyin’s voice, and found that Li Wanyin was the new account in Chen Shi'an’s following list.
• Lin Meng Qiu watched Chen Shi'an’s video, confirmed that Little Echo was Li Wanyin rather than Wen Zhixia, and left a positive comment.

Chen Shi'an prepared personalized medicinal teas for Wen Zhixia, Lin Meng Qiu, and Li Wanyin, then met Wen Zhixia in the rain and gave her a month’s supply of beauty and wellness tea. As they walked to school, they joked about the rain and his popular Douyin videos, while Wen Zhixia kept her social media account private.

• Chen Shi'an blended thirty servings each of beauty and wellness tea for Wen Zhixia, stomach-soothing tea for Lin Meng Qiu, and calming tea for Li Wanyin.
• Chen Shi'an left Li Wanyin a message about her tea and carried Wen Zhixia's tea to their rainy morning meeting.
• Wen Zhixia and Chen Shi'an walked toward school, joked with their umbrellas, and discussed the rainy weather.
• Chen Shi'an gave Wen Zhixia her tea and explained how to brew it, and she thanked him and offered to buy him lunch and grilled sausages for the week.
• Wen Zhixia asked about Chen Shi'an's popular Douyin posts and refused to show him which account was hers.

Chen Shi'an gave Lin Meng Qiu stomach-soothing tea and helped her brew it, while she discovered that its warmth eased her discomfort. During a rainy-day break, he played Gomoku with classmates and lost to Lin Meng Qiu after she used a forbidden move.

• Zou Xiaokun admired Chen Shi'an's old black umbrella and learned that Chen had replaced its canopy himself.
• Chen Shi'an gave Lin Meng Qiu thirty packets of stomach-soothing tea and brewed her first cup; she drank it despite its bitterness and felt warmth in her stomach.
• Lin Meng Qiu admitted that the tea felt effective, and Chen Shi'an advised her to keep caring for her stomach while taking it.
• Chen Shi'an inspected Lin Meng Qiu's perfect math paper and learned that Xu Zihan had scored 118 on the weekly test.
• Chen Shi'an beat Zheng Yining and Xie Mengxuan at Gomoku, then invited Lin Meng Qiu to play him.
• Lin Meng Qiu made a forbidden double-four and overline to win, then ended the game as Chen Shi'an protested.

Chen Shi'an and Wen Zhixia played badminton after school, and she invited him to watch a movie at her home on Sunday. They left the court in high spirits after Chen Shi'an repaired their shuttlecock’s feathers.

• Wen Zhixia and Chen Shi'an played badminton, and he won every point while giving her an easygoing practice match.
• After Wen Zhixia ran out of stamina, she shared her water with Chen Shi'an, and they joked about him carving her frustrated expressions into a wooden figure.
• Wen Zhixia asked whether Chen Shi'an had plans for the weekend and invited him to her home on Sunday afternoon to watch The Legend of 1900.
• Chen Shi'an and Wen Zhixia packed up their equipment and headed to eat, and he skillfully smoothed the shuttlecock’s damaged feathers.

Chen Shi'an took his weekly English test after rapidly teaching himself thousands of words, and Teacher Ye was delighted by his strong performance. After evening study, Lin Meng Qiu invited him to dinner at her home, then learned her father would be away the next day.

• Chen Shi'an took the weekly English test and finished quickly, confident he had earned at least around 115 points.
• Teacher Ye checked Chen Shi'an's paper, estimated he had scored in the 120s or possibly 130, and praised his progress outside the classroom.
• Chen Shi'an told Teacher Ye that Wen Zhixia helped him study English and Lin Meng Qiu taught him English handwriting.
• Lin Meng Qiu compared Chen Shi'an's handwriting with hers and saw that they looked similar.
• Lin Meng Qiu invited Chen Shi'an to dinner at her home on Saturday, and he agreed.
• Lin Meng Qiu messaged her father and learned he would be away for training the next day.

Li Wanyin explored the West River as she began planning a milk tea stall, while pretending to her coworkers that Chen Shi'an was her boyfriend to discourage their advances. When she returned home, her friends Wu Jia Yun and Yan Yufei surprised her and demanded to inspect her phone.

• Li Wanyin passed her new employee training assessment and stayed late to prepare materials before leaving work.
• Li Wanyin told a male colleague she had a boyfriend, then posted a cropped photo with Chen Shi'an for her coworkers to see as proof.
• Li Wanyin researched food stalls along the West River and decided a milk tea stall had more potential than selling sweet soup, though she still needed money, equipment, and a distinctive selling point.
• Li Wanyin returned home to find Wu Jia Yun and Yan Yufei waiting on the stairs, and they teased her about living with Chen Shi'an and tried to take her phone.

Li Wanyin's college friends Wu Jia Yun and Yan Yufei visited, teased her about living with Chen Shi'an, and waited to meet him. After Chen Shi'an returned, the friends acted demurely, then left and excitedly praised his looks in their group chat.

• Wu Jia Yun and Yan Yufei searched Li Wanyin's apartment, sampled her Tranquility Tea and Chen Shi'an's Pine Nut Candy, and teased her about him.
• Li Wanyin's friends video-called Yang Lu Qi and decided to stay until they could meet Chen Shi'an.
• Chen Shi'an returned home at 9:55 p.m. and greeted Wu Jia Yun and Yan Yufei, who suddenly behaved politely.
• Chen Shi'an offered his guests fruit and snacks, then went to shower while Li Wanyin stayed with them.
• Wu Jia Yun and Yan Yufei left before Chen Shi'an finished showering and messaged Yang Lu Qi that he was handsome, urging Li Wanyin to seduce him.